02 August 2010

White River 50 (2010) - Race Report

I love this race. Why does it make me hurt so bad?

Two years ago, the White River 50 chewed me up and spit me out. It was my first mountain 50, and it made quite the impression on me.  When I finished I thought maybe I'd never walk again, and I surely would never set foot on a mountain trail with anything more than +1 ft vertical gain.  I was ready to pack up and move to anywhere that was flat.

But, it seems, I have a poor memory, because I decided to go back this year and fight the two mountain climbs again.  I'm in better shape now, so I expected to do much better.  But no matter what kind of hill training I do here in the Palouse, it doesn't quite prepare me for vertical of White River (8,700 feet of climbing; 8,700 of descent).

My pre-race goal was to finish under 10 hours.  The race begins with about a mile along a dirt landing strip before it plunges into single-track trails for about 43 of the 50 miles.  I have a tendancy to start slow and push later in the race, but with over two hundred runners at the starting line, I wanted to push the pace a bit during the first mile to get a good spot on the single-track climbing trains that form.  I found myself in a fast group, and knowing that I probably wouldn't be able to hang with them for long, I broke my own don't-start-too-fast rule and hung with this fast group as long as I could.  Actually, I've been doing that more this year.  I push out hard to see where my limits are.  I guess today with no different.

We hit mile 4 at under an 8-min pace...then the climb began.  While most of the group was running the climbs at this point, I was content with power-hiking for a minute or two (and I wasn't losing much ground doing this) and then running on the "flatter" sections of the climb.  My legs felt great, but I knew it was going to be a long day.  The group eventually left me behind and I was just fine with that.

I hit the aid station at mile 11 well ahead of a 10-hour finishing time pace, and was happy to put it in cruise control for the rest of the climb up to mile 17.  There are some amazing views of Mount Rainier on this section of the course.  This is also an out-and-back section, so I got a glimpse of the leaders coming back - pretty amazing stuff from some of the best trail runners in North America.

The next 10 miles heads back down the hill (mountain) to the starting point/halfway point (the course is basically a figure 8) - this section includes about 5 miles of beautifully smooth downhill single-track.  I had to tell myself to take go slower than I wanted to so I could save my legs for the brutal second half of the course.

I hit the halfway point faster than I was expecting to, but knew that the climb up to Sun Top mountain was going to test the best of me...and slow me down considerably.  And it did.  The climb lasts about 8 miles and gains over 3,000 ft. of elevation.  It's simply a grind.  I ran only in spurts during this section, power hiked much of it, and felt like crawling like an infant for all of it.  The last mile or so is the worst part of the entire climb: steep, dusty, rocky, steep, sunny, steep, and steep.  Though I was still just under a 10-hour pace, I was wondering if I had enough to hang on.

37 miles complete, and now a 6-mile gravel road descent.  This part sounds wonderful on paper: after all the climbing, finally an "easy" gradual descent on an open road.  My legs weren't quite toast at this point, but they were getting there.  The 6-mile descent felt like 10 miles.  I ran the entire thing (minus two "I just drank too much Mountain Dew and ate too much watermelon at the aid-station" pukes) but I felt like I had a flat tire going the entire way down.

I got to the bottom with only a 6.5 mile section along the river to the finish line.  The aid station had ice water sponges and soaking myself with the cold water gave me a nice lift.  I ran probably 2 miles through this rooty, rocky, technical section before some of the minor climbs (30-50ft) started to feel like 1,000ft climbs.  I had given myself some time cushion on the long downhill descent though, so with about 4 miles to go I figured I could probably walk the rest of the way and still get in under 10 hours.  That was a relief.  I might have been able to push harder during this last section if I needed to, but I was happy to run the downs and walk the ups the rest of the way in.

I crossed the finish line in 9:34:16. (official results - Anton Krupicka shattered his own course record with a 6:25:29!

I love this course.  Why does it make me hurt so bad?

I feel like I know this course a little better after having run it twice now.  I can definitely see things that I can improve on to run it under 9 hours.  I'm sure I'll be back in the coming years.  It's such a beautiful course.


Keep running!


The race is just outside Mount Rainier NP



Enjoying the mountains the day before the race



50 Mile Trail Championship - the competition was stacked




Cool mountain morning stretch



Gathering at the start



Part way up the first climb



Mount Rainier over my shoulder


Amazing trails



Mount Rainier watching over the runners


Going through an aid station


Pounding trail (photo courtesy of Glenn Tachiyama)


Climbing up Sun Top (photo courtesy of Glenn Tachiyama)


Crossing the finish line

20 comments:

  1. Congrats Scott! Beautiful! What's your next race?

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  2. OMGOSH! Way to go.
    So impressive.

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  3. Another great race! Congrats!

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  4. It was my first time running WR50 ~ It kicked my butt!! It was beautiful & I'll be back too! 11:13 w/ calf injury....so I'm not complaining. Although, I was so done on the last 6.6 miles! Great Job, Great time ~ I hope I have better success the 2nd time around!

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  5. So awesome! Congratulations! That "amazing trails" picture looks S-C-A-R-Y to run on. I drank a Mountain Dew Saturday night to commemorate your race.

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  6. Congrats on another great race! Your training is paying off with new PRs right and left. Yay!

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  7. Great run and report. Wish I was there. I'll be back to run it with you next time...

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  8. Wow, simply wow!! Amazing pictures and a great race report. Don't we all love the things that make us hurt so much? I mean, that's the purpose isn't it, to conquer the pain!! COngratulations!

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  9. I couldn't imagine doing that on flat. All downhill maybe, but never flat :-) Congrats!!!

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  10. Congratulations and well done! I read about the race on some FB group this morning and was really happy to find your report. Absolutely beautiful trails!

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  11. Nice racing Scott! And thanks for those pictures - you run in some amazing places. Very envious.

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  12. Congratulations on what sounds like a grueling race! On a hot day, ice water sponges can be a life saver.

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  13. Jen - not sure if I'm going to do another big race before we meet up at Goblin Valley in Oct. I'm always looking though...but I think I've used up all the spare change I've found in the couch.

    Cheri - Congrats on your first WR50! It has a weird way of killing you but making you want to come back for more.

    Mel - Yes, there was a cliff off that trail...could be a bit dodgy running at night I suppose. :) And Mountain Dew is off my list of drinks for awhile.

    Thanks, everyone!

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  14. Wow! Thats one mean son of a bitch race, Great effort, keep working at it, your get stronger and stronger over the coming years, time is on your side :]

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  15. unbelievable! i need a nap after reading that!

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  16. Cool stuff man! I want to hike this trial sometime. Though I just want to walk and camp halfway ;p.

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  17. Hi there Scott, that was a wonderful performance, report and pictures that had me green with envy and wishing I was fifty years younger!
    My partner was in the Mount Rainier NP a couple of years back and brought home some incredible pictures, so I know how beautiful it is.
    Keep running!

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  18. Wow, 50 miles...that is more than the chevy volt can go on one charge!

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  19. That looks beautiful but very tough! Well done!

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  20. Could there be a prettier course? Great race report & time. Glad you made it - love all the details. I think you're crazy - but I'm happy for you.

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