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| The Canyons (Little Bald Mountain to Foresthill ) Between Little Bald Mtn (LBM) and the finish, another runner I would see frequently was Gordy A. He left LBM around the same time as I did and bolted off down the trail carrying a plastic bag in one hand and bottles in the other. About half a mile out from LBM aid station, I felt a warm sensation in my right shoe. A blister that I did not realize I had had on the big toe, must have broken. There was minimal discomfort, so rather than stop on the trail to investigate and possibly tape the area, I decided to wait until I reached the next aidstation (Deep Canyon) to address the toe. After another mile, all discomfort had disappeared ! My foot felt normal again. In this stretch, the terrain and fauna began to change as we dropped below about 6000-6500ft. Suddenly another runner blasts by me announcing that she is feeling much better in the lower elevation; apparently the altitude through the high country had given her fits… I watched as she disappeared down the trail. I believe it was also in this section, between LBM and deep Canyon, that there was a rogue aidstation…it appeared to be a group of family members who had set-up base and were handing out cups of water to the runners and announcing their placement in the field as runners passed by. They were having a lot of fun. Later, the trail crossed a dirt forest service road, and I recognized the spot. The previous summer , when my friend Ron and I explored up in this area. We were not sure if this was the WS trail or not because of all the debris had been piled up on the trail where it had come out to the road . Sometime later I started noticing small American Flags along the trail; I assumed this meant I was within 0.25-05 miles of Deep Canyon Aidstation. This turned out to be a correct assumption. Gordy and some other runners were at the aidstation. I refilled my water bottles, ate some fresh fruit. My right foot was feeling fine, so I decided not to remove shoe to investigate the condition of the blister . I continued on. |
| Photo # 14 : A photo taken of me on the road some where near Deep Canyon Creek. |
| The stretch between Deep Canyon and Dusty Corners is on a dirt Forest Service road. It is a long downhill to the bridge crossing Deep Canyon Creek (?) . I took occassional walk breaks in this downhill section, because I was concerned about quad overuse. Gordy came by me , and said “Hello again”. I said hello back and watched him bolt downhill again with his plastic bag which appeared to contain foodstuff. A while later a runner comes from behind and as he catches up to me, he strikes up a conversation. I remembered him from the first few miles of the course. We had spoken during the climb up the service road from Squaw. He was from either Oklahoma or Kansas. He looked familiar to me and it turned out he had been at 2002 Palo Duro 50. We ran together for about a half mile or more toward the creek crossing. The conversation migrated to the 24hr bubble and time goals.. He had come to WS with the goal of running sub 24hr, but at this point he said he was 20minutes behind the end of the 24hr Bubble and was going to take it easy with the heat of the day and the canyons approaching. He said that after the sunset , he might be able to make up the time at night… but he did not want to push himself now and risk DNF-ing. On the bridge over Deep Canyon Creek , a bucket of water and a sponge had been set out for the runners to use. The water felt good. Crossing the bridge meant the course transitioned from being a downhill road to an uphill road. I continued with a powerwalk heading toward Dusty Corner. During this uphill stretch , I noticed more landmarks that I recognized from last summer’s explorations in Tahoe National Forest. It was in this section that Ron and I saw a bear last summer. |
Dusty Corners Aid Station arrived quicker than I expected it to. I wanted to pass through this aidstation.. some fresh fruit, a refill of the water botles and I was good to go. There was a person with a hose showering runners to cool them off. I felt okay and passed on getting a shower. About a half mile out of DC, I reached the turnoff onto the Pucker Point trail. This is a pleasant section of single track that winds along a ridge with vistas of canyons below. This section was added in 2002 to make up for the lost mileage created by the Duncan Canyon bypass (Duncan Canyon had been damaged in the 2001 Red Star Fire). I hit a minor rough patch in this section , not sure why, but I slowed down and did a little more walking until it passed. Then I resumed my pace. On the topomap for this trail there is a point named "Little Hope", and I imagine it was named by some poor minors in desperation. It seemed proper to pass through "Little Hope" enroute to "Last Chance" . Soon, the single track trail ended and we merged back onto the WS trail just before Last Chance. I like this section of the course. There are historical markers and remnants of old mining equipment. The course has a mild downward grade and one can pick-up some time in this section. I was looking forward to Last Chance. Wini and Lee told me that they would be volunteering there and would have a nice assortment of fresh fruit. I also had a dropbag there which contained High Protein Boost and a third water bottle to carry through the canyons. Arriving into Last Chance , I was now 30minutes ahead of my plan despite my rough patch on Pucker Point Trail. Last Chance was bustling with activity. Runners filling up with calories, some were tending to their feet. I saw Gordy again at this aid station and recognized a few runners that had passed me on the Pucker Point Trail. Over at the food table I found Lee, and he made good on his promise to have fresh fruit: strawberries, watermelon, mango and cantelope are what I remember. As I readied to find my dropbag , there was suddenly a noisy ruckus. Someone had apparently moved Gordy's plastic bag and it was no where to be found. Initially the volunteers thought that his dropbag had been misplaced. It was evidently frustrating Gordy, and he explained that it was not his dropbag but a simple plastic bag: the kind that a loaf of sliced bread comes in . His frustration increased until he asked in a loud voice "Who took my plastic bag?!?!". Meanwhile, I found my dropbag and drank down a can of Boost. Then poured a second can of Boost into the third water bottle, then topped it off with water. Leaving the aidstation, Gordy was still hunting for his plastic bag.. He had enlisted several of the volunteers to assist him in the search.. I saw Wini as I exited . She was sitting on a chair assisting another volunteer to record runners' bib numbers and times as they departed Last Chance. Onward to the Precipitous Trail and Deadwood Canyon. Not far down the trail I heard loud quick footsteps behind me, and whoooosh there goes Gordy bolting by me again with his plastic bag in one hand and water bottles in the other. I stopped momentarily to reorganize the contents of a pocket, get something from my fanny pack compartment, eat some gel from the flask, and drink down some more fluids before reaching the single track Precipitous trail. Two runners, a man and woman, ran by me and asked if I was okay. I said " yes.... just taking a break". They continued on. There was much joy in descending the canyons on the single track trail: banking the switchback turns, dodging the rocks with an agile stride and quick turnover. The single track trail was shaded for the most part and was pure fun. Long descents are intrinsic to WS; they should be enjoyed. I picked up my pace and passed a few people on the descent to Deadwood Canyon. As the gravity-assisted ride came to an end, I crossed the footbridge and came upon the man and woman I had seen outside of Last Chance. They said they were taking a break before starting up to Devils Thumb (DT)… they looked tired to me; 20minutes or so earlier when I saw them they had looked fine. The first quarter mile or so up from the bridge seems very steep.. steeper than the rest of the ascent. . I am not sure if it is actually steeper than the rest of the climb, or if it is a false perception created from quickly changing gears to transition from the downhill stretch that preceded it. Nevertheless, gravity assumed an antagonistic role and the pace slowed down as I started up the 20 to 30-some switchbacks to the top of Devils Thumb. During the 1.7mile climb from the footbridge up to DT Aidstation, I passed about 5 or 6 runners who were sitting down on a rock , a fallen tree trunk , or on the trail itself. I felt like I was in Dantes Inferno traversing through the levels of Hell and seeing the various characters imprisoned at the various levels. It think it would be dangerous to sit down partway up that climb. It would be better just to stop and stand still if a stationary rest were needed, rather than sit down. Understandably, one runner that was sitting was having as asthma attack. She said she had her inhaler with her, but she was waiting for someone to come help her. Closer to the top, a medical person passed me in opposite direction running quickly down the trail.. He was enroute to help the runner with asthma. DT Aidstation was a great sight., and reaching it was a major milestone in the race: almost half-way to Auburn. I arrived into DT with Lisa Stranc-Bliss who had caught up with me on the last few switchbacks before the top. After weighing-in, I went to the food table and discovered cups full of my favorite soda : Ginger Ale. Without thinking, I quickly gulped down three cups of Ginger Ale. Suddenly I did not feel well. Alan had just arrived in DT.. it was nice to see him again. A volunteer brought me my drop bag. My discomfort was either carbonation from the 3 cups of ginger ale or it was nausea. I was really hoping for the first. I dislike sitting down , and only do it out of necessity during an ultra (like for changing shoes, etc). But I was concerned about how I was feeling. So I sat down in a lawn chair and proceeded to get out my Boost. The volunteer poured one can of Boost in one of the bottles for me. Feeling better I drank down the other can of boost, thanked the volunteer and started on my way out of DT. Alan was also leaving so we exited together and chatted for a bit. He was happy with his race so far. I decided to keep to an easy pace for another half mile or so to let things settle a bit more. Alan picked up his pace, I said good bye and watched him disappear into the pine trees. During the training camp I had tripped and fallen twice during the descent into the second canyon. As the single track descent approached, I relaxed myself, drank down some more water and put the energy of my focus on my footing. The second descent passed by quickly and without any spills. Crossing the footbridge over El Dorado Creek, I found a wonderful aid station . It was low key and small. The sound of the water rushing over the rocks in the creek added to the calming atmosphere of the aidstation. It was 5:30pm now, the sun was dropping lower in the sky. I stopped long enough at the aidstation to top off my bottles and go on. The climb up to Michigan Bluff has 3 or 4 false summits (I forget now which it is ). About halfway up the canyon, I began to feel a bit tired. I took a survey of my condition and observed that my legs didn't feel as fresh as they did at 5AM. The “whittling process” had started. I’d been whittled down the first notch; fortunately I had more notches to spare. I did not feel dog tired and negative , just more tired than I had felt earlier. A runner came by me. Her arrival interrupted the my little survey process. She asked how I was. I told her I felt whittled down a bit. She replied "You'll feel better once you reach Michigan Bluff (MB) and get to see your crew". I thanked her for the kind words and watched her disappear around a sharp turn in the trail. What I was really looking forward to was the “ Giant Manzanita Forest” , my name for an upcoming section of the trail. When I reach it , then I have passed by the final false summit and am within about half a mile of MB. After another 5 minutes or so more manzanita appeared along the trail, and suddenly I entered the giant manzanita forest. I was feeling better already. I like the stretch that leads into MB… a nice little downhill section with some old houses and golden poppies along the way, and the Welcome Sign with horseshoes . In sharp contrast to the low key El Dorado AidStation, Michigan Bluff seemed like a three ring circus to me. Runners names were called out as they entered. |
| I quickly scanned the crowd of crew folk and did not see Gigi, Doug or Katie… But first things first, I get weighed. A volunteer brought me my dropbag. I needed to change fanny packs here. The fanny pack in the dropbag had my flashlight and headlamp in the zipped compartment. I drank down a Boost and poured the 2nd Boost in a water bottle. With the lower temperatures, I felt it was no longer necessary to carry the 3rd bottle through Volcano Canyon and I placed it in the drop bag. Still no sign of my crew, but I am now 40minutes ahead of schedule. I conclude that they must not have arrived yet to MB. Being 40minutes ahead of plan meant that I WOULD reach Foresthill before sunset and be able to start the descent to Rucky Chucky with some daylight remaining. That was great. Mariela, a Houston-area runner who was at WS to crew and pace Kelly Woodmansee, spotted me and asked me how I felt. Without thinking much about it, I recited to her the results of the survey I had taken on the climb up to MB: “I feel a little whittled, and my legs are not as fresh as they had been at 5am. But I am hanging in there and am happy to be to MB ahead of plan.” I asked her if she had seen Gigi, and she had not. I decided to press on and look for them at Bath Rd aidstation. Just then Jay Norman, a Dallas-area runner that was here to help crew Letha and Robert, saw me. He took my photo and asked me if I had seen Robert. I had not seen him. Sarah Brown , another runner from Dallas, was also at MB. She was Letha’s pacer. I started to run, and instantly noted that I feel much better and have newfound energy. This was a good sign. Just as I got into a running rhythm, a volunteer caught up to me and gave me a cup of water saying “you forgot to drink all of your water”. So I took the cup, thanked him and started walking to try to drink the water but realized I did not want it. I walked over to some folks sitting on the side of street to give them the paper cup of water. One of them turned out to be Geri K. She told me that Doug, Gigi and Katie were just down the street a ways. So I continued on , scanning the faces in the crowd and found them. At this point I didn’t need anything. I told them I wanted to keep moving and get to Foresthill before sunset. They agreed, and said they’d meet me at Bath Rd Aid Station. |
| Onward ho again. This time I get into my running rhythm, have no more interruptions and finally leave MB. About a half mile out of MB, I heard my name being called. It is Alan. We ran together and chatted for a bit. We were both happy with our races up to this point; we both had gotten through the heat of the day and the canyons without trouble or incident. It was after 7pm now and the night was quickly approaching . I crossed Volcano Creek at 7:45pm and reached the Bath Rd Aid Station around 8:05pm. Doug , Gigi and Katie were just arriving to the Aidstation also. They had walked down Bath RD from Foresthill. Doug was now wearing his running attire ready to pace me to the Finish line. We powerwalked up Bath Rd, then once we turned left onto Foresthill Divide Rd we started running the ~0.5mi to the School where the Checkpoint was located. Approaching the school, I saw Red Spicer and Kelly Eppelmann. They were sitting on a bench watching the runners go by. There was a third person with them that either I did not know or do not remember. I entered Foresthill Aid Station at 8:28, now 47 minutes ahead of my schedule. 62 miles done, 38 to go. Foresthill seemed like another 3-ring circus to me. |