The course is set within the nature preserve and Guilford Land Trust and follows a series of single-track hiking trails, hill climbs, and gravel/dirt fire access roads. The course website, further describes the course "an off road foot race through several inter-connected woodland preserves in southern Connecticut. Consisting entirely of rolling forest roads or single track that can be extremely rocky, the course will provide a true test of the runner’s fitness and mental stamina." -http://mrbimble.com/WordPress/
RUNNING BACKGROUND:
About 10 years ago, I enlisted in the Connecticut Army National Guard as a Combat Engineer. I shipped off to Army Bootcamp at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. I left CT overweight and out of shape. I quickly lost the weight my body needed to lose and came back to CT as a weekend warrior. After about 6 months of being home, I put the weight back on and failed my first physical fitness test conducted with my unit. I found comfort in knowing that I would NEVER fail another physical fitness test again. I was forced into the Infantry, where I then deployed overseas. I began running and cross training on our base, as an outlet for our daily activities, and to stay in shape. When I returned home, I began working in a full-time position with my recruiter, who happened to be a runner. He pushed the team to excel in physical fitness, but taught us much more than I realized about how to train our mind and body. We all passed our tests, with room to wiggle. I was actually hooked.
I never really ran long distances, but consistently ran a few days a week. I have really only run in a few short races, to include a couple of 5k's, a few 5.5 milers, and to-date, two New England Tough Mudders. So, I don't have ton of real "races" under my belt.
TRAINING:
I actually committed to training for this endurance race when I began telling friends and family that I was going to participate in this race. I told complete strangers I was going to do this race. I told the shoe store sales associate I needed the "right pair" of shoes for an ultra-trail marathon. I even told the woman who rang out my coffee at the local sweet shop I was doing this thing. I knew at that point that even if I wasn't officially signed up and registered for the race, if I told people I was going to do it, it was official. It was kinda' hard to back down after telling the world, including the coffee shop lady, I was going to do something so spectacular.
By the time I actually started training for the Bimbler's Bluff, I had about 13 weeks to train for the event. I had been running about 2 to 3 days per week at about 3 to 5 miles per run. I ran on the local trails (Wallingford) about once a week and ran on the road most others. So, I did not start with a very strong base of running for an event like this. But I was determined. I google searched "12 week ultra-marathon training plans" and quickly found that most plans recommended that you start with a base of running that includes your "long" run to be at least 10 miles.
The training plan I chose was a 13-week ultra training schedule, which, due to time constraints, I started the plan at week #2. The plan consisted of running 5 days per week, with the shorter runs Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Saturday and Sunday were the scheduled long runs, with Saturday usually being the long run, and Sunday was about half of Saturday's distance. I kept up the 5-day-a-week schedule until about week #6. The following weeks I ran about 4 days per week, due to real life.
Week #4 is when I completed my first real "long" run at 12.75 miles. I started to feel my body getting conditioned from consistent running. Week #6 I completed a 10 mile trail run which had me laying low for the following few days due to some pain in my knees that I have never experienced before. After self-diagnosing myself with runner's knee and the onset of a baker's cyst, I followed the internet doctor's orders and iced the front and back of my knees at night. I took it easy for the next week.
My longest run came at the beginning of week #10, which was 15 miles on the trails of Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden, CT. The trails I chose were rated C and B in difficulty (for hiking), but would describe them as rocky with a side of strenuous hills. That run took just over 3 hours to complete. I was happy, and sore for the next four days.
My average mileage per week varied from a low of 21 miles, to 39 miles. About 70% of my runs were on the trails, either at Sleeping Giant, Tyler Mill Nature Preserve, or other locations. I completed a total of 298.5 miles in the 12 weeks prior to the race.
GEAR: Fails/Success
Footwear: For the first few weeks, I ran in my old New Balance minimus barefoot running sneakers, which I love, except their age. I've had them for quite some time, so I sought out for the "right pair" of trail runners. I went to a running store and found, what I thought were, the "right pair." I ended up going home with a pair of The North Face Ultra Trail running shoes, specifically designed for this type of running. They held up for the first 10 miles on the trail and maybe 20 miles on the road. The soles are spectacular, as they are made by Vibram. The mesh outsoles tore within the first several runs, leaving holes and exposed feet. Not good. Fail. I had an older pair of North Face running shoes, which I ended up wearing for the race. They did the job. I still have not found the pair. Fail.
Clothing: For socks, I found a decent pair of New Balance running socks. They were fine. I wore an old pair of Adidas running shorts or Hind running shorts and an Under Armour Heatgear t-shirt.
Nutrition/Fuel: I did a lot of reading and chose to try GU gel shots and Strawberry Clifshots. Both were great when I used them accordingly. I didn't feel a "burst" of energy, but felt like I could keep moving my body (during training and the event). They were flavorful and both of these products were on sale on amazon.com.
I did not do anything different in coming weeks of the race as far as my nutrition went. I mostly follow a plant-based diet and add some fish to my meals from time to time. During training, I ate, and ate, and ate, and ate. I was always hungry. So I ate. I pretty much sustained my weight, however, it flucuated from time to time. I did not necessarily carb-load prior to the race, though I enjoyed what I ate.
Hydration: I previously owned the Camelbak Military Mule as shown, and used it for about 6 weeks of training. It was fine, but was cumbersome. The waist belt rode up on my stomach and the shoulder straps often rubbed on my neck. It's great for hiking, just not for running.
GETTING THERE:
The race started at 8:00am sharp and there was a race briefing at 7:40am. Sean and I left the neighborhood at about 6:30am. We got to the area and thought my GPS took us the wrong way, but continued to trust the Garmin. We arrived at the race location at about 7:00am, and received our race bibs and goodie bags. I was pretty nervous, so I did the obvious and sat in the porto-john for the second time that morning. Sorry for whoever went in there after me.
The race briefing was short and sweet. It basically told us to pay attention to our surroundings, or we might get lost. I could see the difficulty in trying to mark 31+ miles of trails.
50K+:
With a countdown from 10, the pack of about 130 participants took off and completed one loop around the baseball field, crossed the road, and immediately entered the single-track pine needed-lined trail. We were off!
Sean and I kept a pretty good pace and reminded ourselves often to just slow down as we expected to be out on the trail for about 7 and a half hours. The Timberlands section of the race was a single-track trail. I was comfortable running and chatting it up for several miles with a great group of people we met out on the trail. Each aid station was perfectly placed every 5 or 8 miles, which was just the right distance when I became low on water. The aid stations were manned by awesome volunteers and had great fuel-fruit, pretzels, candy, potatoes with pretzel salt (crack), water, gatorade, soda, and an electrolyte drink. One aid station had soup, and another had grilled cheese sandwiches.
We climbed the "bluff" somewhere around the 10 or 12 mile mark. The climb was a challenging, steep grade, but worth the view when we crested the cliff. The view overlooked a gorgeous lake wrapped with foliage. We stopped for a minute or two and took in the views.
We hit the aid station at the halfway point and felt pretty good at this point. We gobbled a few treats (potatoes dipped in pretzel salt), topped of our water and Charlie Mike'd (Army for "Continue Mission"). The route continued into a small field where it quickly closed in on a series of foot bridges to cross some wetlands. The foot bridges turned into a single track trail and we snaked through the woods. After several more miles of rolling single track trails, the route took us along a fire access road. This is the point where I'd say I "hit my wall." My legs just did not want to move any faster than my mind tried to push them or pick them up. For the next 7 or 8 miles on this hard packed access road, the bottom of my feet became deadened with pain. My knees hurt with every walking and trotting step along this road. I popped a few Ibuprofen and checked my water intake. My mind went somewhere far, far away from my legs and I continued to trot/walk. Sean ran ahead some and we met at the last of the aid stations, which was positioned about two and a half miles from the finish of the race.
As we reached the last aid station, the Ibuprofen kicked in and provided me with just enough relief to my knees to pick up the pace and finish strong. Although Sean said that he was slowing down a bit, I would have to disagree. We ran through the same pine needle-covered trail we started the race about 7 hours and 50 minutes prior to hear several people cheering. We crested the hill and ran across the finish line.
I was happy for the run to be over, so was my body. I certainly did not break any land speed records, but I did move my body consecutively for 7 hours and 51 minutes. It was quite the experience and still cannot fathom the distance I ran that day. Some extraordinary, conditioned people run these races often, and I tip my hat to you. You can run. But I'm an average person, and an average runner, who set a goal and completed something extraordinary, without getting blisters!
POST RUN RECOVERY:
Sleep, Water, Rest, Water, Food, Water, Ibuprofen, Water, Stretches, Water, Walk, Water, Repeat.
THANK YOU:
Sean; for signing up before me.
Brooke; for supporting me and putting up with all the time spent running.
Disclaimer: I am not a representative or employee of any of the products and did not receive any compensation for my personal reviews of the products. Those are the few products I tried and gave my honest opinion.
Just keep moving!
-Henry C.
