DNF,s

Thought i would start this to share what we have learnt. So others don,t make the same mistakes.
I just DNF,t The Fellsman Hike for a reason I had not even considered but now know how to avoid. I lost the vision in one eye and the second one was becoming blurred due to 13hrs exposure of severe and dry wind action on my eyes! I got to the stage where I could not see the ground properly to place my feet. Mine was not the only case, several other runners DNF,t for the same reason.
The winds were predicted and if I had known I would have worn wrap around cyclist,s specs .
Not every one was affected so perhaps some of us are more susceptible than others. The condition crept up on me. (I at first thought it was getting foggy) It was pretty scary at the time but 24 hrs later I have fully recovered.

Comments

  • In the post mortem after the toughest events, you generally seem to identify a few things that you should have done but didn't.  I have learned significant lessons in every event I have done over 50 miles in length, and I am sure that the learning curve is not complete yet!

    I recently got my first DNF in Viking Way.  It was a bitter pill to swallow, but I knew when I started entering the hardest events, that I was bound to get a DNF sooner or later.  I'm sure it won't be the last time either!

  • WiBWiB ✭✭✭
    My only DNF came as a result of a big fall on a rocky downhill section... lesson that I learned was if you are having a big fall then your main priority should not be to keep the malt loaf in your hand safe but to cover your ribs and head image
  • DazDaz ✭✭✭
    Blimey to heard of that before. Although, in the past during longer swim sessions I've removed goggles to find my eyesight blurred for an hr or two. Possibly pressure.
    I have not pulled out of an Ultra (to date) but have DNFd 2/3 double ironmans. The first was as a result of starting with a cold and racing hard through the night on a bike in unseasonably cold temps with not much more than a tri-suit on! I started the run well but as the laps progressed (to 13mile) I started to get slower and slower to the point where I couldnt walk properly. Crashed into a tent.
    Second time was as a reuslt of the stomach shutting down. I was racing for a podium and the thought of losing many positions from an extended time-out didnt work for me having already completed the distance in a previous year.
    Endurance Coach @ DazCarterFitness.com
    Elite Ironman, Ultra Trail Runner
  • Only DNF was IMW last september and i'm still pissed off by it......did too many tough races in a few months for my old body........so when a few things went wrong on the day my body couldn't step up to the mark and i missed the bike cutoff by 10 mins.devasated.....but will go back........

    first i have a double ironman to do.....a chance i will dnf as i'm not a natural athlete.......but will give all i have........don't want that feeling of dnf again
  • DNF's are frequently people who make a bad call on DNS. Personally I'd much rather bale than have 5 hours of hell finishing with a DNF'.
  • DazDaz ✭✭✭
    Thats not true. Sometimes the race or conditions will dictate a DNF! If someone has a serious injury, or the conditions are so bad it puts competitors health at risk then a DNF is the sensible decision.
    Endurance Coach @ DazCarterFitness.com
    Elite Ironman, Ultra Trail Runner
  • I had a DNF at last years NDW100 with only 13 mile to go. Had an ankle impingment that was so painfull I lost the use of my ankle from mile 65 but pushed on regardless. Crew made me bail out because i was going slower than walking pace and had a real worry that I'd broke something. Ended up in A and E but got seen really quick because all the nurses just wanted to hear what I had done.

    I was devastated for about a month after and the more i healed the more i felt i should have carried on.

    Wasn't untill I finished my first 100 this year that i realized that the DNF was just a learning curve and didn't really matter. There's always next time.

  •  Any step up say from 50 to 100 miles will put your body through new situations . The   DNF is always out there. This was my second. My first one was predictable as Johnny said I could have not started but chose to run when well aware that I was not fit enough to go the distance. My motivation to start was the chance to recce for the following year and to get a good 9hr training run in. As it was the choice to stop was very deliberate and taken before I stopped enjoying myself or caused other runners to worry about me. The act of a deliberate DNF felt good and reduced the pressure on me in subsequent ultras. My Fellsman DNF was made easier and with no pressure to run a few miles more which would have slowed up the other 4 guys in my night group as my condition got worse.

    Like Dill says the DNF is part of the learning curve. 

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