Badwater 135 2019 – A crew members perspective

Badwater if often considered one of the toughest ultra marathons out there. A combination of the length of the race, the extreme heat, and the 3 mountain ranges one must conquer certainly help lend credence to this claim. The race starts at Badwater Basin, one of the lowest spots on earth, at 282 BELOW sea level, and ends 135 miles later at the Mount Whitney Portal at roughly 8500 feet above sea level (side note, the peak of Whitney is the highest point in the lower 48 US states). The race also offers no traditional aid stations. Each runner is responsible for having at least 2, but no more than 4, crew members. These crew members must provide their runner with everything they may need to conquer the heat and distance. I was lucky enough to be on one of those crews for my friend Mel. This report is from my perspective of the event, as just one of the 4 crew members on her team and has no insights from the others or her (though I may add that later) as I want to recount my experiences.

Myself, the other crew members (less 1) and Mel all flew into Las Vegas Friday evening. We picked up our rental van (vans are almost a must) and found our way to our hotel. We would pick up our final crew member, Brandon, Saturday. Saturday was also the day that the crew spent most of the day shopping. As mentioned, all the supplies needed, must be brought to the race and our crew let Mel rest at the hotel while we spent hours in various Walmarts and other stores picking up all the needed supplies (except for ice, which we would get later). The trick with Badwater is that because it’s such a long race and in such hot conditions, you never know what you might be able to stomach. We picked up everything from water, to soda, to coffee, even some hot chocolate. We had chips, hummus, salsas, deli meats, vegetarian deli slices, cheeses, eggs, ramen noodles, etc etc. I even brought my own supplies in my Sword hydration. You just never know what you will want out there. After gathering all the supplies, we had a nice team dinner in Vegas.

Sunday morning we got the few remaining supplies we needed, which was mostly ice, and organized the van. Since we were headed to Death Valley, the car was loaded with ice. One large cooler, which would act as a freezer, was filled with dry ice and regular ice. Two regular coolers contained food and drinks and were also loaded up with ice. Two more water coolers were also filled with ice. In all, we had more than 100 pounds of ice, and this would only get us through probably half the race, if we were lucky. The rest of the morning was spent traveling to Death Valley so Mel could get checked in, get her race number, and all the other usual pre race things. We did stop at the Death Valley sign on the way in, as well as Zabriski point to check out the sights. We also checked out the Badwater Basin, the start line of the race.

After seeing the sites, checking in, Mel and Jack (the crew chief) attended a pre race meeting and the other crew checked out other parts of the Furnace Creek area (desert oasis which would be mile 17 of the race). We then drove the remainder of the course to where we would be staying for the evening, the town of Lone Pine, which is mile 122 of the race. We got in a little on the later side, so it was pretty much straight to bed.

Monday was race day. We all tried to sleep in a bit as the next few days would mean almost no sleep. After a nice breakfast in town, the crew spent more time organizing the van and making sure we each knew where everything was. We noticed a few items we needed to get last minute, so we headed to the store in town. We even bought a little extra ice. After a busy morning for the crew, we had a quick lunch with Mel and it was time to head to the start line. The nice thing about being in Lone Pine meant that we would have to drive the course backwards to the start, which allowed Mel time to visualize where she would be at certain points. Unfortunately, however, it also meant driving the mountain roads, which are up and down, with lots of tight turns, and Mel started feeling less than great.

Once at the start, Mel went to weigh in, and the crew set out to once again verify the van was ready. We added water to our 5 gallon water cooler, prepped some ice bandannas, got Mel’s headlamp, reflective vest, and blinky lights ready, as well as our own. (Note, the race requires reflective gear for crew at all times and runner during night, which is 7pm to 6am). At 8 pm, she was off. Temps were around 118 at this point. The crew worked to get into a groove in the early miles, keeping Mel cool would be a top priority. More ice bandannas were prepped and we would fill her water bottles with ice and water at each stop (always have a few prepped in advance so the runner has to stop or slow down as little as possible). Within the first 4 miles, Mel said her stomach wasn’t feeling right (remember that drive on the mountain roads?), but the crew noticed she was moving a bit faster than anticipated, so we told her to slow down. We also had been giving her her nutrition of choice, which contained caffeine. We stopped with the caffeine for a bit and she seemed to start feeling better.

At the mile 17 Oasis, Furnace Creek, Mel hit her first checkpoint. The crew got busy buying even more ice (always take ice in the desert), only 4 bags as not much of the ice had been used/ melted yet. I believe we also bought ourselves some ice cream here to help us stay cool. Mel came in and was feeling better, but took a few moments to cool off and prepare for the next stretch of miles.

Miles 17-42 are a bit of a blur to me as we were busy keeping Mel cool, it was late, and the miles seemed to tick by. Mel was having trouble eating food, so she had a few ups and downs, but was moving decently well in the later miles of that section. The sun also began to rise during this stretch, probably around mile 35 or so. She made it into StovePipe Wells shortly after sun rise and would be able to pick up a pacer here, me. I cannot say for sure if we got ice or not at this stop as I was preparing to pace Mel. She checked into the station, quickly used the restroom, and we were off. I was caught off guard by something Mel said to me at this point, but worth a note, I tried to hand her a water bottle, forgetting that, unlike most ultras, pacers are allowed to mule (carry gear for) their runners. When I tried to hand her her bottles, she reminded me, “Andrew, you’re allowed to carry my gear now. I am not carrying my water up this hill.” This is something I should have remembered, but in the moment, I had forgotten. I would remember this the rest of the race, however :). We were off.

Sunrise is both beautiful and ominous as it means temps will rise quickly

The first cut off is at mile 50.5. The next 8 miles would be up the first mountain pass. Mel would do a lot of walking on this stretch as it’s a very steep grade. We knew she would make the cut off, but she didn’t have a huge amount of wiggle room so we needed to keep her moving. We could let her rest when she hit the cut off. As we power hiked, I would hand her water when she needed it, as well as use a spray bottle to help keep her cool. She worked hard to get to the cut off. After 2 or 3 miles, I handed over pacing responsibilities, but I don’t recall who went next. Mel made the cut off with time to spare, and wanted a change of clothes. Remember when I mentioned we had gone over where everything was multiple times? Well, apparently none of us could remember where we put her short sleeve shirts and she wanted to switch into short sleeves. (Note, even in the sun, many runners wear long sleeves to help keep the skin from being burnt as well as allowing their arms to have some cool water poured onto the sleeves). As she dealt with some feet issues, the crew tore the van apart, but never found the shirt. We also had another snafu in her socks. We had pulled out the pair she requested, but somehow they ended up in some water. I attempted to dry them out, to no avail (why is it that everything, but the thing you need, dry incredibly fast in the desert?). She ended up changing into other gear and would continue on.

The next set of miles from 50.5 to 72 were tough on Mel. She would struggle to finish the remaining miles to Townes Pass. Mile 50.5 is at roughly 2,000 feet above sea level, but the top of the mountain isn’t until almost 5,000 feet, which meant she had 3,000 feet to climb still. The crew also had its share of issues during this stretch. The van we had rented had decided it no longer liked us. We could no longer get into the trunk. During one stretch, Mel took a rest and we worked on the trunk, trying to get it to open. After many minutes without luck, we decided we would crew out of the side of the van for the rest of the race. During some point of this stretch, a fellow Cincinnati runner caught up to Mel and gave her a pep talk. That got her motivated and she kept moving. After awhile, she reached the summit.

During the descent, Mel was moving pretty well and the crew kept working to fix the trunk. Mel was still not eating a lot and we did what we could to keep getting her calories. At some point, the van’s trunk opened, but wouldn’t stay closed now. The crew took some bungees and tied it down, but at least we could use it again to crew from, which made it easier on us. As she made the long descent, she was moving better, but she would make a few stops to work out some minor issues. At some point a jet buzzed the mountain, a fairly common occurrence in the area and our adrenaline started pumping. As she got most of the way down the mountain, the heat began to climb. I took over pacing duties for a bit and worked to keep her moving. She did some more walking as the temps and the grade were tough to run. After a few more pacer swaps, I was tagged in again at the bottom of the mountain, in the Panamint Springs area. This was probably the toughest spot for Mel. The heat was high, there is absolutely no shade, and there was a very strong wind, probably 30 miles per hour sustained and strong gusts. This whole area felt like being in a convection oven. I paced her through a sandy area and the strong winds pushed the sand around and created a small dust storm. I tried to offer her a buff to cover her face, but she did not take it. I had mine on and still got sand everywhere. At one point she was told it was about 2 miles to the next check point, but she saw a sign a few moments later indicating it was 3 miles. She was less than thrilled. I tried to convince her that no matter what the sign said, we would get her to Panamint, but it was a tough go. Eventually we do make it to Panamint, about 30 minutes before the cut off. Also worth noting during this stretch, a truck driver had come down Townes Pass and had seen Mel and I walking. He was concerned we were in trouble and offered us a ride. She had been the first runner he saw coming down the pass, but I told him we were ok, thanked him, and off he went.

Once at Panamint, runners are allowed to take as much time as they need, as long as they make the next cut off at mile 90 by 5am. It was 730pm when Mel rolled into Panamint and it may sound like it would be easy to go 18 or so miles in 9 or so hours, but these next miles are some of the toughest on the course. She took a quick shower and had some blisters worked on while the crew ordered her (and ourselves) some “real food” – pizza, hamburgers, pasta, and chicken noodle soup. In all, we spent about 1.5 hours in Panamint. Mel was feeling a bit down and was considering dropping, but some interactions with various individuals had her realizing it was time to move forward.

The next stretch is very tough as it comes when runners are very tired, and it’s incredibly steep. To top it off, because the road is so narrow, the crew can only stop at designated areas, roughly 2 to 3 miles apart. This can be mentally tough on runners. Mel started the hike with Jack while the rest of us went up to the first stopping point and prepared all the stuff they would need for the next set of miles. After Jack and Mel got through the first point, the crew quickly moved on to the next stopping point, but we realized in the rush to get Mel going (even though we had 1.5 hours, Mel surprised us by how quickly she got moving) we had forgotten to buy ice! Myself and Joe decided to take the water coolers out of the van and leave that, along with a few other supplies, with the 4th crew member, Brandon and quickly went back to Panamint to get ice. We returned to find Jack had been relieved of pacing duties and was guarding the gear. We loaded up the van again and headed up the mountain to catch Mel. Since our ice trip was fairly short, we were able to get to the next stopping point well before Mel arrived. Right before the toughest climb in this section, Joe took over pacing duties. The crew drove the 2.6 mile stretch up the mountain and estimated we had about 1.5 hours before Mel reached us, due to fatigue, etc. We all took a short nap, but were surprised when Mel showed up in about an hour! She had crushed that section! She tried to grab a quick nap, but Jack had none of it and sent her on her way, promising her that if she got to Darwin quickly, she could nap there. She was determined to get that nap and ran well through this section to mile 90. The temperature had also dropped significantly here and had fallen all the way to 53 degrees.

At some point she started running with Nick, the fellow runner who gave her a pep talk earlier. They had seen each other a bit here and there and even exchanged places a time or two, but they were a team for a bit through here. After checking in at mile 90, both runners were rewarded with their naps and both crews also got some shut eye. After 20 minutes, all were up and getting their runners out the door. Nick took off first and Mel followed. I was pacing at this point and it seemed Mel wanted to catch Nick, who seemed to be moving well. I am not sure if it was the cooler air, or her wanting to catch him, but suddenly we were running and running strong! She was knocking down 13 minute miles like they were nothing! We cruised along and passed Nick at some point, but Mel didn’t realize it. I didn’t tell her that we had because it seemed like she was using the need to catch him as fuel. She kept cruising, faster and faster!

As day broke, Mel didn’t slow down. She kept ticking off mile after mile. She eventually hit mile 100 and the crew celebrated with her, but she just kept pushing through the miles. As the sun rose for the 2nd time, the heat came back. While she did slow a bit in the heat, she had strong determination to keep moving. She started a walk run and maintain a very steady pace. Mile after mile ticked by and she never seemed to slow. Coming into a stretch through a dry lake bed, flies became a huge issue, so she did stop for a quick break to get some bug spray and some soup, but stayed strong.Lone Pine had come into view, but it seems to take forever to reach, though this didn’t seem to discourage Mel. In the afternoon, the heat had really turned up and was getting to her, so we kept her loaded with ice, though she continued to move well. At some point her coach, Harvey, had stopped to see how Mel was doing. We told him she was moving well and he asked if we needed ice. I initially told him that I didn’t think we needed any as I was pretty sure we would make it to the end with what we had. His crew chief came over and talked to me a bit and reminded me that we were in the desert and never to turn down ice/ water, even if you think you have enough. If there is room in a cooler for ice, take it. Lesson learned.

I ran again with Mel for a bit as we headed to the turn that would take us into Lone Pine. She had made up quite a bit of time during that stretch from the mile 90 checkpoint and had passed several people during those miles. A small helicopter flew right over our heads and gave us a friendly wave. Mel made the right hand turn towards Lone Pine, only 1.7 miles until she reached town. I exchanged my pacing duties to someone else (I forget who took over) and I went into town with other crew members to get her a Happy Meal from McDonald’s. She had told us prior to the race “Get me a happy meal and large coke. Even if I don’t eat it, it will help me feel better.” We also got ourselves some fries and a milkshake. Mel checked in at mile 122, had some of the coke (she would later not even remember we gave her coke), changed socks, and quickly got on her way. The next 13 miles to the finish would be up a mountain.

Mel was determined to finish and finish strong. She was back to hiking as she pushed up the mountain, but she pushed herself hard! The crew exchanged duties every mile. At one point, Mel requested several items, but kept moving up the mountain, quickly (which is a good thing!). I was pacing at the time, so I grabbed what she needed and sprinted up the mountain to catch her! That hurt, pushing hard to catch her, but no time to rest as she was close and needed her pacers. Miles ticked away. As she hit the steeper sections, her pace slowed, but she was still moving. She actually passed several people up the mountain. She pushed around every switchback and finally saw the finish line! She had done it!

Mel got her belt buckle, her finishers shirt, and got her picture taken. She spent time thanking the race director, her running coach, her friends that were running the race, and her crew. We celebrated by having a beer and she shared some stories. It had been a goal of hers for some time to get to the finish and she was done!

For crew, the fun isn’t over quite yet. The next day, after a celebration the night before, the crew would go out to the van and start to clean up. The car was still full of food, water, and dirt. We emptied out what we could, donated some items we no longer needed to the local community, and washed the van. After all of that, it was time to listen to the stories Mel had over some food. She thanked each of us for helping her get to the finish line. It is such an awesome feeling to help a friend achieve such a goal.

Run Under the Stars – Corydon

If you’re not familiar with the Run Under the Stars races, they’re a series of races put on by the Durbin Race Management group. There are 3 in the series and runners can do any or all of them. I had been busy the last 2 races, but was able to get down to Corydon to run this past weekend. The race itself is on a 1/2 miles horse track (the Paducah version is also on a horse track, while the Oak Ridge run is in a park) and is a simple enough concept, run as much as you can in 12 hours.

Since the race itself is straight forward, the weather was the big factor this year. The race started at 6pm, so the sun hadn’t set yet and it was still hot from earlier in the day and the humidity was quite high. The race started off well for me, finding a groove, and just trying to stay hydrated. A brief bit of rain moved in after about an hour and soaked my shoes pretty good.

Bit of rain, but feeling good (photo from the official race photographer)

At about the 20 mile, my hip was bothering me. I took about 20 minutes to try and rest and stretch. I also took the opportunity to change my shoes. The run made my first pair of shoes and socks a bit more damp than I’d care for and I knew I’d have feet trouble if I didn’t dry them off and keep them dry. I was doing a bit more of a run/ walk at this point and wondered if I needed to call it a day at the 50k mark.

I continued to do a run walk and at the 50k mark. I took a bit more time to rest and stretch in hopes to keep moving forward. Another 20 minutes or so, and I started to run/ walk again. I kept moving as well as I was able and at some point I realized I could still hit 50 miles in the race, but I’d have to push myself a bit. I think this was around mile 40 or so. I started to run a lap (1/2 mile) walk a lap. I kept ticking off mile. I also began to watch my placement. I am normally not worried where I am in the field, but I had placed top 10 at this race last year and I was curious if I could pull that off again. I noticed I was in 12th, so I made the decision to try and make sure I could at least hit 50.5 miles (The thought process was this – 50 miles is a big goal and maybe, just maybe, runners 10 and 11 would stop at 50 and I’d sneak into the top 10 by doing 1/2 mile more). I maintained the run/ walk about the last 2 hours of the race, just doing my best to tick the miles down. I came across for mile 50 with 10 minutes to go on the clock. I pushed hard to get the last loop done. I saw my girlfriend, Sara, on the back half of the loop and she followed me in to the finish line (she did the 3 hour race the day before and won!). I finished up with 50.5 miles in roughly 11:58 minutes, just moments before the 12 hour cut off.

The race itself is great. Volunteers are great and having aid every 1/2 mile really makes for a fast course. The hot and humid conditions made this year’s version a bit of a challenge, but I hit my goal of 50 miles. I always enjoy Durbin Race’s as they do an excellent job and many runners come back time and time again, so I get to see many runners that I know and have become friends with.

Some of the friends I’ve met through running

Eagle Up Ultra

Eagle Up Ultra is a 24 hour race in Canal Fulton, OH, a little bit outside of Canton, OH. It’s a smaller town that has a nice canal running through town (hence the name) and the canal has a nice running path on it. The race would take place on 2 of the limestone paths that run next to the canal and the river, with only about 25 feet of road per loop. The loops are 5 miles exactly, and the goal is to run as many as you can in 24 hours (Eagle Up is a bit unique for a 24 hour race as it’s designed to help folks achieve a distance PR so racers select what they’re aiming for when they sign up, though they are allowed to stop early or exceed that distance).

I went out to Eagle Up with some friends, all of which are preparing to go out to the Badwater 135 (more about that in later posts). My friend Mel was going to use it as training (she is the runner) and the rest of us, Jack, Joe, and myself (we will be crewing Mel, along with one other member, Brandon, who couldn’t join us), would be working towards our own goals. The race itself had plenty of space for camping, so we all set up camp the night before, and were able to walk right to the start line.

The canal is beautiful, especially through town

Woke up on race morning about 4am, not necessarily out of a need to get ready then, I just couldn’t sleep anymore. At 4:30, I decided it was time to start getting ready for the race. It was a nice morning, cool, almost cold. I grabbed a small breakfast, filled my water bottle with Sword, and got my gear on. I was ready for a nice day of running.

For the first few loops, I kept a steady pace and tried to enjoy the cooler morning air to get some good miles under my feet. I knew it would warm up later, so I estimated I would be slowing down by around lunch time. I felt mostly great the first few laps. Energy wise, I felt great, and my feet felt mostly good. The flat course helped the miles tick away, as did the shade an cool breeze. I ran most of the first 50k with Joe and we talked and mostly dialed in our pace. Mel was also coming in for her loops as Joe and I would get food and water at our aid station, so we spent a lot of time talking and enjoying the morning.

After 50, it started getting warmer, but never felt overly hot. Joe and I had picked up another buddy of mine, Jeff, and we ran for part of the next loop together. I had to make a pit stop halfway through and told them to continue on. After I took care of my minor issue, I started to run again, but my left leg started to have issues. I have been having some on and off issues with the left leg since Umstead, so I slowed down to try to rectify. After being able to run most of the morning, I had to walk more due to the leg issue, but energy wise I was still feeling good.

At 35, the leg felt worse and I stopped to try and stretch. I was able to loosen it up a bit and was doing a walk/ run. I ran most of this loop with Mel and we kept a good walk/ run ratio. After the loop, the leg felt tight, so I tried to stretch again. I decided to walk the next lap hoping to loosen it up, but I believe it did the opposite. I made it through an additional, slow 2 loops to hit 50. I decided to stop and rest a bit and stretch some more. I planned to rest for about an hour, eat some food, stretch, and continue on. I took a short nap, woke up, and the hip just wasn’t feeling right. I decided to call it a day at 50 as I have many other races and this wasn’t an A race.

The itself is very well run. The main aid station is well stocked with plenty of food including pizza, donuts, soup, plenty of vegetarian, etc. The other aid stations have water and the one at the halfway point had some snacks and other items. The race director is out the entire race to congratulate runners as they come in. The course can be flat and fast, but you need to be ready for flat. This race is definitely worth checking out if you’re wanting to do a 24 hour race, or want to go for a distance PR. Worth noting, once you’re done for the day, there is a pool, some hot tubs, and a beer garden (for those of age) that one can enjoy, which gives the race an almost family like feeling.

Umstead 100

This past weekend was the Umstead 100 mile run, in William B Umstead State Park, just outside Raleigh, NC. 2019 was the 25th anniversary of this event and I had heard good things about. Since it was also close to family, it seemed like a good opportunity to run another 100 and earn a Western States qualifier for this year.

The race itself is run is run on a beautifully well maintained multiuse trail within the park. It is a 12.5 mile loop, repeated 8 times. This course may be the least technical trail I’ve ever run as the trail reminded me a lot of a dirt road. It is used by Runners, hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians alike.

The race started at 6am with fantastic temps. It was about 50 at the start, though a little on the humid side. Since my training was not where I had wanted it, I wasn’t quite sure how the day would go, so I took off at what felt like a comfortable pace and just enjoyed the run. Since the course is so well maintained, I didn’t have to worry about tripping. I maintained a steady pace, walked the up hills (note, there is 1000 feet of elevation gain per loop), chatted with other runners, and just enjoyed my time in the park. Although there are only 2 actual aid stations on course, the race also puts out several water stops in between aid stations, so runners have access to water about every 2-2.5 miles. This would prove helpful a bit later. Loop 1 was done in about 1:30.

Loop 2 was still nice, with temps staying cool and the wind blowing just enough that the humidity wasn’t really an issue. I tried to stay relaxed and easy. Another 1:30. Loop 3 got a bit warmer as the sun finally peaked through the clouds. Since it had not yet been warm and humid in Ohio yet, I could feel myself slowing in the heat. While it wasn’t oppressive, it was zapping my energy. I would stay hydrated at aid stations as best I could and made sure to eat at every one as well. I was still feeling really strong at the end of lap 3, 1:50.

Loop 4 brought about a change in my mood. About halfway through the loop, I developed some hip pain that brought me to a very slow walk. I am not quite sure why it started bothering me, perhaps my low mileage training, or maybe just a bad day? Either way, I felt it was going to cause me to be unable to finish, but I knew if I made it to mile 50, I would at least be credited with a 50 mile finish. I limped into the aid station, 2:55.

After lap 4, I went into the HQ building for the race. I was hurting so I sat down and tried to stretch for a bit. After about 10 minutes, my crew, who is also my brother, Larry (side note, he had never crewed an ultra before, but helped me out a lot) got the medical crew to check me out. They had a massage therapist to work out my hip. She also noted that she believed me to be dehydrated (though I wasn’t showing any visible signs of it that I noticed), so the doctor on site said I needed to hang around for a bit and hydrate. I “hung out” in medical for about 1.5 hours before I was able to leave. I told the doctor I would go out to the first turnaround, about 1.5 miles of the 12.5 mile loop and come back in if my hip wasn’t better. He also got me a volunteer pacer, just in case.

I set out on loop 5 with some trepidation as I was uncertain as to how my hip would hold out, but, to my surprise, it felt great. After a bit of a walk to test things out, I started running again, and at a decent clip too. My pacer, Al, kept me moving and suggested walk breaks regularly. Loop 5 ended up being a really strong loop. In total, the loop took 5 hours, but 1.5 of those would have been time spent in medical, so only about 3.5 hours total.

Loops 6 and 7 I picked up another volunteer pacer. When I had come into the main aid station, I didn’t see any readily available pacers, but someone yelled over to me as I was about to set off on my own. A runner I had met a few weeks before at Tobacco Road marathon had signed up to be a volunteer pacer and had just arrived for his “shift”. Brad and I took off for these loops and we had a good run/ walk split going. I was staying hydrated and working hard. Lap 6 was around 3:15 and lap 7 about 3:30.

Lap 8 I was back on my own as no pacers were available. I had plenty of time to finish and started the lap feeling good. About 2 miles into the lap, however, my energy was drained. I started walking and ended up walking much of the loop, but I just needed to move forward. A thick fog moved in through the night and made the course almost eerie, but having run it 7 times before, I knew where I was going. About mile 95, my foot started to hurt quite a bit. I knew I was developing a blister, but not much could be done with 5 miles to go except to finish. It’s really the only foot issue I had the whole race. I came limping into the finish on the loop in 3:46, with a total time of 27 hours, 14 minutes. I had finished!

I do want to make a special note, something that was a bit of a unique feature at Umstead. While every 100 was in a public area and we were always advised we may be sharing space with folks out for walks or runs, Umstead had the most people out just running than any other race I had done. This may not sound like a selling point, but I think it was. I say this because I had a chance to talk to some of these folks. In one instance I was running the same pace as a woman who wanted to know more about ultras. We talked for about 2 miles before I had to walk a hill. In our talk, she told me she runs 11 miles in the park both Saturday and Sunday. Come Sunday, I saw this same woman, doing her 11 miles, coming down the same hill we parted ways the day before. She came over to me, high fived me, and told me she was so proud of me. Remember, this was a complete stranger to me just hours ago. In another instance, a group of runners out for their morning run on Sunday, saw me limping with about a mile to go. They immediately stopped their run and walked the last mile with me, chatting with me and encouraging me the whole time. It was quite the experience.

In all, I really enjoyed Umstead. After 25 years, it seems they have things mostly dialed in. The aid stations had plenty of vegetarian options and all the volunteers were fantastic. The weather was almost perfect and except for a few issues, my race went way better than I anticipated it would have. It was a great weekend.

Rocks and Roots 50k #1

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to run the Rocks and Roots 50k just outside Columbus, OH. I have run this race previously, but it hadn’t fit the schedule the past few years, but this year it fit in perfectly with all my other races, so it was time to head back.

The race is held at Alum Creek, in Lewis Center, OH, just north of the state capital of Ohio. The race website indicates the particular trail used is the only one in Ohio, “by runners, for runners”. Since the race was only about 2 hours north, I decided to head up race morning. After a 4:30am wake up call, a quick breakfast, I left the house about 4:45. I wanted to be sure I arrived early as I had to get my packet at the race site. My previous time at this race also made me aware that, while there is plenty of parking just a short walk from the start, there are only a few spots at the start, so I knew arriving early would be good so I can could one of those spots.

I arrived on site at about 6:45. Even though the weather for the day was supposed to be nice and in the mid 40’s, it was cold when I arrived. I was able to get my packet and returned to my car to relax a bit, attach my bib, and just prepare for the day ahead. At about 7:40, I decided it was time to head to the start line, about 100 yards from where I had parked, to stretch and talk to some of the other runners. There was a nice fire going and next to it I saw a couple of my running friends and I began to chat with them a bit and loosen up. At about 7:55, the Race Director gave a bit of instruction and explained the race is basically 10k loops, 1 north loop, 1 south loop, repeat as necessary (the race also has a 10k, 20k, 30, and 40k option). After the brief announcement, the race was off.

The 30, 40, and 50k races are the first to start at 7am. I lined up in the middle as I knew the first couple of miles would be congested, but I also didn’t want to go out to fast. I hadn’t realized it initially, but I had lined up near my friends Alex, Kenzie, and Randy, purely by coincidence. I spent the first few miles running and chatting with them. The course is nice and wide open in the first few miles, but not too many people sped past me and I didn’t pass many as we all settled into a groove. The course was wet, but it was still early in the race, so, while there was mud on the course, it wasn’t too bad. The first loops is some hills, with some nice flat, runnable sections mixed in. In fact, most of the course is runnable, if conditions are right, but those would soon change.

After the first 10k, I hit the aid station for a quick refill of my water bottles and grabbed my nutrition from my drop bag (Sword Endurance) and took back off. The 2^nd loop is the south loop. It, too, has its ups and downs, with some climbs where the race has added some ropes to help runners get to the top, though none of the hills are very long, just steep. I was still feeling strong and had found a good groove. I kept it easy up the hills, and ran a nice pace during the flat parts (the south loop seemed to have longer flat stretches between hills). Just a bit before the south loop rejoins the north loop, there was a large creek crossing. I had remembered a crossing, but it seemed especially deep this year, coming up past my ankles. Thankfully my shoes drain very well and this was a non-issue, though the water was quite cold. I got back to the start/ finish and 20 km were done.

The remaining loops follow the same pattern, North, then South, then North again. However, by the time I made it back to the start/finish at the 20k mark, the 20k and 10k had both started and the leaders of the 50, 40, and 30ks (as well as many other runners) had already started back on loop 3. I make note of this because all this foot traffic combined with the rain they had experienced just days before would lead to a sloppy race. The north loop had become a mud pit. There was no escaping it. The mud was so slick, I think ice skates may have been more effective than running shoes. I began to struggle quite a bit. I ran as much as I could, but the mud in parts were ankle deep, or greater. I just needed to keep moving forward, but there was little reprieve from the mud on the north loop. The south loop was better, but it was still very muddy. Thankfully the ropes the race had up for the hills proved useful in getting up the hills in these muddy conditions. By the middle of the 4^th loop, my legs were feeling quite tired and I was having trouble staying up right (I never did fall). It had become a slow go.

By loop 4, I was done with mud, but I knew I had 1 more lap to go. I had completed the 4^th loop about 10 minutes prior to cut off (2pm), but knew that if I kept moving, I would make it. So, I did just that. On the final loop, I was passed by a couple of my friends and saw a few more just behind me, all of which I thought had been cut for missing cut off (since I had come in so close to cut off myself). I am not sure if I would say loop 5 was “better”, but it wasn’t worse than loop 3 (remember, both loops 3 and 5 are the north loop). Instead of being overly slippery, the mud had started to harden a bit and became a bit more shoe sucking. I walked quite a bit of the last loop, running here and there just to try to keep pushing forward. I remember seeing my friends Helen, Alex, Abbi, and Glenn all passing me that last loop and suddenly realizing I may be the final runner. That didn’t matter, however, and I kept plowing ahead. Despite all the mud, I finished the race with about 15 minutes before final cut off. My shoes were covered in mud, barely recognizable. I grabbed a few snacks and sat next to the fire to try to dry some of the mud off and actually watched 2 more runners come through (one was another friend, Randy) and then that was it. All runners had finished or dropped down.

Overall, the race is a fun race. Despite it not having a lot of elevation, it can be a very challenging course, especially after a rain. The 8 hour cut off does make it difficult for a lot of runners and it’s my understanding that about 50% of those who sign up from the 50k drop down in distance. Despite the mud, I am looking forward to going back for the February edition of the race.