The Best Laid Plans of Moms and Men (2017 Tussey Mountainback 50m USATF Championships)

My mother and I have always had the greatest intentions for State College, PA. Over 25 years ago, this was to be her new hometown, teaching at Penn State while my step-father made the most of his retirement fixing up an old house in the college district. Life threw in an unexpected twist, and it became a path not taken, forever a "what if" in her life journey. This last weekend, she returned to State College to crew for me at the 2017 Tussey mOUnTAiNBACK 50-mile run (her first crewing experience), where I would use my fitness and course experience to cruise to an easy finish, needing little more from her than a few pictures. Um, yeah...that didn't quite pan out either. But it was a worthy adventure, full of vivid Fall colors, miles of cramps, and some shared adventure that gave my Mom a good taste of the voluntary suffering that is the ultramarathon. The best laid plans of Moms and Men, I suppose.

(Team Dunlap, go!)

Mom (aka, Dr. Diane Dunlap) was more optimistic for the 85-degree humid air than I was, relishing any east coast Fall/Winter day that didn't involve sub-zero temperatures. For an unacclimated runner, I explained, it meant a struggle with core temp right from the gun, followed by a losing battle with dehydration, and the oh-so-fun "find the chafe spot" post-race shower that feels like angry ghosts armed with heat-seeking cattle prods. She got a good laugh out of that one, asking what she could do to help. Just be there, I said. Flat Coke, pb&j squares, and Vaseline for back up, but really, just be there. "That's what Moms do," she replied, and she was right. Although it had been a few decades, this was certainly not be the first time she stood in the rain for hours so her son could get muddy in the name of sport.

(The colors are out! Photo courtesy of watermelonpunch.com)

It took a lot of courage for her to be here, not just for the race, but to revisit a place where her life could have been. This became clear as we drove the streets looking for the house she had once bought but never moved into. By some stroke of luck (and her impressive internal compass), we found it, and she quickly pointed out all the home projects that David (my step-dad) had been ready to tackle. That would be the master bedroom, the library would go there, you should see the workshop...she recalled every napkin sketch he had scribbled just days before the move while they were on a retirement vacation in Australia. When David died of a heart attack on that same vacation, the plans for State College ended just as suddenly.  Now there are just memories of sketches of a house almost lived in - a path nearly forged with the best laid plans.

(97-year-old runner George Ertzweiler gives us a few pointers, photo courtesy of Jean Pommier)

Mom was thrilled to be here though. She joined me for the pre-race dinner, where we sat with David Roche and his parents, super Master Jean Pommier, and some local runners. David gave a short talk, then Race Director Mike Casper introduced us to 97-year-old George Etzweiler, whose six person team had an average age of 78! George was naturally doing the hardest leg with 1,200 feet of climbing. ;-)

(Liza and David before the race)

(And we're off into the storm!)

(Through the rain)

The warm rain was in full force when we lined up to race, but it was quite pleasant. Mom was a little nervous, but knew that the course layout of 50 miles of dirt roads meant she would see the runners along the way throughout the day. We wished each other luck, and RD Mike Casper sent us off down the lush forest roads. I cruised along with Mike Ryan from Ohio, who had his sites set on fellow M50-54 runner Jean Pommier a few yards ahead. David Roche, Joel Frost-Tift, Anthony Kunkel, and a half dozen others were already well into the distance at a 6 min/mile pace.

(Liza heads through the fall colors)

(The stillness of an early AM aid station!)

As we crossed the first aid station (mile 4) and leaned into the downhill, the rain parted to show a glorious canopy of fall colors. I found the familiar stride of Liza Howard (forever famous in my mind for breast-feeding a newborn while winning the Rocky Raccoon 100m), and tagged along with her effortless form. We knew we were going too fast when we cut through a pack of 20-somethings while saying "old people coming through", so eased up after the second aid station.

I found my Mom at mile 11, and she got me set up with more Vespa, Vitargo, and snacks. I had fooled myself in to thinking I could "bank time" in the cooler early hours, but was pretty sure any tactic was not going to hold off the humidity. Over the next couple of miles, I chatted with local Josh Litofsky about his breakthrough race at Kettle Morraine, his six person crew (cheering the most of anyone), studying chemical engineering, and his desire to break 7 hours at this race after a few solid finishes here. We took on the big climb together (mile 25), before he noted he needed to pick up his pace and pulled ahead. There had already been a lot of people dropping up front, and we found ourselves in 6th and 7th place much to our surprise.

(All smiles)

(Liza is such a ham)

I got through the first 50k (3:47) before the twitches of cramps showed up, and those twitches soon spread like wildfire through my quads and hamstrings. Grrr! I pounded a few more S! Caps, but knew the cramps were evidence of a deeper hydration problem, forged in a lack of training/acclimation. I stopped to chat with my Mom, letting her know this was one was going to be a slog. She still smiled...she was having a blast meeting all the crew, volunteers, and their dogs.

Despite the required walk breaks every half mile, only a few people passed me, so I suspected I wasn't the only one suffering. Every aid station had people dropping, including all the lead women up to Liza (go, Liza!). Mike Ryan went by quickly, so I suspected he might give Jean a run for his money. I felt like I was going SO SLOW, but my Mom kept saying I was making up time. Just keep going!

(Liza brings it home!)

(Anthony Kunkel for the win)

The gold and amber leaves kept my gaze up in the last 10 miles, a nice crutch to my crumbling form. At one point my cramps seized so much I fell over, and I almost couldn't get up! It's been a while since I've felt that messed up, but all you can do it get up and keep going. Just eight more miles...six more miles...three more miles...oh, thank god, there's the finish chute! Ninth dude in 7:34, third Master, and the only one of eight in my age group that didn't drop. All hail, the slog king!

(Mike Ryan, Jean Pommier, and Liza Howard with their bling)

(Great run, great haul!)

(The fast women)

(Ready for that beer)

Anthony Kunkel (5:43) had moved into first on the big climb, and steadily distanced himself from the pack for a decisive win. Best of all, he stayed on course this year (he took a six mile detour before the first mile marker last year)! Liza Howard (7:07) won the Women's division (and Masters), with Jean Pommier (6:39) blazing to a Masters win as well. Aside from Anthony, everyone seemed to have struggled with the humidity, but had the fortitude to find that finish.

Ah, the best laid plans of Moms and Men. But today, it was a team victory, and a chance to create a new family chapter for State College, PA. My thanks to my Mom, Mike Casper and the volunteers, and my fellow adventurers for a day well spent!

The 2017 San Francisco Marathon 52.4 Mile Ultra - Two Sides Of A Great City

Have you ever been to the Haight Ashbury district of San Francisco at 1am, weaving through the loud and crazy nightlife revelers, only to have those city vampires stare awestruck and say "whoa...now THAT guy is strange!"?

Ever run through the eerie calm of an empty Golden Gate Park and Presidio, dodging nocturnal wildlings of all shapes and sizes, and having to sprint from an owl attacking the glow of your headlight?

How about tracing that same route the next morning, joined by 29,000 others and cheered by a half a million more?

Thus is the unique experience that is the 2017 San Francisco Marathon 52.4 Mile Ultra, a double marathon option of this iconic big city race. Run the San Francisco Marathon course backwards at midnight with a crew of mobile aid stations, then join 29,000 runners at 5:30am to run the full marathon as the sun rises...a true urban ultramarathon to show you two sides of the same city.

It was Dean Karnazes who cooked up this scheme six years ago (he's known to run to the start of many of the big city marathons), and I've always wondered what it would be like to double up. Is it similar to back to back long runs? Or more like a 50-miler with a reaaaally long aid station break half way through? This was a chance to find out, and do so in the experienced hands of Race Directors Karen Tancuan, Lauri Abrahamsen, and Jason Clendenning, with the Immortal Race Crew handling mobile logistics. I was definitely in!

San Francisco Marathon Ultra - The First Lap

The run format shook up my normal race routine from the moment I left for the midnight start. I put the kids to bed, left my pajama-clad wife watching Game of Thrones with a glass of wine in her hand (and shaking her head in disbelief that I would opt for running over this), and suited up. About 60 other ultrarunners were there at the start, and I heard lots of different planned approaches to the race:

• Four-time 52.4 winner and marathon fanatic Graham Hedger was going out fast with the ideal low 60's weather. 
• Kowsik Guruswamy was going to take it easy so he could pace his friend through a first marathon in the morning. 
• Abel Alejandrino was raising money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, proudly displaying his daughters picture, and prepping for the Angeles Crest 100m in a month. 
• Another runner planned to make it back in time to officially pace the 5-hour finishers (or not!).
• A young man from L.A. (with mother in tow) said he wanted to check the boxes for "saw San Francisco" and "ran an ultra" before he headed off to college in Pennsylvania in a few days. 

(Dean gives us a few words before the race starts, photo courtesy of Kowsik)

Dean Karnazes was here to make friends and enjoy the day, and was well on his way to both when he welcomed everyone at the start. The horn sounded right afterwards, and we headed down the Embarcadero. Let the adventure begin!

(There are friends who cheer, and then there are friends who show up at midnight with signs to cheer...Gabi wins!)

(The few, the crazy, the SF ultrarunners!)

("When the lights...go down...in the city", we run!)

I cruised along at my aerobic 7:30 min/mile pace (my goal for the whole day), and within two miles was well behind Graham Hedger in the lead. The lead bike had to go with the fast Brit, and the next thing we knew we were on our own for navigation! There were arrows and signs, but the city was alive and bustling with traffic, so you had to keep your eyes open (ears too - RunGo's turn-by-turn navigation of the course was a must). Abel and Carlsbad, CA's Stefan Asbock were smart enough to pair up a half mile behind me, as did most of the other runners.

I had foolishly thought the streets would be empty, forgetting this is a perfect summer night for clubbing in the Dogpatch, Mission, and Haight districts. The sidewalks overflowed with bacchanal on busy corners, and given the roads weren't blocked off for the marathon yet, we did our best to navigate through them. Luckily the cop-like brightness of my headlamp split most packs like Moses through the Red Sea. I'm sure a "you there...freeze!" would have been an order of magnitude more effective.

(City night running is fun! When it's empty...)

A few enlightened souls joined me running down Haight Street (mile 6), happy to share wine, herb, laughter, and song. My water bottles were empty, so it was tempting, but soon enough I found Robert Rhodes managing the mobile aid station (mile 7.5). He filled me up and sent me into Golden Gate Park, where I poorly navigated the sprinklers popping up everywhere.

(Dean gets a refill at the mobile aid station, photo courtesy of Robert Rhodes)

The park was eerily quiet and foggy, and aside from a few large raccoon and deer, there wasn't a soul to be seen. Usually this park has thousands of people in it...so strange to find it empty! Like the zombie apocalypse had drowned out the sun. Somewhere in the fog around the lake I made a wrong turn, but RunGo had me back on track within a half mile, and Chris Blagg and the Immortal Race Crew magically appeared to point me downhill towards the ocean and get back on track.

(Raccoons get to work, ha, ha)

I got one last glimpse of Graham (easily two miles ahead of me now) at the half way point, which I hit in 1 hr 44 min. That seemed like a good pace - fast, but not so fast I couldn't hold it through the next 1.5 marathons. The ocean tugged the fog in ebbs and flows as I ran along the Great Highway, and the headlights of fellow ultrarunners sparkled in the distance. I ran back up into the park, and made a quarter mile detour to get another runner back on track (she would have done the same for me) before hitting the neighborhoods. There aren't many neighbors out at 2am, but surprisingly, those that are walk their dogs and meet each other just like any other time of day. There wasn't anything strange about a guy running with a headlight and a number either - they just nodded!

As I got to the Presidio (mile 18), the street lights were few and far between, amplifying the solitude. I felt the wings of a bird come within a few feet of me....then again....then on the third try I realized it was an owl going for my headlight! Wha?!? What is the proper defense strategy for owl attacks, anyway? Go big and loud like you do with mountain lions? Play dead like with grizzly bears? I opted for the former, throwing in a sprint to the next aid station (mile 20.5), where Robert and the gang said they had been seeing that owl for the last 10 minutes. I guess we are on his turf!

(Robert Rhodes mans the mobile aid station...watch out for owls!)

I took the familiar path down to Crissy Field, watching the lights of the Bay Bridge reflect in the still waters of the Bay. This was fun! As I crossed into Fisherman's Wharf, dozens of rats scurried away from the trash cans set outside the chain restaurants, pretty much guaranteeing I will never, ever eat down there. Mary the bike guide rescued me and pulled me down the idle trolley tracks and into the finish in 3:36:29.

I had two hours to collect myself for lap #2, so I followed Graham's lead and got a full breakfast, plenty of water, and a 15-minute massage. Graham had finished in a screaming fast 3:05(!), but was already worried it would cost him in the second half. We were both far too energized from runners coming in to take a nap, so we changed into dry clothes and got ready for part two! The fresh pair of Injinji socks felt great, and the cushy inov-8 Trailroc 285's were handling the uneven pavement with ease.

San Francisco Marathon Ultra - The Second Lap

The SF Marathon, now in its 40th running, is a BIG race these days. I've run it a few times, but the record setting 29,000 runners who showed up today for 10k, two half marathon options, and the full marathon distances leave no doubt this race is now one of the biggies. In the starting corral, I heard no less than six languages, all of them excited to see the historic sites, and more than one busting out Journey's "Lights". I was feeling tired from the all-nighter (I am no spring chicken), but their energy was better than an espresso double shot!

(And the marathon begins!)

The rats were gone by the time this army of runners made their way to the Golden Gate Bridge (thank god), and I wondered if they were under the grates looking at us in a similarly disgusted fashion. The weather was cooler and windier now, the bridge a faint dusting of red in the fog. I assured the tourist runners "it was just there a few hours ago, I swear" as we climbed our way up into the wind.

(Friends find each other in the fog)

Four runners came across the foggy bridge in diamond formation, leading the race like the Blue Angels as we begin our out and back. Our own Jorge Maravilla was the lead jet, confidently pulling the pack through the headwind. The fog had a nice cooling effect, and most of the runners around me said it was preferable, despite missing the scenery.

(Kowsik has some fun crossing the bridge with runner cops)

My friend Joe Palubeski miraculously spotted me among the runners (he has a gift!) as he paced his buddy through his first marathon and captured it all on his GoPro. As we made our way across and back on the bridge, I realized this pace was going to keep me close to about two dozen runners around me. A Canadian women with rainbow braids, a 70-year man from Mexico with the coolest mustache, a 30-year-old guy from the Tahiti Tri Club, and a husband/wife couple from Spain with matching outfits, right down to the lycra pants covering their respective thongs (yes, you read that right). Hey, whatever makes you go fast!

(Runners take over the bridge, photo courtesy of Chris Lundy)

Once we entered the park (mile 10), the SF Marathon applied its genius logistics to infuse new runners from half marathons every mile or so. Some were fast, some were slow, and everyone was having a good time. I ran along with a group of 1:45 half marathoners, enjoying the look on their face when they asked "half or full?" and I responded "double". "What the faaaaahhhh.....duuuuuude!!!". ;-)

(Watch for sharks...)

It was easy to get around the lake correctly this time, and soon enough we were heading through the Haight again and downhill towards the Bay (mile 18). My energy started to wain (much like it often does at mile 40), and it was fascinating this felt exactly the same as if I hadn't taken a two hour break. I gorged on Stroopwafels, and leaned into the hill.

(Done!)

The sun burned bright in the last few miles, and I slowed to a 9 min/mile pace as the sun drained what little was left in my tank. It felt anti-climactic, right up until the announced said "an ultra finisher!" and the crowd went crazy. How fun! So rare to have such an audience at an ultra finish. I had crossed in 3:41:02, good enough for a combined time of 7:17:21 and 2nd Overall in the ultra. The volunteers jokingly gave me two of everything (water, bagels, protein bars, etc.), and when I took them up on two beers, I was asleep on a cot within five minutes. Whoops!

(With Penny "rubber chicken lady" Macphail, who said Jorge's son had stolen her chicken and hadn't been caught yet)

I woke up 20 minutes later, and rallied to come out and cheer on the other ultra finishers and thank the volunteers. Graham Hedger added his fifth win with an outstanding combined time of 6:31, and Stefan Asbock had an 18-minute negative split to come in third in 7:28. Abigail Cannon (9:50), Gabriel Anderson (10:18), and Alyssa Perry (12:32) filled out the Women's podium. (results) Jorge Maravilla had won the marathon in a crazy fast 2:28:23 (!), with Stanford student Devin McMahon winning the Women's in 2:52:49. (all results) The finish line was full of bling, with all kinds of extra medals for completing both half marathons, all distances, at least 40 miles, and more. The celebration was in full swing!

(Jorge Maravilla for the win!)

(Bling!)

Was the double worth it? Hell yes. Would I do it again? Absolutely. I have two new sets of memories to broaden my perspective on this great city. One thing for sure, with vampires, scavengers, swooping giant birds, and an unstoppable army, Game of Thrones has nothing on the San Francisco Marathon Ultra. My thanks to Dean, the RD's, and Immortal Race Crew for making it happen!

- SD

Muddy Mayhem at the FOURmidable 50k (2017 USATF 50k Trail National Championships)

Formidable (Fohr-med-a-bull) – Causing fear, dread, awe, or discouragement as a result of size, strength, or some other impressive feature; commanding respect; causing wonder or astonishment. Difficult to defeat or overcome.

FOURmidable 50k – the above, plus 31 miles of mud and 6,000' of climbing. 

From the moment I added the FOURmidable 50k to the race calendar two months ago, I have enjoyed how its clever-but-daunting name injected a twinge of fear into my workouts. The all caps “FOUR-” cleverly represents the four insanely steep climbs between Auburn and Cool, CA, that anchor the course with nearly 6,000’ of vertical gain. The lower case, but not to be underestimated, “-midable” refers to the fast runnable single track in between those climbs. Put them together, and every workout of the normally slow winter season is frightfully blessed with purpose. Climbing, downhills, speedwork…FOURmidable would demand it all.

(Note the inverted profile chart with aid stations at the bottom of the number - genius!)

As the race approached, Mother Nature raised the stakes with the highest year-to-date rain on record in California, guaranteeing miles of shoe-sucking mud that could break spirits and ankles with equal ferocity. This year, it was also the 2017 USA Track & Field (USATF) 50k Trail National Championships, so we could expect speedsters such as world champion Max King, national champion Andy Whacker, power couple (and national champions) David and Megan Roche, YiOu Wang, Ryan Ghelfi, Cole Watson, Jennifer Devine Pfiefer, Meghan “the Queen” Arbhogast, Jean Pommier, and a couple hundred more ready to define their best.

(Jessi Goldstein gets ready with her fellow warriors)

(Addie Bracy, Andy Whacker, and David Roche are ready to roll)

(YiOu Wang makes a few adjustments while Team Hoka's Cole Watson and Ryan Ghelfi stretch out)

(Ray Sanchez, just ahead of the best singlet ever from Ian O'brien)

It was the first competition of my 2017 season, and I yearned for the release of the start gun with a manic intensity. Races are such a gift, inviting us to adventure with fellow warriors and leave our “normal” life behind for half a day. Lately, my “normal” is 11 power outages in five weeks as Woodside struggles in the windy storms, launching a brand new company (Brilliant, who makes the worlds smartest light switch), and the inescapable cacophony of Trumplandia permeating the will of the world. Five hours of sweaty quiet along the gorgeous hills of the American River valley? Heck, that’s the most sane thing on my calendar these days.

(Who's ready to roll?)

(And we're off!

The relief came at 8am, as Race Director Paulo Medina and the gang of Single Track Running sent us down from the Auburn Dam Overlook towards the American River after the 35k runners. Andy Whacker led Max King, David Roche, and Ashland, OR's Cole Watson down the first descent at blazing speed, while YiOu Wang and Colorado's Addie Bracy tucked in about five places back. I set up about a dozen people behind them, trying to keep my Masters competition in sight. Somewhere up there was Jean Pommier (who just ran a sub-3:20 50k two weeks ago), and I had seen Mark McManus (defending Trail 50k National Masters Champion), local Peter Fain, Alan Abbs, 200-miler king John Burton, and a few other names on the start list that could clean my clock any given Saturday. But I was fit from a solid 8-week block of training (thanks, FOURmidable!), and knew in these conditions, patience would be my best ally.

(Cruising the towpath, photo courtesy of Theseus Augustus Felonius)

 By the time we got down to the river and back again (mile 5), it was clear that the mud was going to be a bigger factor than the hills today. Every mud condition imaginable was here - sloshy mud up to your knee, bone breaking hard clay, murky bottom creeks, sticky rooted climbs, saturated cow fields….even No Hands Bridge had a four inch puddle on the top. The downhill switchbacks were downright suicidal in some sections, but the kid in me was having a great time slopping it up.

(The mud would be the big factor today)

(Megan Storms shows off her buddy's new gaiters)

(There's a creek ON TOP of No Hands Bridge!)

As we stomped across No Hands Bridge and tackled the 22% incline of K2 (mile 11), I heard that Andy Whacker had taken a fall and was off to the hospital to get some stitches. Yikes! This course takes no prisoners. Max King had a 2-minute lead on Cole Watson, with David Roche and Ryan Ghelfi right behind them, all going at well under the course record pace. Addie Bracy and YiOu Wang were leading the Women’s race, well ahead of the pack (I found out Megan Roche had not started to take care of their dog who snarfed down some ibuprofen for breakfast - good doggy Mom, Megan!).

(K2 is looking crazy)

My playmates for this race were all from the Bay Area. San Francisco’s Sebastian Duesterhoeft was here for a “training run” (but looking pretty damn good), 17-year-old Spenser Talkington and his rainbow hair was climbing everything, while Mill Valley’s Chris Castleman led us down the descents with his effortless gait. Ryan Smith from Fair Oaks joined us as well, chuckling that the muddy conditions would be his 2-year-old sons perfect day. The pace was quick, that is, until another thick field of mud had us spread out, laughing out loud, and grasping for anything that resembled traction. A smile cracked through my mud mask, humbled by the pure joy of my fellow warriors. Glorious, this mud be!

(David Roche leading up the climb, photo courtesy of Eric Schranz)

(Try and stay dry! Ha, ha)

As Spenser led me up Overlook Hill (mile 15), we caught up with 35k runners and all got a shot of adrenaline when two bucks went flying down the hillside right in between us. Phew! Now that’s what I call good downhill form. I scanned ahead for my Masters competitors, but even as we crested the hills above the fog, I could only see Ryan Smith’s red shirt in the distance. A good enough target for now. Sebastian joined me as we crossed the thigh-deep Knickerbocker Creek, and we chatted about how in decades of running up here (Way Too Cool, Western States, etc.) we had never seen the creeks running so wild. It was music to our California-drought dry ears.

(Max King and the epic face plant we all made, photo courtesy of Paul Berquam)

It wasn’t until the Cool aid station (mile 22), that I got an idea of the race ahead and where I was. Max King had come through at blazing speed, face planting in the four foot deep creek, with Cole Dayton two minutes behind him (and also face planting in the four foot deep creek). David Roche, Ryan Ghelfi, Ian O’brien (hands down the best race shirt), and Ryan Woods were all in pursuit. YiOu Wang had made her signature move, turning on the afterburners in the last 10 miles, and had already gapped Addie Bracy by four minutes. The volunteers guided me around the four foot creek, and a guy said “you’re first in your age group, Jean is about 8 minutes up for Masters…he’s going fast though, so you better get moving”. Wait...where is Peter Fain? Mark McManus? The guy shrugged his shoulders and said “looks like it’s your day”. Well, it's not over yet...

(We aren't done yet!)

Sebastian caught up with me as we rolled through Cool, and we joked about how perfect that volunteer’s update was. “You’re leading your age group” (you’re killing it, but don’t slow down) and “Jean is still ahead of you and going fast” (how bad do you want this?). I kept my pace rolling through to No Hands (mile 27), but Sebastian had a few more gears for climbing than I did so he pulled away. I recollected how great it felt to run these hills in the final hours of Western States, and let those memories lighten my heavy legs.

The last of the four climbs (mile 30) set my quads and calves twitching, and I power hiked the bottom just in time to watch Jean Pommier finish at the top. Chris Castlemen was able to run the entire last climb, and caught me in the final 200 yards, collapsing at the finish. I followed him in (4:39), nabbing 11th overall, 8th USATF Male, 2nd Master, and the M45-49 win. What a great finish to an amazing day!

(YiOu Wang is our new USATF Trail 50k Champion!)

(Max King talks strategy with his daughter after taking the win)

Max King (3:32, new course record) had held on for the win, with Cole Watson (3:39), David Roche (3:51), Ryan Ghelfi (3:55), and Ryan Woods (3:59) all going under 4 hours. Ian O’brien (4:15) took sixth, just ahead of the Womens champion, YiOu Wang (4:18), Addie Bracy (4:32), and Masters winner Jean Pommier (4:32). Sebastian (4:33) almost caught Jean! Guess I should have stayed with him. (all results)

(Womens Masters champion Jennifer Devine Pfeiffer and RD Paulo Medina)

(M40-44 winner John Burton and M55-59 winner Gary Saxton make good use of the finisher hoodies)

(Killer swag!!!)

As we enjoyed beer and brats, got our Monster Massages, and covered ourselves in the amazing swag (t-shirt, sweatshirt, hat, finisher medal, water bottle, yes!), we cheered in more happy and muddy racers. Jennifer Devine Pfiefer soon came in to take 3rd Female, winning the Masters category, just ahead of a flu-beaten Meghan Arboghast who was still all smiles. My cycling buddy Chris Devine had placed 3rd overall in the 35k, with his friend Ben Winters just behind him, and we joked that both could probably whip out a marathon and feel less exhausted than 22 miles of this insanity. With every muddy face that came up over the hill, we let out another cheer – John Burton (M40-44 winner), Gary Saxton (M55-59 winner), Tim Tweitmeyer, Ron Hess, Jerry Dischler, Megan Storms, and many more. This was an epic day, and worthy of a finishers yelp.

My thanks to Paulo Medina and his troupe at Single Track Running for this wonderful gift of a run. In my mind, it redefined what a USATF 50k Trail Championship race should be – epic climbs, crazy conditions, fast runners, great swag, awesome food, not too much pomp and circumstance, and all of it expertly organized. Best of all it was a perfectly good excuse to get muddy, and renew my appreciation for nature’s extraordinary range of beauty. Thanks Team inov-8 for making mud running fun (#getagrip), and Injinji for getting me through another crazy race with no blisters. Let the chalice of my soul spill over with gratitude.

See ya on the trails!

- Scott