Where are the Words?

by Craig

There has been a lack of words lately. I've felt, in a great way, that those deep thoughts and insights about running and life have been void within me for some time. I still don't feel them there and as I write this I feel as though I'm plodding along, much like I did at my last race, the Buffalo Run 100. Like then, I know that the motivation and words are inside of me, but I can't find the depth to draw them out and express them on paper.

My personal focus, my thoughts, and actions have been pulled in three directions so greatly as of late that I don't feel like I contain any extra room for creativity. My wife and I and our children have very busy lives. We both work full time and our four children require the attention they deserve. These two aspects of a person's life would often be enough to not even try to add in something else. But both Emily and I need personal growth; both physically, mentally, and spiritually. And oddly enough, we both find that we get a great deal of all three through running. With our crazy schedule the ability to add in running can be a source of conflict between us, finding ways to both go without sacrificing other mandatory parts of our lives. But we do it.

While Emily is currently in upkeep mode for her running I'm trying to cap off a peak training sequence before tapering for my next race, the Bryce 100 miler on May 31st. Over the last two weeks I've peaked at the highest mileage for training than ever before, averaging 75 miles/week. And while this week won't see that high of mileage, the intensity has and will continue to be extremely high. Because of this I've seen certain side effects that I've never experienced before. One was mentioned at the beginning of this article. The other is 'absent-mindedness'. There have been numerous times when I've found myself forgetting to do menial tasks that I've never forgotten before. I've left the keys in my car twice, over night. Luckily it was parked in the garage. I've also left milk and eggs out on the counter, left water running in the sink, and even completely spaced what day it was once last week. Emily, the amazing nurse she is, told me that my calorie intake and required sleep don't support the amount of effort I'm putting in for training. Of course, she's right and I've since made a couple of adjustments that I'm hoping will help.

And while I've now found the words to put on paper for this article, I still feel a sense of loss for the creativity that goes along with supporting my other writing on trailandultrarunning.com. I'm hoping that over the next few weeks as I taper for the race I find my writing mojo again. As for running, I'm not sure if I've ever been this motivated. And it's not just about seeing the physical results of putting in the extra effort. This time of year begs to be enjoyed in the outdoors. The trails are dry, the normally dead weeds and grass are green and lush, and the flowers are out everywhere. It is simply gorgeous and there is no place I'd rather be. Below are a few pictures from this morning's run with Matt on the trails above downtown Salt Lake City, UT. You'll understand why there psych is there, for sure. Now to find the words.

No One Is Hiding

by Craig

You'd think with a blog full of ultra runners we'd have more to say around here. I mean, sheesh, get any one of us out on the trails and we'll likely chat your ears off. The past few weeks though I think everyone has just been a big busy or focused or both.

Scott has been dealing with some ITBS, which means his running is limited to flat roads. And seriously, who wants to read about that. We've gone out a few times together and the pace has been good, but still conversational. I feel like personally my flat speed is getting better and I think Scott would agree.

Josh is still playing running 'hide and seek'. I know he's putting in the miles, but he seems to be a little covert about it. Now that he's single again he is probably running after (or from) all the hot running girls. He's certainly young enough still to be a catch.

MVH owns Farmington Canyon. Seriously, if you want to go run it you either need to get permission from him or just show up any of four days of the week and he'll be there at 5:30am waiting to take you on a tour of every rock and root. He's crushing it though, there's no denying that. And his next race will be phenomenal.

Matt has decided that he definitely does NOT want to suck at running 100 miles next month. He's turned his training up to a level I wasn't sure possible for him. There is no doubt that when it comes to running the Bryce 100 Matt will have it strongly in hand.

And me, well, I'm just doing my thing. Every aspect of my life has been exceedingly busy, but I've still found time to put in the miles. I'm often creative and I don't always get the sleep I need, but I generally feel on top of my training and look forward to my next race.

In 5 weeks the entire refuse2quit crew will be toeing the line at the inaugural Bryce 100. Everyone has different goals of what the want to accomplish. Mine is simple, hang with Matt every step of the way and make sure he gets to the finish line feeling good. That's my job and I'm up for the task. I can't wait.

Several of the Wasatch Mountain Wranglers at The Wedge

A View From the Shoreline: BoSho Trail Marathon 2013 by MVH

Last week I decided to run the Bonneville Shoreline Trail Marathon (BoSho) after a prompting from a friend. She sent me a text and then emailed the course map as if I was already committed. With no excuse not to go for it, I prepared my mind and hoped my body would follow.

BoSho is a 'bandit' race held mid-April every year on the foothill trails above Salt Lake City.  There are no sponsors, permits, advertising blitzes, or website signups. It is, however, well-organized and the course was well marked. The distance is a full marathon, and that is the easy part. There is over 6,000 feet of uphill over the course of 26+ miles. A couple of big climbs make up significant portions of the climbing.

I showed up to the designated start/finish area about 30 minutes before the second group of runners were to go at 7AM. While in the drivers seat I yanked my shorts down to apply glide. Just at that moment an SUV pulled into the parking space a couple feet to my left. SUVs are higher than sedans and the view into my vehicle must have been spectacular. Of course, it had to be a woman in the SUV passenger seat. Gotta glide. We all understand, right?

As 7AM approached, a good-sized group of runners gathered on the double track in front of the runner's buffet table. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and as usual, I said hello to Kendall W. up at the front. He told me he was going to do the first 4 mile loop without water. I looked at my two hand-held bottles and said, "Yeah, what do I need these for?" I set them down on a tuft of grass. A minute later someone said go and we began the run. Ben Lewis was there, as was Robert Mueller, and we ran closely with several other guys the first 4 miles through Red Butte and back to the start area. I recall it was about 36 minutes to finish the Red Butte loop, which had a bunch of climbing.

I grabbed my bottles and continued down to the Dry Creek trailhead. The group of six guys in the lead slipped away from me as we climbed the trail up into the foothills. My legs felt heavy, I was already tired and feeling the effects of...I don't know. Something was "off" and I knew it. But I continued on. At the U-turn up Dry Creek I was glad to see the red ribbons indicating the turn off trail to follow the creek. Water was flowing and I slowed to avoid getting my feet wet. I hate having wet shoes. This was the first big climb of the day, up something called Unkle. Really enjoyed seeing this side of the foothills near Twin Peaks. At the top the route converges with the ridge between the Twins and little Black Mountain. A run down to the 5-way trail junction, then a sharp right down toward City Creek led me through a new-to-me trail. I was loving this.

Running about 5 minutes behind the front guys, I was overtaken by a couple more runners, heading down to Morris Meadow and the one aid station. A volunteer refilled one of my bottles. Mark Robbins was there and said hello. He had started with the earlier group. I continued down to City Creek trailhead. As I started up the North side of CC I detected cigarette smoke coming from somewhere very close. Alone now, with no other runners in view either ahead or behind, I ran pretty well up the switchbacks and up to where the trail climbs above the expensive custom homes in City Creek. This is the second big climb of the day. I was able to run virtually all uphill to the radio tower. Since I am not so strong at downhill, at least on this day, I could make good progress in keeping a solid climbing pace. At the radio tower the course descends several hundred feet into North Salt Lake. To the left and steeply downhill lay the battered ruins of Le Car. I grabbed a stone and made a weak attempt at contact. Not even close.

The third big climb of the day, and arguably the biggest one of the entire course, is the hike up to Meridian Peak. I felt very good going up, and ran half of it, passing several others. From the top is a generally level run over to the point where we make the big, steep descent back down to City Creek.  If I was a faster downhiller I could have made up some lost time but at this point my feet were aching. Near the bottom I saw Andrea Martinez a few hundred feet ahead of me. She had started with the 6 AM group. When I caught up, and before she knew I was behind her, I did my worst David Lee Roth impression. "Aww might as well jump!" She did, in fact, jump. Never sneak up on a woman on the trail.

At the City Creek trailhead I again smelled cigarette smoke, then I remembered that just a few days before I found a hobo camp hidden in the trees just off that same place in the trail. Must be a chain smoker in there.

As I began the climb back out of City Creek, and to finish the last 6 miles, Nick Sourlos (whose name I had read several times in various places) caught up and introduced himself. With some kind words he continued on and eventually disappeared from view about 3 miles from the finish. The last 5 miles were tough. Still feeling "off" but confident of finishing, I kept moving at the best pace possible for having achy legs and feet. I ran the uphill back to 5-way junction, then settled into a slow-but-steady pace along the shoreline trail to dry Creek saddle. A couple of strong closers passed me there, then a woman and her male companion cruised by me in the descent of Dry Creek. I almost forgot - There is one more short but steep climb half mile from the finish. I had about 5 minutes to clear this hill and the distance to finish if I wanted to get there in 4 hours 30 minutes. I still had some uphill running power so I went for it. Alas, I pulled in at 4 hours 32 minutes and 50 seconds. My parents were there wearing big smiles. A lot of other runners came in soon after and we congratulated each other on a good run, good weather (cool, but with virtually no rain), and excellent trails.

Thanks to the organizers, volunteers and runners who make BoSho a pleasant experience. The course was pleasantly well-marked. I will be back next year.

2013 Buffalo Run 50 Report - Jsh

I’m never particularly fast at putting race reports together, but I’ve waited entirely too long to formulate some words for this one.  Mostly because of distractions that life brings, but also because it’s taken me some time to digest how things went.  I ended up finishing in 9:23:40.  My goal going in was 8:30 and I knew with a good day I could go 8 flat.  Obviously that didn’t happen, but I came away with some great memories and a few lessons as well.  Rather than give the usual play-by-play, I’m just going to talk about the things I came away with.

First of all, your stomach can wreak havoc on your race.  I don’t think I did anything particularly wrong as far as nutrition in the 24 hours leading up to the race.  However, the months leading up to the race weren’t exactly filled with ideal nutritional habits.  I alluded to this in an earlier post and while I did make improvements leading up to the race, I didn’t fully commit myself like I should have.  Alas, I ended up taking a ton of pit stops which cost me major time.

Heading into mile 19 A.S.

Due to the nature of my stomach, I ended up giving up mentally on my goals and spent way too much time at the aid stations.  I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing to have an enjoyable time and chat at aid stations for a bit, but I’d say it was quite excessive for me.  I totally lost my focus and made excuses to spend more time than I should have.

I knew going into the race that my training wasn’t quite where it should be.  I peaked at about 40 mile weeks with a 22 miler being my long run.  However, I knew that with my experience I wouldn’t have trouble completing the distance.  The problem came on the first 19 mile loop when things just felt harder than they should have.  Typically that early on I feel loose and things just fly by easily.  It just wasn’t happening.  I must say though, my legs never felt sore during the race which was fantastic!  I just didn’t have quite the usual bounce in my step early on which I attribute to my lower mileage weeks.

With Matt and Jen on the back half of the course

The great thing about each of these things is that they can be fixed.  They’re valuable lessons that will hopefully make me a better runner.  It will just take a little more commitment on my part.

All things aside, I wouldn’t have traded this experience for anything!  After running that first loop in its entirety with Matt Williams – and partially with Leslie and Sam – I found that running a race with good friends is so much fun.  Matt and I actually ended up running about 45 miles in total together.  I would’ve loved to have finished together, but my constant pit stops were holding him back so I eventually told him to leave me for good.  He went on to a great finish.  Had it not been for my stomach we may not have had the opportunity to spend so many miles together.  For that I’m grateful.

Rounding the corner into the finish

My dad froze his butt off all night at the Elephant Head aid station to help runners, provided power for the race with Goal Zero products, and crewed for me all day on no sleep.  What a stud!  My mom was awesome as usual, cheering at each spot and taking lots of pictures (which I still need to get from her).  Thanks so much to both of them.  Also a thanks to the great volunteers on the island.  They were excellent as usual.  Finally a thanks to my friends for the motivation.  You guys all inspire me!  Congrats on the great finishes.

Antelope Island Buffalo 100: By Scott Wesemann

What a ride! I was very excited to run this race and I have been looking forward to it ever since I paced MattVH on it last year. Even though the course is easier than Wasatch 100 it is still 100 miles and I fully respect the distance, so I knew it was going to be a huge task to finish and would take a lot of things going right for me to finish in under 23 hours which was my goal time going in.

Craig and I drove to the start together and we decided to stop and get some breakfast on the way to the island and my goal was to get as many calories as possible to help sustain me during the day and into the night. I ordered a large orange juice and didn't even think that I never drink OJ before a race or a long run and I think that would come back to haunt me later in the day. I never do anything new on race day that I haven't been doing in my training and I'm still not sure what I was thinking.

We had been watching the weather reports for race day for the past several days and as the race approached the forecast got worse each day. We were driving out to the island in a snow storm and it really wasn't helping us build any pre-race stoke. As we approached the island it was clear that it wasn't snowing, so that was good, but we noticed that the wind was blowing pretty hard and that was by far my biggest concern. We parked and started to get ready for the day and it was windy and very cold, so both of us decided to change our race day apparel and I put on my tights and a light windstopper top along with a hat, long sleeve shirt and gloves. It was very hard to predict what the weather would do, so I made my best guess and went with it.

With Craig before the start

We met up with MattVH and some other friends and just hung out at the start line for what seemed like several minutes until the start. I was cold and happy to start running. For the first several miles I ran with Kristel Liddle (the women's winner) who is a good friend. I really liked the pace and we ran every step of the first long hill just chatting away about our running plans for the year and I was feeling great until about mile 3 when all of the sudden if felt like an F-16 was about to take off in my gut and I could tell that something was very wrong (curse you OJ!). I rarely have stomach issues when I run and the OJ is the only thing I can think of that caused it and I was just hoping it would pass quick. It didn't. A positive note is that the wind seemed calmer and it wasn't as cold as we hit Lone Tree hill. We passed the first aid station at Elephant Head and ran right through continuing on to the out and back passing Craig about half way there while he was on his way back. At the turnaround we had to take a sticker to prove that we had been there and I picked a Justin Bieber sticker because my 12 year old daughter is a huge fan... and maybe secretly so am I. Come on Justin get me through!

On the way back to Elephant Head aid my stomach was in knots and Kristel dropped me. I caught back up at the aid station (mile 9), but she stopped briefly and I had to stop to remove my windstopper top because I was getting hot. I hoped to catch back up, but I never did. My stomach was in knots as I ran down into the Split Rock valley and if there had been any cover at all I would have stopped for a bathroom break, but there really wasn't anywhere to go, but right off the trail. All of the sudden Davy Crockett flies by at what looked like a 6:00 mm pace and he seemed to be enjoying himself. Awesome. I eventually caught up to him as we approached the switchbacks and we both ran every step up to the top and then ran together for a few minutes before my stomach finally wasn't going to be denied and I barely made it off the trail behind the slight cover of a rock. It felt like a Mack truck was plowing through my innards and I was just relieved that only two other runners witnessed the carnage. The joys of ultra running.

After my pit stop I felt slightly better although the bad stomach would haunt me for the next 30 miles and cause me to stop a few more times. I'll spare the additional horrific details. I reached the Elephant Head aid at mile 13 feeling ok and I stopped quick to grab a gel and then I ran the 6 miles back to the start/finish by myself for the most part. The wind picked back up on the way back and blasted me hard for about a mile and a half. I was starting to wonder how much of that I could take and hoping that it would settle down and give us some reprieve. As I came around the bend and the start/finish aid station came into view the sun came out and the wind settled and I actually started to warm up, so I decided to change into shorts when I hit the aid. I came in at 3:20 (mile 19) and ended up staying far too long in there messing with my clothes and gear for about 15 minutes. When I finally got out of the tent it was cold, but I warmed up in a few minutes after I started running again.

There was still a steady wind, but the sun was out and helped to keep me from getting cold as I made my way down to the Mountain View trail where we run a long 12 mile out and 12 back to the ranch along the eastern shore of the island. I was feeling pretty good at this point and got into a really good groove/pace as my stomach finally started to settle and I had the wind at my back. At the Lower Frary aid I stopped to eat some salted potatoes, grab some more gels and then I had a solid run out to the ranch. I passed Craig, MattVH, Kristel, Crockett and others on their way back from the turnaround and they all looked really good. I took a few minutes at the ranch (mile 34) to eat some cookies, more potatoes, half a Mountain Dew and I was feeling really good until I started running back into the wind. The sun started to fade behind Frary Peak and the wind seemed to get stronger as I ran north and it became much harder to keep up a solid pace. Over the next 5 miles the wind punished me relentlessly and started sucking my drive to run fast. I got cold and it became very difficult to sustain any sort of decent pace. On top of that my left knee was now hurting which is odd because I haven't had any knee pain in over 2 years. Low point.

When I arrived at the Lower Frary aid (mile 38.7) my first pacer Nate was there waiting for me to come in. I wouldn't pick him up until mile 50, but he wanted to see how I was doing and it was good to see him. I was cold and decided to change my clothes again, but I was getting stiff and my hands were cold, making it much harder to change. By time I got into my warmer gear I was shivering and couldn't even tie my shoes because my hands were numb. Sarah McCloskey was there and I can't thank her enough for taking care of me. She was grabbing me things I needed and helping me get squared away and then she suggested that I get into the tent to warm up because I was shivering uncontrollably now. There was another guy there too that told me I had to get in there, so I went in the tent and sat by the heater. They put a blanket on me and grabbed me some hot soup. I didn't want to take the break, but I had to get my core temperature back up. I was in there for about 10 minutes and then I felt better and told them I needed to get back out and start running again. That was a 20-25 minute stop that really hurt my time and as I left I picked up my headlamp because I knew it would be dark by time I hit the Mountain View aid station.

The run back to the Mountain View aid station was tough. There was a strong headwind the entire way and the 5 miles seemed like 15 and now my right knee was bothering me too and both knees were sore until the finish. I finally made it and both of my pacers, Nate and Rob were waiting there for me. I grabbed two cookies, some mountain Dew and a few gels and then they walked with me to the top of the hill. It was still breezy and cold, but nowhere near as bad as down by the shore of the lake. At the top of the hill the guys went back down and I got back into a running pace and made my way over to the Lakeside aid station. It was now dark and as I approached it the wind really picked up and there was an incredible amount of smoke in the air from all of the camp fires at the campground. It was making me gag and it also started snowing sideways. I didn't stay long at the aid and I started feeling pretty good as I made my way around Buffalo Point, but the wind was really strong here and again I was chilled. I thought for sure that the wind would be at my back as I went around the point, but as soon as I rounded the point I was blasted by another stiff headwind? Headwind you Eff%$#! Unbelievable.

Some really good music and motivation to pick up my pacers got me back to the start/finish in 10:10 which is actually a 50 mile PR for me, but would have been much faster without all of the stops. I was happy to see my friends and I took longer than I should have in the tent drinking broth and eating and I finally knew I had to get out of there, so I stood up and told Nate we needed to move. Nate was great company over the next 19 miles. We hiked most of the steeper hills and ran everything else, but I was slowing down. We ran into MattVH and he didn't notice it was me because he was in a 'groove', but he finally did and we chatted for a few minutes and it was great to see him moving well. When we came to the Elephant Head aid station it was again cold and windy and it was nice to get some broth and eat more cookies and potatoes. Bart Greenwell and another guy I know Jason were running the aid and they did a fantastic job up there in those conditions. I actually felt worse for them than I did for myself because they couldn't really move around to stay warm. It was awesome hitting that aid 3 times in 13 miles and definitely helped to get me through that section. Thanks guys, you were incredible.

As we made our way into the Split Rock Valley we could see some massive storms moving across the lake and I was terrified that they would nail us, but they all seemed to be going just south of the island. Those storms dumped about 4-8 inches of snow into some of the nearby valleys and would have been a disaster if they had hit us. It was a pretty surreal feeling though as we only saw a few other headlamps within several miles of us. After our final stop at the Elephant aid we got into a running pace all the way back to the start/finish. We weren't fast, but we kept moving and finally made it back to the tent where Rob was waiting for me to pace the final 31 miles. I went into the tent for about 10 minutes to eat and warm up and then Nate decided to run down to the Mountain View trail with us because he wasn't tired. Other than my aching knees my legs were feeling good and I had plenty of energy, but the next 31 miles would be the most challenging of the day as the temperature dropped into the teens and the winds picked back up.

Down on the Mountain View trail my friend Mark was running the aid station and we had a few laughs with him before doing the mile out and back to the causeway turnaround. When we got back to the aid station Mark told us that MattVH had just gone through looking good. We didn't stay there long and within about 5 minutes we ran into Craig who was now running by himself because his pacer, Jennilyn had to drop because of knee issues. It was awesome to see him and definitely lifted my spirits, but I could tell that he was having issues and not feeling great. We talked for a few minutes, wished each other luck and went our separate ways. It was a total slog to the Lower Frary aid stop and both of us were quite cold. Rob would insist that I run whenever I got started walking too much. He was very good at keeping me going and trotting along. When we reached the aid I was now extremely cold and we took about 10 minutes to sit next to the heater to try and warm up. It took everything I had to pull myself away from that heater knowing we had 6 more brutally cold miles to the ranch, but I knew I had to get moving, so we got up and got out of there.

The 6 miles to the ranch were very hard. It was cold and breezy and my knees were really aching, making every running step painful. Rob told me several stories and we had a lot of laughs that kept my mind off of the suffering. These are the moments that I truly love about ultra-running. Here we were in miserable conditions with a lot of miles on our legs, and pretty uncomfortable in almost every way, but we were laughing our asses off. Okay, maybe the laughing only lasted a few seconds here and there, but I still loved every second of those jokes and stories. The sun finally came up and gave us a little relief, but it was still pretty darn cold out there. Finally we hit the ranch and we stopped for at least 10 minutes to get some much needed calories. I think I ate 4-5 quesadillas and had some Mountain Dew and I could feel the energy coming back almost instantly. Even though I felt like taking a nap we pulled ourselves out the chairs and got back on the trail. Rob would continue to get me to run and after about a mile we passed the first runner that was behind me. So far only 3 runners had passed me since the 50 mile mark and none since mile 70 and I didn't want anyone else passing me the rest of the way, so I tried to keep the pace going. About a mile from the Frary aid we also passed the first 50 mile runner and would continually pass them the rest of the way on the Mountain View trail. We were now running back into the wind again and although it wasn't as bad as it had been earlier it still wasn't awesome.

Me at mile 94

Back at Lower Frary we stopped for another break to eat waffles. Seth Hales and Jeremy Suwinsky were there helping us and giving me encouragement. We finally got back on the trail and just after the trail crosses the road we ran into MattW and Josh both looking strong and we stopped to chat with them for a few minutes and again seeing my friends boosted my spirits. The next several miles were just hard. By then everything hurt and I was so tired of running into the wind. The wind became so irritating that I think I shouted every verbal curse I could think of in several creative ways over and over for several minutes. It was maddening.

After what seemed like hours from the last aid (it probably was) we finally finished the Mountain View trail and at that point I knew I had this one in the bag. I fully respect 100 miles and there is never a guarantee of a finish at this distance, but at that point I was pretty sure I would finish, so now I just wanted to get it done.

We made our way over to the Lakeside aid and as we hit the pavement at the top of the hill I saw my Wife's Honda Pilot driving toward me and it gave me such a boost of energy as my kids all jumped out and ran over to hug me. They were all cheering me on and it really was a boost. They watched as we made our way back onto the trail and then down toward the Lakeside aid. When we hit the aid I told Rob to grab me a few gels because I didn't want to stop, so I kept going and just as I got back onto the trail I heard my kids yelling at me to "Run faster" and "We love you". It was a high point.

Rob cracked the whip on me as we made our way around Buffalo point. It seemed so weird that the night before I was in the same place and that I had made it back. It seemed like several days had passed. We saw someone coming from behind and at first I thought it was one of the hundred milers, but he was moving way too fast. From that point to the finish 4 of the 50 mile runners passed me and all of them looked so fresh. Rob and I got into a very solid running pace and pushed it into the finish. I was still a bit worried that someone was going to pass me, but I found out later that the nearest person was about an 45 min back. I was pretty happy that I had gone 30 miles without anyone passing me, but I was kind of cranky that my 23 hour goal was now out of reach.

Crossing the finish in 25:25

That last half mile was tough, but the adrenaline kicked in and my family was waiting form me with signs and I almost broke down and then Craig was there at the finish to cheer me in I kind of lost it. I had to battle several demons out there and it wasn't pretty, but I never even thought about a DNF and I was so happy to get it done. In some ways this was every bit as hard as Wasatch 100. The endless wind and cold that battered us relentlessly were both things I didn't plan on, but had to overcome and in the end made this a very tough 100 miles. I was definitely hoping for a sub 23 hour finish, but it just wasn't in the cards this year, but I am definitely happy for the finish. I think there were 80ish starters and only 54 finished, so I know this race was much harder than it normally would be because of the cold and wind.

All smiles after I got the buckle.

I was very happy to hear that MattVH and Craig both went sub 19 hours, which is pretty remarkable and Kristel took first for the women going sub 21. Pretty awesome. Congrats to you guys. I also have to mention that I wore a single pair of Altra Lone Peak trail shoes for the entire 100 miles. I never changed my shoes or socks and didn't get a single blister or hot spot. The Altra's were simply amazing and this will be the first 100 miler that I will keep all of my toenails.

2013 Antelope Island Buffalo Run 100 - MVH

I went into the Buffalo Run 100 with specific goals and the confidence to achieve them. First, I was going to complete the course under 20 hours. The other goals all served to put the main goal within reach. I was going to make the logistics of fueling and getting re-supplied as "clean" as possible. I would rely less on aid stations and more on my wife. (She performed magnificently and our marriage is stronger for it. Imma go buy her a nice present at Costco.) Other goals: Put my training into practice. Wear the right shoes. Don't eat fruit during the race! Keep running as much as possible because every freaking mile of Buffalo is runnable. Drink and eat but not too much, and let the stuff in my tummy empty before I put more in. Get a cramp? Drink some straight water. Bam. Done. Don't let a loss of appetite bring on the bonk: Get some gel every 20 minutes, even if I hate it. Don't go out too fast. That's right, slow it down. I can't be bouncing around for a hundred miles as if I am in the woods jumping over deadfalls and bouncing off rocks.

The race started at noon and within a few minutes I settled into a comfortable quick pace with Craig Lloyd and Robert Mueller. The run up the hill was very easy and we chatted all the way up. Over the hill and on the flatter trail, Aaron Spurlcok caught up and the four of us ran to Elephant Head junction together. At the aid tent we all continued without stopping, the others went right to do the out-and-back, and I opted to do the loop first. I prefer to do the loop first becuase it is less crowded. There were only 3 runners ahead of me, including Karl, Nick and another runner. The switchbacks are easily run and go quickly. The climb felt good on my legs. I returned to the junction and did the 3 mile out-and-back, and ran into the crowds. At the junction for the third time I saw that the three other guys had already headed down the hill so I turned on some speed to catch them. I was enjoying the pace they ran and the company. The four of us ran the remainder of the loop together at a fairly easy pace. We could have gone much faster but for my part I was playing it somewhat conservatively. This was only my third 100 mile attempt and I was being very careful about everything. The theme for me that day was Run Conservatively.

Back at the Start/Finish tent at 19 miles, my wife met me on the road and handed me some re-fills. If I could do it over again I would have kept running at pace and let her run beside me until the handoff was complete. Still, I am happy withe the execution. So far I had avoided all aid stops and kept the momentum. Robert had put a small gap on me, and Aaron too. I ran behind them all the way to the the Ranch until I finally caught up with Robert as he stopped for a drink. Craig was a short way behind me and I was expecting him to catch up at some point, which he did at about mile 43. The three of us - Craig, Robert and I - finished the first 50 miles together at sunset. We pulled into the tent at about 7:50 PM. It was so nice to be there before dark.

Craig had set a very solid, and fast pace that last 7 miles. I was working hard to stay behind him, but grateful to have been able to make a strong finish to the first half. I came into the tent feeling dizzy but otherwise very good. I planned to sit down for a while and ponder if I wanted to continue. But I had not time to just sit and think. People were swirling around me, getting me ready to go back out. With a change of shirt, a jacket for the cold, and a full bottle of UltraGen, I set out at 8PM for the seconf fifty miles. My wife walked out with me and down the road.  I made a last minute request for an extra shirt and she ran back for it, then caught up with me just before I turned onto the trail. About that time Craig ran past with his pacer and they moved up the hill quickly and disappeared into the darkness. With the drink going into my belly, which I sipped, I had slowed to a walk/run pattern. I was able to run up about half the hill, which to me indicated I was going to have a good night. Last year my back 50 had been a mess. This time I was running consistently and feeling very good. I opted to do the out-and-back first this time, and passed Craig and his pacer about a half-mile out from the turn-around as he was heading back. I saw only one other runner on that section, and learned later that he had dropped shortly after I saw him. I was cold and windy but I stayed toasty warm in my layers and hooded jacket. On my iPod I had loaded several Cheech & Chong albums so I was having a great time laughing out loud, chewing up the miles.

At the aid station at Elephant junction I stopped for a can of Coke. I sat in the chair, drank the soda, got up and left after a few minutes. This became a pattern for each of the three times I came through there during that 19 mile section. I was getting tired of gel so Coke was a terrific alternative to keep me going. Plus, the caffeine kick came at just the right time. At the base of the switchbacks I saw Craig's light nearing the top. He was moving well. It wasn't until later I learned he was struggling with side pains through a lot of the race.

The last 5 miles back to the Start/Finish area was another solid run. I was moving at the same pace, or even faster, than earlier in the day. At the tent my wife told me she found someone to run with me the remaining 31 miles. I made the decision weeks before to go without pacers for the Buffalo Run, and so far I had no problems. However, having Steve Newman along for the last 50K was a blessing. I welcomed his company. I was more fired up now to get out of the tent than I was at 50 miles. We left walking swiftly, then running up the hill toward the Mountainview trail. I had left the tent before Craig, therefore he caught up with me on the short out-and-back on the MV trail. We ran lockstep for a mile toward the Ranch, but then he dropped back. Steve and I moved very well down to Lower Frary aid. Again, I did not stop as my wife handed me some supplies. The 6 mile run down to the Ranch turn-around was also a solid run. I was feeling very good, but my knees were beginning to be a problem. At the Ranch I walked up to the fire, turned around, and began the run back. I saw Craig about a mile out from the Ranch, which meant I was about 2 miles ahead. He indicated he was having problems, embraced me and said some nice things. I was about 5 minutes behind the 4th place runner at this point. Without the pain developing in my knees I would have made a very good play at hunting him down. At Lower Frary again, I was told he was still only 5 minutes ahead. He knew that also, and must have turned on his race reserve because he took of and I never saw his light again. The 4th place runner eventually made up a lot of time on the 3rd place runner, and came in a good 45 minutes ahead of me. I was fading.

We reached the Mountainview trail aid at about 5 in the morning. If I wanted to finish at 18 hours or less I was going to have to move fast. Unfortunately, my knees were hammered. Still, I had momentum and Steve and I moved well the last 6 miles. Running wasn't so consistent anymore, but there was no stopping and no sitting. We weaved around the rocks along the point trail and just slowly moved closer to the finish. Around a corner the glowing tent of race headquarters came into view. At 6AM I watched from a distance as the 50 mile racers formed a line of glowing headlamps up the hillside. About a mile out I hallucinated and thought I saw a herd of buffalo crossing the road. Then I thought I saw a deer wearing a headlamp running toward me. It was actually a runner going out to find Craig, who was running the last 11 miles alone after his pacer dropped out with a problem knee.

Although I missed my target time of 18 hours, I wasn't too far off with a finish of 18:29. A hundred mile run is much more enjoyable when I can finish as early as possible. That should be the motivation to move as quickly, as cleanly as possible. Overall, this my third 100 mile race, was the most enjoyable race I have had at that distance.

What would I do differently? I would run a little less conservatively. A little faster. I would tighten my re-fueling and re-supplying times even more. I would slow down less when receiving supplies from my crew, and let then run with me, so as not to break the pace. I would clean up all the non-running activities and eliminate them all if possible. Those minutes add up, and it wouldn't have taken much of trimming here and there to take off that 30 minutes that missed my target time of 18 hours. Last year my time at Buffalo 100 was 23 hours, 24 minutes. There was no doubt in my mind that I could improve that by several hours. Last year my time at Wasatch 100 was 28 hours 32 minutes. Likewise, I am confident that I can improve that time by several hours. Bring it on.

2013 Buffalo Run 50 Mile Race Report - Matt W

When I first woke at 4am I got reports from others driving to the race of unplowed roads and blizzards, but from my doorstep the sky was clear and the moon was bright - I could easily see the island from my porch. I picked up Leslie dark and early at her hotel and headed straight out to the island.

Once at the starting line, we lingered in the car, anticipating the cold, but finally headed to the tent to drop some bags and use the POPs. Standing just outside the tent near the starting line, we found Josh and then Sam - who had locked his keys in the car with all of his stuff! Luckily he was dressed and was wearing shoes, and fellow runner Mark lent a lifesaving water bottle. We were chatting away and snapping a few quick pics when we heard Jim give the countdown and "Go"! Oh, I guess we're starting!

About to Start - Photo by Mark

We were a little ways back in the pack, and hung there until we hit the trail and the incline started to increase, where we quickly moved our way up to our 'place' in the group. It's always fun to watch the natural order of everyone settling in and finding their spot among the throng of runners. There was a little weaving in and out, but it wasn't long before Leslie, Sam, Josh and I were our own little group cruising along. It was cool to look down and see a long line of headlamps making their way up the hill. Had I paid a little more attention, I likely could have seen MattVH's light making its way around the knoll from the north and towards the finish line.

We hit Lone Tree hill and walked for the first time, at a brisk hike. We hit the top of the hill and blew straight through without stopping. They were directing people to do the out and back first, but we decided to continue on and do it second, missing a lot of the congestion. As we dropped down into the valley, we were the only ones in sight as the sun was starting to light the sky. Ran fairly easy and comfortable to the bottom of the valley and then up the switchbacks. Gotta love those switchbacks. As we neared the top of them, Josh and I started to put a small gap on Leslie and Sam, but they continued to stick close behind. 

Back at Elephant head, we made a left hand turn, again without stopping, and headed out to the point. Another fun section, and we passed a good number of people that were on their way back from hitting the point before doing the loop we had just done. We stopped very briefly at the point, and then headed right on back. Again, Leslie and Sam weren't far behind, so we gave them a hearty hello and kept on going. The sun was now out, and we were really enjoying ourselves, but I think Josh and I were both starting to feel a little tired, especially (for me) right after one of the (really) short climbs. I ate a little more and then took a minute to stretch while Josh was filling his bottle at the aid. We got right back on the trail and cruised down Lone Tree hill and across the valley. 

Just as we started hiking out, the front runners for the 50K came cruising down the hill. We said hello to a couple friends and made the split after running by about 10-15 of the 50k runners. The more I run this trail the more I enjoy this last section of the loop. Weaving in and out with a very gradual climb as you skirt the mountain, until it brings into view of the start/finish area, where you meet back up with the trail you started on and rocket your way down the hill. As we were running down we could see the wall of 25K racers start. We wanted to be done with this loop before they started, but it wasn't too much trouble to run off trail as they were running up (most are too excited about starting their race to notice that there are people coming down).

Finishing the 19 mile loop just as the 25K runners are heading out

I was happy to see my dad and brother in law waiting at the fence to say hello, and I grabbed my drop bag from the aid station and handed it to them, only taking out a bottle and drinking some CocoGo before handing it off. Was happy to see Craig, Kelli and Jen there at the start/finish, and talked to them for a minute, but only after we hit up the POPs.

Me looking for Josh to get out of the POP, Kelli, Craig, and Jen looking on for Leslie

I could see my wife pulling into the parking lot, and I waved, but she was looking for a spot to park and didn't see me. Back on the road we walked up the hill for a minute, I ate a few bites of tortilla and nutella and then we were running down the steep hill to the Mountain View Trail. Josh cruised down fast in front of me, and I started to feel my energy drop a little. As we headed north on the out and back, I took a squeeze of EFS and the dreaded stomach turn hit me. Rolling stomach, couple of dry heaves...man...I didn't want this to be happening so soon. Josh had put a nice little gap on me, and I could see my wife, dad and brother cheering from the turn around. As I got close, Josh was now heading back and he said something like "Run Faster" as we passed. I hit the turnaround and said hello to my family without stopping and then followed Joshs advice and tracked him down. What I found was that my stomach soon felt fine and I was able to run well again...hmmm...

"Run Faster"
Me almost to the turnaround (L), Josh heading back (R)

Once I caught up to Josh we passed Sam coming towards us, he mentioned that he had a bit of a low spot, but looked to be moving well. He didn't say anything about Leslie, which had us wondering and spending the next several minutes as we were stopped at the aid station, looking up the hill hoping to see her running down. With no such luck we continued on, discussing the fact that we certainly weren't going to be hitting any aggressive goals today, so we'd just plan on running together for the day and have a good time.       

A couple of miles later I knew that it was time for a little refuel - well, here goes nothing. Pounded a little more EFS, with the same close-to-puke inducing results. Josh moved on ahead, since I'm sure he didn't need or want to hear me going through the motions. Again, a minute later my stomach would turn and I'd be back to feeling good and would catch back up. Weird, but I can take it. About a mile out from Lower Frary, I saw a familiar figure running towards us in the distance. It was Scott with his pacer Rob and about 10 miles to go on his 100. We stopped and gave him a congratulatory hug and chatted for a minute before sending him on his way. Once at Frary we both needed to empty our shoes and change jackets - it was getting warm! We had hoped there was a POP at Frary (turns out there was, we just hadn't seen it!) and it wasn't too long before Josh took advantage of some rare sagebrush cover. I just marched along until he caught up to me just before the last road crossing before getting to the ranch. We continued to clip along and I began to feel really hungry. 

Heading into Lower Frary

About that time we saw two familiar faces approaching - Kelli, who was running to meet her husband Scott, and Jen, who was to be pacing Leslie. When we stopped to say hello, they gave us the bad news of Leslies DNF with a quad tear, which we were both very sad to hear. Jen then asked if she might be able to tag along with us. The more the merrier! Kelli went of in search of Scott and Jen ran the mile back to the ranch with us. 

Back at the ranch both Josh's and my crew were there ready and waiting, I quickly made use of the facilities and then took some time to throw glide on my feet and eat some food. I wore the socks I had been wearing all winter, and they were a little too rough and stiff for this ride, so I wanted to take a little extra precaution. Randomly, my next door neighbor from when I was growing up came over and said hello, he happened to be at the Ranch with a school group. Finally, I called over to Josh and we made our way off. My little crew was so helpful.

We walked for a bit to help the food settle, and then finally decided to kick things back into gear and start running. A mile or two later we crossed paths with Sam again, who was still trucking. I do enjoy out and backs in that you get to see everyone running the race and say hey. The way back from the ranch really seemed to go pretty smoothly, I was feeling pretty good, especially with the food I'd been able to eat, and now the EFS was going down without trouble too. Nice. Josh was still battling with some stomach problems, and would periodically pull off the trail and would catch right back up. At one point I planned on a nice long stop and Frary to wait for him to catch up, but when I turned around when we got there, he was pretty much right on our heels. The rest of mountain view really seemed to click by without incident. I can't say how much it helped to have Josh and Jen to run with on this section. Every other time I have been on this part of the trail I have been by myself, which always seems to be more of a mental battle. Jen and I were having some good conversation, dodging through some mud, when all of the sudden we were at the Mountainview aid. Once again, Josh was right behind, having caught up from a stop. 

Hesding back from the Ranch - table for 3!

After a brief stop and all of the flat running, it felt nice to hike up the hill and use some different muscles. Once at the top of the road we picked up a run again, but it wasn't long before Josh had to pull off into the bushes again. I really felt for what he was dealing with, it's no fun, especially on race day! Jen and I continued on to the pavement and then to the brief cross-country course towards the Bridger aid. Just before the aid, we came upon a big Bison grazing solo just off the trail. I mentioned to Jen that Kelli would probably pee her pants right here...Jen said she hadn't even noticed him there until I said something, she had been looking at my feet. The joys of pacing. Since he had his back to us, I decided to give him a little "Ole, Ole, Ole" shout out to let him know we were there. I think it probably made Jens heart jump a little. A quick stop at the aid for another Coke and we were off. We couldn't see Josh coming until we were a little ways off and then saw him running into the aid. I yelled to him to hurry it up and pushed on. 

Before the race I wasn't sure how much I would like this last, technical section of trail, but once I got there I absolutely loved it. Aside from one brief stop to stretch a cramped hammie (it wasn't used to bounding over rocks), I ran the whole time. I was getting hot again, I even ditched my jacket for this last part (thanks to Jen for getting it stashed for me while I was still running). I could smell the finish. I was able to keep the last 3 miles at a sub 10 min pace, and once the finish line came into sight (still about a mile out) I just tried to keep it going. I passed a lot of people through this part, many 100 milers and a couple from the 50. 

Now onto the dirt road it was a quick right turn and then a long, straight run down the road to the fence. At the last turn up to the finish, I merged with a 50K runner and gave him a "Lets get this done shout" and then powered on up the hill and to the finish. I was feeling really good and was even a little surprised with how much energy I had in my legs. Crossed the line in 9:16 to a hug from Craig - who'd been pretty much hanging out there greeting people in for the last 9 hours, AFTER finishing a killer sub 19 hour 100 that morning. Then a hug and a kiss from my wife and from my niece, who was there celebrating her 5th birthday - her dad (my brother) ran a 50K 'just for her birthday' (she was totally psyched about that)! Josh came in just minutes later looking good as ever. 

Done!

I felt really good about the race and the day I had. I felt like my energy levels were pretty consistent, I had the usual lulls, but no real bonks or rough spots. I was very lucky to be surrounded by so many amazing people. My wife, dad and brother, who followed us along nearly the entire mountainview trail. Josh for sticking with me the whole day really helped to keep me moving. Having an unexpected pacer to our team with Jen was awesome, she was so supportive and encouraging to both of us, and was just a pleasure to run with. Sam and Leslie for giving the day a good start and being with our group, and Leslie for having to make a really difficult decision to stop. Josh's family stuck right with us the entire race as well, which was great. So many other friends out sharing the trail (Jeremy, Kelli & Scott, Mark, Brent, Kristel, Davy etc...). 

Great day at the races with Scott, MattVH and Craig killing it in the 100, all with PRs. Craig was a stud sticking around all day and supporting everyone. My brother Aaron got it done with a 5:45 in his first 50K. Awesome! As always the race organizer and volunteers were top notch. 

I can't recommend this race enough. It was just what I needed as I now focus in on the Bryce 100 coming up in 2 months. 

Chillin' (in more ways than one) at the finish
L-R, Me, Craig, Josh, Jeremy

Pre-Race Breakfast:

3 egg omlet with Spinach, mushrooms & garlic (yum)

1 glass Odewalla Superfood juice

2 Amino Acid Tablets

Race food:

~30 oz water

14 Oz CocoGo - Grape

3 EFS flasks (~1200 cal) 2 berry, 1 vanilla

6 orange wedges

4 cans of Coke (~600 cal)

1 can Mountain Dew (~150 cal)

1 can Sprite (~150 cal)

1/4 chicken salad sandwich on croissant (mostly croissant)

2 bites of tortilla with nutella

1 tiny salted potato

1 dried mango slice

Bunch o' S-Caps