Day 3133-4 —Fall Creek 100: Better with a Team —

The morning of the race my phone changed to eastern time incorrectly, so I got up an hour earlier by mistake. I used the time to look at the map, and I am glad I did because the race had several sections you repeat. It was more complicated than this, but it basically had one full loop and two additional loops that were inside the full loop, and you end up running on the same path going the other direction four different sections in the race, so it seemed potentially confusing.  

What I Tried to Do Differently 

One thing I really screwed up on my last 100 miler was the directions, so this time I was intentionally trying to be more prepared. I downloaded the map on both my watches but didn’t end up turning it on during the first half because I did not want to kill my battery. I decided after the first 50 miles I would turn on my other watch and use the course map, so when I started, I was doing my best figuring out the course with other runners by following the ribbons.  

On the Shawnee, I remember thinking that I had wished I had just stayed running with Richard instead of going ahead on the last lap. I got lost because I did that, and I am not sure what I would have gained by finishing a little faster, so when I first started running with Andrew it worked out perfectly. Andrew had the course on his watch, and I did a lot of the pacing. We ended up having a lot in common. We both were interested in becoming a photographer at one point in our lives, and we both had young daughters. His daughter was only six months old, and he was finding so much joy in his new role. I said how much each age so far in my daughter’s life has been so different but not necessarily easier or harder just different. We agreed life seems to be like that as you get older; even though, everything around you might change, you usually process things the same way.

The Trail Itself 

The first 50 I was taking it easy and was mostly feeling good throughout, the course started downhill with leaves but then it turned into a single track that had a lot of short hills and uneven paths. There were holes, roots and rocks sticking up, having the ground covered with leaves just made it more difficult to avoid them, so we always had to run cautiously. The path did get easier to navigate on the back half because (after sunrise) all the other runners going over the leaves made it easier to see where you were stepping. 

There was one section that had no leaves (maybe two miles), and there was a different section that was paved (a mile at the most) where you ran by a lake. Everything else was single track with varying difficult depending on the number of rocks and roots. There was a consensus among the runners that I talked to that we thought that it was insane that this course was advertised as “not technical at all” many runners ran with polls to help navigate. There was one part where you go up a half mile to a water tower and punch your bib with a hole puncher and come back. We were told we could climb up the water tower, but I don’t know if any runner ever did. The stairs were missing the third step. There was one section that you are running downhill on a wide path and there is a turn that is not marked. Andrew and I missed it like anyone would. We maybe went .2 too far when we realized we needed to check. When we got back on the path, we had collected 5 other runners that also missed the turn. 

One runner who was in the lead in the 50 had gone off course 8 miles and was thinking about dropping. I told him my story about what happened to me at the Shawnee Hill and going over 10 miles. I offered him that even though what happened was beyond annoying, he might have a great story to tell in the end. Everyone was friendly and nice that I ran with. Most of them were from Georgia or in the Tennessee area. I did not know that there was such a huge ultra-community there. Erin, who I ran with on the second half, told me a little about the different factions of clubs all having similar disparaging names like the “dirt bags.”

There were two suspension bridges that you had to cross and one part that you just go out a half mile and come back. The most difficult section was the 8 miles between aid stations mile 31 and 38. There were so many rocks and roots and hills through that section that made it hard to get in a groove without getting lost or if not lost you would get hurt tripping on a rock or a root. There was also a lot of downed trees that you had to navigate through or around. 

Running with Andrew and the End of the First Half 

 I did not want to get lost, so I was being careful while running with Andrew and enjoying getting to know him while we ran. I asked him if he thought that we might run into a bear, and he said probably not but that he had before three different times. This was his first 50 miler, and he was trying to reach his goal of under 12 hours. I was thinking maybe I would finish around 24 hours, so 12 hours seemed like a good goal to me too. 

When we got to the end of my first loop, we were pacing a lot slower than we had. We both had tripped, so we were being careful. That nice downhill to start the race, now was a grueling series of hills ending with large pools of muddy water. When I realized that we needed to run 2 miles under 30 minutes to finish under 12. I told Andrew we needed to push it. I was also going slower because I did not have a headlamp which was driving me crazy because it got dark an hour earlier than I thought it would because of the hour change problem. I had this small little hazard light that I was using, but I was largely depending on my feet to navigate the terrain. I was so fortunate to be running with Andrew because he had a headlamp and the course, otherwise I probably would have gotten lost. 

We pushed it hard to finish under 12. I stayed far enough away from him that he could still see me, but not close enough that he didn’t feel the urgency to keep moving faster. He finished in 11:53, which makes me wonder how long we had really pushed it. The distance all seemed so confusing the entire race. My watch had me over 2 miles at least when I finished the first 50. After congratulating Andrew on his finish, I frantically looked for my headlamp, so I could start the second half. I was so mad at myself for not just carrying a headlamp just in case. I could have gotten one of my headlamps I had left in my drop bag at an earlier aid station, but I didn’t. I was thinking as long as I finished in under 12 hours I would be fine. 

Once I finally found my headlamp, not in my drop bag, but in a bag, I had left with my dad in his Toyota FJ. I also had to change my shoes and socks because I had stepped in an icy muddy puddle. Next thing that happened I could not get water from the aid station because it was frozen. That was the other thing. It was really cold! I had these pouches that stayed heated for 8 or 10 hours that I was using to keep my hands warm. I was wearing two pairs of gloves and had one over the first layer. 

My dad brought these and gave them to me, and it was so helpful! I don’t want to think about how cold my hands would have been otherwise. I was also chafing and could not seem to prevent the rubbing despite trying various solutions throughout the run. I was also coughing, and my throat was getting sore. I ended up losing my voice almost entirely by the end of the race. I put on my second watch with the course on it, which I had next to my other watch on my left wrist. I knew I was going to need to be able to look at the racecourse on my watch to verify that I was going the right way throughout the run after struggling to follow it in daylight the first time. I was hoping to find someone else to run with so we could work together to make it through the trail without going the wrong way. My watch ended up working perfectly: I could see the line of the course, and it would vibrate if we went the wrong way.

The Back Half 

I ran into Matt within the first half mile. I saw him leave a few minutes before I did. I was thinking I would try to catch him to see if he might want to run together for a little while because there were not any other 100-mile runners around. He turned out to be a great to run with and great in general. We seemed to have a similar perspective on life. We both seemed to believe in the importance of living in the moment and priorities the things you love. He also had an extra light when I needed one later in the race (yes my headlamp went out, and I would have been without light for a second time during this race had I not been running with someone). Like Andrew we both had a lot in common. We found out that we get up at the same time and love animals. He told me how he had a pet raccoon for many years because he rescued it in the wild when it was still a cub. The raccoon’s mother had died, and Matt had found her and taken her in. He also had a cat, so we had that in common too. Matt was an impressive marathon runner when he was younger and started doing ultras later in life. He told me about some of his races and how he plans to do a 200-mile race and a 250-mile race next year. 

Erin started running with Matt and I somewhere around mile 60. She had competed in several more races than I had and told me about running the Moab 240 with David Goggins. I still don’t know if I want to do more than a 100. I mean come on. Isn’t 100 enough already? I got to get back home eventually. I think I prefer to focus on the 100-mile distance for now. Erin brought a lot of energy and needed navigation assistance throughout the night. She was quicker to remember where we were on the course and was able to help guide us so much more efficiently than we had before. We all talked about wide ranging topics. Erin commented on how running through the night with other people has an ancient history, and so it is hard wired in our DNA. As I looked up at the stars in the dead of night, I considered who might have been here before. I felt like we were carrying on an old tradition. 

Among the things we talked about, we figured out what the meaning of life is and solved all the world’s problems without finding much to disagree on. Erin and Matt both complimented my stride, which is maybe a weird thing to talk about in the general sense, but I have put a lot of work into my stride. I like to think that I glide as I run never letting my foot stay on the ground longer than it needs to. This strategy helps me from falling or hurting my foot when I make a mistake because my foot isn’t there that long, so I can adjust with my other foot. I also leap over various obstacles on the path. I consciously try to double the steps I am taking when the terrain gets more difficult.  

The End 

 We were all dreading the difficult 8-mile section around the lake but when we got there it seemed to go by like it was not that much different from what we had just done. It was difficult but everything seemed to be difficult at this point, and yet there was joy. As night continued to get colder, my throat started hurting me more and the final 12 miles or so I could barely talk, so I paced more of those sections. 

We all decided to finish together, so as we crossed the finish line, we held hands. Matt suggested I go before him, and so did Erin at one point, but that just didn’t seem right to me. We all had contributed so much to each other’s success, so we all finished in 5th place. Thinking about it now, I wonder what has held me back before from just sticking with people more during races. I usually always just have this drive that I need to “go it alone” at some point during the run, but maybe I am wrong.