On the Friday before the race team converged in Las Vegas. I arranged for a SUV and car rental in Vegas and also picked up all of our supplies like coolers, refreshments, and food. After that we loaded up the cars and headed to Lone Pine (this years starting line for Badwater).
As most know in the Ultra community Badwater this year did not follow the Badwater to Mt. Whitney route due to some permit restrictions from the National Park Service. Due to that we began the race in Lone Pine the town at the base of Mt. Whitney. On our drive however we did make a quick 17 miles detour to Badwater Basin for some photo ops,
Sunday brought race check-in which was relatively uneventful except for the sweet swag bag provided by the Badwater race staff. It is always interesting to go the a pre-race meeting, you're in a room of people who have accomplished some of the most challenging feats in the world. We went out for pizza that night and slept pretty good.
The first order of business was to climb 6,000' over the first 22 miles to the top of Horseshoe Meadows. My plan was that if I cracked 6mph I was moving to fast. Of course I moved at about a 9:30 pace. I firmly placed myself in the top 10ish and tried to hang out there. My crew and I choose to meet every 3 miles or about 30 min. The temperature was around 65 at the start line and 60 at the summit for it was nice weather for running. I tried to powerwalk early up the mountain but I was about a half marathon in when I really started to slow down and calm myself down. The second half of the Horshoe Meadow climb was smooth but steep and I made it to the top to see the crew somewhere around 7th place. Suki and Meg gave me a quick tire change and put a little gas in the tank and about 2 min later I headed back down the mountain.
The next 22 miles were solid and easy running. I cruised down the mountain at about a 7:30 pace with a little ipod action. It felt easy coming down but I was a little sick of the downhill about 30 miles in and ready to get flat again. I made it back to Lone Pine (mile 44) with ease and even passed a few people right as I was coming into town. I passed the hotel and took a quick break to choke down some calories, but I was fired up from passing a few people and was itching to knock out some miles. I think mentally I lost my tactical patience at this point in the race and got a little to ambitious. At the turn off for Dolimite loop (50 miles) the sun was baking at around 95 degrees. I was beginning to fry pretty well on the hot interstate and Will and Steve had to sit me down every 1-2 miles and hose me down and give me ice bandanas. My pace slowed drastically to a 9:30-11:00 min/mile pace. At the 60 mile mark we began the second big climb which was Cerro Gordo.
Cerro Gordo is a 7.5 mile climb with 5500 ft of climbing. This translates into a swift kick in the pants and about a 2 hour hike. Will made the treck with me up the mountain. We powerwalked out was to the top passing a few that passed me as I struggled under the heat. We made it to the top just as the sun dissipated. At the top we refilled some water and started our descent. Problem was I couldn't run downhill... My quads were to shot to handle the steep descent. It took me almost 2 hours to come back down and every step hurt.
At the bottom I was super tired, 75 miles into the race. I told the crew I was going to take a nap and then head out to Darwin. I took a 45 min nap in the front seat of our SUV and shot off like a cannon once I woke up. I freaked out the crew, they thought I was going to DNF since I went to sleep, after I woke up I simply walked to the back of the car and asked where my light and pack was and bolted off at a 7:30 pace towards Darwin. I made the 15 mile stretch at well under a 10 min mile pace and handled the rolling hills well.
At Darwin I grabbed Meg for some miles. She ran easily with me for the next 10 miles to the 100 mile mark. We were both pretty well sleep deprived and a little loopy but still a great time. At 100 miles the sun rose and I hit 22 hours in the race. Once the sun came up I felt pretty well recharged but I was having a really hard time keeping calories in. I couldn't stomach anything besides fresh fruit which didn't really have the calorie content I needed. The next 20 mile push to Lone Pine was pretty tough.
As the temps rose to 90 again I needed to recharge ice bandana's every 2 miles and Steve kept hosing me down with the spray bottle when he could. Steve actually ran behind me for 4 miles spraying me at I ran from 118 to 122 (thanks Steve). I threw in the IPOD and tried to grind out the miles. Steve and I spoke a little during that stretch and I told him that I needed to lay down again. What I didn't know was that Suki had arranged for a massage at the hotel. The crew wanted to get me in and out of Lone Pine in a short amount of time and I wanted to lay down for 45 min in the dark cool hotel room before making the 13 mile climb up Mt. Whitney.
This of course ended in sleep deprived runner and crew being upset. I took their advice and kept charging along the course and made it 2 miles before I decided it was nap time. I knew the last 13 miles was going to take 3 hours at best probably 4 hours and just didn't have that much energy without a lot of calories. So there I laid in the front seat of the SUV napping as I was passed by 5-7 runners 10 miles from the finish line. I was just dead tired. I jumped out with much less vigor that the previous nap but determined to finish the race. I made my was up the switchbacks slowly but steadily. Suki and Will kept switching off running with me. Everyone was so tired and excited. Everytime we talked about the finish line I started balling. I would imagine the belt buckle and get all choked up. I remember climbing up the mountain telling my wife how much I loved her balling my eyes out. She was a real trooper, she allowed me to run Badwater on our honeymoon, and ran the last 10 miles or so with me and slept probably less than me over the course of the race. As we got closer to the finish line the temps lowered and we made the last few switchback and together Suki and I walked across the finish line holding hands.
After the race we sat down and had a cold beer at the chalet on top of the mountain and cheered on other runners. A small smile couldn't be removed from my face for the next month. Years of work and dreaming finally came to an end.
I couldn't have finished this race without the crew. My wife Suki was amazing as always as well at Will, Meg, Steve and T.J. It was the greatest days of my life and I feel so blessed to have these amazing people in my life. I know I had a lot of people following me from afar cheering me on and I greatly appreciate all of the support. Finally Cameron ROTC department and Skora Running chipped in with running shoes and financial assistance in getting me to the starting line. Particularly LTC Zaccheus and the staff at Cameron University made it all happen. They saw my dream and were willing to help me achieve it selflessly. I will forever be grateful for them believing in me. I rocked out my Skora Form's and Phase X's during the 135 mile run and they help up well. Good shoes for any race!!!
