My First Ultra: Oregon Coast 50K
After eight marathons and many shorter races, I wanted to do something new and signed up for my first ultra, the Oregon Coast 50K. I got stung by a bee, considered dropping, and still finished in seven hours. It was both easier and harder than I expected, and an interesting experience.
The thing about 50Ks is not just the distance (50km or about 31mi), but unlike most races up to the marathon that tend to be on road, ultra-marathons are usually trail races with quite a bit of elevation gain. This one was no exception, with about 4,700ft (1,400m) of gain overall. Plus, the start was on the beach and the first few miles were on sand — I wasn’t sure what to expect from that. Would it tire me out early in the race?
The beach turned out to be a non-issue. We were running at low tide, on the compact sand that wasn’t all that different from gravel. Sure, you got lots of sand into your shoes, and we had to cross a few little creeks that guaranteed that our shoes would also get wet. But the race is set up so there’s an aid station with a drop bag at mile 7 to change into dry socks and clean shoes.
Aid stations divide the course into four parts: the first seven miles with six of them on the beach, then another seven miles over a the small hill, then the big hill over the next ten miles (with a little aid station at the top), and then back over the small hill to the finish. I was very unsure how I would handle the hills, so I had discussed with my girlfriend where she could pick me up if I were to drop the most convenient way. The first hill wasn’t all that big, but it did have some very steep parts that made me think that I’d drop at the 14mi aid station. But the downhill parts were easy and I felt great at the aid station, so I kept going.
The big hill seems really easy at first, since it’s basically flat for a while, but then it gets very steep and just keeps going and going. Not only is it a relentless uphill slog, it’s also on some very annoying rocky trails that are no fun to walk on. I basically just hiked all the uphill parts, pushing myself off my quads in the steepest sections, and stopping a few times to catch my breath. It’s quite amazing how much easier things feel once your heart rate is back in a reasonable zone!
What was odd about the big hill is that it suddenly flattened out and I just couldn’t believe I had made it all the way up. My feet were hurting as I was slowly and carefully starting to run on the flat trail that was no longer just rocks. There is an aid station at the top of the hill too, where I spent a few minutes to catch my breath and eat m&m’s and just bask in the fact that I had made it up that big hill and could stand up straight.
The downhill from there is a huge contrast from the way up: beautiful, soft trail with barely any roots that is a real pleasure to run on. Going down the same rocky mess would have been much less fun.
The last aid station came up faster than I expected too, and I generally felt really good, much better than I should have after 24mi and 3800ft of climbing and descending at that point. The final hill was still quite a slog, and then there were the last few miles partly on road that were just plain boring, but it was great to make it back and finish my first ultra in just about seven hours.
I don’t run on trails much at all, and my training had not included a lot of hills. I do run hills, but nowhere near the elevation gain of this course. I’ve also never run anywhere near seven hours at a time, my longest run has been just over four hours. And yet, I was less sore after this race than after some road marathons.
The thing about trail races, and this one in particular, is that you run through a lot of interesting nature that makes time pass much faster and distracts from the effort. It actually felt shorter than the Bellingham Bay Marathon I had done two weeks before, which went through some boring and ugly parts of town and was almost entirely flat.
Rainshadow Running, which put on this race, did a fantastic job with their communication, course and aid station layout, and course marking. There was no way to get lost on this course, every decision point was clearly marked, with even some “wrong way” signs in a few places to make extra sure.
The weather also worked in their favor. It was a gorgeous sunny day that got warm (mid-60s) but a constant breeze in the forest kept things nice and cool. And while they had told us that the bee problem from the year before was likely not an issue, I still got stung on the first hill. Luckily it got me just above my ear, which hurt for a bit but didn’t impede my running.
My strategy is likely the same as for most middle-to-back of the pack runners in these races: hike the uphills, run the flat and downhill parts as much as possible. That worked out well and kept me from exhausting myself too much. Nutrition was also spot on, with gels on the sand, then Perpetuem for the first hill, gels and Tailwind on the big hill, and then a bit of Perpetuem (but really more water and a gel at the end) for the last hill. Plus of course the m&ms at the aid stations (they also have chips, pickles, soft drinks, etc.).
Would I do it again? Absolutely! I’ve been doing a pretty steady marathon or two a year for the last several years, and adding a 50K a year seems like a good challenge. The climb is entirely doable, and this one was actually one of the harder 50Ks. I don’t think I want to do anything much longer, though. But once you’ve run a few marathons, a 50K is totally doable and something that much fewer people do; same with trail races, which are much more enjoyable than most road races.
The only slightly disappointing thing was the race “medal”: a beer koozie. The pizza and beer at the finish made up for that, though. And in the end it’s likely that I will actually use the koozie, unlike the medals that just get thrown on a pile and never end up serving any sort of purpose.
