LOViT 100 - AR

Lake Ouachita Vista Trail Endurance Run

Elevation Range: 423' - 1327' ........... ~17,000' elevation gain

February 24, 2023

Not much to say about this one. Really wanted to do it as I paid for and missed it once before, so drove the 750 miles to get to the race venue at Mountain Harbor Resort Lodge in Mount Ida, Arkansas. Forecast was rain and 40 degrees, but overall it didn't rain much during the first hours, and 40 degrees was just perfect for running. The event started at 5 p.m. on Friday evening, giving us an hour or so of ambient light before turning on our lights. The course begins on the roads for a mile before climbing up to Hickory Nut Mountain Overlook at four miles. I was pleased to cover the first four miles up nearly a thousand feet in 56 minutes. Nonetheless, 90% of the field was ahead of me. Four mph uphill is good for me, but slow for most of the rest.

I continued to move comfortably despite considerable rocks and roots and multiple water crossings, one being knee-deep. By 19 miles I used up only 5 hours, so I wasn't off my 4 mph target by much. At this point, only three runners were behind me, however. Somewhere after 19 miles my left eye started getting pixelated. I had had a corneal transplant three weeks before and attributed my visual problem to perhaps pushing my new eye too much too soon. In fact, I have suffered such pixelation before, however, and it generally leads to dizziness and a very severe headache. It has something to do with my brain not receiving enough oxygen. By mile 25 my eye had become concerning. With the more difficult balance of the race ahead and heavier rain due, I was not in the mood for getting seriously sick out on a remote section of trail - alone. So I stopped when I determined I could get a ride back to the start. Without further excuse, I have been very sick following such episodes in the past, on multiple miserable occasions; I did what I had to avoid another crash and suffer incident.

The people were all very helpful and nice. The course was perfect for sustained running, and I would guess a good place to make a good time. While I stopped at 25 miles after 6H 40M of running, before midnight, I really didn't get to see much of the shoreline of Lake Ouachita, along which the much of the course follows. The best I could enjoy were the reflection of lights off the opposite shoreline from time to time. It looked like a beautiful place to run during daylight.

So scratch another hundred-mile event - not my best distance, for sure. I don't look at a dnf as a failure. I subsequently saw my eye doctor about the above condition and have tests ordered. The feedback from my experience at the event allows me to make adjustments and springboard more successfully into coming events. Arkansas treated me well, and I enjoyed my time there just the same as if I had completed the distance.