Aug 14, 2008 issue
Inaugural New River Trail 50K Green Race Set for October 11
Early-Bird Discount Registration Ends August 31
Story by Celeste von Mangan
Annette Bednosky has accomplished much in the five years she has competed in ultramarathons. She has run in 61 races and holds 11 course records. After just one year of ultrarunning, the Ashe High School counselor joined the Montrail National Team, the company that is her current sponsor.
Now Bednosky is establishing an ultramarathon race called the New River Trail 50K along the New River Trail that will start and end in Fries, Va. on Saturday, October 11, beginning at 8:00 a.m. As race director of the New River Trail 50K, Bednosky is striving to make the race a green event by using local, recyclable items and products from companies with green practices. To her knowledge, this race is the first of its kind for an ultra endurance event in the Southeast.
“The first reason I am doing this is to put on a quality and safe event for the ultrarunners and to make it a green event,” said Bednosky. “The second reason is to donate any proceeds to the National Committee for the New River. A 50K is 31.1 miles, and this particular run is different for the mountains in that it is totally flat but the race is for both seasoned runners and first-timers.”
Registration is limited to 125 entrants; slots are still available for 35 more participants.
“We do have 90 people registered to run the race,” said Bednosky. “The youngest is a 20-year-old from Boone and the oldest is 69 or 70, somewhere around there. Some have run 200 ultramarathons in their life; for others, it will be their first marathon.”
To be able to call the ultra green and to make it green, Bednosky is following certain standards to reduce waste and any negative impact humans may have on the area.
“No universal definition exists for green, but green races are becoming more popular,” said Bednosky. “We, as users of the outdoors, are realizing how much of an impact we have.”
Paper waste reduction was one way Bednosky implemented green practices for the race. “We printed 200 flyers and had no posters,” she said. “The registration is done 100 percent online.”
Two runners registered for the green ultra are husband and wife Doug Blackford and Martha Cutler. Blackford has been running ultras for the past eight years, but the New River Trail 50K will be Cutler’s first ultra.
“My wife is probably more excited about it than I am,” said Blackford. “She’s done a marathon. For me, I did not start running until I was 50 years old; I am 61 now and so far my body’s holding up. I started out with a 5K and said I would never do a marathon; I ran the Chicago and the Boston and I run the Grandfather Marathon every year—I’ve done four or five of those. Then I said I’d never run an ultra and I started out running two or three a year and now I run eight; then I said I’d never run a 100-miler and I did that. So now I’m waiting to see what else I will never do.”
The weekend prior to the New River Trail race, Blackford will run the Iron Mountain Trail Run that starts out on the Virginia Creeper Trail in Damascus. He wants to run the New River race just to enjoy it. Cutler however, is running with the goal of simply finishing the race within the allotted time.
“I’m really nervous. I just want to finish in seven hours. I really want the t-shirt,” she laughed. “Doug signed me up; he said it was for a good cause!”
Training for Blackford consists of running three or four days per week, biking once or twice a week and swimming one or two days a week.
“I keep up with my biking and swimming because it is sort of my assurance that I can do those things in case I can’t run,” he explained, “plus the cross-training really helps.”
Cutler sticks to a similar schedule with a bit less mileage and no biking.
“I’m only running three times per week,” she said. “I swim in between, and the weekend run is longer. We practiced on the trail from Galax to Fries and it seemed that I could run a faster pace on this trail. The marathon I ran was a 19-mile leg of a race and I’ve run some 5Ks, a couple of 10Ks and I ran the Biltmore a couple of times and the Woolly Worm which was 10, 11 miles on pavement.”
Ultrarunners appreciate more forgiving footing and a medium that allows for less concussion on the runner’s anatomy. The concerns an ultrarunner have are primarily temperature and food.
“The marathon was awful—too hot,” said Cutler. “I am hoping it won’t be too hot during this race. I am going to carry water in a backpack I ordered from a runners’ catalog, one that has a camel bag; Doug will use his belt pack for water.”
Ultrarunners also need to be nourished as they burn calories from already honed-down frames that usually have minimal reserves to draw upon. Aid stations are set up during ultras that offer easily digested foods, although some runners bring their own snacks.
“Usually for a race they tell you what they have because it may not agree with everyone,” said Cutler. “A lot of long races have things with salt like potato chips and pretzels or boiled potatoes with salt. Energy gels are OK, but they get old quick and are very sweet. I may try the carbohydrate drinks this time and see if they go down.”
Anyone who has exercised moderately to heavily after eating or drinking—whether competing or not—knows that nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain can occur if you eat the wrong foods or consume too much liquid.
“I may try the peanut butter on Wonder bread,” said Cutler.
Blackford has had a little more experience to determine what he can and cannot tolerate while running an ultra, although the varying temperatures and terrain for each race create different nutrition and hydration needs.
“During a run, I try to find out what I can and can’t eat,” he said. “I generally stick to gels, maybe little peanut butter and jelly squares. They usually offer soup at aid stations on longer runs—chicken noodle or vegetable soup—and those go down real well. I use a sports drink to try and keep my electrolytes up.”
Following the event, a women’s group in the Fries area will provide the runners with a light lunch.
“That little community is being so supportive,” said Bednosky.
Bednosky will not compete in this ultra, but she is not forgetting one of the main reasons she participates in extreme races: sheer joy.
“For me, when I run ultras, I feel like I’m flying,” said Bednosky. “There’s no other responsibilities in the world; all you have to do is run. I want to help re-create this freedom finding for other runners.”
Blackford, too, has found his niche running ultras.
“I really enjoy ultrarunning. I like adventure and the beauty of being out on the trail,” he said. “I find, surprisingly, that ultrarunning is less hard on my body than a marathon. The ultras I run each year—it’s a small amount compared to others who are doing a lot more—it’s not an obsession with me, just a lot of fun.”
For Cutler, the fun part perhaps has not completely kicked in as she anticipates her maiden ultra run.
“I’m worried, that’s all, but we’ll see what happens,” she said.
Another perk of ultrarunning is something Blackford discovered years ago. He can eat what he wants and not gain weight.
“We eat pretty well anyway,” he said. “I like to eat, and a lot of times I run so I can eat and drink beer!”
Sponsors for the New River Trail 50K include Patagonia, Montrail, Foot RX, Blue Ridge Cup, Nathan Human Propulsion Laboratories, CLIF Bar and Patrick J. Considine and Associates Fundraising Counsel of Winston-Salem. In addition, approximately seven local companies are serving as sponsors.
For more information about the race or to volunteer—Bednosky could use 10 or 15 more people to donate their time—call her at 336-620-2986. Click to ncnr.org/nrt50k.html for online registration. Those who register by Sunday, August 31, pay $50; after that date the cost is $65. Registration closes on Thursday, October 9.
Want to Go?
Date: Saturday, October 11
Time: 8:00 a.m.
Location: New River Trail, Fries Virginia
Cost: $50 before September 1/$65 after that date
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