What Happens When You Fail to Understand Directions

View on the Railroad Loop Trail part of
the Pittsford Trail system.

Weather: Mostly Sunny, 34°F (Real Feel 26°F), Wind W @ 9 mph, 73% Humidity at 5:45 a.m.

Route: One large loop down to French Road (Pittsford) and one shorter loop back down East Avenue to Allen's Creek Road to Monroe Avenue then Elmwood Avenue down Clinton Avenue into Rochester. 

Distance/Duration/Pace: 19.03 miles, 3:01.42, 9:33 min/mile

I registered for the virtual Mind the Ducks run earlier this month. Mind the Ducks is an annual 12 hour ultra-marathon run on a circular course for 12 continuous hours. I have long been interested in the run in the past primarily because it takes place in the park directly behind the 55+ apartment building my mother lives in, and wouldn't it be nice to run where she could walk over? In recent years, the race date has conflicted with the high school track and field invitational the team I coach competes at. Through a "lose-win" (or "lose-lose" depending on your perspective) set of circumstances, all New York State high school athletic canceled due to COVID-19, and the race will still be "held" by going "virtual". As a virtual race, I thought incorrectly that the rules are a little different, and at least for me, more realistic at this point. I read the updated instructions as being rather than 12 continuous hours, participants have seven days to complete the 12 hour run over continuous days. This is, of course, something of a "cheat" and "real" ultra runners will likely defer to the following year, a choice that is completely understandable. Because I haven't run an ultra-marathon since the July 6, 2009, Finger Lakes Fifties 50k, I had planned to divide the 12 hours into four, three-hour runs over four days, beginning on Friday, May 8. Of course I was wrong about the actual set-up, a realization I didn't come to until after what I had presumed would just be the first of four days.

Map of today's run.

I recently made the decision to return to a running/training strategy I employed many moons ago while preparing for my first ultra marathon: mixing in planned walking breaks. Today, I elected to walk 60 seconds after second mile. This morning's run went very well, aided by beautifully cool weather (I left the house at 5:45 a.m.), quiet streets, and the return of the walk-run approach. Once again, utilizing a partial loop was helpful for maintaining focus. The 3 hours and 19 miles I ultimately put in is the longest single distance/duration since my last marathon. The downside, obviously, is that it is about 9 hours short of what I am expected to put in for the Mind the Ducks. The confidence accrued from today's 19-miler will need to be used to motivate me to quickly take another step. I have until May 16 to set-aside a 12 hour block of time during which to perform. While hitting the 12 hours limit seems an improbability at this time, I am willing to make an effort to do better than a "measly" 19 miles in 3 hours. The better effort in my mind is minimally 32 miles which would put it at the lower end of what one might reasonably consider an "ultra". 32 miles is at least the "shortest" ultra I have previously run.

One thing is assured when you fail to fully understand directions: a "miscalculation" is made. If this "miscalculation" is made early, and not caught, it can lead to errors that impact performance. Sometimes severely. You, or I, in this case, can choose to allow this mistake to be terminal or it can be used to reconfigure, adjust and move forward. Rather then throwing my hands up and blaming a perceived lack of clarity, I am choosing to move forward, putting my energy toward doing the best I can to honestly meet the expectations with Mind the Ducks by May 16. I am too far along (and paid the registration fee) to give it a shot later this week. Perhaps during this run I will find the answer to the question my wife has been asking since I informed her of my snafu: "Why would anyone want to run for 12 hours anyway?"