I’m heading back to Ohio for another journey run from Sandusky to Cincinnati.
Ultras are funny things. I remember thinking last year immediately after finishing the race that I probably wouldn’t be back. It was just such a physically hard and mentally draining experience that I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to repeat it. Well, the male and female winners each get comped an entry to a future race and if I’m anything it’s a cheap SOB. So obviously once the initial race memories soften, I decided I’d come back this year and see how much of a fluke last year was.
I love the journey run format so that’s a draw for me. The course profile is also a big plus as it’s point-to-point, has long supply deserts (especially the first night) that make logistics challenging, and ends with 80 miles on a flat multi-use path. Most of the roads are very rural with only a couple stretches with high traffic volume (I’m looking at you, Marion, OH). It’s just a straight up fun route.
Expectations
I have a tendency to think I’m better than I really am when it comes to planning out goal times. Last year was one of the first races ever where I finished quicker than expected (63:40 vs 65-66 hour target). That included about 4 hours non-moving off course with only about 2 of that sleeping. So I feel I have about 2 hours there that I could improve by moving more consistently. I also ended up running an extra 7 miles according to my Garmin. Some of that is just normal GPS drift and leaving the course to go into stores, but there was probably about 3 miles I could save by knowing the course better. So that gets me down to maybe 61 hours. I just finished up a massive training block so hopefully that translates into better endurance. I mean, it had better! The current weather forecast looks to be a little more mild than last year, which should theoretically cut down on the mid-afternoon hour death slogs. Balancing these considerations is that I was absolutely flying on day three last year and I doubt I’ll ever be able to replicate that again.
So adding that all together (. . . carry the two) and 60 hours feels like a good target for me. I wouldn’t consider this a high confidence target though. More like a good over/under. Two hundred thirty two miles is a long time for things to go wrong and it would be arrogant of me to think I know what’s going to happen.
The Gameplan
Last year worked out pretty good so I’m going to go with the same strategy. I plan to start out at a pace I feel confident I can maintain for the first 24 hours. Last year this was 13:48 minute pace, however I’m going to drop that down to 13:24 this year (1 minute/mile faster than 100 miles in 24 hours). That will be an all-in pace with stops, which will translate into probably 13:15 moving pace. The stops will only be to resupply at gas stations (Norwalk/mile 19, Shilo/39, Mansfield/56, Marion/92) and no sleep. Fingers crossed I can then keep this pace for a while into day 2. Then it’s just a matter of holding on and moving as much as possible. I’ll start sleeping on the second night and will play that by ear. This will probably take the shape of 10-20 minute naps until I need something longer (maybe an hour right before dawn). Physical safety is a key consideration for me as we’re moving on open roads. The last thing I want to do is start weaving into traffic if I begin nodding off. This means I’ll err on the side of caution and stop before I absolutely have to. I’ve come up with some good hacks to stay awake (slamming calories, upping the effort) and hopefully this can keep me moving steadily once the second sun sets.
Overall, I’m excited to see how my training and experience translates into another go at this race. Nothing is guaranteed and things will assuredly go sideways at several points along the way. I’ve come to realize that dealing with those challenges is half the fun of these events.
You nailed it, congratulations!