Lapierre Wins Pineland Farms 50 mile

Aliza Lapierre ran the Pineland Farms 50 mile this past Saturday up in Maine and finished in 7:42 and was the first female overall. Congrats Aliza! (report from Aliza below)
http://www.mainetrackclub.com/pinelandfarms.html

The inaugural Pineland Farms 50 mile course consisted of a small three mile loop and then three laps on a loop that was 15.7 miles. Having never run a 50 mile race this early in the season I was nervous and unsure of how my body would respond. When the cowbell sounded the race started and the field quickly spread with three front runners battling to lead the way and then a pack of two about a quarter mile back followed by me. Within minutes I could only see two other runners and decided that even though it was a faster pace then I cared to run I would attempt to keep them in sight so not to be by myself just two miles in. About nine miles into the first lap I caught up to the first female Christy Cosgrove. We enjoyed conversation and one another’s support for 12 miles and then I pulled in front maintaining my consistent pace. Now I was well into my second lap and alone. After about four solo miles a male runner named Stephen closed the gap and joined me. It was good to have company again especially through miles 28-35, which typically gives me a hard time mentally.

A little over five hours into the race Stephen and I circled around for our third and final lap and I picked up my husband who had hesitantly agreed before the race to help pace me for the final 15 miles. It was great to have someone with me who was full of conversation, energy and who could cheer me along as I tired. I plugged away hill after hill and I tried to stretch my legs on the flatter sections. I knew that my quads were starting to become fatigued as I began dreading the downhill sections. Despite being eager to finish I stopped at two aids stations to refill my water so to avoid major problems this late in the race. With just about five miles to go I pulled away from Stephen as I tried to stay true to my pace. At each corner I hoped that I would see the final field before heading into the finish area. Time seemed to be moving at a snail’s pace and I could not resist looking at my watch wondering how much longer. As I headed into the final field my husband looked back and I asked if I needed to worry, he said no. I crossed the finish line with a time of 7:42 and quickly doubled back to cheer Stephen and other racers in.
Overall the race course was well marked, there were plenty of well stocked aid stations and the race crew was great. It was also nice to see Lisa from Inov-8 with a table of shoes, which provided an opportunity to check out the entire shoe line in person.