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Enduroman 1st - 10th June 2012
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excellent totp
hurry up - I want to read the rest
The Bike
The bike course is hard. I hadn’t managed to ride the course beforehand and despite being warned about it I was still quite shocked when I first went round. However, I always knew it wasn’t going to be easy and I was in good spirits. I felt a bit queasy but often do when I first get on the bike so I wasn’t worried.
Mentally I broke the ride into four parts, my first aim was to get to lap five - a quarter of the way through. I didn’t really have any problems on the first five laps, I wasn’t eating much but I was able to eat occasionally. The support was great and I was smiling most of the time. I concentrated on keeping it easy, my motto was that if I can’t keep smiling then I am working too hard. Just before you get back to the support team you go up a long drag known as Braggers lane. I hate hills but for the first five laps I smiled when I saw the sign for Bragger lane as it meant I was less than five minutes from the turning circle. The support at the turning circle was superb, lots of loud cheers and it was always great to see my support crew. Each time you left the turning circle you felt like you had been given an energy boost just from the support and cheers.
Lap 6 was the first time that I started to struggle, suddenly Braggers lane had gone from an upflat to a mountain. I knew I needed to do something about my nutrition. I told my support crew that I was going to go a lap with no food at all to see if I could settle my stomach, but I also asked them to “prepare the coke”. I hadn’t planned on using coke until the run but I knew I needed sugar. I finished lap 7 and still felt queasy, went into lap 8 with a bottle of coke and some sweets. The coke worked wonders and I flew around lap 9 and 10. Happy and smiling and half way through......
Laps 10-15 are all a bit of a blur. I remember feeling really excited when I arrived at the turning circle and was told to put my lights on, another milestone had been reached. The first day was over and the night had begun.
I enjoyed riding in the dark but we were so lucky with the weather. I kept thinking that if we’d had the same weather as last year I am not sure I would have been able to keep going. The laps were getting harder but that’s was to be expected and still no warning bells were ringing despite the fact I still wasn’t eating. I was getting slower and was starting to worry about the cut off, the organisers had already said they wouldn’t be strict about the cut off but I knew if I was on the bike too long then I wouldn’t have time for the run.
Lap 15 was done, it was getting light and day 2 was beginning. My stomach was getting worse and even the coke was a problem. At the end of lap 16 I didn’t want to stop as I felt I was losing time so for the first time I went round the turning circle and straight out again. At the end of Lap 17 my support crew demanded that I ate and I knew they were right. I desperately tried, all the things I normally love and that I was so looking forward to - chocolate custard, wine gums, crisps – all my favourite things but all I could do was manage a small mouthful of each. I did manage to eat quite a bit, well more than I had been. But now the problems really set in.
On lap 18 I felt so ill, every time I tried to push hard I felt really nauseous. My brain finally cottoned on that something wasn’t right. However, the thought of quitting still hadn’t entered my head. I got back to the support crew and asked them to speak to the medics and to also post on facebook for help. Only two more laps left.
Everything changed on lap 19, that lap will live with me forever, it was one of the hardest things I had to do. My body just gave up. I could hardly move the pedals, I went from lap times of 50 minutes to a lap time of 1hr 10 minutes. I cried a lot, I knew I was spent and even the thought of just doing one more lap seemed impossible. I was ill and I wanted to stop. I was convinced that was what I was going to do but I hadn’t reckoned on the force of my support crew, pirates and enduroman crew.
Whilst I had been away they had been working hard. They had spent a long time with the medic who had given lots of advice and an anti nausea pill. I was to stop taking in any sugar and caffeine and stick to very simple carbohydrates. My support crew had found me some gluten free bread and made some dry toast. Gluten free bread is disgusting at the best of times and it was the last thing I wanted. However I did manage a few mouthfuls. I still couldn’t face the thought of going out again, it was 8:15 and time was ticking away. The enduroman crew were brilliant and made it clear that they didn’t care how long the last lap took as long as I kept going. The message was do the last lap, come in and rest and wait for the anti sickness pill to work. I knew they were right even though it was the last thing I wanted to do.
My support crew broke up some dry toast for me to eat on the way round and I left to huge cheers from everyone, I cried again.
Lap 20 was so emotional, I was so humbled by the support everyone gave me. Two of the deca’s slowed down to encourage me and someone from the single rode up braggers lane with me to keep me going. The kindness everyone showed was amazing. I arrived back to the turning circle to huge cheers.
Another hour and 10 minutes for 11 miles but I was so pleased that everyone had made me do that last lap. 232 miles complete and over 7000 feet climbed.
Time for a rest.....
got a lump in my throat. You are one tough cookie Lisa.
I have a tear rolling down my face, staff at work are looking worried
What a bloody trooper you are! Xx
DItto, I love hearing about how people overcome the tough mental side of things, that is an inspirational read, great stuff PTL.
'Bout time we saw a report from you too Jaff on Lejog.....
Yep me too!! Absolutely amazing!!
We loved being there this weekend, not as much time as we wanted but things conspire against you, don't they?
See you and Jane at the Outlaw. If you fancy another go I will happily join the "crewing gang" so Jane gets to share the pressure. 
Are you like the Queen and Prince Phillip now?
Symes, I know you will be back, you have that new target
Purple, loving reading your report, it does get a bit smoky in here though reading it. I am sure you will return stronger than ever and hopefully with a less churny tummy. I do hope you feel physically better today.
Ditchy & HH, awesome to support the Champioooone and her beloved
To Seren, who really truly is a star, bloody brilliant effort in rubbish conditions through the run. What a performance, what a woman, it's hardly surprising Son-of-Seren-Super-Sherpa has turned out as he is, is it? He was fabulous.
Seren, re: Jo, I have told Funkin he isn't allowed to support her again after he crewed for her A2A attempt last year.
Barley, Schmunks, SuperCazz, Purple's Crew - grand to see you all, great supporting you all did there
See you all at Outlaw then!
+1
The run
My support crew had found an empty room with a settee in it for me too rest. They got me changed and gave me some plain white rice to eat – yum! I managed a few mouthfuls. I was still feeling optimistic, I thought if I ate a few mouthfuls each lap then it would gradually get better. I couldn’t sleep, I think I just wanted to get the run started.
The cheers when I started the run was amazing, again it was like having an energy boost.
Lap 1 – ran all the way around and felt OK. It is, though, an incredibly hard run route and I have every respect for Seren. Doing 48 would be so hard. It took me 14 minutes to run 1.1 mile so that gives you an idea of how hard it was. Stopped at my support crew and had a mouthful of rice, all OK so far.
Lap 2- it all fell apart again. It’s amazing how quickly you can go from feeling OK to totally spent. The nausea returned and I was unable to run. I also felt like I was getting heart palpitations and that scared me. I still didn’t think I was going to quit but I thought a sleep would help. I got to my support crew , I couldn’t eat or drink and told them I needed to stop to sleep. They told me I couldn’t stop on this lap as I had already gone through the timing chip, I had to go round again. My brain wasn’t working and I blindly believed them. They in fact wanted to make sure that I really did want to stop.
Lap 3- don’t remember much other than I walked around it, got to the end and went in for a sleep.
I lay there on the settee on my own and realised that it was all over. That run course was brutal and there was no way I could complete that without being able to eat or drink. 30 minutes later my crew turned up with gluten free porridge, diarolyte and warm water. The only thing I could drink was the warm water and when I told them I was stopping I could sense they knew it was the right thing to do.
The medic came to see me, she was so supportive but she did say that I wouldn’t be allowed to continue if I could eat or drink and in a way I needed to hear that.
Afterwards
I showered and got dressed. It was heaven to get under the shower. I went out to see the pirates and got lots of cuddles and support. We left when Seren was half way through the run and it was good to see her smiling.
I had a lovely meal with my support crew in the evening and told them “never again”. I slept well, woke up and thought I just have to do it again. So roll on Enduroman 2013.
" I slept well, woke up and thought I just have to do it again. So roll on Enduroman 2013."
Amazing, best of luck for next year. I'm sure that you'll achieve it.
Purple......even though its a course with lots of laps.......its amazing how few people you see and apart from seeing you at the turning circle a few times we never did manage to meet up on course........
I was gutted to hear you had dropped out but without nutrition the course is impossible.....it was the only decision you could make......
you have done some brilliant training and another year on you will get there........Kerry who finished the full this year dropped out of the single last year on the bike and managed to come back and do the double.....
a brilliant report and I was so amazed that you stayed around to support me for so long....you must have been shattered.......that showed true strength..........
roll on 2013
Awesome stuff Purple
Good report Lisa, it's all about eating and if you can't then it's game over. You can concentrate on getting to grips with that before next time-. I had a spell of nausea on one of the maratthons this year, for me it's down to getting my salt balance right, I had dyralite and salt tablets but was neccking salt direct from the salt cellar prior to that.
I tend to take a lot of calories via drinks as eating is diffficult, slimfast, complan, mars milk, build up etc all made with milk. Then rice pudding and fruit in jelly on the run. A new discovery this year was coffee with vanilla torq on the bike . Practice with all those things on your long rides and see if any of it works for you.
is it just me or is IronHolgs spending a lot time of this thread????
I wonder!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was thinking that SA
sez you !!
Seren, you have had a couple of days and still no race report, shocking
Slacker
Monique - intrigued by the fueling. Do you stop to drink the coffee? Presume it's hot?
SA..only arrived back yesterday evening...........i am writing it honest.......just finished the pre race part
DIM race report
Where to start....a year ago I did the Enduroman single at AT and discovered what a hard course it is..and because there was only 2 ladies I managed to win it as the other one dropped out due to the biblical weather conditions...part of the prize was a free entry to this years race or off a longer race......so I found myself entering the Double.
My confidence went a little after my failure to make the bike cutoffs at IMW and I spent the winter trying to get the bike miles in....I thought i had done enough.......but now i know I needed to do even more...also when I did my left knee ligamants in March and decided to stop running apart from The London matahon until the event...even walking was giving me pain but I knew that i would have a long time to do the double marathon...........we had 19 hours. How could I not be able to do it..........these thoughts came back to haunt me.....
So a week before the race the family headed off to our caravan in Devon for a week onroute to the new forest. Great to be at the caravan and not to get up early for a bike or a run. But on the bank holiday Monday plans changed as my mother became ill and after a brief hospital visit she went to my sisters to stay. So as we couldn’t leave my eldest son alone.....we debated and my husband and youngest son headed home leaving me and my middle son to finish the holiday and move onto AT without them. This meant my main crew was my middle son who had only turned 17 that week. Luckily there was offers of some additional help from pirates.
We decided to head for AT a day earlier on the Thursday so that I could have time to set up and then chill on the Friday...heading there Thursday morning I was filled with dejavu....the weather was horrendous with the rain lashing it down. We arrived and tried to set up the tent. We managed it but there was a lake in the tent that we had to mop out and we were both soaked to the skin and freezing cold..........I wanted to go home I felt so miserable.......
Once again the pirate posse got to work and a number of them got in contact with Monique and managed to get phone numbers exchanged and she gave me the codes to the room at AT she had booked......that single thing made a massive difference. I slept the next 2 nights in a warm dry bed.
I did some food shopping for the weekend , got the rest of the things into the tent and went to support for the athletes........they looked so wet that I felt for them...I couldn’t believe it that the weather in June could do this 2 years in a row..Symes and Mrs Symes seemed to be doing well. I was gutted to hear his problems the following day..The run course does seems to make injuries and leg problems develop.....
Friday was a day for resting, supporting and getting food packed into bags and writing a food/ drink plan for the race. Registration and then a blood test done for the IUTA benefit. The briefing as ever was great and was pleased to see that 7 ladies had turned up for the double..Only one the previous year and the torrential weather did for her.....meeting up with Barley and schmunkee.thatnks for the spare meal tickets
Good night sleep on the Friday and the big day was here
Have you drunk the cider yet?
Same here. Amazing story.
im thinking she has and fallen asleep as a result!
I came over to see if there were any race reports on the go over here, there seems to be a distinct lack of them over on TriTalk at the moment.
Read the ones that have been written or are in progress. Awesome achievements by all. Commiserations to Mon and Symes though.
I did the Double on the "easy" Lichfield course which was bad enough. I can't comprehend doing one on a course with hills!