Written by Donna Macauley
The chill approach to doing an ultra!
When I think of ultras, I think of grueling mountainous terrain where you have to carry ALL your resources with you, follow remote trails by yourself and plot out extensive plans for your pacers and hope that you actually find them. That sounds like a lot of work and many chances of messing it up! Plus, the amount of training needed to achieve the level of fitness to complete 32 miles, on a trail no less, must be outstanding, right?!
Well, if you want to do Leadville or Western States, yes!
But if you don’t mind going around in circles and taking some downtime, it’s completely doable!
Earlier this summer, I observed Amanda do the Notchview race, a time- and lap-based ultra in western Mass. She approached this event with a whole new mindset that I could get behind. She signed up for a time slot and decided to “see what happens”. She’d go out and just keep moving until the clock told her to stop. She didn’t think about speed or pace, was open to taking a break, even sleeping at night. Her attitude was all about being in the moment and enjoying the event (she completed 66 miles by the way).
It turns out she’s not the only one that does this!
A lap- and time-based ultra typically is a small loop, 2-4 miles and you sign up to run that loop for a certain amount of time, say 6, 12, 24, 30 or 72 hours. Along that route is the start/finish line where you find your typical race refreshments and possibly some entertainment. There’s also an area where you can set up your basecamp. At your basecamp, you stage your water, food, extra socks, sneakers and clothes, set up a canopy for shade, a chair and maybe even a tent with a sleeping bag and pillow! As you run by your basecamp, you can stop for as long as you want for whatever you need.
When I registered for this Hamster Wheel, my plan was to take it one lap at a time, sit at my basecamp after each lap and evaluate how I felt. If I felt good, I’d go do another lap, at some point. Sometimes that was immediately, sometimes I rested a bit longer (I even slept for nearly 4 hours during the night).
Is all this downtime cheating? No! There is no rule that says you must be upright and moving at all times. Did anyone look at me funny? If they did I didn’t notice it. The field of participants included every shape, size and age imaginable. Each runner had a very personal goal for their race and the range was wide. There were definitely those that completed 100 miles as fast as they could, but there was plenty of space for those that walked the entire race.
What are some local lap- and time-based ultras that are popular with Striders?
- Notchview in western MA in July
- Anchor Down Ultra in Bristol, RI in August
- Hamster Wheel in New Boston, NH in November
- Ghost Train in Milford, NH in October
A friend sent me this article by Hannah Walsh. The marathon vs ultra comparison chart was spot on!
Want to check it out without committing to a race? Offer to pace someone! Don’t worry about being able to keep up, typically pacers aren’t allowed until deep into the event. Runners have been on the course for 7+ hours, and chances are they are really tired. You may even struggle to slow yourself down! Pacers provide an incredible boost of energy for the racer. As the runner, it’s so refreshing to share the loop with someone new and talk about all the adventures they’ve had so far. As a pacer you get to run the course and experience the event without the commitment.
A time- or lap-based ultra is a really good way to ease yourself into the ultra world. I thought an ultra was out of reach for me, but I was able to complete not only a 50k, but 52 miles at Hamster Wheel. If anyone wants to hear more I’m happy to talk about it!
