Blackbeard's Revenge 100 Miler Recap

This past Saturday, I finished my 4th 100 miler with crossing the finish line at the Blackbeard's Revenge 100 miler along the coast of the Outer Banks of NC. 

We passed through a number of townships as we made our way from the north end in Corolla to the the south end in Hatteras. The were numerous awesome views of the sound and the ocean as we weaved our way along not to mention a lot of sand dunes. 

I had two concerns with running this race: the wind and the pavement. Anyone that has spent much time long the coast knows that the wind always seems to be blowing. The only question is whether is helping or hurting you. I know; I have run several OBX Marathons in the fall. I can only remember one race that had a tail wind. Then, there is the pavement. This is a road 100 miler. The asphalt is very unkind to the legs. Double it with fact that my runs always on the trail. Believe me there is a huge difference. 

The race started at 5 AM so I had to leave the hotel at 3:15 AM. For better or worst, I picked a hotel pretty much in the middle between the start to finish. Otherwise, I would have either much longer drive to the start or from the finish. Honestly, neither sounded appealing. 

When I stepped out of the car, the wind off the sound cut right through my jacket. I worried that this just might be a very long day. 

We were able to park about 20 yards from the starting line so I didn't even get out the car until about 10 minutes to 5. I strolled to the starting line, and I listened to the few of the last minute race instructions. Then, we were off. 

There was no sprint away from the starting line. Pretty much we all just rolled forward. 

Once within the tree line, the wind abated, and I warmed up. The temperate was about 48 so I was pretty comfortable for the first 10 miles. I spent a lot of time chatting it up with whomever was around. The miles passed easily. 

When I met my crew, I dropped my head lamp, and pushed off down the road. Traffic was starting to pick up so I moved from running on the edge of the road to running on the sidewalk. The side walk was a little harder because it weave back and forth as well as up and down. Then, there is the fact that it was concrete. 

Mostly, the wind was blowing at my side so I found myself leaning in to it to stay straight. Of course with the pick up traffic, I was also getting buffeted by passing cars. This got worse later in the race. It is like getting slapped over and over by an invisible force that you know is coming but cannot see. 

I was happy to see us turn on the Dare Trail section but boy is it long. Or at least, I thought it was at the time. 

By 30 miles, I had moved over to the side walk again. It helped having the gap from the passing traffic, and it was level or at least leverler (if this is word) then slanted side of the road. I noticed that my left knee kind of ached from the strain of the angle of road. This was a facet that I hadn't really considered before the race. Most of the time, it isn't an issue at least not until you attempt 100 miles of it. This will test every part of your running form.

Finishing off the Dare Trail and turning back on to Highway 12 to head further south, I caught a full head on wind. At the time, it didn't seem bad. 

From here to the finish, while you run through a few small towns, you are mostly alone running between the sand dunes. The wind whipping across the road blowing the sand that it looks like snow drifting. 

I think that I heard someone say that the beach is flat or pretty flat. I am going to burst their bubble on this line of thinking. I quickly realized that while not steep, these climbs are miles and miles long with just a few percent grade. When I topped one sand dune, what I found was an event taller one standing behind it. Mind you, I have not been on this side of the outer banks so I had no idea what it was like. Maybe the most demoralizing part is the power lines which run along the road. They just keep going getting smaller and smaller in the distance. The thought sets in that I will have to pass each and everyone of them and even more that I could not see over the horizon. Yet, the scene never seemed to change. There is sense of progress. 

At 45 miles, a guy in the relay caught up to me, and I was happy when he agreed to let me tag along as we ran over the 5 mile bridge. Between the wind and the passing cars, I felt like a leaf in wind. Blown every which way. 

To be honest, coming off the bridge was the only downhill on the entire course that I remember. Every where else, I felt like I was climbing. 

I had been meeting with my crew every 5 miles. My energy levels felt good but I was realizing that my quads were not. The pounding from the pavement was taking its toll on them. I was still moving but my strides were getting smaller and the gap between the ground and the soles of my shoes was getting ever closer. 

By 75 miles, I was taking walk breaks hoping to stretch out what strength remained of my quads. Strangely, while slower, I didn't feel tired walking. Yet, I just couldn't walk as fast as I was running. 

Some where along through these miles, I felt a few sprinkles of rain. Later before entering Frisco, NC, I could feel the spray from the sound. 

During this section, I pulled out my head lamp. The road is narrow here, and I wanted to make sure that the on-coming cars could see me. 

Between 85 and 90 miles,  I made my out and back trip to get my pirate eye patch. This is a little extension to the course that runs out to near the light house. 

Between 90 and 95, some of the event staff were driving along the course to see if we needed anything. They were offering drinks and gels. This was a nice gesture. I don't recall this happening in any of my other 100 mile races. 

The temperature was starting to fall, and I was taking on jackets. In fact, I was wearing 3 jackets. I needed them. The wind was really gusting, but now it was more of a head wind. 

The last 5 miles seemed to last for ever. The wind was blowing. At one point, I rubbed my face, and I could feel like a layer of sand. To help protect my skin from the wind, I remember an old trick that Bobby had shared about putting on Vaseline. It worked great. I never got a wind burn but I did collect a then layer of sand. 

The road stretched out in a straight line. At one point, I thought it was coming to end of it, but it was really just a car which was getting close to me. It took minutes from when I first saw the head lights until the car passed me. 

When I made the turn to where I could see the signs for the ferry, I knew that I was almost done. Shortly there after, I could hear the music at the finish. 

Finally, I could see the lights and the finish line banner. I was never happier to see a finish line banner. 

I finished 4 overall and 1 Masters in a little over 19 and half hours. That 4's sub 20 hour 100 milers. 

I got my Blackbeard's Revenge belt buckle, and I had a smile on my face. I thought my other 100 milers hard but this one was probably the hardest considering the wind and the pavement. My legs were really beat up afterward and still pretty sore today. 

I would not trade this experience for anything. I got to see things in slow motion that most people just pass by at 55 miles per hour. I again an appreciate for the Outer Banks that I will remember for ever.

One thing to keep in mind if you didn't pick up on this as I was writing this post. This is an open course. Meaning that you will be running next cars the entire time. There some sections where there are sidewalks but with the majority of the course, you will be a foot or two away from on-coming traffic. I had a couple of instances where I had to step out of the road. They were coming across the painted line. 

The other thing is wear sunglasses during the day and clear glasses at night. The blowing sand took it toll on my eyes. 

Well, that wrap on my visit to the Outer Banks and my adventure to see the Outer Banks from one end to the other. 

The Cool Down Runner