I had run a 7:16 at the Hocking Hills 60k 2 months ago, so in looking at the 40.65 miles (approx 65k) in the Dizzy Fifties in Huntsville, Alabama, I had expectations of finishing in less than 8 hours on this very fast course - wrong! Final time on my watch was around 8:40!! About 6:16 at 50k. I didn't have any issues or excuses so it has me scratching my head on exactly what happened.
the course:
Driving 3 miles straight up a hill right out of Huntsville, I arrived at the top & it became pretty flat -- a plateau of sorts. It was breezy on top & chilly till the sun rose a little higher. There were nice scenic overlooks along the outer edge of this plateau thruout the course. The race consisted of 3 loops run multiple times with a centralized aid station, similar to the Stone Steps 50k format in Cincinnati. The small loop of 2.2 miles was run once, the north loop of 4 miles was run 4 times (for 40 milers) and the south loop of 5.6 miles was also run 4 times (for 40 milers). The most difficult was the north loop the 1st time around when the trail was covered with several inches of new fallen leaves. With all the rocks & roots hidden beneath, you had to step gingerly & hope the ankles held out! I only had one tumble but many twists & turns of both ankles -- nothing serious though. With all the foot traffic, the leaves were kicked out of the way or matted down as the day progressed & it became much better. This north loop had the only hill on the course as you dipped off the plateau for a couple miles. The small loop & the south loop were flat with the leaves already matted down & with only a few rocks & roots -- fast & easy running trails.
the race:
I was just over a 11 minute pace for the 1st few loops & then quickly faded. High stepping in the leaves on the 1st trip around the north loop apparently took something out of me. By the halfway point of the race, I was already reduced to the "shuffle" mode (slow) as my legs were gone. I stumbled & stubbed more toes dragging my feet thru the leaves that way, but I wasn't going fast enough to fall! I did get passed by one 50 miler. He was someone I had known from Lovin' the Hills & Stone Steps -- Tom Possert -- a tall fellow with long muscular legs. As I was walking up the one hill on the course on the north loop at about mile 34, he passed by me & started walking -- so he was human after all! Of course he was on mile 44 and walked faster than I ran all day. I could tell it was unusual for him to walk this hill as he commented (without me asking) that he would be running this if he needed to. He sure didn't need to as he finished easily over the next competitor.
I did wear two (2) watches this race: one of my favorite toys -- a Garmin 405 and my regular Polar watch. The Garmin's battery is not very good -- it only works about 6 hours for me, so I came prepared. Here are some pics that I made from the Garmin data, the first 3 are from the Garmin Training Center program & the last is from the Google Earth program (I've exaggerated the vertical scale somewhat in this pic to highlight the topography of the area) -- Click on pics for a larger view:
1st loop run once:
north loop run 4 times:
south loop run 4 times:
sample google earth pic:
I was really looking forward to this inaugural Pinhoti 100 as it promised a lot of single track & had an early starting time. I didn't think getting too sleepy, like at Grindstone, would be an issue -- and it wasn't. Unfortunately, my old nemesis, my back, like at Mohican, did me in once again = DNF. Maybe my body is trying to tell me something with 3 DNF's now in my last 3 100 milers! My Dr. prescribes muscle relaxers for my back, but they have no effect on me. My last resort is a chiropractor -- I've always kept away since I'm "double jointed" & have feared something may pop too far. My joints can pop out of place without help from someone else! I'm going to seriously think about it, but for the mean time, I'm cutting down the length of my races.
Start
With the race being a point to point format, a long bus ride to the start was necessary unless you had made arrangements to move your car. I get motion sickness easily & the ride was OK till we reached the hilly & curvy gravel road 7 miles from the start. I felt nauseous & my stomach became upset, but not enough to throw up. The nausea went away once we started but my stomach remained upset.
I ran into Bob Engel & Robin Meagher, both from Cincinnati, at the start line -- both would do very well in this race! Congrats!
Miles 0 - 6.7 Aid Station 1
I wanted to go out slow so I kept to the back at the start. With about 90 starters funneled into a narrow single track right off, it was single file walking for about a half mile for the runners in the back. It was a rocky & rooty section that was slick from the rain the day before, so I didn't mind the walking. The trail remained narrow but everyone was able to find their own spacing by the 1st aid station.
Miles 6.7 - 13.27 Aid Station 2
Very nice runable single track thru this area. Whoever designed the Pinhoti Trail seemed to have a priority in mind: no trails along the top of any ridge! This was clearly evident thruout the entire course (of what I completed). All the trails went along the sides of hills with occasional sections along the bottom & only rare crossings of the top of any hill. The only exception I noted was about a half mile of ridge running coming up to highest point in the race at Mt. Cheaha. With this "side of hill" trail design and switchbacks, the course was fairly "level" considering the very hilly nature of the area.
My upset stomach turned into a need for an unscheduled pit stop. The chafing afterwards was pretty painful even though I did get some relief at the aid stations.
Miles 13.27 - 18.27 Aid Station 3
After the 2nd aid station at 13.27 miles, a detour was made onto a roadway to avoid a section that was heavily damaged by a tornado. This was mostly uphill & everyone was able to witness the incredible destruction along side the road. It looked like a clear-cut logging operation! After several miles of this, we finally got back onto single track. The fallen trees were not limited to that one detour area though. There were countless trees across the trail from start to finish on this course that you either jumped, climbed, crawled under or went around. The first hundred or two weren't too bad, after that it became taxing on my back. They were momentum killers for sure.
Miles 18.27 - 34.56 Aid Station 6
Other than the detour, the course was a single track lover's delight up to this point. I felt good as I was well within myself & making good time. With a pretty good breeze, leaves were falling like rain -- very nice!
Miles 34.56 - 40.94 Aid Station 7 Bald Rock
This was mostly an uphill section that turned rocky coming up to the highest point in Alabama, Mt. Cheaha. The best view on the mountain was at Bald Rock & it was crowded with visitors. I stood with them for a while to enjoy the view -- GREAT!
Miles 40.94 - 52.07 Aid Station 9
The steep rocky trail coming off Mt. Cheaha was called "Blue Hell" (this segment is run uphill in the Mt. Cheaha 50k). I would say it was called "blue" as there were blue blazes painted on the rocks. It was steep, but not as tough as I expected -- it would have been had it been dark or I had to climb up this hill.
It was about mile 50 when I had my first twinge of pain in my back -- it was not a welcome sign. It became dark & with every trip or stub of the toe, the pain would seem to go directly to the back. After another unscheduled pit stop I entered the aid station at 52.07 miles at about 13 hours 14 minutes. Great volunteers this stop & at every aid station!
Miles 52.07 to 55.34 Aid Station 10
From the aid station, it was slow going as the trail became pretty technical. The highly reflective tacks & tags on the flagging were excellent night-time markers. There were a couple creek crossings and the water was down. It was clearly evident that these creeks became raging torrents at times. Unfortunately, my back was getting worse by the mile & I was slowing down considerably thru this section. At the aid station at 55.34 miles, the thoughts of DNF were creeping in. Up to this point, all I thought about was that I was on schedule for a PR & felt pretty confident about it! I sat down on the ground as I went thru my drop bag & put on some warmer clothing & then pondered my situation. Had some hot soup & other goodies & started off to the next aid station slowly.
Miles 55.34 to 60.29 Aid Station 11
As I was walking, I started calculating the amount of time I had left to get under 30 hours and figured I had to do 20 minute miles the last 45 miles. But I thought, after the next aid station or two, the trail really took off from any roads or civilization & if I decided to stop then, there were no provisions for the volunteers to get me out of there. This weighed heavily on my decision to stop as I didn't want a repeat of Mohican, where I had to be packed out of the wilderness when my back went completely out. Better safe than sorry, so I made the decision to just walk it in to the next aid station where there was vehicle access & end it at 60 miles.
The End
I told the volunteers I was stopping & asked if I could get a ride back to the finish. They said there was a shuttle scheduled soon & to sit down & wait. I was reluctant to sit down as I knew if I stopped moving for very long I would start freezing. The volunteers said they had a space blanket & that the shuttle would be there any minute & convinced me to sit down. About 5-10 minutes later I started shivering. There was a breeze & the space blanket didn't cover every part of my body -- I felt the wind! My inside shirt was still soaked from sweat & that didn't help. I was soon shaking so much I told them this wasn't working & that I needed to get some place warmer. My back pain was no longer an issue at this point and I started to feel a little nauseous on top of all this! One of the volunteers brought up their car & cranked up the heat -- saved once again! Many Thanks to this volunteer! Soon after, Jamie Henderson (RD Todd Henderson's wife), with some heavy coaxing to get us moving, transferred me & another runner into her vehicle for a ride back to the finish. Jamie is one wonderful person!
As I reflect back on this race, I'm very disappointed once again, but happy that I took on the challenge. I felt really good most of the race & most everything was going well -- things can change quickly though, as I found out. The point to point format on a brand new course made for new scenery every step of the way -- it was a big change from loop ultras & the course was great! I would definitely like to take on this race again next year.
Next up is Dizzy Fifties, also in Alabama. The event offers a 50k, 40M & 50M options. I've opted to try the 40M.
Last night I volunteered at the Pure Screamin' Hell 7 miler in Waverly Park. It’s rare for a trail race within Louisville itself and even more rare, or even a first for a trail race at night. I was happy to contribute to the trail running scene here, a city so dominated by road races. I was curious to the turnout on this Halloween night & surprised that about 50-60 runners showed up. I scouted the course last week and thought about entering, but decided I didn’t need to be running at a 7 mile pace on a trail at night with my weak ankle & with a big race the next week. This primarily MTB course is rooty in some areas, but overall pretty smooth with no technical or rocky sections. The entire course is made up of small rolling hills. About 20 minutes after the last runner left the starting line, I swept the course & finished with a large bag of glow sticks, flagging, signs & trash – one thing I didn’t have to worry about were parts of gel packets, which are so common when cleaning up after ultras! I did end up “running” the course, but at a much slower pace.
The big race is now less than a week away. I’ve been reading about the Pinhoti Trail along the lower Appalachians and found there were several races in the area that use a part of it. One area they’ve described is called the “Blue Hell”, an extreme climb over rocks & boulders on the way to the top of Mt. Cheaha. Looking at the Pinhoti 100 course, it appears I’ll be going DOWN this section – hopefully before nightfall! Another thing I’ve read were the numerous stream crossings, some with ropes -- maybe with this dry season, there won’t be a need. I’m really looking forward to this upcoming challenge/adventure!
This year’s version of Stone Steps saw many records broke due to the GREAT weather & GREAT course conditions. Not a speck of mud & Dave Corfman (RD) and Dave Krekeler had used leaf blowers to clear the entire trail!! Had it not been for this effort, I surely would not have finished – all those rocks & roots hidden underneath leaves would have translated into race ending sprained ankles.
The race started at 8:00 with nice & cool conditions. I wore a singlet & gloves but ditched both after the 1st lap. The gloves would have been handy a little later when I took my 1st fall . . . . I went airborne after tripping during a downhill section. It was like I was in slow motion – I had time to think how I was going to land – I threw out my hands & tucked my shoulder as I went into a roll. This worked OK as I only came out with a stiff shoulder & a couple sliced fingers from the rocks. In a 2nd fall later in the race, when I was bringing up my rear foot, it got snagged on a tree stub & down I went in a split second – no time to think about this one. My foot remained hooked & I went down hard onto my knees & hands & forearms. Fortunately, I wasn’t going too fast but managed to scrape up both knees pretty good. Both of these falls could have been a lot worse. After the race, I noticed that every runner I saw had some evidence of having gone down – I wasn’t even close for a “best blood” award here. Also, coming into the race with my ankles finally at 100%, I turned my right one, once again, on the 1st lap. It wasn’t serious & I was used to running with a sore ankle, so it wasn’t unusual to continue “as usual”.
The loop format was such that I didn’t have to carry anything – the longest loop at 5+ miles stretched it a little on the drink so I took extra time to catch up at the end of that loop each time. After completing the 5+ mile and the 3+ mile loops for the 1st time, my time was 1:32:16. This was close to my split time 2 years ago when I finished the race in 6:05. This split was a much better pace than when I took off too fast with a 1:24:43 in 2007, resulting in my 1st ever DNF & the only DNF of last year. By the 4th lap though, I began to feel my legs giving out & I dropped off the 6:05 pace considerably. Realizing that I could not beat my previous best for the course, I concentrated on just finishing the race – like no more falls! My official time was 6:27:38. The record for my age group was again lowered – this time to 5:35:40! Since I had no real excuses this race, this pretty much lets me know how I stand on my level of fitness – I have some work to do.
Next up is the inaugural running of the Pinhoti 100 in Alabama. I won’t have 38 hours (like Grindstone) to complete this race. With a 30 hour time limit, it’ll require everything to go smoothly. This will be my 1st point to point 100 miler – a brand new trail/experience every step of the way -- looking forward to it!
Some links to other Stone Steps race reports:
http://runtiludrop.blogspot.com/2008/10/wow-this-was-one-tough-trail-race.html
http://andy1962.blogspot.com/2008/10/stone-stepsdone-deal.html
http://milesandmadness.blogspot.com/2008/10/50k-stone-steps-not-really-race-report.html
http://dottieokeefe.blogspot.com/2008/10/stone-steps-50k-trail-race.html
Maybe it was foresight, or maybe I just knew my limitations when I said a very big part of the challenge was sleep deprivation. I never thought that I could run while sleeping, but that’s what I was doing Saturday around noon. I was actually nodding off & catching myself doing it – the result was another DNF – this time at 60 miles.Grindstone 100 profile:
Full story:
I drove 7 ½ hours to Staunton, VA Thursday & opted to stay in a motel instead of camping as I thought I would get better sleep there -- that didn’t happen. The non-smoking room was reeking of air “freshener” – it actually stunk & irritated my nose. I tried to get some good sleep but ending up waking about every hour. I probably got a total of 5 hours of the “dream” type sleep. The last time I woke up was at 5 a.m. & I couldn’t get back to sleep – so I just stayed in bed keeping off my feet & resting the best I could.
I arrived at Camp Shenandoah by noon, set up camp and went to the mandatory pre-race meeting. It lasted about an hour, including the handing out of some nice door prizes. Clark Zealand, RD & David Horton both did an excellent job on communicating the essentials of the race.
The weather was great – I could not have asked for better this time of year. Temps would range from the lower 40’s to upper 50’s the entire race – nice! Low humidity also. The course conditions were also great -- the ground was slightly damp, but not wet or slippery.
The Start
With anticipation building all day (and all week), the race finally started at 6 pm sharp. About 75 runners started & I settled in towards the back of the pack.
Little North Mountain
The first climb was a 900 foot hill. At the crest, I could look way up & see Elliot Knob across the valley looming ahead – it looked awesome. Coming down Little North Mountain & into the shadow of Elliot Knob, it got dark quick. The drink at the aid station between the 2 hills was one I had never heard of – it did not go down well & I didn’t drink much of it. The next aid station would be almost 10 miles & I regretted it later for not refilling one of my bottles
Elliot Knob
This 2nd hill was a doozy. It was 4 miles of continuous climb – I remember a couple near level sections, but that was about all. I crossed a stream twice up the hill in the dark but I’m still not sure if the trail actually crossed it. If it was a part of the course, this stream would be the only location where you could possibly get your feet wet the entire race. The trail became a gravel road about a mile or so from the top. This was the steepest portion of the climb & it was tough! Looking back the way I came, I could see twinkling lights far down below in the valley – I thought, this steep gravel section sure will be as tough going down too. I was hoping to make up time going down the other side, but soon realized that wasn’t going to happen. It was a narrow, rocky, technical trail & it took every bit of concentration not to trip. Most other runners had 2 lights, I only carried a handheld. I WILL have 2 lights on my next night run on technical trail! The strain on my eyes to see the rocks & roots came back to haunt me. Twice I almost fell but caught myself at the last second – at the expense of my back muscles – which also came into play later. If I fell here, it wasn’t going to be a scrape or bruise – instead something would be broken. This was by far the rockiest trail section I had ever been on.
Crawford Mountain
The trail coming off Elliot Knob finally smoothed out a bit after a few miles & then came to the next aid station at the base of Crawford Mountain. I caught up on my fluids & felt I was on schedule despite the slow going. Immediately coming out of the aid station, it was up & up & up! About 200+ feet of steep climb, followed by a fairly level section – this went on & on for about 5 “steps”. One thing about the trails on this course – switchbacks were very few & those very few were so long that you could hardly call them switchbacks. So when you came to a steep climb, you could see what’s coming all in one glance – just look up! Besides these steps, the other thing that stood out on this hill was this large tree about 5 feet in diameter right on the trail – what a sight! Coming down the other side, the trail was pretty smooth – felt really good thru here.
Hankey Mountain
The climb up this hill was very long, but not steep. The trail became rolling & eventually spilled out onto a dirt road. There were some mud puddles on this section, but they were easily missed – no wet feet or mud on my shoes this race!
Lookout Mountain
The road off Hankey Mountain turned into a technical downhill section at Lookout Mountain. The downhill went for a couple miles & ended with a long wooden suspension bridge near North River Gap. I was above my start weight on the weigh-in at the aid station here.
Grindstone Mountain & Little Bald Knob
I put these 2 hills together as I couldn’t distinguish where one started & the other ended. All I remember was the very long climb – it was just never-ending! I started running into the lead runners on their way back thru here – they were all at full speed down the hill – most impressive!
Reddish Knob
This was the highlight of the course for me. The 360 degree view on top of the knob was SUPER!
Briery Branch Gap
It was all downhill on paved road from Reddish Knob to the "next" aid station at Briery Branch Gap. At this point I was becoming very sleepy. The sun had been up for a couple hours now & my eyelids were becoming heavy. I was hoping to fuel up with some caffeine gels at the Gap aid station. This Gap was the location of the turnaround & I had a drop bag there. I had been running for several miles down this hill when a fellow in a truck stopped, jumped out & started running back towards me. He was telling me I had missed the turnaround! How could that be? Where was the aid station? He said the drop bags were sent up to Reddish Knob. What? This was a bit deflating as I walked slowly back up the hill. At a sharp curve in the road I saw white chalk/flour on the left side (coming from the downhill direction) indicating a U-turn around a grassy island – unfortunately I was running on the right side of the road & being half asleep I never saw it – besides, I was looking for people & an aid station – there was neither!
Reddish Knob again
It was all uphill on the road back to the Reddish Knob aid station. I had not realized my drop bag was there. I downed Mountain Dew & caffeine gels & loaded up with what I could carry & headed off to the next aid station at Little Bald Knob. On the way though, I started to see things that weren’t what they seemed to be. I thought for sure I saw a turkey in the road, but it ended up being a branch with leaves in the road – I saw many other things . . . Soon after I realized I was falling asleep while running! I would swerve & catch myself & then “wake up”! This was not good. I NEVER felt sleepy at McNaughton or Mohican so this was a first for me.
Little Bald Knob again
I slowed to a walk trying to keep my wits together & the prospect of DNF seemed as real as the next aid station. My legs were in good shape, it was I just couldn’t keep my concentration – something that I really needed on technical trails. Coming into the Little Bald Knob station at 59.94 miles somewhere around 18 hours, I only had to walk an average of 30 minutes per mile the remaining 40 miles to be an official finisher! Easier said than done in my condition so I told the 2 volunteers I was going to need a ride back to the start, but I was not in any hurry to get back. I could see they were already in the process of breaking down the station & I really didn’t feel like imposing on them by asking to take a nap there. Just then as I bent over (with my back, not my legs -- STUPID) to get into my drop bag, I had a back spasm & it about took me to the ground. I knew then any hopes of taking a nap & changing my mind to try to finish were history.
Finish Line
After getting a ride from the aid station, I crashed in my tent at the Start/Finish line. I proceeded to sleep for 17 hours!! I woke to the sound of cheering – the runners who I had seen pass thru the aid station at Little Bald Knob 40 miles away 17+ hours ago were just now finishing! Maybe a good dose of NO DOZE would have worked for a little while, but seeing that I slept 17 hours meant I was really behind in my sleep – too far behind I think . . .
Of course I’m disappointed that I did not finish -- but I did enjoy most every aspect of this event. Great volunteers. A great breakfast. There was only a touch of fall colors, but the scenery was fantastic anyway. The trails were challenging & fun to experience. Would I come back? If the start time is changed to 6 am instead of pm, yes I would very much like to. If not, I will have to re-think my pre-race strategies & if I couldn’t find a confident answer, would probably opt for another race. If I ran again, changes during the race would have to include using 2 lights & starting caffeine supplements much earlier.
Next up is Stone Steps 50k in Cincinnati. I'm in recovery mode now -- pretty tired still. My ankle took a beating but now feels stronger than before. My back, well . . . that remains an unknown factor.
A very big part of my challenge at Grindstone 100 will be the sleep deprivation factor, especially with the late starting time. I’m sure there’s a good reason for the Friday 6 pm start – my guess is permit issues or it fit the RD’s schedule. If one woke up at 8 am Friday morning, that makes it 10 hours before the race start – that’s 10 hours added to one’s awake time – making it a potential 48 hours straight of no sleep! (38 hr time limit + 10 hrs pre-race) Also, you have to consider that one does not get much sleep the night before a big race. Say you’re up at 8 am Thursday and get a generous 6 hours of good sleep Thursday night. The numbers would be: 6 hours sleep in a 72 hour (3 day) period!
In comparison, at the 100 miler at McNaughton earlier this year, I had gotten in about 6 hours sleep in a 59 hour period (longest stretch was only 35 hrs with no sleep).
What can I do for such a late start? At 1st I thought a good idea would be modifying my sleep pattern coming up to the race so I’d wake up late in the day on race day, but I have other obligations and making such a change is not going to be possible – plus there’s a mandatory pre-race meeting at 1 pm, 5 hrs before the race start anyway. I did “save” 4 hours at McNaughton by finishing 4 hours under the cutoff – but that’s not something I can count on. I think my best plan is to try to steal a nap in the afternoon & stay off my feet as much as possible the entire day.
My schedule the next 4 days . . . REST!
This past week without power was tough – I felt so frustrated & helpless as the hours, then days, passed. Unlike residents in Texas & Louisiana, this outage was totally unexpected. Had Louisville not sent a convoy of utility workers south for relief work when IKE made landfall, we would’ve gotten power back several days earlier. I did not have information about the Hocking Hills event which I had planned on checking online in the days before the race, so it was just a matter of using my memory on directions & race details. I ended up forgetting to bring several things too; everything seemed so out of synch coming up to this race.
The 60k got started about 7:15 am. There were other races to begin later at staggered times throughout the day, including a 5k, 10k, 20k & a 40k. About 35 runners toed the line for 3 laps of 20k over varied surfaces. I had low level pain in my ankle after the race last Saturday, so I didn’t run any all week in hopes of the pain going away (it didn’t).
It was cool at the start & the humidity was low all day. The 1st water stop ended up being at 7 miles as the one at 3.5 miles had not been set up yet (the water stops ended up being a sticking point for me this race). About 4-5 miles of each loop was pavement or gravel road. The traffic in the morning on OH 664 was ok -- the last loop it was downright dangerous as drivers were flying by just a couple feet from you. I think the speed limit was 55 (or at least the drivers thought so), but 35 on this hilly road full of blind curves seemed more appropriate to me. There was one good sized hill each lap. There were some scenic stretches along the gorge & running thru the pines was pretty enjoyable. The smooth rock outcroppings were so inviting, but I kept on the trail. With my sore ankle, I favored my left side slightly at first. Less than 1 mile of each lap is what I would call technical single track, which was down by the lake so I watched my footing closely – I didn’t need to do more damage. At just over 2 hours for the 1st loop, I knew the pace was too fast to keep up so I slowed considerably the 2nd time around. My ankle soreness went away (or it went numb) this loop. On this lap, quite a few new runners joined in on various parts of the course, 20k runners at first, then 5k & 10k runners on the last part. It’s always a bit deflating when you think you’re going along pretty good & then someone runs by you like you’re standing still. I’m sure it gives them a little boost, but wish we all had a different course.
Getting close to noon starting the last loop, it was getting pretty warm (hot for me). The shaded areas were fine -- it was just the sun beating down on my head on those long stretches of roadway with the only breeze (with fumes) coming from passing cars. The water stops on the course were just that – they were not what I would consider aid stations -- water was indeed provided & were as advertised. The only problem I had with that was the water got warmer & warmer till the water in the cups sitting out in the sun was hot! I usually came in thirsty & drinking warm/hot water wasn’t something I looked forward to. After seeing my displeasure at one stop, an aid worker got ice from her own cooler & put it in a couple cups of the water – all of it melted in about 30 seconds, but the water was cooled down – Thanks! One station used a garbage can filled with water – I could hardly stomach that when I saw him scooping from the can to fill my bottle, but then I realized I had drank water there the 1st 2 loops. All day, much of the water had a distinctive taste, like that from an outdoor faucet. The volunteers were friendly & very supportive so there were good times at the stops.
At the end of each loop, there is a half mile section on an uphill grade up to the lodge. Approaching the finish on this hill, the inside of my upper left leg started to cramp & seemed like it wanted to lock up. Maybe it was because I favored that leg so much the 1st lap trying to keep pressure off the right ankle, or more likely I was running a deficit on fluids. It was a real battle as I knew if it locked up, it would be extremely painful. All during this time, there was a lot of traffic leaving the lodge – one car slowed down & a guy started talking to me – I think he was trying to ask me a question. He was persistent, backing up to keep trying to talk to me – I never understood a single word he said – SORRY! Another vehicle slowed down & someone asked “Are you Ed?” I nodded & went on – I was beginning to wonder, are the race organizers worried about me on the course? Was I the last runner & they were waiting just for me? Later I discovered it was Cassie who had asked who I was & gave me encouragement on the hill – Thanks!
I finally dragged myself across the timing mat with an official time of 7:15:24. Surprisingly, although we had timing chips, they did not want us to go over the sensors at the end of each loop – I guess too much to keep up with. Along with chip timing, the small $25 entry fee got you a shirt & finishing token – not bad for an ultra.
Next up is Grindstone 100. My last long run is done & time to taper now. Although my ankle is still a concern, I had no trouble whatsoever with my back, which is great news.
north loop run 4 times:
south loop run 4 times:
