Sulphur Springs - Pre Race

Sulphur Springs will always have a special place in my heart. It's only two short years ago that I signed up for the 25km race there. I had seen the race on the Burlington Runners website and thought it would be interesting to try a trail race. When I downloaded the Participant's Guide, I was disturbed by what I saw on the first page:

10Km, 25Km, 50Km, 50 Mile, 100 Mile & 100 Mile Relay

50 Mile, 100 mile? WTF? Surely they jest? I showed up before 6 to see what kind of super-human athlete would accomplish such feats. At the line, all I saw was a bunch of regular people wearing weird outfits. The one thing I noticed though, is that they all seemed to know each others. In a way I couldn't quite define, it seemed to me that they were there for more than just running. Weird.

So Sulphur is also responsible for introducing me to ultra running. A year later I was on that same line, ready to run my first 50 miler.

This coming Saturday, I will again run the 50 miler. For a while I thought I would go for the 100 miler, but it was not to be. I read somewhere that "the will to race must start with the will to train." This early after Susitna, I was just not ready to put in the training miles. I would probably be able to finish it, but I would wreck my season and probably wouldn't recover in time for the 100 miler at Haliburton, which is my true A race this year. After last year's 50 there, where my body came close to collapse and my spirit got crushed, I am seeking redemption by doubling the stakes.

So 50 miles it is. I've already discussed my goal of beating my 10h06m time from last year. My taper is going good. My big thing right now is to accept the pain that is to come. 50 miles is a serious challenge and I know it won't be easy. This is the first race this season where I'm allowing myself to go hard. Well, you know what I mean... I'll try not to overdo the first lap, and then I'll try not to slow down too much. Obviously, it's easier said than done.

I'm rambling. Talk to you after the race.