Speedgoat 50K 2012

Speedgoat 2012 Race Report

Hello and welcome to my first race report ever.  I distinctly remember having butterflies and being very nervous when I pointed the cursor to the submit box and clicked enter for the 2012 version of Speedgoat several months back.  I was intimidated by this race and it turns out justifiably so.  I am relatively new to the Ultra scene and Speedgoat is legendary for being one of the toughest 50K’s in existence.  Additionally, the race director seems to pride himself on adjusting the course making each year more difficult than the last. 

As it turns out, everything I heard was true and this race did not disappoint in the challenging department.  To make things a little more interesting on this day, I was battling the pain of a recently cracked rib which I received during a trail work mishap the week prior.  I was told by the doctor that running will not make the crack worse, it certainly won’t help it and the bottom line is it will be uncomfortable.  With that not so helpful bit of information, I decided that this would be a day filled with pain and why not just make this little setback part of the adventure.

I felt relatively good starting up the first big climb to Hidden Peak.  I had trained hard and tried to get in as much vertical as possible in the weeks leading up to this race.  I remember passing through the first water station around mile 4 and realized I had barely drank any water.  I made a mental note to get on top of my hydration as this was going to be a very long and hot day.  I arrived at the Hidden Peak tram and was happy to see a few HUMR’s (Britta Trepp, Bryce Warren & Cory Johnson) greet me.  They offered encouragement, assistance and a Popsicle.

As I descended off hidden peak, I recall being blown away by freshly bloomed purple and orange wildflowers.  I was in awe which was quick disrupted by fatigue that was already setting in.  I skipped the Larry’s Hole aid station and headed straight for the next climb on the course which was relatively uneventful.  However, the section after this climb was one of the most difficult sections of the entire course for me.  It was a 2 mile section that descended about 2000’ through what I can only describe as a dry river bed.  It was extremely rocky and technical.  This section slowed me to a near crawl and I lost a lot of time.  I have battled ankle injuries over the past year and the last thing I wanted was to turn an ankle in this rocky horror (yes, the wh version of that same word would also apply).

Thankful to be through this section, I was now out of water.  Uggggh!  I promised myself I would keep hydrated.  I saw Shawn coming out of Pacific Mine as I was entering, she assured me the aid station was a mile or so down the trail.  During my journey to the aid station I also encountered Manners and Joel and was happy to see some familiar faces.  I was very relieved to arrive at what proved to be my favorite aid station.  I was greeted by someone spraying a mister on me and a cold towel to place on the back of my neck (THANK YOU AID STATION VOLUNTEERS).  After chugging water, eating potatoes with salt and filling my bottles I was off again.

I was able to get about 100 yards out of the aid station and was struck by tragedy.  I tripped over a rock.  This trip was followed by a thud and many curse words.  I stood up, assessed the damage (scuffed up hand, elbow and knee) and was relieved that I had protected my sore rib.  I put the embarrassment of crashing and burning and decided I needed to make up some time.  “Keep moving,” I told myself.  On my way out of the Pacific mine I was happy to see another couple of HUMR’s (Forrest and Alicia).  The climb out of Pacific Mine was slow and steady.  I knew I was getting way behind my projected pace and made an effort to make up some time.  I was feeling surprisingly refreshed and was able to pass many people who had entered the zombie death march mode.  I made the second pass through Larry’s Hole topped off my bottles, had some fig newtons, sipped some Big K Cola and pressed on.

This next section can be summed up with three words, Mt F’ing Baldy.  I got to the base of this beast and was sure the volunteer was pulling my leg when he pointed up the hill.  “Where’s the trail,” I stated.  The volunteer just smiled and told me to follow the flags.  For the first time in this race, I wanted to quit.  It’s hard to describe this section, from the bottom looking up; it looked like I needed ropes.  Ironically, as I started to ascend this beast my iPod was playing the following lyrics:                                                    

Strapped down to my bed, feet cold and eyes red.
I'm out of my head am I alive? Am I dead.
Sun kissed and Sudafed Gyro scopes and infrared
won't help. I'm brain dead. Can't remember what they said.
God Dam%. Sh$@ the bed.

It seemed to sum up exactly how I felt at that moment.  BTW, the crazy lyrics are from a song called Rosetta Stoned by the group Tool.  Yep, that’s how this HUMR rolls.

After what seemed like an eternity, I finally made it to the top of Baldy and worked my way down to the tunnel aid station.  I was happy to see a couple of HUMR’s (Breein and Jim) fueling up at the aid station.  I topped off drank half of a beer (why not?) that Jim somehow was able to get from the aid station and was once again on my way.  The tunnel was perfect!  I thought long and hard about just lying down in the cool air and taking a nap.  The tunnel ended unfortunately and to my horror we were descending.

I was happy to get some relief from all the climbing.  However, I knew going down was bad because it mean just one thing . . . I still need to get all the way back up to Hidden Peak.  The trail descended about 1000’ and then the bonus, MORE CLIMBING!  Now it’s getting later in the afternoon and the heat is peaking.  It was a long, hot climb.  By the time I got to the ridge, I was completely spent!  A special thanks to Lindsay and Britta for providing a Popsicle and much needed morale boost at this point.

I inched my way to the Hidden Peak aid station where I was greeted by Larry who was very helpful in helping me get rehydrated and fueled up for the final push.  Much to my surprise, I ran into Joel and Ryan who informed me that we were finishing this sucker together.  HUMR’S Unite!  We waited for Jim and Breein to get in and get fueled up and then we were off for the final 5 miles (all downhill).  The six of us were joined by fellow HUMR Britta.  Time to find that finish line!

The last five miles were pretty uneventful.  I had reached the point that I just wanted this experience to be over.  My legs were shot and I was not able to keep up the pace I had hoped for.  I was actually OK with this.   I knew I was going to make it back and even though I was going to go over my projected finish time I had conquered Speedgoat 2012.  The seven of us got pretty scattered during the last 5 miles and I ended up crossing the finish line at the same time as Breein at  10 hours and 8 minutes.  DONE, FINALLY!  At the finish it was fun mingling with friends and meeting new people.  This day proved to be one of the most challenging experiences of my life.  I plan on learning from my experience and be back to take it on again next year.