My goal was the coveted sub-24 hour buckle, but truly I was happy to just get the blasted plaque. There were some really muddy trail spots and I did lose my shoe once, but overall the trails were in good shape. The weather was ideal: 70’s, partly cloudy, low humidity and very minimal rain. Peter and I had a great crew plan regarding quick exchanges and all my favorite power foods. Looking at my times from last year and times of those who ran sub-24, I knew I had to start out fast and then just maintain. I was mentally prepared not to use my iPod, silly rule they don’t let you listen to tunes, and I was going to be keeping track of my pace on my Garmin geek-o-meter (GPS that I can track my pace and splits). Everything seemed to be in place.
The course is simply..... rolling hills, 14,000 ft of elevation gain same amount of loss. I sorta remembered the terrain and some of the landmarks were switched around in my mind, but it was really nice to see the beautiful course again. There is one hill out of Lincoln Bridge that seems to go on forever, and the one out of Camp 10 Bear mile 70 also seems long but nothing is too steep or technical. The tough part of the course is that most of it is on hardpacked gravel roads. I overheard runners saying “I am saving myself for the last 30 miles”. What I now understand is that this means the climbs/descents don’t get tougher, but this is the point of the course when your body really starts to feel the impact of the roads and every part of your body just hurts.
From the starting line I felt strong, fast, light on my feet...... yet I arrived at Taftsville mile 15 a full 20 minutes BEHIND last years split. I couldn’t believe it, my goal was to run 20 minutes faster. Rats, I couldn’t hardly believe it. I tried to shake it off and carry on, however my split to mile 20 was not that much better. All I could think was that this is not the first time I have set out to run a faster speed only to realize that I am slower. There are times when I have runs where I am miserable and think I am pathetically slow and then I look at the watch and am way faster. So, I decided after mile 20 that I just need to run my run and quit worrying about the times. Although I quit watching the pace I did glance at the splits.... and I started to run my goal splits on time or sometimes a bit faster. I kept my Garmin on primarily because I could also track the distance, it was really nice knowing distance between AS.
I did meet people on the trail and I tried not to chat so much, distracting. Most notably was one of three young fit guys who were running their first 100. Two were ahead and the third I yoyo’d with for most of the day. I forgot his name but he asked me for advise and I told him that he would hate life and be so tempted to quit between 3am and 5am, but I assured him that if he hangs with it, when the sun comes up life all of a sudden feels better. At this time I don’t know if he finished but I sure hope so. I also saw several of the Slammers, Paul from CO, Charlie from UT; and then John from CO and Allan from MN both those guys didn’t make it thru Western States but I was glad to see them at Vermont. Paul was running with his girlfriend Karla who was a ton of fun, happy, had a great laugh, and was a strong runner. It was so cool to see a couple doing this together and amazingly 1 mile from the finish when I passed them they were still making the best of the situation..... wow, I think Peter and I would have battle scars by then.....not really, I actually think we would win the Amazing Race or couples Survivor.
My pacer was Laura, a local from Claremont, NH. Laura works with the youth conservation programs and her husband has a bike shop, he was pacing too. She was exactly what I needed. By the time I got to her I was hurting, we pretty much walked the roads, but I was able to run the trails and the steeper road downhills. I was starting to get a bad attitude and she kept me going. The night was clear, there was a new moon and the stars were bright. The only glowing eyes we saw turned out to be a farmcat who was out on the prowl. We also enjoyed the frog noises when passing by the ponds.
I finished the Vermont 100 just a few minutes faster than last year..... yipee, a PR! I was very happy with my finish, sure I got plaqued and denied the buckle but I always, always, always keep in mind that first and foremost.... I have the ability to endure 100 miles. I am also grateful that my husband and daughter support my nasty habit, and I have seen some fabulous places and met really interesting people during these ultra runs.
There was definately group energy with the handful of slammers I have now met. And it is encouraging that they all had similar thoughts about Western and Vermont.....oh, and we are all nervous for Leadville. Charlie’s fiance Eve said it right with the comment that the Vermont 100 is for runners who train or do other races on roads or hardpack.
Peter seemed to enjoy his time in Vermont. The VT100 website does not have a map and each runner receives a not so good map at the check-in. So, Peter worked hard on making course maps (including AS and roads for crew) prior to our departure. Experiencing the course he will make some changes to the maps, and we will send the race committee a copy. Peter’s brother Jim lives in Maine and he drove over for the weekend. I tried to appoligize in advance for what Jim may witness during an Ultra. It was nice for the brothers to hang out. Peter’s friend Stork also joined him for an afternoon of crew duty on Saturday. He lives in Utah but has family in VT. His daughter Katie made me a couple of signs that they placed on the course “Go Carolyn, runnin’ Ute”....... totally brightened my day! I was sooooo excited, I have never had signs!
Stork with my signs
Oooo, and fun things we did in Vermont: strolled around in Burlington...what a nice city, and visited Ben and Jerry’s, Stowe (ski resort), and the von Trapp family Lodge. We stayed at the On the Hill B&B in Burlington, which I highly recommend. Kay is the Innkeeper and has a very comfy home, the best sheets I ever slept in, a great breakfast and we just wanted to stay and chat with her all morning.
1 comment:
C- It was a blast running with you. Let me know about next year...I'll meet you at 10 bear!
L
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