Have you ever just signed up for a 5k or something without training for it because "It'll be ok"? Well, when an opportunity came up to run the Honey Badger 100, I thought "It'll be ok".
The Honey Badger is Epic Ultra's version of Badwater in KS. Different from most races that have full aid stations every X miles, HB is modeled after Badwater in that a crew/vehicle are mandatory to provide self support for the duration of the race (although there were 3 ice stops and roving ice help - much appreciated).That and the fact you're on asphalt hell with no cover and temps approaching 100. But hey, it's flat, right?
The BW and I headed down to Wichita Friday afternoon to meet up with the other half of my Ultra Crew, our good friend Donnie from KC. We got in too late for packet pickup, but got a chance to meet some outstanding people from a group called Midwest Vikings at the motel that were running before pretending to get some sleep for the race.
Race morning started tense as we had a wee bit of trouble finding the starting line in the dark. Luckily, we came across some knowledgeable people headed to the start/finish with more than ample time for packet pickup and to visit with friends before the prerace meeting. Honey Badger is the second 100 in a four race series called the Kansas Grand Slam. There was a group of about 8 people trying to get the second leg in.
Ultra Crew (BW & Donnie) and Sluggo
Ultrarunners going for the KS Grand Slam series
The first part of the course was a nice out and back inside Cheney Park. After that only 1 loop (rectangle)! A simple 92.5 mile loop in Kingman County. Simply asphalt. Simply hot. Simply no shade. Aside from the section in the park, your crew were able to assist you at whatever interval you wished while on the course. I liked the thought of seeing people and only carrying my Orange Mud handheld, so we started out with BW/Donnie jumping ahead about every 2 miles on a crossroad. When it really started warming up late morning, I switched to a hat with the drape in the back and a long sleeve white shirt. I wasn't going to bring the hat at all, but glad I did. It made a tremendous difference with the sun constantly beating down on you. This was what a typical stop looked like. Hand off my bottle and hat. Bobbie would soak my hat in ice water in the cooler and give me a wet towl. While they filled my bottle, I'd have a seat and try to eat something.
The first 27 miles or so were uneventful, but then I started having stomach issues. Nothing appealed to me, but I kept up some salt pills to try and settle while mostly saying NO to anything offered me. Finally Donnie convinced me to take some Pepto pills. This settled me down pretty good, but still didn't feel like eating much. After the 3rd time he offered Ensure, I said ok. Wait a minute...this goes down fine! That ended up being a savior as I was getting 260 cals in 8 ounces and not having any adverse effect from it. Learning from other Ultrarunners regardless of what you currently use/do. Never stop listening.
**INTERMISSION***
You CANNOT overstate the benefit of having an experienced crew (and both who have run the distance) in races. Especially one like this. Left to your own devices, this race could have been a disaster with an inexperienced crew. The BW and Donnie knew things to look for, what to offer and when to keep pushing things on me and keep me moving. Also the teamwork between all the crews is always awesome. You give support and get support like those people were your own runner or you were theirs. Much love to all those we shared the race with.
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Around mile 38 we turned south on a 14 mile stretch called "Convection Alley". Constant 17-21mph hot headwind that didn't let up. Luckily for my slow ass it was a little later in the day and I didn't get the pleasure of this furnace blast at the highest heat of the day. This was one of two low spots in the race. It just seemed like I was redlined even trying to creep along. The BW & Donnie knew I was struggling and stopped about every mile on this section just to make sure I was keeping after it. I fully expected to need the small grace period Eric would give on the cutoff at 53 miles, but with the Ultra Crew keeping me moving, I hit the turn off from Convection Ally and finished the last mile to the 53 mile checkpoint 10 minutes before cutoff.
From here on out, I'd have the BW or Donnie with me. They tended to switch off every 6-8 miles while the other continued to crew. A tough job for sure! Early evening through morning was smooth, if not slow, and everything seemed to be moving along fine. About 5:30am I did have a bout of dry heaves coming into an aid stop. Big hurt like hell heaves that don't do anything. Got another Ensure down and carried on. Funny how your perspective changes as you do longer races. Didn't matter we had almost a marathon left, at 75 miles I knew I was going to finish this. Sunday ended up hotter than Saturday and by late morning the sun was taking its toll. But at this point we were down to the final half marathon. Mile 93 was when the second low point hit. At this point, the asphalt was just a reflective heat nightmare. The actual temp of the asphalt would have been probably 125-130. I know you're thinking I exaggerated that to make it sound bad, but one year at an IRL race at KS Speedway it was 94-96 degrees and the track was over 130. I think I'm making a fair assumption. Anywho, at this point I got kind of light headed and we decided it would be good for me to take a little break in the car with the AC on . From here on out was just a get it done slog to the finish. We did get offered a ride from a nice old couple about 3 miles from the finish, but politely declined.
No matter how you feel, you can always get up the ambition to trot on in to the finish and make it look like you're still capable of moving. I always feel like its home court advantage when I come down to KS for a race. We've gotten to know a number of people from the area and they treat us like family. Thanks Eric, Warren, Zach, Joell, Justin, Deanna, John, Eric & Lori S and everyone else that I didn't mention for a great race!
Eric has personally handed me my medal at every Epic race we've done.
I couldn't have done this without my outstanding Ultra Crew of the BW and Donnie. No, really - they wouldn't have let me start the race. Always thank your crew/pacers more than you think you need to. It's a long, tough job that nobody in their right mind would volunteer for. Believe it or not, listening to you bitch, smelling your nastiness or touching your horrible feet and being cooped up in a car for 30+ hours aren't terrific selling points.
Two down and two to go - Sluggo out.
Thanks to Joell Chockley & Epic Ultras for the photos
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