First 50K day!

Today was my first 50K day in 2008. To be exact, I ran 50.4 km (31.3 miles) in 6:02. For some reason all my previous ultramarathons this year have been only about 43-47 km. I guess I ran out of excuses today!

If you wonder why my pace was so slow, take a look at the photo above. Although the weather was perfect, we still had some snow and ice on the running trails, leftovers from last week's storms. It was impossible to avoid splashing some icy water into the shoes every now and then, but I was happy for not falling down. I passed all the tricky spots like an old lady because I didn't want to take any chances.

The photo was taken along one of my favourite trails by the river, in the morning before the sun came out. It got a lot warmer in the afternoon, about +7C (45F). I felt a little dehydrated in my winter clothes, but luckily I was able to stop often enough in places where there was drinking water available.

11 ultramarathons down already, only 41 to go.