leadville update 8/23/09

If you run, you know that sometimes the best reward is stopping, This was one of them.

Sitting on the couch after a few hours sleep. Have a hard time walking slowly. Inventory of body parts.  All toes are jammed and bruised.  One small blister on right little toe.  Ankles are red, but not too swollen from several almost rolls.  The calf muscles don't want to support my weight to keep me from falling over backwards.  Quads sore.  Hips don't want to bend.  Can't clench my fists from walking poles. Moving is not a good idea right this minute.  Pain killers tomorrow, after the race crop leave the body. It will be weeks before I am completely healed.  Getting up and down like 90 year old man.

Woke about 2 am from a fitful sleep Saturday morning.  Went down to the starting line after some bacon and eggs and toast.  Somebody named Dave made the menu selections.  Thanks to the ladies for cooking in the middle of the night.  My mood was somber.  Told I looked like a condemned man.  After so much build up, wanted it to begin and end regardless of outcome.

I don't remember hearing the shotgun blast to start at 4 am. Wanted to start both stopwatch and garmin at the same time.  All of a sudden, everyone started running downhill in the dark.  Someone playing 'Born to Run' on a stereo in the first mile.

Around Turquoise Lake into May Queen was on plan 6:30 am for 13.5 miles.  Dawn broke and we shed headlamps.  Started climbing on single track up to Haggerman road, jeep trail and the summit of Sugar Loaf at about 11,000 ft.  Was running with Dennis for all of first 40 miles.  Found Dave, passed him and caught him several times outbound.

Summit of Sugar Load, descent into Fish Hatchery. Everything feels good still at 23 miles.  Out of Fish Hatchery on the road to Half Moon.at 9:05. Target was 9:35.

On the road to Tree Line, then Half Moon.  This aid station was moved to Box Creek this year, because of  the search and rescue operations after a military helicopter crash on Mt. Massive.  Four Army rangers killed.  Rouggly same distance, but a flatter route - one less hill of three.

Got into Twin Lakes at mile 39.5 at 1:05 pm, 85 minutes ahead of cutoff, and 25 minutes ahead of plan.  Took a wrong tun of about 1/2 mi or 15 minutes about mile 37.  Feeling good, crossed the river at knee high and up Hope Pass.  Dennis wasn't feeling good or eating much.

On the climb up Hope came one of those moments you have to decide what to do.  Dennis was weakening, and I decided to push onward, passing people on the two hour ascent.  At some point, his stomach started bothering him. Found Dave sitting on a tree stump at about 11,000 ft.  He had been sick at some point prior, stomache issues also.  It was getting hot.  Somewhere before Hope Pass, I saw Lynn H. also not feelnig well.  Made Hope Pass aid at 3:23 pm, comfortably ahead of 4:45 pm cut off. Emotional, drained, thinking about my father's recent death, I asked a volunteer for a towel to wipe my eyes.  Pushed on, no time to cry.

Up and over Hope Pass and down Winfield road by 5:35.  About 25 minutes before cutoff.  Lost time on the dusty Winfield Road and on the rock strewn backside of Hope. Lynn H. took a bad fall here. Picked up my pacer Scott H and pushed on back over the moutain.  Scott carried my gear and brought some walking sticks, which I didn't think I needed.  I was wrong.

By the time we summited Hope a second time, it was getting dark and cold for headlamps and jackets. At 8 pm, we were closer to cutoff than I liked.  We had an hour and 45 minutes to get back down to Twin Lakes before 9:45 pm cutoff.  Ran down the front side of Hope fast, making descent in an hour and change.  After Hope, we started passing other runners. Left a lady I need from training camp sitting on a log, drinking soup and staring at the llamas.  Lllamas are used as pack animals for the 12, 200 ft Hope Aid Station. Scott pushed hard, I loved the descents. Was like a timber bobsled run during training camp.  5 miles down a creek valley hopping stones, banging feet, passing runners.

Crossed the river in the dark, phoned ahead to Suzanne.  This was gonna be close.  Checked in and out of aid station at Twin Lakes at 8:27 pm, minutes ahead of cutoff.  Crewed and changed shoes and socks after river crossing.

Tactical errors took their toll.  This close to cutoff, we crewed at the aid station, intead of at the car.  I wasn't going to run backwards, or risk cutoff.  Word came that Dennis was out.  No word on Dave or Lynn H.  Tom Waterman had already been through.  Scott crewed and paced,  but left his food behind.  Both of us forgot to eat, and the lack of calories made going tough.  We had to make up time, as we left Twin Lakes after crewing nearly at cutof 9:45 pm. I didn't feel like eating.  Scott fed me lifesavers, but got a bit light headed himself after 20 miles or so after Hope.  Scott wasn't drinking like he should, too concerned about my well being.

Climbing out of Twin Lakes at mile 60, we pushed and passed other runners.  Needed to make time.  Thank goodness for decent cell coverage.  Called ahead to Suzanne to find me an unscheduled pacer from Ttree Line to May Queen.  We got into Half Moon (Box Creek) at midnight am, 45 minutes ahead of cutoff,.  Fast walk, run the downs, walking sticks.  Scott needed rest and calories and fluids, but we had made up 45 minutes in 10 miles of climb and descent.

Suzanne located a fellow and drove to Tree Line for an unscheduled crew stop around  1 am.  Picked up a pacer whose runner had gone into medical at Twin Lakes inbound.  Clayton was  a local boy, standing around when Suzanne asked race offiicials for help.   He was a blessing, giving Scott needed rest.  Scott crewed at Fish Hatchery, mile 77, while Suzanne slept.  Another unscheduled aid stop.  We left Fish Hatchery at 2:24 am, 36 minutes ahead of cutoff.  I has lost some of my buffer, because Clayton was nicer than Scott.  I walked more than I run, because I was getting tired.

Up and over Sugar Load, climbing past 11,000 ft up Power Line on a moonless night.  Still picking off runners, passing much nmore than being passed.  Still, Clayton left me run my own pace, which was walking more than running.  We came into May Queen at mile 86.5 with about 30 minutes ahead of cutoff.  Scott wanted to take me home.

I did not feel like running, but at 13.5 mles to go in 4 hours, 20 minute walks were not going to cut it.  This is where Scott's pledge to 'be mean' came into being,.  I popped 600 mg of caffeine and some pain killers before May Queen, cause I knew what was coming.  Race official s told Suzanne and Scott that we needed to run some of the up/down single track around Turquoise Lake.  The last 4-5 miles was uphill.  Outbound at 6 am, facing 10 am cutoff.

I did not feel like running the last 13.5 miles into Leadville, but Scott made me run walk 9 miles around the Lake. I had rocks in my shoes, my ankles and toes ached, hips did not cooperate. I called him names I care not to repeat. I did not want to run, but cooperated with Scott's run walk commands like a machine, focusing on the ground in front.  Used the alpine poles on ascents, ran the downs.  By 90 miles in, I wanted nothing else but for this thing to be done.

By 7:45 am, we had 5 miles to go and 2 hrs 15 minutes to get there.  A walk would do.  Finishing was no longer in doubt.  'Let's make 29 hrs' was greeted with an unprintable response.  Still making 14-16 minute miles.  If ever you doubt the difference between a 15 minute run and a 20 minute walk, such was the difference between finish and not.

We passed runners right and left, including Dave's friend John Tilp.  Between Hope Pass at mile 65 and Leadville we passed perhaps 50-75 runners, many of whom I knew from camp. We said hi, but pushed on., But I knew some where not going to make it.  We passed a lady doing a staggering, weaving death shuffle at 7 miles from finish.  She came across the line at 30:01with a helper pushing.  The race director gave her a belt buckle under 'special authority.'

Finished at 9:15 with 45 minutes margin, entirely because Scott forced run in the last miles.  This race can be done without crew and pacers, but I could not finish it alone.  Thanks to Scott and Suzanne for weathing the unplanned night time crises.  I sprinted the last 100 yards or so, despite the toll on by beaten body.  Someone said 'race yah.'  I am a sucker for that.

Training pros - long trail runs and long bikes.  If you train for a pavement race, do it on pavement.  If you train for a trail run, train on trails.  I am not a strong climber, but I can run past many on the descent.

The winner finished in under 18 hrs, while it was still daylight.  The rest death shuffled in between 28-30 hrs mostly.  About a 50% finish rate for nearly 600 entrants.

Will I do it again?  Probably not for a long time.  Great experience, but huge toll on mind, body and family.  There are many other races out there.  I was looking for the limit of mind and body.  In Leadville, I found both.

My thanks to the crews and pacers.  No finish without you.  Crew shirts read 'I am not here for a long run, just for a long time.'  Success due to luck, a plan that we revised on the fly, and good friends.

-Larry