(The clouds settle into Purisima, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
“Celebrate early and often”. It’s one of my favorite life mottos. Don’t wait for some once-in-an-eon milestone, round-numbered birthday, or Hallmark-designated date on the calendar…if there’s a reason to celebrate, just send the invites and DO IT. Does your neighbor’s dog need a one year and two month birthday party? Hell yes, he does. Break out the sausage balloons and bacon-topped chicken cake, and go off-leash crazy with all your doggy (and kitty!) friends. Is it the five year and three week anniversary of the day you met your current best friend? Then for God’s sake, have some champagne and cupcakes, retell every story with glorious volume and exaggeration, then dance until you pass out. Next week, we’ll add a costume theme and lawn darts, and do it all over again.
Once you decide to celebrate, what is most important (as my 7-year-old, Quinn would say), is YOU DON’T HALF ASS IT. Bring food, brings friends, play games, and don’t stop until everyone is exhausted and sunburnt. Have you ever seen a famous picture of half of an ass? Of course you haven’t. That’s ridiculous. Everyone wants the full ass. It’s so fundamental, even a 7-year-old will disapprovingly shake her head (and booty) if you even try to go, say, three-quarter ass. In the celebration of life’s random chapters, no matter what it is, one must go all or nothing. (Daddy, stop trying to make #FULLASSORNOTHING a thing!)
I suspect Race Directors conjure a similar muse when they scheme up new courses. Robert Rhodes and the Baytrailrunners “Whistle Punk - The Deuce” is a perfect example. I can picture Robert, with his mischievous smile and infinite passion for adventure, routing his deep knowledge of the beautiful trails of the Purisima Open Space Preserve to inspire a vision - “what if we double everything and hit every climb in this park…26.2 miles with 6,500’ of vertical…in the most perfect late Autumn weather that California has to offer…then sit in the sun with snacks and beer and talk about it until the sun goes down, and/or our quads and calves finally stop twitching in endless revolt…”. Epic from the moment of conception, as acknowledged by the hearty volunteers who pony up, and the runners who sell out the race in days. I was lucky enough to be one of them (racing today!), and was ready for a full ass adventure.
And so at 9am this last Sunday, I helped fill the parking lot with ~100 other runners, 35 tackling the 26.2 miles of “The Deuce”, while the rest took on the challenging Whistle Punk Half. It was a perfect weather day – chilly under the redwood canopy, but warm and sunny once you broke the tree line. Thanks to the vertically challenging course, we would all visit these microclimates repeatedly.
(Cruising under the canopy, photo courtesy of Todd Glieden)
I caught up with fellow runners at the start, including the fit-and-always-sandbagging Sean Handel (going for the Half, naturally), Ken Huang (her huge smile as bright as the sunrise), Nakia Baird (Faster Now That I’m A Master), Holly Tate Ross (the Dipsea Crusher), a visitor from Amsterdam, and many locals who had heard the call. My fitness was good, although I had recently taken two weeks off due to a neck injury suffered when taking an awkward fall on the trails (honestly, is there ever a “non-awkward” fall on the trails?). Given my limited range of motion, there would be no photos today (pro photographer Cris Gebhardt would have us covered on this front), but it shouldn’t hold back from a good, smiling sufferfest. Many of us shared an extra long hug and smile in memory of Dennis Connor who recently died in a trail running accident in Switzerland, knowing full well if he were here, he would tell us to count our blessings – good health, good friends, and an excuse to play in the mountains.
Robert sent us off with a glorious “whoop!”, and we immediately descended to the Craig Britton Trail that traced above the coastal clouds, dropping us closer and closer to its refreshing grey soup. The trails of Purisima are ideal for running, alternating between the smooth, redwood-protected single track and roads, and some obscenely steep and exposed sections that even the most elite would need to fast hike. By Robert’s design, the first few miles would be the easiest (if you could call any of this course “easy”), and slowly but surely, the screws would turn.
(Sean Handel leads us out, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
(Todd Glieden gets a selfie with the Grabtown volunteer crew)
We climbed up Grabtown Gulch (some of my favorite single track out here), hitting the first aid station (mile 6) and checking off the first of four big climbs. After a long and luscious descent, I found myself running with San Francisco’s Kristin Sellers and Oakland’s Lucy Andrews, both of whom were wise enough to take hike breaks on the second big ascent as they rocked out to their respective tunes. We still have lots of climbing to go!
(Tackling the climbs, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
As we finished the climb and made the turn (mile 13), the volunteers let me know I was in 4th place, with San Bruno’s Ammon Skidmore out front, closely followed by Palo Alto’s Martin Jambon and local speedster Karl Schnaitter. The lead women were all within a minute right behind me - a tight race! Whose soundtrack would be faster?
(Enjoying the shade while it lasts, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
We descended down the crazy steep Harkins Ridge trail (first race to ever go this way!), where Palo Alto’s Rokas Zickevicius went flying by me just before we hit the aid station (mile 17). I fueled up quickly, so regained 4th place as we did a backwards loop back up to Grabtown. I could hear Rokas working hard behind me in the canyon, which kept my posture upright and focused (thanks, Rokas!). It somehow felt steeper in this direction (likely because it was climb #3), but I kept on it, running everything. At the top (mile 20), they reaffirmed my place, but said Kyle Schnaitter was now leading the race a solid 10 minutes ahead of me. Wow, he’s flying!
(Nothing but smiles, photo courtesy of Nathan Han)
The butterflies surfed my tailwind as I headed down into the redwood canopy one last time, their random flight patterns as light as laughter. I often wonder if butterflies wait for us like surfers watching a break. If so, let me be your seventh wave so you can drop big! I leaned into the downhill until my quads screamed, cutting through the still air with proper wave-like nobility. The butterflies replied with glorious carves, fabulous floaters, snaking each other like a den of thieves. These magical moments are everywhere in the forest, forged in presence and play.
(Ammon enjoys some fast single track, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
I broke from the flow to fuel up at the last aid station (mile 21) as the butterflies sallied into the sunbeams. Mother Nature, my love, I crash onto your shore! The sun was coming down through the redwood canopy now, so this last climb would be a hot one. Volunteers Penny and Ramona got me set up with my hot day cocktail of half Coke/half water, and I tore up Whitmere Gulch one last time.
(Me burning through the last climb, photo courtesy of Cris Gebhardt)
It was a grind, pushing me to cross-eyed levels in the last mile (full ass!). I drowned myself in the cleansing voluntary pain that we all relentlessly chug, and so few on this planet understand. I crossed the line (4th overall in 4:11:59), and quickly took a seat in the sun with Karl Schnaitter (1st, 3:50), Martin Jambon (3:58, 2nd), and Ammon Skidmore (4:09, 3rd). Rokas finished right behind me (4:12:34, 5th), thanking me for being just close enough he had to keep pushing all the way (Roka, you did the same for me!). Holly Tate Ross (4:17) won the Women’s Deuce, with Kristin Sellers (4:19) and Lucy Andrews (4:25) very close behind. Sean “Sandbagger” Handel won the Half (1:47), with Dara Dickson (2:16) winning the Women’s division. Before long, we were all relaxing on the grass with the volunteers (Trisha, Rob, Karen, Bala, Kristen, Mandie, Lauren, Michael, Susan, Rosa, Nathan, Todd, Greg, and more!), telling tales with beers in hand. It’s not even 2pm, and we have seized this day for all it is worth. This was most certainly a full ass celebration.
(Enjoying some post-race moments with Greg Lanctot and RD Robert Rhodes)
My thanks to Robert and his volunteers for creating “The Deuce”, and executing it brilliantly. In my book, this is already one of the great California “must do” events. I hope to see more of you next year!
Last Sunday, Race Director Robert Rhodes and the Baytrailrunners Crew hosted their 7th Whistle Punk Half, a trail half marathon through the gorgeous (and steep!) Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve near my home in Woodside, CA. It was a beautiful day, and we made the most of it! More pics than text for this one - just a great day in the forest.
(Robert gets the 80+ runners organized)
It was a classic winter California day - a chilly 38 degrees in the shade, but pushing 50 degrees in the sun. Layers would be key!
(And we are off!)
(100 feet of flat, then miles of downhill)
The term "Whistle Punk" comes from the old logging days of the 1850's, where the person who sounded the horn when a tree was coming down was called the whistle punk. Robert gave us a blast of the horn as we fell down the hillside.
(We immediately plunge down the first half mile)
(Save those quads!)
(The canopy was chilly)
(Jim is looking forward to the sunny sections)
(Get that sun, Jim!)
(First peak nabbed!)
(And down we go...that's the Pacific Ocean to the right)
(Ahhh, there's that sun!)
(On the fast Craig Britton Trail)
(Rollin'!)
(Moving fast on the Craig Britton Trail)
(Love this trail!)
(Dancing among the giants)
There was a lot of fast running on the descent to Grabtown Gulch (still my favorite part of Purisima), which quickly slowed most to a fast hike. This is a steep 2.5-mile pitch and you have to save yourself for an even bigger climb at the end, so worth saving up!
(Heading up Grabtown Gulch)
(Derek is almost to the top!)
(Robert and his Dad manning the aid station)
I met Derek on the climb up (also representing A Runner's Mind in Burlingame, one of the race sponsors), and he was glad to see the aid station. I got a pic, then pushed forward to catch up to Jamil, who had come down from Sonoma County to enter his second trail race of all time, and the longest one yet. He was doing great!
(Jamil getting it done)
(Jamil says thanks to aid station volunteers...just four miles to go!)
Jamil and I chatted briefly into the last descent, and I learned about his amazing health journey where he did some good living in Hawaii, lost 30 lbs, then came back to be a chef. Despite the lively conversation, we almost broke his one mile PR as we came into the last aid station (mile 9). I let Jamil know it's the first third of this last climb that is a doozy, and he smartly paced himself while I recklessly went forward in search of Strava KOM's to no avail.
(The final climb!)
(Doing the climb, photo courtesy of Edmundo Pacheco)
(Into the sun, almost there!)
(Finish!)
I felt great on the last climb (1:55), but not quite enough to catch our winner, Lucas Shuman (1:47). Derek passed Jamil in the last mile to nab third, and Kim Beil, Jamie Fend, and Alyssa Dunlap (not related!) won the Women's division.
(Awesome finish medals/coasters)
(Derek brings it home!)
(Jamie Fend and Kim Beil take 2nd and 1st Woman)
My thanks to Robert and his crew for throwing a great party, and giving us all an excuse to play in the forest all morning. If you're looking for a chill race up in these here parts, this is a great one, as is the Whiskey Hill Redwood Run on March 25. Hope to see you there!
