Quad Rock 50 Race Reort

I caught up with Bronwyn Rittner in her motorhome at a gas station in Walden after leaving work at lunch on Friday afternoon.  She was going to be providing me with a warm shelter on wheels as well as race day crew support as I attempted my fourth trail ultra in Ft. Collins the following morning.   Some veteran runners might think that being crewed at a 50-miler is unecessary but Bron's aid proved to be indespensible at Quad Rock, especially as rain fell and temperatures dropped into the 30s the evening before the race.  She had secured a campsite within 20 minutes of the start area and after dinner and last minute preparations, we retired early in anticipation of the 5 a.m. start time.

The bright sunlight, casino-like location and multitude of people should have been a clue that things were not as they seemed, but I still panicked as I frantically looked for my race gear.  Nothing was where it was supposed to be!  I panciked more.  Who is this person laying down where I laid my gear just hours before?  Why is my dog here?  I couldn't answer the questions.  Why is there now a child wearing a leash where my dog once was?  Now, I see the motorhome driving off in the distance and I run to catch it but soon lose it in the crowds of people that have materialized.  I panic more.  I'm going to miss the start!  Damn!  What is happening?  ...and suddenly, I wake up.  It is dark.  My alarm then goes off and I realize I have been dreaming and it is now 3 a.m. race day morning.  Relief strikes me and I quietly laugh to myself.  I already miss my now-pregnant wife-to-be and want to call her and tell her about my dream but it's too early.  It's going to be an interesting day.

Bron prepares breakfast and I drink some coffee.  Outside, the rain has stopped and the ground is wet and it is very cool so I dress appropriately for my run.   We arrive at the start area a little after 4:30 a.m. and as I pick up my race number I notice elite ultrarunner Krissy Moehl is working the registration tent.  I think to myself how cool it is that ultrarunning is still so small and intimate that it isn't uncommon to see the best in sport volunteering at a race (I later saw Krissy working an aid station and, again, running back to the start area).   Without any fanfare, the race begins and about 200 runners head off into the morning darkness to complete a 25 mile loop through Lory State Park and Horsetooth Mountain Park, at least once.

Only minutes into the race, we turn onto single track trail, headlamps guiding our way, and I get the feeling that I will be pulling over into the bushes before anyone else.  After less than 2 miles of running, the notion turns into a certainty and I find a quiet spot, turn off my light and descreetly let nature run it's own course.   By the time I rejoin the race, I've fallen back to near the end of the pack but it doesn't bother me in the least as I am determined to run my own conservative race and know that I have, literally, all day to see where I stack up.  As the sun begins to come up, I find myself working my way up past a couple of groups, never working too hard, but still able to make some progress with regards to my overall position.  Still under 4 miles into the race, the climbing begins on single track, so I patiently fall into line behind about 20 people and find a hiking groove.  The morning light reveals beautiful pine trees and rocky trails that snake steeply up the mountainside but any views into the distance are obscured by thick fog.   As we climb higher, frost and a little snow cover the plants and rocks.  After a while, we hit the wide trail up to the Towers so I surge past the group and then return to a steady hike, climbing up into the cold cloud layer.  Nearing the top, I strike up a short conversation with a Ft. Collins runner who tells me he is going to his son's soccer game after he finishes his 25 mile loop.  It makes me think about my own future child and fills me with happiness as I press upwards.  At the aid station, I don't linger too long but I make sure to have my water bottle topped off and grab a handful of food to eat.  I've started eating a gel packet every 45 minutes to help keep my energy up.  After Towers, we begin the first descent and I manage to pass a few more runners as the field stretches out.  Again, I maintain a steady, even pace.  It's much colder than I expected it to be but not quite as wet.  I hope that it will warm up as the day progress, though, so when I reach the next aid station, Horsetooth, I decide to drop off my gaiters, change shoes and, optimistically, change into a short sleeve shirt, grab new gloves and eat some food and chat it up with Bronwyn a little bit.  I easily spent several minutes in the aid station before leaving feeling refreshed.

The next leg was another climb back up to Towers via a different trail.  The climb was another steep one and I'm sure I hiked almost every step to conserve energy.  On the way up, I catch a few people and one of them is Steamboat runner, Mike Hlavecek, who has finished several ultras including last years Leadville Trail 100 in just over 22 hours.  I have the utmost respect for Mike's endurance and know that if I pass him, I'm probably going too fast.  We strike up a conversation and we run the next downhill leg together until we arrive at the Arthur's Rock aid station at mile 17.6.  Again, I take my time and I see Mike take off.  It occurs to me that I should be meeting Bronwyn here but when I don't see her, I assume it was the next aid station or something.  So, off I go on a long 7.4 mile leg back to the start/finish area at Soldier Canyon.  (Later, she tells me that I had beat her to Arthur's by five minutes.)  I'm still carrying a couple of gels but it also occurs to me that I was supposed to pick up a little more food from her (and, maybe, a long sleeve shirt).  I still managed a good pace on the leg but as I made it back to Soldier Canyon, I begin to feel my energy fading.  Before I hit the aid station, though, I am lifted by the comic scene of a fellow runner going outbound on the course again and proceeding to vomit just 20 feet in front of me.  His moment of  abject misery dwarfs mine and I laugh to myself and I run into Soldier Canyon.

Once at Soldier Canyon, I spend a good 10 minutes there getting readjusted, eating some potato chips and sweets and refilling my running vest with gels, beef jerky and some Clif Bloks.  I empty my shoes of rocks and really feel refreshed and ready to tackle the second lap as I head back out.

On the climb out, I maintain a steady hike, rarely running, and catch several runners, including the "vomitter", another guy moaning in pain and limping, as well as few people doing well but just moving slower than me.  It's another 7.4 miles back to Arthur's, a climb and descent, but it goes super well for me.  Hiking up, I eat the entire packet of Clif Bloks and the beef jerky.  On the descent, I run through the woods on a cool, rocky trail and have moments of pure bliss, engulfed by the joy of running smoothly through a clouded, frosty wonderland.  It is a pure runner's high.  As I arrive back at Arthur's, I'm stoked to see Bronwyn there and she relays the story of her getting there after me.  Again, I take my time, drink some miso soup and refill all my bottles with water and Gatorade.  I change my shoes, again, although it wasn't really necessary and leave after a few minutes, ready for another 1600' climb back up to Towers. 
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At the beginning of this leg, my feet hurt a little and I'm afraid that my shoe change was a big mistake.  It also feels even colder as I hike upward into the clouds again but my forward motion is enough to keep me warm and my feet start to feel better by the time I reach Towers.  Again, I top off the water bottles, grab a couple cookies and shove them into my pockets and eat a handful of gummy bears and I'm off, down the mountain another 1600' to Horsetooth.  The downhill treats me good again but I decide to change my shoes, yet again, once I hit the aid station.

At Horsetooth, I lingered a full 10 to 12 minutes, drinking more miso soup and eating a turkey and rice burrito that I had prepared for the race.  I change up my footwear one last time and chat it up with the aid station personnel, one who even suggests a cool name for the baby.  Clearly, I'm just having a great time at the event and not even thinking about racing for a fast time or place.  Leaving, I'm amazed at how good I feel so late into the race so I just stick to the plan and power hike all the way back up to Towers for the fourth time of the day. 

After going up to Towers, I met a couple of hikers on the way back down.  They ask how far we are running and when I tell them 50 miles they are both amazed.  I look at my GPS and tell them that I am at mile 45 and I've been going for 9 hours and 55 minutes.  As I move on, I realize that if I hammer the last 5 miles, I might be able to break my own personal best time for 50 miles so I finally let myself go and begin to run hard for the first time all day.  I reel in a couple more runners and really can't believe how fast I'm able to run so late in the race.  I press and press my effort the final two miles, trying to catch two more people in the distance before the finish but can't close the gap before the race ends.  I cross the finish in 10:42:57, a new 50 mile PR by 10 minutes.  I can't help but think that if I hadn't spent so much time in the aid stations I could have finished nearly a half hour faster than I did.

Overall, it was a great training run and learning experience.  The race volunteers were awesome, the course was well-marked and ridiculously hard.   Bronwyn's help was top notch and much appreciated and I can't wait to team up with her again in July for the Leadville Silver Rush 50, where I think I will push hard for a sub-10 hour finish.

Weekly Summary: Feb 13 - Feb 19

2/13 - Rest.

2/14 - 5.03 miles.  :54:05.  360'v.  Stagecoach.  PM.  Katy and I both got off work early enough to run an out and back on the road from the house down to CR 14. 

2/15 - 5.20 miles.  :54:38. 360'v.  Stagecoach.  PM.  Another roadie with the lovely Kate.  Felt tired.

2/16 - 3.88 miles.  1:15:04.  1220'v.  Stagecoach.  PM.  I opted to hike/run/trudge up Stagecoach Mtn. to "The Beach" in knee deep snow with Benihana rather than dodge headlights on the county road.  Solid effort and very slow going ascent from the top of Second Pitch to The Beach as we broke trail.  It's been snowing again and I'm not snowboarding!  WTF?!!

2/17 - Rest.

2/18 - 17.98 miles.  3:29:18.  1650'v.  Steamboat.  AM.  Started my long run with an easy 2.30 mile, :29:20,  warm up before doing a Running Series race, Love the Run Your With, a 6.85 mile, 1:17:21 snow run on Emerald Mountain.  The entire course was super tough with loosely packed and punchy snow that made it very appropriate to wear snow shoes, which I didn't.  The ascent was grueling at some points and I redlined my effort the entire time.  Tough, tough, tough.  I was relieved for the downhill but the footing remained difficult as I seemed to punch through the snow every 50 steps or so.  Really hard to establish any kind of rhythm.  I ran the majority of the downhill with a guy named Tom and we finished the race together, just happy to be done.  At least, he was.  I still had 9 more miles to do, so I ate another Honey Stinger and ran to the Core Trail from Howelsen Hill to Rotary Park.  On my return to town, I crossed over to River Road and made my way back to Howelsen to refill my water bottle at Olympian Hall.  I still had a couple more miles to go so I jumped back on the Core Trail and ran towards the library where I saw Mina, my friend Jonny's mother-in-law, jogging down the trail.  We jogged and chatted our way down to Stockbridge and back to Howelsen.  I felt good for the most part during my run(s) but my legs are definitely feeling it this evening.  Whooped.

2/19 - 10.01 miles.  1:38:59.  980'v.  Stagecoach.  AM.  I didn't think it was particularly cold when I left on my run but the wind chilled me right to the bone every time I was running into it.  I stayed warm enough but really should have worn a windbreaker instead of fleece.  I stayed on the roads for this effort since I was sufficiently over running in the snow after yesterday's race.  Still had some slight lingering soreness in my left quadracep from yesterday but, otherwise, I felt good on this outing. 

Week Totals:  42.10 miles.  8:12:04.  4570'v.

A good week.  Still coming up a little short on mileage but getting more than adequate time on my feet.  Such is running in the mountains in the mid-winter, when even an easy 4 mile "run" can take well over an hour.  I was a little worried about going long this weekend and actually getting the mileage required by my training schedule but I think it helped to include a fun (but challenging) race into the mix.   One of the participants in the race was Allen Belshaw, an accomplished local ultrarunner who has twice won the Squaw Peak 50 and Desert RATS 50 and has victories at the Plain 100 (self supported 100 miler) and Laramie 100.  I introduced myself after the race and while we talked he told me that it was a good training idea for me to race before finishing my long run.  "Put down some calories and keep running,"  he said.  "If you go sit down now, you'll never want to get back up."  I guess I felt a little inspired by his advice and it really motivated me to go out and get the remainder of my distance for the day. 

I feel like my diet is staying on track although I probably ate way too much Valentine's chocolate this week.

Next week will be another reduced mileage and recovery week which is good since I'm finding it harder to get miles in accumulating snow.  Hopefully, when March arrives, the weather will be more agreeable for running.  Of course, as I type this, I see that it is starting to snow.  Oh, boy.  Maybe I'll just have to go snowboarding!

Continental Divide Trail Run Race Report

Holy shit.  That is a tough race.  Especially when it starts the morning after one of your best friends gets married and you clipped your quadracep on a rock while tubing down the Yampa River that afternoon and you've been at sea level for most of the week before and...OK, that's enough excuses.  Here's how the race went down:

The 2011 Ski Haus Continental Divide Trail Run, which is a Trail Runner Magazine Trophy Series race, sold out with 125 runners, again proving that the Steamboat Springs Running Series is really getting the attention it deserves.   It was another gorgeous morning, the weather clear and cool and perfect for racing.  After meeting at the Knoll parking lot at the Steamboat Ski Area, runners are loaded onto shuttles which take them to the race start at the Fish Creek Falls trail head.  At the race start, runners practically sprinted to the trail to avoid bottle necking and continued down the trail and crossed the footbridge at the bottom of Fish Creek Falls.  Immediately afterwards, runners begin the first of many, many climbing sections.  Gaining 500' in the first mile and 1500' in the first 3.5 miles, I found myself hiking much of the first part of the race.  The trail is not only steep but also very, very rocky for the first few miles, making it very difficult to do any running at all (unless you are one of the rabbits at the very front of the race) since the footing is so sketchy.  I managed to reach the 2nd waterfall in 33 minutes and took a few seconds to go down to a small pool and dunk my hat in an effort to cool off.  After the second falls, the trail begins to climb more gradually and I was able to start running a little more, albeit conservatively, knowing that there was still much more uphill to deal with later in the race.  About 4 miles in, the trail crosses a beautiful meadow that was pretty muddy.  I tried to avoid getting my feet wet at first, but there was an unavoidable section of soupy mud and all bets were off.  I laughed and said out loud, "Yep.  It's a mountain race."  I saw the runner in front of me turn his head a bit and smile in agreement.  At the 5.5 mile mark, the course turns onto the Mountain View Trail, a 6 mile grind up the backside of Mt. Werner.  I paused at the aid station, drank two cups of Cytomax, ate a Honey Stinger gel and pet a race volunteer's dog before I proceeded on. 

I have a real love/hate relationship with Mountain View Trail.  Running in this direction, it's a long, forested uphill run to get to the top of the ski area.  It's a beautiful trail (that's the love), especially in the last 2 miles when the views out to the Continental Divide become really impressive.  But it's tough (the hate).  I always have a hard time on this trail.  I ended up doing most of the trail alone, alternately running the flats, downhills and moderate uphills and hiking on the steeper climbs.  My right quadracep was feeling pretty sore from hitting the rock in the river while tubing the day before but I just tried to keep moving and keep my heart rate from going too high.  I stopped a couple of times to get some debris out of my shoes.  Finally, in the last 1.5 miles, I caught a glimpse of two runners about a hundred yards in front of me and I felt like I would be able to catch them, if not before the summit, then, hopefully on the 2.5 mile descent to the Gondola.  I managed to reel in the first guy and kept steady after the next, catching him in last .5 mile before the summit.   At the summit, I was so relieved to finally be done with (almost) all that heinous uphill.  By now, we had climbed well over 3000'.  On the descent, I saw two more runners in front of me and I ran my fastest to catch them both.  I was able to catch the first runner on Storm Peak Challenge and gave him an "attaboy" as I passed.  There was a short, bushwacking detour to the course due to logging operations on the mountain, which was actually really fun.  There was a ton of flagging to let you know where to run but NO trail. Just low brush, grass and rocks.  I managed to pass the second runner here and then did all I could to stay fast on the remainder of the downhill as we hit dirt road again.  Like the Mt. Werner race I did a couple weeks ago, this course finishes with a very cruel 400+ yard uphill run to the gondola.  I felt like I was moving in slow motion but happily crossed the finish line in 2:30:41 (19th), nearly 6 minutes off my goal time of 2:25 but proud, none the less, to finish this grueling race.  

Nick Sunseri won the race, destroying yet another course record, in a blistering 1:47:50!   We talked before the race and were both a little dubious about the advertised race distance of 15 (or 16) miles.  Both of our GPS watches calculated the course at 14.3 miles.  Nobody disputed the 3400' of vertical gain.  Other locals also recording fast times were Josh Smullin (3rd, 2:05.30),Harry Niedl (4th, 2:07.10),  Bill Goldsmith (5th, 2:08.13) Glen Light (8th, 2:15.34) and Gregg Joyce (14th, 2:25.36).

Mount Werner Classic Race Recap

It was another stellar summer morning with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s (after a little rain in the days before) and a near-full corral of runners began the 12-mile,  3,400 vertical foot trek to the top of Mt. Werner.  The race website: (http://runningseries.com/races/mt_werner_classic.php)  claims the course actually climbs 4,775' because of the multiple uphill and downhill sections along your way to the summit.  I read once that a 1,000' climb is like running an extra mile.  To call this race a challenge is no understatement. 

I arrived early enough to see neighbor and friendly runner Bronwyn Rittner in the parking lot and walked down to the registration tent.  Because I registered early enough, my race number was pre-printed with my name on it.  I thought that was a cool, classy touch for the Race Director to think of.  I did a little warm up running with local speedster, Harry Niedl (ended up finishing 3rd, 1:49:45) and let him know my plan was to start really slow and save as much as I could for later.  My only goal was to beat last year's time of 2:06:04.

At the start, I stayed true to myself and started slowly,  settling in with a pack of runners as we headed up Right of Way towards the bottom of Thunderhead lift.  From there, we got on the dirt road up to snowmaking, instead of taking the single track.  This was a detour from last year's course due to a mudslide that happened in the spring.  As we approached the first view of the valley from the top of Bashor Bowl, I ran with Roy Cardwell from Vail, who I met at last year's race and we talked for a bit.  Roy's running the Leadville Trail 100 in a couple of weeks.  We got to talk for a while after the race, too, which was really nice.  He says he'll be back next year.  I hope so.  We passed the first aid station at the Snowmaking Building and hopped on the Valley View trail to do the first section of serious climbing (of course, I say this after we have already grunted our way up a solid 7-800').  The weather was so nice and cool in the shady aspens.  I ran with the two women's leaders (Nancy Citriglia and Kelly Bedell) for a little while, then pushed ahead once we got near some of the downhill sections.  I caught Duke Barlow from Breckenridge just before the climb up Moonlight but he passed me as I hiked up a steep section and then got away from me.  I was relieved once the course got to Duster because I knew that we had a relatively tame climb to Rendezvous on a mile plus dirt road.  Nancy Citriglia of Winter Park was now the women's leader (went on to finish first in 2:03:46) came on strong here and passed me on Duster.  At Rendezvous, the course runs down a dirt road to the bottom of Sunshine Lift and then, begins the gnarly 2ish mile climb to the summit on Pete's Wicked Trail.   I was able to see the two runners in front of me on the occasional switchback, so even though I really started to feel beat, I had a goal in mind of staying somewhat close to them.  I couldn't quite find a rhythm on the climb.  Pete's is a pretty technical trail with water, rocks, logs, a bit of everything.  And it's relentlessly steep.  I checked my watch at one point and I had been running for 1 hour and 38 minutes, so I ate a Honey Stinger gel to give me a boost.  It helped a little but, if not for the amazing wildflowers and the jaw-dropping view at the top of Sunshine Liftline,  it would have felt like a bit of a death march to the summit.  Once within sight of the top of Storm Lift, I was able to get my second wind, ready for a 2.5 mile downhill run to the gondola.  Local runner, Mike Hlavacek, was at the summit aid station with some encouragement and a pitcher of water or margarita.  Your choice.  I thought he was joking at the time but found later that Nick Sunseri (local running stud and winner of this year's race in 1:41:19) and Roy had both taken Mike up on his offer.   (Not for me, thanks.)  On the descent, I just went for broke and clipped off my fastest downhill effort my legs could take.  First, I passed a Chevy Suburban and, eventually, caught Nancy as I cruised down Storm Peak Challenge but she still managed to stay close behind me.  Less than a mile from the finish, I see Eddie Rogers (Steamboat)  running in Vibram Five Fingers and I really want to catch him at the end.  I definitely had pace on him and I was feeling good.   That is, until he saw me chasing him and kicked it down another gear.  The final 400 yards or so of the race is another unforgiving dirt road climb up to the gondola and I was completely gassed.  His strong stride indicated that he had more left than I did.  He finally disappeard around a bend just before the finish and I did all I could to end with a smile.

Yes!  Another wonderful time running a great race and I even PR'd the course with a time of 2:03:34   (Shooting to go under 2 hrs. next year and I managed to keep my top 10 streak intact by finishing 8th because a couple of real fast guys didn't run today.)  I stuck around for a while, ate a little food and talked about trail running with a few of the other runners.  It was a super beautiful day and I was glad to hang out at the top of the gondola with a bunch of people who had just run the same, awesome course.  Everyone was just really in sync and friendly, so the event had a really positive vibe.  Great time.   The Race Directors, Emily Conjura and Cara Marrs, did an incredible job of putting on a Zero Waste Event.  The course was well-marked and well-managed.  I'm already looking forward to next year.  This race is definitely a Classic.

Randall's Run Rabbit Run Race Report

Perfect weather and beautiful fall foliage were hallmarks of this year's 4th edition of Run Rabbit Run, our local trail ultramarathon here in Steamboat. More than 150 runners (they say it sold out at 190 runners, but a few didn't make it to the start), including myself and a determined Katy Taylor, who had decided to do the race TWO days before, toed the starting line at the base of the Steamboat Ski Area at 6 a.m. This being only my second attempt at 50 miles, there was just enough doubt in my mind about finishing to keep me a little anxious. I felt healthy and well trained enough though and was hoping to finish in a decent race time, while still enjoying the scenery and having fun out in the woods.

The first 6 miles of the race is a 3400' climb to the top of Mt. Werner (a.k.a. Storm) which I did, mostly, with Katy. As we started off in the pre-dawn darkness, the temperatures were cool, in the 40s (F), and we alternated between running the flatter sections of Why Not Road and hiking most of the way up the mountain. We reached the top in about 1:30 and while Katy stopped at the aid station, I pushed on to the next 6 mile section, Mountain View Trail. On the outbound, this trail of technical single track, gradually decends several hundred feet over a couple small hills as it works it's way down to Long Lake. I decided to stretch my legs a little and ran the downhill sections with a guy named Mike from Ft. Collins. Uncharacteristically, I kept hitting rocks with my rearward foot causing me to trip (and fall and roll once!) many times. It continued throughout the day. I noticed I was not the only one, however, and even Mike tripped at one point. Still, we kept the pace quick. It felt good at the time but, in hindsight, I should've eaten at the aid station and run slower in this section and saved more for later in the race. We arrived at the aid station at Long Lake (I think it was in less than 3 hours) and I had my water bottle refilled as I grabbed a little to eat (some fruit) and pushed on.

From the lake, on Fish Creek Falls Trail, the next section started with about an .8 mile of meandering and up and down single track, first across a meadow and then back into the forest. The trail then crosses paths with the Wyoming Trail (heading North/South) which runners proceed south on, as they pass Lake Elmo, then Fishook Lake, on the way to the Base Camp aid station. During this part, I found myself starting to struggle a bit. Looking back, I was behind on calories even though I was staying well hydrated and taking a gel every hour. I should have been starting slower and eating earlier in the race.

As I passed Base Camp, I knew it was going to be a trudge out to Dumont Lake. My hamstrings were getting tight from the climbing and I couldn't find a rhythm in my running because I was constantly getting tripped up. At least, I had run this section of trail many times in the past and knew all it's twists and turns (and there are many) very well. I found comfort in my familiarity with the trail even though I was starting to feel pretty bad. As we came out of the woods and started along the shoreline of Dumont Lake, I passed Goeff Roes as he was heading back from Rabbit Ears. I looked at my watch and I think it was 4:40. It was about a mile more before I reached Dumont Lake aid station.

I was super stoked to see my friends, JD, Derek and Ross, who had brought me a cooler with some food (hamburgers I made the night before), ice, water and some chocolate milk. (I ended up not drinking any of the chocolate milk, even though I love it after a run.) I changed into a short sleeved shirt and grabbed a couple gels, refilled my water and took off again. I'm not sure why I was ignoring all the signs that I really needed to eat more but I just kept pressing toward the turnaround at Rabbit Ears Peak. About a mile up the road, Katy caught me, looking fresh as ever. I forgot how steep the hills are up to the Ears but I was really slowing fast and we only hung together for about a half mile before she took off ahead of me. I was super proud to see her looking so good and doing well. She was running a really smart race and her IT band didn't seem to be bothering her. After I (finally) hit the turnaround and started back downhill I caught my last glimpse of Katy about a half mile ahead of me on the dirt road. She was flying.

I was so hungry as I hiked back into Dumont Lake. When I got there, I announced to my crew that "my girlfriend was kicking my ass!" They laughed and acknowledged its truth. I ate half of an avacado and tomato burger and drank a bottle of water, while I sat down for a minute. It was great to clown around with the guys for a few minutes and they were having a great time hanging out at their first ultra. It was a cool scene. I wanted to press on so I hastily took the second half of the burger with me and started on the trail. Just a couple hundred yards down the trail, I saw my friend Bronwyn (Katy's crew leader from Leadville) who offered me some watermelon (technically, cheating) and encouragement. She's awesome. I told her I was fading but hanging in there and she let me know she would be volunteering at the Base Camp aid station so I would see her there. (Cool, nothing like seeing some familiar faces along the way.) I pressed on again, knowing I was in for some decent hills and descents before I would see Base Camp. I just kept my head down and kept doing my best to run the downhills and any flats that I could. I found myself hiking much more than I had anticipated. I was having to dig deep to stay in the game mentally. As I ran the half mile of dirt road to Base Camp under the noonish sun, I could hear a volunteer from the aid station rather annoyingly cheering runners on. (Really, I'm all for the encouragement but this bitch was annoying.) I was glad to see Bronwyn again and chatted for a little while, finally realizing that I needed to take a little more time at the aid stations than I had been. I did some light stretching of my hamstrings and made sure that I drank and ate sufficiently before leaving. I thanked all the volunteers and started down the next downhill section. "Just make it to Long Lake." was my mantra and I just kept on striving.

I started to come back from the dead in this section. I'm sure it was because I had finally eaten something and I made the most of it by running as much as I could. My feet were getting pretty sore but if I put that out of my mind, I was able to keep my pace up. I hiked into the aid station at Long Lake feeling much better mentally even though I was pretty run down physically. I saw a guy (Greg) that I ran with at Spring Creek earlier in the year volunteering at the aid station and we talked briefly. I stretched again and took the time I needed before heading onto what I knew would be the hardest part of the race, the uphill return on Mountain View Trail.

Initially, I was feeling quite good. I managed to run the first couple miles back up Mountain View. Then, in waves, I went through periods of feeling really drained and beat to feeling better (although still in considerable pain) and managing some running. As I hit the last mile and half of the trail, I started seeing a few more runners and by the time I got to the top of Mt. Werner, I was in a train of seven runners. It was cool to press up that final section of trail with a other miserable companions. Finally at the summit, I knew it was a final 6 mile downhill to the finish. I knew I was going to finish and I knew it was going to hurt getting there, so I filled up my water bottle grabbed a handful of fruit and started off. I looked at my watch and it was just about the 10 hour mark. I decided that I could muster a 6 mile run in under an hour to finish under 11 and I proceed to give my quadraceps a nice, long thrashing as I snaked my way to the base of the ski area. Hurt as it did, I was able run almost the entire way down and crossed the finish line in 10:53:14.

At the finish, I was stoked to see Katy (who had blazed a 10:06, one minute faster than last year and 5th Female) as well as a bunch of good friends (JD, Derek, Jason, Becca and Kiarra) who had come down to check out the masochism first hand. All in all, it was another humbling day in the mountains. I didn't run nearly as fast as I'd hoped but the effort was there and lessons were learned. Start slow. Eat early and often. Good times!

Leadville Trail 100 Race Recap

Katy and Bronwyn, her crew chief, tried to leave for Leadville on Thursday night but got vehemently denied by a combination of mudslides and one badly running RV. Instead, we headed south the next morning, me following in my truck. After the heavy rains the day before, it was a beautiful morning and we made it to Leadville in plenty of time for Katy to do her pre-race medical check-in and to sit in on the race briefing and crew meeting. 800 runners had registered for this year's race, it's largest field ever and about 750 made it to the starting line (362 finishers) Saturday morning at 4 a.m.

We awoke around 2:30 a.m., got ready and drove to the start. Even in the dark, cold morning, the energy at 6th and Harrison was palpable. Bronwyn, myself and other crew members, Johnathan and Laura, watched on as Katy and hundreds of other runners, streamed down the road, headlights beaming, beginning a grand adventure. We then loaded up into the Suburban and made our way to the first aid station, May Queen, where we would resupply Katy after the first 13.5 miles around Turquoise Lake.

Due to the incredible volume of people crewing for runners, the roads were a madhouse all day. At May Queen, we parked about a half mile from the aid station, assembled and loaded a gear chariot and towed Katy's supplies (food, extra clothing, etc.) down to meet her. Katy arrived at May Queen looking calm and relaxed in about 2.5 hours. Her first question, "Did you bring the blue bag?" was met with befuddled looks from the rest of us. Immediately, John bolted into a run back to the Suburban. As a crew, we were now batting 0 for 1. Still, there was no big hurry to get Katy out on the trail right away and she ate a little and stayed warm until John returned with her gear. The next leg had an aid station about 10 miles from this point but we wouldn't meet her until Twin Lakes, about 27 miles away. She packed and wore a running backpack with enough supplies to get her there. After a brief stay, she rejoined the race and began the trek up the Colorado Trail towards Hagerman Pass and onto what would become her toughest stretch.

After leaving Katy, the rest of the crew went back to our campsite to prep food for later in the day and I tried to start mentally preparing myself to pace. We left for Twin Lakes and arrived there a couple hours before we expected Katy to arrive. The little "town" was all abuzz and the front runners were already starting to trickle through. When she finally arrived, Katy complained that the IT band (connective tissue running along the quadracep from the hip to the knee) in her left leg was giving her problems and locking her leg up when she tried to run flats or downhills. The pain had started around mile 18 and wasn't getting any better. John, our masseuse, worked on her for a few minutes as she ate and got ready to climb Hope Pass. I think everyone was little nervous at this point but Katy was determined to keep going. A few minutes after she left Twin Lakes, she called from her cell phone to tell me that she had passed the leader, Anton Krupicka, going the other way (Unfortunately, Anton ended up not finishing the race after "bonking" around mile 80) and to say her leg was locking up again. Still, we stuck to the plan and John, Laura and I went to Winfield to wait for her.

After a dusty and slow drive out to the ghost town of Winfield, we anxiously waited a few hours for Katy's arrival. There was well over a thousand people at the turnaround and it was really quite a spectacle as masses of people gathered to spectate and support these incredible runners. As it got later and later passed the time we expected her to show up, we knew Katy's injury was getting the best of her. We started to think that maybe she had turned around and headed back to Twin Lakes but with a scant 45 minutes to go before the cutoff time, Katy came rolling into Winfield. Her IT band had definitely taken a turn for the worse but she was determined to continue as long as she could. After another massage and conferring with a doctor at the medical tent (who recommended she NOT continue), I joined my beautiful and persistant girlfriend back down the dusty road for 3 miles before heading up the south side of Hope Pass.

We tried to run on the road but it was just too painful for her. However, once we reached the trail she had no problem with the uphill hike. On the contrary, we began passing many people on the climb. Most were just having trouble dealing with the altitude. I know it was frustrating for her that we had no problem passing 20 or so people on the uphill knowing that the downhill would be excruciatingly slow. We reached the Hopeless aid station (complete with 30 or so llamas that had brought in all the supplies) just as the sun was going down, around 8 p.m., and ate a cup of noodles and stood by a fire for a couple minutes. It was getting cold and we were a little underdressed since we had planned to do all this section in daylight. Still, we trudged on downhill, into the dark woods. After about an hour more, we reached the first of several, cold water crossings. These, combined with some cold mud, made the last mile fairly uncomfortable. Just after 10 p.m., we reached the Twin Lakes aid station, 15 minutes after the 9:45 p.m. cut off time. Katy's run had covered 60.5 miles in 18 hours. Not her desired result but very impressive considering her physical condition. Mentally, she did not let down at ANY time. She's a champ.

After a few hours of sleep, we awoke to cheer on some of the final runner's along the part of the course that went by our campsite. Around 9 a.m. we all went to the finish line to watch the last people who would make the 30-hour cutoff (and one that wouldn't). The street was lined with a couple hundred people and the finish was a very emotional scene, especially for these final runners who had fought the course longer than those before them. Particularly moving for me was one man who was in the 70-79 year age group who finished with about 10 minutes to spare. The crowd roared as he came through. Amazing. Chances are very good that Katy and I will both attempt the Leadville 100 next year.

Mount Werner Classic Race Recap

This past Saturday, I ran in the 16th Mount Werner Classic trail run. There are 5 and 12 mile versions of the race and I participated in the 12'er, which starts at the base of the ski area and climbs 3,400+' to the summit of Mt. Werner before a two mile run descent to the finish at the top of the Gondola. A few weeks ago, I thought this might be my best race of the season but injuries to my feet in the past two races had me thinking otherwise. In the week preceding the race, I should've returned my normal training runs but, instead, I had taken a week off from running and went on two very light, short trail runs during the week. The Achilles tendon on my right foot remained slightly sore to the touch and my plantar faciitis in my left foot seemed to be neither better nor worse. Neither ailment really affects me while I am running but I certainly feel it post run and first thing in the morning. Waking up Saturday morning, I was unsure if I would run the whole race or if I might even hurt myself further if I even ran. I decided to run very slowly to the start (only a mile or so from the house) and see how I felt when I got there to decide whether or not I would race.

I got my race number and lingered at the start at the base of the Gondola, watching other runners file into the area. I was struck at how fit everyone looked and it occured to me that this being such a tough race, it was bringing out the more serious crowd of athletes. On top of that, the race had sold out it's 125 entries for the first time in the history of the race. There were some good runners in this crowd. It may have just been the fun, pre-race atmosphere, but I immediately felt well enough to run. Saying "hello" to the other runners, watching people stretch and warm up, it really got me into the mood to get out there with like-minded people on what was already a beautiful, sunny but cool Steamboat morning.

I decided to go out very easy and only run uphills if I really felt good. My goal if I had been completely healthy was to finish in 2 hours, so I decided that 2:15 was a reasonable goal considering my foot issues. If I really felt good, I thought I might run back down the mountain and back home. I wanted to run slow and easy enough to do this.

After a quick run down of the course by the race director, we were off at 8:00 a.m. This race is essentially a 10 mile climb to the top of the mountain with a 2 mile descent. The climbing starts from the very beginning, although gently, and we all started snaking our way up the ski area. I fell into a relaxed pace, making sure to breathe through my nose only, ensuring I kept it nice and easy. (I did not want to blow up! I kept on thinking about pacing Katy at Leadville in two weeks.) By the time we had completed the first .75 miles up to the bottom Thunderhead I had found a comfortable groove and started to really enjoy myself.

The next couple miles up to the Gondola, first on dirt road and then on the Valley View trail, I felt energized and happy. It was a beautiful day and I was feeling good. Much like the Spring Creek race, I was running on trails I was very familiar with and knew what to expect as we climbed higher. I had plenty of water in my handheld so I passed the first water stop at Snowmaking.

At one point, we passed the game trail that I run up from Whistler Park and I couldn't help but feel like I was right in my backyard. I spent a little bit of the climb talking with a cool local guy named Ryan. I was in such a great mood thinking about all the previous times I'd been on this trail as we cruised up the aspen strewn mountain side. After about 4 miles of steady climbing, I hit the Duster cat track and ran with Brian, a dude from Orange County, for the relatively flat 2 miles out to Rendezvous. He was fun to run and talk with and made the race alot more fun. He was primarily a mountain biker but had done some cool adventure runs like the Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim. He and his girlfriend were on vacation by travelling and mountain biking or trail running at various places. We filled our water bottles at the Rendezvous water stop and I left first but felt nature's call and pulled over on the side of the trail to relieve myself. Here, Brian passed me and so did one other runner (Roy Cardwell of Vail). I knew the next section was a 2+ mile long climb to the summit so I just hung back and did a fair share of hiking to take it easier on my feet. I passed Brian after a while and then checked the GPS. Once I knew I had 3 miles remaining in the race, I began to run again and decided to run the rest of the way to the summit and cruise the downhill to the finish. Roy and I pushed each other to the top and started downhill. His shoe came untied and I ran past him as he cheered me on. (Nice guy!) I opened up my stride and cruised the switchbacks on Storm Peak Challenge, passed the Four Points Hut and finished up strong on a short climb back to the Gondola. I ran in easy to the finish and the timer said I looked like I didn't even break a sweat. I ended up being the 8th finisher in 2:06. I hung out at the finish to see a couple of the other guys I had run with finish. I ate a little at the finish tent and socialized for a couple minutes but I felt so good I decided to do the run home. I ran another 5 miles down the mountain and back to the house to finish with about 18 miles and 3 hours of running for the day. My feet were definitely sore afterwards and I've decided to only run in the pool for the next two weeks until Leadville. Speaking of ...

Katy and I went down to Leadville this weekend so that she could show me some of the important points in the race. We walked a couple of the trails and drove over the road sections and looked at the places where some of the aid stations will be located. It made the upcoming race all the more real and looking up to Hope Pass (12,600') from Twin Lakes (9,200'), all the more epic.

Spring Creek Memorial Trail Run Race Report

I can't believe I've been neglecting the Steamboat Springs Running Series for so long. If the other races they put on are as well organized and fun to be at as this one was, then I'm going to be a regular (at least, for trail races)!

I parked my truck at Steamboat Springs High School and ran a little more than a half mile to the start/finish to pick up my race number. It was cool and sunny at 7:30 a.m., perfect weather for a run. I saw Katy, who was volunteering as a 5K timer, picked up my race number and walked around to stay loose. There was a great turnout. Katy told me that the race had sold out: 100 runners. A few minutes before the start, I made my way to starting line and chatted for a minute with a guy visiting from San Francisco (yeah! Big up, S.F.) Last minute instructions about course markings (which I should've listened to better!) and we were off.

I was really pumped to be running my shortest race of the year. Knowing that I would be done in a little over an hour (I was shooting for 75 minutes), instead of 6 or 10 or 12 hours, made the run seem all the more casual. I felt healthy enough to run a fast time but didn't want to go so hard that I might hurt myself.

The run starts off with a very short climb and descent and then runs ever so slightly uphill along the creek for about a mile. Here, I settled into the second pack of runners and watched the fast guys go blazing ahead of every one else. I felt really comfortable and smooth. We made the short but steep climb up to Spring Creek Trail (proper) and started off into the woods. About 100 yards later, we cut hard up the hillside in a drainage that went up, up, up. I didn't even bother trying to run it. I noticed the woman in front me trying for a while but she just got tired. My hike was plenty fast enough and I stayed behind her for a few more minutes before making a move past her and the next two runners. I picked up the pace and felt good as we neared the 2.5-3 mile mark. It was very thick forest with lots of chest high grasses, branches, roots, mud and downed trees everywhere. Super fun ascent! Ahead, I could see the last two runners of the chase pack about 100 yards ahead of me. I was certain I'd be able to catch them at my current pace.

About a minute after thinking this, I missed a race trail marker and made a wrong turn up a game trail and into the woods. About 20 or 30 seconds later, when I didn't see any more markers, I knew I had made a mistake but had no idea where the trail was. (Oh shit!) Then, I see two guys following me...uh oh. I yell back, "I'm not on the trail!" About that time, I hear, "The trail's over here!" coming from another runner. (Ahhh!) I started laughing and bushwacked my way back across to the proper trail. (Rats!) I wasn't upset, though. On the contrary, I thought that little miscue made the race that much more fun and adventurous. I had to be the only person who was laughing as they climbed up that steep, forest trail.

Still, I lost a few minutes and had to pass a few runners on the tight, uphill trail to regain some running room. Once I settled into this position, I didn't see any other runners for a couple miles. I finished this first big climb and opened up my stride on the next downhill. This was a fast mile-plus on a primitive wide trail. Mostly forested but punctuated with one nice meadow. As I ran down to a dirt road, I saw a water stop and passed it, making a left turn. I asked and the girls at the stop told me the last runner came through about 20 seconds ahead. The course came off of the Tatanka Ridge property and turned onto Buffalo Pass Road right after here and I began the uphill, mile or so run up to Dry Lake on the road. At this point, a runner comes up behind me and we talk a little. (Well, I talk alot but he seems pretty winded. Can't blame him, though. That climb was intense.) I run ahead of him at Dry Lake and begin the sweet 4 mile descent down Spring Creek Trail. I passed the aid station saying, "Thanks for volunteering!" to the person manning the table and they shout back an encouraging, "Have fun!" I do.

Once on the downhill, I just let gravity do it's thing. I let the trail pull me down it's meandering course. I cruise through the woods, over the rocks and across 13 man made bridges that span Spring Creek. You should have seen the frickin' smile I had on my face. I was so aware of it! It's a sublime feeling to just let your mind and legs go and spin downhill. At times, it's like I'm not even there. Only the trail exists.

I passed one runner around the 5.5 or 6 mile mark who reeled me in again with about two miles to go. I started talking to him to see how winded he was and he was happy but didn't want to talk too much. I took this as a sign of fatigue and pushed the pace to see if he wanted to run with me. He didn't take and over the last couple miles I pulled away from him. I looked at my watch earlier and saw I wouldn't make my 75 minute goal and just tried to run hard at the end. As I neared the finish line, I heard her voice and looked over and saw Katy at the finish line with a big smile on her face. I crossed the finish and gave her a big hug. I didn't bother listening for my time or placing because I didn't care at the moment. I had just had so much fun, I just wanted to tell Katy all about the race and talk with some of the other runners. (For the record, I think I finished in 79:13 (9th place!) so 75 wasn't a bad guess. Maybe if I hadn't made that wrong turn...)

It was so much fun to run a race on a trail that I get to do all the time. I saw a few familiar faces and made a couple new acquaintances. The race seemed to have a real hometown vibe to it. Katy said a family finished 1 through 5 in the 5K. How cool is that? I'm going to volunteer to work at some the races I don't run in order to get more involved in the local running community. There are some great people involved in it and they definitely showed up today at Spring Creek!

Earlier in the week, to tune up for this race and recover from the last, I did a VFF run on Spring Creek on Tuesday (6.3 miles, 1:02), then a fast 8.2 miles, 1:12 on Wednesday. I did have some new pain on the top of my right big toe at the end of TRT, now it's worse. So the recovery part didn't go so well. I'll have to take a couple days off from running to avoid a more serious overuse injury. Need to go swimmin'!

2010 Tahoe Rim Trail 50K Race Report

I packed up the dog and a long weekend's worth of supplies and started driving towards South Lake Tahoe around 4 a.m. on the morning of the 15th. This is the part I will skip next time. A plane ticket and a couple of bags in exchange for 32 hours in a hot, cramped 20 year old Toyota pickup with 282K miles on it. I suppose I could look on the bright side and say that I did a crash course in heat acclimation by driving on the freshly blacktopped asphalt of I-80 in 103F degree heat. Then, did some sleep deprivation training on the drive back by leaving at 7 p.m. and driving through the night to get home. Apparently, ultrarunning and family are labors of love. :)

The race was amazing. Jay dropped me off at the satellite parking for Spooner Lake State Park and I chose to run the half mile down to the start as a warm up rather than take the shuttle. I already felt light and nimble and ready to run. A crowd of around 400, that consisted of both 50K and 50 mile runners, amassed at the starting line a few minutes before the 6 a.m. start. The 100 mile racers had left the start an hour prior. After picking up my race number, I spent a few minutes snapping photos of the runners. The Race Director went over some pre-race info (like only doing the Red House Loop ONCE and avoid the mountain lions and bears that are known to visit the Rim Trail.) I jockeyed for a spot near the front a minute before the start, eager to run the best race I could. I think I heard someone say "Go!" and we were off.



The temperatures were coolish at the start of the race but everyone knew it would warm up to near record temps as the day progressed. I heard someone say that it was 20 degrees warmer this year than last. The first part of the race would be a 6 mile climb up to Hobart Aid Station, from Spooner Lake at 7000' up to 8500'. Without trying to go out too fast, I was able to work my way up into what I felt was the first 20 or so runners in the first miles as the trail meandered and slowly climbed a forested hillside. We started out on a double track road, but after a couple hundred yards we jumped onto a single track and the runners spread out into groups of people running at similar pace. Still not trying to run too fast, I found myself slowly working my way past runners for the first 3 or 4 miles.



The climb was fairly gradual over the entire distance with a couple of flat sections. The early trail was in the trees the entire time, the surface kind of a mix of sandy and rocky with some soft dirt sections, as well. Once, I arrived at Hobart, I decided to pass the first aid station without stopping since I still had a full water bottle and a half (I was carrying two)and had eaten one Honey Stinger gel.

The next leg was a longish traverse and climb (with a tiny section of snow) and then descent down to the Tunnel Creek Aid Station.



By now, I felt really warmed up and ended up chasing a really strong runner down a multitude of switchbacks in the forest. This 2 or so mile long downhill was one of the most fun parts of the race for me. The other runner kept a fast pace and I didn't have any trouble staying with him and no one was gaining ground on us. Towards the end, I backed off a little bit to save some for later in the race, as the other guy pressed on ahead. I coasted into Tunnel Creek feeling good and pumped for the next section, the infamous Red House Loop.



At the aid station, I had both of my water bottles filled with ice water and grabbed a handful of fruit and nuts to eat. I lingered just a moment and then started a climb out from Tunnel Creek. I think I ate my second gel about this time but don't really remember when. I brought 5 and ate one about every hour. I hiked alot of this section because it was pretty steep.



I think we were about 12 miles into the race by now so I knew I shouldn't try to run any uphills at this point. Too early. After the climb was a gnarly steep downhill. I figured this would go on for a while because of the reputation of the loop. About this time, I started seeing 100 mile race runners coming up from the Red House. A few were still rather upbeat but there were a couple who were really not liking that climb out. I had to slow myself down for some of the descent because it was so steep but I still made great time down to the bottom and the turnaround water station.



I only lingered for a second and started out of there quickly. The climb out wasn't that bad for a little while and I caught the guy I had chased down to Tunnel Creek and we both mostly ran this section. I liked his pace so I was happy to just hang behind him for a while. We passed a bunch more 100 mile racers and I tried to encourage all of them to have a great day (and night!) when we passed. Once we hit the steep part of the climb, I switched to hiking and started passing everybody I encountered all the way back up to Tunnel Creek. I was surprised how well I was climbing but it seemed like all my mountain running at home was really paying off. At Tunnel Creek, I took a few pictures, got some cold water and a few things to eat and took off again.

The next section was going back up the hill I had chased down earlier. The race started getting really tough in this section. Here was another big climb and the temps were starting to crank. I kept pounding water and steadily hiked everything steep. I eventually caught up to a cool guy named Mike from Phoenix, AZ. We started talking and it helped me take my mind off how my hamstrings were starting to hurt from the uphills. Turns out he is a fairly experienced ultrarunner and went to CU-Boulder. I was grateful for his company on the climb. As we crested the hill, we were treated to another great vista of Marlette Lake and Lake Tahoe and we saw a couple mountain bikers who had stopped to take in the view, too. I almost ran on but when I saw Mike stop and ask for them to take his picture, I had to do the same. It was a beautiful spot. Shortly thereafter, the two of us hit Hobart.



At the aid station, I spent a couple minutes talking away with the volunteers. Man, they really made the race. All the people are so nice and helpful. Filling water bottles and getting you food and salt tablets or whatever. Giving you info on the course. So helpful. They even had a bar set up at this aid station and assured me I could have a shot of Jameson, if I wanted one. (I declined but apparently a couple of 100 milers didn't earlier in the day. I can't imagine.) I was curious what place I might be in because I kind of felt like I was doing pretty good. One of the volunteers said I might be in the top 10. "Really?! I better get going!" I was so surprised. Based on my goal time of 6 hours, I thought I might be doing pretty well but this was still a shock. I left the aid station and headed out noticing that Mike had already left maybe a minute or so earlier. I took off down the sandy trail and passed a group of kids walking to the aid station who told me I was in 12th. "Cool!" I thought.

The next few miles were a gradual climb up to Snow Valley Peak and the aid station there. Mike got away from me on this leg and I was content to run alone for awhile. While in the woods, I got passed by another runner as I stopped to take a picture of some really cool moss growing on a dead tree. It was a luminous green color and it just stopped me in my tracks. So cool looking. When we climbed out of the forest, I could see him every once in a while, only about an eighth or a quarter mile ahead of me. I just plugged along, put a little more snow in my hat and stuck to my steady uphill pace. As I ran down to the aid station, I could hear the volunteers cheering for me by name. I thought this was so cool. When I ran into the aid station I said, "I didn't realize I had so many friends here!" I had my water bottles filled with ice water and grabbed a quick orange slice and darted out for the next 5.5 mile downhill. At the aid station, I had managed to catch up to Mike and the other guy but I also saw a woman who had snuck up behind me. It didn't matter, the next leg would be my best running all day.

From Snow Valley Peak, the single track trail does a nice gradual, traversing downhill for about a mile or so before heading down into the woods. I was feeling so rejuvenated I just took off at about a 5:30 to 6:00/mile pace. I flew past Mike and caught the other runner in front of him about a minute later. Now, I was feeling really jazzed and kept a steady fast pace down the trail. I could see myself gaining on one more runner about an eighth of a mile down the trail and within 3 minutes I caught him and passed. I could hear him struggling a bit with the downhill and knew he wouldn't try to chase me. Once I hit the treeline, I just maintained my pace. The problem with my strategy was that when I left Snow Valley Peak, I didn't know how far it was to the finish or the next aid station. All I knew is that it was all downhill from here. I was gambling a bit but betting on myself. I looked at my GPS watch and saw my run time was 5:40. I decided to run the fastest pace I could maintain for the next 20 minutes and see where I was, hoping beyond hope that it was at the finish line.

I had the time of my life running down this trail, feeling good. I passed a couple groups of day hikers that were hiking up the trail and most of them cheered me on. A few looked puzzled. It was a great boost because I was starting to fade. I ate my last gel, kept pounding water or dumping it on me to stay cool and just hammered every step I could. At 5:58, I hit the final aid station, just a water stop, at Spooner Summit. I had my water bottles filled again and asked when the last runner came through. "The first woman left about 5 minutes ago." Rats. Wouldn't catch her. How far to the finish? 1.7 miles. "Oh, I got this!" I said as I ran off.

The last section was relatively flat as it worked it's way around Spooner Lake. The trail was heavily treed, so it was nice and shady but I couldn't see or hear the finish and I was SO ready to stop running. Still, I ran a steady pace and really felt like all my long runs this year (especially the day long outings with Katy) had really prepared my legs to keep running even after 6 hours. I was stoked. Finally, I turned the final corner and just burst into a near sprint. I could hear my sister yelling and saw her and my niece and I felt like a million bucks. I waved at them and crossed the finish line. Then, I sat down. Damn, that felt good.

A couple of other runners were still sitting at the finish and confirmed that I had finished 10th. I still couldn't believe it. I just walked around, stunned for a couple minutes, trying to soak in the whole experience. Checking the results online after getting home, I found out my official time was 6:11:13. I also found out that I had been racing against some pretty seasoned ultrarunners, including Tim Tweitmeyer (former record holder for the ENTIRE 165-MILE TAHOE RIM TRAIL), who finished 4th, about half an hour ahead of me.



I am really happy (obviously) by how the race played out. I think I can attribute my good run to several factors: 1. Several good long, slow runs after an early season of gradually rebuilding my mileage 2. Lots of hill work on my shorter runs and pushing it on those up and down hills 3. Resting when I needed to 4. Eating lots of nutritious, natural food and cutting back on sugar 5. Good lovin'!

This coming weekend, I really get to have some fun and run fast. I'm doing the Spring Creek Memorial 9 miler here in beautiful Steamboat Springs. It's my first time doing a race in the running series and I'm looking forward to it. Gotta represent at home!