Loop 5 (1:11:47)—The quickly consumed nut-bar tasted good, though it had an unfortunate (if not humorous) side effect... were I to once again find myself lost in the wild of Mendon Ponds Park, the burps and belches which now accompanied me along the trail would lead any rescue party to me, much like a bell around a cat's neck. Once finishing the fourth loop, and receiving a warming embrace ("You’re doing great!") from Anne, I had a renewed sense of energy and purpose, and gained a melancholy perspective regarding this last loop. At this fourth (and final) transition, I asked Anne to combine the puddle of liquid remains in the two flasks I had been carrying (1 splash of PowerAde and a two-thirds remainder of H2O) into a single flask, and I pulled a fresh long-sleeve cotton tee over my head… then quickly made my way into the final loop.
Psychologically, having finished four loops, and therefore a WHOLE marathon distance, in just 30 minutes over my previous PR for 26.2, was a huge weight off my shoulders… despite a few (seemingly minor by this point) screw-ups on my part, the finish of this fifty was well within my reach, an accomplishable feat. I had gone through a whole slew of emotions and thoughts, a roller coaster not unlike the rolling hills I had travelled these last few hours(!), and now just wanted to savor this last loop.
All morning I had been passing sites, trees, trail markers and flashes, marking my time in the number of occasional on which I came through their distinct neighborhoods of the course. Up until this point my mindset had been one of moving forward through this thing, one mile, one loop at a time. Now I felt a "going" rather than a "coming" and felt it necessary to use this pass to bid “Au Revoir!” to may silent trail companions.
“So long, water tower…”
“Stay cool, marker #23…”
“Thanks for your pretzels and M&Ms, Carol’s Diner…”
“Ciao, weird tree with a huge silver duct-tape band-aid around it…”
“Although ‘mission’ isn't the right word for your absence in my life, necessarily, take it easy kitty-litter hill…”
Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!
2 comments:
Awesome! After missing the 20k Saturday morning I've really enjoyed reading your description of doing the ultra. Don't sweat going off course during the 3rd loop, it's easy to do at that point... despite that, you finished with what I think is a great time for your first 50k. Congratulations on your accomplishment and on joining the ranks of the ultramarathoners! JMH
Thanks! I was looking for you on the trails and thought perhaps you hadn't made it. I was surprised how alone I was during the race with very few peopel around me... i'm certainly looking forward to the next challeneg, just not sure what that is yet ;)
take care and thanks for commenting!
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