Squaw Peak 50
June 2, 2017
Met up with Jon
at the pre-race event. He was getting his race packet, dinner, and
instructions. Sitting in the parking lot and seeing the other runners I was
feeling left out. There is always an excitement in the air before a race.
Everyone is stoked but nervous and the feeling is contagious.
In the few
months leading up to this point, I was training with Jon and was surprised with
how I was keeping up and performing. I hadn’t been running that consistently
but had been off and on with guys at work. The first time I went out with them
after not running for months we hammered out an 8 miler with some longs
stretches in the snow. I had some foot pain that bothered me but besides that I
felt good. I was really happy to have been able to just go out and get that
done. The foot pain bugged me and I tried to take it easy after that and only
ran once or twice a week with them. We did some speed work and it had me
sucking wind but I was improving week to week. I wasn’t able to keep up with
the guys, that were months into their marathon training schedule, but I hung
with them as long as I could and stayed close. I took care of some plantar
warts on my feet and that magically fixed my foot pain.
Jon and I did
an 11 miler out to Bridal Veil Falls and back. We talked about the Squaw Peak
50 and how I would help pace him. I had a crazy thought. He has been training a
lot more than me but I am hanging with him now. I heard about the SP50 a few
years back and thought it sounded like such a gnarly race that someday would be
so cool to do. As we ran and I thought about it, I thought if Jon was ready I
might be able to do it too. I mentioned
this to him and he felt it wouldn’t be the best decision. He said I probably
could finish but it would wreck my body. I decided he was right and that it was
a dumb idea. The run we were on was the farthest I had gone in years. 14 miles
was my longest run ever and that was 5 years ago.
Hanging out
with Jon and the other runners the idea came back to me. I asked if it was even
possible to enter and they said I could. I told Jon and he laughed and I don’t
think he thought I was seriously considering it. He reminded me that it would
not be good for my body but I probably could do it. He certainly didn’t talk me
out of it. I had my check book in the car and went to go get it. I was in a
very impulsive mood and with a giddy smile, wrote a check and said, “Let’s do
this!” I was amped up! I got my schwag and race bib which I promptly crumpled
up, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it per tradition. Jon and I went to
go get our spaghetti dinner and listen to the pre-race instructions. I think I
had equal proportions of spaghetti to salad to apple pie with ice cream. As I
stood there eating and listening, I started to panic a little bit but bit my
lip and tried to put on a tough, I’ve been here before, face. Mentally I was
starting to wet myself. What had I signed up for. I was not ready! I tried to
calm myself down and think about how I was going to approach it. Jon had a game
plan all figured out. He had his pacers lined up and prepped. He had food
prepped and drop bags planned out and ready to go. I threw a wrench into his
plans because I wasn’t going to be driving up and meeting him halfway. He had
to do some scrambling to figure out how to still make his plan work. I felt bad
I changed it up on him last minute because the he was nervous and the planning
helped him feel dialed in. I also felt bad because he had been preparing so
much for this and it was his thing. I didn’t want to steal his thunder or take
away from his accomplishment so I tried to keep my participation as much on the
D.L. as possible. I asked Jon if he was cool with me doing it and he said he
was. I still wanted to make this about
him and not take away from his moment. I was looking forward to him performing
to the best of his abilities and proving himself to himself.
I told Shannon
what I was going to do and she was really worried. She said, “Is that even
safe?” It wasn’t the smartest choice but I would do my best. She was cute and
reminded me to wear sunscreen, drink lots of water and remember to breathe. I
was grateful for her encouragement.
We headed home
and I had to scramble to get things ready. I had brought extra food and gear so
I would be more than prepared for my leg. I went to Runner’s Corner and
searched desperately for a running top and a hat. I couldn’t find a hat but was
able to get a white tank and some electrolyte tablets. When I got back to base
(Will’s house) we worked on drop bags. This is something I hadn’t even thought
about but Jon helped me out. We got them ready and then went to bed around
9:30. I had a hard time falling asleep because my mind was running wild with
excitement and anxiety. The next day I would be putting my body and mind
through probably the most demanding thing I had ever done before. I wasn’t
ready but I was going to give my best effort at it and see how things turned
out. I wanted to crush it.
June 3, 2017
Jon and I woke
up at about 3:45 AM and got ready. I didn’t have much to eat for breakfast. I
think I had a banana and some of Jon’s burnt oatmeal. We drove up the canyon
and found the parking lot with all of the other runners. What a bunch of crazy
people! It was still dark out. Felt like the middle of the night and we were
all getting ready to go running. It was so cool to see everyone thought. I was
filled with excitement because I had always wanted to experience this and be a
part of it. Now here I was. Everyone else looked like they were seasoned pros
that knew exactly what they were doing and how to do it. I was scatter-brained
and trippin’ out. We had to walk ¾ miles along the river to Vivian park to the
start. Jon and I kept our sweats on for as long as we cool and both felt we
should ditch them instead of running with them for the first part of a race. We
stashed them behind a tree and hurried to the starting line. There we were. Two
newbies amongst a group of hard core ultra-runners. With headlamps on and a
last-minute set of instructions and inspiration we were sent off. Go time!
Start- 5:00 AM
I was still in
amazement and shock that we were actually doing this. We were a part of an
ultra race! I turned my Garmin to display pace and kept an eye on how we were
doing. Pace was going to be really important because it was such a long race
and I didn’t want to get burned out early. I wanted to hold back and try and
preserve myself for as long as I could. Jon and I were both really surprised by
how fast everyone was going out. I kept looking at my watch and telling Jon we
needed to slow down. We kept speeding up with everyone and hovered around 8-9
min/mile pace. That was way too fast! Our goal was 13-15 min/mile pace. We let
a lot of people pass us and kept holding ourselves back. I felt good but knew I
shouldn’t be running so fast right now. It made a bit more sense why people
were going so fast once we left the river trail and turned up the Bonneville
Shoreline trail with was single track and didn’t have any room for passing.
Once we got to there our position was pretty much locked in for the next few
miles. The sun started to rise and it lightened up. As soon as we turned onto
the trail the climbing began. There was a lot of climbing in store for us today.
Hope Campground (5.58 mi)- 6:18 AM
We cruised into
the first aid station and were met by a people who looked like they had just
woken up from camping. Which they had. They had pancakes and sausage cooking
and I filled up my water and grabbed some for the road. They had a box for
headlamps so we ditched ours there. The trail we were on was very pretty. There
were aspens and green vegetation all around and it opened up into lush meadows
with wild flowers in parts. We met an older guy from Connecticut who had
traveled out here just to do the run. It was fun to talk to him and hear how
much he enjoyed being in our backyard. We sure do take it for granted
sometimes. There is so much to see and do right here where we are blessed to
live.
Rock Canyon (10.85 mi)- 7:36 AM
I was wearing a
new pair of compression socks I bought from Walmart and hadn’t tried running in
yet. The bottom of my left foot was tight and started to bother me. I was
hoping it was just from the socks and the tension they were putting on my feet.
This is the first time up to this point I really thought I might not be able to
finish. I didn’t say anything and just kept pressing forward and upward. It
wasn’t a horrible pain but it did bother me. I still had a very long way to go.
I had been
eating energy gels in between aid stations and had downed about 4 at this
point. At aid stations, I went for the chips and got my bottles filled. One
with water and the other with Heed. At this aid station, they had a bowl of
ibuprofen which I thought was funny. We continued on Squaw Peak road and missed
the turn off for the trail. I was surprised by just how easy it was to miss it.
I had heard of runners making wrong turns during races and how that was
possible. I now realized just how easy it can be to get distracted or zoned out
and completely miss a turn off. Luckily the runners behind us shouted out and
got our attention. We only missed it by a few hundred yards so it wasn’t too
much of a loss. The trail got snowy and muddy. We got back to Squaw Peak road and
there was a big section still covered in snow. Only a small path of mud, just
wide enough to walk through, was what we passed through it on.
Horse Mountain (14.62 mi)- 8:52 AM
When we got to
the aid station, they told us it was aid station #4. They skipped aid station
1. Weird. But hey! We were already at 4 instead of 3. We had a drop bag here so
were able to bathe in the sunscreen we packed and I switched my socks. We also
got our sunglasses which was a good call putting them in the drop bag instead
of packing them from the get go. That was my idea and I was proud of it. I
filled my bottles, grabbed some chips and a potato and we were off and away
again. My foot did feel better as we started running again and I was super
grateful.
The view was
gorgeous and we were feeling really good. We were still holding back and had
slowed down multiple times to keep our pace from getting too fast. Making our
way down the long descent we had stretches where we just walked to keep our
pace even. We found out we took another “wrong turn” by staying on the road and
missed the trail. It took us to the same place but we added an extra half mile
or so by missing that shortcut.
Will and Jess
had gone camping the night before to be able to meet up with us as we made our
way through that section of the race. It was so fun to see them. Will took his
ADHD meds and a red bull that morning and talked our ears off. He was so hyper,
talked super fast the entire time he ran with us. His mouth ran probably more
than his legs did. It was so much fun to have him running with us and he
definitely provided a good moral boost.
I couldn’t
believe how much I was peeing! I was peeing about every half hour and I knew
this wasn’t a good sign. That is way too often and my water was just going through
me. Jon on the other hand hadn’t peed once. We were worried about that too.
5 Pole Heaven (20.4 mi)- 10:18 AM
A lot of
runners had passed us and we weren’t sure where we stood in the race. We asked
how many had already come through and they told us were about 250 out of 300.
We were bringing up the rear! We kept on and made it to road. We passed a
porta-potty and I couldn’t pass it up. Felt like a sauna. Not fun but needed,
if you know what I mean.
The road was
surprisingly tough. It was really hot and I was starting to feel the run taking
its toll. Up to this point I had felt pretty dang good. I was running strong
and mentally I was in a good place. The road started to suck that out of me. We
caught up to Davy Crockett who was doing the 2nd part of his double.
He was throwing down M&M’s like candy (oh wait...they are candy) when we
got to him. We said hi and told him how awesome we thought he was for being so
hard core. Someone asked how he was feeling and his answer was very honest.
“I’m feeling pretty crappy.” That sums up running. It is a love-hate
relationship. Running provides cool experiences, accomplishment, and there are
times when you feel like you are floating or flying. You have to earn all of
that and it comes at a price. That price is feeling pretty crappy most of the
time.
At one point on
the road I could feel my legs start to tense up. They started to feel like I
was going to cramp up and so I slowed my pace. Sure enough, I started to feel
some cramping in my hip flexors. This got me really worried. I didn’t know if
the cramping would go away. If it didn’t, the race would be over for me. I had
another gel, more water, an electrolyte tablets. I walked for a bit and
thankfully the cramping subsided and I was able to continue.
6 Left Fork (26.05 mi)- 11:37 AM
We finished up
the road section and made it to a packed and busy aid station. I took off my
shoes and socks and put bare feet in the creek. I also poured a bunch of water
on my head. It felt so refreshing and wonderful.
Will decided he
was still feeling good and so he kept running with us. We had to cross through
a wide creek and I decided I didn’t want to get my shoes wet so I took them
off. Everyone else just walked through the water in their shoes. We started to
climb again and kept our careful pace. Were it got steeper we walked. Jon was
focused more on keeping his heart rate from getting to high and so that helped
keep up in a good place without pushing too hard.
7 Sheep Canyon (29.98 mi)- 1:04 PM
We made it to
the aid station which had our cooler. This was a nice break. Jess met us up
there and so it was Will, Jess, Jon and me hanging out and having a good time.
I took advantage of the creek again to kick off my shoes and soak my toes. We
had packed pita and hummus and this was our first “meal” of the day. We took
some time here to just rest and relax for a while before taking on the back half
of the course. I had little idea of what I was in for. I would consider this to
be about 1/3 completed effort wise. The next 20 miles would be much different,
almost like an entirely different race. Jon and I thanked Will and Jess for
helping out and supporting us and then checked out of the aid station and
continued onward.
Leaving the aid
station, we had to jump from rock to rock up the creek. The race course was up the
creek. It was a lot of fun.
Saw a dead
moose on the trail.
It was hot out
but we kept making progress. I was still drinking one bottle of water and the
other bottle of Heed. I was starting to drag and my feet were getting sore. We
made it to another climb and there were many people that were either taking
breaks on the side of the trail or going very slowly. We were climbing strong
and caught a lot of people. Coming down my knee started to bother me a bit and
I my legs felt wobbly. I was so grateful when we finally made it to the aid
station. I was looking forward to my summer sausage and taking a break.
8 Little Valley (33.52 mi)- 2:10 PM
I got my drop
bag and pulled out my summer sausage. It didn’t do so well in the heat either.
It was ruined. Threw the whole thing away. That was a blow that wasn’t fun. I did
have some other gels and an energy shot. I started to feel a lot better after
that and Jon and I went on hunt mode. We started catching more and more
runners. It was felt great every time we made another “kill”. We kept climbing and
the views were gorgeous. I hadn’t been in this backcountry area before but it
was beautiful. Trees, valleys, and mountains as far as my eyes could see.
Looking up we saw the top of the climb and kept working on it. When we got to
the top it made its way around and we could see way off in the distance, across
a valley, the road that Vivian park is on. The finish was still a really, long
ways away and were going the wrong way. The trail took us back and away from
the finish.
I was trying to
pace my water consumption as well but had already gone through almost both of
my bottles. I wasn’t exactly sure where the next aid station was going to be
but I had a feeling I was going to be in trouble.
We had thought
we had already made it to and conquered the infamous Bozung Hill. At least we
had hoped we had. We knew looking at what mile we were on that it couldn’t be.
My watch died 34 miles in so we were relying on Jon’s now. Around another few
turns and some more up and down things finally opened up and we saw it. It was
really intimidating looking up and seeing people way high up there. Our climbing
had only just begun and it was about to get real.
I was still
feeling alright and we kept passing people. About a third of the way of the
last huge climb, I hit a wall. Jon was stoked about the climbing and was
feeling great. He took off and dropped me. It seemed like he hit the gas and I
hit the brakes. I barely made it up to about the halfway point and was really
hurting. My legs ached and I felt depleted. I continued on and made it to the
snow. I sat down and tried to let my legs rest and recuperate a bit. I was
really thirsty and scrapped off the top later of snow, got some snow from
deeper down and chomped on that. It felt refreshing and helped but still just
wasn’t doing it for me. I tried to keep going up and progress was very slow. I
had to keep stopping because I had such little energy and ached so much. People
started to pass me and looked like they were climbing with such little effort
and enjoying it. Other people looked like they were enjoying it too but they
were having lunch on the side of the trail in the shade. I wanted to be the
first type of people but the second type was starting to be more and more
appealing. How I would have like to just rest, have a nice meal and cool off! Mentally
and physically I was really struggling. I finally made it to the top. I was
relieved but also worried because as I started to go down my legs, especially
my knee, were really hurting. I was afraid of the pounding and making things
worse. I usually tear it up going downhill. I felt like I was being torn up. My
left knee had a sharp pain on the outside which made every step hurt. I was
getting passed on the downhill now too! My stomping grounds.
9 Windy Pass (41.49 mi)- 5:10 PM
Finally made it
to the aid station. It wasn’t much but it was an oasis. All the good stuff had
already been long gone but there was water. I drank multiple bottles and filled
them up for the next stretch. I also took some aspirin for the pain. I think I
even got a little bit of a cookie crumble.
It was going to
be all downhill from here. One might think that would be easy, amazing and
wonderful. If only. The mountain still had a lot of snow on it. They had cut
out steps but they had been trampled and melted by the time I got there. Trying
to kick steps and walk down proved to be very difficult and more of a waste of
time and energy. The best way to make progress was to glissade. Didn’t feel too
good in my super short running shorts but it got the job done. The snow went on
for a ways and when we got out the next obstacle was mud. The entire trail was
muddy. This made things slow and difficult and required the expenditure of more
time and energy. Nothing about the descent so far was easy. I was running with
some other runners and they commented that the course this year was way harder
with all of the snow. The year before, many parts we had covered in the snow
they had run on dry ground. One of the people I was with was sort of doing what
I had done. He had only run a half marathon and decided to just jump in and run
the 50. I was excited for him but also deep down I didn’t want to lose or even
finish close together. I wanted to dominate. My body though, wasn’t feeling
like dominating.
I kept up with
them for a while and then took another energy shot. I tried to time it right so
that it would get me to the finish. I took it at about mile 43 or so. I was
hanging in there but feeling like I was dragging along. When it kicked in, I
felt great and said goodbye to my group and took off. Oh man did I take off. I
felt awesome again and started making more “kills”. I passed runner after
runner as the trail flattened out and had some rolling hill like features.
Making the descent into Big Springs I crushed it. I was flying! I caught a lot
more people and kept a brutal pace.
10 Big Springs (46.5 mi)- 6:48 PM
I made it into
the aid station and was dialed in and on attack mode. I quickly filled my
bottles and washed down some more ibuprofen with a red bull. My first red bull
ever by the way. I took off down the road determined to make it to the end. I was
starting to feel the pain again and my stomach wasn’t doing so hot. I caught a few
more runners but when I passed South Fork park I knew I couldn’t pass up the
bathroom. After conducting my business, I was back on the road. My knee really
hurt and I would get a sharp pain every couple of steps. I focused on my
breathing and staying positive. When I finally saw the houses, I knew I had
made it. I was going to finish. This is when it really became real. I sped up
even though I was in a lot of pain. I caught a father and son running together
right before I turned the corner into the park. Everyone was cheering and there
were people everywhere celebrating. I made it through the park and crossed the
finish line. I had done it. I was finished.
The back half
of the race was very difficult. I had a lot of time to think and ponder. My
mind was filled with thoughts of my family. I missed them so much and wanted so
badly to see them and hold them in my arms. I kept thinking about Shannon,
Shiloh, and Lilly and pictured them at the finish line. In the past, I have
always been very independent and wanted to do my own thing. I haven’t cared if
my family was there supporting me and even opposed it. I don’t know why but it
hasn’t ever really been my thing and I wanted to just do it by myself, not make
a big deal out of it, and not waste their time. Maybe that was me being selfish
and not wanting to share the experience. As I was making my way down the
mountain and towards the finish, all I wanted was to see Shannon and the girls.
I wanted to see them at the finish and give them all a great, big hug. I wanted
to share the experience and accomplishment with them and just be together. I
realized they were the most important things in my life and I wanted to be with
them so badly. Thoughts of them pushed me further and kept me going. I was able
to do what I did because of them.
Finish (50 mi)- 7:22:55 PM
After I crossed
the finish line, I made it to the grass and sat down. I was exhausted but
elated. I took my shoes off and texted Shannon. I was filthy dirty but I sent
her a picture to prove I was still alive. I didn’t really look or feel like it
though. It felt very surreal. I had just finished running 50 miles but it was
all just a blur. 14 hours and 22 min of just me and the mountains.
I found Jon and
I was so happy for him and his success. From the time he took off, he worked
and catching people and did really well. He finished over a half hour before me
in 114th place. I did
surprisingly well to and came in 141st place. We drove back to provo
and Shannon said she would be down to meet up. I took a much-needed shower and
then drove over to see her and the girls. It was so good to see them! It felt amazing
to hug and be with them.
I went back to
Will’s house and watched a movie with Jon. It felt nice to be able to just lay
down and relax. I tried to get up once and immediately felt super nauseous and
started to shake. My whole body was trembling and I had to lay back down. I
covered back up with a blanket and the shaking went away. That was very weird.
It happened another time and I just had to take it really easy.
In the morning,
I could barely walk. I felt like such an old man. I went back up to Riverton to
go to church and I could barely get around. My legs and feel were wrecked. I
only made it for one hour before needing to just go back home to bed.
Monday, I was
feeling a bit better and not as sore. Tuesday, almost all of the soreness was
gone and I feeling a lot better. I tried to go for a little 2 mile run on Wednesday
but that was not so good. I had a hard
time breathing and my lungs really hurt. I think my allergies flared up too
which didn’t help. Besides trying to jump into running again too soon, I am
absolutely amazed at how incredible our bodies are. It is so astonishing that our bodies can heal
and repair themselves. My body was in shock and I was barely able to walk and
three days later was feeling great again and could move around without any
problems. Absolutely amazing what the body can do. It is an incredible gift.
I learned a lot
from my experience from the Squaw Peak 50 mile race. Deciding to run it was not
one of my best ideas but certainly not one of my worst. I look forward to doing
more ultras but with a lot more preparation and training. Am I crazy for what I
did? Yup.
