Superior 100 Race Report

Superior 100 Race Report

The north shore of Minnesota is spectacular in its beauty and has a special place in my heart so it’s no surprise that I jump at any excuse to get up there.  What better excuse than to run 103 miles on the rock and root infested Superior Hiking Trail from Gooseberry Falls State Park to Lutsen.  Many people ask me why I love the 100 mile distance over other ultra-distances.  I absolutely love 100 milers; I love the preparation, the time alone or with friends on the trail, and most importantly the huge challenge of completing the distance.  I also love that the 100 mile distance really evens out the playing field. There are so many more factors that play into a good race than just pure speed.  One of the most important factors is mental toughness. A very fast runner that is not mentally strong is going be exposed and crumble at this distance especially this particular race.   I am still new to the sport of running and very new to the ultra-distances and am still working on my mental toughness as it’s nowhere near where it needs to be to achieve my true potential at this distance.  This is theme of my 2015 Superior 100.
My wife and I arrived at Gooseberry Falls State Park midafternoon on Thursday.  We love camping so we decided the easiest place to stay the night before would be right where the race started.  We set up our camping gear, walked along the shore of Lake Superior for a bit and then were off to grab a bite to eat in Two Harbors before the pre-race meeting. I decided to go for gluten-free pasta with shrimp and scallops. The Pre-race meeting lasted about 1 hour and then we were back at our campsite to watch the sun go down.  My brother who was going to pace me overnight arrived to the campsite as well.  I slept about as well as I anticipated leading up to a big race.  I was up around 5:30am and ate my breakfast consisting of bulletproof coffee as well as bacon and sweet potato eggs.  I got my race gear on and I was off to the starting line at the visitor center.  My brother in law met us there as he would be helping my wife crew throughout the race.

3, 2, 1 and we were off.  The first 4.5 miles were on the Githchi Gami paved trail as the SHT is temporarily rerouted by accessing this trail.  I knew that I had to watch my pace on the pavement as to not get caught up with the people going out a bit hot, racing for that Peets coffee.. ha!  My strategy leading up to the race was run well below my ability early on so towards the end I could be in a position to catch struggling runners... but more on that later.  I ran with two of my Rochester friends Annie and Mike. This paved section went quickly as we were just chatting about the task ahead of us.  When we went through the culvert that went under hwy 61 we were now on the SHT and would not get off until we made it to Lutsen.  When we hit the trail I lost Mike and Annie as the trail was a mess of people, and I wouldn’t see them again all race.  In the beginning miles I focused on taking it easy and not over exerting myself this early in the race.  For those who have not been on the superior hiking trail, the trail is infested with rocks and roots and has constant short steep climbs.  The most challenging trail I have ever been on.
 I knew I wouldn’t see my crew until mile 20 at Beaver Bay and kept telling myself that I wanted to see them for the first time in great spirits and feeling great.  This is exactly what happened. I came into Beaver Bay feeling really good and just topped off my bottles and headed towards Silver Bay.  The section to Silver Bay is short compared to other sections of the course which boosted my spirits knowing I will see my crew again soon.  On my way to Silver Bay I kept on thinking about my DNF in 2013 and how I arrived to Silver Bay feeling so awful, but this year I felt great and was  pleased with my race thus far.

My crew got me refueled and I was on my way to Tettegouche, the section during my 2013 race was the worst racing experience of my life.  2013 was an incredibly hot and humid year and I was so dehydrated that both quads and calves cramped up during this entire section.  I believe this 10 mile section took me 5 hours that day before I would eventually drop at Tettegouche.  This DNF has stuck with me ever since and I use it as a reminder during my races to race smart especially in the heat.  Needless to say, I was in a much better condition this year and was pumped to run this section feeling good.  This section had some pretty challenging climbs but yielding very awesome views overlooking Bean and Bear Lake and was the first time all race I stopped for a minute to take in the great scenery around me.  I took note during this section that my legs were feeling more tired than I thought they should at this point.  I was still moving well but was just a bit concerned as there was over 2/3 of the course still to cover.  Oh well, just continue and deal with it.  Before I knew it I was descending down into the Tettegouche aid stations.  I changed my socks and shoes at this aid station. This takes so much time to do and I need to eliminate this going forward.  I think I am a bit hypersensitive to any little rubbing I feel while wearing a shoe, and running on blisters sucks so I always change them proactively.  I need to find a shoe that will work for me for the entire race and pre-tape vulnerable blister areas. No more wasted aid station time.  After my shoe change I was on my way.

Photos by Alicia Hudelson

Heading towards county road 6 I knew this entire trail would be new for me; I had no clue what lay ahead.  This section for me was one of the harder ones of the race, there are some pretty long sustained climbs which giving the point in the race probably felt more tough than they actually are on fresh legs.  I was still moving so just got into a rhythm and ran. I was alone for most of this section which felt fantastic.  When I start to get a bit fatigued I would rather run alone and not have to talk or think about anything else but myself and my current condition.  I remember being able to see the aid station about a mile away while up on a ridge and then descended down to the road and ran in the ditch before arriving at the aid station.  I refueled and was on my way to Finland, the half way point.  To my surprise this section was flat and runnable which was a good break and lifted my spirits. Before I knew it I was taking a spur trail to the Finland aid station.
A mile or two before the Finland aid station I had to turn on my headlamp and the temps were beginning to drop a bit.  When I arrived and met up with my crew we immediately got me out of my wet top and put on new shoes wasting time but necessary in the grand scheme of things to keep me warm.  Putting on dry clothes onto wet skin sucks and takes time, so again I blew a ton of time at the aid station.  I have to rectify this for futures races.  I picked up my brother to pace me and we were on our way to Sonju Lake and then Crosby Manitou.  The two sections leading up to Crosby Manitou were runnable and having my brother with was a good pick me up.  I felt like I was still running relatively well even though it was dark making this technical trail even harder.  We arrived to Crosby Manitou in good spirits and I felt pretty decent given it was mile 63.  I grabbed some hot foot and dealt with some chaffage and we were on our way to Sugarloaf. 

Wow! To my surprise this section was terribly difficult with some steep and long climbs however I was able to get up them fairly efficiently.  I remember being in a good mood at this point, yes the climbs kind of sucked, but I love climbing so I was actually having a good time.  I also remember laughing to myself when my headlamp would spot another steep climb ahead, “Of course there’s another climb, why wouldn’t there be.”  This section leading to Sugarload is 9.4 miles and challenging so it took me awhile but finally made it to Sugarloaf in one piece. I think that section killed my brother so I grabbed some hot food and continued to Cramer road solo.   I remember getting a bit cold at Sugarloaf while I was refueling. I knew I just needed to start running again and I would be just fine.
Honestly I cannot remember anything about this section besides my headlamp began to dim and I knew I needed to change the batteries.  A runner passing by provided light while I swapped out my batteries.  I remember thinking I had a torch on my head with those new batteries; I should have changed them earlier.  I tumbled rolled and yard saled (for those who run with me know this is no surprise, hence my blog title) during an earlier section which had turned on my headlamp burning the batteries prematurely as they have always lasted an entire night in previous races.  Not sure what happened at the Cramer road aid station, but I remember running towards the next aid station at Temperance River thinking where the hell is the descent down to the aid station at the river.  It was during this section I began to become a baby and felt a bit sorry for myself with the finish seeming so far away.  I am not sure why. I think it was a combination of low on calories and I was becoming mentally weak.  I made it to Temperance and ate some pancakes and bacon and tried to collect myself.
Leaving Temperance I was told there would be quite a bit of flat running until I reached Carlton Peak and this was absolutely true.  I was still hurting pretty bad but was able to get into a “decent” running rhythm leading to the climb up and over Carlton.  Surprisingly the climb was not that bad and before I knew it I was on the other side running on the boardwalks leading to Sawbill aid station.  I arrived to Sawbill at mile 90 feeling drained and mentally crushed.  I just wanted this race to end.  Before leaving the aid station my then 15 week pregnant wife asked if I wanted her to run the section to Oberg with me.  I jumped at the opportunity because there is nothing I like better than sharing time on the trail with her.  She did not have running clothes on so she sprinted to my crew and tossed on a pair of my extra shorts and tied up her shoes and we were off.  These shorts looked like JNCO's on her.  All she needed was a wallet chain and she would have been all set. I would post of pic but I am assuming she would not be impressed! This was a great section to share with her as it’s relatively easy without any significant ups and downs.  I didn’t want my pregnant wife out there death marching over some hard gnarly climbs.  We did a combination of running and power hiking during this section and just talked about the earlier miles of the race and also how great it was going to be to see our wonderful daughter Louise after the race.  Honestly this section will be something I remember forever. Her selflessness is truly amazing.  The next time I toe the line at Superior, she will definitely be pacing me for more sections.

At Oberg I told her I would do this section alone because I remembered from a previous spring 50k race that this section was way more challenging and I didn’t want her to be out there for another 2+ hours without any of her desired gear. Although I think she was finally get used to the baggy running capri look.  I managed to get myself back on the trail and was off to the finish.  From Oberg it is “only” 7 miles to the finish but with the climbs up and over Moose and Mystery Mountains it makes for a challenging and slow section.  This section was a lot of power hiking and slow running on the flat sections.  Again I became a big baby on this section and again began to feel sorry for myself. It was during this section that I told myself I would never do this race ever again!  This is for sure something I need to work on since my legs were working just fine. It was my head that was screwing with me.  However I was impressed with the way I continued to make forward progress even though mentally I was crushed.  I remember descending down Mystery Mountain and hearing the poplar river. My previous experience on this section told me that the end was very near and I would be on the pavement leading to Lutsen in no time.  I crossed the rushing Poplar River,  just a fantastic way to end a race, and I stopped on the bridge as tears began to roll down my face as I watched the gushing river flow towards Lake Superior.  It finally hit me that I would be finishing the Superior 100 this year.  I got out to the road and it’s about 0.5 mile to the finish behind Caribou Highlands.  Running down the road I was fighting back tears thinking about the crazy adventure I was just on. I managed to pull myself together leading up to the finish line and saw my crew and wife cheering for me.  It was the hardest race I have ever done and the finish I am most proud of so far in my short career. Receiving my belt buckle from John was a wonderful topping of such sweet accomplishment.  I ended up finishing in 30:24:14.

I will be back to Superior 100! My “I will never do this race again” lasted all of 24 hours.  I know I can go so much faster on this course.  I learned so much about logistics, fueling, pacing, and most importantly the mental endurance it takes to run fast on this course.  I have gotten so much better at dealing with pain during long races however in order to reach my true potential this area really needs to improve.  It was clear to me that experience on this rugged and relentless trail is one of the main ingredients to a fast time.  Seeing how veterans performed out there was truly amazing, and I certainly learned a lot from them. Thanks to everyone that makes the Superior 100 race possible and to my crew and wonderful wife!  Until next time…….

Gear

Shoes: Pearl Izumi Trail N2, Topo Runventure, Altra Paradigm

Shorts: Pearl Izumi ultra short

Shirt: Salomon Exo Motion

Socks: Injinji normal weight and mid weight

Headlamp: Petzl Myo

Vest: Salomon S-lab Sense Ultra kit w/ soft flasks

Fuel

Water

Heed (at aid stations)

Lara Bars

Justin's Nut butter

Cliff Organic Energy Food

Salt Stick

Random aid station hot food and fruit

Bighorn 100 Race Report

On a random Saturday towards the end of November of 2014 I received an email from my buddy Rob that said “I received an early Christmas present and signed up for the Big Horn 100, who’s with me?” This is all it took to convince me to give my first mountain 100 mile trail race a shot.  I am a flatlander from Minnesota so what could go wrong running 100 miles in the mountains at altitude with 21,000 ft of climbing?

Elevation profile of course (note this is an out and back)

                I started really focusing on training in early January of 2015 although I was running consistently throughout the year so I started off with rather good fitness.  I really just needed to focus on mountain specific training ie. Hiking uphill and running downhill.  My training was going pretty good during the first 4.5 months of training. I was consistently running up and down the longest and steepest climbs I could find in the Rochester area and putting in my some long early morning weekend trail runs.  I tested my fitness during a 50 mile training run at Hixon Park in Lacrosse, WI in mid-May where I incorporated many trips up and down Bliss Road (road leading up to Grandad Bluff).  I finished this run and felt really good about my fitness. I also recovered really fast from this run which to me was a good sign about where my fitness level was.  However about a week later my auto-immune condition flared up and it attacked my right SI joint which prevented me from doing any major mileage during the last 5 weeks leading up to Bighorn, I think I hobbled an average weekly mileage of 25-30 which contained a lot of walking miles.  There was a strong potential that I was not going to be able to even toe the starting line as this inflammation would just not pass and running was very painful.  There is some pain I would be able to run through, this was a different story.  About 2 weeks before the race the pain began to subside and I was feeling a more confident I would be able to at least give Bighorn a shot, finishing would be another story.  Since I was already really tampered J due to my injury the 2 weeks leading up to the race I just tried to keep my legs/back fresh and feeling good.  I was not going to add to my fitness in two weeks so there was no use running some longer runs and going into the race tired and even worse reinjuring my SI joint.  The fitness I had was what I would be racing with and would just need to adjust my expectations and trust in my prior training and racing to get me to the finish line.

                I was heading out to the race with my buddies Rob and Chris, who were both running the 100 mile race as well.  We all packed into the car around 1pm on Wednesday afternoon at headed west from Rochester, MN to Sheridan, WY which follows highway 90 the entire way.  Our plan was to drive the entire 12 hours on Wednesday and sleep in on Thursday instead of breaking up the drive as we didn’t want to be packed in a car for hours the day before the race.  Highway 90 going through Minnesota and the majority of South Dakota is pretty flat and rather boring, however when we started getting into western South Dakota the scenery started to change.  We could see a little bit of the Badlands from the highway and as we got more west the beautiful Black Hills began to emerge and we were treated with great views for an hour or two before dark.  As we crossed the South Dakota border into Wyoming we began to see a pretty consistent lightning storm ahead of us which was actually pretty cool to see.  However the cool lightning began to turn into a severe thunderstorm that resulted in us pulling over and waiting it out at a rest stop.  A trucker told us there were tornado warnings throughout the area and we should stay put for a while to be sure it was safe to continue driving.  After a little while the storm passed and we were able to continue our adventure to Sheridan.  We got to the The Mill Inn around 1am Thursday morning, checked in and went to bed.

                The plan was to sleep in Thursday morning as we got into Sheridan late on Wednesday but I was up around my normal time of 6am so sleeping in apparently was not in the cards, for those who know me this is not surprising.  I stepped outside our hotel door to walk over to Starbucks to get coffee and was amazed with the mountains I saw as we arrived in the dark so I didn’t see them last night.  My first thought was “this is amazing” which then turned to “Well this should get interesting in a hurry.”  Around 9am we decided to drive to the start of the race in Dayton, WY to make sure we knew the way for the following day.  The race finishes at a park in Dayton but the start is 4 miles west in the Tongue River Canyon.  We drove down the 4 mile dirt road to the start.  We were truly in a canyon, surrounded on both sides by beautiful rock formations.  We ran a little shake out run about 10 minutes towards trailhead then turned around.  Being in the canyon was the first taste of the heat I would be facing the next day.  I knew heat may be a factor so the weeks leading up to the race I was consistently sitting in the steam room 20-25 minutes per session, so I was not very concerned but still aware.  We drove back to Sheridan, went and grabbed some lunch then proceeded to pick up our race packets.  The rest of the day was really lazy as we just hung out in the room with our feet up try to save all of our energy for the next day.  Surprising I got a good night sleep and was up around 5am again ready to get this adventure underway.

                I had all my stuff ready to go the previous night so I just had to get dressed, drink coffee, eat breakfast and I was all set.  The race starting time was at 11am which is a bit different than any race I have done previously so understanding how much to eat for breakfast was a bit of an unknown.  I just decided to go with my regular routine and then eat a bit more about 60 minutes before the start.   The prerace meeting was at 9am at the finishing park in Dayton, WY so around 8:30 we headed over.  The meeting lasted about 45 minutes, so we had about 75 minutes to kill prior to the start.  To get to the start we needed to drive about 4 miles towards the canyon down a narrow dirt road which was very crowded.  Our buddy Peter (who was doing the 32 mile the next day) offered to drive us as close to the start as possible to save our legs.  We got to the starting line with about 30 minutes to wait until the official race start.  It is very hot with little shade in the canyon so everyone was crowded under trees to shield themselves from the sweltering sun.  This race was an out and back course so I knew I would be running this canyon the next day in the heat, took note of the heat so I could plan my water bottle situation accordingly tomorrow.  Before I knew it we were all called to the starting line and this adventure was about to begin.

                3, 2, 1 and we were off; the first mile is on the dirt road through the canyon to the trailhead.  Once we hit the trailhead it went down to single-track and of course there was a big conga line for the first couple miles through the shaded lower part of the canyon.  After about 2 miles we came to an aid station which was very busy as everyone was still pretty much all together.  I refilled my bottles and continued.  This is where the race began.     

Picture by Rob Mitchell

We began a five mile ascent in the open with nothing to shield the sun; I instantly could feel the heat but was moving good.  We began to pass slower climbers, which meant going out of the single-track and running past them.  About a mile or so of this I could feel that these surges to pass people was taking a bit more out of me than I wanted this early in the race,  I told Rob and Chris I was going to hold back and they should proceed without me.   My only goal was to finish, and to continue to climb at this effort in the heat I thought might jeopardize finishing.   Being able to climb at my own pace and comfort level was a big relief as I knew from past races that heat is not my friend and I need to manage my effort level to keep my body cool.  I have never climbed for 5 miles at an average of 8% grade before so towards the end of the climb I was beginning to get a bit fatigued but was still moving pretty good, this was the first and only time during the race I thought finishing might not be in the cards.  I think it was a mixture of the heat, climbing and altitude that was making me feel a bit off, my fingers also began to swell and look like sausages.  However I knew from past race experiences that low points will eventually subside and to just focus on my nutrition and hydration.  I finally made it to Upper Sheep Creek aid station,  I knew the heat and the climb took a bunch out of me so I took my time at this aid station and pounded water, fruit and GU brew.  I knew from reading that at altitude you need to drink more water than usual so I made sure to focus on this.  I must add that even though this was a very tough section very early in the race I made sure to be aware of the incredible mountain scenery I was running in.  The views were nothing that I have experienced before.  At the top of the climb to look down miles below me and see runners climbing was incredible, such a beautiful part of the course.

 Picture by Rob Mitchell

                At the top of the climb I felt so much better and was able to begin to run at a pretty steady pace and eventually made my way to the first drop bag aid station at Dry Fork (mile 13).  Coming into Dry Fork was the first time I noticed that my feet were drenched from all water crossings and sweat so I decided to change my socks at the aid station.  I was pleasantly surprised to find my buddies still at Dry Fork when I arrived; this gave me a bit of a boost as I would be able to rejoin them for hopefully the remainder of the race.  I made a quick sock change and opened my first envelop my wife Marie left for me in every drop bag.  Iit was a picture of my daughter Louise and Chris’s son wearing shirts that said HTFU (Harden the F%&^ Up) with an encouraging note.  This brought a tear to my eye and gave me very good energy leaving Dry Fork.

 Picture by Rob Mitchell

                After Dry Fork there would be a lot of flat and downhill running to the next drop bag aid station at Footbridge (mile 30).  Leaving Dry Fork you descend for a while which was a nice break after a pretty difficult first 13 miles, there were a couple aid stations and natural springs during this section to Footbridge.  I must say that natural springs are the cat’s meow, the taste is incredible and the water is ice cold which really helped out in between aid stations. Nothing real eventful happened during these miles, just focused on running at a consistent moderate pace.  I do remember running behind a mule deer for a while.  The deer was right in the single-track and was perfectly ok running ahead of us, this was a really cool moment.   

Around mile 27 there was a 3.5 mile steep descent down into footbridge, this is the first time my quads began to talk to me.  Surprisingly my quads held up very good during this section and I was able to get to Footbridge in one piece.  Coming into Footbridge was the first time I began to really notice the blisters forming as my feet have been wet all race long, and were beginning to become sponges.  The constant downhill impact was causing my soft feet to crease a bit and form some unusual hot spots. I knew at all drop bag aid station I would need to change socks and shoes.  I was very grateful that I packed extra socks and shoes in each drop bag (Marie, my constant Injinji sock purchasing came in handyJ).

 Picture by Rob Mitchell

At footbridge I took the time to change my socks and shoes and pack up my Goretex jacket as the 18 mile hike up to the turnaround (altitude 9,000 ft) could get very cold and there was a chance of thunderstorms so I needed to make sure I was well equipped in case of severe weather on the mountain.  At the aid station I also began to notice how these long aid station stops were really taking a toll on my overall time but in my opinion there were well needed to help me obtain my only goal of finishing. 

                Leaving Footbridge I knew that I had an 18 mile climb up to the Jaws aid station which was the turnaround so I mentally prepared myself for a 6-7 hour climb.  I told myself just get to the turnaround in good shape which meant ok mind, feet and legs.  Early on during the climb it was still light out and more runnable than anticipated which was good so we were able to save a bit of time during the early sections.  However once the sun began to go down the footing got a bit more technical and the grade was more steep which meant the majority of the climb was a hike.  This climb up to the turnaround (9,000 ft) was very wet and muddy from the snow melt and rain; our feet were very wet the entire time.  I could feel more and more blisters and hot spots forming, however knowing all the other runners were dealing with the same issue made it easier to deal with.  After a while you get immune to the blister pain and it becomes more unnoticeable.  It was becoming noticeably colder so I put on my shell and pink mittens I stole from my wife (with a bit of resistance) which made it very comfortable for me.  At the aid stations I was starting to get cold when I stopped moving so I made an effort to stand by the fire, fuel and leave the aid station as quickly as possible.  The climb went fairly fast even though we were hiking at 20-22 min/mile, it seemed that the turnaround came up faster than anticipated.  The Jaws turnaround (mile 48) aid station was in a sheltered tent with heat which was fantastic as I needed to change my socks and shoes.  The aid station volunteers were fantastic as they immediately handed me my drop bag and were consistently bringing me hot food ie soup, quasadillas and bacon.  This aid station took more time than I wanted as I needed to change my socks and shoes while also eating it just took more time than anticipated.  I love Injinji socks but quickly learned that trying to put them on  wet, blistered and swollen feet is very difficult.  Eventually we were ready to head back down the cold wet trail; it would be a faster 18 mile descent back down into Footbridge aid station.  The descent went pretty good, however with my very wet feet I could begin to feel the pounding of the descent began to form more new blisters, so at the Elk Camp aid station about half way down I had to take a bit longer and do some damage control.  Just after dawn we pulled into Footbridge, I was feeling pretty good despite hamburger for feet.  I dropped off all my cold weather gear into the drop bag as it was much warmer at the base of the mountain and also the sun was beginning to rise.  I pounded a pancake with sausage and bacon wrapped in it and I was on my way.  Chris, Rob and I were all together coming into Footbridge but Chris needed a bit more time at Footbridge so he told Rob and me to continue without him.

I knew leaving Footbridge I would be faced with a grueling 3.5 climb infamously called “The Wall” and it certainly lived up to its name.  This was one of the most difficult sections of the course as the grade of this climb was pretty severe and the sun was beginning to make things a bit hot and uncomfortable.  I just dug in and kept of climbing eventually making it up to the Bear Camp aid station.   

 Picture by Rob Mitchell

I knew it would be pretty runnable until I got to the climb leading back up into Dry Fork aid station.  Rob and I were still together but he was moving a bit better than I was and I told him to continue without me as I kind of just wanted to be alone and do my own thing.  So he took off down the trail.  Even though it hurt to run for extended periods of time I just put my nose to the grind stone and kept on trucking.  About 2 miles down the trail I could see Rob hiking a flat section so I knew something wasn’t right as I know if he felt good he would be running flats.  When I caught up to him he told me he tweaked his knee and walking was a challenge and downhills were very painful.  I felt awful for him as I know how much he invested into this race.  The only thing I had in my pack to possible help was some tylenol so I gave him a couple, and I continued down the trail hoping the Tylenol would get him to the finish line.  Eventually I was able to see off in the distance the Dry Fork aid station.  The only problem was my Garmin told me I was two miles from actually reaching the aid station and it was certainly correct.  Being able to see the aid station and taking so long to actually get there was tough, to make matters worse there was about a 1 mile climb up into the aid station in the beating sun.  During this climb I heard a four-wheeler coming up from behind me and I turned around and saw Rob on the back of it, I knew at this point his race was over.  I felt awful for him as he was running so good towards the end of the race, I have no doubts he will be back in the future to get revenge.  I eventually made it to Dry Fork(miles 83), at this point I knew I had about 17 miles to go.  I also knew a lot of this section would be runnable so I was hoping to make up some time here but was a bit concerned with the steep five mile descent back down into the tongue river canyon.  Rob was at this aid station and helped me fill my water bottles, I wolfed down a piece of pizza and I was off to the finish.

 Picture by Rob Mitchell

                There was a bit of a climb out of Dry Fork, while I was hiking up it was the first time the entire race I was certain I would finish.  I began to reflect on my race so far and also began to think of my wife and daughter Louise and how proud they would be that I was able to finish my first mountain hundo, especially with all the physical problems I faced leading up to the race.  Only Marie knew the personal struggles I was dealing with during the time my SI joint was acting up, she supported me and kept me positive.   All these thoughts were running through my head during this climb, I will always remember this section.  I finally reached the top of the climb and snapped back into task at hand; from here back to Upper Sheep Creek aid station was fairly flat and runnable.  I was reminded when I arrived at the aid station that I still had one more climb before the long descent, I completely forgot about this from the previous day.  I filled my bottles and hit the trail, when I got to the base of the climb I thought to myself “Well this is gonna suck.”  However like my attitude the entire race, just dig in and get it done and that was exactly what I did.  The climb was not that long compared to the other climbs on the course but it was very steep and this late in the race pretty much sucked.  When I got to the top I could see five miles below the Tongue River Canyon and was reminded how bad this descent was going to feel on my quads, good news was I was done climbing. 

The descent was pretty gnarly, the grade is so steep that you had two choices, either really pull back and put the brakes on which would inevitably blow up your quads or just let gravity do its thing and hold on tight because it was going to be an interesting ride down.  The latter was exactly what I did.  Surprisingly my quads held up really well but there were moments when I felt completely out of control but just trusted my legs would hold up.  The descent seemed to take forever as I could see the canyon but just could not get down there fast enough.  Eventually I made it to the canyon trailhead.  I knew from here it would be 5 grueling flat, hot miles on the dirt road which would lead me through the canyon and back to Dayton to the finish line.  With 95 miles on my legs it was pretty hard to continuously run this section as my mind and legs were shot.  I knew I needed to play with my mind in order to run most of this so I caught on with a lady that was running 4 minutes and hiking 1 minute.  I did this with her until about 1 mile to the finish which I just wanted to be alone leading up to the finish.  I eventually saw Dayton and the park and heard the crowds so I knew I was getting close.  I turned a corner and the park was in sight, I eventually made it into the park and saw the finish line.  Running towards the finish line I couldn’t hold back my smile, I knew the odds were stacked against me due to all the SI joint crap I dealt with prior to the race but I was able to persevere and mentally grind out my first mountain 100 miler.  I finished in 31:21:57.

                Looking back on the race I am really proud of my effort and perseverance, my main goal was to finish and I was successful in doing so.  However I do believe I left a lot out of the course.  With all the time chewed up at aid stations and also my conservative race strategy my time was not exactly what I was hoping for but for my first mountain hundred I cannot be that hard on myself.  The Bighorn 100 has a special place in my heart and I will definitely be back at some point to try to improve on my time (hopefully Marie will be willing to pace me J).  Now it time to focus on recovery and get my mind right for my Superior 100 redemption.