Post by Des on Jul 12, 2010 17:37:30 GMT -5
It was an incredibly hot morning at the start of the Fingerlakes Fifties, also the first time in race history that it reached its cap. People turned up to register to run on the day and were being turned away very disgruntled as it definitely had never been a problem in the past. Id developed some sort of shin "injury" whilst pacing at the Mohican but the day before had been given the okay to run and take Brufen, but to stop should the pain in my leg increase. Needless to say that I was very anxious at the start, mostly about whether my leg would hold out and secondly this was to be my first 50 miler ever on my feet. The race was 3 loops of just over 16 miles with a little bit extra added on the end to make up the respective 50K and 50 Miles. It hadn't rained for a few days, so at least we were assured of an almost mud free trail race. I wish I could say the same about the bugs - Gosh they bite and no matter how much repellent I use, I just cant seem to ward them off. I look like a pin cushion. There were loads of aid stations, not much to offer, but plenty of fresh coolish water and bananas was all I was looking for anyway. We had "drop bags" at the start/finish of each loop . The terrain was quite varied, not too many rocky areas and very few steep climbs, lots of open areas around lakes across cow pastures and through the woods. Not many areas for spectators along the way, but with an aid station every 2-5 miles you saw people regularly which made the race seem shorter. A lot of people dropped to doing the 50K and eventually only 35 of us completed the 50 miles. It was a tough day out, and the only sad part was that it was a bit of an anti climax finishing. No cheering, other than from my family and the medal was a bottle opener. I know that this isn't why we do these things, but at the end of what was for me such an amazing personal victory, a little bit more rah rah would've been very welcome. The volunteers, race crew all were fantastic. A lot of people camped, we stayed in a house about 12 miles away as I definitely wanted to shower after wards, Potomac camp site has no showers. Its a bit of a drive to the Fingerlakes region, but if you need a long training run before the BR, then this is definitely an option to consider. The course was clearly marked, lots of nosey cows en route (but they were more amusing than a bother) and you were never that far from aid if you needed it. They had plenty of food afterwards, and offered muffins and coffee for breakfast at the start. My leg was a mess on the Sunday, but all is well after a course of antibiotics and I'm looking forward to the Burning River 100 miler on the 31 July.
