Like all things since fall 2002 I have to give credit to the Albany Running Exchange for introducing me to distance running.

Over the summer, at a cliff house in the Catskills Josh Merlis and I talked with a runner about running ultras. She suggested that running the escarpment can be as difficult as some ultras and that we should someday run the western states 100. Josh and I thought smaller and decided the JFK 50 mile would be a perfect place to start. Unfortunately Josh decided he wasn’t ready for the long task. And I was left alone to take on the challenge. I had been getting a magazine called ‘Ultra Running’ and picked up some fair ideas and read some stories about training and how to approach an Ultra Marathon. While not following those guidelines I trained with the Saint Rose cross-country team and ran 5-mile races an easy terrain. My one long run of the season was a 20 miler where I ran the 1st 10 w/ the team up to the top of Thatcher Park. From there I turned around, leaving the team, and ran back down. This was done about a month and a half before the JFK50 and it was this day when I decided I was definitely ready to try an ultra. Over the next month I did very little long run training at most I’d run 12-15 miles every other week. But I was still confident and with past marathon experience, knew I would be able to finish the race regardless of any missed training.

I found out that my Assistant coach, James Thomas, whom is a part of the 50 state marathon club, had run JFK twice before and was going to run it again this year. He asked me to join his team and so we became the ‘Albany Ultra Runners’ a team of 3 competing against 21 other teams.

JFK is known as America’s oldest and largest ultra. It started the Year after President Kennedy was shot and this year would be its 42nd running. They limit the entrants to 1000 and usually an upward about of 800 finish.

As time drew closer my excitement grew with it. The days approaching the ultra were most difficult in concentrating on anything else.

It was 375 miles from Albany to Boonsboro and on the trip down I hit a lot of traffic. I slept in my car at the high school where the race would start the next morning. Last year 2003, I slept in my car when running a marathon in Massachusetts so it wasn’t anything new. This time I realized my seats could fold down and I was more comfortable than the previous year. For dinner I ate a sub from subway and had a salad and milkshake from McDonalds.

Race morning I woke up at 4am when the 5am early (slow) runners would begin. At around 6am I got my packet and bib number and everything else ready for the race. I was going to wear my most comfortable running shoes. My socks were also an important part of my race because I wore injinji toe socks. Many big name ultra runners use them. These socks keep your feet dry and do not cause blisters or any other foot problems. Shorts and a t-shirt along with a carrying pouch for water, food, a camera and cell phone. I put Vaseline in all the important places to avoid painful chafing and rashes. I also wore a bandana to keep sweat and my hair out of my eyes, and to look cool.

I met up with my assistant coach and my plan was to run the race with him while our other teammate Russ, from Voorheesville was going to run ahead. My coach brought along a friend whom would be our course support and met us at every other aid station. Having course support is so helpful. Letting us know where we stand in the race and how far ahead and back our teammates are, plus, it gives you someone to look for and being from 6 hours away, its nice knowing someone in the crowds of people. The race began ½ mile walk from the Boonsboro high school. 2 minutes away from the 7am start the gun went off and we along with hundreds of others were late to the start. But that was all right because it was a 3-mile climb on roads to the Appalachian Trail. Taking my assistant coaches advice we walked the steeper parts of the hill and ran the flatter parts. We ran about the 7 miles together when I decided I would push ahead. The Appalachian Trail was a single, very rock and very foggy trail. I couldn’t take any pictures because the fog was so dense. Along the trail I got a little excited and couldn’t hold myself back anymore. Personally I couldn’t stand waiting behind ‘slower’ runners and I had to jump ahead. From mile 7 to mile 18 I flew. I was passing people like no-bodies business. I even caught up and passed Russ! (Who was hoping to run under 8 hours).

It may have been because I love running on tough trails like escarpment, nipmuck, muddy sneaker, and mudders and grunters, I just had to get around people. By the end of the Appalachian Trail I had to have been in the top 50 maybe even 40 places. I felt like I was Gods Gift to ultra running. Maybe if the whole race were on the Appalachian Trail I would have stayed in top 40 or 50. Unfortunately the trail ended and the race continued for 26 miles on a dirt road, AKA to C & O canal path.

This was a long stretch along a river that separated West Virginia from Maryland. The scenery was beautiful but it got very boring once you realized the scenery wasn’t changing. Russ ended up catching up to me and passing me, along with many others whom I passed on the trail. In the part of the race it began to rain, a light mist, on and off and eventually it got heavier at the very end of the race. The aid stations on the canal path were crucial. They were spread out every 3 to 5.5 miles. I used a strategy of running to the aid station, gathering food and water and walking with it for 5 minutes, or until I finished it. Generally the food was good. They had soups (beef, chicken and tomato) in the hard miles between 28 and 42. I’d did a routine of eating one cliff bar and drinking two cups of power aide and then 2 cups of water. After awhile I skipped the cliff bars and moved to gels. They tasted awful but I knew I needed them for the energy that I would spend in-between each aid station. So after each aid station I would take a cup of water and gel and walk with them until I finished the gel. You kind of worry about finishing the race around mile 25, But once you reach mile 30 you know you only have 20 to go. The most painful feeling was in the bottom of my feet, but around mile 30 you get used to it and more or less ignore it.

Mile 38, I stopped to use the bathroom and just sitting for a minute was a reviving feeling, sounds sick I know, but once I got out of there I felt more refreshed to egger to finish the race than ever before. At around mile 40 I knew I would have to pick up the pace if I wanted to finish less than 9 hours. I really had no goals set except to finish. But when I idea that finishing under 9 hours came to mind, I went with it.

At mile 42, the race finally got off the canal path and onto roads. With 8 miles to go I knew I would have to run better than 10-minute miles to get under 9 hours. The final 8 began with a steep walk up a hill drinking a cup of water and swallowing down a ‘hammer’ gel. Once the road became less steep, I took off. My pace was unreal. My emotions were high, knowing soon I would finish my 1st 50 miler and I may be able to run it in under 9 hours. I was passing people like they were standing still; it was awesome. From mile 8 to mile 7 I had to have run a close to if not sub 7-minute mile. There was a aid station every 2 miles from here on out and at each station I watched the time needed for my to get under 9 hours increase. What a feeling it was to see that I had 29 minuets to run my last mile and still finish under 9 hours.

The 100 meters I stopped to take a picture of the finish. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed home talking to my family as I crossed the finish line, giving a peace sign. I felt like Terrell Owens doing a touch down victory dance. They put the big finishers medal on me and I was done. I finished my first 50 miler in 8 hours 49 minutes and 38 seconds. I came in 124th place out of 1000 starters and 874 finishers. My team ‘Albany Ultra Runners’ finished in 6th place out of 21 teams. At the end of the race I showered and got a ride back to Boonsboro to get my car. And drove to the finish to eat pizza and drink coffee. The feeling I had at the end of the race honestly was less than that of the pain I felt after the escarpment, where I could barely move. After catching up w/ my assistant coach and teammates, I decided to head home. A long, long, long 7-hour drive home. The fact that I just ran 50 miles quickly caught up with me and I had to stop several times to catch a 2 minute nap, drink coffee and chew gum. The constant misty rain also added to the enjoyment of the ride home. But by 2 am I was in my own bed and that’s all that mattered. In the end I lost over 15 lbs and burned 6251 calories. And again I can’t go away without saying I probably would have never done this had it not been for the ARE’s help in rebuilding my running career and helping me find my enjoyment in running.

Information about the JFK 50 mile can be found at www.jfk50mile.org