Are the odds against me that I'll be able to finish this race?? YES! Do I plan on properly preparing for it and giving it my all? Most definitely. Heck, I think the fact this race doesn't have any aid stations means I'm more likely to keep going. There's no where to drop out... (Reference to Lynn B. and Joe P. sitting on a log under a tree during a 100 where Lynn was trying to drop out in the middle of nowhere)
If I'm going to drop out of Plain it's gonna be at the only aid point and that's around mile 55-60. I'm not really sure what mile that's at, but I'll figure it out.
So, why do I bring this up?
Because lately I think 100s or ultras across the country have been inundated with runners that enter these races and really have no business doing so. Sometimes these runners have no intention of actually finishing the race. (this statement is purely my opinion and has no research to back it up)
So I'm here to say, if you enter a race (whether it be a 50K or 100M), train for the race to finish. Put all your chips in the basket. Plan things around the race, but don't enter races you don't plan on finishing.
This brings me to the fact that if you find out leading up to the race that you're unable to do it, don't forget to email the RD (Race Director) and let them know you're not doing it. Often times races will have wait lists and someone else can now run now that you're not.
So, now that I'm done venting a little bit, let me bring up another point.
DNFs in ultras.
I started running ultras back in early 2009 after getting fed up with the triathlete world and just wanting something more challenging and unpredictable.
When I came into ultras I noticed that a DNF is far more accepted in the ultra community than it is in the triathlete/road runner community.
I can't help but wonder is this because ultras are so much more difficult, or because people are taking the easy way out when it get's tough.
Let me tell you, there have been times out there on the trail when it got TOUGH. Times when I was ready to walk back to my car. (and sometimes DID!)
Me hating life at Zane Grey. Here I'm saying, "YOU CALL THIS A TRAIL?!"
This is me post Jemez 50. Completely. Blown.
Me and the wife post Where's Waldo 100K. My 2nd ultra. Too blown to smile.
At the finish line of a 100 mile mtn bike race in 100+ degree heat. ONLY finisher.
Now before you guys go all, "Jacob, you don't know what it's like to quit. You've never quit a race, you're faster than me..." blah blah blah. Let me bring up the El Scorcho 50K 2010. My first ultra DNF.
I hate to even call that race a "DNF"... cause I didn't even try to finish. I quit. It's the easiest ultra course I've ever run and I quit. Made it 23-24 miles and walked back to the finish line throwing up the whole way.
I know what it is to suffer, and I know what it is to quit a race. I will claim that DNF till the day I die.
Now with that said, let me continue to my next point.
IF you DNF a race, please take responsibility for that DNF. Don't say, "I missed the cut-off and got pulled from the race" so it's technically not a DNF. I'm sorry, but you "did not finish" the race that you set out to finish.
If you hurt yourself and are unable to finish, you DNF'd. Anything other than finishing the race, is a DNF.
If you're stupid delirious at mile 65 of Western States and get pulled by the medical staff because you're a danger to yourself, you DNFd.
If you start a 100 mile race and quit halfway and get credit for a 50M race, you STILL DNFd the 100.
It's OK! A DNF is not the end of the world, and it's not something to be ashamed of.
I say this not to anger you, but to motivate you. If you start something, finish it! And if you don't finish it, take credit for that, then get to work fixing what went wrong!! The ultra running community is a beautiful thing, because ultra runners are some of the most honest people you'll ever meet. Ultra runners will tell you how it is. The end.
So if something is going wrong in your races and you can't figure out what it is, ask a more experienced runner. For example last summer, I finally admitted that I was having some serious nutritional issues. I emailed three of my closest/most experienced ultra running friends and they all three replied with some invaluable advice. This advice completely changed the way I looked at my nutrition and I feel led to my successful completion of my first 100 miler.
So, now that I've probably thoroughly pissed everyone off, let me say this.
I write this post because it's been on my mind for awhile. I want to motivate you to finish what you start. Don't ever assume you're going to not finish a race. Whatever you do, train your very best for what you're about to do and plan on finishing!
Every once in awhile a DNF may come around, but if you put everything you had into finishing that race, and still DNFd than that's something to be proud of. But if you don't train properly and DNF, there's only one person to blame, and that's yourself.
If you take responsibility when things go wrong in anything you do, you'll always come out stronger in the looong run. Literarily and figuratively :)
much runnin love,
_Jacob_
An oldie but a goody. It's titled "Think long" by Mates of State... I like to think it's titled, "Think long distance running". But whatever :)
Looks like our only dnfs are at the same race same night. (I want your opinion)Here is how mine went...I live 31 miles from el scorcho. I was training for my first 100 so I decided to do a el scorcho double and run home afterwards. I finished the race and about halfway home my brother pulled up beside me and I got in and made him take me home therefore only getting 45 miles of my planned 62. (that's when I discover heed destroys me) is that a dnf since my race was done and it was now a "training run"???
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion (like it matters! haha), I'd say that's definitely not a DNF. You finished the race, just not the training. Was it a training "DNF"? Yes. :) and that's epic by the way. Where in the world did you get water on the way home?!
Delete"Because lately I think 100s or ultras across the country have been inundated with runners that enter these races and really have no business doing so." Bingo. I'll have to read more of the post, but this stood out. Getting your ass to an ultra has become a trend, like checking a box. For that not only ultras are overpopulated, they have more casualties and threaten RD's with medical insurance hustles. And volunteers with too much responsibilities. Train, be humble, get your mind set, and LOVE what you do, pain, guts and no glory!
ReplyDelete[Note to self... Remember! Stay out of Olga's way!!!]
ReplyDeleteJacob, I won't begin to argue that you are wrong, only to start with... YOU'RE FREAKIN 26! I have never entered a race that I planned to DNF, but I HAVE started races I knew I could not finish. Injuries late in training cycles can really put a runner in jeopardy of not being able to finish due to either lack of proper training or the injury itself! Having non-refundable airfair and prepaid lodge accomodations really can put pressure on a runner to go ahead and start something he/she may not be confident of finishing.
I understand that if I look at it from the perspective of a runner on a wait list, it can be a different outcome. Your are dead right about one thing.. ultrarunning is different. Each runner that toes the line has generally paid the same thing for their ticket and each is just as deserving of being there. Sure, I think every race probably has a number that may have no business there, but that is not for me to judge. That is part of what draws me to ultra running versus tri's.
One thing is for sure, if you figure out how to get through the easy drop points, you will improve your chances of finishing. Lots of things can go wrong at an aid station... LOTS of things!
Anyway, I love how you pound away at trying to neatly categorize everything about this sport... but Dude!
Yeah, you should know that, runners are afraid to even enter my AS, yet along to complain! Just kidding:) I do see a lot of folks coming though, and while I'll be the first to say there is nothing extraordinary in finishing a 50 or a 100M race, as long as you are in generally good health, trained to be on your feet for long time and KNOW how toisten to your body and take care of it, I will also say that the last point is what many are missing. And while I do what I can at an AS, and so do you, it's like mommy-ing a baby, and this should be taken not lightely, please. Bad things happen. I just don't want to have bad things happen.
Delete"I have never entered a race that I planned to DNF, but I HAVE started races I knew I could not finish. Injuries late in training cycles can really put a runner in jeopardy of not being able to finish due to either lack of proper training or the injury itself!"
Delete-This I know for sure :) (Obviously) BUT YOU still gave the race your all right?
I guess the whole point was more that people should not try and disguise the DNF as something else, but just take credit for it. That a DNF is nothing to be ashamed of.
And of course I try to neatly organize everything! I'm making an effort in trying not to! :)
I have never given a race "my all". Otherwise, I would have been much more spent at the finish. Every ultra I have ever run, I am thinking within hours of the finish of how I could have pushed harder, been smarter, trained more, etc. I think the more I am determined to give "my all", the more likely I may be to give just a little too much and earn a DNF!
DeleteI have seen runners pulled for missing a cut-off that I KNOW could/have finished the race within overall cutoff! They were PULLED, they did not DNF. Yep, it shows as a DNF, but they were ready and able to finish. In one case, I believe the race cut-offs were inappropriate and created an unrealistic segment split for a back-of-the packer that was mostly staying ahead of cut-offs.
You say potato...
[waves to Olga]
On the same tocken, I agree with Lynn that you ARE 26, dude. I don't enter a race to DNF either, but I had a new injury, an old injury, a pulmonary edema happen - and I also quit once because I was fed up and bored out of my mind. I don't judge DNF's if the person who did it can look into his own eyes in the mirror and be ok with it. It's his/her DNF, not mine. I'll do whatever is possible to try and help determine to a runner whether it's a danger, or a low point, but it's not my place to decide. We do this sport for ourselves, in the end, it is a very selfish sport, no matter what you say, who you help, and where you volunteer. We each have own reasons to start, and to stop.
ReplyDelete