June 27
My
crew, Rick, and I are traveling out to Sturgis, South Dakota so that I can run
the Black Hills 100 mile race on Saturday.
I was registered to run this race last year, but then I tore my right
ACL skiing in March. So, the race
directors were kind enough to let me delay my entry until this year. I am flying my own airplane out here. It is a Cirrus SR-20 built in 2003. It has a cruising speed of 140 knots, give or
take. We had to make two fuel stops
today, but now are on the final stretch.
The badlands are beautiful from the air, and we are flying by Mt.
Rushmore on the way into Rapid City where we will land.
After
landing in Rapid City, we get our rental vehicle, a Chevy Traverse that has a
hatch back. This is essential in case
there is inclement weather so that my crew can still cook my food at the aid
stations without it getting wet. Tonight
we feast on Buffalo Wild Wings. Rick and
I each devour 18 wings, washing it down with an adult beverage. After dinner, it is a quick 30 mile drive up
to Sturgis.
June 28
 |
| Most of the VHTRC contingent |
Today
is an easy day to check-in and relax before the race tomorrow. At breakfast, we see Gary and Keith Knipling
and Farouk Elkassed. They said their
trip out from DC took 15 hours due to delays in Chicago. Rick and I made it in about 12 hours. After breakfast, we picked up the race
packet, did some grocery shopping, and then kicked back in the room until
lunch. For lunch, we ventured into
downtown Sturgis to eat in one of the fine establishments where the motorcycle
rally happens in August. Then we bought
several souvenir t-shirts before the race briefing at 4pm. The race briefing was pretty light on
information except what the markers looked like. The dinner was good with the usual spaghetti
and such.
June
29
With
the late 6am race start, I sleep in until past 4am. We drive the short distance to the start and
meet everyone else. The running race
starts later because the bike race begins at 5am, and they want the riders to
be out of our way. I think 30 minutes
would have sufficed, but it is just fine.
I am wearing the VHTRC away colors (blue) along with the other runners
from Virginia. The weather is cool for
the start, but should get warm quickly.
Mile
5.7 1:08:57 (12:06 avg./mile) Alkali
Creek
Just
warming up and sorting through the field.
Gary is close by and the 50 miler and 100k runners are mixed in with
us. After the first two miles, I feel
pretty good. I was very tight and just
didn’t feel right this morning at the start, but now I am warming up nicely. At this first aid station, I remove the shirt
and grab a bagel, washing it down with a little chocolate milk. For most of the food items, I will take them
with me. I can then take my time eating
them slowly.
Mile
10.3 1:01:43 (13:25 avg./mile) Bulldog
This
aid station comes up quickly. We have
now crossed under I-90 and will stay south and west of the interstate until we
return towards Alkali Creek. Removing
the shirt was a good thing, and I now find myself with Gary and a guy named
John. I top off my Camelbak with
water. It is warming up, and I am
drinking liberally. I grab a sandwich
quarter and a cup of water at this aid station as crews are not allowed here.
Mile
17.0 1:39:23 (14:50 avg./mile) Elk
Creek
Nothing exciting is happening as I am making nice
steady progress. I drink a good bit of
Conquest, trade out my Camelbak (which was nearly empty), and take a grilled
ham and cheese sandwich for the trail. Rick
is a very good crew as he can cook with the best of them.
Mile
22.5 1:24:52 (15:26 avg./mile) Crooked
Tree
Leaving
Elk Creek, Gary, John, and I link up.
John leads most of the way on this section, and we made good time. The creek crossings at the beginning of this
section were not as deep as advertised, and I make it across barely getting my
shoes wet. This section is mostly
uphill, and John is leading us on a fairly aggressive pace up the
switchbacks. The view as we get higher
is really cool. We are climbing up out
of a canyon, and the opposite side of the canyon wall is basically straight
up. We pull into this aid station, and
Gary plops down in a chair. I refill my
Camelbak and leave the aid station close behind John with Gary still sitting in
the chair. This is the other aid station
where crews are not allowed.
Mile
29.2 1:48:10 (16:09 avg./mile) Dalton
Lake
Leaving
Crooked Tree, John lets me go by as he says he is going to slow down a
little. I was thinking that we were
pushing the pace a little bit for this early in the race. So, I slow down slightly as well, but keep on
moving. I am still feeling well, and
while it is warm, I am managing well.
There is a good climb starting this section, and then we drop down,
down, down to Dalton Lake. Rick is here
and has found the only shade in the whole aid station. It is very warm here. I eat a bowl of Ramen and a hash brown. I wash it down with some chocolate milk,
trade out the Camelbak again, and head up the trail. I am sucking down the water and taking in
salt capsules regularly.
Mile
36.0 1:43:13 (15:11 avg./mile) Nemo
This
is the first of two sections where the course is on a trail that we share with
ATVs. The trail is fairly technical with
rocks as the ATVs have chewed up the trail quite a bit. Another climb out of the aid station gets us
up to slightly cooler temperatures. Near
the top, I link up with Brian Woods. He
tells me about last year when he made a wrong turn on this section. He thinks one of the guys on an ATV probably
switched a course mark as a few of them got off course. We keep the conversation going all the way
into Nemo, which is a small town. It
looks like Nemo is the place to come to rent ATVs or motorcycles. Rick is here, but I only trade out the Camelbak,
drink some Conquest, and take a bagel for the trail.
Mile
42.5 2:06:36 (19:29 avg./mile) Pilot
Knob
Leaving
Nemo, I am alone again on the trail.
Well, there are plenty of ATV riders out here, so I have to let them
pass on several occasions. I feel like I
was moving faster than this time indicates, but maybe I am starting to slow
down some. I roll into the aid station
anxious to get to the turnaround point.
I eat another bowl of Ramen with a hash brown. Of course, I wash it all down with some
chocolate milk before heading towards Silver City and the turnaround. The word on the trail is that this next
section is really tough.
Mile
50.0 2:17:28 (18:20 avg./mile) Silver
City
This
“hard” section starts out really nicely.
It is one of the nicer and smoother sections of the course. Then about halfway through, the fun begins. It starts with a really steep climb. The only redeeming feature is that it isn’t
too long. Then the course follows around
the hill forever until we finally drop into a valley that takes us to Silver
City. The downhill is tough, technical,
and mostly canted. Silver City isn’t
much of a city. I guess it used to be,
but now it is just a few buildings. I
visit the restroom and have little success.
Then I change my shoes and drink some Conquest. I take my headlamp with me as it is past
7pm. I also take another grilled ham and
cheese to eat as I move out of the aid station to make my way back to Sturgis.
Mile
57.5 2:25:50 (19:27 avg./mile) Pilot
Knob
I
was hoping that I would have a good cushion on Gary. I haven’t seen him since mile 22.5. However, I am only six minutes out of Silver
City when I meet Gary heading towards Silver City. He looks good, and I expect I will see him
again before too long. John is with him. I meet everyone else—Kaci and Farouk—that are
behind me. Kaci says that she is going
to drop in Silver City. Rick tells me
later that she had blister issues.
Farouk is further behind, but he looks okay. It gets dark when I am on the final stretch
into the aid station. It is good that I
took the headlamp from Silver City. At
this aid station, I change my shoes again.
The Keens that I put on in Silver City are letting scree in easier than
the La Sportivas do. So, I put on my
second pair of La Sportivas. I drink
some chocolate milk and take a bagel with me.
While I was sitting there changing my shoes, I put on a long sleeve
shirt.
Mile
64.0 2:22:28 (21:55 avg./mile) Nemo
Before
dusk, it was warmer down low where the aid stations are. Now that it is dark, it seems like it is
warmer in the trees on the trail.
Therefore, I take off the long sleeve shirt and tie it around my
waist. Not long after leaving the aid
station, Steve Sjolund catches up to me and asks if I mind if he stays with
me. I welcome the company, and we set a
very deliberate pace, speed hiking through the night. Before we reach the aid station, we link up
with Elise Robocker. She adds something
to the conversation, and the three of us roll into Nemo. Rick is ready as always, I eat some oatmeal
and drink some chocolate milk. I am out
of the aid station quickly, but Steve and Elise aren’t far behind.
Mile
70.8 2:13:22 (19:37 avg./mile) Dalton
Lake
Elise
is from Montana, and Steve is from Minnesota.
We talk about our careers and life.
There is no rush to the conversation as we have all night. We aren’t running at all, but we are keeping
up a very brisk speed hike. Notice that
the splits from Pilot Knob to Nemo are slower than the others. This is true for both directions, so I don’t
think it was a climb or anything.
Anyway, we make it into Dalton Lake aid station, and it is still
dark. I have taken a couple of Vivarins
to keep caffeine in my system. These,
along with the engaging conversation, keep me awake. At Dalton Lake, it is out in the open and
much cooler than the trail. I drink some
Coke and Conquest, and then take a grilled ham and cheese for the trail.
Mile
77.5 2:43:11 (24:21 avg./mile) Crooked
Tree
Daylight
finally comes before we get into Crooked Tree.
As soon as it is light enough, Steve moves on ahead. I am still doing okay, but I am not ready to
push it yet. This aid station takes me
forever. I was hoping to pick things up,
but now I will just be content to keep moving forward. I am able to run the downhill sections, but
obviously I am not running them quickly.
Mile
83.0 2:02:20 (22:15 avg./mile) Elk
Creek
I
make it across all of the creek crossings again with dry feet until the last
one. However, I only get one foot
slightly wet, and at this point I don’t think it will bother anything. My feet have held up well, but they are
hurting. I think I may have some
blisters off of my heels, but otherwise they are good. I get into Elk Creek and measure my time
remaining. I just need to keep moving
forward. The sun is up, and the
temperature is climbing. I eat some Ramen
and a hash brown. I think I need some
more variety next time. I continue to
drink a little Coke at each aid station.
Mile
89.7 2:21:09 (21:04 avg./mile) Bulldog
The
climb out of Elk Creek is long and not easy.
I finally get to the top only to be rewarded with a downhill that goes
on forever. I have made at least one
squatting pit stop in the woods and have to take another. When I finally get into the aid station
(where crews are not allowed), I plop down in a chair. I eat half of a PB&J sandwich while
washing it down with some Coke. Then the
very nice aid station lady offers me some tomato soup, which I accept. Now fully recharged, I need to get this race
done.
Mile
94.3 1:40:27 (21:50 avg./mile) Alkali
Creek
 |
| Darin walking into the last aid station |
While
I am in the woods again, I see Elise pass me, along with a few other
runners. John passes back by me, and I
keep asking people if they have seen Gary.
John says he hasn’t seen him for a while. We are back in the open, and I am measuring
my ability to weather the heat. I do
manage to pass one runner, who looks like he is hurting. I feel fine, but I am in no mood to run
anymore. I get into the aid station,
drink some Conquest, trade out my Camelbak, put the VHTRC blue shirt back on,
and take a grilled ham and cheese for the last section.
Mile
100 2:11:20 (23:02 avg./mile) FINISH
 |
| Finally the finish! |
These
last few sections are much harder than I remember them from yesterday
morning. This last hill has now become a
mountain. It is blazing hot, and this
climb is really tough. I am sweating
profusely, and Fausto passes me. I have
seen him multiple times during this race.
It looks like he has an ice pack around his neck to keep him cool. When I finally get down off the mountain and
to the fitness trail that will lead to the finish, I am still in no mood to
run. I am very warm, but I feel
okay. When the track is in sight, I pick
up the pace to finish running. This
hasn’t been really pretty, but I finished under the cut-off. As a bonus, I have also beaten Gary for the
first time ever in a 100 mile race.
53rd
out of 93 starters (64 finishers)
Gary comes
across the line 12 minutes after me. I
kept thinking that he must be having a rough day because I wasn’t making good
time the last several sections. When he finds
out that I was only 12 minutes ahead of him, he says he would have pushed it a
little harder if he had known.
Overall, I am
satisfied. A 100 miler is always an
accomplishment and none of these are easy.
I am now 9 of 15 at finishing 100 milers. It almost seems like a good place to stop
running them. However, an even 10
finishes sounds even better. Who knows
how many more I will run. My next race
is going to be the Catoctin 50k in late July, and then I don’t think I have
anything planned until the Masochist 50 miler in November. I haven’t run that one in a couple of years
because of the high school cross country schedule. However, this year, Amy isn’t supposed to be
running on the day of the Masochist race.
Never stop
running,
Darin