On Friday April 21st at 9am, I set out on the longest and farthest running race I have ever done – Jackalope Jam 48hr from Trail Racing Over Texas. The premise of the race is simple: Run to a ½ mile to a cone and back as many times as you can in 48 hours. I had a goal of completing 150 miles, with a stretch goal to complete 200 miles. In the end, I ran 162 miles and placed 2nd in the 48 hour division. It was one hell of a race; one that tested my endurance, my problem-solving abilities, and my determination.
Pre-Race:
For those that don’t remember, I ran the 24 hour version of this race in November 2016. I completed 109 miles and placed 2nd. I had a blast. This year, when I heard Rob introduced a 48 hour version, I knew I had to sign up.
I learned a lot at the hundred milers I did last year. While I felt more prepared this year, I knew that going from 24 to 48 hours (100 to 200 miles) does not scale linearly. I modified my race plan:
- Before the race:
- Cut out caffeine 2 weeks before the race.
- Reduce my workouts and running while increasing my meditation 2 weeks prior.
- Organize by race bin and memorize the location of everything in the bin – removing the need to “think” and reduce the downtime.
- During the race:
- Ingest calories every 5 miles.
- After the first 20 miles, walk between ½ and 1 mile every 5th mile. (This also makes it easier to eat.)
- Plan to incorporate electrolyte drinks during the day as needed.
- Hold off on any caffeine until it got dark.
- Take a nap around the 20 to 24 hour mark. The length of the nap would be determine by the distance.
A couple of days before the race, AJ & the girls decided that they would crew for me. Colette and Delia were so excited about the race and camping out. It was so cool to see and hear their excitement.
The Race – Day 1:
No Quit
The race meeting kicked off at 8:45am on Friday, April 21. There were about 30 of us, with many familiar faces in the Ruck division: Fellow Death Racers, Patrick & Marco; Fellow Spartans/Ruckers: Art & Hope. The girls joined me for the meeting. Colette chuckled when Rob said, “Don’t quit!” She turned to me and said, ‘Don’t quit!”
The race started at 9am. I got out with the lead group of about 7 guys at a good pace of about 9:00 min/mi. This was a little faster than I had planned so I began to make some adjustments. Every lap I came in, the girls would cheer me on – making me laugh and smile each time. After a couple of laps, I dialed in my pace and the lead group had broke up. With the lack of other runners coming through the starting gate, Colette and Delia decided to run with me as I ran through the camp area and starting gate. Delia even ran barefoot on the rocks and gravel. Afterwards, I heard that the girls were telling people at the race, “My dad doesn’t quit.” Everyone got a kick out of the girls – people kept telling me they thought the girls were great.
Battling Dehydration
Two hours in, I was right on the pace I wanted to complete 200 miles. I was pretty excited. Unfortunately, that was when the heat, sun, and humidity really started to get to me. I was running a little slower and began to notice signs of dehydration. Within 30 minutes, the signs of dehydration were clear. I was not peeing enough, when I did it there was not much of it and it was dark yellow, I had a massive headache, my legs were feeling more fatigued than they should, and when I looked at still surfaces it looked they had moving liquid on them. My focus shifted from keeping my pace to fighting off dehydration. For the next several hours, I was on the brink of med dropping from dehydration. Every couple of laps I was drinking my electrolyte drinks and squeezing ice water on my head, chest and back. During this time, Colette really took on the crew role. She would have a bottle of electrolyte drink for me at every loop, even if I did not need it. She would run with me to hand it off, so I did not have to stop. When I went to ice bucket, she would pull out the sponge for me to use. Delia on the other hand would say things like: “Dad, why aren’t you running?” “Why are you walking?” “Let’s run dad!”
The slower pace I was running let me get to know and chat with my fellow racers. I learned more about their backgrounds, why they were there, and their goals for the race. I heard that everyone was being affected by the heat & humidity and was clocking their worst times for 50k and 50mi. I also was able to chat with Patrick in short bursts – motivating each other when needed, sharing stories, reminiscing on past events, and offering advice.
The Sun Sets
By the time the sun started to set, I was sunburnt, covered in sweat, salt, and dust, behind my target pace, and tired, but I started to see the first signs of overcoming the dehydration. It did not beat me, but it did take a toll. I knew I would not be able to hit 200 miles, but I could easily get 150 miles assuming nothing goes sideways. I ran through the night while AJ and the girls slept in the tent. It was not an easy night. I almost stepped on the gigantic snake and had a couple of laps where I was sleepwalking, drifting back, forth, and off the trail.
Chafing & Super Glue
During the night, I was beginning to feel the chaffing. Within 30 minutes of starting the race, my clothes were drenched and had not been able to dry. Combined with all the miles, the chaffing was bad on my upper thighs and nether regions. I would relieve the pain with a little ibuprofen, but I knew I needed a longer term solution. The anti-chafing lube/spray was just not enough. I made a plan. When the girls woke up, I would take over the tent, strip down, clean the chafed areas, and nap in just a towel to dry out. I discussed the plan with Patrick on a loop and he asked, “What are you going to do when you wake up and starting running?” Then I remembered a Joel Gatt solution from one of his ultras. “I’ll just do what Joel did, tape up my thighs and nethers. If Joel did it, I can do it.” Patrick replied, “Dude, the tape will never stick.” “I’ll figure it out,” I replied.
AJ and the girls started to get up around dawn. I had AJ walk with me through the camp and I explained to her the plan. I got into the tent at around 7am, stripped down and used my alcohol wipes on the chaffing. It was so unpleasant that AJ asked if I was ok when she heard the grunts/groans I was making. I got a 45 minute nap in, waking up with enough time to get into gear and on the trail before the 6/12/24hr racers begin. I tried to tape up the chafed areas. Patrick was right, the tape was not sticking. Not one to give up easy, I grabbed the super glue out of my med kit and super glued the tape on. Because some of the chafing was caused by the seams on my compression shorts, I opted to “go commando” for the rest of the race. The plan worked, I was back out on the trail moving quickly. Caught up with Patrick and said, “You were right, the tape won’t stick … so I super glued it on. Totally staying on now.” He then said, “Well, if you need any help, just ask.” I replied with a smile, “Patrick, I like you a lot, but I not sure how comfortable I feel with you taping and gluing my nether regions.” (You do weird events, you get weird friends.)
The Race – Day 2:
Saturday (Day 2) was way more pleasant than Friday. The temperature was cooler and the sun was covered by the clouds. While doing the loops, you could easily tell which racers were on the 48 hour version versus all the fresh runners. Colette began counting my laps and yelling out the number I was on with every loop. A little later in the morning, AJ left to meet up with mother and drop off the girls. They were having fun, but Colette’s allergies were really bothering her and her skin was reacting to something. Even though they left, Colette was still checking in on me. She would ask what lap I was on and remotely started checking the live results.
Overall, the day was going well. I was in second place, about 10 miles behind the leader and about 10 miles in front of 3rd place. Then around mile 95, I started to notice a pain in my left ankle. It felt like I had over extended it. After a couple of loops, I knew I needed to do something. I asked AJ to find me an ace bandage. I had to wrap up my ankle. On the next loop, she found a solution and a nurse from the Snowdrop crew. (I feel so bad I forgot her name). The nurse taped up my ankle and I went back out. After another two loops, it was still pretty painful. I opted to wrap it up more and change into my 3rd pair of shoes. The nurse asked if I really needed to continue. “Yes. I am not going to stop.”
The wrap and change of shoes helped, but I was done running. I could walk fast, but not run. I started doing the math and felt confident I could finish 150 miles if my ankle did not get any worse.
From the Heat to the Cold
The sun was beginning to set on Saturday and the temperature was forecasted to drop to the 40s with wind chill. The wind was strong and the trail offered no protection. With the cold and the wind, I was worried about my eyes. I was afraid I would lose my sight like I did at Brazos Bend 100 in December. I changed into my cold gear and started doing loops. My pace was slow, but I was moving.
During the night, my right eye was blurry and I was having trouble seeing the trail. The good news was that I was not being blinded by the lights. I kept wetting my eyes every chance I could get. Luis, the runner in first place, had hit 150 miles and was sleeping. I knew I just had to keep going. On one of my loops, I checked in with AJ and she suggested changing my headlamp. I did and I could see the trail much better. I don’t know why, but it worked. I did not feel blind anymore. I kept doing loops and made it to 150 loops. I tied for first. While I knew Luis would be able to beat me if he work up. I was hoping to get a bunch of miles on him. I also did the math on Jason, the third place runner. I knew my pace and had an accurate estimate of his pace. I knew that if I could just keep going at my current pace, it was mathematically improbable for him to overtake me.
In First Place Momentarily
I hit 151 miles and took the lead. I don’t know how it happened, but I swear the moment I hit 151 Luis woke up and started running. He says he didn’t have an alert on me passing him, but I am not sure I believe him.
It was then I knew that if I wanted 2nd (possibly 1st) place, I couldn’t stop until it was over, another 5 hours. Very quickly, Luis was able to get enough miles ahead of me where I wouldn’t be able to catch him. Now, it was all about 2nd place.
The sun came up. All the racers still on the course were determined but happy to see the sun. You could feel it in the air, “The end is near.” Patrick and Marco were going to hit their goal of 100 miles rucked. Jason was going to hit 150 miles and get get third place.
Finishing the Race
Around 7:40 am, I knew my 2nd place spot was secured. So I asked AJ to join me on my last lap. I gave her a little tour of the ½ mile of trail that had been my life for the last 46+ hours. I pointed out my favorite spots, the best routes, where I saw snakes, etc. It was my last lap. I fished just before 8am with 162 miles. I decided to stop so I could see the other racers hit their goal. I was there to see Patrick and Marco complete 100 loops. I was able to congratulate Jason on completing 150 miles and then finishing up 4 more.
Final Words
It was one hell of a race and experience. I am so happy I did it. I beat my goal, came in second, and was one of only three people to finish 150 miles. A big thanks to Rob, TROT, and the race volunteers: Alberto – welcoming all the 48hr racers; Kelsey – for the amazingly enthusiastic shouts of support to all the racers from the first lap to the last lap lap, AJ for keeping times and taking pictures, the dude (don’t know his name) that was feeding me ramen all night the second night, and all the other volunteers. Of course, big thanks to AJ & the girls for their support and cheers.
If you have a chance to do a TROT ultra race, I highly recommend you give it a try.
