Beautiful weather, great volunteers, and a fully registered race with 119 runners led to a great day. This is a very fast course with very little change in elevation and many miles of flat easy running. I ran with a lot of experienced and new runners, had some great conversations, and finished with a new 50K PR of 4:54.

The course consists of a figure 8 with one primary aid station and one liquid/gel station. You are never more than 2.6 miles from a station. The real challenge of this course is braving the open field dam area 8 times. It isn't too bad early, but later in the race the sun really beats down hard.

I knew that a sub 5 was certainly within my limits. My only hesitation with pushing for a sub 5 lie in running MMT three weeks prior. Everything went pretty well, but I did feel something like a longer term fatigue in my legs by the 4th and final 8 mile loop. It was the kind of fatigue I feel after back-to-back-to-back long training days.

Final analysis: A Great fast race. If you want a 50K PR, this is the one to do. Registration does fill up (120 limit), so sign up as soon as it is available.

MMT 2009: A first timer’s perspective

The drive to Front Royal, Virginia was drawing to a close. The mountains in front of me grew higher and higher while my heart sank lower and lower. I had convinced myself that this was a huge mistake. What was I doing here? I don’t belong here. I live in Dayton, Ohio. We don’t have hills. This is going to suck.

I learned about MMT in late 2008. I attempted my first 100 at Mohican in June 2008, but was ill prepared. I had only been running ultras for 2 months and had run my first marathon 4 months prior. After my DNF, I began training with more purpose and focus. I started training specifically for MMT in December 2008. I wasn’t certain if I would run it, but I was going to train as best I could. If I avoided injury and felt reasonably confident about my chances of finishing, I would follow through.

Skyline Ranch Resort

Resorts are places where one goes to relax. Generally images of swimming, shuffleboard, and buffets come to mind. Not this trip. It would be a time for running with clear expectations of brutality. No matter how hard I trained for this race, I knew it would not be sufficient to leave unscathed. My first views of the mountain range caused me to strongly reevaluate my decision to run a more difficult 100 miler for my first buckle. It also didn’t help that I would be running this one solo with no crew or pacer.

I arrived on Friday for check-in. The prerace meeting proceeded as usual and the dinner was satisfying. I wanted to check-in to my hotel and get to sleep, so I didn’t hang around the ranch after the necessities were completed. Besides, I wasn’t exactly in the mood for conversation.

Morning arrived quickly as I woke just prior to the alarm. My fingers were trembling slightly as I began to dress for the next couple days. I grabbed my finish line bag and left the room. By 4:00 AM I was sitting in my car at the Skyline Ranch Resort, the pump-up music I had prepared just two nights prior lie dormant in my ipod, a casualty of nerves. Mustering some strength, I exited my car for breakfast; a coffee and 2 donuts. Another runner remarked how nervous I looked. Thanks.

Skyline Ranch Resort to Habron Gap Aid Station
Miles: 0 to 24.7
Time: 5:00 AM to 10:20 AM
Pace: 12:57
Temp: 61 to 69
Weather: Dry, Humid

At 5:00 AM we started on our way. It was nice to have a good nerve calming easy road stretch before starting on the trails. I listened to runners’ conversations and discussions about training and past races. My feet felt good, better than they had in some time. The tapering had done its job. I entered the trails and continued to the Shaw Gap station, topped off my bottles and continued to Veech Gap where pancakes and sausage awaited. To this point, it was nothing but a beautiful yet humid running day.

There were great views along the ridges. Being my first visit to Massanutten, I felt compelled to stop and take in the scenery. I considered bringing my camera, but left it in the car that morning to keep myself from too much site seeing. I thought the fewer distractions the better. I wanted to keep my pack full of the necessities and nothing more.

There were 4 miles of road prior to the Habron Gap Aid Station, and on the advice of a friend I resisted running this section too hard so as to prepare myself for the 9.5 mile run to Camp Roosevelt. My first drop bag was placed here, so I picked up a third bottle (advice from same friend) and filled it with Gatorade to go along with my two hand held water bottles. I also had a shoe and sock change as well as a Boost.

Habron Gap to Gap Creek I
Miles: 24.7 to 39.8
Time: 10:20 AM to 2:45 PM
Pace: 18:47
Temp: 69 to 82 (Day High of 85 at 2:08 PM)
Weather: Dry, Humid, Rain near end

The first leg of this stretch was a 9.5 mile run that included a pretty big climb. The temperature had also risen quite dramatically. I arrived at Camp Roosevelt at 12:57 PM where I had my first doubts of completing the race. After a brief rest and taking in some calories, I continued on to Gap Creek. It started raining during this section. After reaching Gap Creek and my second drop bag, I picked up some more gels, another Boost, and my rain hat.

Gap Creek I to the Visitor’s Center
Miles: 39.8 to 48.2
Time: 2:45 PM to 5:40 PM
Pace: 20:50
Temp: 82 to 70
Weather: Rain Showers

I began to settle into a comfortable pace, not doing anything too fast, and carefully walking every incline. There was a road leading to the visitor center that was very nice. I wasn’t sure if my ankles would be able to hold up to the abuse they were taking on these rocky trails for the rest of the race. Although I wasn’t retesting the low I felt at Camp Roosevelt, I was certainly starting to feel worn. Upon reaching the Visitor’s Center, I ate quite a lot and the calories picked me up. I also happened to see an acquaintance from back home which gave me a psychological lift. Of course now that someone I know saw me here, I had yet another reason to not quit.

Visitor’s Center to Bird Knob
Miles: 48.2 to 52.1
Time: 5:40 PM to 6:50 PM
Pace: 17:57
Temp: 70 to 69
Weather: Heavy Rain, Wind, Hail, Lightening

Leaving the Visitor’s center, I was feeling much better physically, but I had hit a quick emotional low. I began to ponder exactly how much further I had to go. It wasn’t even dark yet, and I had an entire night of this to deal with before starting it all over again when daylight broke for the second time. I quickly worked through that, and tried to enjoy the climb up Bird Knob. I ended up climbing with a small group of runners and we struck up good conversation. After traveling down the crest trail we were treated to a spectacular view of the oncoming thunderstorm that was about to drench the area. I left the group and started running the trail to the Bird Knob Aid Station.

Not far from the aid station, the sky opened a fury of wind, lightening, rain, and small hail. I quickly donned my poncho and kept a nice pace to the station. My glasses were wet and I could barely see. Huge puddles were forming on the ground. I reached the Bird Knob aid station where I ate the best hot dog that was ever prepared in the entire history of the universe, both known and unknown. That was followed by an incredible chicken noodle soup.

Bird Knob to Picnic Area
Miles: 52.1 to 56.4
Time: 6:50 PM to 8:13 PM
Pace: 19:18
Temp: 69 to 65
Weather: Rain

I was in great spirits leaving Bird Knob. This was probably the best I had felt all day. I was past the 50 mile point and the night run that I was looking forward to was almost upon me. I would have a flat run then a descent to the Picnic Area which held my next drop bag with dry socks, shirt, gels, and a Boost.

Picnic Area to Gap Creek II
Miles: 56.4 to 64.9
Time: 8:13 PM to 11:33 PM
Pace: 23:32
Temp: 65 to 64
Weather: Rain

My stop at the Picnic Area was quick. I got what I needed, grabbed some food, and proceeded onward. With darkness came my headlamp. Unfortunately, it also brought rain. I drew my backup flashlight to add more illumination and attempted to navigate my way through the trails. This was my first experience running trails at night by myself. I was quite impressed that I didn’t freak out, although there were a few times I made double takes into the darkness.

The streams were overflowing, making the crossings somewhat hairy. It felt good to reach Gap Creek again. I met up with some other runners near the end of this section which took a load off of some of the navigational difficulties I was having. One of the runners was Jonathan from Charlotte. We ran quite a lot of the remainder of the race together, and I owe him for keeping me going out there.

My concern about my feet was growing. I knew that I had some blisters forming. That was going to be a certainty with all the rain that we had endured so far. My toes and heels were starting to feel very tender.

It had stopped raining by the time I reached Gap Creek II. I got my drop bag, drank a Boost, packed more gels, and I put on dry socks and a compression shirt to help keep me warm. Unfortunately, I forgot to grab my other poncho, and I left the station without any rain protection. This would be important later in the night.

Gap Creek II to Moreland Gap
Miles: 64.9 to 67.7
Time: 11:33 PM to 1:19 AM
Pace: 37:51
Temp: 64 to 63
Weather: “Dry”

I don’t remember much of this section. It was dark and not raining and I guess that’s all I could hope for at the time. I probably took an extended break at Gap Creek, which would account for the dramatically higher pace.

Moreland Gap to Edinburg Gap
Miles: 67.7 to 75.9
Time: 1:19 AM to 4:59 AM
Pace: 26:50
Temp: 63 to 55
Weather: Heavy Rain and Wind

I was not looking forward to the next two sections. It was night. The rain was off and on. But more important, the next two sections totaled 18.2 miles. These were some long stretches for this late in a race, and I wasn’t sure I’d be up for it. I also had to look forward to the climb up Short Mountain. From what I could gather, this mountain was not really short at all, and it had ended a lot of runners’ races.

The climb up Short Mountain was tough. I was with Jonathan and a few other runners. After reaching the crest trail, the next round of heavy rain hit, I’m guessing sometime around 3:00 AM. We were getting pounded by wind and heavy rain. As I reached into my bag for my poncho, I realized I had forgotten it. The temperature was dropping and I was getting cold. I had my cold weather compression top and a long sleeve shirt, but it wasn’t enough to protect against that kind of weather. A similar situation ended my race at Mohican.

Luckily I had packed a space blanket in my pouch. I pulled it out and wore it over my head and back as a makeshift poncho. It made an immediate difference. I had stopped the potential disaster, but I still wasn’t in good shape. I was expending a lot of energy to keep focused and warm.

I had hit my second physical low point by the time we reached Edinburg. I had spent the previous 2 miles listing my reasons for dropping, all of them good and without shame. I thought I was done. I proceeded to eat and get warm. I even took a blanket from a volunteer. I was feeling more and more relaxed. I felt compelled to join the napping runner next to me. Then something happened. The other runners in the group were ready to leave. I made no conscious decision to stand. I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I wanted to quit. I had convinced myself to quit. But I got up and left with the group.

Edinburg Gap to Woodstock Tower
Miles: 75.9 to 84.1
Pace: 22:04
Time: 4:59 AM to 8:00 AM
Temp: 55 to 53
Weather: “Dry”

It was my second morning of the race. I heard some of the other runners remark that you get a pick-me-up at dawn. They were right, but I didn’t like the fact that I was looking at probably 8 more hours of moving. On the positive, I was past the 75 mile point, and more important I was 2 hours ahead of the cutoff time. I was feeling reasonably good. I began to think about what I might do to screw up the finish. I was close enough that I didn’t want to mess it up.

This section include one climb and some flat areas, but my feet had been so beat that my running looked more like a slow shuffled jog. Dodging the rocks became imperative. Upon reaching my last drop bag at Woodstock Tower, I refilled my bottles, grabbed more gels, and drank a boost.

Woodstock Tower to Elizabeth Furnace
Miles: 84.1 to 96.8
Time: 8:00 AM to 12:58 PM
Pace: 23:27
Temp: 53 to 57
Weather: “Dry”

I was able to keep a reasonable pace through this area, not slowing too much. At Woodstock, I was 2 ½ hours ahead of cutoff, so I was still looking good. By this point in the race, I was mentally exhausted and physically brutalized. I began to hallucinate, but only slightly.

To Skyline Ranch Resort
Miles: 96.8 to 101.8
Time: 12:58 PM to 3:12 PM
Pace: 26.24
Temp: 56 to 60
Weather: Dry

After leaving Elizabeth Furnace, I began to hallucinate with greater frequency. My body and mind were screaming to stop. I cursed every rock that slammed my toes. At every switch back I yelled at the trail. This was the worst climb of the day. I was at my limit. I remember yelling, “Who the hell put this damn hill here!” “This makes a lot of sense. Why do you need all these rocks?” “99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer.”

Reaching the summit gave me little relief. At this time my quads were destroyed, and my descents seemed more painful that my climbs. I was passed by a large group of runners (the big group that finished together). I could barely look up to say anything. I wanted to run with them, but I couldn’t control the pain anymore. I later realized that other than some Gatorade, I had taken in no calories since Elizabeth Furnace. I had plenty of gels with me, but I had forgotten to eat them.

I finally hit the road and picked up my pace. Although I had walked a good deal of this course, I certainly wouldn’t walk the end. I entered a trail that wound past a horse stable area and eventually through to the large open field that sat next to the Skyline Ranch Resort. I had been able to hold back my emotions until now. I could hear people cheering. I was a simple runner who probably got in over his head on this one and didn’t really deserve to be there. I waved slightly, not to be rude, but because I was too exhausted to do anything else.

I could hear the announcer remark about my “blazing” speed since I had no more rocks to kick. How relatively true. The pain briefly subsided as I crossed the finish line. My head pitched forward, looking slightly ahead yet still towards the ground to hide some moisture that had developed around my eyes. I heard congratulations, feeling confused at why my stopwatch read 24:59:59. I realized that it reached its limit. I smiled; I had outrun my watch.

Overall Time: 34:12:27
Overall Pace: 20:10
Overall Place: 87 of 173 starters

Leaving Front Royal

I woke up at 6:00 AM on Monday morning. I felt great. I could barely walk and my feet were unrecognizable. The pain didn’t matter. I loaded my bags in the car and returned to the hotel lobby for breakfast. I chatted with Abi from Texas about the race for a few minutes, hearing about her MMT adventures that weekend.

As I drove out of the hotel parking lot, I looked back on the mountains that were my obsession the past 6 months, an obsession I had not directly met before Friday but had trained against for so long. I had beaten them.

Entering the highway heading north, I glanced back one more time at the mountains I called home for 34 hours. Those mountains seemed shorter now. Much shorter than when I arrived. I could hear them grumbling, prodding me to return so they could have another chance to break me. They might just get that chance. My big toes were pounding, left leg stiff, knees cut, and shoulders aching. Fresh blood trickled from my left ear where I had just scratched at a scab. I had never felt better in my life.

My original intention to have "fun" with this course was left at home yesterday morning. I decided to go all out in a serious training effort to get tired and sick and see how well I could recover. In short, I made things way too difficult on myself.

John Bryan State Park is located just outside of Yellow Springs, Ohio about 30 minutes from Dayton. The park departs from general opinion that western Ohio is flat farmland by showing off beautiful rock faces and waterfalls. Many of the trails are technical, but the course is relatively flat outside of going down into and out of the gorge (2000 feet of elevation change for the entire 50K course).

The course consisted of 2 loops each repeated 4 times. The first loop was approximately 4.25 to 4.5 miles and the second loop was around 3.25 to 3.5 miles. The first loop was run into the gorge along the Little Miami River, following a rock and root infested trail. The trail got progressively more rocky before leaving the gorge and returning back to the central aid station along the rim trail. This trail did have it's technical moments, but the views from atop the gorge were wonderful. It was early enough in the spring season that the trees had yet to grow their leaves. This led to many incredible views. Unfortunately, that also meant little shade from the sun. The second loop was a lollipop trail. It was mostly flat and quite an easy run with few technical tests. The start, finish, and aid station were located at the junction of the two loops, so after each loop you had an opportunity to eat, drink, and access a drop bag.

I started off quick and held close to a 9:00 pace for the first 1/4 of the race. I slowed to 9:30 pace for the second quarter of the race, then crept into the 11's and 12's as the day progressed. The heat became a major factor. It was 62 degrees at the start. By 11PM it was 79, and by noon it had reached 81. This was some serious heat for doing so much cold weather running the past several months. My final 3.5 mile loop was pretty much a disaster, but I finished with a course personal record of 5:22. On face value, my performance was terrible. But in the larger picture of using this race as a training run, I was able to accomplishing everything I set out to do.

This is a great race that is very well managed. My thanks to the volunteers. In the usual ultrarunning tradition, I met several new friends and saw many familiar faces. Definitely a good time.

It's the time of year when the weather is very unpredictable. Throw in the fact that when I looked up the weather report the day before the race, I must have typed in the wrong location. I prepared for sunny with a high of 55. Instead we had a nice cool rain, which made for very wet, muddy, and slippery conditions on the trails.

The Land Between the Lakes races include four distances; 23K, marathon, 60K, and 50 miles. This made for a fairly crowded but interesting start. I'm generally not in any big hurry at the beginning of these longer distances, so getting a little bogged down in traffic, although discouraging, keeps the focus on pace.

Location and Course
Grand Rivers, KY is a great small vacation town with plenty of sailboats and restaurants. The locals were very friendly and supportive. It's definitely a good place to spend a weekend with the family.

The course proceeded 1.7 miles from a dock area to the national forest leading us to a 11.4 mile loop. The 23K runners completed the loop once, marathoners twice, 60K runners three times, and 50 milers four times. After completing the loop(s), runners returned the 1.7 miles back to town. The 50 mile runners had to run an additional 1.2 miles on roads to make up the remaining mileage. Aid stations were plenty, with stops every 2.5 to 3.5 miles. There were also many great views of the lakes that surround the park.

Pre Race
The rain began some time prior to race start. This was contrary to my poor research which told me that it would be sunny. It was also quite cooler than expected. I didn't bring my compression clothing, which probably in the end added to my final time. To keep warm, I had to wear my jacket for half the race. After it became soaked, I was essentially hauling around several extra pounds of wet cloth for half the race. Other than that I was well prepared.

This was my first time running a 50 miler without a drop bag. I wore a small waist pack that carried my endurolytes, gels, and Hammer Perpetuem, and would be completing the trip without a shoe and sock change. I always hated waiting around at the end of a race for my bag to be dropped off back at HQ, and in this case, I had to make the 5 hour return trip home after the race. I didn't want to wait around.

The Race
The road run to the trails went fine, as did the first loop. The first half of the loop include nice flat trails with only a few rocks and roots. The second half included a few hills, one long one in particular, that would serve for some pain in the later loops. The rain, along with close to 400 pair of feet, made for some fairly difficult trail conditions.

Aside from watching a few people wipe out on the mud slicked trails, the first loop was uneventful. As the second loop started, the crowds thinned out as we lost the 23K runners. I found myself with some other 50 mile runners and a few 60K runners. It was still early enough in the race to carry on simple conversations without getting too winded. We began to spread out as our focus changed. Other than passing a few people every now and then, found myself generally alone for the balance of the race.

I began having doubts as the third loop started. My stomach was starting to turn. I was losing my appetite. I was also taking in too much water. It was in the back of my mind to drop to the 60K race after loop 3. I battled with myself the next 11 miles. I reached the point of no return, the primary junction where if I turned left, I was 1.7 miles from being done, and if I went straight, I would have another 14+ miles to go. Without much hesitation I went straight ahead. I convinced myself that dropping to the 60K would be the same as a 50 Mile DNF, and the thought of having another DNF on my resume was unacceptable.

By the time I started the fourth loop, the trails had been demolished. The mud was beginning to lose enough moisture so that it became sticky, making lifting my feet off the ground even more difficult. I ran as much of the flat first half as possible knowing that I would definitely slow during the hilly second half.

The last loop became an aid station to aid station run. Each station brought a welcome rest, and I was able to get some of my appetite back. I hit the second to last aid station and stopped for a minute to talk to the volunteer. As I left he said, "enjoy the finish." I definitely intended to.

The Finish
I arrived at the final aid station for what I thought would be the beginning of the final 1.7 miles. Apparently, I didn't ready the fine print and was told that I had an additional 1.2 miles of road to run prior to starting back to the finish line. For most of the race, I thought that I was missing a mile somewhere, so it definitely made sense. I was able to pick up my pace a little this section, although the hard pavement made for some really nice stingers up my legs.

The last 1.7 miles was great. There was some local support with people honking their horns (or maybe I was swerving into their lane...I really don't know). The final 3 tenths of a mile was near perfect as most of the pain had briefly subsided. This was a tough race, and I had doubted myself several times. The race director was at the finish line to congratulate and pass out the finisher medals. This was an end to a great adventure.

My goal time was between 9:00 and 9:30 depending on conditions, so my finish time of 9:23 was pretty much on target given the rain and mud.

The volunteers were excellent; always happy and generally pretty convincing when they would tell you that you still looked strong. There was always something to eat, someone to take your bottle and fill it, and it was obvious that the race director did his job. It was an extremely well run event.

You have to be careful when describing the more difficult races. Sometimes it can be a little too easy to simply state that a race was the most difficult ever. Often it can depend on numerous factors such as weather, injury, terrain, distance, and duration.

Take LLTH 50K for example. It was a beautiful February day. The snow and ice from a storm the week prior had melted, and temperatures would reach a little over 40 degrees with sun for most of the race. The race directors and volunteers did an excellent job clearing the downed trees and debris from the trails. So, what could make this race one of the most difficult races of my short career? The hills. Other than that, the race was easy. Who wouldn't enjoy a February run in the 40 degree sun?

Those hills were relentless. One after the other, each breaking whatever rhythm I was trying to get myself in. Apparently that's just a part of the experience called Lovin' the Hills.

I woke up at 4AM to make the 3 hour drive just south of Louisville, KY. I arrived around 7:15, registered, finished my pre-race preparations and stretches, and joined the other runners for the directors' speeches.

There were two distances at this event; a 15 miler and a 50K. All runners followed the same course through the first 13 miles where the 50K runners broke off for an out and back trail.

The first loop of 5 miles went by without a hitch. It felt great to be racing again after being off since October. I decided to jog the hills and see how much real damage I could do. The first 5 miles included nearly 2000 feet of elevation change. I began to get a little fatigued after the 7+ mile second loop, which included 3500 feet of elevation change. I guess I should have walked the uphills. The remaining 18 miles were an out and back trail that included around 6900 feet of elevation change.

On the out and back, I slowed my uphills to a power hike, which started to fade about a mile from the turnaround. Although my legs weren't too beat up, my ankles were screaming at me; I had a few unfortunate twists attacking the downhills. I kept a reasonable pace for the return trip, picking up my pace to finish the last 2 miles in under 20 minutes. Considering that was after 6 miles at around a 15 minute pace, it was a pretty good final push. I finished with a time of 6:13:18. Not exactly what I wanted, but good for this course.

If I get the chance, I will do this race again. It is run by some very committed people, the volunteers are great, the participants are fantastic, and they have Heed! It's a challenging 50K with 8 aid stations and wonderful views from the hill tops.

Click here for the elevation chart and GPS tracks.