Beast of Burden: Pre-Race Thoughts

Before I even finished Oil Creek in October, I knew that I would be traveling up to Lockport, New York to run Sam Pasceri’s Beast of Burden winter 100 miler. Sam started this race in 2010 to challenge ultrarunners with some extreme weather conditions and offer a 100 mile race (as well as 24 hour option) on the east coast when things are quiet. Lockport is located northeast of Buffalo and the course is four 12.5 mile out and back loops along the Erie Canal towpath, which at this point of the year is jam-packed with snow to run on.

After recovering from Oil Creek, I worked my way back into my usual training routine, and was logging consistent miles during the cold mornings of December. During this time I felt like I was falling short of what I should be doing for some reason, and was getting apprehensive, thinking I was behind the eight ball for where I should be. Then I tallied up December’s mileage and saw that it was my second highest mileage month for 2010 and subsequently the second highest mileage month for my running career. That gave me a shot of confidence, which I used to run a solid 50k effort January 8th at the Watchung Winter Ultra in New Jersey. The course conditions were snowy, icy and very difficult, yet I felt very happy with the effort I put forth and the race that I ran.

After Watchung however, winter really set in here in northeast Pennsylvania, and the brutal temperatures chipped away at my motivation, and the less I ran the more miserable I became. I couldn’t seem to get myself in a steady groove and lost all the confidence I had just weeks earlier. I put in shorter runs, ran on the treadmill more than I ever wanted to and just felt inadequate in my preparation for the Beast which was closer than just on the horizon. I seem to have come out of my slump recently and put up a moderate effort the last week and a half, and am just trying to put the low weeks behind me and focus on the positives that I do have.

Which are: 1. I’m healthy and not injured. There are no lingering pains or tweaks that have me worried, and since I have been running at least 3-4 days per week, I’m sure my level of fitness is still there to a large extent. 2. I’m well rested. Not exactly something I’m going to brag about, since it’s basically laziness that has me well rested, but I guess it’s better than being burned out. 3. I am coming into this race with knowledge and experience of having ran a successful 100 just a few months ago and also that it has become my favorite distance to run. Since I started running ultras almost four years ago, I have a good handle on what my body needs and likes nutrition wise, and I feel that I’ve learned a lot about what I need to do mentally to overcome the many battles we face over the course of 100 miles…I just have to remember to put these tools to use.

All in all it’s going to be a fun ride in sub-freezing conditions and I thank God for the health and talent He’s given me to go out there and do it again.

David Kennedy