Three things that were awesome about running the Old Dominion 100-mile endurance run
The support!
The aid stations ranged from fully stocked oases with mountains of fruit and ice to water and cookies brought in by mule in the middle of a hot and dusty trail. The volunteers at all of them were awesome! I also had friends and family at all the crew-accessible aid stations from mile 32 to the finish. This brought so many smiles to my face and was so helpful when the temperature started to heat up. The always incredible @_lindseyslife_ drove our three kids and one of our dogs around the course to multiple aid stations, kept me positive, and got me moving out of the aid stations.
The awesome @letsdiscodown and @ryankidwiler stayed until the very end, making ice bandanas, finding me fruit to eat, keeping me positive, and even gave me a ride back to my hotel at the end (that 5 minute walk was just a bit too much). Ryan was also my safety runner from mile 75-86: keeping me moving up and down Sherman’s Gap and making sure I didn’t fall off any cliffs.
The course!
With the amount of road running at OD, I wasn’t expecting to love the course as much as I did but – wow – I found it beautiful and challenging. The winding and hilly gravel country roads, the rocks and roots of the Massanutten trails, that endless ATV road, and the killer climbs in the final 25 miles. I cursed them all during the race but thinking back I love them all. It was super cool to run on a course with so much history. Listening to founder Pat Botts talk about the history of the race at the briefing made it even more special. It’s also made me want to run all the other old 100-milers!
The comeback!
My favorite 100-mile races have been the ones where I pulled myself out of a hole and finished strong. Old Dominion was one of those. During those dark 30 miles in the middle of the day, I saw my 22 hour goal slipping away mile by mile, and started to think about how quickly I would have to walk to come in under 24 hours. Things started to shift a little when I saw @_lindseyslife_ and my kids for the last time at Little Fort (mile 64). All her positive words got me moving a bit more quickly and the temperatures were starting to drop a little. I didn’t move quickly over the next 10 miles but I was moving with more purpose.
Seeing @letsdiscodown and @ryankidwilerat Elizabeth Furnace was awesome. I downed a @highbrewcoffee (thanks, @csqrd23 👊), changed my shoes, grabbed my poles, and Ryan and I set off to conquer Sherman’s Gap. I’d run the previous 75 miles by myself so it was great to have some company! We made it in to Veach West (mile 87) in decent time. The next four miles were rolling gravel roads and I was able to lock into a steady pace. My inability to perform simple arithmetic at this point made this section fly by as I took almost the entire four miles to figure out that – if I kept this pace up – I could come in under 22 hours.
Ryan and Sarah were there for me again at the mile 91 aid station and got me out quickly to hit the last big climb of the race. The top of Woodstock Mountain came more quickly than I expected and I could see the lights of Woodstock below. Before I knew it, I was at the county fairgrounds and finished the seemingly endless loop around the track. 21 hours and 51 minutes. There were Sarah and Ryan again with a chair and a blanket and a ride back to the hotel. Thanks, guys! The awards ceremony the next morning continued the family feel of the race. It was great to hear a few words from every finisher on their race – a perfect way to end an awesome weekend of running.
