Nov 7th 2020 was the 8th running of the Icebox 480. This is an 8 hour event (480 minutes) run on a loop in River Falls, WI. As the pandemic is still raging, it was managed a little differently this year, but it all seemed to go off without a hitch!
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| distanced aid station spots |
My original plan was to run 4 loops, as this is typically a 7mi loop. I wanted my marathon+ distance, for my 45th race of that length, and 4th in the previous 4 months. I was feeling pretty comfortable about that, at least the first 3 loops! The week of the race (or so), a course adjustment was made due to construction/erosion, and the new length was 6.31mi/loop. This meant I now had to do 5 loops. Not that many more miles, but mentally, it had me discouraged. I knew I'd be fine though and get my 4th finish of this race.
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| Almost ready to start |
One major change (pandemic) was the course was open to start running from 6am-8am. You'd have your own pit area and a marker to keep track of your own loops/times. I chose to start at 7:30am (right around sunrise, so I could avoid use of a headlamp). Temp was 57 degrees and it was to be cloudy day, warming to 65 by the end of my run.
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| Not a bad day to run! |
Arrived around 7am and set up my aid in my pit spot (spread out and numbered in the field adjacent to the trail entrance). A few were already running as their headlamps could be seen in the trees. I set out my water, Gatorade, roller, and had my snacks and extra shoes handy. Decided to run with a handheld the first loop, before swapping it for my vest/bladder. Walked up to the start at 7:29, and started at 7:30 with one person right ahead of me. We'd swap places a few times these first 2-3 laps.
Legs were a little tired, but felt better toward the end. Course markings were perfect. The one spot I missed on the first loop last year seemed even more silly, as I realized I took a sharp left turn (almost 180 degrees) instead of continuing straight. I did miss one little path, that dipped around a retention pond (?) instead of going straight alongside it. It may have cut off a whole 20 seconds. Oops. ;-)
The course skipped the middle aid station section, and also was re-routed to bypass the curving bike-ramp. We ended up running just below it. Instead of the typical 1:10 first loop, my time was 1:05.
Swapped my handheld for my vest, and got back out onto the course in about a minute. Felt pretty good for loop 2. Saw a few people, but like the whole day, pretty much ran solo. No issues for this loop, finishing it in 1:09 (2:14 total) and did Not stop at my aid station. Circled my loop #, wrote my time in the spot provided, and went right back onto the trail.
Loop 3 was definitely slower going. Hips were getting tight. My ankles had some soreness. Toes were tender at the end of the loop. I had been having ankle issues for a while, but doesn't really show up until I get around 15miles in to a run. Came in the aid station after 1:19 (3:34 total). Took ~5 minutes to add Gatorade to my bladder, eat some chips and PB&J, and a sip of coke.
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| The hill at mile 1 of the loop |
Loops 4 and 5 were mostly walking. Legs just didn't have anything. Loop 4 in 1:36 (5:10), with a few minutes for food/water. Re-laced my shoes at some point, realizing a little late that that was likely the main reason my ankles were sore. (I never thought to re-adjust them once I stopped wearing my orthotics after last year. Doh!).
Loop 5 was All walking, and right knee soreness kept me from running even the downhills. It was a nice day to be outside though, so there is always that to reflect on. Nothing to do but keep moving forward.
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| Nice fall day! |
Knowing my fitness for this distance was lacking these last 3 hours left me a little dejected. I did better with these races when they were 2-3 weeks apart. This ended up being 6 weeks since my last race, and I knew that was pushing it without some longer miles. (One half-marathon distance wasn't sufficient! - I was right!). With the pandemic and travel not happening, I was just fine with Not running the next race I had scheduled - another Harbison 50k January 9th. 9 weeks meant I should do some 'real' training, but I just wasn't feeling enthusiastic at the moment. Stay tuned!
(Footnote - took a few days off with sore shins - that's a new one for me, and some back soreness, I guess from my bladder as it was a bit higher up on the sides? Then, seemingly back to normal the next weekend).
