I had been begging Jesse (my coach from http://www.qt2systems.com/ ) to do this training session for a year now after reading some of the completion stories in prior years. Jesse after a few go rounds agreed to let me tag along (mainly because of my Chile Ultra preparation). I later was reminded why Jesse does not agree to do this with just anyone for valid reasons. Jesse after training with him for a couple of years takes every session very serious. He’s not into just hanging out to check the scenery, its crush until you drop every step of the way regardless of what’s going on. I think the best analogy is like asking Lance Armstrong to go out on a bike ride with training wheels. It’s not going to happen, and if you have ever gone out for a ride, run swim or a conversation with Jesse it’s going to be with purpose. All of this is good and why most of us have made such great strides.
After getting the short notice this workout was going to happen I got in touch with Pat Wheeler. For those who don’t know Pat, he’s a really nice guy and one incredible athlete like Jesse. Pat is also one of Qt2’s coaches and has completed this training session multiple times. Pat reached out to tell me that the Pemi loop was no joke and that completing it will be by far the most difficult thing I have ever done. Pat told me that the Pemi at the speed we would be traveling at would make Ironman look like a joke. Pat then went on to tell me that I would be messed up in a way that I have never been for ten days min. I explained to Pat that I signed up for an Olympic Tri for the following Sunday and he chuckled and wished me “good luck with that”. I got off the phone and wondered how much did I actually screw myself?
After a couple of days I spoke to Pat again and he reiterated that as soon as we get out of the car we literally start sprinting and never let up. Gulp!
The day before I followed my full Ironman Carbo-loading protocol which consisted of a big dinner on Saturday night followed by a huge breakfast, food all day into a lighter meal on Sunday night. I was to have applesauce in the morning of the training.
The packing list for the day
43 Ounce Back Pack
100 Ounce Camel Pack Filled with Power Bar Endurance
32 Ounce Bottle
12 Gels, PowerBar
3 Nature Valley Bar
2 Bagels
Granola Mix
Breathable Rain Jacket
Breathable Rain Pants
Non cotton Shorts
Non Cotton Short Sleeve
Non Cotton Long Sleeve
Plastic Bag in case the shit hit the fan
Body Glide
Blister pack
2 Pairs of Wool Socks
Hiking Boots or trail shoes.
Gloves
Winter Hat
I got to the cottage after driving 162 miles around 8:30 PM. As soon as I got in, Jesse summoned my supplies and instructed me to get everything ready. The no joke stuff happens fast!
We read the reports and knew that the weather was going to be bad. The weather on the tops of the summits can change very fast and I knew that from other smaller trips.
Alarms set for 4AM. Hit the feathers around 10PM and never really sleep. Boom, I hear Jesse coming down the stairs and right at it. I get my stuff ready as fast as possible and forget that I need to get calories on board. I was messing with my Camel bag. I get myself together and was instructed to eat the applesauce in the car.
We had a drive of about 20 minutes to base camp. I’m eating about 3.5 cups of applesauce and drinking until we get to the base. See a bathroom and try as fast as possible to let nature do its thing after eating for one straight day. Not a ton of success. I wondered who brought the TP???! I asked, Jesse said leaves of course.
Here we go!
It’s completely dark out and we have head lamps on. We put our packs on and cross a small bridge and Jesse and Pat start running! I don’t know how I forgot this, but here we go. Immediately my heart rate starts to go crazy and I’m hot and can’t believe how hard it is to run with a pack. I think, "holy shit, why did I wear these trail shoes, they don’t bend and I can’t push off, and whoa, they are not comfortable"! After a few clicks and about a mile, I have to take the worst crap and I yell ahead that I had to stop. We had agreed that bathroom stops would be in unison, but this simply could not wait. I pull over and explode!! I felt better but wondered if I could really do this. This was only 9 minutes into the run. I told the guys that I was not sure and that maybe I’d go 5 hours and find my way out of the woods. They ignored me and were dead pan.
I got behind Pat and followed him on the run. Jesse was going to set the pace and we had a goal of around 11 hours. I had no idea what that meant. All I knew was the average completion time based on a good pace was 20.2 hours.
As soon as the run part moves into the ascents with boulders, Pat and Jesse scream up the rocks. They take huge strides skipping over rocks. I’m baby stepping with a foot on each rock trying to figure out if this was the best way to go or figure out if there was a way to get a groin transplant at the end of this day. I elect to come up these ascents more or like I run which is like a pose running style and high turnover. I’m glad today I figured that out!!
I get into a rhythm and there is absolutely no way to not let your focus down. Rocks and speed galore. Every chance to jog or run we did. If you even paused for a minute, I’d lose sight of these guys. I was impressed and I dug in and did my best.
I was rolling my ankles and ripping shins all over the place. After about 3 hours of rolling my ankles so often, my right foot went numb. Our feet where up to mud ankle deep and being dry at least feet wise stopped 20 minutes into the run/trip.
I started to feel badly because I felt like I was slowing them down. I offered to finish on my own, but Pat and Jesse were incredibly encouraging and simply asked for me to focus and let them push me. We settled into Pat leading and Jesse behind me lighting a fire on my ass. It was the best way to keep pushing.
I started to feel a little better and lead for about 38 minutes with a flatter (loose term) section into the halfway point known as the hut. It was a house with supplies and a bathroom. The wind gusts there were 40-60MPH.
We changed some clothes and began to eat more solid items and to re-fuel hydration. I took my pack apart and was blown away. Apparently I only drank 7 ounces of my 100 ounce pack. This was one of the reasons’ I was messed up. Pat was quick to point that out. All I could do was focus on my footing and pacing and I did what I never really do, I forgot to execute my nutrition the way I do in Ironman.
We stopped for about 22 minutes. Jesse all day was on our pacing, blurting out elevation and speed during loops and told us we could blow the day unless we stuck to the plan. Honestly, I had no idea what the plan was other than to get my ass out of the woods before night.
Funny, I had this safety device that was for tracking called Spot me. There is an SOS button on it in case of emergency. You hit the button, the freaking coast guard comes propelling down for you. I considered hitting that button because I heard it cost 2K.I thought, “Shit for 2K I could be sitting in my car, hell Yes!!! I later learned it cost 15K so that made my mind up I’d have to get out of the woods on my own!! I’m not sure if Pat and Jesse were feeding me shit, but I did come close!!!
As we got into the more technical and slower climbs it was really intense. You become exhausted and at 8-9 hours, your legs are shaking and your footing is very hard to keep in check. You start heading over summits with 40-60 miles gust and one small step, you are back to the car with a 3600 foot free fall.
I was slowing down even more and Jesse was on me in an encouraging way. They were still fast and waited for me at each summit. Jesse was even checking his blackberry at a few of the summits and as soon as I got to the summit we were off. No rest!! I’d roll an ankle and let out a yelp here and there and Pat would yell back to see if I was still moving!
As it became clear that 11 eleven hours was not possible I asked what out projection was. My answer, “it all depends on you Mark”! I was suffering like I can’t even describe, but I knew I was not going to give up and was determined to run out of the woods.
As we approached the 11.5 hour Mark Jesse behind me gave me the elevation and told me that we only had 2,000 feet left of descend and that we would get into some stretches where we could run fast again. That was encouraging until you realizes that you no longer have muscles, ligaments or a skeleton attached to your body. Your heart Rate plummets, because your legs fail so much the peripheral system can’t move blood fast enough.
I set on again getting to the 5 miles mark and wanting to run out of the park and into the car. As soon as we hit that stretch I started a slow run/walk for about 20 minutes. I kept asking “how far” and my standard response was up to you, it could 40 minutes or 90 minutes depending on you. I got pissed and went into that crazy zone. As soon as we hit the tracks where we started, I ran behind Pat and along Jesse for 3.5 miles to the car. I did it!! 30.3 miles, 12:52, Avg HR 136.
I took my socks off expecting to see gang green and messed up feet, but they were not as bad as I thought. I got into the car and the chills started as we drove back to the cottage. I let my wife know I was out and was looking forward to a shower.
I got into the shower and wanted to let out a small scream as soon as the water hit my mid section. My shorts literally ripped my scrotum in half!! This was something duck tape was not going to fix!!
I gathered my stuff as quickly as I could to get home. I had a three hour drive and my next goal was to not fall asleep. I had given up coffee three weeks ago, and decided to only get a green tea on the way home. After a few minutes I found a McDonalds and ate the food and 30 seconds and had a coke. I felt human again and drove home in complete silence. All I could see where rocks and where to put my feet cycling through the back of my brain. Wow, was I cooked!!
I got home and was so stiff and pretty much thought I’d sleep in the car. My wife came and got me and helped me into the house. She pushed me upstairs and I began to fall asleep. The sheets even hurt my legs. I shivered and convulsed all night. I had to pee but I could not get out of bed. As the morning approached I wiggled different parts of my body to see what would work. I got help out of bed and began the journey of hitting the bathroom. I was prepared for the shower now. I took about a jar of Vaseline and smeared it on my groin as a barrier for the burn. Success!! (Well not hygienically).
After the shower I felt much better than I thought I would and set out to go to the Whirlpool. As long as I moved around I was good. By the end of the day I was moving ok. As the day went on I got better and set about eating pure and drinking as much as possible.
Today, I’m much better and got on the floor and started doing some sit-ups and light core. I have a small ride to do later. I skipped it yesterday to see me kids.
I’m not sure how this Sunday will go with the Fireman Olyi,. I would not be surprised to give it a go based on how fast stuff is going today. We’ll see.
I’ve attached the Garmin file to the training run. I forgot to re-start my watch after my first bathroom break so I left off about 3 miles. It’s was great prep for Chile in March. Completely different, but lot’s learned. I was so excited to get this under my belt and I certainly feel that it adds to the resume of durability and mental toughness. I do feel that this was ten times harder than any Ironman race I’ve ever done. I was happy to get out without any injury and I’m sure I’ll be doing this for many more years. It’s a great way to break up all the training and to see what you are made of. I’d encourage most if they have never done an Ironman do something like this before you race. It will make Ironman seem like a walk in the park.
I want to thank Jesse and Pat Wheeler for a great experience that you only get once! They hung in there for me and I really appreciate them for it!!
Click here to see the Garmin File
http://connect.garmin.com/player/45958391
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