rene paul de la varre
unregistered |
 posted May-09-2005 04:50 PM
 
Rene’ Paul de la Varre
314 Standish Drive
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Tel: 919 403 3797
Email: fitteryou@hotmail.com1,343 words Running in the Shadow of Death – Umstead Park, Raleigh, NC
I can barely recall the events of that cool, misty morning on Saturday, April 6,2001 at the start of the Umstead 100 Ultra marathon. Was I in shock or just tired? It’s hard to say. It was 5AM, and already a stream of headlamps illuminated the woods while runners nervously paced back and forth. I was supposed to feel charged up and psyched to turn in my best performance ever, since it was going to be my fathers first time watching me run these crazy distances. After the run we were supposed to drive to Florida for a family reunion.
Just three days before the race, he died in a fire that destroyed our home and a lifetime of memories. I was alone, and feeling numb, yet determined to carry on and finish the race. In the pre-dawn darkness, we set off near a lake, then slowly ironing out the early morning stiffness headed uphill along a pine-straw covered trail. The crowd of runners soon thinned out, each settling into their own pace. The course is a network of gentle, rolling hills, with some dramatic uphill killers. By mile ten I was totally spaced out, looking up only to spot the first aid station. I ran with a vengeance while thoughts of my father preoccupied my mind. As I ran I could feel my sweat mix with tears, eyes blood shot from a lack of sleep and my nerves, frayed from the turmoil of the past three days. I entered this race as a subject for a study conducted by Appalachian State, on the effects of Vitamin C on the immune system of ultra marathoners. At mile 20 they jabbed a needle into my arm, taking one of three blood samples that afternoon, then they sent me on my way. Loaded with gel caps and PowerAde, I nearly hurled a stream of vomit, and thought I would overdose on the gooey syrup, which I had never taken before. I felt, and probably looked like a junkie. By noon the sun was beating down mercilessly, and after the third loop I became slightly fatigued, but in the spirit of my dad, I lumbered on determined to finish. The 5,000-acre park, nestled between Raleigh, Cary and Durham is an ideal place to lose yourself and your thoughts. The dense wooded forest, with lakes, streams, and a vast network of hiking trails make this park an ideal location for all sports. Most of the race is on bridle trails, or single lane gravel roads, some of which have up hills that will surely test your lactate threshold. By the 35th mile I was bouncing along effortlessly, weightless and lost, running in the shadow of death. My father was a great guy who made friends wherever he went and he would have loved the camaraderie of ultra marathoning. At one point I imagined him handing me a drink and yelling, “Come on son, hurry up, so we can get to Florida.” I awoke from my dream to battle another menacing uphill on the final loop. Reddy Creek Road seemed to last forever. Adding to my miseries was a bystander who said, “Congrats, all the hills are behind you.” Yeah right. I started cursing everything in site and I flicked the bird to no one in particular. Then I vowed to quit running for good, so I stopped for a brief minute to regain my sanity, and then used my anger and a last burst of adrenalin to hurl myself up the hill, and across the finish line with a time of 11:31.Throughout the race I battled a range of emotions, and by the end I was overcome with uncontrollable shaking as they all hit home at once. I felt like I had aged a thousand years in the past 24 hours. After taking the last blood sample, and debriefing me, the Appalachian State representatives rewarded me with free heart rate monitor, $2,000 worth of blood analysis and $100. Before leaving I couldn’t resist a few hotdogs and hamburgers sizzling on the grill. Race Director Blake Norwood and his staff put on a great show and the support was first class. That night I passed out in a cool bath beside a half empty bottle of Budweiser vowing never to return to Umstead.
March 6, 2005.
I’m back! Can never stay away to long. During my absence the Carolina Godiva Track Club had put together the Umstead Trail Marathon. Most of the course is set on wide bridle trails with a couple of deviations into the woods. There are a few long and painful ascents, but the good news is that after completing this course, any road marathon will seem like a piece of cake. The loss of my father is still very much with me, yet his spirit inspires me to complete as many marathons as I can. For the past two weeks a trapped nerve in my back had prevented me from running, and on the morning of the race, I looked more like Quasimodo than a runner. I wasn’t even sure I’d finish, much less start. There were intimidating cut off times, which scared the hell out of me. The last thing I wanted was to be pulled from the course, but if that were to happen I had a plan: Hide in the woods until the posse left. A small, group of 170 runners gathered at the starting line and at 9AM the race began. I shot out of the gate determined to reach each cutoff point. I immediately felt winded, and a sense of panic set in as many runners passed me. By the 3rd mile I fell into a nice groove as we entered the woods to tackle our first trail. Company Mill Trail is steep and rocky, with a section that is partially covered by a humongous maze of roots, which remind me of an octopus’s tentacles. They call it “The Tree of Death,” yet not even this obstacle prevented me from running with reckless abandon. The aid stations are staffed with enthusiastic volunteers eagerly handing out cups of water, Gatorade, and energy snacks, while mountain bikers riding by, hollered words of encouragement. At mile 13, Graylyn Trail leads into Sycamore Hiking Trail, which follows the contours of a creek hidden deep in the forest. A short, but nasty ascent comes out on the smooth surface of North Turkey Creek, a cross roads at mile 15. I looks like a marathon rush hour, with runners crossing back and forth and stopping to chat with one another. On the 18th mile my stomach succumbed to all the electrolytes I had ingested. After a brief pit stop, I high tailed it out of the woods and found my way back to the course. No way in hell was I going to let my stomach screw up this race. I crossed the last cut off point at mile 19, with 90 minutes to spare. I was juiced! The next few miles felt like a roller coaster ride up and down a series of hills through the woods and then back on the gravel road. By now the little pebbles started to gnaw through my sneakers, sending a stinging pain through the bottom of my feet. On mile 22, I encountered one of the most demanding hills on the whole course - Cedar Ridge Trail, which loops down and up for about a mile and half. The steep, rock strewn path ends at the turn around beside Crabtree Creek and an aid station, where I swig a final cup of Gatorade before tackling the ascent. I’m back on Reddy Creek Trail and the long uphill I so vehemently despise, then one final push to the finish line at Camp Lapihio and I cross in 4 hours and 37 minutes. Same finish line, four years later. Pop would have been proud of me. USEFUL INFORMATION: William B. Umstead State Park – Raleigh, NC. Website: Umstead 100-Mile Endurance Run – Race Director: Blake Norwood Website:
www.ncroadrunners.org/umstead Umstead Trail Marathon: Website: www.carolinagodiva.org/umsteadmarathon
IP: Logged |
