Monday
08Mar2010

Glasgow to Edinburgh Double Marathon

DateMonday, March 8, 2010 at 9:06AM

The Serpie Army at the startThe Glasgow to Edinburgh ultra was yet another event that has popped up in the past few years to meet the growing demand for long distance running in the UK. Around 100 were registered for 55 miles of canal that joins Scotland two biggest cities. There was a huge Serpentine contingent present, 9 to run, 4 to cycle and later and later on about another 10 to come and sing Happy Birthday to me at the finish. I turned 30 the previous day and was looking forward to celebrate becoming an old man by doing what I love most, running along canals.

I was really pleased just to make it to the start line. 4 weeks ago I stubbed my toe at the Pilgrims Challenge and the whole thing inflamed and was very painful. I could not tell whether it was just badly bruised and inflamed or whether it was broken. Dr Google suggested icing and that even if it was broken there is nothing to be done apart from resting for 6 weeks. I was very worried about my birthday race not even starting but in the last week I could at least run (though I still could not walk properly on it). I had taken a day off work to go to A&E to get it checked out but that was the morning I found out I got into Badwater. I was too excited that I forgot. On Wednesday the toenail fell off and my foot has felt perfect ever since. It was such a relief, my plan was to hobble as much as possible until the pain got too much, now I could run the whole thing. Perfect.

The usual Ultra running pre race shenanigans were taking place. Jumping up and down, doing a few hill strints, strapping feet, queuing for the one toilet and taking "before" photos. Mark Braley was still in his corduroys. Jen Bradley decided to test some 12 hour lipstick and sported the shiniest red lips I have ever seen at the start of a 50 odd mile race. I wonder if running an ultramarathon is covered in the "reasonable use" caveat on the 12 hour guarantee? 

Two things are odd here. Firstly I am ahead of Claire and secondly, she appears to be smiling.I started out too fast, which is inevitable when you try to keep up with Claire Imrie and Nick Copas. Setting quite a fast pace for the first few miles and getting very warm. It was about 10 degrees C and I felt really warm, this does not bode well for when I have to run much further in 55 degrees. My body felt a bit creaky from not doing much running in the past month. I was gutted to have missed a few more races in Feb and a lot of commuting running but was just happy to be out there. I had suffered shin splits and sore ankles like a new runner for the past few runs as I tried to get back into it, none of that was a problem though I suspected that this one was going to hurt more than a 55 miler normally does.

There is often a silly debate as to how far an ultra should be before it can be called an ultra. The point is moot to me since the "marathon" distance itself is based on a combination of fiction and the laziness of our King to stand and watch the finish of a 25 mile race. 50 miles is often regarded as where ultras start proper, they become very different from 26.2 mile races at that point. Claire, Nick and Jen were running further than they had done before today. All were making pretty easy work of it.

The first checkpoint was at 13 miles which we covered in around 1.40. 4 years ago on my birthday I ran the Berkhamstead half marathon in about 1.45 which was a pb at that time. I love remembering these times when I was even slower than I am now. That was before I had even heard about ultras. I feel like such an idiot, wasting a Birthday on a half marathon. I was however feeling a bit hungry and sick. I needed food but there was none at the checkpoints. It was later pointed out to me that this was made clear in the instructions, I really should start reading those some time. With only energy drink I was in for a struggle as I usually do these things on solid food. 

The TunnelI have been reading a lot more of the sciency stuff about eating and hydration recently. Articles that kind of suck the fun our of running my saying nasty things like you shouldn't stuff your face full of pizza and chips the day before the race. I normally give such articles a miss and head to the chip shop. Since reading more about Badwater, hydration and renal failure I have decided that I need to be a bit more textbook about eating and drinking if I am to get through the tough summer I have planned. That didn't stop my huge consumption of pizza and chips the night before though, making the 10th biggest mistake here, and now I was feeling both sick, hungry and very sleepy. I would have killed a red bull.

After about 18 miles I let Claire and Nick steam on ahead. I was already starting to crash a bit and the prospect of finishing this in daylight seemed distant. I strolled into checkpoint 2 which was 24ish miles and briefly chatted to Graeme who was wearing a Fetch top. I didn't even ask his name, I just knew it because he said he was running the Western States 100 this year and I knew the name of the only Irish person on that roster. I said my name and he immediately shouted "Spartathlon". Funny how we all know each other through our races.

This checkpoint was next to Falkirk Wheel. There is a visitors centre next to this weird looking metal thing that cartwheels boats vertically for 30 meters. I had not seen many locks on the canal up until now and it seems here they just make do with one big massive lock rather than lots of small ones. I stopped for quite a while at this point and stretched as my groin was very tight. This is a recurring problem that I need to deal with and will do through yoga in the coming months. I was suprised to see Nick jump out of the visitors centre after I had stopped for so long but he looked like he was slowing down a bit too. I was happy to run with him for a bit while I took some photos of some interesting parts of the canal.

Soon after that checkpoint there was a long tunnel which made quite an eery running experience. It was very dark and the floor didn't appear to be all there. It was cobbled and wet all along as water would come gushing down from the ceiling but sometimes I'd think I was about to step into the canal. It lasted about half a mile as was oddly pleasant. 

The path was really good to run on and there were only a few puddled sections, road shoes were a good choice. I was a little disappointed by the lack of activity on the canal. There were very few boats and I only saw one actually moving. The Grand Union Canal "back home" is usually more alive with people on barges and pubs located on the waterfront. There weren't even any ducks or geese, not that I care about the latter. Maybe it's the recession, when times are hard the duck feeding is always the first to go.

Around 30 miles I had caught up with Nick who wanted to keep moving and left me behind to take photos. Mark Cockbain also jogged past me and also complained about the lack of food. It seems that the more ultras you do the less you read the instructions and sometimes it can be costly. I was still feeling quite weak and Nick told me that he was going to call it a day at the next checkpoint. It was sad to hear but had silver lining, he donated all of his food to me. He read the instructions and carried a load of cliff bars with him. I was more than happy to take them off him and stuffed one down like a fat man would who'd been stuck in a lift for 4 hours. The next checkpoint was at 34 miles. I was running for about a mile at a time and then stopping to stretch and empty my shoes. I had lots of stones in my shoes but could not get rid of the uncomfortable feeling on my feet. It turns out I was going to be visited by some old friends again.

Falkirk WheelAt the third checkpoint I sat down for a while again and stretched. It was here I met Phil Owen who was looking out for some runners behind me. It was nice to chat and talk about some other races coming up. I felt a bit better for having eaten something and was ready to get moving again. I carried on with the intention of running for a couple of miles or so and then stretching. Until this point I was being a slave to my garmin, or rather it was reminding me of just how much slower I was getting. I had the display set on average pace which crept up from 7.40 early on in the race and was now heading towards 9. I knew I was now going much slower than that and was getting a bit frustrated with it going up all the time so I solved the problem the easiest way, I just switched it off. I felt a weight off as now all that was displayed was distance and the time of day. I was now only determined to finish not long after 6 so that I can get in before dark. I'm going to stop bothering with the garmin, it just spoils a good run, and writing about it makes for fucking boring reading. 

I hit 40 miles feeling so much better than at 30. I felt in good form again and could run without feeling the need to stop much. There was no way I could fail to finish my Birthday race and I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would feel better again. 20 miles is a long time to feel shit though. Still, I was just happy that I could even do the race and made quicker progress. Not long after the 4th checkpoint and a conversation with a random jogger about the highland fling which he and I are doing I was caught up by Jen Bradley. I was in two minds about whether to wait and run with her or carry on while I was on a roll. I decided to carry on, I had not stopped for about 8 miles and was hoping to keep it that way. I was curious about whether the lipstick was still working. Nice Canal

50 miles seemed to pass in no time and there were signs that I was heading into Edinburgh. I (think) I could see the castle and some buildings in the distance. I could also see more objects in the canal, such as a pink baby push cart thing. The people of Edinburgh obviously have too much and need to throw these things away. I also saw the start of the city's night life as the under age kids started assuming their drinking positions along the benches of the now tarmacked canal path. It was just before sunset and it was time to get the race finished.

I finished in 8.52, about an hour slower than I was hoping for but pleased for being able to run at all. 3 weeks off certainly makes you appreciate it more when your are running and the last 15 miles of today. Jen finished just behind me with lipstick and mascara in perfect condition. Diane was not far behind and managed to not even get lost once, amazing stuff. Ian, Claire, Oli and Mark C had been at the finish quite a while. Long enough to get stuck into the Guinness in the pub right at the end.

Overall I was pleased with how the race went. I had a rough patch in the middle third but managed to get through it and did much better than I feared at the beginning of the week when I was still not able to walk properly. I was really pleased to see so many people up there singing happy birthday as I finished. Thanks to all who showed up.

 

 

 

AuthorJames Adams | Comment3 Comments |
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Tuesday
02Mar2010

Some cups of piss

DateTuesday, March 2, 2010 at 9:41PM

From overhydrated to dehydrated to anuric (no urine production) with a couple shades indicating hematuria (blood in urine) and rhabdomyolysis (myglobin from muscle breakdown in urine). Not to be confused with water, Gatorade, apple juice, Hawaian Punch or Coca Cola.

AuthorJames Adams | Comment2 Comments |
Sunday
28Feb2010

Extreme running and yet more for the list

DateSunday, February 28, 2010 at 3:51PM

I have just finished reading "Extreme Running". Actually there are not too many words in there but a lot of pretty pictures of amazing planet earth. Barren deserts with martian surfaces. Miles and miles of Arctic wilderness and beautiful jagged mountains. Jungles with wildlife and the worlds deepest caves make for some really spectacular photos except they are spoiled a bit by the presence of a sweaty human covered in gear and running number and an expression that suggests he is not enjoying the scenery as much as I am while sat on my sofa.

The book covers 24 of the worlds extreme races that are difficult in a variety of ways. There are a few marathons in there such as the Pikes Peak Marathon which is the venue of this years world mountain long distance championships this year, a simple sounding "up and down" marathon that involves running up to a sickly altitude. The Inca Trail and Everest Marathons also get a mention, the latter involving a 7 day trek to the starting line. The Lake Baikal Marathon also looked appealing, 26 miles across a frozen Russian lake where 20% of the earth's fresh water resides. 

Many of the well know events are in there. The "must do" Marathon Des Sables gets more pages that I would give it, UTMB, Transalpine Run, Yukon Ultra and the Gobi March get good coverage, The Kepler Challenge is in there to remind us that New Zealand still exists and of course the obligatory Comrades Marathon gets a mention. 

There were a few that were already on my list and consolidated their place such as the Trans 333 - a non-stop 333km run through a different desert each year with only checkpoints at every 20k and navigation involved. Also the infamous Jungle Marathon gets a large spread, the only race I know of that actually sounds dangerous beyond the competitors control with the scorpions, jaguars and piranhas. The Atacama Crossing is now a must do for me, the scenery looks like it does not belong on this planet and the high altitude and dryness make it sound like a really challenging multi-day event. I think I will do many more multi-days in 2011. 

A few more I had not heard of have been added to my must dos. The Verdon Canyon Challenge sounds like an amazing run with enormous elevation along ridges and caves in southern France. When I become very rich (or someone is willing to pay me to do races) I will also run the Antarctic Ice Marathon and 100k (yes both on the same trip). 

I have only done 2 of the races so far, the MDS and the Spartathlon, which gets a brief mention and says little more than it being a very difficult race that not a lot of starters finish. 

It includes a wide variety of races of different extremities and different levels of difficulty. Any ultra-runner would have come up with a different 24 based on the same brief. The only US 100 miler that gets in is the Wasatch 100 miler, the last race in the "Grand Slam" that includes the Western States 100, Vermont and Leadville - the "race across the sky". Any of these and the Hardrock 100 would have merited inclusion too. 

Perhaps the most lavish spread for a race is for the one I have to do in 4 months time. A huge deal is made of the conditions and others experience of the Badwater race. I read the words over and over as it breaks this race into the 4 parts, the 40 mile flat cauldron, the first pass, the second pass and long descent and then the final push to the Whitney portal. Very useful and something for me to think about as I prepare for this race as well as this paragraph which I can't get out of my head.

"The truth is that the human body is not designed to run in 55C temperatures. By the time the atmosphere reaches 35C the body will lose it's capacity to release heat into the air. Activity accelerates this process. The maximum core temperature measured in a conscious long distance  runner has been 41C. At 42.7 body temperature the runner will collapse. At this stage, the body has begun to pump blood out of the body's outermost layers in an effort to radiate heat. In the meantime, the internal organs are thus deprived of their blood supply, and the thermoregulatory system starts to shut down. The first physical sign of this process is when, despite the searing heat and apparent full hydration, the body simply ceases to sweat. From that stage, if the body goes untreated, serious inflammation and cell damage may ensure and affect the central nervous system. At that point, death can be sudden. 

Perhaps I should have just looked at the pictures.

 

AuthorJames Adams | Comment1 Comment |
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Friday
19Feb2010

Badwater - I'm IN

DateFriday, February 19, 2010 at 5:44PM

I stayed up till about 2am last night waiting for an email. I was like some loved up teenager waiting for a call. I guess with this kind of thing I am still a teenager, I don't really have the experience. In the few hours of sleep I got last night I had a strange dream that I got to the start late because my flight was delayed. I did not miss the start but I arrived 2 hours early having already been awake for more than 24 hours. Not the best preparation for a race like this though I suspect that I won't sleep that much in the days leading up to it.

Around 7am I woke up and picked up my phone. An email from "Badwater Race Office" that started with the word "Congratulations!" made me feel a bit sick. I thought about catching up on the sleep that I had missed (I took a day off work today) but I clearly was not going to get back to sleep. Plus there was some urgency to the email. I have a week to sign and send forms, pay for the race and book hotels. I don't really like having to move quickly, which is why I enter these races.

There was a competitive element to getting into this race in the first place. I like to avoid competing against others but in this case I had to just to get to the start line. I only had my past ultra running experiences to put on the form and I had no idea whether this was enough. I read into the reasons why runners get turned away and worried. Not that there was anything I could have done about it. Part of the battle of the big and hard ultras nowadays is getting onto the start line.

  • In preparing your application, keep in mind the standard reasons that generally lead to some applicants not being invited:
    • The applicant only just met the minimum standards.
    • The applicant’s credentials are only recent, i.e., not a seasoned ultra endurance athlete with a breadth of experience.
    • The applicant’s credentials are only old, i.e. all or most of the credentials are from too long ago and may not reflect current ability.
    • The applicant has no experience in extreme heat or on the Badwater course as a pacer.
    • The applicant didn't "prove" his or her claims (i.e., they said they paced at Badwater, but no letter of recommendation was received, or they claimed they finished or won any number of major races, but didn't provide any proof of that).
    • The applicant submitted a “thin” application - not only few qualifications were listed, but not much time was put into the preparation of the application itself. (Sometimes the applicant assumed "we've already heard of him/her" and therefore didn't provide the necessary details. Applicants should never assume we’ve heard of them or have heard of the events they mention in their application.)
    • There are always A LOT of applicants, all "qualified," and thus some applicants must inevitably be turned away.

I worried about my experience only being recent, and the lack of heat experience.

I discovered that Mark Wooley had made it in too, as did a couple of other Brits I have made email contact with. 

My sick feeling has given way to a nervous excitement. I have a LOT of work to do, planning a crew, flights and hotels. And of course the training. I can't do that today as my toe is still (probably not) broken. I also have to sign a form that says this;

 

I will be sufficiently trained, prepared, and medically fit to compete in the event. I understand that the extreme conditions in this race, including but not limited to temperatures in excess of 130F, wind, dust, high altitude, and radiant surface temperatures in excess of 180F, make the risk of dehydration, altitude sickness, significant skin damage, blistering, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, traffic accident, renal shutdown, brain damage, and death are possible.

 

I'll be ready.

This was what I put in the application form.

Why do you want to run the Badwater Ultramarathon?

It was hearing about this race 4 years ago that got me into ultra running. I have been thinking about this race since I first got sent a link to it what seems like an age ago. I was still a young runner who was concerned with plotting my next attempt to run 26.2 miles on a flat road in a temperate climate faster than I had done previously. I did this successfully a few times and the satisfaction was small and short lived. Getting marathon PB's and not really caring about them made me wonder whether I was in the right sport. The variety and challenges of ultra-running answered that question unequivocally. Ultra-running has liberated me from judging my running on what a man at the end with a stop-watch might say. I no longer let that guy decide whether I've had a good run or not, I do it myself. Ultra-running has put the fun back into the thing that I love and has given me personal experiences that I would not trade for the world. And like I said, it was this race that inspired the start of that journey.

The last three years have been an amazing journey, from my first ultra (45 miles in 2007) through to the Grand Union Canal Race (145 miles in 2008) and more recently the Spartathlon last year. What I love most about these races (though it usually is some time after when I fully appreciate it) is the way they try to break you down and stop you finishing. Whether it is the mountains and hills, the sun or the rain or just the sheer distance of it there is always something there that is trying to stop you getting to the finish. The greatest of victories is when you are smashed to pieces and on the floor in a race and it seems all but over. Then you hold onto yourself just enough to carry on moving. When you do things seem a little easier and you remember more why you are there in the first place. These are the experiences I want to take to the grave with me.

I have written about my running in my blog for the past 3 years. I write more to preserve the memories than for anyone else but hope that you get a chance to read it.

So back to the original question in why I want to run Badwater. Aside from my 4 year obsession mentioned above I feel that this is the only "step up" for me. Having finished the Spartathlon last year I don't believe there are many more races out there that are harder to finish and hence will give me those physical and emotional breakdowns which I crave.

I am now confident that I will finish this race but am fully aware of the fact that it will take more that I have had to give before. Races like the GUCR and Spartathlon have taught me that I can rely on things that I don't even know I have at the start line. I love starting a race feeling "ready" but not entirely sure how I'm going to get through it.

People keep asking me "how will you train for something like that". Fact is I don't know. I know I can run for 40+ hours, I know I can run well over 100 miles in one go, into night and day and night and through pain. However I'm not entirely sure, after 35 miles of Death Valley when my body and brain are fried from the heat and I am struggling to remember who I am and why I am stood at the side of a molten road with 100 miles to go, how I will deal with that. But I know I'll think of something.

 

AuthorJames Adams | Comment3 Comments |
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Sunday
14Feb2010

Spartathlon 2009 Video

DateSunday, February 14, 2010 at 5:25PM

Blimey this brings back some memories. I forgot how hard it rained and I forgot how dark it was in places. I also forgot just how many people there were lying down in the medic tent. Brought back memories that make me want to go back right now. 

 

Part 1/4. I had to do all sorts of interweb trickery to get this onto the blog but here it is. In 4 parts. I can be seen at around 8.27 with my silly hat on running into a checkpoint. 

 



 Part 2/4 . I am around 5.30 walking into the checkpoint at Corinth.


Sparta 2/4
Uploaded by jamesradams. - More professional, college and classic sports videos.

 

Part 3/4 I am around 5 minutes in, sat down. BEWARE OF THE CHAIR.



 

Part 4/4



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