Finally got some socks! Spartanburg Turkey Day 8K

The fifth annual Turkey Day 8K was held in downtown Spartanburg this morning.  My goal - earn a pair of socks!  The first 80 men to cross the finish line get a pair along with the first 80 women.  This is only my second year running the race after finishing with a 48:50 last year.  No socks for me last year, but still had fun running.

I had no idea what time I would need to get the socks and I had no idea how to "race"!  Up until this morning I have never went out as hard & as fast as I could go for 5 miles.  Several hundred people lined up at the start and we were off.  I didn't know what pace I was running or what distance I was at.  I just ran as fast as I could stand to go.  Hard up hills and hard down hills.  If my body wanted to slow down I pushed it harder.  We went up & down several hills and through some neighborhoods with folks cheering us on in their front lawns.

I rounded the final 100 yard leg of the race and saw 37:30 minutes on the clock.  WHOA!  I then thought "SOCKS!" so I kicked it as hard as I could to the finish line with a 37:50 time.  I don't know if I was more excited to have ran a 7:37 min/mile pace for 8k or to have won some socks!  YEAH!  This big man has never moved that fast!

You get a small stick with a number on it when you finish if you are eligible for socks.  I noticed my number was #78.  Whew - close call - two more and I would have cold feet today  ;]

Thanks to the Spartanburg Running Club and other sponsors for collecting food for the soup kitchen from runners.  This was a free race to support a great cause.

Now off to bask in the glory of the turkey socks....

Found a pacer for the 100 miler & only 300 miles

Great News!  I found a solid pacer for the hundo - YES!  Wayne Downey (Lil' Wayne) has agreed to go down and help me out.  I'm very pumped about Wayne pacing me for several reasons.

1.  We ran sweep at Laurel Valley together for the entire race so he has spent 12 hours on the trail with me.

2.  Wayne has more experience that I do & even brings some mad road running experience to the table.

3.  The dude cracks me up!  Do you know that one friend who can always make you laugh?  That is him!

4.  He is a hardcore runner & will not let me quit.  Being a testicular cancer survivor means he knows how to survive.

I trust Wayne and am very thankful to have him pacing me - I truly appreciate it & can't imagine how it will feel to have him run me in from 75 miles.

Since Wayne is coming down to Florida, Beth (wife) has decided that she will stay put at home with the kids for that weekend.  She is a teacher and both kids are in school so she was happy to have Wayne on board too.

I have some fun races scheduled before the Iron Horse, but I am counting down to it in the back of my mind.  I figured that I have about 300 miles left in long runs & races before the big day.  All of my races have been treated as long training runs for the past three months  ;]

Gotta get my mind right for the Pine Mountain 40 now, but you better believe that the hundo is brewing strong in the back of my mind...

92 Days until the 100 miler & I could use a pacer

I really enjoy reading race reports. You learn so much about running, people, and courses when you read stories from another person’s perspective. Last weekend the Pinhoti 100 mile trail race took place in Alabama. I think five GUTS runners ran it (and finished!) & another group ran a couple aid stations throughout the race.


Since the days are slowly closing in for my first shot at the mighty hundo, I am “all ears” gathering as much information as possible to give me the best chance of finishing. David R. volunteered & helped run the aid stations to get a better look at what it takes to go 100 miles for his own shot at it next year. If you are researching this type of information I highly suggest you check out his Pinhoti report HERE. Great perspective from the other side of the aid station.

There are lots of variables that play out in any race, but I keep noticing how vital pacers are in these 100 milers. A pacer is someone who runs/walks with you on the trail and makes sure you are doing the things you need to do in order to finish. For example, they will make sure you are eating/drinking, staying on the race route, keeping an eye on the time, talking with you, keeping your spirits up through the night, and much more. Why would you need this? After running for ten hours your mind starts getting mushy and doesn’t ring up thoughts as quickly as it should. A pacer kinda replaces your brain so you can go on auto-pilot and keep moving forward.

Kim P. went down to Pinhoti to pace a runner and has given me lots of helpful tips. None were bigger and more important that finding a pacer. I have heard the same advice from several other experienced runners like Kim, but it hasn’t really hit me until now - (hard headed man syndrome) HHMS.

I do need a pacer for the final 25-30 miles & hope to come up with one between now and then.

This is a flat course that is 12.5 miles out-n-back that will be completed 4 times to make 100 miles. It is on an unimproved rail trail near Jacksonville, FL. Iron Horse 100 Website.

The course is open for 26 hours so my goal will be to stay well ahead of that time. I‘ve been working on my splits and here is what I have so far. I realized that time will be lost at aid stations, changing clothes, etc. so this will be my overall pace including all stops. I have a GOLD, SILVER, & BRONZE game plan.

GOLD:
Finish in 24 hours-

Average 14.24 min/mile Pace
12.5 miles 3:00:00 Hours
25 miles 6:00:00
37.5 miles 9:00:00
50 miles 12:00:00
62.5 miles 15:00:00
75 miles 18:00:00 Pacer @ 1 AM
87.5 miles 21:00:00
100 miles in 1 day

SILVER:
Finish in 26 hours-

Average 15.36 min/mile Pace
12.5 miles 3:15:00 Hours
25 miles 6:30:00
37.5 miles 9:45:00
50 miles 13:00:00
62.5 miles 16:15:00
75 miles 19:30:00 Pacer @ 2:30 AM
87.5 miles 22:45:00
100 miles in 1 day, 2 Hrs.

BRONZE:
FINISH.