I drove up Sat night and squatted at the Fairfield Inn so I would be fresh in the morning... I didn't relish the idea of 4 hours drive, then race then 4 hours drive.
I'm glad I did that.
Beautiful scenery and I arrived to see the mountains... here's 2 of them in the race that sprawled up and down over 5 of them.
A good turnout, about 140 interpid runners. I've noticed that the longer the race, the different the class of racers. Makes sense. You don't attempt 16+ miles if you're not comfortable in that distance or the neighborhood at least.
13.1 was my person long on a road. 11 miles on trail on my Super Spartan in NJ.
This would be a fair test.
The week before I did a 15K trail race in 1:31 locally and felt pretty good. Anyone who has raced any distance knows tha the extra 6-7 miles make a BIG difference though.
This race was brutal. Straight up the mountains on a slop that required me grabbing onto trees to not slide back down. After mile 3ish I knew it was going to be a long day. All my thoughts of a 3 hour race went instantly out the window...
The aid stations were fantasic... water, gatorade, chips, bananas, gels... the whole deal. Really great.
Hands down, this was the toughest race I've ever run, including the spartans. No kidding.
The downhill portions were completely un-runnable. Sideways shuffling was the only answer so no time gained there...
At mile 11 something happened to me that never had before. Both calves suddenly cramped at the same time. I yelled auidbly as it was a shock. I walked a few steps, tried to run, and they locked again... I repeated until I could get into a job-shuffle. I knew right then if I didn't run I'd be out there for another 3 fucking hours.
Fortunately there was an aid station a mile away and I ate some bananas... and the cramps eased up.
Thank God. Off I went... 2 more climbs then the final stretch... my favorite part of the race... pacing the creek for the last 2-3 miles on flat-ish ground with 4 or 5 creek crossings...
I spent MUCH of the race completely on my own, not a soul to be seen.
The last bit was peaceful and satisfying as I knew I had the race at that point.
It was tremendous for sure and a real physical and mental test.
I finished in the middle of the pack but no spaced out by 10 minutes at least.
Longest race ever on a brutal course. I know I'll be fine for the Spartan Beast in Dec...
Oh yeah, good schwag too!!!
Final time: 4:20 (yeah, that's a LONG fucking time to be running...)
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