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Chris and Barbara Each Run 50-Mile Relay
Course... ALONE!
Event Photos | Relay
Team Report | Chris' and Barb's Reports
Chris and Barbara individually completed the Tussey Mountainback
50 Mile Ultra Marathon.
The following are their accounts of the
event.
QUICK SUMMARY: For those of you who would like
a condensed version of our race report, here goes:
- Lots of training, double long
runs on weekends, no life.
- Tussey Mountainback 50-miler: small
ultra (40+ runners) with many relays (60+ teams, including one
fielded by Polly, Randy, and Brian). Hilly course.
- MOUNTAINOUS
course. Beautiful scenery, nice people.
- Running, running, some
walking, eating, drinking, running, walking, more eating, some
pain, some ibuprofen, more hills, mental agony, physical agony,
more ibuprofen, 40-mile mark, wow, burst of energy, exhilaration,
keep moving. 46-mile mark, all downhill from here, running faster,
passing people, finish line in sight, go for it.
- Chris finishes
in 7 hours, 27minutes 3rd overall male, 2nd “Open”;
Barbara in 8 hours, 52 minutes. 4th overall female, 1st Master.
Here’s the uncondensed version:
April 2006: Having just run Boston, but not having the performances
they were looking for, Barbara and Chris weren’t sure what
to do next. They had logged many miles through the winter,
and didn’t want to let that training go to waste. Barb’s
father, Paul, was a bit of a local legend having run many ultras
(anything more than a marathon) back when the sport was in its infancy
and the races were run on tracks – over days. Attempting
an ultra seemed like a logical progression – a fall 50 miler. And
6 months away hardly seem a daunting task.
August 2006:
As spring turned into summer, many hot weekends were spent doing
back to back long runs – as much as 30 miles each. Staying
up late, drinking, FUN - all were sacrificed for the “cause”. But
still with months to go, the 50-miler hardly seemed real. After reading “Ultramarathon
Man” by Dean Karnazes just as the 26 week training program
began to wind down with race registration deadlines rapidly approaching,
did the reality sink in and the gross error in judgment became fully
realized. Sure, 4-5 hour casual runs in the park were fun, but doubling
that – in a race - was a whole new and disturbing proposition. But
with a Wanderers relay team on board (thanks, Randy), reservations
made, no significant injuries to speak of, they knew there was no
turning back.
Friday, October 6: Barbara and Chris head to State College. Cool,
calm, and organized when they left Philadelphia, they were now nervous
wrecks. Mountains surrounded them in all directions. “Will
we be climbing that one?” “Or maybe THAT one?” “Why
did we think that training in the Wissahickon would prepare us for
these kinds of mountains?” “Uh, my ears just popped”, “I
think I’m going to throw up.”
Saturday, October 7, 7:00 a.m.--Despite the near full moon, it was
dark and maybe only 40 degrees. Stripping down at the last minute,
the gun went off promptly at 7:00AM with about 40 ultrarunners at
the starting line (the relays would take off in waves at 8;00, 8:30,
and 9:00). Armed only with the words of wisdom – “just
don’t go out too fast!”--things started to get interesting.
What exactly did “too fast” mean when you’ve never
run an ultra before, let alone one with 5,000 in elevation climbs?
The race started at the base of a ski area, and did not crest for
some 4 miles. Not too bad with fresh legs, but certainly a sign of
things to come. A race like this is never won in the first
20 miles (though we expect it is often lost).
Below you can read
Chris’s then Barbara’s accounts of their race experiences…
 CHRIS' Race Account:
With little
to base his gameplan on, I proceeded to go out a bit cautiously
hanging back with a group just behind the two leaders at what seemed
like a very manageable pace. The leaders were in sight til about
mile 12, the first significant transition zone By top of
a hill at mile 17, I felt as though I was holding back a bit too
much, and had to venture out solo. The next Ultra Transition Zone
around mile 20 came and went followed by a ridiculously long, and
moderately steep uphill.
At this point running alone became questionable. Still
though, the scenery was beautiful – Happy Valley seemed
to be a few weeks deeper into fall than it is here, both
foliage and views at elevation were impressive. Passing both the
25 mile marker and the 26 mile seemed significant and help keep
spirits up. Intermittent walking became more frequent as this hill
did not end til the 27 mile marker.
Finally cruising
downhill, hoping to make up for some 10 min+ miles, I
caught up to the second place runner right at the 30 mile Transition
Zone; only
to both be passed from out of nowhere by a runner somehow not needing
to stop and refuel. But having company again was helpful
however short lived.
By now we were in the thick of the relay runners, each
of them offered encouraging words, as they passed us easily. There
had been warnings about the course and some hills in the late 30’s. They
proved true and a long moderate incline became a steep wall causing
even some relay teams to have to walk. At
the top of this ascent, mile marker 40 and euphoria began to set
in. Not
that the last miles were going to be easy, but you knew now
that you could finish - that and maybe some weird endorphine
rush.
By
this point I had stopped eating, due to an uneasy stomach, but
felt like the remaining energy was coming from training and within. I
finally got to the turn around at 44.5 and began to head home. I
passed the final Transition Zone, not stopping, just chugging
some Gatorade without breaking stride. I heard a familiar voice, Polly
and Brian, but I don’t think I could do much more than mumble
a reply.
Having
heard in advance that the first four miles were all uphill, we
also knew that the last four were downhill. I was starting to feel
pretty confident, and right about 46 mile marker the road turned
decidedly downhill. For the first time in hours I checked the watch.
Just under 7 hours. The next runner behind me may have only been
a few minutes at the turn, but I knew if
the last four were downhill, I had a good chance of maintaining
3rd place. I
picked up the pace significantly.
Miles 47 and 48, and
I began to realize that it was going to really hurt. Sure I
had been sore and tight since the teens, but two miles on steep
asphalt with 2 more to go, the quad burning began to ratchet up.
But then I caught a glimpse in the distance of another runner. Sure
it was Wonder Woman (on a relay team with Batgirl), but that didn’t
matter. It was what I needed
to ignore the pain. And as I drew closer, I saw another relay
runner even further ahead.
49 miles and I passed Wonder
Woman finally able to return the favor and offer her some support. ½ mile
to finish and I passed the next relay team with the finish in sight. I
may not have been noticably sprinting but it sure felt like I was
and crossed the finish line at 7:27:28.
I Grabbed some
Coke, chips, candy corn and pretzels, anything I could not because
I was hungry or anxious to eat, but
knew I needed it. I congratulated the first two runners, and
soon enough I began to wonder about Barbara’s progress. Despite
my better judgement, I
jumped into my truck, and proceeded to drive
back up the race couse.
Thrilled at my accomplishment I yelled and
cheered for all runners as I passed them. I saw the Randymobile
and then Miss Polly looking cheerful and strong. Waving, I
continued to drive recklessly hoping to get back to mile 45 to offer
some support to Barbara. Team Barbara was just exiting the last Transition
Zone, she was all smiles. She knew
that she too was going to finish and I was excited to tell her
that it literally was all down hill from there.
 BARBARA's Account of the race:
THE EARLY MILES: “This is easy!”
Unlike Chris, I was lucky enough to run with a group of 5-6 runners
almost from the start. We entertained each other, kept each other
on pace, and offered emotional support for the hilly miles ahead.
They quickly became my lifeline. Donna, Tom Sr., Tom Jr, Sharon,
Brett—I had never met them before, but I spent some of the
most intense hours of my life with these fellow runners. It was
also great to see the Wanderers relay car driving by cheering as
I was on the side of the road squatting to pee (other runners were
heading thick into the woods to be discrete, but I decided that
was a waste of time). In short, the hills were a challenge, but
we ran slowly, walked some, carefully paced ourselves, and passed
the 25-mile mark not much worse for the wear.
MILES 30-40: My Descent to Hell
I am not quite sure when or where it happened, but by mile 32 or
so, I found myself alone. I had fallen behind my group, mumbling
something to them at a transition zone about not waiting for me.
I was devastated. Not only was I in all-over physical pain, but
without my “gang”, my mind started playing nasty games
with me. “Just keep them in sight,” I told myself.
But by mile 34, they were nowhere to be seen. I popped some ibuprofen,
tried to eat some solid food, and made an agreement with myself
to keep moving no matter what. I knew I would finish, but 18 miles
is a long and lonely distance when you’re feeling emotionally
and physically drained.
MILES 40-50: Elation
And then two miracles happened: 1) I passed the 40-mile mark, and
2) I suddenly caught
a glimpse of my old gang not too far in the distance. My energy
returned, my pace picked
up, my mind calmed down, and I ran with a hyper-focus I rarely
experience. By mile 42 I
reached my group again, and we enjoyed a happy reunion. I entered
the final transition area feeling stronger than ever. Seeing Chris
and hearing a quick report of his great race was a further boost.
When he informed me that the last four miles were all down hill,
one other woman and I took off and let gravity do its work, We
ran the fastest four miles of our entire race! By the time I
saw the finish line in the distance, I couldn’t contain my tears. I
felt happy, exhausted, overjoyed, numb. I did my best to “sprint” to
the finish, where I hugged Chris, the race director, and my “group” as
they crossed the line. It was a glorious day.
Event Photos | Relay
Team Report | Chris' and
Barb's Reports
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