The JFK 50 Mile is one of the oldest and revered ultramarathons in the United States, with more than 1,200 participants registering annually. The course is point-to-point, traveling from the center of Boonsboro Maryland to Williamsport. After a brief 2.5 road miles to start, the course endures 13 miles of the Appalachian Trail before entering the C&O Canal towpath. 26.3 miles later, runners emerge onto the roads of Williamsport, where rolling hills and gusty winds lead athletes to the finish line at Springfield Middle School.
Pre-Race:
Elizabeth and I drove down to our hotel in Hagerstown Maryland on Friday afternoon, roughly a 4 hour drive. I felt completely recovered from my previous two ultras, the SRT Run/Hike in September and the Nipmuck Trail Marathon in October. I had some last minute shoes problems in the week or two prior to the race, and decided to use the HOKA Stinson's for the Appalachian Trail portion of the race, then switch into the HOKA Speedgoats for the towpath (my original plan was to use the Speedgoats for the entire race, but they were causing blisters on my outer toes in rocky terrain or when the pace was under 6:40/mile, a speed I'd be nowhere near on race day). This race would also serve as the first 50-miler where I only used a single hand-held water bottle.
I choked down a few muffins and a banana during the pre-race meeting held in the Boonsboro High School gymnasium. My eyes wandered across the walls, which are decorated with championship teams of various sports. The meeting adjourned and Elizabeth, myself, and 1,200-ish other runners made our way to the start line on Main Street in downtown Boonsboro. After a 10-minute walk I ended up jogging to the start line to avoid missing the start. I caught a glimpse of Jim Walmsley just before the race commenced. He was brimming with energy, excited I'm sure to be testing himself against Max King's course record. His excitement was rubbing off on everyone around him and before we knew it, we were on our way.
Part 1 - Appalachian Trail:
My race began about 8 rows of ultrarunners behind Jim, but I got to catch another glimpse of him as he began to ascent the first hill about a mile into the race. He already had a good quarter-mile lead on me. I began to settle in to a pace right around 8:00/mile, clocking my first mile in 8:15 as we began the first ascent. Because the first 2.5 miles are on road, it's easy to get swept up in the pace. I consciously monitored how much effort I was putting in, which resulted in walking about half the hill.
We approached the entrance into the trail and to my relief there was Porta-Potty just before entering. I took a minute inside before pressing on, and immediately tried to climb back into position, but it proved mostly futile during this semi-technical section. It wasn't long until we hit a paved path and I was able to regain some of the time I lost. I mostly kept to myself, solely focused on my race as others talked around me. The course was more crowded than I was used to for an ultra, and remained that way until we left the paved path and made our way onto the singletrack. Once the single-track approached, I felt more at ease. I began gliding over the technical segment, while many of the other runners slowed to a crawl. "ON YOUR LEFT" became my chorus for this section. Before I knew it the 1st fully-stocked aid station was in view at mile 9. I chugged what was left in my bottle and entered the pit.
The 9 mile aid station went just about as well as possible. Several race volunteers were in front with gallon jugs of water for bottle fills. A nice young woman filled mine quickly and said I looked strong. I trotted through the rest of the station and grabbed a handful of pretzels on my way out. There is a small climb before entering the woods again which gave me time to walk and eat and drink. Even with this delay, my next mile split was ~11:30, a great aid-station mile. I was feeling strong and the day was beginning to warm up. At mile 10 I was able to check my pace compared to other runners which had been around 8 hours, and found I was only 1 minute behind where I estimated I needed to be.
SIDE NOTE: Prior to the race, I looked up 5 runners that were all near my goal pace of 8 hours, and documented their 10 miles increments via Strava in order to generate a better approximation of how long it should take me to run each section (instead of trying to maintain a set pace throughout, because some sections were more difficult, like the AT section at the beginning).
I followed a few other runners through the singletrack for the next mile or so, and eventually found myself running alone. It was calming to finally have a moment to myself and I felt like I was able to relax and enjoy the trail. There were several Boyscout (I presume) groups hiking this section They were extremely polite letting me pass as well as providing some encouragement. I was becoming antsy and decided to slightly pick up the pace. I knew there was only a mile or two before the aid station and that the steep technical switchback section ahead would slow me down. Sure enough, the descent quickly approached, and I was forced to carefully meander down the path.
I ran through the aid station and found Elizabeth standing on the tail end with supplies. The goal was to keep this stop under a minute, which was optimistic because I was changing out of my cushioned Hoka Stintons and into the faster Hoka Speedgoats. While making the switch, Elizabeth was filling my water bottle and making sure I was shoveling food down my throat. Oranges, pears, and some potato chips would fuel the next section. After a quick kiss and thank you I jumped back onto the trail, invigorated by the new, lighter footwear. I ran through under an overpass, through some singletrack, and across a railroad, finally arriving at the C&O Canal Towpath.
Part 2 - C&O Canal Towpath:
I was familiar with the towpath from pacing my friend Scott at the C&O 100 earlier this year, though it doesn't take long to become familiar. The path runs parallel to the Potomac River on your left, and mostly woods/local roads on your right. The path itself is double-wide and non-technical, almost entirely consisting of soft dirt with touches of gravel here and there. The weather was perfect now and I felt fresh and fluid as my pace quickened. It was a strange transition during this phase, many racers began to shift positions as the faster road runners moved up and the trail runners were keeping a steady pace. I picked the pace up, testing the new-ish shoes against the soft ground, and was running in the range of 8:15-8:30/mile. Knowing I would be on this path for the next few hours, I tried to keep my mind busy with mental math of exactly what my pace was, how long until the next time I saw Elizabeth, etc.
There were several remote aid stations on the path, each about 3-4 miles apart. I did my best to move through them quickly, only spending enough time to grab a handful of chips and fill my water bottle; sometimes not stopping at all. The pace began to slow as my legs began to feel the weight of 30+ miles. I came through the marathon in 4:04, just a few minutes shy of my goal. Soon after, I hit my 50k in 4:49, my fastest ever 50k. Eventually I saw Elizabeth again around mile 37 fully prepped with food and water. As I was refueling I saw my friend Amos with his dog at the station. Amos is a fantastic runner and I rely on him for race advice from time to time. Today was no different, and he was able to encourage me to keep moving and not take too long at the aid station. I had begun to develop a bit of chaffing in my inner thighs, and I ended up walking as soon as I lost sight of the aid station, frustrated that I did not spend an extra moment to reapply some Chafex (anti-chafing cream).
I was concerned that the day was beginning to unravel, despite coming through the first 50k faster than I ever had in a 50-miler before. I begun a run-walk strategy, and was leap-frogging another runner for the next mile or so. I noticed I clocked my next mile at 10:50, even though I was walking quite a bit of it. I started to focus on my instantaneous pace, which was still 9:00-9:20/mile while I was running. In the distance I could see the next aid station, situated at the turn off the canal path onto the final 8 miles. I ran into the aid station strong but tired. Luckily, they had Mountain Dew here (I hadn't had any caffeine). I gulped down 2 full cups and made my way onto the road, the volunteers shouting encouragement as I left.
Part 3 - Rolling Hills to the Finish:
The road section starts with an immediate 180-turn so the runners behind you are visible as you exit. About 100 meters later, you encounter a small but steep hill. I used this hill to digest the soda I'd just drank, and walked the whole thing. Feeling refreshed at the top, I began to run. I was playing mental games with myself trying to figure out what my finishing time would be and what pace I needed to keep. I arrived at the road in almost exactly 7 hours (6:57 for the number junkies), which would give me an hour and 2 minutes to break 8 hours, or roughly 7:30/mile. 8 hours had become a fantasy. The next goal would be to break my friend Andy's PR time of 8 hours 20 minutes (there was a case of beer at stake). I would need to keep a 10-minute mile. That would be difficult but not impossible. I started to pick up the pace, focusing on a few runners in front of me. I passed them quickly, becoming more confident with each stride.
I arrived at the next aid station feeling strong and determined to finish the remaining 4-5 miles. After taking a quick 30 second bathroom break and a cup of Mountain Dew I was back on the course. My legs were feeling exhausted but I did my best to push through it, only walking on the more difficult rolling hills. Eventually I arrived at the last aid station, about 2 miles away from the finish, and proceeded to run right through it. I was a minute or so over 8 hours at this point, and would need to push the last 2 miles to have a chance at breaking 8:20. I started picking up the pace again, dropping down near 7:00/mile pace on the next downhill. Shooting pain immediately ensued in my right hip, and I quickly eased back to a comfortable pace. I was still moving ok, but more importantly, feeling good as I made the final turn. The finish line came into view and a minute or so later I crossed the line in 8:17:40, where Elizabeth was waiting for me.
Part 4 - Post-Race
My time ended up being an 89-minute PR for the 50 mile distance. It was a race that lended itself to my strengths, smooth gravel footpaths instead of steep rocky trails. I was just as excited with my time as I was to learn that Jim Walmsley had smashed the course record by 12 minutes! I sheepishly said hello to him after the race, he was incredibly nice and humble.
Thanks to Elizabeth for once again spending a long day crewing me (even though I only got to see her 3 times). In hindsight, there were a few things I did differently in this race that seemed to help my overall performance. I ran the entire race with a single 20 oz handheld, and didn't have any trouble with the weight on my arms instead of my chest/back. I also changed shoes at mile 16 to a shoe that was better suited for handling the soft gravel path. If I had a road shoe ready, I could have worn that as my 2nd shoe and perhaps had an even bigger PR.
Overall it was a great race experience, the volunteers were incredible and the aid stations were well stocked. The backroads at the end of the race also have very little traffic so those concerned about that can rest easy. The only blemish is the race price is outlandishly high ($225) for a 50-miler, and though I am sure to come back eventually, it probably will not be for a couple years.
Thanks for reading and be sure to click FOLLOW at the top of the page for updates on future race reports.
Cheers!
Strava:
https://www.strava.com/activities/782478100
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