The Perfect Running Distance and the 2015 Umstead 100
What is the perfect running distance? Raced by many, jogged by millions, could the 26.2 be The One? The marathon is long enough to be sure that there just is no cheating the race- i.e., you have to train hard to be able to run 26.2 miles. And, a marathon is still short enough that you can’t just have great fitness, you also need the gift of being naturally fast, to do well. Plus, 26.2 keeps you honest on shoes, clothes, nutrition, tapering, electrolytes, hydration,…. everything needs to be addressed. Finally, on game day, most importantly, you have to mean it- that means haul ass the whole way, or you will suck. How could millions of participants possibly be wrong? Yes, 26.2 is an honest distance, maybe the perfect running distance.
But, increasingly I have not found 26.2 to be the perfect distance. It is easy to see why the marathon comes up short for me: I have not been doing the homework. So no surprise, I do not do well. Oh, there is sneaking in on age awards, or that worse than the worst sin: engaging age grading- that grading on the curve that masquerades as athletic achievement. Don’t get me wrong, please, I still like marathons a lot. It is not all bad having beers along the route, happily throwing done PWs with the seemingly legit excuse of not training much! But 26.2 is no longer the perfect distance for me.
So, we turn the page, look elsewhere. And, out there in the ultrarunning world, there it is: the perfect distance, right there in front of us all along. A hundred miles.
Yes! A hundred miles! I believe that a 100 miler may be the perfect distance. When someone has finished a 100, we immediately assume that they are at least a little mutually gonzo. We share that crazy long distance in our resume, 100 (one hundred!) miles! We take comfort knowing that a part of us is forever defined by our personal piece of history of whatever that accomplishment means to us. We are addicted to embellishing our 100 mile fish tales, and we have no interest in a cure. Running 100 miles comes with a disturbing and unconditional commitment to a stupidly long way to run without a reasonable cause to do so. We have visited the edge of the world countless times and have always returned. We have had bad patches on top of bad patches, and still our enthusiasm for finding more bad patches is inexplicably boundless. When we meet, we may have a heartfelt hug, maybe shed a tear, but we always pause to look eye to eye. We share secrets, where nothing was said. When you finish a 100 miler, you have experienced a lifetime in one day. Not a brag, just a fact.
It is right that everyone is equal beneath the almighty 100 mile throne. Let us have pity for the marathon and it’s deals with the devil: age grading, sex grading, and its best friend in crime: that never ending marathon finish time. Here is a toast! Here is to the 100! May the 100 never lose its soul, never accommodate for age and sex; and, keep that honest cutoff, no cheating that finish time! We are fortunate and thankful. Let’s hold on to that.
It’s March 30th , 2015, the start of the Umstead 100, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Actually, the Umstead journey starts in September, with an internet race just to enter. There is no harder Hundo to enter this side of Western States. For Umstead, you need to first win the traditional race of luck to get in. It is type-type, enter-enter, on a high speed internet connection or 2, with your credit card in hand. It closes out in minutes for the 260 spots to run. After a few years of failing, my awesome running buddy/pacer/daughter Kaylyn got me in.
So what’s up with this broad appeal for running Umstead? Well, Umstead is different. Umstead has no rocks, no scrambling, no roots, no limbs, no altitude, no heat, no mountains, no desert. It’s a runners’ hundred, set on a rolling, smooth, wide, and packed bike path in the beautiful William B. Umstead Park in Raleigh, Carolina in the spring. 8 identical laps of 12.5 miles, no chance for getting lost. Yes, if there is such a thing as an easy Hundo, this is it. So that’s the appeal of Umstead, a reasonable 100!
This is my first time at Umstead and my 11th Hundred. It is interesting that 31 days before this race, I had a double hernia operation, getting some suddenly needed repairs done. That schedule was cutting it close, but I am not scratching. By race day, I am ok’d to move from walking to light running, and I am well rested. The simple race strategy is to be well rested and do a 100 miles of light running. I have the well rested part down. And, most importantly, as the race day comes closer, it is apparent that I want to run 100 miles, and want to run 100 miles now. The recent operation made it all the better. With a healthy amount of anxiety, I am totally interested in finding out if I can do this. I believe the odds are very good that I can do this, that I will thrive! I am into it. It is good to be here, right here, right now. This is priceless, how it should be. I am lucky.
Despite taking it easy, changing clothes often, attending to nutrition needs, having an awesome support team including Dr Jordie Chang, the Trail Snails, and the great Pete Mulligan as a pacer, like every Hundo, this one gives me what I came for. I pampered myself with a mile or so running with everyone's great running buddy Tammie Massie and everyone's hero Tom Green, Yes, there were also bad patches to enjoy. The most anxious visit to the edge of the world was at about mile 85, when that hernia surgery repair suddenly decided to throw stand down stabs of pain when power walking up steep grades. Finally, getting what I came for, for real. 85 miles in, totally invested in finishing, here was something interesting to figure out. We simply cut that power walking part out. Just another visit to the edge of the world and the reliable return. What’s next?! Is that all you got, Umstead?!
My head is somewhere out there, enjoying the silly baby steps on the uphills, and running the rests. I mean, my cadence is awesome going up the hills in staccato little 2 ft steps, quite a sight. I am dreaming that it would be cool if this was a 24 hour race, a chance to keep going! Those lucky runners still out there all night in the cold, damp, wind- They are the fortunate ones! But for me, it is time to finish, I have gone a 100 Miles! I haul it in, needlessly dropping my pacer, passing a couple more heroes, doing the crying thing at the finish. If you like living, go run a 100 miles, the perfect distance, a place where a whole life can be lived in one day. The 2015 Umstead 100, 18 hours and 30 minutes, 17th overall, 58 years young...
What is the perfect running distance? Raced by many, jogged by millions, could the 26.2 be The One? The marathon is long enough to be sure that there just is no cheating the race- i.e., you have to train hard to be able to run 26.2 miles. And, a marathon is still short enough that you can’t just have great fitness, you also need the gift of being naturally fast, to do well. Plus, 26.2 keeps you honest on shoes, clothes, nutrition, tapering, electrolytes, hydration,…. everything needs to be addressed. Finally, on game day, most importantly, you have to mean it- that means haul ass the whole way, or you will suck. How could millions of participants possibly be wrong? Yes, 26.2 is an honest distance, maybe the perfect running distance.
But, increasingly I have not found 26.2 to be the perfect distance. It is easy to see why the marathon comes up short for me: I have not been doing the homework. So no surprise, I do not do well. Oh, there is sneaking in on age awards, or that worse than the worst sin: engaging age grading- that grading on the curve that masquerades as athletic achievement. Don’t get me wrong, please, I still like marathons a lot. It is not all bad having beers along the route, happily throwing done PWs with the seemingly legit excuse of not training much! But 26.2 is no longer the perfect distance for me.
So, we turn the page, look elsewhere. And, out there in the ultrarunning world, there it is: the perfect distance, right there in front of us all along. A hundred miles.
Yes! A hundred miles! I believe that a 100 miler may be the perfect distance. When someone has finished a 100, we immediately assume that they are at least a little mutually gonzo. We share that crazy long distance in our resume, 100 (one hundred!) miles! We take comfort knowing that a part of us is forever defined by our personal piece of history of whatever that accomplishment means to us. We are addicted to embellishing our 100 mile fish tales, and we have no interest in a cure. Running 100 miles comes with a disturbing and unconditional commitment to a stupidly long way to run without a reasonable cause to do so. We have visited the edge of the world countless times and have always returned. We have had bad patches on top of bad patches, and still our enthusiasm for finding more bad patches is inexplicably boundless. When we meet, we may have a heartfelt hug, maybe shed a tear, but we always pause to look eye to eye. We share secrets, where nothing was said. When you finish a 100 miler, you have experienced a lifetime in one day. Not a brag, just a fact.
It is right that everyone is equal beneath the almighty 100 mile throne. Let us have pity for the marathon and it’s deals with the devil: age grading, sex grading, and its best friend in crime: that never ending marathon finish time. Here is a toast! Here is to the 100! May the 100 never lose its soul, never accommodate for age and sex; and, keep that honest cutoff, no cheating that finish time! We are fortunate and thankful. Let’s hold on to that.
It’s March 30th , 2015, the start of the Umstead 100, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Actually, the Umstead journey starts in September, with an internet race just to enter. There is no harder Hundo to enter this side of Western States. For Umstead, you need to first win the traditional race of luck to get in. It is type-type, enter-enter, on a high speed internet connection or 2, with your credit card in hand. It closes out in minutes for the 260 spots to run. After a few years of failing, my awesome running buddy/pacer/daughter Kaylyn got me in.
So what’s up with this broad appeal for running Umstead? Well, Umstead is different. Umstead has no rocks, no scrambling, no roots, no limbs, no altitude, no heat, no mountains, no desert. It’s a runners’ hundred, set on a rolling, smooth, wide, and packed bike path in the beautiful William B. Umstead Park in Raleigh, Carolina in the spring. 8 identical laps of 12.5 miles, no chance for getting lost. Yes, if there is such a thing as an easy Hundo, this is it. So that’s the appeal of Umstead, a reasonable 100!
This is my first time at Umstead and my 11th Hundred. It is interesting that 31 days before this race, I had a double hernia operation, getting some suddenly needed repairs done. That schedule was cutting it close, but I am not scratching. By race day, I am ok’d to move from walking to light running, and I am well rested. The simple race strategy is to be well rested and do a 100 miles of light running. I have the well rested part down. And, most importantly, as the race day comes closer, it is apparent that I want to run 100 miles, and want to run 100 miles now. The recent operation made it all the better. With a healthy amount of anxiety, I am totally interested in finding out if I can do this. I believe the odds are very good that I can do this, that I will thrive! I am into it. It is good to be here, right here, right now. This is priceless, how it should be. I am lucky.
Despite taking it easy, changing clothes often, attending to nutrition needs, having an awesome support team including Dr Jordie Chang, the Trail Snails, and the great Pete Mulligan as a pacer, like every Hundo, this one gives me what I came for. I pampered myself with a mile or so running with everyone's great running buddy Tammie Massie and everyone's hero Tom Green, Yes, there were also bad patches to enjoy. The most anxious visit to the edge of the world was at about mile 85, when that hernia surgery repair suddenly decided to throw stand down stabs of pain when power walking up steep grades. Finally, getting what I came for, for real. 85 miles in, totally invested in finishing, here was something interesting to figure out. We simply cut that power walking part out. Just another visit to the edge of the world and the reliable return. What’s next?! Is that all you got, Umstead?!
My head is somewhere out there, enjoying the silly baby steps on the uphills, and running the rests. I mean, my cadence is awesome going up the hills in staccato little 2 ft steps, quite a sight. I am dreaming that it would be cool if this was a 24 hour race, a chance to keep going! Those lucky runners still out there all night in the cold, damp, wind- They are the fortunate ones! But for me, it is time to finish, I have gone a 100 Miles! I haul it in, needlessly dropping my pacer, passing a couple more heroes, doing the crying thing at the finish. If you like living, go run a 100 miles, the perfect distance, a place where a whole life can be lived in one day. The 2015 Umstead 100, 18 hours and 30 minutes, 17th overall, 58 years young...
Pete Mulligan, Umstead Veteran/Celebrity Pacer