Ultra Marathon #4: Maurice Mullins Ultra 2018.

Race Detail:

• Who: James Morrissey

• What: Maurice Mullin Ultra 51km

• Where: Johnnie Fox's Pub - Glencullen, Wicklow with the route taking us along the Wicklow Way into the Mountains.

• When: 7th of April 2018

• Why: I haven't a clue.

I think the reason why I do ultras is because I like running, being outside on mountain trails and exploring new places but it could be mostly due to just curiosity. How far can I push myself, how long might it take me to complete the course or is it even possible to run such a distance.

The truth is I'm not sure and not to bothered. At this moment in time the motivation is definitely there to put in the hours training, sign up for these cool events and get to the starting line buzzing with excitement. When these factors start to decline I'll have to re-evaluate why I run Ultras.

The challenge with this race was the fact it was only 3 weeks since I took part in the Sli Gaeltacht Mhuscrai Ultra 71 km in Cork. That was a tough day and the time between that race and this race was the shortest break I've had between Ultras so I was interested to see how my body and mind would react to this short turnaround. With that Rosa and I went to Wicklow not knowing what to really expect.

The Race:

The race started at 9:30 am probably a bit later than most of the other Ultra events I've taken part in. This was nice however, the sun was up and I didn't have to wear any hats or extra layers that I would usually wear before sunrise and then have to carry later. The starting line was frantic as the field of runners took over the road just a short distance up from Johnnie Fox’s Pub. To minimise obstruction to cyclists and cars the race director let us off as quick as he could.

The pace was quite fast at the beginning, I am usually quite slow at the start of races so this was a shock to my system. To begin the route wound up hill on forest road and down steep stepped rock trail towards a river. I was in my element, the trail was just too nice to not run it fast.

The route then entered Crone Wood and I was starting to tire a small bit. There was a steep incline that wove through forest. When I turned a corner I was on the side of a hill with the most beautiful view of Powerscourt Waterfall and some pretty nice trail winding up. The view gave me a lift and I got into a nice rhythm that took me to the foot of Djouce Mountain. There was lots of people on the trail at this point. The incline of the trail slowed us all down. I set myself into a hiking stride and passed a few people. At the top there was some short green grass and I slipped. In a flash I was up again as the trail ahead looked so good I wanted to run it. As I was hiking up the next incline I checked to make sure I was alright after that fall - No cuts, no aches, and no pains, I was good to keep going.

The trail developed into a boardwalk which I love, I feel it puts a bounce in my step. I descended fast to Lough Tay and started to pass some of the people who took the early start at 8:30am. I started to recognise some of the faces running the opposite way and knew that the halfway and the turnaround point was close. As I was running into checkpoint 1 the trail run started, this was a separate race roughly the length of a half marathon following the route I had just ran, we were all heading for the same finish line back at Glencullen. At the checkpoint I ate some jelly beans that were in a bowl and filled up my water bladder then took off running again. From the checkpoint there was a long gradual hill. I was able to run some of it but as it got steeper on the boardwalk I hiked again. The weather had changed dramatically on the way back. Now rain was falling and a haze had crept up onto the hills.

As I was coming down off Djouce on the way back, I started to feel very lightheaded this was odd and is not something I had experienced before. It was also at this point that my right hamstring began to tweak. I slowed down to a walk just to gather myself together. Here I was disappointed in myself as I knew this was one of the sections I could have made time on. I was roughly 30 km into the race and I was mentally and physically spent.

Coming down from Powerscourt I teamed up with a lady who was full of talk. Running with her lifted my spirts and she paced me into Checkpoint 2 at Crone. I sat down for 5 minutes as I was tired as well as starving. I ate two bananas, a peanut bar and washed it down with two cans of coke. I then changed my runners. I don't usually spend as long or eat as much at checkpoints but this time I was glad I had done so. Leaving Crone I felt like a different man and passed a number of people who had overtaken me on the decent of Djouce. Feeling strong now, I had finally found a rhythm so I pushed on. On the last climb a guy caught up with me and we hiked it at steady pace together. He mentioned we had 30 min to get back to the finish to be within 6 hours. That morning 6 hours was roughly what I was aiming for. Thinking it was achievable based on what was left of the course to complete I became possessed and ran hard for the finish passing out multiple people. I now felt strong. With 2 km to go I met Rosa and she paced me to the finish line.

Conclusion:

In the end I ran the 51 km route in 6 h 14 min. Despite all that had went wrong around the 30 km mark I was a small bit disappointed. I knew I was well capable of taking at least 30 min if not more off of that time. Ultimately I am glad to have completed my fourth Ultra, found some new trails, got to see the beautiful Powerscourt waterfall and Lough Tay and then got the chance to talk with John O‘Regan who was at the finish line.

John has represented Ireland in Ultra competitions and competed in some of the coolest ultras and marathons in the world. He is currently involved in training the national team. We spoke for a while and within that short time I learned a lot. The people who surround Ultras amaze me with how kind and approachable they are.

Note: I follow John on Instagram at @johnoregan777

Lessons Learned:

• Stretching: I do a lot of stretching but maybe I'm not doing the right kind or stretching at the right frequency. With only 3 weeks between events I should have being doing more to prevent little tweaks like what happened my hamstring.

• Use every checkpoint: I went into checkpoint 1 at 25 km with no drop bag waiting for me. I was dependent on what water and food was there. I usually don’t get hungry at this point so I taught I’d be ok. A banana or a chocolate bar here might of prevented the light-headedness I experienced. The rule is – Eat before you’re hungry and Drink before thirsty.

• Stay off the short green grass: The shorter and greener the grass is the most slippy. I was lucky I didn’t injure myself when I fell and it could have played a part in tweaking my hamstring.

• Do what you gotta do: If its stuffing your face, having a sit down at a checkpoint for a short break or running slower than normal with someone to build some momentum when you are tired, just do it. If you’re honest with yourself you'll repay that debt by running stronger later on when you have improved or if you’re feeling really bad it may help you to just hang on and get to the finish.

• Mind over matter – If you don’t mind, it don’t matter: Three weeks between events can be done and is purely down to you to plan out your approach so that you arrive mentally and physically fresh.