We Finished the Palmetto 70!!!

Well,,,we made it to the finish of the Palmetto 70. All 4 of us!!! This was a new race event for me and I have to say a milestone for what I hope to be the first of many. Runners understand the camaraderie that occurs after a race when you are hanging out and discussing how the race went and what you learned. Or, how fresh or stale the bagels are, how you meet your expectations, and of course how cold or warm the beer is. This race was something like that except you got to talk about how each leg of the race progressed. It was a great time of discussing strategy, new or old injuries, but mainly about encouraging each other for their next leg. It was sort of like experiencing the finish line and camaraderie 12 times. ( We had 12 legs that comprised our 70 mile route). Your team mates are standing there and cheering for you at each exchange point. We had said that we would not worry about where we placed but it was interesting that we were very aware of what the other teams were doing and who we had or hadn't passed on the previous leg. I realized that where we finished did matter to me shortly after the start. Speaking of the start,,,,

 We drove towards Monks Corner on Friday night after hooking up with a friend of a friend of Kevin's that allowed us to crash at his house. This put us about 35 minutes from the start line. We arose at 4:00 am for final prep, drive and then a 5:30 am start. We started on time and I had the first leg of 8.9 miles. The temp was 43 degrees with no wind and clear skies. It could not have been more perfect. I had my 2 headlamps, 2 red flashers and reflective vest on ready for the command to go. This is the first race that I have started in the dark. I have run a few training runs about 15 to 20 minutes before dawn with just a hint of day light creeping in, but never in the pitch black of a tree lined narrow, in need of some repairs roadway. The race directors did an excellent job keeping us safe. They had arranged for the Berkeley Sheriff dept to provide an escort for us until well after daylight. The traffic was minimal on this two lane country road but all of the traffic slowed when they saw the flashing blue lights lighting up the pre dawn sky. I had to laugh as the motorist passed by and realized it was just some dumb runners out on the roadway in the middle of the night.

I started out a little to fast. I was still not 100% after a recent hip injury. I managed to stay with the guys in front of me for the first couple of miles. I then remembered that this was just my first leg and I had 3 other guys that were counting on me to complete all 3 of my legs. I backed down to a semi comfortable pace but really hated to see the red flashing lights on the back of the guys in front of me drifting smaller and smaller with each passing mile. I completed the first leg with a 9:15 pace. I was pleased with that since I wanted to be around a 9:45 pace. I felt pretty good but could tell my hip was not too pleased with the pace. I wrapped an ice pack on the hip; re fueled and was surprised how quickly I wanted my next leg to begin.

My next leg was a 3.67 that started on Hwy 17 just outside of Mt Pleasant. Alan had been assigned the prior leg and he was on 17 for several miles.

Running on a 4 lane busy highway was not much fun. Thankfully I only had about .06 of a mile on 17 before I made a left turn thru a Subdivision. I started out a little fast ( same old story) but was anxious to get away from the highway. I knew my pace was a little fast but I had a target that I decided I wanted to pass. You just can’t let go of the competition when you believe you can pass someone. The leg was fairly easy as far as an elevation rise. It was almost flat. I realized around mile 2 that I had already ran an 8.9 mile leg that morning and my legs were starting to feel crampy.

I had managed to stay loose between my runs but maybe that .06 sprint down the highway was more than my body was willing to allow. I pushed on knowing that once again, thee other team members were counting on me. I finished my second leg with a 8:54 pace. No wonder my legs were cramping.

I managed to botch the hand off of the bracelet to Kevin for the  2nd leg. You wouldn’t think that would be a big deal but we found out in the end it was. Sorry guys.

 My final leg was only a 3.1 that ended under the Cooper River Bridge. I finished around a 9:12 pace. This was for sure the hardest leg even though it was the shortest. It was about 80 degrees and my tank was on empty. I had refueled again with a bagel, gel and fluids but the old body just wasn’t processing them fast enough.  I wanted so bad to jog or even walk the last mile. I was running on emotions and fumes. I then remembered just as I had on the prior two legs that I was not alone in this event. Three other guys were counting on me to finish and finish strong. I didn’t slow down but pressed on knowing each step was closer to finding the last one. I passed the bracelet off again to Kevin. Believe it or not, I botched it again. I dropped the bracelet on his arm as I ran by the finish. I would think that this would not be a big deal with an event that last somewhere around 8-9 hours. Well,,,, the 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th place team finished timing had a spread of less than one minute between us. Dropping the bracelet twice may have cost us 2 spots.  Our average pace was 8:54 per mile. The 4^th and 5^th pace,,,,,,,8:53 and change. Can you believe that 3 teams were running that close over a 70 mile event? You always learn something in a race. I will be practicing that bracelet exchange technique before my next relay.

The post race was great. Bar B Que, tortilla chips, salsa and beer. A nice medal and one of the organizers personally thanked the teams for participating at the finish. These folks put on a great event and are well organized. I am already counting on doing this again. I think I have a new addiction. This event will test your determination and mettle but it is worth every step,,, especially when you can experience it with some great running buddies. Thanks again guys.