OKC held the USATF 24hr Champs this year, an event I had been looking forward to for a long time. Not so much with the thought of making the US National team (though it was in there) but of testing my own limits once again and doing it with some of my favorite family/friends in the Ultracircuit and beyond. As always I came in prepared incredibly well thanks to my dear friend and coach Ray Zahab.
Let me start by saying that the people in Oklahoma are about as nice as they come. Chisholm Deupree and his race staff put on an incredibly well run, friendly and enjoyable event from start to finish.
I flew in the day before the race straight off a sleepless call night, not ideal for sure, but got to spend the day with one of my very best friends Jay Pack and his beautiful family. I walked the course in the afternoon, some gentle rollers and a course to be wary of the tangents so as not to run a lot more than you need to. Packet pickup meant some friendly faces including Connie Gardner, Phil McCarthy, Roy Pirrung and of course Chisholm Deupree and his father Harry. Even Frozen Ed Furtaw was lurking. We settled in to a nice dinner and I had a rather sleepless pre race night as usual.
Woke up race morning feeling anxious but excited. Forecast was for showers :( and likely cold overnight temps :( bahhhh for the Florida boy. We set up shop next to my good buddy Dan Rose. Plan was to hang with him as able bit run a smart race all around. After the gun went off Dan and I spent the next 5 or so hours running and chatting, quite the nice catch up for sure. I started to realize I was not feeling that strong, maybe the lack of sleep, maybe just the fear of what was coming. At any rate I let Dan go and away he went.
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| Running happy early |
In the spirit that is Ultra my friend Brenda Carawan drove 6+ hours to help Jay crew me. If you don't know Brenda search awesome (Badwater, Spartathlon, 100mile winner times many). Having people like that in your corner is amazing. The strength and encouragement that she and Jay shared were priceless.
The weather got worse and the rain enveloped us most of the afternoon. I still watched Dan and Phil and David Ploskonka cruise with seem less effort. I felt OK at best. After some encouraging from Brenda and Jay over the next several hours, plus Oatmeal Creme Pies (my secret weapon) and some good music things got back on track. Erin sent me a note as she always does before the race and asked me to take a new mantra every lap. Each time around think of something/someone I was thankful for and concentrate on it. Honestly, I have a lot more to be thankful for then I ever knew.
Many people struggled for a variety of reasons but Brenda reminded me this happens and yes it does. Sabrina Little, the current US Woman's 24hr record holder came in sick and pushed as long as she could, needless to say she lapped me several times before stopping. Dan's day stopped short mid evening to my dismay as he had looked so strong. Phil McCarthy hit the wall around 12hr but walked the entire last half and finished. Honestly one of the most amazing and inspirational efforts I have ever witnessed. Anyone who knows Phil well is not surprised by that in the least.
There I was alone, about to listen to a great Avril Lavigne song and Cherie Yanek and Ray K passed into my world. Well Ray had been there all day, you can't pass him or see him without him making his presence known in some way. I started running with Cherie around 12 hours and never stopped. It was not until about 3 or 4 hours in when Cherie said "How long have we been running together ". At that point I realized we would stick together till the end. The stories were awesome, her spirit unmatched. I have never spent so much time with one person in any given race with the exception of Brazil. The colder it got the stronger we ran. We had a run, walk routine that was pretty much set in stone, coordinated bathroom breaks and any necessary stops. I needed her as much as she needed me and we both came out on top. Well everyone wins in Ultras anyway right :) Pretty much a great 12 hours minus the last 3 crappy ones. She pushed me, I pushed her. We both hit PR's and more importantly had a blast along the way. We even managed to hustle a 9min and change last lap because it needed to happen. It was my painful payback to her for forcing me to run so much the last hour. That and my last mile mantra was E and my girls :)
At the end of the day I hit 128.87miles, a 7 mile PR, 6th OA and USATF Master's Champ. Cherie finished 3rd woman OA and 2nd woman USATF OA with a PR of 115+miles. No she did not get her pony she kept asking for but she did get some cash :)
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| USATF Masters Champ 2013 |
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| Home Sweet Home |
It was a wonderful day all around. I cannot thank Chisholm, his race staff and the state of Oklahoma enough for their hospitality. I once again learned very vividly life is about "attraction" rather than promotion. If those are the kind of people I am attracting these days, sign me up every time!!!!!!
