2010 Pocatello 50

My legs after 34 Miles of awesomeness at the finish area of the 2010 Pocatello 50. Photo by Tanae Nelson

Well it would be a gross understatement to stay that this year's Pocatello 50 was a difficult run. As many have already reported the race was called off early because of arctic weather conditions including rain, snow, sleet, gusting winds (some estimated 40-50 mph), and very poor visibility on the high mountain ridges (of which this race has many). The start of the race was some of the most pleasant weather of the run, about 35 degrees with a very light drizzle. After the short section of pavement from the start to the Slate mountain trail the lead pack formed, Brad Mitchell and another relay runner were putting down a blistering pace and before the top of the first climb (about 3 miles into the race) they were out of sight not to be seen again. Joe Grant and Scott Jaime were right on my heels and commented that I would be their tour guide for the day to keep them on track. At this point in the race it started to rain a little harder and the trails quickly got greasier and greasier, by the time we descended dry creek towards the Gibson Jack Aid Station it was downright difficult to stay on your feet, the once pristine ribbon of smooth single track became a virtually frictionless slice of slimy mud.

The three of us went through the Gibson Jack Aid station with Joe in the lead, then me followed by Scott. We were all right together when we started to ascend the Wild Mountain climb and the wind started to blow, the rain also turned into a very solid gropple (think micro-hail). I pulled ahead of Joe as did Scott as we switched from run to power hike up the steep off-trail section. With every step the conditions deteriorated, the wind blew stronger and the visibility lessened, by the time we summited it was difficult for me to get on route and I probably know this section of trail better than the back of my hand. It was so cold rime ice was forming on all of the sage brush and on our bare legs, my hands went numb and it quickly became impossible to open a gel or drink out of my now frozen hand bottle. Joe pulled ahead a little on the descent down Cusick creek, but I pulled in to the City Creek Aid station within a minute or so with Scott right on my heels. It was much warmer at the low elevation aid station but still raining and as I passed race director Jared Campbell on my way out of the aid station he asked how it was and all I could think to say is that is was "for real up high". I then charged out of the aid area looking to catch Joe before he put too much ground on me. Before the top of the City Creek trail I had caught and passed Joe, as did Scott who stayed glued to me on the ascent up the downhill course. As we topped out we were once again in the epic wintery conditions, but I knew this time would be worse; we stayed above treeline for longer and we were running straight into the wind, it was very hard to keep positive about how it felt. Scott passed me on the descent into Midnight Creek and commented "it is a different world up here". I ran consistent down Midnight, but started to bonk a little because I was unable to open the gels that I had in my pockets, in desperation I started to squeeze them until they were pressurized and then bite into the package. This would cause them to burst open and I think I probably was able to get a little more than half of the gel in my mouth. At the remote Midnight Creek Aid Station I sipped a little warm Ramen broth and set to work to try to reel in Scott.

Just out of the aid station I had to stop to relieve myself and when I started to run again the bonk came on in full force, since we had been out of the wind for a while now my hands functioned enough to open two gels which shortly after consuming I came around very quickly. In the midst of the bonk though, Joe passed me. Now I had two guys that I needed to catch. Once I topped out of the Monument climb my legs started to feel much better and I began to move really well. I worked very hard to gain back the lost ground, I could tell that I was getting some of it back because both Scott, and Joe's footprints (easily separated by distinct tread and knowledge of sponsors) were getting clearer in the nearly 2 inches of newly fallen snow. As the descent continued the snow turned into 2 inches of super slush and then more sloppy mud trails. About 300 yards before the Mink Creek aid station I was told by a volunteer that the race had been shut down by the race directors and the 34ish mile mark of the Mink Creek aid station would be the finish, seconds later I was caught and passed by a relay runner. It was just after 11:00 am.

At about 10:30 in the morning the race directors made the decision to stop runners at their next major checkpoint. Ryan Mcdermott one of the RD's had been on course on Wild Mountain and saw first hand the carnage that the weather was dishing out to runners, people were very quickly getting hypothermic, disoriented and lost in the area above treeline. After helping several people get back on course and leading some back to the Gibson Jack Aid Station he got into a car and drove around to City Creek Aid Station to speak with Jared Campbell the other RD about stopping the race. Jared wasn't there though, he had gone up on a 4-wheeler the other way to help out runners after hearing reports from people coming into the aid station that runners were in a bad way. Ryan was able to call Jared on a cell phone while Jared was up high and a mutual decision to stop the race was made. I am sure it was a difficult decision to make, but it was absolutely the right decision. Runners were held at the next major aid station after that point.

I ran into the Mink Creek aid station finish line in 5:12:00, just a few minutes back from Scott who finished the Pocatello 50k first, and Joe who finished about a minute behind Scott. All in all I am very pleased with how the race turned out for me. I ran the first 34 miles almost 50 minutes faster than last year and was still feeling very good. My strategy in the race was to run the first two legs fast but save some for the last leg were I had planned to leave it all on the course. I was still within striking distance of both Scott and Joe and feel like there was still a lot of racing to be done. A friend who emailed me a few days before the race said this would be "a great race to compare year-over-year" and I couldn't agree more. There has been substantial improvement and I am nothing but optimistic about what is to come for the rest of the year. A huge thank you needs to go out to my wife Tanae who did an amazing job crewing for me at City Creek, my daughter Brynlee who was an awesome cheerleader and a full-on trooper as she endured the whole day we spent in the mountains, and all my friends and local runners who volunteered to go out on an unplanned sweep carrying clothes and food to help out any runners that may have been in need- thanks Andy, Dave, Jenna, Joe, Cory, and Kevin. On a final note all runners were quickly and efficiently accounted for by the Amateur HAM radio operator group that Ryan and Jared had brought in to help with the event. There were some really cold people out there and runners really worked together to take care of each other during the event. The camaraderie after the event was at a level much higher than I have seen at any other race before, epic adventures have a way of bringing people together, and this year's Pocatello 50(k) was nothing short of EPIC.

Gear:

La Sportiva Green Layer long sleeve race shirt

La Sportiva Fireblades (Crosslites would have done better in conditions, but my neuroma responds better to the fireblade)

La Sportiva headsweats visor

Ultimate Direction Handheld bottle (only drank one all day-no refills)

Nuun- Kona Cola

Sugoi gloves

brooks HVAC synergy short

Finally I didn't get many pictures of the race, if you are reading this and would like to share some of yours please leave a comment.

Jupiter Peak Steeplechase

First I have to apologize for the blog silence, since school broke for summer (10 days) I have been away from my computer and technology in general at my parents house in Northern New Mexico, I have a lot of pictures and video to post on that later. First things first though- yesterday's race in Park City- the Jupiter Peak Steeplechase. This race is part of the La Sportiva Mountain Cup, and because of that it is a big deal. I had the awesome opporunity to meet some of my Sportiva Team mates- Jason Bryant, Megan Kimmel, Catilin Smith, and Bernie Boetcher plus two other that I already knew- Brad Mitchell and Karl Metzler. Apart from the large number of La Sportiva athletes there were also a lot of other sponsored runners from all over the US.

Ok, there were a lot of big names at the race, "stop freaking out" I told myself, but it wasn't easy, I look up soo much to a lot of these runners and I felt like just walking around with my mouth gaping wide open asking for autographs or something. Also given the concentration of talent I knew that the race was going to be tough, lots of very strong runners. The course itself was right up my alley, it had 3307' of elevation gain/loss in 16 miles, the first half up and the second half down. I enjoy running uphill, I tend to be pretty good at it especially if it is technical, the only downfall to the race is the downhill, I don't love to run down but was hoping to hold my own.

Warming Up with La Sportiva Team mates- Photo Tanae Nelson

I warmed up with a Jason, Caitlin, Brad, Bryon Powell (irunfar.com), and Shiloh Meilke (Vasque). It was cool to be with lots of other people in yellow. After about 15 minutes of warming up I stripped down to the Sugoi La Sportiva Race singlet, Sugoi 42 k shorts and grabbed my Ultimate Direction hand bottle filled with EFS and headed to the starting line.

The race started at a reasonable pace with a lead pack somewhat quickly separating from the rest, as the climb continued the pack kind of exploded with a couple of runners pulling away and the rest of us stringing out behind them. I held about 6th until Bernie Boetcher fellow Sportiva runner hammered by about 1/2 up the climb. Just before the top on the very steep scramble section I passed one runner, who mumbled something about this being a "running race" as we power hiked up the steep section, I pulled back into 6th, but knew it probably wouldn't last because of my marginal descending skills. I have found through this summer of racing that I am much better and enjoy ascending quiet a bit more than it's downhill counterpart. I ran past the false summit and the real summit still in 6th and started the descent, the course wasn't marked really well at this point and I held back a little to make sure I wasn't pulling a repeat of the Speedgoat by getting off course. As soon as I spotted the runner I passed on the last ascent headed the same way I was I turned it up hoping to hold him off at least for a while. I wasn't able to hold him off too long and he passed me going very fast.

After seeing all of the runners at the start I told myself " make sure you finish top ten", I figured that was a pretty reasonable goal, and when I was passed I fell into 7th and felt a little discouraged it didn't leave a lot of room for error. I poured down the hills as fast as I could, but to no avail was passed again, this time by Jon Allen from Logan who is a very talented runner. Okay I said to myself that is it, it is time to hurt and hold 8th. I shifted gears, to a somewhat painful pace and pushed with all my tired legs could do, near the end we turned on to the Spiro trail which has lots of switchbacks and out of the corner of my eye I spotted Brad Mitchell creeping up on me, I opened it up as much as a I could knowing it wasn't far to the finish. I managed to hold him and finished 8th overall in 2:03:01, Brad finished 12 seconds behind me, if he had a little more distance he would have caught me for sure.

The La Sportiva Mountain Running Team- Photo Tanae Nelson

Considering all of the running and road biking I did during my vacation last week, I was very happy with my overall time and effort. The field was very deep, deeper than any other race I have done this year and I feel like 8th was pretty solid. I also had the great opportunity to cool down with the other runners on the La Sportiva Team, getting to know the people you admire as runners is pretty awesome! I am trying to get a post put together of the runs I did in New Mexico while on vacation, including some pics and video from the new flip camera we just bought. Check back soon! Also check out El Vaquero Loco 50k- my wife and I will both be headed to Star Valley Wyoming to race in that this weekend to celebrate her 29th birthday. She will be running the 25 k her furthest distance yet- she is going to do great!