Laurie Woodrow’s 48 hour race
Yup, you read that right, Laurie’s 48 hour race. Our own Laurie Woodrow ran a 48 hour race for new years. While we were drinking and acting like fools wearing lampshades and such Laurie was running. Sheeesh!
Here are some pictures that Deb took during the race as part of Laurie’s terrific crew. Also you can read about the race from from Laurie’s own race report. So here it is:
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Laurie’s Report from Across The Years 48
hour race
48 hours is a long time to be circling a 500 meter track.
Every lap looks
just like the lap before, so no need for lengthy descriptions of the scenic and
varied course. It is still kind of a blur to me, but here are some of the
highlights…
The Good:
This was an incredibly well-organized race. Great staff, volunteers, aid
station, heated tent, friendly runners.
I met some terrific people out there who were a constant inspiration.
Could there be a more amazing crew?
I think not. Deb and Dave aka Mom and
Dad (yes, I have begun the adoption process) were there every step of the way.
Encouraging me, walking with me, making sure I took my meds, ate, drank,
and used the port-o-potty. Deb documented the entire event in photos, and
didn’t post too many embarrassing shots (ok, did everyone really need to see the
one with the Gas-X?)
Shanda, who picked me up from the airport, provided
tremendous moral support, and even went shoe shopping for me during the race when
my feet swelled way beyond the size of all the shoes I had with me. (Gotta
love those EEE width shoes). Estelle, who drove out from L.A. after work,
provided much needed distraction and entertainment on the course when I started
to get fatigued. She was a real life saver after the race, getting me to a
doctor and then helping me for the next several days when my feet were
bandaged and I couldn’t get around on my own. (more about that later).
The Mailbox. The race has this great system on their website where people
can send messages to the runners. I can’t tell you how I looked forward to
finding new messages in my mailbox. It really kept me going.
Despite having a difficult race, and spending a good amount of time in the
medical tent,
I met my goal of doing 100 miles. There were times where I
didn’t think I would make it, but I got to a point where I had to adjust my goal
of going the entire 48 hours, and focus on getting to 100. Anything beyond
that would be a bonus.
Despite the problems with my feet, I was great from the ankles up. Given my
recent calf injury, I was incredibly grateful to get through the race without
any issues in the back, joints, muscles, tendons, etc.
The Bad:
Sometimes you have a good day, and sometimes you don’t. From the start, I
wasn’t feeling terrific. Still, with a race of this length, there’s lots of
time for things to turn around, so I kept slogging along. One of my
problems was with fatigue. Ideally I would have done a lot of back to back long
runs in training, but since I was recovering from a calf injury I only got to
do 2 long runs (a marathon and a 20 miler) in the months leading up to the
race. Because of this, I had to switch from run/walk to all walking much
earlier than I anticipated.
Early on, I was having issues with blistering.
I kept going to the medical
tent, and the guys would drain my blisters and re-tape my feet. Every time I
went back, my feet were more and more swollen. At one point, they cut out
the toe box of my shoes to make more room.
That worked for a while, but
eventually I outgrew those shoes. So Shanda went out and got me the Monster shoes
(I think they were a men’s size 8), and I managed to get them on my feet.
Not an ideal situation, but good enough to get me shuffling around the track
again.
I managed to get to 100 miles shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve.
After a brief celebration with fireworks and sparkling cider,
I decided that I would not be able to continue on the track for the last 9 hours of the race.
Feeling somewhat defeated, I went back to the hotel and slept. In the
morning, we returned to the track for the end of the race, and I was motivated to
eke out one more mile…even ran the last few laps.
We stayed on for the awards ceremony and I received my 100 mile belt buckle.
Does this mean I’m going to have to start wearing a belt?
The Ugly
My feet. The blistering was bad. The night after the race, my feet were
swelling even further, and there was a throbbing that seemed beyond what was
normal.
Estelle and I were staying on another three nights in Arizona, and
she found a podiatrist who was able to see me right away. It turns out my
feet had become infected from the open blisters, and my baby toe had been bound
so tightly with tape that the circulation was being cut off. A blister had
formed beneath the toenail, so the doctor had to remove the toenail to ease
the pressure. Not Fun. I’m on antibiotics, and my feet are wrapped in layers
of gauze, but the doc says as I should grow a new nail in about a year, and
soon as I can fit my foot into a running shoe I can hit the road again. Surf
City, here I come!
Laurie
Well there you have it. Thanks so much to Deb for sharing her photos. Nice documentation! And thanks to Laurie for sharing her race with all of us. You inspire us all to push ourselves and enjoy our lives to the fullest.