The moment we pulled into the driveway… Wingo and I could hear yelling coming from
inside the cabin. We walked through the front door and were greeted by 3 jovial
faces standing around a half empty bottle of whiskey…
“Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey!!!”
I had missed the hell out of these people. It had been a
long time since we all had been up in the mountains or on the trail together
and I was really looking forward to a long adventurous birthday weekend running
SCAR with some of my best friends. SCAR (Smokies Challenge Adventure Run) is a
71 mile fun run along the Appalachian Trail traversing the entire length of the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The remoteness of the route (only 2 spots
to access aid: mile 32 and 40) paired with almost 19,000ft of climbing… makes
for a rather long, and challenging outing. Because of the leaf coverage on the
trail, the lack of water and the fickle/unpredictable autumn weather in the
Smoky Mtns… it’s not really recommended to do the route in October. However… I
really wanted to do the traverse at the height of the Fall season to get the
opportunity to see the beautiful colors of the trees.
The original game plan was for me to start the run at 4am…
but shortly after my 2nd whiskey drink and somewhere between Ole JG’s
Michael Jackson dance moves and the 2 Chainz Birthday Song… the start time got
pushed back to 730am. Thank God. Normally… I would insert a video of the 2
Chainz dance party we had… but due to the contract agreement upon entering the
cabin… I’m required by law not to post it. Though I do expect it to be leaked
eventually…
pic: OJG
We got to Fontana Dam right as the sun was coming up,
snapped a few pictures on the dam and I bid farewell to OJG and Humphrey.
pic: OJG
The air was crisp and the early morning sunlight illuminated
the forest and really brought out the warm yellows, reds and oranges in the
leaves.
The woods were hauntingly beautiful leading up to Mollies
Ridge Shelter…
The way the sunlight mixed
with the smoky mountain air warmed my soul…
I made a quick stop at Mollie’s Ridge Shelter to put away my
jacket and to have a snack. I started noticing some hoar frost on the tops of
the trees as I made my way up through Spence Field. I stopped for a few minutes and talked with a
hiker who was intrigued as to why I was in shorts and a tshirt.
“Are you not cold son? Where ya heading?”
Though it was crazy windy and cold… the almost constant
climbing and a pair of gloves kept me warm and comfortable. He eventually
wished me a safe journey and I made my way towards Rocky Top.
Despite the zero visibility up on Rocky Top… there were
upwards of 10 people on the summit. I received quite a few puzzled looks when I
pulled a single blue, crème filled Airhead from my back pocket, gently placed it
on a rock, took a picture and ran off. This
was to honor Ashley’s (ashruns100s) birthday and her transition into adulthood.
Some crazy woman told her she had to give up candy when she turned old. I
obviously don’t believe in this hogwash since candy makes up close to 70% of my
daily caloric intake. I will continue pushing candy on people because that’s
what I am… “I’m a pusher. I push people.”
Coming down off Rocky Top was surreal. The beauty of the
fall colors trapped by the hoarfrost combined with the cloudy forest made for
one of the most magical experiences I’ve ever had in the mountains…
I made good time up to Rocky Top but after topping
Thunderhead Mountain things got slow. An overnight drizzle and heavy leaf
coverage had made the rock in this section unbearably slick. I didn’t feel
comfortable descending with any speed and didn’t want to risk getting hurt on
such a remote section of the trail so I took it slower through this section. The
wind had picked up again and was blowing lots of ice from the trees onto the
trail…
The wind was harsh. It took a lot out of me and beat me up
more than I can explain. The slow movement, high winds and a continuous feeling
of hunger broke my spirit a bit. I stayed relatively warm… but it was like no
matter how much I ate… I could never get full. My stomach was constantly growling. Though I never
bonked or felt bad for the entire run… I just couldn’t seem to satisfy my
hunger… which became more annoying than anything. The trail dried out by the
time I reached Derricks Knob. At this point I was behind schedule but none of
my text messages would send to give updates to my crew. At least I was on a
pretty trail…
I was starving by the time I started the approach to
Clingmans. I could almost taste the Arby’s roast beef sandwich that was going
to be waiting for me. I finally got enough of a signal to receive a phone call
from Hump. Due to the ridiculous amount of traffic/tourists visiting Clingmans…
parking was a nightmare. Hump and Wingo were at Newfound Gap (mile 40) and had
dropped off OJG and Matty Fierce at Clingmans to meet me with supplies. OJG and
MF had to get dropped off and run a mile up to Clingman’s because parking and
traffic was so bad!
OJG and Matty Fierce had assumed I had already passed
through Clingman’s Dome and was on my way down to Newfound Gap. They were
worried that they had missed me so they set off to Newfound Gap to catch me. Little
did they know that due to my epic slowness… I had JUST arrived at Clingmans…
1.5-2hrs behind my projected time. I climbed up to the walkway that lead up to
the dome, sat down and called Matty Fierce's phone. OJG and MF were already back at
Newfound! I had made the decision to conserve a little water in case aid wasn’t
there. In the back of my mind I had a suspicion that Clingmans was going to be
overrun with tourists and there was a real possibility of something like this
happening. Because of this… It wasn’t
really a big deal that this aid didn’t work out. I hopped back on the trail and
started making my way down to Newfound Gap. It felt good to actually RUN. The
first 32 miles had about 12,000ft of climbing… so it felt as though I hadn’t really
ran all day! My gleeful jaunt down to Newfound was interrupted by 3 guys
yelling into the woods. They said they had lost their friend and they had just
seen a bear. They proceeded to ask what they were supposed to do when they see
a bear. Even though it was getting dark… they seemed to care more about
learning about bear safety than about finding their friend…
I few moments later I saw OJG and Wingo heading towards me
bearing gifts! I scarfed down half an Arby’s roast beef sandwich and grabbed a fresh handheld before we
started back towards Newfound Gap. It wasn’t long before we had to throw on the
headlamps for the final miles to the car.
When we arrived at Newfound… I hopped in the back of the car,
opened a Coke and proceeded to demolish the other half of roast beef sandwich.
I re-lubed my feet and put on an extra base layer for the overnight portion. My
spirits had been down ever since Thunderhead Mtn… but seeing these guys turned
that right around! Once we got loaded up for the last 30ish mile section… we
set off into the night. Wingo had volunteered to drive my car to Davenport so
that we wouldn’t have to drive all the way back to Newfound Gap once we
finished. This would shave off 1.5hrs of extra driving afterwards. I felt bad that he had come all the way up
and only got to run 8ish miles of the route but very thankful for the support
and for him selflessly volunteering to make the logistics easier for everyone.
Somewhere between Newfound Gap and Charlies Bunion (aka
Charlies Bulge) I started to feel really bad that these guys came all the way
up to run mountains and weren’t getting to see any views. I started to apologize
but was immediately shut down. For the record… I’ve got some freaking amazing
friends.
Once we passed Charlies Bulge... I was in new territory. I
had never ran this portion of the Appalachian Trail before. The trail seemed
like it would be absolutely gorgeous during the daylight. We ran along the edge
of the cliff side with clear views of the city lights in the distance. Though
it was fun running the ridges… it was cold and extremely windy in these exposed
areas. The wind died every time we reentered the canopy. At one intersection we
veered off of the AT and started heading down to Kephart shelter. Luckily… we
caught the mistake and backtracked to the route before getting too far off
course. We chatted off and on throughout the night but there were a lot of
spans of just peaceful silence among the group. A good running group doesn’t always
have to be in constant conversation.
There’s beauty in the way a group can silently move through the mountains
together. Lots can be communicated through silence if you just listen. It seemed
as though almost every mountain we climbed there was an overlook with a view. I
was already getting excited to get back and run this section again during the
daylight. A long stretch of silence was broken when OJG’s beautiful singing voice
pierced the night air…
“Happy birthday day to
you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Zach. Happy birthday to you!”
At 12:00:01am OJG broke the silence again…
“It’s over. Your birthday is over. Just wanted to inform you.”
My birthday may have been over but we still had a solid +5hrs
left until we reached our car. After midnight… the sleepiness set in and
everything seemed to blend together. At some point Hump pointed out a beautiful
blood red moon peering through the trees and it instigated Blind Pilot’s “We Are the Tide”to play on repeat in
my head. At another point (somewhere around Mount Guyot maybe?) I managed to snag a patch of frosted/wet grass, proceeded to hit the ground and almost tumbled off the trail
down an embankment. Ce la vie.
I was so relieved when we reached the turn off to Mt Cammerer.
Knowing I only had 5.2 miles until I could stop moving and relax was very
reassuring… but what wasn’t very reassuring was the first 2 miles down. The
first 2 miles of this trail were filled with wide steps, loose rock and lots of
leaves. Matty Fierce was running comfortably down the trail and would pull ahead
only to slow down to pretend to be a scary shadow figure in the woods. He
brought some much needed comic relief at 4am. Thankfully it smoothed out and left
us with 3 pleasant downhill miles to the trail head. I stuck with Matty Fierce,
Hump and OJG for about a mile but I couldn’t keep their pace. I knew Matty Fierce
was pushing Hump to run hard on dead legs to help prep him for an upcoming
ultra in December and it made my heart happy to see Hump still getting after it
after 10hrs of running. I smiled as their headlamps quickly disappeared into
the early morning darkness. Though I was perfectly content with being alone for
my final slow slog down the mountain… OJG broke off from MF and Hump. I
welcomed his lie when he said…
“OJG is moving slow. I’ll follow you in.”
After 22hrs24mins my birthday fun run came to an end. There
was no finish line or finisher awards. Just hugs, fist bumps and a “good job
man” from some of the people that mean the world to me. The perfect way to ring
in year 31.
pic: Matty Fierce
We had an hour and half drive back to the cabin and THANK
GOD Wingo had decided to bring the 2nd car to the parking lot and
get some sleep so he could drive us back. I took off my shoes, climbed into the
backseat, curled up under my puffy and shot a text to Kati to let her know I was
finished and safe. The last thing I remember saying was…
“Guys I’m so sorry. I smell like absolute sh*t.”
The next thing I knew… I was waking up in a gas station
parking lot. Matty Fierce bought me what I now deem as the best damn chocolate
milk I have EVER had.
(unreal view form OJGs cabin of the ridgeline I ran | far left: Thunderhead Mt | far right: Clingmans)
The sun was up by the time we got to the cabin. We all
showered up and took a quick 1-1.5hr nap before heading down to the NOC for
some food and beers.
I seriously can’t thank these guys enough for making my
birthday weekend amazing. The only thing I asked for that I didn’t get for my
birthday? A BBH. But that's alright... there's always next year...
*blushing* I met this
guy on the internet named Sam. He’s like… so awesome! He’s like… tall, dark and
handsome! He likes long runs in the woods, craft beer and is like… just totally
rad! He said he would like… fly out to see me and would like… bring some beer
for us to drink… and we could like… go hang out in the woods together and junk!
I know I know… it’s the internet so like… there’s a chance he could be some
creeper just trying to use me… but I’ve got a good feeling about this one and I’m
just SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO EXCITED!!! Totes gonna be like… the best time eva!!
Hugs and kisses!!
Zachaphina
First Impressions (Thursday)
On Thursday afternoon, I pulled into my driveway and saw a
white, windowless van parked in front of my house. I started walking towards
the van when out popped a man wearing a greasy worn out trucker cap, a rolled
up long sleeve flannel shirt with a tightly fitting undershirt that was 3 sizes
too small to which exposed his beer gut. He flashed a smile through his unkempt
handlebar mustache and said…
“I’m Sam… and damn boy... you’re a
lot cuter in person than on that there internet.”
Internet friends can be scary. In this day and age… with a
few keystrokes… anyone anywhere can create a completely different personality
and hide their reality behind a computer monitor. Of course you’ve seen the
“How to Catch a Predator” show on Dateline and have probably read countless
stories in the news about how these creepsters have tricked and
deceived people… oftentimes ending in really bad situations. Well… this is not
one of those “I fell victim to a creeper” stories. Yes… social media platforms
like Instagram and Facebook can easily be used to create a false perception of
how glamorous and picture perfect someone’s life is. But if you are an actual human being and
have ever breathed air from this planet… you should know that life is in fact… not picture perfect.
I know… crazy concept right?
Growing up… you really don’t have much of a choice but to
make friends with those around you. Normally… you’re stuck with a certain group
of people for 18yrs of your life. You make friends with these people because
they’re the ones you see every day at school or the ones you play ball with...
and unless you want to be a loner… you are forced to make friends with your
peers. Now that the world is at our fingertips… you can literally make friends
with people anywhere on the planet. Social media and the internet gives you an
opportunity to be picky. You can now hand select people that share the same
interests, desires, activities and beliefs that you possess.
I’ve always felt like I’ve had a good judge of character and
the trail/ultra running community for the most part… is an incredibly honest
and supportive environment. I’ve made friends through social media that I have
never met and I consider some of these people really close friends. One of these
friends is Sam.
As you can see from the above picture… Sam is in fact… NOT an internet creeper. He’s a genuinely
awesome, down to Earth guy and I really was kinda sorta like totes excited to meet him!
Sam and I met years ago on a glorious, perfect summer day in
Instagramia and have since been friends. Though we do share common friends… we
have never officially met. Sam contacted me earlier in the year talking about
possibly flying out for the Pinhoti 100 in November. Of course I told him if he
did come out… I would house him and if I didn’t run it myself… would crew/pace
him. Well… November had crept up and with a few days before Pinhoti…I found myself in route to King’s Chair with
Sam.
There can always be some awkwardness with meeting people for
the first time… but running and talking with Sam was just like going for a run
and catching up with a friend I hadn’t seen in years. It’s always a nice
validation when the real life person actually turns out to be the same as they
present themselves on the internet.
Trains, Rains and Sleepless Nights (Friday)
Sam headed up to the starting area for the Pinhoti 100
midday on Friday… I had to go to work. He went up to scout a place for us to
set up camp that would allow us not to have to do much travel in the morning
before the race. After finding a spot he headed down to Sylacauga for packet
pickup and the pre-race dinner. I eventually got off work, packed up my gear
and headed to Sylacauga to pick up Sam. We decided to leave his car at the
finish so we wouldn’t have to make the long drive back to the starting line
after the race. After I picked Sam up from the stadium… we headed towards our
camping spot. We took a slight detour through the city of Talladega for gas and
food. On one of the dark back roads we noticed a bunch of smashed pumpkins
covering the road. We eventually passed a vehicle pulled over in a parking lot
with its truck bed full of pumpkins and teenagers. I guess there’s not much to
do on Talladega Friday nights.
We decided to set up camp in a nice grassy area at the
starting line. When we pulled into the parking area a couple in a car rolled
down their window…
“Are you guys camping
here? We have been here for 5 minutes and two trains have already passed. It’s
really loud.”
The couple left and we sat around for half an hour waiting
to see how bad the train was going to be. No train passed so Sam set up his
tent and I made myself a bed in Hotel de Andrews. Though it was early… we
decided to turn in for the night since we had such a long weekend ahead of us.
I wasn’t sleepy… so I stayed up sipping on a whiskey drink and listening to the
rain fall…
It wasn’t long after turning the lights out when a train
rumbled through. Of course since there was a train crossing less than 20 yards
from our camping spot… the conductor laid on the horn. This happened
periodically throughout the night to ensure we received the least amount of
sleep possible. I’m not sure what was worse though… the loud train horn every
hour or the hellacious storm that rolled through in the wee morning hours.
Either way… sleep didn’t come Friday night.
Pinhoti 100: I Am Sam Reed (Saturday)
Since we had set up camp in the exact spot the race started…
we woke early so that we could breakdown camp and move our vehicle out of the
way. Unfortunately... Sam got very little sleep due to the train and rain. The rain was so heavy that it saturated his tent and he woke up with everything wet.
We drove up to the Ranger’s Station and parked. Before long…
the Ranger Station bustled with the special type of nervous excitement that
only pre-100 mile races can bring. Birmingham had a good amount of runners that
were lining up for Pinhoti this year… this being some of those runner’s first
attempt at the 100 mile distance. It was a lot of fun talking with the majority
of the Bham crew before the start of the race.
We made our way down to the starting area as the clocked
ticked closer to the 7am start time. The clouds had held their rain all morning
but slowly started to spit as the +200 runners anxiously awaited their
cue.
After the runners took off on their wet and muddy adventure…
I made my way back up to the Ranger Station to sit and hang out under the
pavilion. Due to the rain making some of the forest service roads sloppy and
dangerous… Todd (race director) had changed the starting route. The runners
were now running a short out and back at the beginning and would actually pass
through the starting area again at mile 13. I sipped coffee (thanks again
Sach!!) and chatted with Chulwon, Leland, Sachiko and a few other new faces
under the pavilion while we all waited for our runners. This mid-stretch
picture that Chulwon snapped suggests that the coffee possibly didn’t work as
well as I hoped…
I looked down at my watch:8:30am. I started to make my way down the forest service road to the aid
station since the goal chart Sam had made for me had him coming through mile 13
at 9:00am.
Sam’s needs were simple. At every crew access point I would
give him 2 bottles of Nuun tableted water, replenish his gel supply and send
him on his way. He came blazing through right at 9:00am. He dropped his empty
bottles and gel wrappers on the ground, I handed him the 2 fresh bottles, stuffed his pack full of gels and in a matter of seconds he was on his way
crossing the railroad tracks. I picked up his gel wrappers, tossed them in the
garbage, collected my crew bag and headed to back to my car.
I arrived at the Horseblock aid station (mile 18) and went
ahead and prepped Sam’s stuff. I threw down my pink fold out chair and sat
around talking with Todd for a few minutes. Jeff Estes eventually joined the
chair party and kept me company while waiting on the runners. I looked down at
my watch: 9:45am. Like clockwork… Sam came through right on schedule sitting
steady in 3rd. I snapped into the crew mode and with a quick
exchange of supplies… he was off and running.
I didn’t have access to Sam again until the Bald Rock aid
station at mile 41 so I had time to kill. I swung by the Lake Morgan aid
station (mile 27.6) to drop off two water coolers. Our BUTS group was in
charge of that aid station so I chatted with Kyle and Mark briefly before
making my way up to Bald Rock.
I parked the car in prime location and went for a quick hike
out to Bald Rock to check out the conditions. It was really a serene and
beautiful day…( in my opinion anyways)
The heavy fog made it clear there would be no views today
for the runners…
I hung around Bald Rock for a bit before heading back to the
car. My friend Bill Woody was starting to set up the Bald Rock aid station by
the time I got back. I hopped in the back of the car and had a little lunch
while I waited…
After finishing my snack… I popped my head out of the car
and told Bill to wake me up if I wasn’t up by 1:20pm. Sam was scheduled to come
through around 1:40pm but I didn’t want to take any chances and be unprepared
when he arrived. I slowly drifted off to sleep to the soft pitter patter of the
midday rain…
I didn’t sleep long… maybe 30mins before I was awakened by a
chatty Cathy gabbing on her phone right outside my car. I groaned, made a
whiskey drink and started preparing Sam’s supplies…
By this time tons of people were floating around Bald Rock
aid station. I saw Willy (creator of the Cruel Jewel races). It was great
catching up with him since I hadn’t seen him since the inaugural running of the
Cruel Jewel 56m a few years ago! Eventually it was a party… Leland
(Shawn’s fiance/crew), Ryan James’ wife, Jake Thornton’s dad and a few others joined
the party. When I heard a few cheers from the boardwalk and someone yell “first
runner coming through” I looked down the boardwalk and saw a red Altra shirt glaring through the thick fog. Sam had moved into the lead position and
was looking strong! I switched out his bottles, stuffed his pack full of gels
and sent him on down the road…
I quickly plugged in the GPS coordinates for the Silent
Trail aid station (mile 45) and made my way out of the massive crowd at Bald
Rock. I went ahead and prepped everything for Sam when I arrived so I could get
in a short little run while I waited. My legs were feeling tight from
standing/sitting around for the past few days and I just needed to loosen them
up. I knew I didn’t have much time so I slid on some shoes and headed down the
forest service road. I wasn’t half a mile into my run when I saw Sam’s silhouette
in the distance.
He was all smiles and still feeling great. I pushed ahead of
him to get everything ready for a quick exchange. He quickly grabbed a fresh
bottle and continued down the road. He had a 10 mile segment before I would see
him again at Adam’s Gap.
I arrived at Adam’s Gap and walked over to the aid station
to find my buddy Dan Ripple manning the grill. Dude can cook. He whipped me up
a bacon/egg/cheese tortilla and it was by far the most delish thing I had all
weekend! The thick fog darkened the woods and the rain started setting in… but
that didn’t keep me and other crews from having fun.I poured another whiskey drink, Dan kicked on
some music and a few of us threw football in the rain while we waited for our
runners. Sam came through a few minutes behind schedule but was still in high
spirits and happily chomped away on some aid station munchies.
We did our normal exchange with the only difference being that we switched out Sam’s hat for a buff and he took some gloves. I ran down the
forest road for a quarter mile with him away from the aid station crowd in
order to get a better idea of how his day was going. He was peppy and extremely
positive. I wished him well and told him I’d see him at Porter’s Gap in 13 or
so miles.
After leaving Adam’s Gap I decided to take the sketchiest
possible forest service road to get to Porter’s Gap… because why the hell not? I
had the map out so I knew I was heading in the right direction… but there were
a few moments where I thought this could potentially be a bad idea. “What
happened if I got stuck? Who the hell could I call? Did I even have service?
Man… I’m gonna be so pissed if I let Sam down!” My doubts were laid to rest
when I eventually I popped out on an actual paved road.
I was greeted with a friendly face at the Porter’s Gap aid
station (mile 69). Caleb, my ultra buddy from Georgia, was manning the aid
station. We chatted for a few minutes before I returned to the car for a some
dinner…
After putting on some pants and a warm jacket… I headed back
to the aid station. Caleb got some music pumping and passed me a beer. The crew
life is a rough life… but somebody’s gotta do it…
Sam had fallen a little behind his goal schedule… but still
had a solid 15-20 minute lead when he came through Porter’s Gap. We went
through our routine exchange and I followed him down the gravel road. The route
crossed over a somewhat busy highway and I just didn’t want to take any chances
with Sam crossing alone. Though he looked really fresh and alert… he only got
an hour or so of actual sleep the night before and had been running for almost
70 miles… so I felt more comfortable at least being a second set of eyes. But
of course there wasn’t a car in sight as we crossed over back onto the trail. I
again wished him well as he headed off into the dark night in route to the
Pinnacle aid station…
I wouldn’t see Sam again until Bull’s Gap at mile 85.5 where
I would pick him up and pace him in for the last 15 miles. I was really hoping
to get a solid nap in before having starting my segment with Sam… so I
immediately went to Bull’s Gap. I was leaving my car at Bull’s Gap so I parked
as close I possible to the aid station but there was still a short stretch of
road I had to walk down to get to the actual aid station. I walked down to
check out the scene and ended up talking with the folks at the aid station for
a while. I eventually returned to the car for a snack, some more whiskey and to
change clothes and pack my vest for the last 15 miles. I checked my phone and
thankfully had service and could see where Sam had come through Pinnacle (mile
75) still leading…
I hung out in the car for another hour or so before heading
back down to the aid station. When I got there they informed me that the first
runner had come through Wormy’s Pulpit (mile 79.5). Sam was running roughly an
hour behind his goal time of an 18hr finish so I had planned to hopefully push
Sam just a bit during the last section to see if we couldn’t make up some time
on the roads. I didn’t want to take a chance and be unprepared for Sam’s
arrival, so I hung around the aid station. It wasn’t terribly cold… but when
you are simply just standing around in shorts and a light jacket… a slight cold
turns into freezing death. A guy at the aid station took note of this and
offered me a spot in his RV. He said he would come get me whenever Sam came
through. I was (and still am) sooooooooooooo thankful for this kindness. I laid
down on the coach inside the RV and pulled out my phone to check for updates on
the other Birmingham runners that were still out braving the harsh conditions.
The next thing I knew… I was waking up wondering where the
hell I was. I was just so warm and cozy that I had fallen asleep without even
knowing it! Looking at my watch… I had only napped for a whopping 17 mins… but
still… it was a nap. I walked out into the cold night around 10:45pm. Sam
originally wanted to come through Bull’s Gap at 10pm so I knew I had a few
minutes before he would be coming through. I rechecked my pack to make sure I was set for the last 15
mile push. I even had a kid that was working the aid station verify that I had
Sam’s car key in my bag…. (I actually made him check 3 times because I didn’t
want Sam to be unable to get into his car and change into warm clothes at the
finish… kid probably thought I was crazy).
Sam navigated down the lighted pathway into Bull’s Gap aid
station right before 11pm.
We were off at running at 11:01pm. We started down the dark
forest service road and Sam looked over and held up a fist…
“Let’s do this.”
The last 15 miles were basically run along rolling forest
service roads with a little bit of single track mixed in and the last 5k would
be run along actual roads... not a very interesting or pleasant way to end a 100
mile race. We chatted and caught up on the day’s events as we made our way into
the night. We were running solidly… mixing in a few walking breaks on the
uphill sections. Early on along the forest service road we were passed by a
car. Though there was nothing suspicious about it… it was still a little
unsettling being out in the middle of nowhere at midnight with no protection.
It was obvious that a lot of people took their trucks/jeeps out along these
roads for weekend “muddin” trips. We saw headlights and heard an engine rev and
tires spinning in the mud up ahead. As we ran closer to the vehicle the vehicle
stopped. It was obvious they were going to speak to us so I urged Sam to keep
moving forward and I would see what they wanted. Sam continued down the road as
the vehicle’s driver side window rolled down. I was met with a warm gust of
alcohol filled air from inside the vehicle.
Redneck: “Where you
boys heading?”
Me: “Sylacauga.
There’s a trail race going on so be looking out for some runners on this road
alright?”
Redneck: “How far yall
runnin?”
I had started back moving towards Sam while responding: “100
miles.”
Redneck as he’s rolling back up his window… “Bullshit.”
I caught back up to Sam and we carried on down the road. We
passed a cemetery and a small church which indicated an aid station was near.
We quickly checked in at the Rocky Mt Church aid station (mile 90ish) and
headed down the muddy road. We finally popped onto a short section of single
track. Sam immediately picked up the pace once we hit the single track. We
slopped through a wet open field and eventually re connected with a forest service
road. I looked down at my watch thinking that this has to be where the last aid
station was located. No one was in sight. We went over a short, muddy hump and
dipped back into the woods for the last little bit of single track. When we hit
the pavement we knew we had already passed the last aid station. I wasn’t
worried because this section was well marked and we had followed every marking
and sign perfectly (we would come to find out that they had set up in the wrong
location a few 100 yds down the forest road instead of at the muddy
little hump). Thankfully we had plenty of water/supplies to get us through the
finish. Since I had never ran with Sam before… I had to pick up the kind of
pacing he needed on the fly. Some people need motivation talks… some people
like to be quiet and just have someone there… some people like to set the pace.
If it is someone you run with consistently it’s easy to pick up and understand…
but this was entirely new for the both of us. We just made small talk and
chatted the entire time. Selena Gomez’s new song “Good for You” had been on the
radio every single time I drove throughout the day (for the record… I
looooooove that song… and Selena…). I had gradually made up my own whiskey
induced lyrics to the song…
“I just wanna crew good
for you, good for you, uh-huh
I just wanna crew good
for you, good for you, uh-huh
Set that pace you like
just right
Keep you running
strong through the night”
But I didn’t want to take our friendship to the next level
with my love of pop music… I wasn’t sure if Sam was ready for that step just
yet…
I had purposely stayed a step ahead of Sam so that he would
have to always be pushing to keep up with me.When he needed a walk break… we would speed walk… and if he was on an
extended walk break…I would kind of
give a little jog when I felt we needed to start running again. Though I had a
pretty good idea that no one was close behind us (the last time I checked Sam
was at minimum 25mins ahead of the next runner) we would both look back for a
headlamp flicker. All we saw was darkness and street lights. It seemed like
there was a barking dog every few 100 feet. Thankfully most were chained or
behind a fence so they were no real threat. Although it was after midnight…
there was a pretty consistent amount of cars on the road. Most just zoomed past
without giving us a second glance… but as we neared the stadium… a car up ahead
turned on its brights and started slowing down. They came almost to a complete
stop by the time they got too us and some dbag in the backseat made a funny
face before speeding off. Ass.
We synched back into our rhythm and crossed over the
railroad tracks… inching closer to our final destination. I pointed up ahead at
the bright stadium lights…
“Those are all for you
buddy!”
The moment those words came out of my mouth I got chills. I
was completely blown away with Sam’s performance and was so happy that I was
able to share in his triumphant moment.We made our way through a fence… slopping through the wet grass like 2
excited young boys playing in the rain.
There wasn't a soul in sight as we popped onto
the track. I cut across the field and let out a loud “whoop whoop” to inform Todd and the rest of the crew inside the
finish tent that a runner was on the track. Sam took his rainy victory lap
around the track and crossed the line in 18hrs30mins… winning the Pinhoti 100.
We got Sam to the finish line tent and out of the cold rain.
I congratulated him and handed him his car keys but didn’t have much time to
hang around and celebrate since Ali’s dad was waiting on me to give me
a ride back to Bull’s Gap.
Pinhoti 100: Chicory, Dickory, Dock (Sunday)
I was freezing by the time we got back to Bull’s Gap. I
could be soaking wet in freezing conditions and am fine as long as I’m
consistently moving… but being soaking wet in the cold and standing around… I was
done. I wrapped up with Sam around 1:30am and Ali’s dad was looking for her
to come through Bull’s Gap (mile 85) at around 2:30am. We pulled into Bull’s Gap
just before 2am and I went straight to my car. I HAD to get dry clothes. I
stripped off my shirt and replaced it with a dry one, added a Patagonia long
sleeve base layer and threw on my North Face Thermoball jacket. I headed down
to the aid station to grab something warm to eat while we waited for Ali. I ate
a few warm pierogis and a cup of chicken noodle soup. I told Ali’s dad I was
going to head back to the car to stay warm until she got there and for him to
just knock on my window when she arrived. I turned the heat on and slumped over...
placing my head on the driver’s side window. I had just started drifting into
dreamland when Ali’s dad startled me back to life. I threw on my vest and
staggered down the road to the aid station. When I got to the aid station I
found Ali stuffing her face with snacks. I had missed this girl. She had
been off thru-hiking the PCT and I hadn’t seen her since our April trip up to
run the Art Loeb. We spent the next few miles catching up on each other
lives.
When we passed by the cemetery and the small church I got
the worst case of déjà vu… but I guess it wasn’t déjà vu… because I had
literally just ran this section a few hours earlier. It was just weird.
Ali continued through the Rocky Mt Church aid station while
I stopped for a quick swig of Coke. I sloshed through the mud to catch back up
with her. The rain had picked up since the last time I ran this section and the
road was muddier than a few hours earlier. Just as I did with Sam… we branched
off the forest service road and I followed Ali into the woods for the short
section of single track. We slowed down a bit when we hit the woods but
eventually popped back out onto the next forest service road. We made the short
climb and came up to the Watershed aid station (mile 95). By the time we got to
it… they had moved it to the correct location. Though I had no doubt that we
hadn’t made a wrong turn during Sam’s portion… I was really relieved to know
that the aid station was in fact where we thought it should have been.
We made our way back onto the last section of single track.
My headlamp started to die during one of the small climbs so I quickly grabbed
my spare battery from my vest and in a matter of seconds the power of the sun was back
in full force on my head.
I knew that the last 3 miles along the pavement were going
to be and feel extremely long. The last stretch was mostly a straight, long, drawn out and boring
road run. I took the same approach as I did with Sam… I stayed a few steps in
front of Ali so that she would constantly be trying to catch up with me. Ali
started fading a little when we took to the streets...
Her headlamp flashed my way… “Tell me a story…”
Pacing duty practically requires you to comply with nearly
all demands that your runner may have during their darkest hours… so I told her
the first story that popped into my mind. I guess since I had been praying off
and on all day for my buddy Heath (aka: Sweet P) and his family… one of the
hundreds of silly and mischievous stories involving Sweets was the one the
winner…
“So this one time back
in college… me and Sweets threw a house party at his girlfriend’s house. We had
a huge turnout and everyone was having a good time dancing and carrying on.
Well… me and Sweets were just hanging out in the back bedroom having a lively
conversation about something of probably of least importance… but nonetheless…
we were excited about whatever the hell we were talking about and really enjoying
the conversation. Apparently we were being anti-social and his girlfriend came
in to bring us back out to the party. She eventually left us alone… and we
spawned this amazing idea. We stripped down to nothing but our shoes… opened
the bedroom door… and casually walked through the middle of the party like
nothing was out of the ordinary. It was like parting the sea and the moment we
hit the front porch… we took off in an all-out sprint across the road and onto
the university president’s lawn. We ran and laughed our white, glowing bare
asses all the way around the property until we eventually made our way back to
the house. Of course we were not about to be out done by the girls… but when
they stripped down to their undergarments and stepped foot outside… there were
2 parked officers of the law waiting!”
We both got a good laugh at my college
escapades… but it wasn’t long before Ali needed another boost.
“Sing me a song.”
I am no stranger to singing or playing the guitar in front
of people… and I don’t know if it was the lack of sleep that made my mind go
blank… but for the life of me I couldn’t muster up a song to sing. I had
literally been singing Selena Gomez and my own rendition of her song all
flippin day… but it didn’t come to me in that moment. Thankfully by the time we
got to the barking dogs, Ali had forgotten her request for a song. Ali had set
a sub 24hr goal and I had been checking the time since we left Bulls Gap. With
3 pavement miles to go…I had slowly
started picking up the pace because it was actually possible for her to snag a
sub 23hr finish time. Mile 97 – completed – 9:59min/pace. Ali looked over at
me…
“We’re moving pretty
fast aren’t we?”
I don’t think she could see my smile beneath my light beam
on my head… “Yep… just keep it up!”
It’s so hard to judge how fast you’re moving late in a race.
You feel like you’re dropping sub 7 min miles when in actuality you’re running
closer to a 14min/pace.
Mile 98 – completed – 9:40min/pace. At this point we started
catching up to 2 other runners which gave Ali a little more energy. We passed
by the other 2 runners when the stadium lights appeared. Again I got chills
when I saw the lights.
I knew we had a plenty of time to get to the finish line
before the clock struck 23hrs… but I picked up the pace anyways to see if she
would bite…. and she did. We banged out the last mile in an 8:37min/pace!
Just like I had done hours before with Sam… I made my way
through the fence line with Ali and onto the track. We coasted together to the
finishing chute where I broke off to the left and let her cross the line alone.
Ali finished 3rd overall female in 22hrs57mins. She hugged and
thanked me for coming back to pace her.
The last 5hrs30mins of pacing Sam and Ali had been some of
the most inspiring and some of the most fun moments I’ve ever had running. I felt
so blessed to be a part of 2 amazing performances.
Ali went to change into warm clothes and her dad gave me a
lift back to Bulls Gap to grab my car. When he dropped me off I was greeted by
a ton of Birmingham folks waiting on their runners to come through. Chulwon
caught me in a happy, euphoric, still warm and glowy state…
By the time I walked to my car I was freeeeeeeeezing. The
temp had dropped even lower than what it was during the overnight hours. Since
I had to change clothes to pace Ali… I had very little dry clothes left. I
threw on my sexy manpris, threw on a tshirt, a light rain shell, a SpongeBob
beanie and headed down to Bull’s Gap to collect Sam’s main crew bag.
One of the aid station workers greeted me…
“You’re kidding right?
You’re not back to pace someone else are you!?”
I laughed and just shook my head. I picked up Sam’s crew bag
and hung out with the Birmingham crowd to cheer on our local runners.
Thankfully Shellie had a blanket she was saving for the runners when they came
through and loaned it to me while we waited..
It wasn’t too long before Ryan, Sunny, Tanya, and Shawn came
through. Their crew tended to their needs and when they set off for their last
15 miles… I set off to the finish area. I was extremely drowsy and knew I
needed some sleep before heading home. When I got back to the stadium I met up
with Sam for the first time since he finished. He said he was pretty beat up
(he took a pretty hard fall onto one of his water bottles that hurt his ribs)
and kinda just wanted to head back to my house. I could tell he was bummed
because he had mentioned previously how he liked to stay until the actual finish
of every race... but he needed some quality rest. I gave him my garage door
opener and he headed towards Montevallo while I headed towards Hotel de Andrews
for a nap. I crashed hard for about an 1.5hrs. I woke up a little pissed. I knew
I had missed a lot of people finishing their race… but I knew I needed nap.
Now that I was feeling less like a zombie… I fixed myself a
whiskey drink and headed to hang out and watch the rest of the finishers cross
the line. Greg and Sonia were about to head off to cheer on some of the runners
as they got on the road section and I met up with Season and Hunter Lane and Jeff Estes on the bleachers. It wasn’t long before a big group of BUTS
came through the finish.
We all retired under the stadium to hang out with the
runners as they relaxed and enjoyed their massive achievement. Hunter opened a
cooler and passed me a beer. We headed back up to the stadium bleachers to
watch the final hour of the race unfold. It wasn’t long after we took our spot
on the bleachers when a woman walked up and stood next to me.
“Where did you get
that beer? Are they handing them out? Do they normally hand them out at events
like this?”
It was obvious she was being weird. Hoping she would go
away… I gave her a short answer and continued my conversation with Hunter and
Season. About that time an officer appeared and walked over and asked the woman
to follow him. Another office appeared a little further down the bleachers.
Apparently we weren’t the only ones that thought she was acting strange…
With a few minutes before the 30hr cutoff… we saw Shawn emerge from the
opposite side of the field holding the American Flag…
He triumphantly and proudly waved the flag all the way
through the finisher’s chute. What an epic ending to an amazing weekend.
After the clock ticked over the final 30hr mark… I packed
the car and headed home. I made it home just as Kati was leaving to meet up
with her friends. I took a quick shower and Sam and I headed to pick up some
dinner. Sam treated me to beer and pizza for letting him stay at the house and
for crewing him all weekend! In honor of spending the entire weekend racing in
Talladega… we decided to watch Talladega
Nights. The warm pizza, colbeer and sleepless weekend had caught up to us…
we decided to call it an early night and head to bed.
The past 48hrs were insanely amazing. From being blessed
enough to take part and aid in top notch performances like Sam and Ali’s…
to
witnessing some of my closest friends push through harsh conditions and awful
weather to achieve their goals was nothing short of awe inspiring. Maybe next year I’ll take
the Pinhoti plunge and run it myself… or perhaps lay back and enjoy
crewing/pacing a good friend again… but for now… good bye Pinhoti… I’m going to
sleep!
