This event is
something I was very excited, and very scared for, especially as race
day neared and I wasn’t getting in the ‘Wasatch-specific’
training I had hoped to. July and August were spent in the Pacific
Northwest, and while I had gotten in a little heat, elevation, and
rocky trail training – a lot of it was cooler temps, near the
coast, and cushy trails. I had plenty of volume, steep climbs and
descents, and rest going for me, but still didn’t know if that
would be enough to cover the other shortcomings. Well, it was. I
didn’t realize it until after the race was over, but for 100 miles,
it went very well. I did have little struggles with heat, altitude,
and pounding, a few mini-disasters and injury threats, and was
feeling unworthy of the course and doubtful for much of the nearly 30
hours out there. But looking back, I did a great job of appreciating
the beautiful scenery, the people, my ability to be able to do this
at all, and kept moving steadily. I only had a few hours of true
‘lows’ and really, they weren’t very debilitating, and I never
even started to consider dropping. I love that I was able to run into
the finish, and have been feeling good and relatively mobile in the
days following. But shouldn’t I be in more significant pain? I
don’t know where I would have pushed more though, so for the amount
of training this flatlander logged for this event, no regrets.
Just a warning, my
race report is excessively detailed, dry, and more for my own
learning for future events. Also, I didn’t get a whole lot of
pictures. So! Don’t feel obligated to read.
We were able to
sleep right at the start line, so I could have gotten more sleep, if
I’d been able to...at 3 am, I let myself get out of bed for the 5
am start. I had my usual pre-long run/race breakfast of coffee (first
one in a week, lovely!), a banana, and overnight-soaked oats with
chia seeds, peanut butter, and honey. I took my time getting
dressed, making sure there were no seams or funny folds anywhere,
filling my water, and did a little rearranging of my pack. I had
planned to start with gloves on and a buff over my ears, but the
start area was 60F instead of the 50F forecast, so I packed those
items away and went with t-shirt, shorts, and running hat. It was
well after 4 before people really started showing up – not a lot of
preparation or warm up needed to start 100 miles! I paced around a
little, found my Minnesota friends and shared some nervous chatter.
With five minutes to go, I took off the pants and hoodie I was
keeping warm in (so nice to have the van right there!) and found a
spot in the crowd of ~300 people to start. I was probably a little
closer to the front than I should have been, but wasn’t too worried
about being in the way – we had a couple of miles to get sorted out
before the single track, and I made sure there were at least a few
women in front of me. There was so much excitement amongst the
runners, yet not much for pre-race talk from the director, all I
heard was a ‘GO!’ and we were off – jogging down the road. The
paved stretch did include a steep little climb that I was worried I
would get sucked into running, but happily, most people slowed to
hike it, and I did too.
After nearly two
miles there was a short dirt road, then the climb up Bair Canyon –
over 4,000 feet of elevation gain during the next five miles, mostly
on rocky, and some loose, singletrack. I fell into the conga line at
what felt like a good, steady pace. There was plenty of sketchy
spots, really steep stretches, and some dust – but none of it as
bad as what I was afraid of. There were a few people trying to dart
up and around, but mostly we were all plugging along, content to
pause for little stumbles ahead. Not much chatter was happening and I
enjoying hearing the little creek along the trail and the breeze
rustling leaves. As we went up in altitude, the temperature dropped,
and my hands were starting to feel a little cold. I didn’t want to
stop and dig out my gloves though – the sun would be up soon and I
was sure I would be too warm before too long. As it started getting
lighter and the grade eased a little, more conversation started, and
I got to hear locals discussing their running friends and events. I
noticed my inner knees were a little tender, a little worrisome, as
there was still plenty of climbing left on the course!
We hit a gravel road
and the worst of the climbing at approximately two hours, and seven
miles. My hands and arms were really cold – but the sun had risen
and running was about to happen, so no pause to get more clothes.
Jogging felt super awkward at first, but the mostly downhill, gravel
road made the transition pretty easy, and soon I felt like I was
cruising! We seemed to stick to the shady side of the ridge though,
and it was breezy and cool (as I should have known it would be at
7,000 feet!). I was shaking out my hands and rubbing and windmilling
my arms, but they still remained worthlessly numb. We could see the
great Salt Lake, and it was beautiful – but no picture taking was
happening, so I stole this one from some fellow Minnesotans:
 |
| Shawn and Sam having a beautiful morning! |
I maybe ran a little
faster than would be wise, but I wanted more blood flow, and I didn’t
feel I was pushing too hard, and wasn’t passing a lot of people. I
did notice my left arch feeling a little tight, which scares me once
in a while but hasn’t resulted in anything serious yet...At three
hours I was able to unzip a side pocket, pull out, unwrap, and
consume a fig bar. A little later start on fueling than I planned,
but I had a good breakfast and could have my next snack in less than
my typical ‘hourly’ if I thought I needed it. After dropping
2,000 feet on the four miles of gravel road, we went by a water stop,
then into some brushy singletrack with plenty of steep little ups and
downs. I kept moving steadily, and was a little disheartened by a
couple of people cruising by me effortlessly, discussing parenting
challenges, but I didn’t try to go any harder. I think I had a
tropical e-gel somewhere in that stretch. I hit the first aid
station, Bountiful B, at a little over four hours for 16.41 miles. I
took just a few minutes to put away the headlamp, get my drop bag in
my pack, and eat a little fruit and canned potatoes from the aid
station – also grabbed a couple Jolly Ranchers for later. I love
hard candy for ultras, but I don’t notice it very often.
 |
| Cruising the early miles |
There were continued
ups and downs on jeep trails coming out of Bountiful B. Surprisingly,
I was already on my own for some stretches. There was one guy that
caught up on a hike that did slow down to chat a bit. He was from
Hong Kong (though by appearance and accent, I think originally
European) and was trying to take it easy and run by heart rate – he
actually has another 100-miler coming up in two weeks. Apparently he
stayed under 150 beats per minute for the whole climb up Bair Canyon.
We discussed running and training in general, and he shared some
stories of challenges he had at The Bear and Cascade Crest races. It
was great sticking with him, I’m pretty sure I hiked more of the
less steep hills and flats than I would have otherwise, and I was
already starting to worry I started too hard. I had another fig bar
before we reached the next aid station – Sessions Lift Off at 20.66
miles, a little over five hours in. I wasn’t interested in stopping
at all, but did pause for my new buddy to mix up something in his
water bottle before we continued on. There was a loose sandy descent
out of the aid station, but as another runner went by us, he
mentioned the climb to the next aid station being a ‘bear’ as he
got out his trekking poles. He wasn’t kidding. It was nice to have
that warning and we started up the technical, switch-backy trail at a
steady, but maintainable pace...at least that’s what I was thinking
at the time. The chatter died off and we both encouraged each other
to not worry about pulling ahead, which I eventually did, commenting
I would probably see him soon – I planned to be at Big Mountain
Pass for a little while. I did see later that he dropped though.
After gaining 1,000 feet in two miles, the rest of the section was
rolling along an open ridge with lovely sage brush smells and big
views.
 |
| On the way to Swallow Rocks |
I savored a pineapple gu, interesting combination with the
sage aroma. Eventually I fell into a small train of a few other
runners with no one interested in passing, and we naturally drifted
apart and together. At one point I heard a yelp and saw flailing
ahead, but by the time I registered the guy in front of me yelling
‘Bees! Bees! Bees!’ it was too late and I was swatting away
whatever was stinging my face – damn those hurt! A couple stings on
my upper lip and one on my lower, but no reactions, and in less than
an hour it didn’t bother me at all….except I was dreading running
into any more! The last stretch of the section was pretty brushy,
making the trail hard to see in spots and causing a few stumbles.
Mostly gradual downhill for the final mile to the aid station was
nice though! I hit Swallow Rocks at 27.21 miles just before seven
hours. I grabbed a little watermelon and a few pretzels before
ensuring they had me recorded as departing, as that would release my
crew to go to the next aid station. I found out later that the crew
staging area didn’t note that I had left Swallow Rocks until almost
half an hour later – but my crew still made it in time! More
running along the ridgeline, up and down and up and down, and I was
starting to notice and worry that my legs were a bit sore and tired.
 |
| Nearing Big Mountain Pass |
I distracted myself with geeking out over the cool conglomerate and
sandstone rocks along the side of the trail. A lot of switchbacks and
excess ribbons and pink flamingos welcomed us into to Big Mountain
Pass aid station at 31.66 miles, about eight hours in. This place was
pretty crazy! But my dad and Rudy found me right away, and got my
water filled while I took advantage of the portapotties although I
didn’t really have to go. Only ~60 ounces of water consumed and
first pee at eight hours, I needed to step up the drinking. I got a
little cleaned up with a wet wipe and applied fresh sunscreen before
looking to the aid station table for food. I was excited to see real
potatoes! I had a small one of those. Then, I was bummed to see all
the fruit was in small bagged portions – I guess good for
convenience and keeping bugs off, but I immediately sent four plastic
bags to a landfill getting a few chunks of melon and a couple orange
slices. I also spotted a lemonade gu – I stashed that in my pack
for another caffeine free gel, since I didn’t think I had many
more.
I started the long
climb out of the aid station thinking I may have already wrecked my
race, you can’t really recovery from muscle soreness during an
event, and I still had a long ways to go! I resolved to relax and
focus on hydrating and enjoying the experience. This was a great
section for that – there were some nice fall colors, even some cactus, and great views
of the Little Dell Reservoir once the climb was done.
The ridge top was
exposed and warm though. Eventually there was a good amount of steep,
loose downhill and I started noticing a weird sensation on the
outside of my right knee – not painful, but just seemed like if I
stepped wrong it could give out completely – this was a new feeling
for me! Before long I also noticed a blister forming on the inside of
my left heel. All these little niggles cropping up in the first third
of the run really had me anxious! Fueling was still good though – I
had a small brownie, and the refreshing lemonade gu during this
section.
At the next Aid
Station, Alexander Ridge at 39.49 miles, a little over ten hours, I
just grabbed ice for my hat and the course continued on under an
exposed power line. Some initial downhill, then another 1,000 foot
climb over the course of two miles – half was on singletrack
though, so that helped make it more interesting. I got to share the
climb with a guy living in Seattle, but originally from Russia, so I
didn’t catch everything he was saying! I did gather he was pretty
excited about him and his wife recently getting into ultras,
unfortunately she was injured and couldn’t pace him as originally
planned – at least she could crew though! After we started
descending again, he jumped in with a faster group, but I think he
finished just over 29 hours – at least I hope that Russian name in
the results is his! I wasn’t solo for long – I ended up running
with a local who was getting through his first 100 miler! We ended up
discussing more non-running topics, including backgrounds, resulting
in him calling me ‘Minnesota’ and laughing at me taking pictures
of rocks. I think I pulled away from him at some point, as the last
mile or so of this section I was on my own. I had another brownie,
but it was dry and difficult to get down. I planned to fill my water
and find some non-sweet food at the next aid station. My knee was not
bothering me on the gentle downhill, so that was good. This stretch
of the course was a little evil though….we could see the aid
station, but we ran away from it another half mile before turning
back and running along the freeway. It was an interesting trail
though, essentially the freeway ditch, but through cattails and reeds
along a little creek. We went past the aid station again, then turned
back to come up a steep little hill with spectators and volunteers
cheering as you felt like a tool hiking up this little hill! Lambs
Canyon was at 45 miles, just under 12 hours for me. This aid station
did not seem as organized and servicing as the previous ones, but
with no crew access, and the day wearing on, I can see how they may
have been a bit more occupied. I found my own drop bag and filled my
own water, then looked for some food, my tummy was feeling a little
rough. I tried a hummus wrap, but it tasted off (if it was me or the
hummus, I don’t know), I managed a few bites, then went with the
familiar fruit and potatoes, along with a couple ounces of ginger ale
– not as much low sugar items as I planned! One volunteer did take
the time to ask how I was doing and tell me about the next section –
a lot of climbing, two miles of paved road, some trail, then another
three miles of paved road, and the aid station will be cold! That was
really good to know going into it! I got some ice in my hat and
headed for the pavement.
Not far into the
first paved stretch, my Garmin was doing its low battery goofiness
and would not let me back into the run to save it, but the time was
still displayed, so I just let that stay on until it died completely
(the watch stayed on the rest of the way, but my run data was lost.)
Hiking up the road was OK, but once I hit the trail, I started to
struggle. My stomach was not happy, and my head and body felt too
hot. I kept pressing the ice down on my head, but that didn’t seem
to do much – I was wishing for a shaved head! Lots of people went
cruising by, many with fresh pacers, chatting and in high spirits.
One lady was telling her pacer to be easy on her, since she was so
slow! I said something along the lines of “Awe c’mon! You just
flew by me!” feigning insult, it was good for a brief smile. I was
trying to appreciate the creek and the woods, but I was really
doubting myself – not even half way through and I was hurting,
tired, etc. I managed to choke down a plain gu. When my hat ice
melted I took off the hat – felt no cooler, I wore it backwards,
and that did help having the wet bill next to my neck. As I stepped
aside for yet another couple sailing by, I heard ‘Minnesota! How
are you doing?’ I admitted I was not doing awesome. My local
buddy’s pacer offered a gel. I just had one. He had salt, and
magnesium too. Well, I had my own S-caps, may as well try that! I
thanked them and wished them a good run as I fished a salt pill out
of my pack and got it down the hatch. Before long, I was feeling
better – whether it was the slower going, gu, salt tab, or end of
the climb, I don’t know, but I was so happy to be closer to normal.
I eventually caught back up to the local and found out he had covered
the whole course over the summer. I heard someone say at the
beginning that the final 25 miles are harder than people expect, and
he confirmed that – a lot of downhill, but some technical stuff and
still 4,000 feet of climbing in there. We hit pavement again and
three miles of hiking up. I chatted with another first timer and his
pacer as the locals pulled away. There were very few people I could
keep up with hiking, definitely an area of improvement for me! I did
leave the younger guys eventually though and started in on my trail
mix – I had forgotten it was easily accessible in my pack all along
– I may have been able to manage it with my numb hands, and it was
a more savory option when that was what I was looking for, but I had
it now! My hands and arms were cooling quickly, so I pulled my rain
jacket on and plugged along, feeling content. When I reached the aid
station, Upper Big Water, 53.54 miles 14.5 hours, there was some
excited little boys all about cheering and helping out. They got my
drop bag and fetched me some hot broth while I got out my gloves and
put my jacket on under the pack. I thought about putting the headlamp
on here, but figured I wouldn’t mind the extra break in half an
hour or so to get it out. The little boy apologized that there were
some noodles in my broth, but I was OK with that, really it was
probably better that way! There was lots of hiking coming up with
another 2,000 feet of altitude gained to the next aid station.
Darkness came on
quick, I think I only went 10 minutes before stopping to get the head
lamp on. I also remembered my Jolly Ranchers! I thought they may make
good timers for drinking after the watch died. It took 20 minutes to
finish one, and by then I was pretty hungry and immediately had a fig
bar. I actually enjoyed traveling through the dark solo, I even
paused to turn off my headlamp and look at the stars, even with a
half moon, they were wonderful. There was an interesting bird/animal
call as I passed a small lake, and a couple guys peeing off the side
of the trail. I teased them that I thought they were trying to find
the strange creature! I actually needed to take my second pee
somewhere in this stretch, but managed to go unnoticed. I even went
by a couple groups of hikers, some with lights and some without.
Finally reached the next aid station, Desolation Lake at 58.43 miles,
16.5 hours. I mistakenly heard someone say sweet potatoes, but there
was just regular potatoes. I asked for some soup, thinking there may
be a veggie option, but no options! I was handed a cup of what seemed
to be chicken noodle, vegetable, and ramen combined – hit the spot
though! I asked what mile we were at and was told 58. I despaired at
having taken nearly two hours to cover four miles, not realizing at
the time that the section was closer to 5 miles, and more climbing
than it seemed, and I was over 9,500 feet in altitude at this point!
So, I was feeling perplexed that I couldn’t even maintain 3 miles
an hour, and I still had over 40 miles to go, and ten miles until I
got to the hard part! I expected I would just deteriorate and maybe I
couldn’t make it to the end...but I just kept moving forward,
looking at the stars again. During the next singletrack climb, I met
quite a few mountain bikers – must have been a surprise to meet
hundreds of runners during their night ride! After the climb I had my
second Jolly Rancher, then went for a sip of water and noted I was
just about empty – should have checked that at the last aid
station! I thought there was one more aid station before Brighton,
but I wasn’t sure. I went a little longer before having a plain gu
and finishing my water. I figured if I still had over an hour to the
next aid, I could probably get down some dried fruit from my trail
mix and be OK. There was another aid station though! I hit Scotts
Peak at mile 62.34 in just under 18 hours. I asked if there were any
hot potatoes, and they were pretty excited that I was the first
customer for mashed potatoes! I got enough water to get me to
Brighton and asked about mileage here – someone guessed 63, so I
thought that I just put in five miles in just over an hour, and that
made me feel better (it was actually less than 4 miles, but
whatever.) I vocalized that maybe I could make Brighton by midnight,
and another runner concurred - absolutely, it is just four miles of
downhill!
The next section was
~4.5 miles, mostly downhill, but the first few miles were a pretty
rugged jeep road that I stayed conservative on. Then a couple of
miles of running down a paved road that felt like I was moving along
well on, and I passed a few people, but must not have been going too
awful fast. The last stretch to the aid station was more gradual
uphill and some weaving through parking lots. I was glad we had
looked at this area on Thursday after I met another runner emerging
from a dirt road, having taken a little extra climb. The temperature
was dropping quickly and I knew what I was currently wearing wouldn’t
cut it 2,000 feet higher up. I couldn’t remember if I had a long
sleeve with my crew, but I knew I had long socks I could put on my
arms...I finally reached Brighton aid station, mile 67, just a few
minutes after midnight, 19 hours.
 |
| Not feeling the best, but happy to get to my crew! |
Happily the aid
station was indoors – it was soooo cold and windy out. Aid station
volunteers were quick to get my drop bag and a cup of hot broth.
Awesome Rudy procured some pants and a long sleeve shirt from our
friend Lisa (sadly she wouldn’t need them for pacing our other
buddy who dropped out), I would not have been OK in shorts. This was
my longest aid station stop at 23 minutes, we stayed productive with
getting the extra clothes on, Rudy filling my water, Marcus helping
me get fried potatoes and a few ounces of Coke, and I made a trip to
the bathroom (again, for convenience). I may have been dragging my
feet a little – I was not feeling super awesome and I was
definitely wary of the 2,000 foot climb to 10,450’ ‘Point
Supreme’ of the course, and the reportedly steep, loose descent
that followed – but I also just wanted to get it done. We searched
for more Jolly Ranchers, but found none and I settled for a mint Life
Saver for the road. I thanked everyone profusely and Rudy and I
headed out into the 30F night.
I was instantly
shivering violently and hoped that strong hiking would warm me up
enough. As we hiked away from the lodge, there was a big, bearded,
cowboy-hatted dude cheering excessively, exclaiming ‘You got this!’
and directing us to turn right up that trail – that was pretty
awesome!
 |
| Rudy is fired up for the climb! |
In just a few minutes, the shivering did stop, but I was
still struggling. My tummy was a little off, I felt tired and slow,
and maybe a slight headache. Did I not eat enough? Too much? Were the
potatoes too oily? Coke a bad idea? Just altitude and fatigue? I felt
like I could not move my leg slower if I wanted to, and I was
breathing too hard, but we just kept plugging along, getting passed
by dudes with trekking poles, passing others debating if they could
make it. Up and up big rocks. I made one stop to dig out another
S-cap, and I think there may have been another just stop for a
breather along the way. It was tough going, but it actually went by
quickly and I was surprised when someone snacking on the side of the
trail announced we made it – I didn’t even noticed Catherine’s
Pass! We didn’t pause to savor the moment, but kept moving to get
on with the descent. It was long, steep and rocky, but not as loose
as I feared, so that was nice – plus I was feeling a little better
(may have been more like distracted with navigating down). Two miles
of this was exhausting, and I was relieved to see a sign for the aid
station, complete with a menu, but it was still several minutes
further down, and now I was thinking about food and less able to
concentrate! We made it unscathed to Ant Knolls, 71.54 miles, a
little before 22 hours. We actually sat down a couple minutes and I
enjoyed some miso ginger soup with noodles.
I don’t remember
anything in particular from the next section – it started with a
climb back over 9,000 feet, then some rolling, then a little descent
before Pole Line Pass aid station at 74.72 miles, 23 hours. I was
super happy that I had the stomach to eat one of the homemade
pierogies here – so delicious! Rudy also tackled a breakfast
burrito while I packed the spare batteries and gels from my drop bag.
A volunteer informed us the next section was long – ten miles, but
there was a water stop about four miles in. Not long after heading
out, I started getting aggravated with the climbs. I knew we still
had a few thousand feet to get down to the finish, but we kept doing
more uphill! Rudy looked at the course maps to see we were still over
9,000 feet – I guess a good reason to be feeling slow. A
caffeinated gel seemed like a good idea, and Rudy helped unzipper the
gel pocket, and pulled out a cucumber mint gu – NO! Not sure when
I’ll be brave enough to try that one...the espresso flavored one
was acceptable though. I continued to feel hungry and ate a good
amount of my trail mix through here. It took an hour and a half to
reach the water stop, I was so disgusted with that and hopes for
getting under 30 hours were fading quickly. We still had over 4,000
feet to get down, but would have to average five miles an hour to
make it. Happily, the water stop did have a couple snacks and I
grabbed a granola bar, figuring it would be good in about an hour
when we should be about halfway to the next aid station. It didn’t
even make it half an hour. I was getting increasingly angry, every
downhill was followed by an uphill, making the next downhill just a
little more painful...and making another downhill. The descents were
rocky and sketchy, with ruts that were hard to decipher in the dark,
and there was a lot of back and forth with guys with trekking poles.
Luckily, some one that knew the course announced and described ‘the
Plunge’ just as we started on it so we were on our guard. This went
down ~700 feet in half a mile of essentially a rut of a trail, mostly
loose with a couple inches of dust. It was still dark so impossible
to see most of the way down. I also got a lot of dust packed into the
front of my shoes here – would that create some nasty abrasion, or
blisters?? The Plunge was pretty scary, but I have to admit it was
also fun, and we didn’t have any real crashes, so all good. It was
starting to get light and still we were going up and down and up and
down and I was just cursing it – I didn’t know if I could handle
all the true descending being like the Plunge, when my legs would be
even more shot! I think I finished my trail mix shortly after. We
actually finished the section with a relatively gradual descent and I
was feeling pretty good. I chalked it up to the sunrise boost, which
I had not had the joy of experiencing yet. We reached Pot Hollow,
84.54 miles, at about 26.5 hours. It was cold here, but the sun was
up, so removed pants and jacket, had a cup of soup, and kept moving.
I was surprised to see it was still before 8 am. We would need to
cover 15 miles in 3 hours for a 30 hour finish – possible, I guess,
but still seemed unlikely.
 |
| Savoring the sunrise! |
There were four
climbs in this section, each a little smaller than the previous, and
on gravel road. My legs were sore, but energy was good and we were
moving well and passing people. I think we even ‘ran’ up that
fourth little hill (really, a bump in the road). We reached Staton,
89.27 miles, just before 9 am. We still had 2,000 feet to loose, and
less technical trails for the rest. I knew there would be at least a
little more climbing, but I told Rudy I thought we had a chance at
sub-30 hours. We saw my local friend here too - “Minnesota!” we
shared a fist bump and were both happy that we were feeling better
than expected at this point. I took off the long sleeve shirt as Rudy
got us enough water to finish, and I grabbed another lemonade gu and
a small handful of trail mix from the aid station and we were on our
way. Rudy figured we needed to average 11 minute miles to make it –
not knowing how fast we were actually going, or precisely what lay
ahead, it seemed best to go hard and hope we were moving that speed.
We quickly caught the local guy and his pacer and Rudy excitedly told
them we were going for under 30 hours, and they should too. I heard
some mumbling about ‘impossible’ and ‘pipe dream’, but they
stuck with us. I focused on steady, hard breathing, pushing downhills
and jogging up what I could, but some hiking still happened when the
breathing got too heavy. This was hard, but definitely fun – going
back and forth with our new buddies, passing others and trying to get
them to come along (none did). Rudy is not a runner, so I think we
were struggling about the same amount. He was awesome – kept
encouraging me and letting me know I could ditch him – I definitely
was not holding back so he could keep up though – we were both
working hard! There were a lot of intersections in the final ten
miles and I was happy to be by someone who had done this part before.
There were also three cattle gates to get through – it was perfect
having one pacer sprint up, get their runner through, hold the gate
for the next pacer to take over, get their runner through, then close
the gate. We ran through the final aid station, Decker Canyon, 93.58
miles, at 9:50 am – 70 minutes to get six miles in – no slacking
off! The locals pulled ahead a bit, but would still whoop and cheer
back at us on occasion. I was really loving Rudy at this point, for
getting so fired up to give this a go and motivating others to try
too, even though it seemed ridiculous to try covering the final ten
miles of 100 in less than two hours. The elation was tempered quickly
by all the little ups that just kept coming! I couldn’t get over
the nonstop hills on this course, but I kept pushing. It felt like a
10k effort to me – how could I hold that for another hour? But I
just had to keep trying. I downed the lemonade gu a little after
10am, hoping it would help more than hurt...luckily no ill effects. I
knew there was goofy looping around on the road at the finish, so I
tried not to get too excited or let off once we could see the
pavilion. We hit the pavement with about a half mile to go, at 10:45,
but kept pushing. It felt like the pace slowed quite a bit, this was
a little uphill and it was demoralizing to see other runners that
looked so far ahead but still not at the finish! I was nearly in
tears, amazed at how brutal the course felt to me. But we did make it
across the finish in 29:51, the local about a minute ahead.
 |
| I was pretty happy to get under 30 hours! |
Hugs all
around! We weren’t projected to be in for another hour, so dad and
Marcus missed it, luckily Lisa happened to cheer us in, along with
Sam (though I was a little bummed to see Sam, since that meant she
had dropped). This is when I finally realized that my run wasn’t a
disaster, even though I felt convinced for most of it that I was
doing awful. Really, I couldn’t have expected it to go much better.
My niggles didn’t turn into anything, the sand in my shoes didn’t
hurt anything, my muscles were sore, but not excruciating, nor were
the little blisters on my feet. My stomach and energy did some
flagging, but mostly stayed under control and I wasn’t terribly
dehydrated, sun burned or chafed. And I RAN, HARD after going 90
miles, and still felt fine at the finish. Of course I could have been
better prepared, but the training and studying of the course I did
manage to get in resulted in what I consider a success.
The rest of the day
was great – there were actual showers, inspiring finishes to see,
friends and fellow runners to chat with, and a decent post-race
sandwich bar to enjoy on a lovely afternoon. I’m thinking I won’t
run this one again – there are so many other races to experience
out there! But I would recommend this event, especially to anyone
that likes climbing, a lot, over and over and over again!
A few items for my
own information:
1:49 spent at aid
stations (15 of them, plus two water stations)
~250 oz water
1 e-gel
6 gus
2 little brownies
3 fig bars
~1.5 cups trail mix
4 dried apricots
4 mini pretzels
3 pc.s hard candy
~1/2 orange
~2 cups watermelon
~1 cup cantaloupe
~1 cup canned/plain
potatoes
~1 cup mashed
potatoes
~1/2 cup fried
potatoes (olive oil, I think)
few bites hummus
tortilla
1 pierogie!
1 chewy granola bar
~5 cups brothy soup
~3 oz ginger ale
~3 oz coke
I guesstimate 3,500
calories during the run
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