On McCulloch with a great crew and a rainbow!

Thanks Josh!

Cascade Crest 2014

I went into CCC with a cold this year. After a really rough first 20 miles, things slowly got better. The second half was decent. With the help of Gaby and Guy, who did an awesome job crewing and pacing, I managed to finish in 25:17:15 ... exactly the time I finished in last year. That remains my PR on this course.
With Gaby on Thorp Mountain, 85 miles into it (déjà vu)


With RD Rich White; Gaby and Guy in the background
Photo by Ron Nicholl

Orcas 50K 2014 Vid

Orcas 50K

Rogue River Trip

Had a blast running the Rogue River with a great crew.

Here are some pics by Ken:

http://macultra.smugmug.com/Other-Ultras/Rogue-River-2014

McCulloch Peak Hike

Last week we had one of the biggest crews ever for the hike ... maybe the biggest ... 15 all together, including very special guests Linnea and Jack ... the first toddlers we've ever had on the hike! Pups Cora and Frodo rounded things out. Lots of fun.

Grandpa John with Linnea

San Diego 100-Miler

This past weekend I ran the San Diego 100-Miler. The race was notable this year for being very, very hot. There was a lot of carnage, with less than 50% of starters finishing. Still, it was my best 100 to date, with a time of 24:22, and a 20th place finish.

Here is the note I sent to the group about the adventure:

Hey folks,

Thanks a bunch for the congrats. Still in a bit of a fog. Some races advertise as sort of a ‘Heaven and Hell’ thing … SD doesn’t but lived up to that description this year. The Hell part was most of Saturday. The race started at 7am. By 10am it was hotter than anything I had run in training. It was something of a furnace by mid-afternoon. No cloud cover and little shade. I stuck with a slow pace, lots of water, ice and Scaps … baby steps on even gentle slopes. Things turned around for me at mile 51, the ‘Sunrise’ aid station. That’s about where the sun set for me. I don’t think I have ever been so grateful for a sunset in my life. Things cooled down quickly, and it was the Heaven part of the run. Really sweet running. Big meadows. Some great views before it got totally dark. Then the stars came out. I felt good from then on in to the finish.

I can’t say enough about how well this race was organized. RD Scott Mills and his crew did a stellar job. The aid station volunteers were top-notch … many of them ultra runners themselves; they kept the ice, water, food and encouragement flowing. At Sunrise they fixed up a hot spot on the bottom of my foot before it blistered … that patch job held up the remaining 49 miles. Lots of kind offers for pacing. Everything seemed to run smoothly though I’m sure they had their hands full given the conditions of the day. The course marking was really thorough (though that didn’t stop me from missing one well-marked left turn). Scott promised us a confidence ribbon every 2 to 3 minutes of run time, and that’s the way it was for the entire 100 miles.

A special thanks to Kath for first recommending SD many months ago, and for taking such good care of us before, during and after the race; to Josh for joining me in that last segment, helping to pick up my spirits and pace; and to John for making the trip so much fun.

Lobo

McDonald Forest 50K

Had a lot of fun yesterday running the Mac. Lots of familiar faces of course, and lots of words of encouragement along the way. The aid station volunteers were great. And it was good to see Gaby, Dennis, Guy, Mac, Sharon and Bo at points along the way. It got a little warmer than I would have liked. And I clearly have not recovered from Capitol Peak. I ran out of steam after about 15 miles, though all my body parts were working okay ... just no juice in the tank. The slog up Horse was a real challenge. I finished in about 5:55 ... not what I was hoping for. But still ... I had a blast.

The Garmin track is here.

Here is a picture of Kiira helping me to mark some of the course the day before the race: