Conquering “The Last Marathon” — Race Reflections from Antarctica

Hello again from the NF Endurance “Extreme” Team.  We are presently cruising down towards the Antarctic Peninsula.  We stopped and walked around Half Moon Island this morning and saw many fur seals and chinstrap penguins.  Before we went ashore I stood out on the bow of the ship for a few moments by myself.  The scene was surreal. About 10 or 12 different schools of penguins swam within a mile or two of the ship and in the distance a whale blew a spout of water into the air. Behind that backdrop was Half Moon Island and other land masses of the Shetland Island chain we’ve been sailing around. Huge glaciers ran down from the mountains into the water and icebergs were floating all around us.  An albatross flew a graceful, slow seemingly effortless path around the boat – I never saw him flap his wings, and he looked like an eloquent glider of sorts.  I started college with a major in aeronautical engineering — I’d have to say that we humans have a long way to go to refine our ability to fly.

Below are some reflections from George Haddad, and Carl and Kathy Price on their day yesterday…

George Haddad
This was a very difficult race.  The course was very hard and very challenging, covered with mud and hilly.  Several hills on the course were covered with a mix of snow, ice and mud.  I must say that it is one of the hardest marathons I have ever done – even harder than the Pikes Peak marathon that I completed last summer and that climbs 14, 110 feet.  On the course  (which allows runners to see each other many times) I saw our team endure all the difficulties encountered on the course. I had a minor back pain (due to a slip on the boat) and was not even sure that I would be able
to complete the marathon.  We had to lap the course four times.  At lap three I was ready to quit but I remembered GiGi and the NF cause that brought me here. Gigi gave me the strength to continue and finish this marathon. I am humbled and honored to be part of this team and I congratulate our NF runners who endured to complete the marathon and the half marathon.

Carl and Kathy Price
One of the hardest things we’ve ever done, but we would do it again in a second! It was amazing. The difficulty of the course made us concentrate on the three feet in front of us but then to look up at the glaciers, the sea and the hills was inspiring. To see the other team members struggle and overcome the course gave us the strength to continue and finish. Inspiration also came from our reason for being here, to help find a cure for Eric and all those struggling with NF. This made the struggle of the race much less difficult. We congratulate all the NF runners and send our condolences to
Eric’s dad, Jose, who finished behind John S.

More from Steve – We just cruised around the inside of Deception Island.  It’s a huge semi-active volcano with the center being flooded and deep enough to sail a ship inside.  We were supposed to go ashore for a polar plunge in the 34 degree water inside the volcano, but the winds picked up significantly and it started sleeting so we had to cancel the plunge. . .for now.  Apparently there is a certificate offered for this plunge – if you put your head under water.  That along with the peer pressure involved will make it difficult to bow out of. Certainly a once in a life time opportunity.

Sixty-nine people completed the marathon yesterday. . .bringing the total up to near 1,300 in history.  More soon.  Thanks for reading.

Cheers,

Steve

Take Three with Tracy: Cold Weather Cycling Tips

The winter of 2010 may go down in history as the coldest, snowiest one in 50 years.  Whether you live in the northeast or in the panhandle of Texas, many cyclists have found themselves frustrated by low mileage in the saddle over the past few months. So, what is a cyclist to do when there is a foot of snow outside or the normal winter temperatures have taken a nosedive and the great outdoors are no longer conducive for a 25 mile ride?  Instead of focusing on what we can not do, let’s choose to focus on what we can.

Here are three CAN do tips to maintain cycling fitness:
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Eating Your Way to the Finish Line

John Appert takes a break from the Leadville Trail 100 Run to eat a turkey sandwich provided by his fiance Wendy.

Ditch the GU and bring on the turkey sandwich.

by: John Appert

My first race over 50 miles was not ending as expected.

Twelve hours before, I had started the “100Km del Passatore” in Florence, Italy, and I was now about halfway to the finish line. Unfortunately, instead of running, I was trying to explain to a Red Cross volunteer that I had been vomiting for the last six hours. After some really bad Italian on my part, and some really bad pantomime on their part, I was hooked up to an IV for about an hour before officially dropping from the race.

After the race, I took a long hard look at what went wrong. We had actually gone farther in training than I had been able to run on race day. For the next two years I continued to experiment with race nutrition as I ran more 50 milers.

In August 2008, three years after “DNFing” in Italy, I stood at the start line of my first 100 miler, the Leadville Trail 100 mile run.

I am not an elite runner. I work a 60 hour week and train when I can. Here is my take on eating your way to a hundred miles:

- Don’t rely on anything that looks like thick pond scum. GU and gels are great. I use them on long runs. However, at some point during an ultra, GU makes you want to hurl. Real food is necessary. My favorite substitute? Turkey and pepperjack cheese sandwiches with no mayo or other sauce. I usually have to slow down to a walk to eat it, but unless you are an elite runner, you probably should be walking more in the first 50 miles anyway. The bottom line is that you are probably going to be on the trail for a long time. Think more like a hiker or climber and less like a runner.

- Bring some variety. The sandwiches tasted great until about mile 30. By then, I couldn’t even look at them. At the next few aid stations, I alternated between chicken soup and potato soup, while carrying some crackers on the trail. By the end of the race I was eating pudding snack packs. To practice during training, stash your planned race day eats in the car, and snack every time you pass your vehicle.

- Sugary drinks cause problems. I find most sports drinks make me sick after several hours on the trail. Instead, I use a combo of a 12 ounce bottle of NUUN, a sports drink with only electrolytes and no sugar, a 12 ounce bottle of water, and an electrolyte tablet every few hours. This system is easy. I carry two water bottles in my waist belt and alternate from which one I drink. At the refill stations I’ll down an e-tablet.

- Be nice to your crew. Running an ultra gets pretty miserable from time to time. Make sure you don’t take it out on your support team. At Leadville, my crew stayed up for 34 hours, often shuttling stuff I needed to various stations, and then running all night long through the mountains with me. I wouldn’t have crossed the finish line without them. If all that isn’t enough to remember, they have your food and usually the car keys.

At 29 hours and 35 minutes, I crossed the finish line in Leadville with 25 minutes to spare before the cutoff for official finishers. The first thought through my mind? Let’s go get a burger!

Appert is an NF Endurance team member who enjoys ultra-running and backpack adventures. Check out his training blog, “Yetifunk,” which he named after how he smells at the end of the race. We’ll take his word for it.