Backyard Ultra DNF: Are Ultras For Me?

2010 Canadian Death Race with Gregg

We had our local Backyard Ultra yesterday. I did 5 loops for about 20.6 miles. The winner did 13 loops or 54+ miles. It was sunny and warm. Slightly humid too. But the main problem was me. I'm just not in ultra shape. No long runs lately. In fact, my past 3 ultra attempts have ended at 20 miles (Clinton Lake in December, Riddle Run in January, and now Backyard Ultra in July). Maybe ultras are not for me (anymore). I've done 113 ultra/marathons. Maybe that is enough?

When I think about my running preferences, ultras don't seem to be at the top of my list. Here are some preferences I have regarding my running:

Roads vs trails vs track vs treadmill: I much prefer trail running to anything else. Track might come in second with roads and treadmill last. Most ultras are on trails, so that might bode well for my future ultra running!

Slow vs fast running: I prefer to run fast. It just feels right. Tempo runs, intervals, strides. They are all awesome. Slow runs don't capture my attention. Not good perspective for ultras!

Long vs medium vs short runs: My favorite runs are probably medium length efforts (5-7 miles), but I do enjoy the shorter and faster runs too. Long runs are OK, but not my preference. Again, not great priority if I want to run ultras!

Hot vs cold runs: Absolutely prefer cold running. Or cool running. Not hot running. This is likely true for all runners, but I have friends that actually enjoy the heat. Not me. I'm not a huge fan of 20F winter runs either, but I'll take that over 85F. A nice overcast 55F degree day would be my ideal. 

So, combining the above preferences, guess I enjoy medium length fast trail runs in cool temperatures. Doesn't exactly point to future ultras. I should find races that fit this criteria. Then train for those races. That would increase my enjoyment and set me up for success. Locally that means races like Allerton half-marathon in April, maybe Buffalo Trace 5M in May, plus Allerton 5.7M and Aruna 5K trail runs in October. If I look harder, I can probably find other local trail runs in temperate weather. 

I'm not giving up on ultras just yet, but I'll probably do our Free Ultra series (currently four trail events) and treat them as fun long runs with no intention of finishing the full distance. Maybe the ultra bug will bite me again. Or not.