The long, dark hours of night are when the spirits and energy of long-distance runners tend to flag, but two runners preparing to cover 100 miles on foot Saturday hope to be joined by others to keep them company in their nocturnal journey.
On Saturday morning, 26 November, James Murray and Gerry Martinez will begin their 100 mile run around Grand Cayman.
Mr. Murray said lots of people had offered to run throughout the day – and mostly through the night – with them.
“I’ve had quite a few people come forward and offer to run at various times with us. Most are going to come out for the dark hours, during the late night/early morning, which is great as that’s when we’ll need their energy to give us a spark and carry us to the finish,” he said.
Regulars at the Wednesday Night Running Club are also planning to put together a relay team to join the two runners for most of the event.
The duo will begin their run with many others runners taking part in the Cayman Islands Diabetes Association 5k (3 miles) run beginning in Camana Bay at 7am on Saturday morning.
“I can’t think of a better way to start our run,” said Mr. Murray. “The key for us is going to be not getting too excited and spending too much energy early on as we have a long road ahead of us, but I think it’ll be great to hang out in the back and chat with the participants before going on our way.
“Maybe we’ll inspire a few people to adopt a crazy idea and make a positive change in their life before heading off for the remaining 97 miles.”
The route the pair will take takes them from Camana Bay to West Bay, via the Safehaven loop, and onto Morgan’s Harbour where they plan to run along the shoreline as much as possible as far as the Turtle Farm and then back down West Bay Road and onto the roundabout at Grand Harbour. From there, they will run through Prospect Point and carry on eastward to Frank Sound Road where they will take the Mastic trail, weather permitting.
Once they finish the trail, they will head to Kaibo, from which they will swing around the East End loop and come back to Grand Harbour. Then, it’s up the bypass past King’s Gym and along Old Crewe Road, onto Smith Road to the four way stop near the hospital, into George Town and then along Shedden Road to the airport, through the airport industrial park, onto the Esterley Tibbetts Highway and finally back to Camana Bay.
Even though the two runners have never run together before, they plan to make the entire run at the same pace.
“I think the team approach will be beneficial,” said Mr. Murray. “Gerry has a more experience running these distances as he’s completed a few 100 mile runs in the past few months and my experience of the local terrain should make for a nice complement,” he said.
Mr. Martinez, who in the three years since he took up running, has lost 180 of the 160 of the 340 pounds he weighed, has taken on a number of other 50- and 100-mile challenges. He finished his first 100-mile run in February at the Rocky Raccoon run in Huntsville, Texas.
Mr. Murray said the run is unlikely to beat any major records, but he is hoping to set a few personal records during the run, adding that the only record book those will be going in will be his own running log.
“This is going to be the first time I’ve ever attempted to cover 100 miles and, depending on the temperatures that day, it may get a bit uncomfortable, especially with the humidity. When I ran the 51-mile leg of the Marathon Des Sable, we had temperatures above 50 degrees Celsius. I don’t think it’ll be that hot when we run, but the humidity can suck the moisture out of you.
“That said, we are nowhere near the extreme limits people like Marshall Ulrich or Lisa Smith-Batchen have run. But record or not, I think it’ll a great experience to attempt this goal in a community I’ve called home for the past six years with my island family watching and supporting,” said Mr. Murray.
Ultra marathon runner Lisa Smith-Batchen had planned to join the two men on the run, but she will not be able to make it for the 100 mile run, although she hopes to get to Cayman for the Intertrust Cayman Islands Marathon the following weekend.
Mr. Murray embarked on his plan in August to run 100 miles, dubbed A Crazy Idea, to meet his personal goal of running 100 miles, to raise funds and awareness about the Cayman Islands Diabetes Association and also to help raise the profile of the Cayman Islands Marathon, which his company Intertrust is sponsoring. He writes a weekly column in the Caymanian Compass’ health section with tips and stories for first timers on how to prepare for the half-marathon.
“I get random people who have come up to me and will tell me that they’ve started running or exercising because of A Crazy Idea. I know I’ve had an influence in my direct friend group and now have a small group which have just run their first marathon or nearing their first marathon and they are actually talking about the next one.
“I’ve also had people tell me they’ve made a change to their life whether it be quitting smoking or losing weight or exercising regularly,” said Mr. Murray.
He added: “I really believe we are all capable of doing much more than we ever give ourselves credit for and a lot of the time all it takes is just getting out and doing it. Nike hit the nail on the head with their slogan “Just Do it” because it’s when are out doing that we learn and grow. We may not achieve what it is we set out to do on our very first attempt but we learn from the experience and we learn where we can improve.
“It certainly isn’t going to be easy but most of the time the real lasting and memorable experiences in life don’t come easy, which is one of the reasons we appreciate them when we’re done and if we can implement a lifestyle of continual improvement/growth we can almost be certain to move beyond any rough patches we incur in our lives,” he said.
To ensure the two runners have enough food and drink to keep them going, support vehicles will follow them with supplies, but Mr. Murray said they may stop along their route and grab a drink or a quick bite to eat along the way, and may even wade into the sea to cool off.
It’s likely one of the support vehicles will be carrying sweet potatoes and a few Cliff bars, which Mr. Murray likes to eat to keep his energy levels up during long runs.
“The plan is to eat along the way but depending on how we get on, we may stop briefly for a small bite to eat. We need to be careful not too eat too much at once so as to divert blood into our stomachs and away from our limbs, but at the same time we need to make sure we have enough fuel to get us through the event. Salt intake will be especially important but I have a salt supplement (salt stick) that I will take throughout the event,” he said.
He added that preparing for this run has been a “wonderful experience”.
“It has had its ups and downs and on more than one occasion I’ve wanted to crawl under the covers and hide but I know better. That’s never the answer. At the same time, it’s really helped me learn a lot about myself and has inspired new goals,” he said.
He said he was very grateful for the help of several people who have inspired or encouraged him along the way, including his girlfriend Lauren Christie, who he said “could very well be the most understanding person I’ve ever met” and Adam Cockerill for his IT support. “Adam’s done more than I ever expected and his crazy idea of getting in the ring and fighting with white collar boxing is exactly what we were hoping to inspire in people,” he said.
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