Chimera 100

Chimera 100.jpg
Chimera 100
By Rick Whitelaw


It's a done deal. 103 miles in 30 hours and 40 minutes. Course ran a little long and I got off track a couple of times (completely my fault, part of the adventure). I did have a goal time of a sub 30, but a few things slowed me down. A finish is a finish and I am happy with any time.

Brief summary: The waiting was the hardest part including not much running the weeks before. This led to the common mistake of going out too fast. I broke the race into 25 mile sections.

The first "marathon" went well, but too fast. The trail was smooth and the excitement high. The miles few by but knew I had worked my legs too hard too early. 5:15 for this section.

The second "marathon" was rough, but not too bad. I got behind on nutrition and fluids and got slightly dehydrated in the afternoon. Legs were on the verge of cramps and the trail was more technical. Arrived back at the base area and noticed the course was running a mile long. Spent nearly a half hour messing around switching to night gear, body maintenance, and nutrition. 47.5 miles in 12 hours. Rejuvenated, I took off out of the aid station. Legs had new life and I was able to run at a decent pace. The runners were very thin at this point and a fog was in the air. With nobody to follow I missed a turn and kept on cruising. Felt something wrong when the road went down. The elevation chart did not show this dip and I was just going to go around one more bend to see what was around the corner. At that time a lady in a car stopped and said I missed the turn. Staying positive, I still had plenty of buffer for the night section.

The third "marathon" went fairly well. Some difficult moments with terrain and wind (but the wind blew the fog away), and being alone for hours at a time. Trouble happened at about mile 70. On one of the roughest sections of the course I turned my ankle. Hiking slowly with trekking poles even. Assessed the damage. Sore, but did not change my gait and I had 5 miles to the aid station anyway. Put away the poles and went with more light. I could not afford to misstep on that foot again. Knowing that a sub 30 was not possible eliminated some stress. Made a judgement call at the aid station that I could continue on.

The final section went way better than expected. I knew from talking to other runners that the next 14 miles were smooth. I switched shoes to my light road shoes. That, along with daylight gave me a second wind and I cruised the down hill section. At the bottom aid station I got a bonus pacer for the last 17 miles. Matt Gunn, my good friend and RD of Ultra Adventures was there to pace even though he dropped earlier because of course marking sabotage and many extra miles. Also saw my mentors Vanessa and Shacky at the Aid Station. This gave me a good boost to get back up the hill. Last ten miles I knew it was in the bag, but I was glad Matt was there to remind me to take care of myself at the aid stations. A few more rough roads, but my road shoes handled the rocks fine. Quads burning on a steep downhill section. Then a 2 mile pavement cruise to the finish.

Great course, great race staff and volunteers. Great support from other runners and their crews. Great experience.

See thread: http://thebarefootrunners.org/threads/chimera-100-nov-15th-2014.17073/
 
Wife, four kids, many animals. Love being outdoors.
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