As I have taken up more miles in running, I’ve found two rituals that mark any long distance race for me. #1. A shot of tequila after the race and #2. I take some time to jot down a few notes about my experience. Why? well... tequila is a great way to celebrate a long run and it’s better than ibuprofen (according to me) and the notes are a great way for me to remember some of these adventures. Who knows, maybe someone else will read it and enjoy the trip too and survive my horrible grammar and spelling errors. So here it goes.. my first Phunt 50K.
So what is a Phunt anyway? All I know is that every year (for almost 2 years now) the allure of running a 50K in the winter seemed amazing. But alas this race filled up nearly a year in advance - building up the allure even more! So I made the commitment and signed up for 2020 Phunt. But it’s 2019, so how did this happen? One of my friends knew I had been going through some difficult times personally and came upon a bib that needed a new owner. Her thought was that 31 miles would help soothe my soul and mind. At first I said no, but my husband said, “you should do it” and that was all I really needed. I lost the first bib, but she made it her mission to find me another. After all.. 31 miles of running in January has got to heal your soul and mind right? It’s a Phunt! I hadn’t really trained for it and my last 20+ miles was back in November - nearly 8 weeks ago. So let’s just say I’ve been tapering for awhile right? Leading up to this race, my friend (the same one) knew I was back and forth about signing up for a 50 mile race and after some discussion with my supportive husband - I did the deed and signed up. So what’s this have to do with Phunt? Well, it shaped my thoughts about how I’d use this race. It would not be a race, but training my stomach and pace training and restraint. I may need to think about this friendship..hmmm.. she’s like a trail race dealer. Come on.. you know you want some trail miles. Just do it.. here is a little taste.. Plus I had my new fancy Garmin to test out! Anyway...
One of the things about this race is that you can run the 25K and call it a day or you can run the second lap and do the 50k. Which is great... BUT... for those planning to do a 50k - it does make it a little harder to mentally keep on going. The trail dealer and I had a great time on our way down to the festivities, talking about all the great fun we were going to have on this race and future races. Once we got there we ran into several other fellow friends and put our stuff in the activities hall, collected our bibs, peed several times, and went about our work in getting our gear together to get this party started! As everyone filtered out into the cool air to start the race, I made sure that I found my way further back into the pack than I normally would start. I wanted no parts of even attempting to go out too fast. I was determined to eat, and have fun and finish strong. I felt great as we made our way out onto the fun course. So good - I forgot to turn my Garmin on until about 1-mile in... oops! It was a nice mix of rolling elevation which keeps you engaged. I made a point to hike many of the uphills - even the more runnable ones.
As we entered the first aid station, I was thrilled to see the MASH theme! Complete with Klinger! They offered a wide range of food and even beer too. So I made the point to eat half a PBJ sandwich. I thought to myself that I want a picture with Klinger and a beer- but that will be my reward on the second lap (that way I MUST do lap #2!).
The second aid station was the logger station - another fantastic array of goodies! I opted for bacon and mountain dew this time. My stomach wasn’t totally sure about this venture - but we did it.
Along the way, I have to say how much fun this race is for signage - so many amazing signs that made me giggle. Some of my favorites where posted as you came up to the third aid station where you were greeted by Hans and Frans complete with weight bench looking to pump you up! This station even had more substantial drink offerings which I decided to pass on... maybe lap two? However, I went in for a grilled cheese and was happy to chow! After departing this aid station I was heading to the Finish/Second lap... and it did start to occur to me - do I really want to do 31 miles? My friend is so damn fast she is going to have to wait for me, this way I can wait for her instead. And no sooner did these thoughts occur - I came upon a creek and thought, I haven't stomped in the mud, or taken my picture with Klinger or gotten my beer, I’ve got 50 miles to train for and I signed up to do 50k - I’m doing the damn 50k. Shortly after that I saw the hamburglar on the trails and that sealed the deal.
I was gonna do the 50k - it’s just how I am wired at this point in my life. So I picked up speed pass the finish line/ and ran into some poor woman in front of me who was stopping for her 25k medal. As they offered me one, I responded.. “um... I wanted to keep going”.. “oh, well go then!” and so I did.
My first lap was 3:25. I wasn’t thrilled nor dismayed. It was what it was. I was mostly thrilled with the fact that I ate so damn much and it was all staying down!
The pack of people thinned by a LOT as I headed out for the loop. The second lap was met with a bit more slippage as the temperature was perfect for melting dirt --That’s fine by me! A race lad who many know by his willingness to wear Jorts in winter was happily taking photos and had made an adorable snowman. Of course I had to stop to get a photo!
