ahhhh c'mon nobody really wants to read a 50K race report do they? So as I was running today I thought of this instead: List the hardest events you have done in order of difficulty. Now whats hard for someone is not for another so it can be any distance, any race, anywhere. A all out 5k could easily top a well paced half marathon or a sprint tri could beat a hilly century. The criteria is up to you but thought it would be fun to see peoples top ten list.
Here is my list (toughest to easiest):
1. Bimblers Bluff 50K- Done it twice.The footing is so bad, 2,500 ft of climbing, and climbing the afore mentioned bluff takes a good 20 minutes of walking.
2. Stone Cat 50 miler- It's a four loop run, and 50 miles is 50 miles
3. Lake Placid IM- I had a horrible swim, great bike, and survived the run
4. B2B 150 Bike ride- Riding from Boston to Vermont is not flat, enough said.
5. Rev3 Quassy- Was my first half iron and the bike/run course is brutal.
6. Providence 70.3- Choppy ocean swim, crappy roads on the bike, and a skyscraper in the middle of the run course.
7. Boston Marathon- Had only been running "casually" up until I found out in Feb that I got a bib and had never run more than 6 miles, EVER. What hurt the most was the first 7 miles of downhills which shreds the quads for the Heartbreak hills.
8. Local 5k- Ran until my lungs exploded
9. Hyannis half marathon- Febuary run in New England, tough running hard when sucking in freezing cold air.
10. My longest training day before Lake Placid- Cold and rainy, swam 80 mins open water, biked 7 hours, and 80 min run. Absolute gut check.
OK, I'll bite: 1) Aluminum
OK, I'll bite:
1) Aluminum Man, Columbia River Gorge, 1989 or 1990 (?). An long Oly distance but the only race I've ever cried in. 110 degrees and winds gusting to 35 - 40. Swim in the river with whitecaps and current. The 36 mile bike climbed 2,000 feet and took me three hours, avg'd 12 mph. Had to pedal downhill due to wind. Saw a cyclist get blown right off the road. The run was so hot I felt like I was in a blowdrier. I walked. I cried. I think the whole thing took me almost 4.5 hours. To this day, no race has ever been worse.
2) IMFL - Another swimmer dislocated my big toe in the swim. Had to set and re-set it several times through the race. Wondered through the whole bike if I could even run. Blacked out during the run from pain, don't remember most of it. Threw up multiple times from the Ibuprofen I was taking (dumb move). I do remember that. Passed out cold just after finish line, in med tent for a long time.
3) Natural Childbirth, both times. That's just for a point of reference... ;-)
4) Karate Black Belt test - more nerve-wracking than anything else. In racing once you get going it gets easier. This didn't.
5) Black Diamond HIM. Done this race several years and usually love it but one year they ran out of electrolyte drink and gels on the course and I bonked really bad.
6) 24 mile solo trail run this summer. My mountain bike "crew" had several technical difficulties, leaving me without food and drink for long segments. I got behind the hydration curve and the last few miles were hell.
7) Salem HIM in 2004 - 42 degrees and rain/sleet. Bike course had a 14% grade that you hit twice. My feet didn't thaw out until mile 12 of the run. The next day they felt like they'd been pounded by 2 x 4's. Best HIM finish of my life though, 1 AG, 3 OA Women
That's it for the tough ones. 25 years of racing and most races I just smile right through. I love racing!
Awesome. I hear you on the
Awesome. I hear you on the smiling right through part too. Thought this thread would get more responses but guess I was wrong. Thanks for posting, you putting a oly ahead of a Ironman was exactly what I was looking for.
I guess no one reads 50k
I guess no one reads 50k race reports. Where's Anton??
Tough crowd. Guess next time
Tough crowd. Guess next time I will have to be a little more straigh forward.
hmm... i do to not have a
hmm...
i do to not have a particularly epic tri resume.
my first tri was my toughest, and pretty much it was so because it was first.
but my toughest athletic experience was my first crew race in college on the Potomac R. in DC with swells breaching over my shoulder (training had been on a glassy lake). that was rude awakening. second was probably erg races within the team. one season was enough for me.
I am a mere pussycat
I am a mere pussycat compared to you folks. Comparatively speaking, I've had nowhere near the challenges you have. That may change after next summer's IMMT (my first).
Thanks for sharing; perhaps the thread title's misleading, and you could re-post with Your 10 Toughest Races? (or Moments?), it'd be a pity to not get more posts because this makes for very interesting reading.
[quote=Ironmom]... Where's Anton??[/quote]
+1.
And AT, for that matter? It's been pretty quiet these days...
tri-ac wrote:hmm... i do to
[quote=tri-ac]hmm...
i do to not have a particularly epic tri resume.
my first tri was my toughest, and pretty much it was so because it was first.
but my toughest athletic experience was my first crew race in college on the Potomac R. in DC with swells breaching over my shoulder (training had been on a glassy lake). that was rude awakening. second was probably erg races within the team. one season was enough for me.[/quote]
Erg'ing is the WORST. I always feel like I'm going to puke after a C2 session.
snail_male wrote: Thanks for
[quote=snail_male]
Thanks for sharing; perhaps the thread title's misleading, and you could re-post with Your 10 Toughest Races? (or Moments?), it'd be a pity to not get more posts because this makes for very interesting reading.[/quote]
I agree, you should re-post with a different title, this thread should have tons of great posts.
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