Oops I did it again. Autumn 100 fail

 

Before

Or was it a sensible strategic move.

The headine is that 4Km in to Leg 3 as I climbed on the the Ridgeway I noticed I had amazing mobile reception (5G - its a new phone!), booked the Premier Inn in Reading. Texted Race Control to say I was retiring and then went back the same way to the Goring HQ.

What was a little amusing was the procession of people climbing up on to the hill greeting me with "Well done" although I suspect I looked like a fairly sluggish elite runner - the only few I'd seen go past at that point were flying. I had seen one shuffler passing me I was heading up and I'd assume he was an elite having a break, but I suspect he was probably in the same position as me.

The day had started ok. I'd jumped on the train at Guildford at 6.15am, discovering my lower back was pretty sore on the way. I figured it would soon fade in to insignificance as everything else started to hurt, which was correct. 

Timings were pretty good, I had an hour after registration so headed to a cafe where I met another couple of runners, the wife of one of whom very sweetly said she would track me. I felt I had ground support! 

It had been pretty wet in the days running up to the event and we had been warned about water on the trail. I'd opted for waterproof socks for leg 1, with the plan to change to normal socks and shoes after that. As it happened there was very little water on the trail, just the odd splash here and there - but there was an increasing amount of mud, especially on the way back in after 300 pairs of feet had worn it through. That started to be an issue - not just with traction and the ability to run sensibly, but it also took a lot out of the legs trying to stabilise placement and not fall. I wished I had taken poles - note to self - next time do if mud expected!

I arrived back at Goring at around 4.40, which was later than I had hoped for around 4.30. More significantly I felt terrible, far more drained than I'd have expected at that stage in the race. I thought of quitting. 

After Leg 1

A quick pit stop inside HQ sorted me out and I figured I may as well have a crack at Leg 2 - I remembered it as being a good leg. I did enjoy it. It goes on a long way - not helped by the asymetric positioning of the aid stations with the intermediate station being too early. I'd also forgotten to pack any additional snacks in my bag at HQ, although I coped with what I hoovered up from the aid stations. The annoying bit about this leg is how much further it carries on after the golf course. Quite a long way! I've thought about reccing these legs as they are not too far from - and I should some time - as it does help to set expectations. 

Leg 2

After the turn point the "downhill" section was fine, the trail was dry and it was pretty enjoyable descending. I made the aid station just before having to put the head torch on. After the Station, progress felt slow along the flats by the river, and there was a bit more mud - but nothing as bad as it had been on the other side of the river. I was time checking. My watch ETA for the finish had been slowly slipping forwards, and I think was around 6.15am by this time. That meant "officially" I had 2hrs 45 mins in hand to make sub-24. Not too bad, but I knew from experience how slow legs 3 and 4 were. I thought about quitting again. I checked Trainline and saw I could catch a train all the way home if I stopped now. It was tempting. 

After Leg 2

HQ with beans and cheese food (to be honest, not the best race food - what is wrong with soup and bread - they had soup but no bread, or indeed the usual staple of pasta. Pasta was available but only after the finish which seemed a bit pointless) did the trick and I felt better. I'd changed by socks and shoes and was good to go, but it was now around 8pm. 

This meant I had 6hrs 30 to do each of legs 3 & 4 to make sub-24. This was do-able, but only if I made good pace on leg 3. I really needed 7 hours for leg 4 as I knew the riverside paths would be muddy and slippy, so leg 3 needed to be done in 6 hours. I was not at all keen to do leg 4 just to complete the race. I already had an Autumn 100 race buckle at home and the race had no attraction for me other than the arbitrary sub-24 target. If I dropped after leg 3 I would be homeless for the night as the first train out for 8.30am and I had nowhere to stay, although had a fair amount of warm clothing in my drop bag. The race organisers didn't give out the friendliest vibes and had basically said "we'll kick you out if you try and kip in the hall" - I'm not sure what they expect you to do in the middle of the night. 

Anyhow I decided to give it a go so headed out on leg 3. My legs felt tired though and even though I was setting a pretty good pace up the gentle inclines out of the village after 3-4 Km I realised it was slow. This was a total re-boot of my 2022 experience. My watch ETA was clocking forwards further. The reality was sub 24 was not happening. 

Night

I didn't really have a dilemma about dropping out of the race, I had no ambitions or fear of failure in stopping - and to be honest wasn't interesting in walking most of the rest of it, in the way I would have been happier to do had it been a race I wanted to finish. The problem was how I was going to spend the night. If I completed the race it would only have been because, literally, I had nowhere else to go! 

I thought about stopping at the intermediate aid station on leg 3 and then getting a lift back, but it's always difficult to know how nice the marshalls will be and how long you'll have to wait for a lift. 

Then a thought occured to me. I Googled Reading Hotel, found the Premier Inn and booked it. I stopped, turned around and started walking - and then running - back towards Goring. 

It was actually quite nice jogging the descents and I didn't feel too bad. I walked the flats though. 

Then I got back to HQ, handed back my tracker and number, got on a train and ended up in a nice comfy bed in Reading. 

It was 100% the right decision and I don't regret it for a moment. 

I was feeling a bit dispondent about my lack of fitness, and wondering whether I had reached the end of my Ultra career. I think the reality is I am now quite an old runner (57), and chasing targets is quite hard. I reflected that many if not most of the runners around me were a decade or two younger, and a fair few literally half my age. I think where I got to with that is events have to be fun, and have to be worth doing because you want to do them, for the sense of achievement alone. Lakes in a Day is a good example - I love that race because it is such a beautiful journey. I'd do it again and again even if I came in last. 

100 miles might be a future problem. I am suffering increasingly with aches and pains with my running, although my impending stretch and flexibility regime should help that. So I guess where I am is:

1. I still love trail running, for the experience, and adventure and the journey as much as I ever have

2. 50 miles is probably a more sensible overall distance than 100, all things being equal

3. Targets are fine, but there has to be an additional reason more than just a target - otherwise missing a target means the event is mostly meaningless. 

Next stop is the Arc 100. I was thinking of not doing it now, but I will go down. I really want to complete that event, and I love the coastline. I don't need a target to make it - so it will simply be a case of either gettig timed out or completing the event.