Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Project Carbon X2: Confessions of an Ultra Pacer

(HOKA ONE ONE owns global rights to all professional photos included in this blog)

Have I ever mentioned how happy I am that I didn't quit in 2019? I think after a bike accident like mine, no one would fault me for leaving athletics behind. BUT I had this gut feeling that there were still more memories to be made and goals to achieve. If you ever feel like "I'm not done yet", you most likely aren't done yet.

This is the stuff that keeps me going. Thank you Thank you Thank you!

I actually received this award on November 15th then raced a marathon that Saturday, after a three year break from marathons (to focus on triathlon). Ended up running a few minutes under 3 hours and figured I go right back to triathlon... then....

I'm sitting on a beach with my family, having a margarita, check my email, and receive an invite to be a pacer for Project Carbon X2 (100K Record Attempt).
My first thought was "oh hell naw! I'm not running 20+ miles again". But after looking at the list of athletes - including Jim Walmsley chasing the World Record and Camille Herron chasing the women's American Record - it didn't take long for that YOLO mentality to kick in.

Plus, I figured it couldn't be as bad as this... swimming, my Kryptonite!
I reached out to my coach to get his input and he was actually completely against it. Something to the tune of "you need to be doing a big bike build during that time blah blah blah" (I have 3 half ironmans between March and June). My #1 goal is to earn my pro card in triathlon. Coach Jonny's goal is to get me there. So I 100% respect his input when it comes to racing and training blocks. Still, that didn't stop me from begging and pleading.

For those curious about pacer duties: we had the option of dropping out as early as mile 22 or we could run to the 50K mark.. and yes, there were bonus incentives offered. Once Coach Jonny heard '22 miles' and that I had the option of pacing women anywhere from 7-7:15 pace, he gave me the ok :-)

Contract signed!

There was still much to be done over the weeks leading up to the race:
 - Get the ok from my job
 - Take several Covid tests.. HOKA wasn't playing around. They required three tests the week of the event (2 at home, 1 at the hotel, we had temperature checks the day of the race, plus all of our meals were boxed... I had dinner in my room alone everyday)
 - Coach had me building into a bike block, which included an FTP test. Plus we were trying to keep my run mileage up and get me feeling comfortable around that 7 minute pace for miles and miles.
Forever on my Saris H3

Lots of long runs on my own around this pace

In fact, if you saw my IG stories leading up to the race, I went and had blood work done. I was feeling awful about 2 weeks out. Iron, Ferritin, Vitamin D, etc were all excellent so I think it was just fatigue setting in. Luckily Coach Jonny cut back on training a few days before I flew out to Phoenix. It was nice to just focus on work / corporate life. It definitely gets exhausting squeezing sports stuff in first thing in the morning, at lunch, and/or right after work. But at the same time, I couldn't imagine being an athlete full time. I like the balance.

Packed the essentials: my Carbon X2s, Betalains (Sur AltRed), gels, nutrition (new to seed based snacks.. so good)

I arrived in Phoenix on Wednesday, 3 days before the event. I was able to get in some shakeout runs, adjust to the time zone, dry climate, and warmer weather. Plus get a layout of the course, grab my credentials, race kit, and prep my bottles for the aid stations along the course. As a triathlete, I felt like a bit of a lone wolf. Everyone seemed to know each other from the ultra running / trail / marathon world. But as the days went on I made some new friends :-)
Thank you for the beautiful floral face mask Zoot Sports <3

 

Count Down
I had a unique set of nerves this time. It was incredibly nice to not have the pressure of placing or chasing a PR, but I definitely had some butterflies about running the distance, comfortably hitting my splits and not screwing up. This had nothing to do with me, and everything to do with helping Nicole Monette reach her goals.
The Logistics: due to Covid, travel disruptions, and injuries, the women's list dwindled down to 6. Since there were 6 pacers... what eventually was supposed to be two paced groups changed to each of us pacers being assigned an athlete.

I happened to be assigned the sweetest long distance runner I've ever met - Nicole. We met in the lobby 2 days before the race. I learned that she was a former 2:35 marathoner, went on to have 3 kids (youngest one is 1 years old!), got into ultra running and recently did the Yeti 100-miler (1st woman). She wanted to go out super conservative... definitely no faster than 3:10 through the marathon.
The course was 9 loops total, marked every 5K, 3 aid stations each loop (Aid Stations 1 and 3 had our personal bottles, and Aid Station 2 was water and gels... due to covid we had to grab everything from the marked tables as we ran by).
It was crazy seeing how fast the top women went out - 6:45 pace 😱 In fact, our 7:10s felt super slow. But the thing about distance running is that it feels easy until all of a sudden it stops feeling easy. On paper going 20-30 seconds slower per mile than marathon race pace sounded like a piece of cake. But being a pacer ain't easy. I can typically zone out for a bit in most road races... not this time. I had to be hyper aware of my pace and where Nicole was. We used queue words like "slow it down" if I was being too aggressive. That was by far the most I've looked down at my watch and behind me!
Photo Credit: Melissa Ruse Photography

I was lucky to share pacing duties with 3x Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier Lindsay Tollefson. Running in a pack is always easier. Plus there was a strong headwind on the back loop around the lake so Lindsay and I would try to run close to block the wind for Nicole and Olympian Caitriona Jennings (from Ireland). We went through the half marathon around 1:33 and honestly 22 minute 5Ks felt pedestrian. But it's funny how quickly that changes after 20 miles of running.

By mile 25 it was just Nicole and I. We went through the marathon around 3:06/7. A little quicker than we initially planned but she was feeling good and looking so strong. 
I on the other hand started to feel the mileage. In fact, I tripped over my own feet and almost went down. Warning sign #1 that it was about time for me to drop out. But then....
All of sudden there were drones hovering over us, a lead car with a clock drives by, I look up on the Jumbo Tron and it's freakin Jim Walmsley approaching!! I moved off to the right side of the road to let him take the inside (tangent) and he literally looked like a gazelle. 

The Finale
I wished Nicole luck and dropped out at mile 28. Something I promised myself ahead of time - not to push myself over the edge. My priority is to do well this upcoming triathlon season. It was definitely tempting to run to the 50K marker, but the last thing I needed was to feel like crap and be waddling around for the next week or so.
Mom: "That's what running 28 miles will do to you!"
Dad: "Have you looking like Bernie Sanders"

Got to do a live interview with Juli Benson after I finished my pacing duties: https://youtu.be/-8Tzynp-cqs?t=19446 (starts a 5:24:06)

Then got to watch this incredible moment: Jim Walmsley all out sprinting after 60+ miles of running... just missing the world record by 11 seconds (broke the American Record), AND seeing my girl Nicole gradually move up through the field, second woman across the finish line, first American, and now has a top 10 fastest 100K time for American Women. Truly incredible.

Here's a quick recap of my thoughts immediately after the event:

That's all folks  :-) 

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