Tjörnarparen 50K Trail Ultra

#24 – 50 runs in 100 days – Hardcore edition
#131 – 100 Days Of Miles Challenge

Woke up this morning at 4 am to eat breakfast and get ready for my last race and ultra race this year.

Decided to take the train  and it turned out we were 4 who took the train together to Tjörnarp.

When we got off the train station Lars the guy who is behind this ultra race was at the start line and I brought to him running clothes to the refugees.

Then it was time to bring the rest to the school to change and get ready for the race. Turned out we couldn’t get in due to an alarm that would get off at 8 am but we could change at the parish house instead.

I streched and more and more runners showed up. It was time to get down to the start where a bunch of other enthusiastic runners came. This year it would be both a 50K and a 100K distance. 5 runners had decided to run 100K.

It had rained a lot so it was very gooey and wet. This time I was not alone and not last and it felt that I wouldn’t be last. Flew over the loop.

Turned out I had problems with the GPS, it worked when I started my pulse watch but somewhere it just gave up so I didn’t  have any distance and time, only the route and pace so i had to guess the distance to know when I had to drink and eat.

It felt that I am going to have  a good day. Skipped the second fuel station but somewhere between fuel station 2 and fuel station I first got very tired legs which I can handle but then I started to feel pain in my left knee when I ran, started to walk but the pain did not go away so I had to make a decision if I would continue or not.

When I got to fuel station I was asked how I was doing and I said that I right now have to make a decision if I am going to threw in the towel. Another runner Ola lended me his knee pad and I decided I would try to make it to the fourth fuel station. Got Tobbes mobile number if I had to quit before the fourth fuel station, turned out that Lars who wouldn’t race this year couldn’t help himself and had headed out on the route. When I was running on the dirt road which is a couple of k’s before you turn to the left up to the Djuralidsbacken (Djuralids hill) I was fine first but then the pain came back and decided not to continue.

Of course I was upset at that moment but I did not feel I made the wrong decision. Walk/run with pain in a knee for another 14K is not worth it. It can destroy a whole season.

I called Tobbe and told him I had thrown in the towel. Some runners passed me and asked me if I was fine and I told them I had thrown in the towel because of pain in my knee.

Got transport back to the Parish home and this was my very first DNF.

Ran 35K but do not have any time.

Leave a Reply