I
heard about El Scorcho through a buddy and Doom and I decided to give it a go.
I signed up but really didn’t put much thought or planning into it after
that and was basically just taking it as long training run. I’ve been pretty consistent in my training
over the past couple of months but have not really cranked up the volume.
I’ve put a good bit of training time into
stair climbing and you can see some of my thoughts on that here. I’ve also been trying to get in some more
focused gym sessions to add some strength to my lower body and try to
maintain some kind of upper body strength.
I knew that I had lost a good bit of strength during the process of
dropping from 240 down to 199 and that I would only lose more as I try to get
down to around 180 for Cactus Rose.
I
could tell that the combo of stair climbing, weight lifting, and trail running
was taking a bit of a toll on my legs. I
didn’t plan a taper and figured that just backing off a tad and taking a day or
two off would be plenty for a 50k. The
only thing that kind of worried me heading into the race was that I strained my
left hamstring during a lifting session 8 days prior to the race. My longest run b/w that strain and the race
was 8 miles and my hamstring tightened up during that run but I was able to
walk if off and finish the run on a strong note. This one nagging concern would ultimately be
my main problem during the race.
Doom
and I discussed some logistics via text msg during the week and he had mapped
out a plan to finish the race in just under 5:00 hrs. That seemed reasonable to me and I figured
that I would just fall in behind him and try to keep up. Doom also had some thoughts on adjusting sleep
patterns but I wasn’t planning on altering anything. If my hamstring was a nagging concern, then
staying up all night was a major concern but I figured that I would just wing
it. Doom was eventually talked out of
his plans by the legends on The List and we would both start the race about
equally rested.
From this End to the Other |
I
decided to use the metroplex train system to get out to Ft Worth because I
didn’t want to have to make the 60ish mile drive back home after the race. It was decided that my wife and kids would
make the early morning drive out to see me finish and drive us back home. Doom, his wife, and dad picked me up at the
train station in Ft Worth at about 9:30 pm and we were setting up camp at the
Start/Finish line about 4 hours after I left my house.
Union Station - Are You Sure Y'all Are Open? |
We
milled around, talked to a few people, used the port-o-john, and just tried to
kill 2 hours until the race started. It
was also discovered during this time that Doom forgot his Garmin and that his
master pacing plan to get us to the finish line in under 5:00 hours was now out
the window! This didn’t faze me but I
could tell that Doom was bit unnerved by this.
Later There Were People Here |
Then
at midnight we were off and racing. I
was a bit worried that running a 5k loop 10 times would get old but the course
was pretty interesting and they had aid stations setup frequently enough that
something was always going on. We made
it through the 1st loop and saw that we were just slightly behind
sub-5:00 hr pace and picked things up on the next few loops. We cruised through 20k pretty effortlessly
and were right on the pace – without a Garmin!
Then
we started the 5th loop and things started to come undone. It was now 2:00 am, which is really late for
me, and my hamstring started to tighten up pretty quickly. This was really aggravating because I had
kind of let my guard down and decided around the 3rd loop that the
hamstring wasn’t going to be an issue and that taking a week off from lifting
was all that I needed. Things went
downhill pretty fast and I finally had to tell Doom that I needed to walk for a
bit. This was pretty deflating and I
felt bad b/c Doom was running a really strong race and was right on pace for
his goal time. He stopped and walked
with me for a bit and then we picked up the pace and started running. We continued this routine for the remainder
of the 5th loop and most of the 6th until my hamstring
finally loosened up.
However,
Doom started having his own issues by the time my hamstring loosened up and he
needed to walk a bit and his paced was slowed to a shuffle. I was really starting to feel good about
halfway through the 7th loop but I wasn’t about to leave Doom when
he could have easily left me earlier in the race. We came up with the mantra that the 8th
loop would be easy because the 9th loop was the final loop of the
race and the 10th loop would be our victory lap. Doom soured on this after a bit (even though
it was his brain child!) and I could tell that he was really starting to suffer
on the 9th loop.
We
cruised into our make shift aid station and Doom took a seat and had the look
on his face of a runner that wasn’t getting back up. I was a bit concerned but knew he was really
tough and wouldn’t take a DNF. I went
ahead and started the 10th loop without him and told him to just
catch up with me. I walked for a bit
expecting him to catch up with me but decided to go ahead and run it on in
after about 5 minutes of walking. I was
constantly passing people on this last lap and I was in rather high spirits but
no one else seemed to be much for talking (go figure!).
King of DNF Confused by Finisher Award Process |
I
made it back around to the Start/Finish line and received some fancy hardware -
this was all rather confusing to the King of the DNF. I waited with Doom’s dad and wife for him to
finish and then shot off a quick text to my wife and she informed me they were
still about an hour away. I didn’t mind
the wait and enjoyed hanging out and cheering on the 80ish runners that
finished after me.
This
was a great very well run race and I will for sure be back next year. This is a very fast course and I plan to
really focus on training for this race.
I think something in the area of 4:30 – 4:45 should be attainable for
someone with my limited running skills.
And a huge thanks to Doom, his wife, and his dad for all their hospitality!
And a huge thanks to Doom, his wife, and his dad for all their hospitality!
Oh Noz Doom! |
My Phone Tells Me Funny Stuff |
I Got Up Early for This?! |
It Is Pointy! |
Yea! |
Great report Rob!
ReplyDeleteWish I could have been there with y'all! Next year is a must.
You would have a great time at this race. Next year will be a blast!
DeleteI really don't expect to be able to keep up with you next year!
ReplyDelete