Ultra X Rwanda 110K recap

Question: What do you do when you’ve completed a bunch of marathons and the idea of running another one isn’t as exciting anymore? Answer: you sign up for an ultra marathon! 

First of all, what is an ultra marathon? Ultra running events have different distances. It can be 50K, 100K, 100 miles, or even more. For Ultra X Rwanda, there were two options: 50K or 110K. I couldn’t imagine doing more than 50K for my first mountainous trail run, so I signed up for that distance. During the months leading up to the event, I kept thinking it would be the ultimate challenge. Having completed a 42K trail run less than a month previously, I knew that running on an uneven surface for a long time is hard, especially on the body. The race in Rwanda would be hot, at high altitude, and with lots of elevation gain. I was pretty excited!

After I arrived in Rwanda, however, this feeling started to change. I traveled so far and I was ready for a real challenge! Three days before the race, I was talking with a couple of fellow contestants. They had all signed up for the full 110K distance and made it sound as if anyone can do it. The running would take place over two days. If I was going to do only the 50K, I'd be sitting out the entire first day while everyone else was having fun. Suddenly, I was absolutely convinced I should add the 60K on day one. Even if that was all I could do, at least I would have done 60 instead of 50, and I wouldn't have to wait around wondering 'what if.' 

The race director allowed the last-minute change. The butterflies I was hoping to feel came rushing back. I couldn't sleep that night. Was I really going to run for two whole days, covering a distance that is almost three marathons? 

I wish I could tell the story of this race chronologically, but the whole race is a big blur. So instead of describing each phase, I'm going to highlight what stood out to me most and try to recall as many details as possible. 

Eating & drinking

The first thing I would say to anyone considering an ultra is this: you have to eat and drink constantly. It's not optional. From the minute the race started until I reached the finish on the second day, I was sipping water (with electrolytes) and nibbling on cookies, pretzels, and bananas. And choking down gels. This wasn't as hard as you might think. The course featured many hills, which I conquered by walking at a brisk pace instead of running, which is almost as fast anyway. This made it possible to take in nutrition comfortably.

To illustrate how important it is to drink and eat: the organization barely mentioned it during the briefing! They assume everyone knows! Unfortunately, not everyone did. There was one participant who had terrible cramps in her legs. I stopped to help her breathe through the pain and asked what she had been drinking. We were 24K into the race and she'd barely drunk half a liter of water! And she hadn't even added electrolytes or taken salt pills! I gave her some of my supplies and warned her that she had to start eating and drinking or the medical team would probably pull her from the race. In my experience, you have to consume at least 500 ml of water per hour. Thankfully, she took it to heart and finished the race admirably.

Aid stations

It totally depends on the event how well equipped the aid stations are, and if there are any! Thankfully, the Ultra X organization is not messing around. Aid stations were about 10K apart and provided not only a variety of food and drink, they had incredibly supportive volunteers and professional medics. Whenever I reached an aid station I was met with wild applause, and the volunteers were always ready to refill my water bladder and asked how I was feeling. 

They tell you never to rely on aid stations for your primary needs during a race and thankfully I didn't have to. Besides a bandaid for my hand I didn't need anything besides water, but I was very happy whenever I saw one every time nonetheless. I lived for the few sips of Coca Cola I would take there, the tiny banana I would carefully chew (bananas are nutritious but can cause side stitches if you swallow them whole), and the little pack of ginger cookies I would take for along the way. 

Navigation ninja

Another crucial part of ultra running is the ability to navigate. The distance is huge so there are plenty of opportunities to veer off-course. Inevitably, you end up running a lot by yourself, or with inexperienced runners. To follow the trail markers can be a challenge anyway, and it gets worse if the local population is removing the markers! This is why we all had to load the GPS map onto our sports watch and check it frequently. I didn't have any experience with this, and I'm spatially challenged, but I found that by consistently following the red line on my watch I found my way. This was a big surprise and relief! 

Still, I probably would have gotten lost a few times if the local population hadn't helped me point the way every now and again. I mostly ignored the villagers because they had a tendency to block my way and ask for money, but whenever they started to point and yell frantically I knew I had missed a marker. And for that, I'm grateful. The hundreds of local kids I encountered were both incredibly cute, and incredibly distracting. The trick is to concentrate on running--and not tripping--while also being aware of what's happening and noticing when someone is trying to tell you something important.

Mind your step

Ultra running is about braving new terrain. Running on roads is very safe and predictable compared to running in nature. I had no idea what to expect and that wasn't my fault--there was no prior information about what kind of ground we would be covering. I knew there would be lots of elevation gain on the first day, and lots of downhill on the second. I figured there would be unpaved roads as well as muddy trails. What I didn't expect was that the ground would be so incredibly uneven and rocky. A lot of the time the paths had rocks sticking out of the ground, and small rocks strewn everywhere. The perfect recipe for falling.

I fell hard once. I was running through one of many villages where the local population was staring at me and saying things like "mzungu" (foreigner), running alongside me, and generally testing any kind of English they knew. The most common request was for money, which was quite surprising from children who looked no older than three. The adults were more chill, but I fell flat on my face when I was trying to round a corner while avoiding a whole group of them who were headed for a raucous local soccer match. I scratched my hand pretty badly but was otherwise fine.

I was one of the luckier ones. While the experienced trail runners managed to keep their balance no matter what, most participants fell a few times. Some of them twisted their ankles and had to give up the race. Blisters and scratches were also common. 

It's doable - but failure is an option

There's a funny dichotomy with ultra runs: on the one hand, they are pretty doable. You can hike/slowjog most of it and still make it within the time limit as long as you stay healthy and just keep going. On the other hand, running 110K in the heat is without a doubt a serious physical and mental challenge. When all was said and done, over 20% of the participants had dropped out. DNF. Did Not Finish.

So what does it take to finish an ultra within the set time limits? Here are a few ideas:

Will power. I learned that with ultra running, it's okay to be slow. But if you're slow, it takes forever to finish and you inevitably end up running in the dark, maybe alone. To keep going anyway takes a lot of willpower. I was lucky enough to finish in daylight both days, but I was almost more impressed with people who finished in the dark at 9 PM, only managed to get a few hours of sleep, and appear at the start line the next day for another grueling 12 hours of running!

Experience and acclimatization. I'm not going to say that "training and general fitness" are prerequisites for ultra running because that's obvious. Logically, you need to practice and successfully run for long distances to run an ultra long distance! The difference between people who did well and those who could barely (or did not) finish the race, I think, was how used they were to running under similar circumstances. The fast finishers had either run an ultra race before, or trained under similar circumstances (hot countries, uneven terrain), or both. This shouldn't stop anyone from trying without prior experience, but it's good to be aware that especially running in the heat when you're not used to it is extremely difficult. 

Preparation and discipline. There are a lot of differences between going for a jog in the park and running an ultra race in the mountains. You have to take precautions. Besides bringing sufficient food and water, you need to know when and how much to take in each hour (or between each rest stop, however you want to calculate it). You need running shoes that are tried and tested, which is the same for all of your running gear. You have to make sure you use tons of sunscreen so you don't get terribly burned along the way, or get heat stroke. On the easy stretches of the course you have to pace yourself so you don't burn out later. Basically, there is a lot to manage, preparation is key, and you gotta make sensible decisions along the way.

Being in good health. This might also sound obvious. Still, there were several runners who tried to finish the race even though they had twisted, swollen ankles or serious tummy issues. How do you know if you're fit enough, though? Being tired, scratched up, or slower than expected is not a reason to give up right away. But if you get hurt, or you're not able to stay nourished and hydrated, it's game over. 

The kit

Before the race, I found it difficult to figure out what I needed to wear and carry during the race. I'd never run with a running vest stuffed with water, food, a raincoat, a head torch, a sweater, and a survival bag before! Nevermind running poles! I deeply resented having to carry it all on my person for the duration of the race. The question I asked myself was: is it okay to discard mandatory items? Not really! 

Still, I made two small adjustments. First, I carried only 1 liter of water instead of 1.5, because I knew I didn't need that much between checkpoints, which were spaced approximately 10K apart. Instead, I brought a bit of money so I could purchase water in a village if necessary. Also, I didn't bring a back-up head torch. I figured one was enough. I still carried a lot of stuff though! I held running poles in my hands for 110KM, using them only sporadically on steep uphills. 

Results

So how did I do? With ultra running, there isn't a typical time people try to achieve like with regular road marathons, because it really depends on the length and difficulty of the course what's feasible. But I had two simple reasons why I tried to finish as quickly as possible. First, I believe that the faster I run, the smaller the chance I get bored or end up running in the dark. Second, the better I perform the prouder I am of myself. For me, running is a competition with myself and I don't like to disappoint. 

My total race time was 17:42 hours. It's not spectacular in the sense that I finished two hours after the female winner. On the other hand, I was the third female overall (of 16) and finished almost 9 hours before the final finisher! Most importantly, I felt great the entire time and had energy to spare after I was done. 

Camping

I also wanted to mention the night I spent between the two days of running. It wasn't comfortable! The organization provided a tent and transported our camping gear, and there was a functioning toilet and hot water for meals. But that was it. I only slept for about five hours that night, waking up constantly because my tent was on a slope and I kept sliding off my mat. The dehydrated food I brought with me was horrible. The hot water they provided didn't do the trick of 'cooking' my rice and dal, so all I had was a half serving of crunchy rice with barely any flavor, accompanied by some nuts and crackers I brought but was too tired and shaken up to eat much of. 

When I got out of my tent the next morning, around 6 AM, I was amazed to see all the participants bravely packing up, shoveling semi-rehydrated food in their mouths, slapping on their dirty running gear, getting taped up by the medical team, and having the wits to restock their running supplies. When I ran to the starting line after a failed bathroom attempt, almost tripping over my own running poles, I really wondered why the hell we were there. Had we gone mad?

But the participants were anything but mad. Among the group were a psychiatrist, a nuclear physicist, a lawyer, a surgeon, a New York finance guy, and a 9-time Iron Man finisher. Just an incredible group of people ready to share an incredible experience of grit and enjoying the local scenery and culture. 

---------------------------------------------------------