My first ultra marathon –
This weekend I completed my first ultra marathon. It was a 50k trail race in DC put on by The North Face.
The course was a mixture of flat dirt, loose gravel, and technical rocks. My race prep involved 16 weeks of 3 day a week runs, and eating large amounts of protein, slow carbs, and quality fats in the days leading up to the event.
I chose to wear Montrail Masochists for the race. I really love the shoes, but think I would have been better off wearing my running flats because the trail really didn’t get that slippery.
My nutrition plan involved filling my camelbak with 6 Nuuns electrolyte tabs, taking jelly beans and Accel Gels every 30-45 mins, and filling up on water and bananas at the 7 aid stations.
The plan worked great except the distance between the 6th and 7th aid stations were further then I would have liked, and I could have used more water during that time. I found that the key to these longer races is to just keep moving.
I passed many people in the last 10 miles just because they stopped running.
Overall this was a great race and learning experience that I would recommend to anyone.
