The North Face 50, 2017

Prologue.
I know this guy, a real hard-body, always working on his fitness. I started hanging out with him more and more. Soon I realized that he had a lot to teach me. Sweet. So he got me doing pull ups and reading anarchist literature. Both I need to do more of. After some time he gathered a small group of us. We ate his strange hot banana, cheese, and peanut butter situation as he told tales of some west coast race. Before I knew it I was signed up for The North Face Endurance Challenge 50mi outside of San Francisco, California. This would be my third 50mi race.

Training.
An ultra strips you down. The hours simmering on “easy effort” reduce you to your ultimate flavor. In order to be strong and independent for this race I needed to train long hours on my own. I wanted to prove to myself that I could still train at a high level without the structure and team that I had at Rogue Running. I sought to design a program that combined elements of strength training and traditional long-slow-distance training. This would be a test, as a runner, of my fitness and strength. Like most of my experiences with tests, I failed. I didn’t have a macro-plan to follow and instead I just tried to cobble something together while running whatever miles I could whenever I could. I became comfortable cutting a run short instead of pushing through, always finding an excuse not to run. All of them — all excuses — were used during this block. Over the 19 weeks before the race I averaged 30 miles a week.
In all fairness- I was putting in a lot of extra hours at work because the transition from summer to school takes a long time for teachers. I was also doing more strength work than I’ve done before. I did manage to run three long runs over 30mi and 30–40miles for quite a few weekends. I raced a 10mi and 10k in this training cycle and I felt encouraged with my speed and results from these races. I was also with a crew. We run the trails of Austin on Sundays. Five of us were racing the 50mi and two in the 50k. I was excited to have company for the race. I was strong, mentally and physically, but unconfident that my training could yield a good race. I was expecting to suffer.

The Race.

First 10mi(ish).
It was dark, the race started at 5 am. I started with Ryan and Travis and we ran the entire section together. We went out at an honest pace in the back of wave 1. As the miles ran on, a long ribbon of headlamps stretched behind and ahead of us and wove through the valleys and bare hill sides along the ocean. Spirits were high but controlled with good conversation. The sun began to rise and we speculated where Mike and Muz were. We had two serious climbs and descents in this section.

The fun was very much just beginning. We rolled into the 10mi aid station slightly off of an 8hr pace but still feeling strong. Jackie and Nora were waiting for us and let us know that Mike and Muz came in together and were well ahead. We were so excited that our friends were doing well. I felt so strong and happy to be with a big crew in the race, it definitely made it easier to push on.

Second 10mi(ish).
This section had a big climb followed by a big decent right to the ocean. The sun was rising, the head lamp was off and around my waist. All of my effort was focused on staying in a controlled but honest pace. I was obsessing about my form, keeping my torso stable and trying to run as efficiently as possible.

I want to be a master of all paces. Running is a movement practice. Like a bad dance; I am good at bad dancing. Running in a group can have it challenges too, proper etiquette can be tricky, but no one wants their buddy to run slower because of them. I know I sure as hell don’t. So without saying too much we pushed on up a climb and we began to separate from Ryan. We kept going- maybe too hard. Travis and I worked our way together into the 20mi aid station. No crew, just drop bags waiting for us. I chugged some cold brew, unwrapped a 300cal pro bar, and put on my hat and sunglasses. Time to go to work.

Third 10mi(ish).
I am both surprised and not surprised that I am slow at aid stations. It took some effort, but I caught up to Travis. When I did he asked if I had seen his pretzels, I hadn’t which is a bummer because I love pretzels. Instead, he was snacking away on some treats that Mike gave him. We caught Mike! Travis told me he was just ahead. I was filled with excitement. I first met Mike last winter in the lead up to Boston and had since started to run with him regularly on the trail. The guy is something of a local legend here in Austin, a 2:40 marathoner at age 49. Mike is hard as shit and I knew that with him in tow we would have some serious fire-power for the rest of this beast. The three of us charged on.

During this section we topped out the course at an out-and-back at mile 25. The out-and-back section is mostly single track and on a steep hillside, the runners ahead of us (mostly female-bad asses), were hauling ass downhill straight at us. I was jumping off the trail just to keep forward progress and yield a path. These movements were a bit off-camber and required micro-bursts of energy. After a few miles I started to feel tweaked and tired from the effort. At 25 miles we were at 4hrs. Was 8hrs still on the table? The last five miles or so of this section were a crushing downhill that ran through a wet, dark forest. It was pretty amazing terrain but my legs were beginning to feel shredded. All of the downhill pounding was taking a toll on me. But not Travis, that guy bounds downhill.

Speaking of firepower, after this hill we met up with Nora who joined on as a pacer. Nora and Travis are so humble about how fast and amazing Nora is. I’m not. She ran the Olympic Trials and is like way- way faster than me. I still feel like a little fan-boy around her. It was a huge honor to run the last 20 miles with and ultimately far behind her. At mile 30ish Travis had his amazing pacer. I plugged in my phone and went to a Grateful dead show. OKC 11/14/1972.

Fourth 10mi(ish).
A Grateful Dead show is absolutely perfect for a late race trip and this show from ’72 is pretty perfect. This section was run mostly in the Muir Woods, a dank thicket of trunks surrounding a perfectly buffed out trial. I was crushing miles. I dropped Travis and Nora on a beastly climb. I was grooving and feeling like I wanted to charge. In hind sight, I should have kept it together and stayed calm. The music took me away and I was soaring. Phil’s bass lines became my cadence and when I needed it Jerry would come in with a riff and tighten up the whole thing. It was really fun. I love to run and listen to old Dead shows. After a few miles I was gassed, Travis and Nora caught me at the next aid station. I was happy to see them. I knew that I was fading and I was losing focus. I filled my waters, grabbed a Pringle and kept moving. Holy shit that Pringle was amazing! I went back for more. I had to hammer to catch Travis and Nora.

At this point we were in a lush valley. It was obvious we were headed home. I shortened up strides and began to shuffle-run the miles. I like to change up my pace to change my biomechanics and utilize different muscles. I don’t know if this is effective, but I think it’s effective, so yea, it’s effective. I’m sure I look like a goof. The valley spit us out at a major climb. The one we descended at daybreak to the ocean. It was a monster. I knew it would be the last major climb. Shuffle run, I’m the Whiz power strides, hands on knees hiking, walking, three-stride runs on flats. I used everything I had to get my flesh sack up the damn hill. Move your body, move your body, 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8–9–10–9–8–7–6–5–4–3–2–1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8–9–10- I was counting just to get by. The hill was over, the three of us moved into the mile 43 aid station. Jackie would be waiting. I couldn’t believe I had made it so far into the race and felt so good. I was tired, but not broken. I knew that 8hrs was off the table, but to be honest it was never really on the table. When I saw Jackie I wasn’t really verbal. I remember not communicating well with her about what I needed. I took a massive swig of cold brew; it was delicious. I remember saying to her in my tired-rasp voice, “we’re doing it”.

Final 10mi(ish).

Coming out of the aid station I was looking for Travis and Nora. Once I finally saw them they were way ahead. I pushed hard to catch them, it was all I could do to hang on. Trying to catch them on the final climb took every last bit I had to give. Travis was feeling damn fine and he was beginning to drop the hammer. I resigned myself to just hold on and keep the pace. I was happy with how things were turning out it, it looked like I would be very close to 9hrs. When I did cross the finish line I was glad to be done but still very much in control. I had no blisters, no chafe, no injuries. I was in once piece and feeling fine enough. I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t fallen apart out there. 8:52:00.

Epilogue.
You get what you put in. This was a great run and a great race for me. But I did not honor the event with appropriate training and as a result I am left with a meh feeling post race. My training was not conventional, but whatever it was I was able to endure that race and feel pretty damn good afterwards. Now, a few days out I am feeling inspired and looking on to the next race. A major take away from this event was nutrition. I drank and ate well during the whole event. I also stayed in relative control for the entire event too, keeping my mind focused on the task at hand. I feel experienced at this distance now and I know what to expect from a long effort. I think this means I am ready for 100mi.