The day started early at 4:00 AM as we left to drive to the start at Ohiopyle. The temperature was in the fifty’s and the sky was overcast at the start. For the remainder of the day the weather cooperated and temperatures remained cool with no rain or bright sun.
I was among the first 30 runners as we came to the first hills. It was dark and difficult to see under the trees. With the low visibility an the wet and rocky trail it was important to be extra careful about foot placement. I was feeling strong over the first section and ran some of the short uphills. For the longer hills, I was walking like everybody else. I noticed that I was going slower than the people around me on the uphills but would then catch up to them and often pass them on the downhills.
As I came out into the clearing at the first aide station at the 11 mile mark, there was a large enthusiastic and cheering crowd which was great for morale. I stuffed down some raspberries, a banana, and refilled my camelbak. Somehow it came out that I came all the way from Paris to run the race, so thereafter, at all the aide stations I was known as “the French guy”.
Here is a photo at the first aide station.
That first section is one tough run all by itself. I think the last hill which has about a 500 foot vertical climb and leads to the aide station is the toughest part. At the top I met John West and he set off on the second leg of the relay.
As I was refueling I knew I needed some salt to replace what I was loosing, so I asked for the pretzels which were in an unopened container. Unfortunately, nobody there could open the container.
I wasn’t thinking very clearly and I forgot to pick up the Garmin recharger that was in my bag. The Garmin has enough battery power to last for about 6.5 hours and I knew that for the next section I would need it.
I set off on section 2 still feeling fine. This is the first time I had run this section. It goes over the ski slopes at Seven Springs. By the time I got there my legs were hurting with some minor cramping and I was not feeling very good. I started to say to myself that finishing this section would be all I could do for the day. The aide station at mile 28 gave me a boost and over the last four miles of the section I was able to do some consistent, sustained running. Coming into the second checkpoint at mile 32 I arrived to a enthusiastic cheering section. It gave me another confidence and energy boost. Never underestimate the positive effect of an encouraging group of fans. I refueled and started again with renewed determination.
Here is a photo of me coming into checkpoint 2.
Section 3 has a few short but steep hills in the first few miles, followed by a slow climb up to Laurel Summit Road. These hills took their toll on me and I start to have some significant leg cramps. Also, by then, my gray shorts starting giving my a painful rash. Wearing these shorts was an error. I knew before hand that on long runs these shorts would cause a rash, but I forgot about that. Had I been thinking clearly at the aide station I should have changed into the backup shorts that I had in my bag.
As I went on I had to walk more and more often. By this time I could only run on the downhill portions that were not too steep and rocky. I stubbed my toes several times which triggered cramps while I caught myself. At about mile 44 I hit my toe and fell. Fortunately I didn’t get hurt.
In the last few miles of section 3 I had difficulty running the downhills also. I was covering the last few miles at a 20 min per mile pace. As I was approaching the aide station I realized that if I continued I would have to walk the last 24 miles. At that point I decided that I would have to drop out.
When I got to the aide station at route 30 it was encouraging to see the crowd of people. I told everybody I gave it my best shot but, for today it would be best to not attempt to go any further.
It was a good effort and a new personal distance record of 46 miles (74 km) with 7,103 feet vertical elevation gain in 10 hours and 53 min.
Here is my Garmin trace http://connect.garmin.com/activity/325080187
Here is the photo at the finish with the other team members: Curt, John, Terry, and John. We set a new Billy Goats Griff team record, beating last year’s time by about 18 minutes.
