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It feels like ages since I last wrote a blog post.

It's been months… I clearly remember planning to write about my OPIc exam experience and other daily life stories in my previous post. I even jotted down a few things in my notes, thinking I'd write them down like essays. Still, for my blog's comeback, I decided to start with what was a 'major life event' and a '2025 bucket list' item for me: an ultramarathon!

(Forget the OPIc review, my TOEIC is expiring in 3 months... I'll write about it later!)

I've been running for four years now, and if I don't focus on records, I can easily complete a full marathon, even right after waking up. So, I decided to challenge myself with a 100km ultramarathon.

While researching, I heard that one 50km long-distance practice run would suffice… So, since I was going to Seoul to see a friend, I went for a run in Yeouido Park!

50km LSD

A chicken place nearby

To speed up recovery…

I even used cooling foot patches (that I didn’t even use in training camp) to help speed up recovery.

It did feel cooling on my feet, but I'm not sure if it was effective…

The race was probably about 7 days away. I had some slight pain in my knee or the soles of my feet while running, so I adjusted the distance from 60km to 50km. I tried everything that was supposedly good for recovery!

Ultimately, I realized that rest and nutrition are the most important things for recovery.

Noksapyeong Station after a long time

Near Itaewon

Oh!!

While in Seoul, I met up with a friend (same age), a junior from my military days who's about to leave for Australia to work as a chef, and another junior from the military.

It was delicious!! And since we had time, we went to see the Yongsan Garrison.

It's been almost two years since I've been back, and it's getting more and more well-maintained. But since I've seen so many U.S. military buildings, my feelings towards Yongsan Garrison have always been neutral.

This was there

Perfect weather

A photo in a building inside Yongsan Park

I took a picture because I could see the place where I spent a year at a glance.

I couldn't sleep properly after transferring, and I followed my senior from 4 a.m. to learn various things. I wasn't good at English, but my job was translating documents from Korean to English, and sometimes doing simple interpretations.

I also learned how to use the system… I obviously couldn't use a translator for the translations… When I was on duty alone, even though I wasn't good at English, I was the best at it there, so I felt a lot of pressure… And as time went by, I grew and my work became easier, the translations became easier, and I grew to the point where I could have simple conversations. It's a place filled with memories, so I still think a lot when I see it now.

I should write about it later.

Anyway, I met my friends, reminisced, and practiced in Seoul.

After signing up for the race, I actually debated whether or not to do it until the day before. That’s because the pain in my foot persisted until that day.

But I decided that this foot pain was ultimately meant to happen so that I could do this race, so I just decided to do it. If I can't, I can just do it again next time (it would be a shame to waste money on taxi fare if I quit halfway).

Now, let me tell you about the running.

Race Name: Busan Beach Ultramarathon

Location: Starts at Dadaepo Beach in Busan - Returns at Jinhae Air Base

Date: March 8, 2025, 5 PM Start - March 9, 10 AM

- Time Limit: 17H, 50km cut off: 8h30min

Cost: 100km - 90,000 won / 50km - 70,000 won

The day of the race arrived. I ate a Mom's Touch burger in front of my school and boarded the train to Busan.

Ready Set Go

My Supplies:

Running watch (Coros Pace 3)

Pain patches

Bicycle Flasher (Ensures safety in the dark)

Portable flashlight (To secure visibility on dark roads)

Portable Battery

Energy gels

Salomon Trail Running Vest

Digestive medicine (Digestion slows down during the race)

Chocolate (Carbohydrates)

Running shoes (Adios Pro 3)

Windbreaker (Precaution against cold)

I packed. I think they’re almost essential items (except for the pain patches and chocolate).

A 3,000 won four-leaf clover I bought in front of my school the day before

I need to believe in something!

Going the wrong way on the train, zoom zoom

Moving from Busan Station Line 1 -> Dadaepo Station

Scenery taken as soon as I arrived at Dadaepo Station

First time at Dadaepo Station!

Photo before the start

Blurred my face because I'm ugly!

Many runners

Video taken right after the start. Many runners

I think about 300 people participated, and it was so cool that so many people were challenging their limits with one goal.

At first, I was running alone, but at some point, three people were running together, and I joined them. I didn't know how long we could run together, but I was one of the youngest in the race, and since it was my first time, they helped me a lot.

They told me to go slower and to wear gloves to maintain body temperature.

Beautiful sunset!!

I think it was about an hour after we started. Citizens cheered us on, and when we told them we were going to Jinhae Air Base, they were surprised.

No sane person would run that far.

But I pay to do it…

Fish cake soup!!

When you run, you sweat a lot, so it's important to replenish not only water but also salt!

Scenery taken in the middle

This is how people usually go in groups

Many veterans come to ultramarathons, so very few people come alone. The race wasn't even hosted by a specific organization, but rather by a marathon club.

So, most people go together like that.

If you come alone, you stick with people with a similar pace, and if you fall behind, you stick with someone else.

Unlike regular marathons, most people aim to complete the race. While you have to run at a pace of 6 minutes 40 seconds to 7 minutes to complete a marathon in 5 hours, you can walk and run in a 100km race because there's plenty of time.

No, you have to. On uphill slopes, especially if you're a beginner.

Plenty of snacks

CPs (check points) are operated every 10km during the race.

It's a place to drink beverages, replenish energy, and check if participants have passed.

I think it was Changwon

We also pass through urban areas with apartments~

And go to places like mountain roads

You must bring a light stick or flashlight as it is dark like in the picture above (possibility of disqualification if not brought)

What I ate at the 50km turnaround point

I came to the middle part without any problems. The foot pain I was worried about was gone. 50km was the CP, but the distance was a bit longer due to a detour. But my condition was still good. It was easier because I wasn't alone and was running with others.

I learned a lot about when to replenish energy and how to maintain body temperature.

For example, when we feel hungry, it means that the brain has already sent a signal that we are low on energy, so we don't have much strength at that time. Therefore, you have to eat before you get hungry. They said that it also takes practice.(The same goes for hydration)

A shot with a senior I ran with

The senior had been running for decades and had even completed a 200km race.

I think it was about 80km, it was very cold

My clothes are different from above. The weather was good. But the cold sea breeze in the early morning and up to 80km was okay, but I couldn't run anymore due to muscle or energy problems.

If you stop running, your body temperature drops and you feel a sudden chill. I couldn't run anymore, but my body was too cold. Even if I walked, I could definitely finish within 17 hours.

The problem is whether I can walk in my current condition.

I don't mean just walking, I have to walk 20km - about 3 hours

My mind became complicated. Only 20% left…

Fortunately, the senior I was running with had this orange padding and told me to wear it. I might have really gotten hypothermia if it wasn't for my senior's padding.

After putting on the padding, my body temperature returned and I was able to walk.

From then on, another dimension of thoughts enveloped me

I felt sorry to the senior who was walking for me,

I felt sorry for them for taking care of me even though they were wearing less clothing than me.

I kept saying sorry, but they said it was really okay and that they always bring a lot of stuff in case of an emergency.

Another difficult thing was that I had indigestion, but I was able to get through it safely thanks to the digestive medicine I brought.

10km left to the finish line. The sun is gradually rising.

I saw a few runners who came out to run in the early morning.

My feet really hurt. My hands were also very swollen. I don't know if it was because of the cold or because of metabolism, but it seemed to be both.

But I felt good because there wasn't much left.

I ran the last 100m and finally finished!

The medal and record certificate given right away

Record is about 15 hours (8 minutes 40 seconds pace/1km)

When you finish, you get a beef and rice soup exchange ticket and a sauna ticket!

I went to the sauna and then went to eat beef and rice soup right away.

There, I got to drink soju from another senior who ran with me until the middle.

Long journey

Running from Busan to Jinhae. I didn't know until I looked closely, but the location of the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival was only a few hundred meters away from where I ran. Wow.

To the senior who ran with me until the middle

With the senior who ran with me until the end

Right before finishing!

I don't really know. If you ask me if it was that hard, I would hesitate and say 'no'. I don't know if it's because time has passed or if it really wasn't that hard.

Other people might say, how can 100km not be hard?

Physically, it was really okay because I repeated walking and running (except for the cold)

Mentally, I was happy because I was with good people and I was able to grow one step further.

I may have lost my immediate health, but health can be recovered. In the end, only advantages remain. I gained willpower, self-esteem, happiness, life advice, and many other things.

There's something I like the most. I like the smell of people the most. It's no exception when I run.

Usually, many people try to set records in marathons. Then they focus only on running without talking.

But ultramarathons have to run more than twice the distance, so most people give meaning to finishing (or participating).

That's why they walk and run (you need a lot of strength to walk uphill), and because it's usually a super long-distance race that lasts more than 12 hours, they talk together while going. I was also able to get a lot of advice on life by asking the elders various questions.

I personally have one thought in mind: every adult has something to learn from. I can't generalize, but they've lived longer than me, and there's definitely something to learn from their wisdom of life and their perspective on life.

This is not taught in schools, and no one will teach you unless you take the initiative. I enjoy and am used to talking to adults, so when I talk about these things, they tell me a lot and I learn a lot.

People often say that life is like a marathon.

It's usually used to mean that life is long,

But if you look more closely, the marathon course is not flat.

There are uphill and downhill slopes. You shouldn't be sad that there's an uphill slope. A comfortable downhill slope will come out.

Conversely, you shouldn't be happy that there's a downhill slope. Someday I'll have to go up again.

There are quite a few similarities. Of course, I don't learn life from running, but it's true that it helps with mental health.

I was so happy to run at night during my first ultramarathon. It may seem scary, but many runners are running towards one goal at night, and volunteers stay up all night at the CP just for us.

I felt great happiness in this well-functioning organism.

In a way, it's a long trip. Seeing the city center of Changwon, going to Jinhae… meeting many good people!

I don't feel like I can do anything if I just run 100km? It's not that hard, as I said above. (However, if the taxi is cut off, I think I can run up to 30km if I know the way)

However, I like internal growth, and it has definitely helped a lot in that regard.

If someone says they're going to do an ultramarathon, I highly recommend it.

I always say it's definitely easier than a full marathon.

I hope there are people who say that's really true later!

Next blog topics

Daily life

Reading

Seoul trip (January 2025)

Busan trip (end of 24)

Busan trip 2 (March 2025)

Busan trip 3 (June 2025)

Seoul Han River Ultramarathon

Part-time job diary

Engineer exam

Jinhae Gunhangje Festival

Palgong Mountain Exploration

Ulsan Shinbulsan (Yeongnam Alps) Exploration

Gwanaksan Exploration + Seoul trip

Coldplay concert in Korea

2024 Nell's Room (Nell year-end concert)

I'm doomed, when am I going to write all of this…!!

I'm studying for the Industrial Hygiene Management Engineer exam right now, and it's so difficult that I don't know if I'll pass, but I'll do some things, work part-time, and write in my remaining time…

I might fail the architectural engineer practical exam

I'll pass if they just give me at least 5 out of 10 points on the process table, aaaaagh

I lost an hour and a half of sleep, anyway, I hope everyone is happy

I don't do much and I'm not good at anything,

but happiness is definitely very individual

People with a lot of money, smart people, and handsome people are all humans who die, but the person who can laugh right before they die is the one who has walked a happy path.

I may be materially or physically inferior to them, but I think it's a great life if I have enough of that internally

And the happy path I mentioned above can only be cultivated by oneself

I think it's good if you think anything is happy and valuable, as long as it's not illegal

That's why we should find out what we like without paying attention to what others think! Work, family, love, etc…

Anyway, I think thinking about these things is much more productive than any schoolwork or exercise, so I guarantee that it will be a great help in life if everyone thinks about it even occasionally. Everyone fighting!

   

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