Skyrunner Finale - Flagstaff

Flagstaff was amazing as always, running there was as incredible (and fun!) as I anticipated, climbing straight up and down a ski slope is really, really hard.  And really, really slow (for me). Hiking the Grand Canyon turned out to be the best good-bad-idea (poor decisions make great stories, right?) and recovery hike.

The memory of The Rut 50k was still fresh, but 3 weeks after that race, I was headed to Flagstaff, AZ for the last race in the Skyrunner series.  I wasn't sure if I had recovered physically (or mentally) from the most challenging race I'd ever done.  But I love Flagstaff and was really looking forward to finally getting to race in Flagstaff and run an Aravaipa race.  I've been incredibly fortunate to visit Flag a couple of times on the way to hike in the Grand Canyon - it's one of my favorite towns.

Obligatory Route 66 picture

Coffee and a seed bar from Macy's - I could get used to starting mornings like this!

My friend Hoa's Restaurant.  Delicious, homemade Vietnamese food!

It was so nice to hang out with other GUTS runners who traveled to the race.  I got to introduce them to my favorite pizza restaurant.  Is there a better pre-race (or anytime?) meal than wood-fired pizza and gelato?  I don't think so.

Sunrise was early - and gorgeous.  Such a beautiful way to start a long day on the trail.  One of my favorite views all day was looking down at Flagstaff on the first climb.  Spectacular!

Once again, we had absolutely perfect weather - not a cloud in the sky and reasonable temps.  I didn't miss the humidity!  The race was an inverse of the rut - the challenging climbs were at the beginning and end, but the middle was completely runnable.

I enjoyed the trails so much I was in denial that the last 7 or 8 miles would all be uphill, including the final 5k which consisted of a nearly 2000ft climb and subsequent descent.  I ran much of the race solo, often feeling like I was lost.  A couple of times, I sort of hoped I was off-course so it would be OK to stop early...

But I stayed on course, with a couple of minor explorations and began the long climb to the base of the ski lift.

Here's a great video of the last 7 miles.  The finish line was at the base of the ski slift, but that was also the start of the final 5k.  I just wanted to grind out the final climb (at least it wasn't to the top of the mountain!) and be done - I had no idea what was in store though.  It was great to see Alicia sprinting down the hill for third as I began to climb.  

We have powerline climbs in the SE - the West has chairlift climbs.

Ouch.  I could see tiny people up ahead and I was taking baby steps.  I didn't want to stop because I didn't think I could start again. 

Quick break - almost to the top.  Amazing view!

sooooooo steep!

Then I started hallucinating voices - who was so close to me and why were they able to carry on normal conversations?!  It took me awhile to figure out it was the people riding the chairlifts above me.  And then I was furious that they were laughing - couldn't they see us down below suffering?!  I had no oxygen or energy to yell - it seems quite funny now. :-)

Chairlift - good to know that's an option for next year. ;-)

 The 2000ft climb ended above 11,000ft - and it took an hour. 

The top!  Time to run / slide down to the finish.

On the descent, I had flashbacks to the Rut - it was nearly as steep and rocky and definitely had plenty of opportunities to sprain an ankle or break a leg.  I still need to work on my mountain goat legs as the descent took me 30 minutes - not exactly speedy.  I was thrilled to finish in 9:31 - faster than the Rut and a long time for a "typical" 55k, but Skyrunner ultras are anything but typical.

SE runners did well!  Alicia ran an excellent race for 3rd and earned 2nd overall in the Skyrunner series, beating many other well-known elites.  Congrats!

Local rock star Alicia on the podium.  Way to represent GUTS!!

And Amanda finished 10th, coming from the flatlands of Chicago.  GUTS runners made up 3 of the top 10 female finishers - nice work!!

Race amnesia didn't take as long to set in afterwards.  I would love to come back to this race and participate in the Skyrunner series again.  I'm still searching for a balance between racing and exploring on my own.  The Skyrunner races were wonderful opportunities to run on new trails, be humbled, feel alive, travel and meet awesome people. 

Because poor decisions make better stories...the next morning, Angela and I got up at o'dark thirty and drove to the Grand Canyon to hike to the river. We saw many elk or deer along the way who also thought it was a good idea.  The sun was up by the time we started hiking down Bright Angel.  This was my fourth time at the big ditch - it never gets old or ceases to inspire awe.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  Angela and I only met a few times at Across the Years in AZ through mutual friends - along with perfect weather, she was the perfect hiking companion.  I learned alot about long distance backpacking and hitch hiking - there are so many other non-running adventures to have!  The wheels are turning...

the best part of the day was walking back up.

Toeing the line with Killian, Sage, Ricky, Ellie, Emilie, Cassie and Anna...

...Or why Michael S hates me. ;-)

Run the Rut 50k, Big Sky, MT; September 13

Lone Peak

I signed up for this race back in February for two reasons - 1) it was in the US Sky Runner series and 2) it was close to ND so a good reason to visit family.  Fast forward the week before the race when I realized it was the series finale for the World Sky Runner series and many of the royalty of the ultrarunning community would be there, including two of my favorites, Killian and Ellie.  The coolness of this opportunity cannot be overstated.

Mike Foote, RD, giving the pre-race talk.  Loved the camo drop bag!

Friday was packet pickup - no Killian or Ellie sightings.  Pre-race meeting was relaxed - Mike Foote filled us in on the details for the next morning.  I set everything out, stayed fairly calm and enjoyed having my parents there for such a big event.

Before the race, I realized I was seriously under-trained for this caliber of an event.  I lacked the necessary fitness or specific training (i.e. mountain repeats) to be competitive with anyone but myself so would need to depend on intelligent race execution in order to survive to the finish.  Intelligent race execution for me would mean staying aerobic (keeping my HR low), taking in lots of calories, staying hydrated, and not falling off the side of a mountain. 

The elk horn went off at 6am and 150 headlamps started snaking up the first, gradual climb.  Within 30 seconds, my HR was too high so I started walking, but also tripping on rocks.  I blamed the altitude - Big Sky was at ~7500 feet.  Within 2 minutes, I was solidly the last person in the first wave.  I didn't mind too much - the solitude allowed me to concentrate on running (hiking) my own race.  Five minutes later, the second wave started and while still on the first 2 mile climb, I started getting passed by the fast second wave runners.  The climb, subsequent rocky descent and single track around the lake to the first AS at mile 7.5 were all very runnable.  I came into the first AS 5min under my predicted time so felt good about that.  The next section to AS2 at mile 12 went smoothly too - was still being passed continually by wave 2 and 3 runners.  I met Blaire, a runner from Missoula, one of the few people I would flip-flop with for the rest of the race.  I just never fell into a groove of running a similar pace with other runners - definitely missed my GUTS friends!  Over 75% of the runners were from MT - it almost sounded like they felt sorry for me when I said I was from GA. :-)  Hope we get some more East Coast representation next year!  Yetis?!?

I hadn't paid too much attention to the route details - sometimes ignorance is bliss.  I knew from the elevation profile, the big climbs would come between miles 10 and 20, we'd have some scree sections and rocky ridge sections, and there would be some ropes and plenty of medical personnel on hand at the more technical sections.  How hard could it be?  hahahahahahahahaha....

I am still struggling with how to describe the middle part of the race.  "Insane" comes to mind.  Killian Jornet, in his iRunFar interview, didn't think it was too technical, not like you could fall off to your death or serious injury.  I would beg to differ, but I did not grow up in the Alps or Pyrenees, gliding up and down rocky climbs, running on nothing buy 8 oz of water and a handful of berries.  :) The East Coast has plenty of routes with significant elevation gain and technical trails, but nothing compares to what we ran.  No amount of double-Coosa loops could have prepared me the Rut.

Oh the scree fields...  I've climbed up and down rocks but rocks that remain still.  These rocks moved and were on slopes at a really, really, really steep angle.  I used my hands often and focused on my footing, placing one foot at a time, not thinking about speed.  I only stopped to look around a couple of times - sadly, I missed many of the amazing views.  I'm not afraid of heights, but it didn't take more than a glance to get dizzy looking how far up we had climbed and how much was left to climb.  A few times I started to freeze, but told myself I could get scared after I was done with the race.  There was no place to go except to keep climbing up.  More than once, I heard someone yell "rock!" to warn of a dislodged rock on its way down.  Of course I looked up (hmmm...I'm not that bright!).  And once we were up, we went down a different ridge, but with the same loose rocks at a very, very, very steep angle.  How I didn't sprain both my ankles or break a leg, I have no idea.  Sally thankfully lent me hiking poles - having one helped provide balance and some security.  On the steepest dirt section we were warned it would be slippery - I slid down on my butt, almost taking another runner out.  It was difficult for me to figure out the fastest, safest way down!  One of the blessings of the day was the absolute perfect weather.  The skies were sunny, no rain or snow, and only an occasional light breeze.  There was a Plan B course, if necessary - I can't imagine doing the course we did in anything other than perfect weather.

After the first rocky descent, we had a few miles to collect my nerves and run some gravel roads up to the Tram Dock AS.  My parents had taken a chair lift so they could see me as I ran past to AS3.  Willy would have loved this section - it was an out and back ~1.5mi section on a really steep hill.  At this point, I was way off my predicted time - and figured that Killian had just finished and I was barely halfway done.  The volunteers here and at all AS were top-notch!  They knew what runners needed, said encouraging words and took excellent care of us before sending us on our way.  I ran back down, saw my parents again, before the next long climb up to Lone Peak.

Lone Peak had been looming in the distance since we arrived at Big Sky the day before.  I could see it and the sharp ridges, but could not comprehend that we were about to climb to the very top at 11,000 ft.  Maybe there was a more sheltered route I couldn't see and it wasn't that bad?  Nope.  It was another nerve-wracking climb up large, unsteady rocks.  Early in the climb, 2 guys were playing guitar and singing - that helped to lighten the mood!

A few spots had ropes, but often I had to climb with my hands.  Towards the top, I could take 2 or 3 steps, stop and breathe a few times, take a few more steps, breathe, and continue slowly and steadily up.  There was no passing, just a long conga line. 

See that peak at the very top?  Yeah, that's where we were going...

The few times I looked up, the top seemed so far away and the climbing wasn't going to get any easier.  The cowbells and cheers along the way were hugely motivational and much appreciated!  Finally, I was at the top and greeted with one of the best stocked AS I've ever seen - including bacon!

Yes, bacon at 11,000 ft - and it was delicious.  I took a few seconds to recollect and calm my nerves.

Little did I know, the descent would be just as nerve-wracking and not any faster than the climb.  The rocks were loose, sharp and the really, really, really steep slope went on for 2 miles.  There was almost no respite.  Even when there was a break in the rocks, the dirt was slippery - I went down sideways and that was sort of effective.  It was controlled, or not-so-controlled, falling.

Finally, the last 8 or 10 miles was runnable, although many people were running much more than I was. :-)  My legs were a bit shaky at first, but it felt so good to finally be on solid ground.  I think the mental fatigue was as much, if not more, than the muscle fatigue - I have never had to concentrate for so long during any event.  Even the ACT and GRE didn't last that long or require as much focus!  The sounds from the finish line could be heard a few miles from the finish - motivating, but also tough knowing the finish was further than it sounded.  Finally, the black arches were in sight and I could stop - my time was 10:16.  For reference, that is slower than every 40 and 50 miler that I've done and 2.5 hours slower than DRT50k (which has 10,000+ ft of climbing) and 5 hours slower than Killian's time.

My parents had been there for over 4 hours - they took their job cheering for each and every finisher very seriously!  They both had blisters from ringing cowbells. :-)  My mom came up to gave me a hug and I warned her that wouldn't be a good idea as I probably smelled pretty bad.  She didn't care and gave me a hug anyways - and then said "yes honey, you do."  Thanks for the honesty, mom. :-)

Obligatory antler photo.

I was pretty out of it for a few hours - more so than nearly every other race I've run.  But I did rally to return for the awards.  So cool to see Killian, Ellie and the other elites just hanging around.

Sage, Killian (!!!!!) and Manuel.

Cassie, Emilie and Anna.

My parents asked if I would run this race again - at the time I said once was enough.  I was initially disappointed with my time, but 200+ people (of about 450 starters) didn't finish, so I am fortunate I survived.  But the more I think about this...I realize it was a unique event and opportunity to run a true mountain ultra.  I was completely out of my comfort zone most of the race - it was a humbling and rewarding experience.  More than once along the course, it seemed like a lawyer would have said "no, this is too dangerous."  The Montana Mikes put on one of the best organized races I've ever run - kudos!  It was worth every cent.

It's taken longer than I thought, but 3 weeks out and race amnesia has set in.  This one may be on my calendar for next year...

Finishing is winning

Blind Pig 100, Croft State Park, Spartanburg, SC

Finishing is winning.  Thanks for that nugget of wisdom, thumbs-up-Kate. :-)

This is not a race report with split times, race strategy, details about calorie consumption or gear choice.  It's about people and the wonderful, if not dysfunctional, extended family in this sport.

The race was a 1 mile out-and-back followed by 11 9 mile loops on (mostly) single track - I planned to borrow Holly's approach of dedicating each lap to someone.  This strategy would take on a new meaning when I learned about the tragic events in New Orleans the day before the race - AP, a beloved member of the running community, and his brother-in-law were riding their bikes when they were hit by a car.  His brother-in-law, Frank, did not survive and AP remains hospitalized (and continues to improve!).  Hearing about bike accidents never gets easier - I pray each time it's the last one.


Lap 1 - AP and his family and friends. 
Lap 2 - thumbs-up-Kate and Alex, who finished their first 100 milers last week at Umstead and the future first-time 100 mile finishers at Blind Pig.
Lap 3 - AP and his family and friends.
Lap 4 - my friend Andrea who is off in Guinea, working on the Ebola outbreak.
Lap 5 - AP and his family and friends.
Lap 6 - Pete, Michael, Jim, Jen, Timmy and others who are recovering from injuries and will certainly be back stronger!  Kelley finished the race and is the perfect example of this.
Lap 7 - AP and his family and friends.
Lap 8 - Holly and Harley - they are about to embark on the ultimate ultra by becoming parents and raising an awesome daughter.  Phillip and Rhonda too!
Lap 9 - AP and his family and friends.
Lap 10 - Brandi, Andy and my other friends who juggle graduate school, jobs and running.
Lap 11 - AP and his family and friends.

Each lap I had time to send thoughts and prayers out towards my friends.  I hope they felt a little warmth and kindness and a hug from the universe.  I also got to spend many miles of each lap running with old friends and new ones - this was a different experience from previous races and prior to the race, I did not appreciate the mental or emotional boost I would get from this.

I had the pleasure of sharing laps 1 - 3 with Brad and our new best friend from Louisiana.  Jimmy works at sea for 30 days at a time - no one was happier to be on trails than he was after a looong month on a boat, confined to a treadmill.  He had great stories and is an honorary Yeti runner.  Deano and I ran lap 5 together - he is much faster than I am so this was a treat, as was chatting with his awesome wife Lisa between laps.  Thanks for the avocado soup!!  I shared a few miles with Sully, the genius behind the route.  Andy arrived later in the day and said he'd pace me at night.  Just because it was better than being at home alone.  And maybe he was procrastinating some school work too?!  I shared laps 9 - 11 with Andy and our new best friend Brian from Columbia (city not the country), who was running his first 100 miler.  Andy was in heaven - ebola AND helicopter stories.  His constant chatter kept us entertained and moving forward.  We talked alot about how we got into running and why we run - for many of us, we have small families or families that are spread out.  Dysfunctional though we may be at times, the ultra and trailrunning community is an extended family who I love dearly and appreciate more and more all the time.  Andy said it much more eloquently than that, even at 4am.

There are a million ways to procrastinate school work (and I've tried most of them) that don't involve staying up all night, running 100k, losing toenails, straining a hamstring, eating fig newtons and listening to stories about poo in exotic places - but this is just what Andy does.  And I and many others love him for that!  He paced Holly in December and ran with other runners at Blind Pig, helping as many people as he could - I truly felt honored and fortunate to share his company for hours.  It's a bond that he, Brian and I will always share.  I look forward to returning the favor someday soon!  THANK YOU ANDY!!!

Other thoughts on this race...
* I wish I had a picture of the pig!  A stuffed pig was placed on the course and runners would pick it up and run with it before putting it in a new place.  It's small details like this that make a race unique and special!  Seeing a random stuffed pig in the middle of the woods at 2am is sure to put a smile on anyone's face.

* The runners were so incredibly encouraging of each other - there was a short section where runners going in and out would pass each other.  The woman who won always had a high five and "good job!" to share.  Another runner had a huge crew of supporters (go team LaLa!) with great fluorescent green Blind Pig shirts - they rang the cowbell for every runner.  They also paced numerous runners and volunteered.  Ray was awesome for just being Ray - and for having run 100 miles at Umstead the weekend before.  Viktor was a local legend who earned his very first buckle - he cleans up the trail as he runs, by kicking up sticks (wouldn't believe it if I hadn't witnessed it numerous times!) and by collecting trash.  He crossed the finish with a bag full of beer cans - definitely more beer cans than gu wrappers on the trail.  Thanks Viktor!  There were numerous other achievements - first 100 mile, fastest 100 miler, distance PR.  Each person had the opportunity to push themselves and find out what they were capable of.

* A special thanks goes out to the RD, Angela.  No one slept less than Angela that weekend - she was up early, stayed up all night for each of the finishers, personally handed out each buckle, thanked everyone and took pictures.  She was sincere, thoughtful, took care of little details, made sure we had a smorgasbord of food - the list goes on.  For example, there were a few water crossings - she placed sand bags so we could easily cross and keep our feet dry.  She knew 100 miles was tough enough - she didn't want runners to deal with wet feet too.  She was 100% committed to helping everyone finish and achieve their goals. THANK YOU ANGELA!!! 

I haven't had post-race blues yet and I don't think I will - every time I think of this race, I smile and get a warm-fuzzy feeling thinking about all the wonderful people I'm blessed to have in my life.

Oak Mountain 50k, Alabama; March 22

I started writing this race report in my head a few weeks before the race - I really wanted to start it with "I finally won a race!" If I visualized winning, it could happen. I've placed second the last 2 years and first seemed within reach. I'm usually much less ambitious - my top priorities are always racing smart (staying well fueled and hydrated, not getting lost, not falling, not dying) which means I should finish and might be fast, but I can only control my race and there's a entire field of faster women doing the same. Still, it seemed possible...

Oak Mountain is my favorite 50k - very low key, great well-stocked aid stations, beautiful views, fun & challenging trails, incredible volunteers, runnable sections, technical sections and a waterfall.  To start, someone yells "hey everyone, we're going to start soon.  If you think you're going to drop, let me know now.  Ok, go!"  The finish is a white, chalked line at a pavilion with grilled food, frozen fruit salad, and brownies.  Most people hang out eating, drinking, chatting, and cheering all the finishers on.  It's a great community!!

After the RD yelled "go," a guy took off like it was a track meet, not a 50k - most of us took the paved loop easy just chatting.  Seemed to work for him though as he killed it and won.  The climbing on the yellow trail begins right away.  This year, in addition to my usual race priorities, I had 2 plans I thought would help:  1) wear a trucker hat (worked for the woman who won Mount Mitchell Challenge, granted she's also placed in the top 10 at Western States, but hey, couldn't hurt) and 2) stay with local legend and my running idol on the early climbs and hopefully as long as possible.  I figured even if I went harder than I thought I should, I didn't want to lose time early.  That plan worked perfectly at first - except that 4 other women seemed to have the same plan.  So 5 of us were within seconds of each other for 4 or 5 miles.  We took turns leap frogging each other and then finally I was in the lead.  For maybe 30 seconds.  Then I got passed on an uphill by a woman and I couldn't match her pace.  By the next turn, she was out of sight.  Huh.  Well, it's a long race, alot can happen in the next 27 miles or so.

The next section is the blue trail - very runnable along a ridge and leads to the waterfall.  I love this section of the course!  I got to run with my friend Kerry - he was taking a bit of a risk as I was the one who lead us off course at Pine Mountain a few months earlier.  We were running well.  And then I got passed by another woman and couldn't match her pace.  By the time we reached the rocky decent to the waterfall, I started to take a wrong turn.  And got passed again.  As much as I wanted to win, it was more important to enjoy the day and keep running smart.  I caught up to the woman who had just passed me - she is ridiculously fast, but was doing her first race after a long time off.  She's super-nice and talented, and it was great to see her back on the trails - I wished I could have kept up with her!  She could set a CR at Oak Mountain, but unfortunately, took a wrong turn later in the day and DNFd.  I hated that for her, but she still had a great time and was happy to be running again.

Love Peavine Falls and the AS there - a few more miles was halfway...and then my brand new shoes with fewer than 20 miles on them started to fall apart.  Argh!!  Stopped to fix them, which let me catch my breath - and the local legend caught up to me as well so we got to run more together.  Time seemed to slow, but I remembered that I would see Holly at the next AS!  I did my best to pick up the pace and was happy to see her around 20 miles.  The encouraging words and ice were awesome!  I actually love the next section - it's a long jeep road climb that's tough either on a bike or running / walking.  By this time, temps were near 70 and it was sunny.  The climb has multiple water crossings - I stopped to splash in each one to keep myself cool.  I think it helped!!

Made it to Peavine falls AS for the second time - it's almost all downhill from there.  One of the volunteers was keeping track of runners and pace - his kind words gave me a boost as I left.  Only single digits left from here!  The last section of the race is the infamous "blood rock" trail from mountain biking.  I can't decide whether this trail is more fun to ride or run!  Closer to the finish, is a series of switch backs - super-fun for riding, but I was ready to be done at this point (partly because it was 70 and partly because the course is actually closer to 33 miles).  And then I saw the girl who passed me back at mile 5 - I felt bad pushing to catch her with only 2 miles left.  Finally, last switch back, then the bridge and white chalk line.  Done!  Just in time as it was getting HOT.

Old school finish - manual timing and finishers and times are recorded on a wipe board.  I was a few minutes slower than last year, but finished second again.  I felt like I ran well, no low spots and pushed it some, but I still have alot to learn about racing.  How do get faster?  Can I get faster?  Definitely, the strongest and smartest woman won the race - congrats to her!!  I'll keep running and visualizing have a good race - I might finish first one of these days, but as long as I cross the finish line with a smile and enjoy playing in the woods, I'll be happy.