Possum’s Revenge 69 Mile – Dedication Run 2019

In June 2018, I travelled to Utah to run the Bryce Canyon Ultra 50k with a group of friends.  Some of us were travelling together from Killeen and others were friends that had left the Killeen area and came from other areas across the country.  A few months before the race, my friend Camille asked friends and family to give her dedications for each of the miles she would run in the 50 mile race at Bryce.  I asked her permission to do the same for my race.

Bryce Canyon 2018 Cards

I posted to Facebook the request for dedications on both my timeline and to several groups I am a member of.  I was able to fill most of the miles and saved some for personal dedications from myself.  Bryce Canyon scared me as it would be one of my longest races to date and my first with any true elevation so I thought the idea of dedications would also provide me some motivation to complete the race.  

Bryce Canyon went great and it was an amazing experience to do the dedications.  I decided to do a dedication run every year going forward.

I picked Possum’s Revenge 69 mile race for my 2019 dedication race partly because the race scared me a little.  I ran the 56k course in 2018 and broke my nose less than halfway through the race.  It’s a tough course with a lot of rocky patches.    

Broken Nose 2018

I once again posted a request for dedications and despite having more than twice the miles to fill, I was able to fill it fairly quickly.  As the race drew close, I made cards for all of the dedications.  I started by handwriting the notes on the back of the mileage cards but quickly decided to print out the dedications and glue them to the back of the cards, instead.  My handwriting isn’t the best and was much larger than the typed font, which would have doubled the number of cards I would have carried while still being more difficult to read once fatigue and darkness set in late in the race.  I received a few photos to print and I laminated all of the cards once they were made.

Possum's Revenge 2019 Dedication Cards

I managed to talk a number of friends into coming out to the race with me and we planned to arrive the night before and sleep at the park.  Three of us caravanned in two vehicles and met two more friends at the park on Friday night.

This crew!

 

When I woke up Saturday morning, I had a splitting headache.  I only ate half of my breakfast and worried I wouldn’t keep it down.  I knew that the course started with a four mile loop that brought us almost back to the start/finish line and decided that would be my decision point.  If my head felt better, I’d continue the race but if it got worse, I’d drop and save myself that misery.  I was sick to my stomach, not just due to the headache, but at the possibility of not being able to run the race, but I knew I would have to make the smart decision and drop if I didn’t start to feel better.

I was moving so slow at the start of the race, I almost missed a picture with my friends and was still standing off to the side tying my shoes when the race started.  I was the last to start and I walked at first so I could record my first dedication.  I even forgot to start my watch until after the video was recorded and I was two minutes into the race.

I moved slowly in hopes that my head would start to feel better soon.  It was humid and I was covered in sweat very early on.  The first four miles went by fairly well and I began to feel better.  By the time I hit the unmanned water point at four miles, my head still throbbed a little but it was getting better.

Feeling Good on the First Loop!

 

At mile five there was a deer carcass right next to the trail.  At least, I thought it must have been a deer.  It was just a skeleton but I thought it would serve as a great marker to let me know I was just a little over a mile away from the finish line on the way back.  The problem was that on the way back, I didn’t see the skeleton.  I assumed someone mentioned it to the aid station and word got to the park and it got cleaned up.  On the second loop, I didn’t see it on the out or back portion of the course.  Then on the third loop, I saw it again on the way out and couldn’t believe how I could have missed it the last three times I passed that section of the course.  I saw it again on the way out during the fourth loop but didn’t see it on the return on either of those loops.  I seriously felt like I was in an episode of the twilight zone with the disappearing/reappearing skeleton.  It really weirded me out.

The first two loops went really well.  I felt like I was making decent time and was right on my goal schedule.  I wanted to be around four hours for the first loop and nine hours at the end of the second loop.  I also wanted to keep from breaking my nose again!  I did fall twice during the first loop and hit my face on a rock but it wasn’t too bad and I didn’t even get a bruise.  I was running a little lazily that first loop and after the second fall, I focused more on picking up my feet and I didn’t fall again the rest of the race.

Still moving on the second loop!  PC: Trail Racing Over Texas

 

I got the chance to see a lot of friends out on the trail.  Both the ones that came with me from Killeen and others that I normally only get to see while racing.  I got to talk to some new folks, too.  A few people saw me recording dedications and asked about them.  There was so much positive feedback and support for my dedications from everyone I talked to.

Near the end of the second loop, I passed a friend on an out and back portion of the course while I was running her dedication mile.  It was a really neat thing to be able to high five her and let her know I’d just recorded her dedication a few minutes earlier.  

When I finished the second loop I did a quick shoe change to get a little more cushion under my feet.  The miles were starting to wear on the soles of my feet and taking five minutes to sit down at each aid station was helping a lot.  Each loop, I put the completed dedication cards into my drop bag and loaded up on a new stack for the next 17 miles.  

The second loop had been a bit of a struggle.  I always seem to have trouble starting in the late teens or early 20’s of miles.  I was mostly staying ahead of leg cramps and I didn’t feel behind on nutrition.  I was tired, of course, but still felt pretty good for most of the loop.  

Saw the photographer ahead of time! PC: Trail Racing Over Texas

 The third loop was a roller coaster.  I’ve found that once I get into the 30’s of miles, I get a nice second (fifth? tenth?) wind.  I also have low moments, though.  This is where the dedications helped on this race, though.  For the entire race, I spent a lot of time during each mile thinking about the individual dedications and what they might mean to me, to the person that requested it, or the subject of the dedication.   It helped keep my mind off negative thoughts about my fatigue or any pain I was feeling.

I finished the third loop just a few minutes after my goal of 15 hours and I took another break to get some time off my feet.  I propped my legs up on a rock and posted a short live video to Facebook to update folks on my progress.  My aid station breaks were getting longer and longer but I was still ahead of the cut off and knew that I’d be able to finish the race.  It was getting dark, so I put on my headlamp, packed some spare batteries, an extra headlamp, and the last of my dedication cards.  I refilled my bottles with Gatorade and water and got fresh ice in my arm sleeves and hat.  It was still warm and I was thankful for not overheating during the day.

In the darkness, I no longer tried to record myself for the dedications.  I needed the light from my headlamp to read the cards and it blinded the camera if I tried to record my face.  Instead, I made certain to show each mileage card in the light of the headlamp and then pointed the camera at the trail while I read the cards.

The fourth loop seemed to go by quickly, despite being my slowest loop of the race.  The dedications really kept me going mentally when I was physically exhausted.  I was mixing in a good amount of caffeine but I also felt my senses dulling a bit with fatigue despite feeling “awake”.  I continued taking breaks at aid stations and restarted my 5 minute timer twice around mile 58 to get a little extra time off my feet.  

Taking a break with just 6 miles to go!

When I got to the last aid station, I knew I had less than 2.5 miles remaining, so I topped off my bottles and moved through without stopping for long. I really wanted to be done at that point and knew that one of the rockiest miles was right in front of me.  The first mile out of that aid station is where I broke my nose last year.  This was also the mile where the deer carcass sometimes appeared.  I was careful during this stretch of course going both directions because of how rocky and uneven the course was.

I picked up the pace when I had a little less than a mile left to go and finished strong.  Rob met me at the finish line and gave me a big hug and told me how proud he was of me and was happy I had chosen Possum’s Revenge as my dedication race as he handed me the finisher’s buckle.  I stopped at the aid station to grab a quick snack and to congratulate a group of runners that had finished ahead of me. 

I finished the race in 21:54.  This was about an hour slower than my goal of 21 hours but I was really happy with my run.  The conditions were tough and I was proud that I'd battled through the early headache and the heat and humidity later in the day. 

The Buckle!

I met my friends at our (car) camping area and I cleaned up and changed clothes.  I was too amped up to get any sleep but I lay down on the ground and wrapped up in a blanket for a couple hours while my friends got some rest before we started the drive back.

Possum’s Revenge was my longest distance race completed to date.  It was an incredible experience on its own but it was made even better with the dedications.  I was able to run for so many great causes, ideals, inspirational people, and in memory of departed loved ones.  I feel that every bit of any success I see can be traced directly back to support I have received from my friends and family.  This race was a strong example of exactly that and I am so thankful to everyone that supported and encouraged me before, during, and after this race. 

Thank you to everyone that requested a mile for this race.  I hope that I was able to capture the passion and love you feel so strongly for your dedication subject.

Run Hard.

Celebrate Love.

Be Grateful.