The Trail North Face Challenge Gortex 50 miler!
I've had my eye on this race for several months, ever since my friend Craig suggested running it for a more competitive race. I couldn't decide if I wanted to run a road race or another ultra this year, but since the majority of my training has been on the trails, it was an easy decision.
I knew coming in I would have more competition for this race and I had no idea who the other women were. I picked up my packet at the North Face store in SLC and learned that there were around 35 women competing. I tried to stalk some of the women on Ultra signup (a super helpful tool, like Athlinks except it ranks runners too) but then I realized that I didn't really understand what a good time was and that I wasn't familiar with any names in the trail world anyway, so it didn't matter. I needed to focus on my race.
I reserved a couple nights in Park City and opted to stay alone the first night, instead of having my family there. I knew I would get better sleep and they didn't need to be at the finish until later in the day. I laid out all my clothes and felt a little unprepared. It was quite the task to get ready for a 50 mile run compared to marathons I've ran in the past. Getting all of my drop bags ready and anticipating what I would need at what miles took some thought. I imagine this gets easier with experience.
I went to sleep with just under 4 hours till the start of the race. This is nothing new, since I've ran well off little sleep in training before, so I knew I would be fine. Besides I doubt many sleep well the night of a race.
I woke up at 4am and quickly downed as many calories as I could consume. That would include a smashed cherry Cutie Pie (that made me nauseous, only because it was smashed:) a chocolate breakfast drink, some toast, cereal, a banana and a Gatorade. I was full and my stomach showed it.
I drove to the start and huddled around a fire with a few other runners. I noticed everyone seemed low key there. No jitters, no bouncing up and down, no warm-ups, just hanging out and talking with other runners. I too felt very calm but just as excited. No nerves to go out fast or to be done with it. I knew I was going to have a great time today, no matter the outcome. Trail running is just fun, especially in a group. One of the things I have enjoyed most about trail racing is that I have no expectations for myself as far as finishing or time goes. I also know that no one out there really cares how I do either, since nobody knows me. Even on the road this is true, but I've been connected to the road running community more competitively so this was quite a different feeling. I had told myself it was a winning day for me no matter what. I felt no expectations whatsoever. Today was going to be a good day, I just knew it.
On your marks...
The elite runners started exactly one minute before the rest of us. I had no idea that was an option, but it also didn't apply to me anyway. I had one 11+ hour 50 miler under my belt from Skyline coming into the race, and my time didn't qualify me for the elite start. No worries, 60 seconds later we began in a concentrated pack of goats up the mountain. It was impossible to pass people. Although the pace was decent, I really wanted to get in front a little so I could set my own pace. I had to remind myself there would be time, so I stayed put.
Running in the dark was interesting. I've done this many times in training, but it was harder to navigate my footing with so many runners, so close together. Everyone was quiet and I had this image pop in my head that this was going to be the scene for the next several hours. That made me nervous. Those who know me well know I don't have much anxiety about anything except one thing--being bored. Thank goodness my mind was instantly redirected to a guy from behind who was making his way through the crowd. "On your left!" he called as he bush whacked on the side and passed groups of runners. I have to admit, I was envious of his courage. I too wanted to pass the runners but felt I had no right to tell them I was passing on the side. Besides, I was still new to this. At some point I forgot to read the Common-Knowledge-Trail-Running-Race-Conduct guide on appropriate behavior. I knew this guide was different from road conduct, I just didn't know if I would be committing some obvious faux pas that's on the cover of this guide- you know, "NEVER PASS ON THE TRAIL" or "EXPECT SOMEONE TO MOVE OVER. " I didn't know and my brain was still in sleep mode I went with my gut and followed that renegade!
For the next mile, I passed many runners. I began to count the women (knowing there were 35 total) and started to realize I was in the top half of women. I reached the first aid station at mile 4.2 and about 45 mins into the race. I wanted to average under 2 minutes per aid station and felt this was doable on my own. The aid station volunteers are the best. They never fail to make you feel important and they take great care of every runner. My bottles were immediately filled and everyone offered encouragement and food at every angle. I took a couple pretzels, my filled water bottles, and went on my way (only down 60 seconds.)
Course
The course was amazing, simply put. It was challenging in parts and technical in others, however so much of it was runable. The course started at 7,000 feet elevation and climbed to 10,000 feet in the first 13 miles. The course runs along the Wasatch Back in Park City and navigates through world-renowned ski resorts, mixed with single and double tracks, ski runs, mountain bike trails, and other dirt access roads. As the sun began to rise, the fallen golden leaves on the trail began to illuminate. The scenery was unmatched and I couldn't imagine being anywhere else in that moment, doing the thing I loved so much. I felt good both in mind and in body and everything was in sync. I held on to this endorphinated state for the next few hours and hoped it would never fade. I still had another 8 hours to go.
Miles 10-25
The second aid station at mile 10 was much like the first, except this time I heard them shout "You're third female!" I was the 3rd female! Wait, what?? HOLD ON, where did everyone go? That was shocking to me because I thought I was barely scraping the top half of the women at that point. On one hand I was excited to know where I was, but part of me felt some pressure this early on in the race. My tentative plan was to place in the top 10, but maybe have a chance to place higher if I ran well- I just didn't expect to be so far up already. I decided this didn't change anything because I couldn't control how fast anyone was but me. So I just forgot about it and put my mind on other things.
I found it easy to entertain myself and get lost in thought as I wove through the trail, over the mountains and through the rocky stream beds. I thought about my family and friends, and the running community who mentored me along the way, but above all, I was grateful to God for blessing me to be here at that time in good health. I found myself praying many times during the race for a myriad of things as different emotions ran through me. Each state different from the next. Prayers of thanks to prayers of "oh help me!" These along others ran through the course of mind over the next 7 hours.
I began to leap frog a couple male runners around mile 12 who often left me on the climbs, but I would then pass on the downhill. They began to comment on my downhill form which only encouraged me. It's always nice to get feedback when you feel unsure of what you are doing., except this time I did. I knew how fast I could pace myself to comfortably cover the distance. I also knew my pace would give me room to push the final miles. I was getting excited, but had to keep it together. I was only 1/4 finished and it was going to get uncomfortable, it had to.
The next several aid stations ran together. I would go in and out as fast as I could. I never changed my shoes because I never needed to (plug for amazing Pearl Izumi N1 trails shoes. Not a single blister and responsive!) so I neglected my drop bag and went on my way.
Around the third aid station I finally asked how far ahead second place was ahead of me. "oh, she's quiet further, maybe 35 mins" a volunteer responded. Holy cow! How did 2nd place get 32 minutes on the rest of us. I didn't even dare ask where the leader was, it didn't matter. I was going after second. I wasn't really sure I could catch her, but I sort of thought of it as a game, to see how close I could get to her and close that gap by the end. Whether someone passed me or not, was not something I could control, but gaining speed on 2nd seemed more tangible in my mind, so I focused on that and forgot about everything else.
I stayed in my place, but began leap frogging two other ladies between stations. Anytime I stopped to tie a shoe, or use the bathroom, one would pass. I worked quickly to reclaim back the spot within minutes. I was racing already. Normally this would be scary this early in the race, but I couldn't talk myself into stopping and felt it was necessary. I felt invigorated and knew what my body was capable of because of my training. This confidence continued to grow as I put distance on these ladies and never saw them again. My focus was on closing the gap.
Miles 25-36
I began to pick up my pace a little by the half-way point. Anytime I came to anything technical, I would focus on covering it as smoothly as I could and pictured in my head gaining just another second. I kept repeating to myself that every second gained would put me closer and to run anything I could. No walking if it was remotely runable. This I repeated over and over, looking for spots where I thought others might have struggled and worked to cover it as fast as possible. I even focused on the tangents. Yes, tangents on an ever winding trail. If I gained 20 seconds from this over the next few miles, then again, it was 20 seconds closer. Now you see how insane it can be running in your head for 10 hours? At least it was something fun for me to focus on and I believe made a difference. I never let up.
I sun started to get warm around noon but It wasn't terrible, I just needed more water and made sure I finished my water before each aid station.
Fuel
I ate Hammer and Honey Stinger gels every hour and took two S caps every two hours. I nibbled on a honey crunchy granola bar throughout the race that I carried in my pack. At the aid stations I grabbed a handful of pretzels and even packed a little baggy full of candy to enjoy on my ascent up mile 30ish. That was fun!
I walked most of the hills and ran everything else. I began to get lazy and walk some of the smaller hills since others were too. Around mile 35 a female started to come up from behind. I took a wrong turn up a hill and she actually called, "Hey girl in the skirt, you're going the wrong way!" I turned around and worked for the next 5 minutes to catch her. When I caught up, she really started to pour it on so I couldn't pass. I can respect that, but I decided to match it and passed her with a single breath, "Thank-you-back-there-I-'preciate-it." A single sigh escaped from her mouth which made me feel bad, actually. We were both working really hard here.
Now back to the 2nd place girl. Each aid station I would check where she was. The impossible began to seem possible as she went from 35 mins to 15 mins to 10 mins at the second to last station around mile 38. I couldn't do the math at this point to figure how much faster I would have to run, so I just ran. Harder (and by harder I mean 12 min miles.)
Miles 39-44 were full of a nasty climbing. Nasty for having 40 miles on my legs and for "racing" the past several hours. I was getting tired and my legs were getting sore. I played mind games, telling my head to send blood down to my aching knees. It worked. I healed myself in a delusional/ miraculous state and was energized at the thought that if I could do that, I could really get that girl ahead of me. I knew this would take going into a special place in my mind where I use to go in college when we ran repeats on little rest. It was a called robot mode and I used it as a coping skill to survive the workout in the time I needed. Most athletes play this or another sort of game, mine was a matter of accepting the pain and running with it anyway. It's funny how your lungs will often follow suit when you're hurt. I noticed my breathing was becoming more labored and I was hot and exhausted. At this point I didn't think there was a single gel or drink I could take that would make this go away. Aside from stopping, my options were to push it and risk dying but die trying. (Big LOL! In my mind I went there because I was delusional-ish at 7 hours into the race and the sun was only getting warmer.) Well, I didn't die, I kept pushing and told myself never to walk again for the last 10 miles.
The last aid station was at the top of the climb at mile 42. Somewhere during the climb another female passed me just before the aid station, but we were within seconds when we came into the station. My watch read 40 miles and I believed I had another 7-8 miles left. I stopped and refilled my water while the other girl ran straight through (I didn't realize it at the time and thought I was ahead of her.) What I didn't realize was that the course ran a little short and my watch was about 2 miles behind. Yikes. I also learned that the 2nd place girl was only 5 mins ahead. GOOOOOO!
Essentially, we had 5 miles left at that point (45ish mins) and they were all downhill to the finish. Again in my mind, I'm pacing myself for an hour + effort, but going as hard as I possibly can. We began weaving in and out of the hoards of other runners from the other races that day, which on a single track, was kind of a nightmare. They were not happy we were passing them and some made comments like, "gosh, relax, you have some time!" They had no idea what race we were in, so it's easy to be annoyed I'm sure. Every female I passed, I looked at her bib (they were color coded) but didn't see any orange I so badly wanted to find. I knew that girl had to be close! Again, it was the only motivation for me to move in that moment.
Finally at mile 46, I see a female that looks like me, tired. I realized I no longer needed to look at the bibs, it was clear who the 50 milers were. Our gaits were thrown, or backs slightly hunched and our eyes glazed over. It was robot mode for sure. As I passed, I realized this was the woman I had been looking for since the beginning. I picked up my pace and told myself to try to stay in the 8's for the next several miles. THEN 2 mins later, I see crowds of people cheering along the course as we wound down the mountain. The aid station was especially extravagant and so many people were there. I was suprised it was so close to the last and began asking people, "what mile is this?" One guy says, "you're done! This is it! THAT's the finish!"
WHAT THE HECK.
Within 200 meters of me asking that question, the race had ended! I gave it all I had with a fat smile on my face. In that moment I was running in the 6's! 'Good bye 8's' I thought to myself, 'I'm in second place!!' I can't believe I thought I had 3 more miles to go. As one might expect, I felt great going into the finish, because I was reserving the last 5k for a supposed throw down, but thinking back, I don't think I would have gone much faster, I would have just endured another 3 miles at the same pace, so no loss, just a giant shock to me!
I learned shortly after I was actually 3rd but I was just as happy. Although I passed the "2nd place" girl I had my sights on from early on, she went into third when the other girl from the aid station ran through it and took second. I was really in 4th it turns out before passing her, so good thing I sprinted that last mile! My times are nothing special, but I am proud of the final miles from 44-47, which is what my watch recorded- 8:48, 8:49, 8:18, 8:24 and 6:41 for the last .10.
Top 5 Women Results:
1. Katie Steinberg 8:45:43
2. Kimberly Shock 9:45:32
3. Taralyn Summers 9:46:43
4. Elizabeth Butler 9:48:39
5. Elisa Litwora 10:27:30
What a blast! The top 3 received cash, $1000, $750, $350 and a bag full of North Face goodies and other sponsored related items. The awards ceremony was unlike anything I've experienced, what a party! With Dean Karnazes presenting the awards and everyone shouting our names, it was surreal be done. Also, who doesn't want to crowd surf after their ice bath and make every person say, "Ewww, shes sweaty!" lol! I loved it.
   
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