During this time when everything has been cancelled or postponed there have been countless virtual races and challenges that have popped up trying to fill the void. While I am generally happy to get out the door for a run of whatever distance most days, it is nice to have a goal that you are working towards to keep that in perspective. The ‘why’ is a little less existential when you have a race on the calendar.
There are plenty of options out there. From Strava challenges and segment hunting to last man standing backyard ultras. It’s pretty inspiring really. To see how people are being creative during these trying times. There’s no better way to fight off the feelings of isolation than to join with others (virtually) to tackle a challenge.
Bearing that in mind, Jonathan Newton shared the Yeti Trail Runners 24 hour challenge with our running group chat a couple weeks ago. This particular endeavor was more challenge than race but I figured, why not? What else was I going to on a Saturday when the only thing I can leave my house for is exercise.
For starters, I’ve been loosely sticking to my marathon long run schedule and I had 20 on the calendar for last weekend, so what’s another 10 miles if I spread it out over the whole day. On top of that, I figured it would be a chance to do my own little personal Ragnar relay.
The challenge breaks down like this – 5 miles every 4 hours for 24 hours – a total of 30 miles. It runs through the entire month of April, so I recommend giving it a try. You can sign up here – Ultra Sign Up
The first part of the challenge was figuring out how to break up the runs. According to the rules, you couldn’t run more than five miles in any four hour block. The first way I broke it down was start at midnight but I really didn’t want to wake up or stay up until midnight and then deal with running through the night and trying to sleep awkwardly after running. I settled on starting at 4 am, which would mean I had to start runs at 4, 8, 12, 4, 8, and 12. That seemed the most like normal day for me. Obviously, it’s not normal but it was a little earlier wake up and would allow me to finish around 1 am. I felt like that would be easier to bounce back from than trying to run through the night. Jury is still out on the best way to do t but I think this worked well for me. Both Jonathan and Adam Aldridge did the same that weekend, another buddy, Sean Kunis followed a similar plan while Matt Feldhake ran through the night. So how’d it go?
Round 1 – 4 am | Lonely Roads
Normally, 4 am would be a quiet time to be on the roads but there would still be a few cars out. Not the case under quarantine. I got up and out the door fairly quickly albeit a shade after 4 am. My start was more like 4:15 but whatever, this is my show. I picked a 5-mile loop from the house (I did all my runs from the house to stay within the shelter in place guidelines) that passed by the mall area. It’s faily well lit, so I only had to rely on my head lamp in certain sections.
This run felt absolutely miserable. It was actually comical how terrible I felt. I never felt fully awake and no part of my body felt like it was working in concert with any other part. Everything was working on its own. I felt uncoordinated. All that to say, it felt exactly like you’d’expect a run at 4 am to feel. Especially when you just get up and go. No coffee, no time to wake up, just throw on the shoes and out the door. Five more rounds to go.
Round 2 – 8 am | Regular-ish
When I got back from the first run, I immediately collapsed onto the couch and took a three-hour nap. I felt somewhat normal when I woke up around seven and commenced operation mainline as much coffee as possible. I set out for the second run just after 8 am and felt pretty close to normal. I was still a little tired and there was some foreshadowing on this run in regards to how I would be playing catch up on hydration all day.
For this run, I decided to hit the out and back on the green way. It’s a nice and mindless run that meanders along a creek. I’ve probably run this stretch of paved path and gravel trail 1000+ times in the 10 years I’ve lived here.
Round 3 – 12 noon | It’s hot in these rhinos
Don’t get me wrong, I relish the fact that we have a spring here in Georgia, although sometimes I feel like I traded mud season for pollen season, but that’s beside the point. The mercury really started to climb on this run. It was over 70, which wasn’t too bad but that hydration debt started to manifest a little bit.
To my surprise, the legs felt the best they had all day to this point on this run. I actually felt like settled in early and didn’t take as long to get into the rhythm of things. However, I did have a little bit of a “this is a chore” moment but I decided to check out some of the trail near my house that I normally skip and that helped me feel a little bit better. It at least took my mind off of the act of running fora bit.
Round 4 – 4 pm | This is when it starts to get tough
Maybe it’s because I sat on the couch and played Red Dead Redemption, maybe it’s because I didn’t drink enough water, or maybe it’s just having 15 miles in the legs, but whatever the case this one was when things started to get tough.
It wasn’t the physical act of running, putting one foot in front of the other that got to me. I think it was the run then three hours of rest that took its toll. Three hours is just enough time to mentally check out and think that you’re done for the day. On top of that five miles is just short enough to not feel mentally daunting but just long enough to wear you out the deeper you get into things. At this point, I was not looking forward to the final two runs. I wanted nothing more than a beer and a shower. Perhaps a shower beer. In retrospect, I should have hopped in the shower. I think it would have helped my morale and given me a little boost. Live and learn.
Round 5 – 8 pm | Tacos might have been a bad idea
If I was going to do this again, I would definitely take it a little more seriously. I was super laid back and that approach would have been fine if it was two or three miles but five was a little too far for that. Amanda made tacos for dinner at 6:30 and they were delicious but man could I feel them on this run.
By take it more seriously, I really mean I would approach nutrition and hydration more like a race or like I do at Ragnar. Instead of doing that I treated it like a normal Saturday and that got me in trouble with hydration which had me battling side stitches most of the day. That being said, the weather was fantastic for the run. The temperature was perfect and it was dusk for the way out and dark on the way back. Despite my legs feeling tired and heavy with 20 miles in them already, I actually felt okay from a physical fatigue standpoint.
Round 6 – 12 midnight | Let’s get this sh*t done
This one felt like a midnight run with 25 miles in the legs and no sleep. I took a two-ish hour nap before heading out and I’m not sure if that helped or hurt but I was completely done. It was a trudge in every sense of the word. I did a mishmash loop around the mall area, which was even quieter than it was at 4 am.
I dragged myself through the five miles but it was a mental L. I couldn’t get my mind off how much further I had to go. It go a little better when I turned around and started heading back to the house but overall this one was the hardest loop. The 4 am was tough but I was sleep walking, this one was as much of a mental challenge as it was a physical one.
In conclusion
Overall, this was a cool challenge. I definitely had my ups and downs but it was a different way to challenge myself. I’ve never done anything like it before so it was good to step out of my comfort zone and try something different. I don’t think it was ever anything that felt like I wasn’t going to be able to accomplish. Not finishing never entered my mind. Or at least not being physically able to finish. If I didn’t set alarm for 11:45, I might have slept through the last one.
I am happy with the effort even if that last one was a bit of death march. It was fun to share the experience with Adam and Jonathan even if we weren’t running together and it’s been fun to see some of the other people I’ve met down here that have taken a shot at it. There is a group of six of us that run and train together and while I am the old guy that mostly runs sub marathon distances, these guys are bonafide ultra runners. We jokingly call the group the Ultra Bros, we’ve even got half serious t-shirts that say “the beast coasts premier unprofessional racing team”. It’s silly but it’s fun to be part of a group and to have people to train with. After finishing this event, I’ve officially earned my Ultra Bro status and don’t have to feel like a poser anymore, so that’s nice.
For more on Yeti Trail Runners check them out here: https://www.yetitrailrunners.com/
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