"YARC" Post of the Week, The Best of Times

[windwalker]

Training for a big event like the Disney Half, Full or Goofy, is not easy. But nothing worth having ever is easy. Most things that are really important have a cost, the more the cost the more the value.

A lot of you are doing a new distance this coming January. You will, during your training, when it gets rough, start thinking, "Is this going to be worth all this".

Ten or twenty years from now will you remember what you did yesterday? How about the day before, how about last week? Had you done a half or a full marathon you would remember.

I'm going to ask for comments from the vets on here who have gone the distance, "Was it worth it"????? Tell us your feelings about your past events. Are those memories of the best of times, do they rank up there with your life's best memories?

My life has had some ups and downs just like everyone else's but when I look back over the years I remember my races, I remember then as good times all of them the perfect and the not so perfect. But as the saying goes "It's all good".

Of course those memories are not going to rank with your first kiss or the birth of your children or your wedding day but for life events they are up there.

In 2006, the WISH team, endured the freezing cold, in 2007 we overcame the heat, but during both that finishline was so Sweet and the chance to say "Heck yes I did it".

So, you guys who have already blazed the trail, is it worth the training?? Tell these rookies, is it worth the hours on the road putting in the miles??

Dave

 

[ultramickeymouse]

Very long

06 Goofy was special in that it was my first races of ANY distance since I blew out my right Achilles in a 50K on Sept 2, 2001. 2 years of failed rehab( and tearing the right Achilles in a different spot on the right leg) I had surgery on both of them. They were scheduled 5 weeks apart so I could be on crutches but it didn’t work that way and was in a wheelchair for 8 weeks before back on crutches for 6 weeks. Doctor said no more running just back to walking. I once was a fast walker 92-98(12 min pace 5:09 marathon and 10:32 50 miler) until turned to runner. Now I turned to slow walker.

After 2 years of PT to get me on my feet I decided to do the WDW marathon in 06. This was to celebrate the 10th anniversary of my 96 WDW marathon finish. I also thought I would do the 5K and signed up for that as well. A month later they started mentioning this “Goofy” thing. This was interesting as I had never done back to back races. I had done to tough mountain 50K’s 6 days apart but not back to back days. Disney let me change to the Goofy. I worked hard to lose my wheelchair 25 pounds and get my once well trained body back in order.

Training was very painful and injuries cut off all training over the last 5 weeks. Linda broke her toe and had to skip the Goofy. Before we left for WDW, I made the decision to play doing the races by ear. I was afraid that without my training and no races in 5 years I would get cut and not finish either race. Friday morning I had all but made up my mind not to do the races. I went over on the bus to pickup my shirts and packets. I paid for them. But on the ride over I saw other runners and heard them talking and it got my racing juices going and by the time we got off the bus, I changed my mind and said I will do the best I can and just “go for it”. I had made it over my first marathon in 92, first 50K in 93, and first 50 miler in 94. I was even able to qualify and attempt Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run. I will survive.

Sat morning was freezing and I had on every tech layer I brought on. The gun went off and it took me almost 20 minutes to get to the start line. I feared for sure I would get cut and just started pushing it. Made it and finished walking in 3:05. Way to fast and was worried about the full.

Sunday morning came and quads very tight and sore. I don’t do well and tightened up until about mile 4 when legs started to come around. I got 2 nice blisters(1 on each heel) from the Half. I could hardly walk but pushed along. At mile 22, the right one broke. Pain! I just limped for about a ½ mile until I got use to the pain. I was going to finish and I said I am tired of this and pushed through to a 6:32 finish.

I got my Goofy. It was one of the hardest things I had done but I remembered back to my ultra days. Nothing is ever easy and going to be perfect. The old saying is”when things are going well, they will get bad and when things are going bad, they will get better”. Never quit or give up.

O7 was better as I knew I could do both but the heat and Linda’s PF in the last 13 miles of the marathon(as part of her 1st Goofy) made us very close to not being an official finisher(6:58:07). She hobbled through the pain and got her medals.

Another side story is my first 50 miler(trail ultra) I walked was in April 94. My longest day was a 50K so I had to finish 19 miles more than I had ever done. This race had a very tight cut at mile 40. I made it to mile 33 aid station and was doing well. Then hit unofficial mile 35 aid station and noticed I wasn’t going to make the cut. I stopped became very sad. I regrouped after a few minutes and said at least I will have done 38 miles. I plugged along to mile 38 and said I’m done. They said no you have time just get moving. The true mileage of these aid stations are not very accurate so I took off again. Just outside the aid station I saw Linda(who crewed me at 10 spots during the race). She smiled and said do you have a car key. Totally tired and grateful of making the cut, I soon realized why she was asking me this. I knew the answer. I said no and she helped me and told her to get the aid station people to help her. I took off and finished strong. The last 2 ½ miles is one nonstop hill. I got my 20th wind and started flying up the hills. I was a very strong hill walker. I must have passed about 50 runners(now walkers) in a time of 12:08(14:34 pace). I finished!!!

Rule of thumb is just keep moving forward and good things will happen!

Sorry for the length. Blame Dave!

 

[windwalker]

Thank you Robert. You have done some amazing races. Your experience and advice are valuable assets to us all.

I know that when I'm finally ready to park my butt in the rocker and just remember the days of high adventure I will be content. The old saying, "It's better to be a has been than a never was", is so true.

Dave

 

[ultramickeymouse]

Dave: A website has some of my ultra results from over the years. It is missing races in several states but gives you idea of my YARC'ness.

http://www.disneyrunning.com/rmresults.html

The 96 Silver State 50K, really 34.5 miles was done in a blizzard. The race normal has 8-10 miles of snow you have to run through but a blizzard hit during the race. They cancelled the 50M but left us 50K'ers to finish. It took me 4 hours through the white out conditions on the mountain to do the 8 miles of snow. It was figured to ge a 20 below wind chill factor. It was so cold that my water bottles, camelback, and gels froze solid while racing. Nothing to eat or drink for 4 hrs. Luckily I put on seal skin socks(noephrome socks) or when I stepped through the snow into water I would have lost my foot to frostbite. Craziest race I ever did. Some people were in shorts and had to quit the race. The leader spent 45 minutes at mile 28 aid station recovering from hypotermia before going on and finishing.

Pick a result, and I could tell you a story. Trail ultras are a crazy thing. The Goofy in 06 and 07 were pretty tame to some of the things I have done.

One more story for those bored. In 97 I did a 12/24 hr race in Sacramento(not on the list) in August. The temps got up to 108 during the run. It was a 8/10 mile loop. They had 3 misting/hosing stations on the loop. The loop was on a open uncovered road. I got soaked at each and by the time I got to the next one I was completely dry I finished 50 miles under 12 hrs for a qualifier for WS100. My friend and I got our pic taken and placed in the Sac Bee. After finishing I threw up and had a good case of heat exhaustion.

 

[Big Vic]

Thanks for sharing that, Robert.

 

[windwalker]

Robert, some day in the near future we need to do one together. A WISH Ultra would be awesome. Nice flat Florida during the winter would be nice.

Your training at altitude, and on mountian trails is a big plus for you, no wonder you are strong on hills.

I train on hills nearly every day but no altitude training. I would have to acclimate for a week or more before a race in the mountians, then it would still be an ordeal.

Thanks for sharing your stories.

Dave

 

[SilverE]

Robert,

Thank you for your inspirational post. I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes:

"Courage and perseverance have a magical talisman, before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish into air." --John Quincy Adams

Thanks again.

 

[TXBelle]

All of the training is definitely worth it! I never was an athlete growing up. I never was a runner. I walked for exercise when I was pregnant with my girls but never dreamed of even doing a 5K. DH, on the other hand, has always been an athlete. He was on the soccer team and tennis team in college. He was a runner. His dream was always to do the WDW marathon. In 2004, we made some life changes that allowed DH to train for the WDW marathon. I planned to take the kids to WDW and cheer him on from the sidelines. Then, my mom offered to watch the kids for us, and we started planning a weekend alone. I found the WISH boards whiled trying to lose weight, and I read a thread about some WISH women who were going to walk the WDW 1/2 marathon. Wow, that sounded cool and doable. The rest, they say, is history. I trained for the WDW 1/2 marathon, while DH trained for the full. I still remember sitting at FW eating dinner with the WISH group in 2005 thinking if anyone had told me nine months ago that I would be participating in a 1/2 marathon with a bunch of women I met on the internet I would have told them they had lost their minds! I wouldn't let DH even get internet access for a long time because I thought the internet was evil.

In 2005, the 1/2 and the full were on the same day at the same time so DH did not get to see me race or finish, and I was so slow (LOL) that I did not get to see him race or finish. He crossed the finish line at EPCOT less than an hour after I finished the 1/2 in the parking lot at MK. When I got that Donald medal, I cried I was so happy, and I knew at that moment that there was nothing that I could not accomplish in my life. It is a feeling like no other. The 2006 1/2 marathon was just as sweet with even more WISH friends joining the team.

Fast forward to 2007, when DH did the Goofy and I did the marathon. DH committed to stay with me the whole race and see me through to the finish. He did the 1/2 at his "slow" pace of 9 minute miles, then did the full with me. He jokingly called himself my Sherpa, carrying all my stuff and vowing to get me to Everest (in AK). It was tough with the heat and no water at some stops, but we made it! We crossed the finish line together and DH cried and told me how proud he was of me. We have been together 20 years and that was the first time I had ever seen him cry. It was a moment I will never forget. I really believe in the slogan that "Pain is temporary but pride is forever."

After the marathon, I made DH promise me that I would never ever have to go that far again. DH promised, and two days later I signed up for the Goofy. I never said I wasn't crazy!

Coming onto the WISH boards and joining the WISH team literally changed my life. I would not trade a minute.

 

[Honeibee]

All you have to do is look at any of the pictures of me doing my first ever Half in January and see the HUGE smile on my face every single step of the way.

I can't tell you in words how much it is worth it. But those pictrues say it all.

When I crossed the finish line I was crying like a lunatic and the volunteer asked me if I was alright and I told her I have never been more alright in my entire life!

BTW Dave, I have to tell you, just for the record, that doing the Half was WAY better than my first kiss.

 

[TEK224]

It is so worth it! I've been an athlete all my life, but never a"runner". In fact, when I played team sports, I hated to run for conditioning. Absolutely HATED it!

Then when I gave up team sports I was looking for a new challenge and decided to try triathlons. I still need a lot of work on that. When I heard about the Goofy (who's actually my bf ) I figured if that didn't get me off my butt to train, nothing would. The last toally running race I had done was a 10-miler and that was 23 years ago.

So I signed up for the 2006 Goofy and started training. Towards the end of training I strained a quad and couldn't run for a month before the race.

I never thought I'd be running a half and full marathon in Florida wearing gloves and ear muffs, but I did. Boy was it cold! I finished the 1/2 in 3:20. During the full I got a wicked blister on the side of my foor, just below the ankle. I could feel it, but didn't want to stop, but it was killing me. I made it to the finish and got my medals, but was not considered "official" since I finished in 7:08. I was so happy to finish I was in tears. And I had the biggest blood blister you can imagine. It was the size of half dollar .

In 2007, it was so hot. When I left the room at 3:30 AM the sweat started immediately. Finished the 1/2 around 3:12. For the full, I made sure to take precautions so I didn't get the same blister again. Worse, I got 5 blisters all over my feet. The two on my heels are what knocked me out of the race at 21 1/2 miles. I was not a happy camper.

But I'm back to do it again. It is just such a feeling of accomplishment to finish an event like this, that it's hard to put into words. I guess an easy way to determine if it's worth it is to see how many people return each year to do the races. If it wasn't worth it, people would be one and done!

Good luck to all the rookies and veterans alike!

Terri

 

[windwalker]

Thank you for sharing everyone.

My main reason for doing the events is that I like me better as an athlete than as a couch potato. I will live a longer more active life to. I really don't want to get old and have to live in a nursing home because I was to lazy to get up and chase my dreams.

I was in a walk race a few years ago and there was a very old man entered, he took off fast, he had a really strange style of walking he had a kind of shuffle drag a leg kinda gait. But it took me 2 miles to pass him. This was when I was a fitness walker rather than a racewalker.

After the race I went over and talked to him. He was 85 and had a stroke so his right side didn't work well. He said he had been an athlete all his life and wasn't about to quit, he said, "Hell no I'm not going to stop racing it feels to good".

Yep that works for me, "It feels good".

Dave

 

[ultramickeymouse]

I dug up some photo links on my other website I own http://www.UltraRunner.net . These are the last 3 of the last 4 ultras I ever did in 2001. One in May and two in July. All mountain 50K's.

http://www.ultrarunner.net/2001ss50photos.html
http://www.ultrarunner.net/2001sob50photos.html
http://www.ultrarunner.net/trt502001photos.html

As you can see these are some tough trail runs at elevation. Great views! You can get a shot of me in a couple of them and Linda in the first 2 links. She has our muscle shirt on and looks good crossing the finish line. Hard to believe you can do ultras with no training. Linda is good for doing that.

 

[windwalker]

Erica is good at that also. I train my **** off and Erica does the halfs and fulls with only a fraction of my training. Maybe women are the stronger sex. We must never let then know.

Dave