Private 50 Miler — Charlene Waldner RMT

Private 50 Miler July 4 2020

2020 was supposed to be a big year with plans to run the Grand Canyon in April from Rim to Rim to Rim; two 50 mile races - Sun Mountain in May and White River July 25 as qualifiers for the Cascade Crest 100 trail race in the Cascade mountains in Washington USA at the end of August. Who would have dreamed 2020 would be the year it has so far with events cancelled due to Covid-19 and nothing to really prepare for. After completing Fat Dog 70 miler in 2019, naturally the next distance is a 100 miler. How you run one of these is a mystery to me. In the ultra running world, running 100 miles is a prestigious endeavour. All for a belt buckle at the finish line; I don't even wear a belt. It is still a goal that will have to wait till 2021 or who knows when really? At this point I am more than happy to be on this side of the border.

My motivation for running is more about loving to run. It is nice to have a race to train for, but I enjoy running for the physical and mental benefits. Nothing beats a day out on the trails, and we are lucky have so many beautiful places to run here on Vancouver Island.

Having an entry gifted to me for the GVRAT ( Great Virtual Race Across Tennessee) and the Van-Isle 460 provided good inspiration to complete the allocated distance as a goal for August 31, 2020.

Still a virtual race is not the same as a race in reality, but if it provides inspiration to get the kilometres in than it is a good motivation to get out the door

David Marlor and I decided to do our own 50 miler on July 4.We did invite some of our friends, but they were either busy or not interested. I wanted to run this event on Canada Day but with working the next day we postponed to July 4 for this reason, not in celebration of the US Independence Day.

**Markus’s car mobile aid station at Mount Work parking lot.**

David designed the route because that's his natural gifted talent. There is a bit of planning involved. We had Lisa Fehr and Markus Pirker kindly volunteer their whole Saturday to provide four aid stations for us at various parts on the course. It would take a lot of preparation to be self- sufficient running this far on a single loop course. Having aid stations ensured we could refill water and refuel our nutrition. We had a buffet of watermelon, pickles, Coke, homemade energy balls I made with Fatso salted caramel and real fruit gummies (Andrew Barclay got me addicted to these). I mostly used Tailwind Endurance fuel - Colorado Cola and Raspberry Buzz are my personal favourites flavours. I find it easy on my stomach and two scoops per hour gives me exactly 200 calories per hour.

We started at Thetis Lake overflow parking lot (Atkins Rd and Six Mile Rd) just after 7am Saturday. David carried an InReach satellite tracking device so that Lisa and Markus could tell where we where on the course and also for emergency situations. From Thetis we ran to Mount Work, Over Gowland Tod, through Bear mountain on part of the Canada Cup mountain bike trails, through Goldstream park campsite, eventually making our way on the runable Great Trail to turn around at Stebbings Road and then back to Thetis Lake via a slightly different route. I honestly didn't know exactly the route we were taking as I trust David; he is a human GPS. As long as I can stay close behind him I know I'm okay because he never (rarely) gets lost. I've run these trails so much by now I should know them, but I'm directionally challenged at times and still need to learn how to read a map.

I didn't start my run thinking I have to run 50 miles today, I broke it into chunks. In my mind its just a long day on trails and I've run this distance in races so I knew I could complete the distance. However a training run is a different mentality than a race . As my coach Matt Cecil said “ You're ready for it, and you guys know what you're doing out there. Pacing is key and keep the calories and fluids flowing“.

David was strong from the start. He always is and gets stronger the longer the run is. Its impressive to see him spring up the mountain effortlessly. I usually trail behind about 100 metres. I prefer to follow than lead on trails since he knows the way. I don't like to talk much as I find I need to concentrate on the terrain. I haven't rolled my ankle in a long time, and I like to be mindful of the trails.

We saw quite a few trail runners and hikers on route which was nice to see. Running through Gowland Tod on the climb to the summit of Jocelyn Hill, about 20 kilometres into our run, we saw a couple hiking and the woman said to me “you're almost there.” I'm thinking “no, you have no idea.” I kind of laughed but I hate it when people say that. I'm wondering “Did I look that bad already?”

At the top of Jocelyn Hill two young ladies asked if we could take their picture. Of course we stopped and then offered to take ours. “David's making me run 50 miles today” I told them, without thinking before I spoke. They laughed “well what else would you do today? Be on your computer or phone all day“? True That! On Jocelyn hill we ran into Marcia Marchenski hiking with a friend. It was nice to see her. I think she thought we were crazy when we told her we were out for a 50 mile run, but I guess you need to be crazy to do that, right?

**Feeling good at the top of Jocelyn hill.**

David wasn't making me run 50 miles, I wanted to and it would be the longest training run to date. If I had been training for a 100 miler this would be the perfect training preparation. The weirdest thing about training for ultras is that you don't actually need to go that far in training to be prepared. You just need to run slower and have a different mind set.

Occasionally I would ask David “ how far to the aid station?”. He replied “Are you okay?”. And I said “Yes I just like to know.” The aid stations were spaced out perfectly.

Aid Station 1 (15 km) Durrance Trailhead at Mount Work - It was nice to see Markus and he had our aid station buffet ready. I topped up my two flasks with Tailwind. I grabbed a few gummies and we were off. I was thinking about the girls on the Kludahk having fun on Lisa Large's birthday run. But I was having fun too. I just suffer from FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). We were 10 minutes ahead of schedule when we left the aid station.

Aid Station 2 (27.5 km) Rowntree Road Trailhead, Gowland – Lisa Fehr and her sons Mattias and Tmo were ringing cow bells. They were our own private cheering station on our approach. It was nice to see them here. I filled up with water and Tailwind, had a few gummies and a pickle. Feeling good at this point. My clothes were soaked with sweat as it was humid day. It was a quick stop and we were off.

Aid Station that wasnt (45.5 km) Trailway Rd - No aid station. Sad face! We were expecting Markus, but we were well ahead of schedule, and he was still on the Malahat 15 minutes out. I was looking forward to an energy ball and some coke , but we only had 7.5 km to go to Stebbings Rd and I still had enough Tailwind and water, but needed to refuel soon. This was a long boring uphill stretch of pavement which leads back to the Great Trail. Because it's very runable we made up good time.

I was really enjoying the peace and quiet and listening to the birds singing. Sounded like my new alarm ring tone; very calming. I had the song “Its Gonna be 100 miles“ Proclaimers ultra-running parody repeating over and over in my head. Two people on gravel bikes coming towards us happened to be Dr. Rob Hasegawa and his wife Lois who cheerfully yelled “Hi Charlene.” I don't think I had time to respond as they sped off so fast as we trudged in the opposite direction.

Aid Station 3 (53 km) Stebbings Rd turnaround – Like arriving to an oasis in the desert, Markus had a feast including an apple pie and ice Popsicles. It was pretty warm and I changed into a dry

Merino wool short sleeved shirt and Lulu jog bra and felt instantly warmer. Its amazing how when your clothes are wet with sweat how cold you become quickly. I brought an extra pair of Cascadia trial runners and socks but didn't bother to change. My feet were a bit sore and achy, but to be expected after 50 km of running. I'm lucky not to get blisters too. I grabbed my headlight I had stuck in my drop bag just in case we finished after dark. At this point I started to use my trekking poles to engage my upper body on the climbs and give my legs a bit of a break. Poles are also good on technical terrain for balance, which when you get tired can be compromised.

**Great Trail heading back to Thetis Lake.**

It was a 16 km slog back to Goldstream Campground along the Great Trail. At this point we had lots of downhill which actually hurt the quads more than climbing. Luckily I don't have knee issues, but when your quads fatigue you start to feel it. I can't help to think about the impact forces going into all of my lower extremity joints, knowing it's probably damaging. I promised my body “just get me through this and you can rest tomorrow.” So happy I had booked 90 minute Thai massages the next morning for our recovery.

Aid Station 4 (69 km) Goldstream Campground – The sound of cowbells and Lisa cheering was a welcoming. I asked Lisa if she had set up my tent for me. Wishing we had a nice cozy campsite with a fire. We filled up with water and more Tailwind. I felt I couldn't keep in enough calories and ate a few chips and pickles; the salt tasted good. It's important not to doddle in the aid station as we still had 10 km, meaning 2 hours in trail time. As we ran through the campground people were cheering us on!

Running through Goldstream to Finlayson we still had a bit of climbing to do. I was coasting on fumes while David was power hiking on a mission ahead of me. He gets stronger the longer the run. After all he did finish his first Fat dog 120 miles last year in 45 hours. I repeated to myself “suck it up whiney baby.” Almost there. So close to getting in under 14 hours too and before dark. We were making decent time for not racing. By this point I just wanted to walk, hike the hills, jog the downhills. I felt like I was slowing David down. I told him to go ahead but of course he always waited for me.

Arriving finally on the trails around Thetis on the homestretch. As we approached the main beach I could hear cheering. Lisa, Mattais and Kent were awaiting our arrival. Yeah we made it! Without thinking I walked straight into Thetis lake up to my waist with my trail shoes on and poles in hand. I thought about swimming, but I think I would have drowned. The water felt refreshing and numbed my poor tired legs. I briefly thought of running another loop of 50 miles to make it 100 miler; maybe if someone paid me a million dollars I would consider it. Feeling relieved that I have another year to train and prepare myself for such an endeavour.

**Lisa trying to take David’s runner off !**

We walked back to the car in soaking wet clothes, parked at Atkins Road. It was just getting dark past 9 pm. Lisa had her propane campfire ready to warm us up and brought burgers she had barbequed, which tasted so amazing with a refreshing Lone tree apple ginger cider. I could have curled up and fallen asleep. It was a perfect end to a perfect private 50 miler.

**Post run recovery..cool water felt so good !**

Thank you to David Marlor for being the perfect 50 mile running partner and creating this event, thank you to Lisa and her son Mattias, and to Markus for giving up your Saturday to be our mobile aid station, and for making this video below. Thank you to Matt Cecil's for continual coaching and mentoring. Thank you all for helping us make a memorable experience !