Sunrise to Sunset 170 mile race across FL (Mar. 27 to Mar. 29th 2008)

Start - Thurs 6:45pm Jensen Beach - east coast of FL - 74 degrees
Finish - Sat 5:33pm Fort Myers - west coast of FL.
Fri weather 65 to 84 sunny some clouds, Sat weather 59 to 90, sunny. Enough humidity to add to the heat index.
Distance - 171.26 miles (there was an extra mile because the sign to turn left was on the new Rt78 instead of the old Rt 78 on Leg 26).
Total time: 46 hours 48 minutes.
Avg pace 16:24 per mile includes sleep, walking, overheating and nutrition stops.

Pre-race Thoughts
- I had no idea what it would be like to go beyond 117 miles. I would be happy if I got to 150 miles. I expected heat, blisters and sleep to be bigger factors than distance. I hoped to bank some miles before my legs got stiff. I had checklists which I did not follow. Since you can't really train for a 170 mile run, I would rely on muscle memory from a race six months ago.

- Terrible first 100 miles
My left hip flexor felt tight by mile 20. I ran with the issue for the last 150 miles. I got blisters on both forefeet by mile 80 and ran the 90 miles with them. I taped the right foot - the blister moved up to the top of the feet and became a blood blister. The untaped blister on my left foot broke while running. I had expected to be further along than I was. It took me 9hrs 40 minutes to reach the first 50 miles which is about an hour slower than a month ago. My quads were already feeling stiff. It took me longer to reach mile 65 than last year, where I had dropped out. I reached halfway at mile 85 in 21 hours. At mile 86 I started walking when I realized Barb was walking faster than I was running. My 100 mile time (26 hours) was slower than my old Dominion 100 time which was in 95 degree heat and 14,000 of elevation gain. I think a tight hip flexor shortened my stride. I tapered for the whole month - training only 5 days averaging 5 miles and then not running for 16 days - I was surprised by the quad/hip flexor issues so early in the race. I think the extended taper allow my muscles to heal and form adhesions in an area (the TFL/IT band) that is not normally worked on in massage. Running frequently will break up scar tissue and prevent stiffness. 17 hours into the race, I started taking Tylenol every 8 hours and Advil every 2 hours.

- Calories
I estimated that I burned 27,000 calories over 171 miles and replaced 11,000 calories. The 16,000 calorie deficit resulted in a lost of 4.5 lbs of body fat lost. (3%). On the bodyfat scale, my bodyfat dropped from 17.5% to 14.5%. I got most of my calories from liquids including Hammer products, Accelerade and 14 cans of Red Bull. I used 35 bottles of water. I was afraid solid food would cause nausea and take too long to digest. Skinnier runners would have trouble running extreme distances because of their limited body fat!

-Sleep and mental acuity
I stayed awake pretty much from 7am Thurs to 8pm Sat. when I got back in the car. Walking made me sleepy but a painful pinch in the arm knocked me out of my daze. I decided to start taking naps on Friday night when I realized I wasn't moving off the shoulder when tractor trailers were coming towards me. I took 3 20 minute naps on late Friday night. Laurel drove for 130 miles and biked 40 miles. She stayed awake for as long as I did - 60 hours. That's pretty amazing; I think that driving is more difficult to do. I had no hallucinations or much trouble thinking as far as I could tell.

-Possibility of quitting
I felt worse after stopping to take my first nap. I think my blood pressure dropped and the body began to shut down for repairs. I wanted to throw up but nothing came out. I sat in the car for another 30 minutes and got going again. I figured I could always walk it in by 8pm Sat. I should not be feeling bad before reaching the distance of my longest run (117 miles). I was only at mile 110. I stayed in for my crew and because I quit last year.

- Mental aspect
The problem once you slow down in the heat is that once it cools off, it is hard to run faster again. The mind seems to be stuck in the slower pace. At 2:30am Saturday, I decided to run to each telephone pole and walk for a few seconds. My stride lengthened and I was running a 11 to 12 minute pace. Most of the time I am in the present moment. With oncoming traffic zipping by, you have to stay in the present. Occasionally I would do the math in the my head to determine when I would finish if I walked a 20 minute mile. I felt fine in the last 15 hours of the race; I just wanted to get it done.

-Heat and chafing
While walking on Lake Okeechobee in the heat Friday I said - What was I thinking? Who is to blame for telling me about the solo division of this race! By 12pm Sat. it was getting pretty hot. My body temp was 100. The temp on the shoulder of the road was 115. I bet that the road surface is over 120 degrees. The reading on my Wet Globe Thermometer was 77 - the gadget accounts for the radiant heat from the sun. The American College of Sports Medicine considers 77 a red flag - with a high risk of heat injury. I sat in the minivan for 10 minutes to cool off. I decided to be safe, and walk instead of run. It was 90 degrees in North Ft Myers at 5pm Sat. I figure the heat index was close to 100. I forgot to get a Wet Globe reading there. Ice underneath my safari cap felt good but it caused chafing. I tried a ziploc bag of ice. Cold packs around the neck felt good but didn't last long. I had water pored on my skin tight shirt. It cooled off well but the dripping caused chafing in the underarms and between the legs.

-Overhydration and blisters from too many electrolytes.
I panicked when I dropped 5 lbs in the sun at 10:30am Friday. I starting taking one Succeed per hour. I should have waited till I craved salty foods. The electrolytes are cumulative -- it might not hurt in a marathon even if you don't need them. Taking one capsule per hour adds up to 31 capsules in 31 hours and totals 10,580 mg sodium. That's in addition to what was in the liquid nutrition and 200mg per can in Red Bull. Blood holds about 15,000mg of sodium. When I reweighed and gained back 3 lbs, I should have realized I was overhydrated and should have stopped the Succeed (there is normal weight loss from glycogen depletion and fat burning). For 4 days, I had swollen feet and legs. My blood pressure was elevated. (156/93 and 138/89). To rid the excess water and sodium, I have been drinking coffee, wine and beer. The water retention caused my feet to swell and created the blisters.

- Potential dangers
When I was lying down to the grass to stretch - I noticed the vultures circling :). When we left at lake at Moorehaven, we were swarmed by mosquitos. I forgot where I packed my Deet repellant. The mosquitos bit through the Calf Guards. I saw plenty of dead snakes and a scorpion on the road. I saw a wild boar on the side of the road. Most of the dogs were fenced in. I got chased by dogs twice. I ran across the street. The second time, I had already put my doggie mace in the car. Thursday night, they were a couple of pickup truck drivers screaming about my reflective wear. When the trucks approached, I stepped off the white liine, onto the grass. I was never sure what was in the grass. Whenever a fast moving vehicle passes, I would step into the road to enjoy the turbulence wind. This turned out to be unsafe because I cannot see passing traffic coming up from behind me. One car passed me by several feet -- the driver may not be expecting that I would wonder onto the road.

-Run to the finish - 12:58pm Sat
I decided if I was going to make it to the party by 6pm, I need to run again. Athletes have been known to run well in body temps as high as 104 degrees. I felt fine; I had no symptoms of heat exhaustion. However, the ear thermometer could be under-estimating core body temperature; I wanted some margin of safety. I decided to push on despite an mildly elevated body temp.

- Directions
The maps and directions were pretty good for the most part. The sight of S2S signs were reassuring. The first team to pass me was at mile 104. They didn't follow the map and went the wrong way by taking a left turn. As mentioned earlier, the sign for leg 26 was on the wrong Rt. 78. The directions were good to the Edison House was good but I still got lost. I had been up for 57 hours by then.

-Finish-line.
I drank a can of Diet Pepsi and a bottle of Sam Adams. Beer is a good diuretic. After 171 miles, I didn't really feel tired. I was moving better than after my 117 miler. My next challenge will be to run 185 miles in the Ultracentric 48 hour race in November.

-Mistakes Made
a. overhydrated with electrolytes
b. Didn't apply and reapply anti-chafing cream to armpits and between legs.
c. Forgot to apply chapstick and reapply sunscreen

- Finish Celebration
Overall, an excellent adventure. The most enjoyable part was the celebration at the finish. It was an incredible experience. I felt like a rock star for 2 hours. The relay teams cheered me in. I answered questions, posed for pictures and autographed a runner's arm. The local news station showed my finish but did not put my interview on the air. I received a cool award, a painting with a Sunrise to Sunset race theme. Everyone I showed the painting to liked it. When I won the Iron Horse 100 miler last year - only the race director and his wife was around. The 50 miler, and100km runners had already gone home. It was a quiet celebration. Without my crew, Barb and Laurel, I would not be running this race. I am grateful for their time. I am also appreciative of the cheers and concern from the relay teams along the course, as well as the water and ice offered. I also glad that the race directors came up with the idea of having solo division and offered to provide whatever support was needed to complete the race.
http://www.winknews.com/sports/local/17138846.html
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=A4&Date=20080329&Category=SPORTS&ArtNo=803290807&Ref=PH&Params=Itemnr=90

- Milestones
I improved last year's course record by15 hours.
My longest race was 23 hours, is now 46 hours
My longest distance was 117 miles, is now 171 miles.
I would estimate that I could have placed in the top 5 in 48 hour races.
I passed the distance of Badwater(135 miles).- although Badwater is 115 degrees hot but less humid.

- PostRace
We got back to Orlando around 1am Sunday. We unloaded the mini-van and I soaked my legs in cold water. I went to sleep at 2am. I expected to sleep in but I was up by 7am. I drove to meet my Sunday running for breakfast. I guess there was no cumulative sleep debt.

- Recovery
I've had a runners high all week from the new milestone and the finish line celebration. The event was a focused 3-day vacation. I hope to carry forward the focus in my daily life. I am not really sore. I could run but I am waiting for the foot blisters to drain and heal. On Tuesday, my single leg press test was 145 lbs right leg/ 140 lbs left leg. (Thurs 165/155). That is better than after my last 50 miler. I was only going 10-12 min miles while running and 15-16 minute miles while shuffling along. So I really didn't work my muscles very hard. I had a deep tissue massage and the only issues were tight calfs. These longer races are easily on the body than shorter ultras.