My First 100K - The Firewater Ultra 100K Race
The Firewater Ultra takes place in Greenback, TN and offers a 50K and 100K option through the beautiful East Lakeshore Trail system that runs along Tellico lake. The 50K is slightly over 31 miles one way so the 100K is an out and back to get 62 miles. This was the last run I planned for 2018 as I signed up for the 100K which is double the length of of a race I had completed. Mike ran this same race once before in 2016 and enjoyed it so we both signed up for it this time. I run this trail system often and is part of the area I train in so I thought it would be a great 100K for me to start with.
Race morning it is pouring down rain and cold so I decided to run the first few hours in an old pair of shoes and then when it stopped raining I would switch over to better shoes my Altra Timps. Mistake, but I will get to that problem later. It was suppose to stop raining at noon so we put our good shoes and fresh socks in drop bags and sent them to the aid station we thought we would be at. The race directors call us at over and get us ready and pumped for the race. Great people and crew.
The race is about to begin so we line up ready to take off. The start of the race is at Wild Cat Point for the 100K and is pretty vertical in the beginning so we all start hiking. Up and up we go through the mud and rain and finally at the top we all take off and here I go again like a bottle rocket... trend here I know and I will pay for it later. Mike and I are pushing a pretty fast pace and we are in the top 5 for several miles in to the race. I remember thinking to myself my heart rate is way too high I should slow down but I never did. I just kept going, that’s what we do. Push and push until we can't. That’s why Ultra running unique. You endure but you also have to hold back which is not my strong point. I will learn at some point though. 2 hours in and we have completed 10 miles so we are running pretty strong so far and both feeling great except for the rain that has not let up yet.
We have made it through Wild Cat point, Peterson Lane, and the Loterdale section so we are now heading in Sinking creek and heading toward Coytee trail head and that should put us roughly at 18 miles. At this point I called my wife and so she could meet Mike and I at the Coytee trail head aid station with my avocado and Mike's Pepsi his favored ultra running beverage. As we are running through sinking creek though on the way to Coytee my right knee is starting to hurt and I can feel a slight ache. I have had not had this pain since the Pistol Ultra. I thought to myself no, not now. I did not say anything and we did not stop running and just kept pushing forward through the trail and enjoying the moment.
As we are heading down the trail I can see the bridge over the lake that takes us to the Coytee section. We are here I thought almost a third of the way through this race. We also see several or our friends that were running the 50K and they were running from Mizell Bluff to Wild Cat Point so we grabbed a quick pic and moved on. This is also the trail section that our drop bags are at with our shoes and clean socks. I pull my left shoe off and notice real quick my left foot big toenail is black. I have not had a black toenail since I got my new shoes so it made me appreciate my shoes even more as I slide off my old trail shoes I immediately see my black toenail. My wife hands me my avocado and I devoured it. I love avocados during a race. Fresh shoes, an avocado, a shot of fireball, I tell my wife bye and off we go again. We are 18 miles in at 3 hours and 53 minutes.
Mile 23 my wall came and my pace slowed down. This is where I am still learning. Some people can just push through this and never think twice but for others the head games start. For me it was the head games. I tried to focus on just running and kept pushing through and this worked for a while. It's amazing all of the different thoughts you can have during an ultra run. This got me through Glendale and Davis Ferry Branch and last stop was Baker Hollow Branch Trail and we would get to see Mizell Bluff overlook. Mike is starting to pull away from me at this point as I am slowing down to around a 16 minute pace. There is a short out and back to near the final aid station to get us to 31 miles and then we can turn around and head back. At Baker Hollow Branch I finally see the aid station and Mike is already there. I stopped grabbed some snacks and rested. That seemed like a long 31 miles and I am hurting, that is when it hit me. I have to run this back... How am I going to do that. My legs are heavy and starting to hurt. Why did I do this? How am I going to finish? At that moment Mike said, "let's do this" at just the right time and I shook it off and started running. Only way to finish an ultra race is to push yourself and not let your mind talk you out of it. We are capable of so much more than we think we are. So I ran.
As Mike and I made our way back to Mizell Bluff we both stopped and looked at the view and
grabbed a selfie. This trail system is really beautiful. I knew it was going to be a long way back so I just focused on making it from aid station to aid station. I grabbed my headlamp at the Coytee aid station from my drop bag as it was starting to get dark and we still had about 18 miles ahead of us. We were both pretty quite from this point on. We were just trying to get to the end. We walked hills and ran as much as we could from this point. Just pushing through the pain and soreness. I understand now after doing a longer run how much you can let your mind talk you out of finishing. The last stretch of miles were going to be tough but I had my mind made up. I was going to finish.
At this point we are on our way to the last aid station at Peterson Lane and my headlamp is going dead and I did not have anymore batteries. I was tripping and stumbling for the last few miles to the aid station as my light was so dim I could barely see. Luckily Mike's dad was at the aid station and had batteries! We both scarfed down some food and drinks and rested for a minute as we spoke to everyone. My neighbor was running the aid station so I spoke with him for a few and then we both took off. We both knew this was it and the next stop was the finish line. Having new batteries in my headlamp was like having a new car to me at this moment. It was amazing how much better I could see and that kept me moving and took away any excuses. As I finally topped the hill at Wild Cat Point I knew I was almost finished. I could here people talking. Down the hill I go weaving and turning through the cutbacks and dodging the roots on the trail. I could see light. As I ran out of the woods my wife was standing there waiting on me. It was done. We made it. I made it.
Race morning it is pouring down rain and cold so I decided to run the first few hours in an old pair of shoes and then when it stopped raining I would switch over to better shoes my Altra Timps. Mistake, but I will get to that problem later. It was suppose to stop raining at noon so we put our good shoes and fresh socks in drop bags and sent them to the aid station we thought we would be at. The race directors call us at over and get us ready and pumped for the race. Great people and crew.
We have made it through Wild Cat point, Peterson Lane, and the Loterdale section so we are now heading in Sinking creek and heading toward Coytee trail head and that should put us roughly at 18 miles. At this point I called my wife and so she could meet Mike and I at the Coytee trail head aid station with my avocado and Mike's Pepsi his favored ultra running beverage. As we are running through sinking creek though on the way to Coytee my right knee is starting to hurt and I can feel a slight ache. I have had not had this pain since the Pistol Ultra. I thought to myself no, not now. I did not say anything and we did not stop running and just kept pushing forward through the trail and enjoying the moment.
As we are heading down the trail I can see the bridge over the lake that takes us to the Coytee section. We are here I thought almost a third of the way through this race. We also see several or our friends that were running the 50K and they were running from Mizell Bluff to Wild Cat Point so we grabbed a quick pic and moved on. This is also the trail section that our drop bags are at with our shoes and clean socks. I pull my left shoe off and notice real quick my left foot big toenail is black. I have not had a black toenail since I got my new shoes so it made me appreciate my shoes even more as I slide off my old trail shoes I immediately see my black toenail. My wife hands me my avocado and I devoured it. I love avocados during a race. Fresh shoes, an avocado, a shot of fireball, I tell my wife bye and off we go again. We are 18 miles in at 3 hours and 53 minutes.
Mile 23 my wall came and my pace slowed down. This is where I am still learning. Some people can just push through this and never think twice but for others the head games start. For me it was the head games. I tried to focus on just running and kept pushing through and this worked for a while. It's amazing all of the different thoughts you can have during an ultra run. This got me through Glendale and Davis Ferry Branch and last stop was Baker Hollow Branch Trail and we would get to see Mizell Bluff overlook. Mike is starting to pull away from me at this point as I am slowing down to around a 16 minute pace. There is a short out and back to near the final aid station to get us to 31 miles and then we can turn around and head back. At Baker Hollow Branch I finally see the aid station and Mike is already there. I stopped grabbed some snacks and rested. That seemed like a long 31 miles and I am hurting, that is when it hit me. I have to run this back... How am I going to do that. My legs are heavy and starting to hurt. Why did I do this? How am I going to finish? At that moment Mike said, "let's do this" at just the right time and I shook it off and started running. Only way to finish an ultra race is to push yourself and not let your mind talk you out of it. We are capable of so much more than we think we are. So I ran.
As Mike and I made our way back to Mizell Bluff we both stopped and looked at the view and
grabbed a selfie. This trail system is really beautiful. I knew it was going to be a long way back so I just focused on making it from aid station to aid station. I grabbed my headlamp at the Coytee aid station from my drop bag as it was starting to get dark and we still had about 18 miles ahead of us. We were both pretty quite from this point on. We were just trying to get to the end. We walked hills and ran as much as we could from this point. Just pushing through the pain and soreness. I understand now after doing a longer run how much you can let your mind talk you out of finishing. The last stretch of miles were going to be tough but I had my mind made up. I was going to finish.
At this point we are on our way to the last aid station at Peterson Lane and my headlamp is going dead and I did not have anymore batteries. I was tripping and stumbling for the last few miles to the aid station as my light was so dim I could barely see. Luckily Mike's dad was at the aid station and had batteries! We both scarfed down some food and drinks and rested for a minute as we spoke to everyone. My neighbor was running the aid station so I spoke with him for a few and then we both took off. We both knew this was it and the next stop was the finish line. Having new batteries in my headlamp was like having a new car to me at this moment. It was amazing how much better I could see and that kept me moving and took away any excuses. As I finally topped the hill at Wild Cat Point I knew I was almost finished. I could here people talking. Down the hill I go weaving and turning through the cutbacks and dodging the roots on the trail. I could see light. As I ran out of the woods my wife was standing there waiting on me. It was done. We made it. I made it. 
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