There are two types of runners in the world: those that run by time and those that run by distance. Do you wake up and head out for a 45 minute run however far that takes you? Or do you head out for a 5 mile run no matter how much time it lasts? I have always been the latter and yet. . . And yet I keep signing up for timed races where the goal is to run as many miles as possible in a set time. If you’ve followed this blog, then you know I have a(n) (unhealthy) fixation on the hundred mile distance. It’s just how I’m wired. So I show up to these timed races with the goal of running as many miles as possible and then stop when I hit my magic number. Only once have I managed to get above 100 miles in a timed race.
Spoiler: I stopped at 101 (buckle for 101, not 100 miles) even though I still had 90 minutes left on the clock. And I’m completely fine with that. One of the keys to happiness is knowing your why, leaning into it, and not getting worked up about stuff outside your why. Setting distance PRs in timed events isn’t in my top 10 ultrarunning list so if I don’t care about it, I don’t care about it.
3DATF (IYKYK)
The misnamed Three Days At The Fair is really a bunch of different races held over six days at the Sussex County Fairgrounds in New Jersey. The 144 hour race started on Monday and then you had the option of starting any of the other races (72H, 48H, 24H, 12H, 6H, Marathon, 50K) throughout the rest of the week. My son wanted to do the 24 hour on Tuesday so that’s what we did. The 9am start for most of the races meant we could sleep in our own beds before making the 2.5 hour drive up to the race. Always a plus.
I had a couple different goals for the race:
- A Goal (aka completely unrealistic): 200K = really cool round number
- B Goal (aka somewhat realistic): 116 miles = new 24H PR
- C Goal (aka “easily” attainable): 101 miles = buckle
I settled in to a nice 11 minute pace to start off, which would theoretically let me eclipse the 200K total if maintained. I thought this was a snowball’s chance in hell type likelihood considering I’m only two weeks recovered from Coast to Coaster. And sure enough, my legs did not feel fresh during the first mile. They loosened up a bit on subsequent loops, but never felt great. They probably felt better 50 miles into C2C than 10 miles into this race. I kept this pace through 17-20 miles before it slowly started drifting up.
I ended up lapping my son for the first time about 15 miles in or so. He was doing a great job pacing and was just taking things super easy. We chatted for a bit and then I moved on ahead of him. The miles kept ticking off, but my mental state started deteriorating as the temperatures climbed throughout the day. The forecast only had it getting up into the mid-60s, but it felt much hotter on the completely exposed course. There’s only about a hundred yard section that’s shaded right at the start/finish and that’s all the respite you get.
By the time I caught up to my son again at mile 30, I was ready to dramatically dial back my effort and hang with him for a bit. Unfortunately, the temperatures were hitting him much harder than me so my focus switched from running my race to pacing him. I don’t have much experience pacing though and while he said I was able to help him out, I question how much assistance I was actually able to provide. I kept telling him he would feel better once the sun set and it cooled off, but I could tell he didn’t believe me. I couldn’t really ask him how he felt because I’ve been there and the last thing you want to be reminded of is how bad you feel. I tried distracting him with random topics, but I’m not a great conversationalist under perfect circumstances which this did not qualify. Essentially, I just kept repeating how great he was doing. We shuffled along for 10 miles before taking a couple 5 minute breaks. He decided he was done after the second one and we discussed his options while I reminded him that the race lasted 24 hours. I was proud that he ended up rallying back and knocking out a bunch more miles after his low passed.
I hit 50 miles a bit after 10 hours putting me on track for about a hundred miles. Trust me when I say this is ultra math and it checks out. Mentally I was still struggling a bit. I was fairly consistent with my pacing, but each mile didn’t seem to put me much closer to my goal. It was somewhere in the mid-50s where I was finally able to stop noticing what mile I was on and just move around the course. I was also attempting not to check the time too often as that’s another way for me to track how much longer I had left.
This strategy of just moving worked until I noticed I was on mile 89. Then the countdown began till I hit 101 miles. Or rather 103 miles according to my damn watch. The course isn’t that twisty and there weren’t that many people out there to weave around, however I still ended up running 2% more distance. Sigh.
Overall, I can’t recommend this race enough. While a one mile loop may sound repetitive, this format allows you to interact with the amazing community of runners who turn up for this race. Everyone is out there supporting each other and it’s a really cool vibe.
So have I decided to swear off timed races based on my uneven track record and preference for fixed distances? Heck, no. I have a similar issue with backyard ultras, yet I’m planning to run one next year. Variety is the spice of life and these can still be enjoyable experiences as long as you don’t take them (or yourself) too seriously.