Reviving my semi-defunct blog at the request of one, maybe two people, hahaha...gonna be some rapid-fire blurbs until I get to where I'm caught up!
I've been trying to include new races every year into my calendar, as I get to explore new places and it keeps things fresh and fun. I was originally only going to do one race a month, but dammit! There are just too many races to choose from to not throw in a couple of extras...
Race #1: Loon Mountain Race, July 8. 1:40, #345 of 449 finishers. Right up front, I'll say that this was the most fun I've had at a race this year! I'd been seeing everyone's posts from Loon for a couple of years, and when my calendar opened up I signed up. This was also the USATF Mountain Running Championships, and with a Trail Sisters incentive for first-time female racers, the field grew to a record number!
I drove up to New Hampshire the day before the race, and picked up my bib/gear before having dinner with friends. Seems like I run into more familiar faces at these distant races every time I go, which is pretty cool! Got checked into my hotel room just fine as well, and found out it was a full condo, with kitchen, deck, fireplace, dining room, etc. and directly faced the mountain. I pulled up a course map and could roughly trace the route from my room.
In the morning, I drove across the street to the parking area (again, pretty good choice!), and immediately ran into some of the Rhode Island contingent. Jeff and I discussed the course, and although he was fighting off an injury, he was there to hike the course, spectate, and cheer on Matthew, who was sure to do well in the race.
So, the race: We started on a dirt road next to the river, which allowed the men's field to spread out some before it narrowed to jeep access road, then singletrack. The women's field wouldn't start for another hour plus. We were pretty much climbing immediately, but it was a runnable climb, with brief stretches of hiking (for me, anyway). The course zigzags across the property, and the downhill sections and singletrack were sweet! I felt like I was flying through the somewhat muddy sections, and passed a bunch of folks trying to pick their way around the mud. I knew that some big climbs were coming, though...
On a crossover section before the climb to the gondola, we saw a bear!!! It crashed out of the woods right in front of a group of runners in front of me, and continued down the mountain. At the next clearing I looked down the slope and it was below us, running parallel to us and had a tag on it. Very cool!
The big climb to the gondola was a wake-up. Long slog to get there, then a screamer of a descent down to the beginning of the Upper Walking Boss. Sweet Jesus. Steep! And I've been on shit like this before, and it was a slow go, but not intimidating at all. I just made the turn, did my mini- zigzags up to the top and finished!
The best part for me was getting to watch everyone else coming up, like Brian and Mike, and then getting a chance to see the women's mountain champs come up. Truly incredible that they were running up the UWB!
After chatting with some RI peeps, some CT Trailmixers and Striders, and a few others, I bounded down the big ski slope to the gondola, catching Jodi and Rachel on the course, and taking my place in line for the ride down. When I reached the lot, I showered off and changed up, and realized I hadn't eaten anything other than a couple gels and some Tailwind all morning, and was getting a bit lightheaded. That in mind, I skipped the group cooldown in the river and headed over to a local brewpub for a big lunch before heading home. A great trip! I'll totally be back for this again next year, I had so much fun there!!!
Race #2: Run With the Beavers 10 Mile Trail Race (and beer swap, haha), July 14. 1:39:52, #83 of 176. Well why wouldn't you follow up a Mountain Championship race with a Trail Championship race? Love that my race schedule seems to peak during the hottest part of the year. This is a great event, fun course and one that I actually feel halfway fast at, if only for a moment :)
Easy drive up to Chepachet, where I quickly realized that the low cost and championship day meant that the race would be stacked with talented, fast runners, and that the large number of people would make navigating the single-track sections tricky.
I got caught up with a bunch of friends before the race, and after Bob's speech we were off! I was standing in the back row bullshitting with Brian, and had an "Oh shit!" moment when I realized I'd be screwed at the singletrack unless I passed a bunch of runners.
After crossing a field, there's an immediate climb up a dirt road which allows the field to spread out just a bit before we hit the narrow sections into the woods. Once there, it was "pass as you can" through the scrub.
I fell into a decent rhythm, and managed almost identical splits on the first and second loops. Not a PR but close, and I felt pretty good throughout!
Showered up and changed after the race, chatted and exchanged some beers with friends, and hit the road. Trying not to linger too long lately after races, since I'm into the heavy rotation of my race schedule, and have somehow managed to find a halfway decent home/work/race balance (well, except for the whole training part).
Race #3:42nd Annual Escarpment Trail Run, Windham NY, July 29. 5:32. #210 of 257. Here's the brief (and accurate) course description on the race website:
FOR MOUNTAIN GOATS ONLY! The Escarpment Trail is a very remote, rugged hiking trail in the Northern Catskill Mountains in New York State. This single track trail crosses no roads, has total elevation changes of nearly 10,000 feet, and requires all aid to be backpacked in by volunteers. This is not for your average runner but for the runner who trains 12 months a year, and has spent years building a base and gaining long distance experience. Therefore, qualifying standards are required to insure that all participants have experience with endurance events and have a reasonable chance of completing the course within 6 hours.
Within 6 hours, for 18.6 miles. Yup. Of course this was on my punch list of tough middle-distance races in New England. It's an institution here, and in its 42nd year! The course record is something like 2:44, which meant it had to be gnarly. I was elated and nervous when I got the nod to enter the race, as I was kinda bratty about getting in. Though I didn't meet their specific requirements, I felt like my "resume" (Kismet Cliff, Whiteface, 7 Sisters, etc.) was more than enough to put me in the mix. After e-mailing the race director, I got in! Couldn't wait!
After making the very reasonable drive to the Catskills (like 3 hours), I checked into my hotel and then walked to the downtown area to meet Michael and Karen, two of our CT Trailmixers, for a bite to eat and race strategy session. Me being the Noob to the Escarpment, I tried to pick their brains about how to approach the race. They'd done it the previous year and when I mentioned I was seeded in the last wave, they told me I could volunteer to start early if some waves weren't full. Hmmm.
Race day dawned cool and crisp! I readied early, stopped at a nearby convenience store for a cup of shitty coffee, a couple bananas, and an energy bar and drove over to the parking area. The nervous energy was palpable, and apparently I was quickly identified as a newbie, as several people I said Hello to asked if this was my first Escarpment? Really? I must be like tourist boy with a fanny pack, camera around his neck and a big straw hat or something...
We all boarded school buses for the trip to the start. The Escarpment is a point-to-point trail and crosses no roads, as stated above. It's so remote out there, that when there was a plane crash on Stoppel Point, they left the wreckage there. Creepy...it's right along the trail!
Anyway, we arrived at the start, and after watching several waves start, I started to get antsy, and edged my way to the front of the crowd. After the women's elite start, they called for volunteers and I raised my hand! Wave 5, totally out of my league but fuck it, I was hopping around with nervous energy and just wanted to go!!!
My wave went off, cruised a short, flat section and then the climbing began...and the "easy" climb was a bitch. Oh. Well, we're in and we're gonna git 'er done. Run back to your car, fool! After the first climb we hit an aid station, where there was a vista nearby that I stopped to take pictures at, chat briefly with the volunteers, then bomb down some really runnable singletrack!!!
I was warned to take it easy before Blackhead. Everybody told me to take it easy! "Blackhead will crush your spirit, ye be warned!!!"
The climb to Blackhead is ludicrous. I reached an aid station that was close to the start of the climb, and they're pushing S-caps, gummy bears, chips and what-have-you at me and I'm eating all of it, and the climb started so subtle that by the time I was into it, I felt tricked! Like there should have been a sign at the bottom. And the climb is hand over hand FOR.EVER. It's grabbing roots and sharp rock edges to pull yourself up, for a half-mile? A mile? It's CRAY. For your viewing pleasure:
Yeah, that Escarpment.
So that's apparently not the end of the suffering either. Stoppel Point was the next climb, after the descent off Blackhead, and after shredding your legs on Blackhead, the climb up Stoppel was just cruel. There's even wreckage from a plane crash up there! It's so remote that they basically recovered the bodies and left the plane...
Some rolling technical trails, and a last aid station atop a vista, and I'm thinking "OK. Now we descend to the finish...but we don't. for a while. Then, as a final kick in the jewels, there's a last descent, scramble, scrabble, down a series of ledges and rocky outcrops known as Jacob's Ladder, which is maybe the toughest part of the race on toasted legs! Seriously, one veteran of the race took a digger here this year and spent three days in the hospital with a fractured skull, wrist, etc...and in true Escarpment fashion, declared that he'd be back next year.
As will I! I really, really loved this race, the history of it, the dedication of everyone who was there to run it, the volunteers, runners, and not least of all the course! It's my kind of trail, the kind that you stop mid-climb and just shake your head. With a smile. And drive home happy and exhausted.
Next up: August!
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