In awe

Category: running

  • [703] Buffalo Marathon  (May Update)

    Back in April I went down to Elizabeth City to run the Coast Guard Marathon.  A friend who ran with us there (Dan), recommended us to do the Buffalo Marathon in May.

    As it is my habit, I picked races from after hearing someone’s recommendation.  Dan has done it like 10 times. It got me hyped up.

    I am happy to be getting back to doing (road) marathons after a several years of running ultras especially hundred miles. I have not had a new state for a long time.  My goal always was to reach 50 states by when I am 50.  It is a tall order since I have only couple years left.  It would require me to run 10 or more races per year to reach my goal.  So far I have only completed 15 states.  Of course I am a nucklehead.  I have visited 22-25 states already but only ran a road marathon in 13/15 states.  I am a purist to count only the states I have done a road marathon.

    Anyway, I was very happy to cross off North Carolina this year, a state I ran a 100 mile not too long ago but not a marathon.

    I quickly checked my phone to do some planning that night as I was coming back from the race to check if there’s a schedule conflict and plan out the logistics of how to get to Buffalo.  I have gotten quite good with signing up races.

    Lo and behold, the first thing I saw on the race website was the race was sold out.  Oopsie.  They allowed adding our names to a waitlist.  So, it was time for some praying and constantly checking my position on it.  We were like in 200th place.  I suggested, why not join the charity program, since the registration itself was around $200, the charity program only cost about twice the entry fee.  It was not an impossible amount to overcome. It was for a good cause.  We are not rich. Actually, money was getting tighter because of the nation’s economic condition and the on going war in the Middle East (gas price being high and other comsumer goods rose along with it).

    So that was a disappointment.  We reached out to the Race Director/or the support hotline. to asked to be allowed in, we don’t need the medal or shirt, just a bib.  You know with a race for 3000 people, 1-2 more would be that much to break a race, or so we thought.  We could carry our own food and water, since we do that all the time for ultras.  The answer we got back was not what we wanted to hear but fair.  Rules are rules.  We were directed to the charity route.

    So we decided to wait like everyone else and were not willing to spend extra to get in. 

    Every morning, I would see my name moved up a dozen of so places.  After watching it for a week or so, I believe, I would get in by end of the month. 

    After another week of waiting, my name was pulled from the waitlist along with 200 other runners, It seems the RD opened the flood gate to let everyone in.  I was super excited that now I could make concrete plan for the marathon.   

    Since Buffalo is also where Niagara Falls is, there is no way I am not checking that out.  I’ve been there several times but still it is magical to see it again.  So the race was just an excuse to see the Falls and also my girlfriend has been telling me about the original Buffallo Wings were originated at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo (where they have a real anchor!).  She went there with her friend.  I wanted to go there too. She was a sailor and she told that they have an anchor in the restaurant. We did try to look for the anchor but I did not find it.

    So there was a lot I wanted to see.  I always thought Buffalo wings means meaty chicken wings or that they were made of real buffalo meat but never thought that it was invented or originated from the city of Buffalo.

    If you know me, I have this weird desire bucket list going on, I want to eat the Orange chicken in China or Orange County, Peruvian Chicken in Peru, and Singapore Noodle in Singapore.  Little did I know, all those are American inventions or something like that when a friend busted my bubble about Singapore noodle, or there’s no Orange Chicken in China. But Buffalo chicken is really from Buffalo! So I had to try them there.

    And I did. We went to the original Anchor Bar the first thing when we arrived in Buffalo.  By the way, Buffalo (well might have been JFK but then we landed, redirected to Buffalo for the night before continued on to Washington) was the first city I entered when I arrived in America many years ago.  So it is some special place for me to be in Buffalo.

    After a hearty meal at the Anchor Bar, we went over to  Canada side.  I wanted some bragging right that we stepped into another country for the weekend! 

    What about the food?  Nothing much to be said about the chicken wings.  It was a cool thing.  Niche and nice. They are like any chicken wings I had before.  I ordered the orignal flavor.  I like the spicy sauce.  The Burbon flavor was better than the original sauce, which I glad we ordered.  I wish we had picked a sampler.  The meal was good.  I would have like a pint of beer with that but we had to cross the border and I did not want my breath to smell with alcohol or to appear in any way under the influence and prevented our trip to Canada.

    Border crossing:  There was a long wait to cross over to Canada.  Flip side, apparently not many wanted to enter the US due to our president wild talks. Canadians don’t want to come to the US any more.

    The border guard asked a few usual questions, and we were then cleared to enter Canada.  This time was a lot easier than in my previous trip. I was happy to be cleared and on our way.

    Because our trip was on Memorial weekend, hotels doubled their prices.  We found a place near the Falls, about 10 mins walking, a motel.  It was decent, clean, and good enough for a night. Canada is decent place.  I was there couple years ago for a marathon too. So this time was like I know where to go and see the stuff I missed.

    With long sunset, we had a few hours to walk around.  We had good weather the first day.  Sunny, slight breeze, and it was very comfortable.  Normally in a previous trip, I would run along the rim of falls from one end to the other, maybe like 2-3 miles.  I think I did a 10k before, just running on the trails there.  I had the same idea this time but our time was limited and we were there for a marathon on Sunday, so we did not want to tire ourselves on the first night with running.

    What we ended up doing was walking across the Rainbow Bridge back to the America side and visited the American Falls and various points.  This was my first time being on the bridge (I drove across it before). The view was just Amazing.  I highly recommend others to do this.  You get the full view of the falls. 

    Being already full from the Anchor Bar limited me from eating more.  At the American side, there is a cafeteria/gift shop that had a lot of fast food restaurants   I ate there before on my previous trip and I was drooling to eat or order some to take back to the hotel that night.  However, because I was already full, I did not buy any, just looked.

    Canada side too has a lot of eateries but I did not get to try them.  Kids and children were everywhere when we got back to Canada. 

    We crossed the bridge twice.  The border guard asked is weird questions like where we were from, when we were trying to enter the US border and where are we were going. We clearly presented our US passports and said the US.  Later, they explained that many people made the mistake between Canada and the U.S, like trying to enter Canada instead of the US but ended up in the US side, and so the guard thought we went to the wrong border.  Hmm. OK, I gave him the benefit of doubt.

    Canada side too was asking when did we last visited the country, and we said just a few hours ago. They probably did not expect people to walk across the bridge back and forth. They probably did not know we are ultra marathoners, and we can walk.  We later told them we were there to do a marathon!

    We headed back to our hotel that night and retired early hoping to catch a sunrise.

    The next day the weather was not so good.  It was cold around 50s and started with a light rain then got heavier.  Still we wanted to see the Falls one last time before leaving.  But it was too cold, so I ended up at a Starbucks for the next couple hours.  Note, I wanted to go or remembered there was a Tim Hortons there but this time, there’s a Starbucks at every corner and no Tim Hortons.  Tim Hortons has good breakfast if I remember correctly.  So no breakfast for me that morning because I could not find a Tim Hortons.  We saw a McDonalds.  What did I ended up eating?  I don’t remember.

    So I went down to see the Falls with strong wind blowing and I was drenched from head to toes not long after.  Our check out time was 10 am, so we had some time still to browse around.  Somehow, I got lost on my way back to the hotel (unintentionally) and wandered around the whole neighborhood the next hour.  I went maybe a mile out of the way and past the hotel, until I started to recognize some previous landmarks and QEW, the road we came in. We got back to the hotel around 10, immediately packed up our things and checked out.

    We had promised to meet up with our friend Dan in Buffalo around noon at the Convention Center.  So, we started our trip back to the US.  I wish we had an extra day to visit Toroto  too, for some dimsum, but that would need to wait for our next trip to Canada. 

    We got to the race convention around noonish.  The rain was coming down still and I was  wet again.  So, we beelined to the bib pickup, got our bib and headed directly back to the car.  Our hotel check in was not until 3, we probably could have done an early check in.  Next, we went for our meal.  I found a Korean restaurant nearby, actually, our first choice led us to out of business restaurant and had to drive across Buffalo for another.  In the end, I got my hot spicy soup.  I could not remember what I had, but it was something good. Maybe Bimbimbab.

    We got to the hotel by 3 pm, checked in and settled in.  Changed out the wet clothes and shoes and started preparing for our race the next morning.  Unlike many other races, this one starts early at 6:30.  So, we sould need to be at the start around 5 am, which means up around 3:30.  It is a 15 min drive to downtown.  So we set to leave the hotel by 4:45.  We found out by 5 am the roads around the Convention Center were already blocked.

    Somehow our friend Dan navigated us passed the barricades and we were able to park two blocks away from the start.

    We were early and the Convention Center did not open until 5:30.  We waited with everyone by the door to be let in.  The air was humid and seemed we would have a hot day.  Forecast originally predicted rain and cold. But, we dodged the bad weather.  In the end it was 70s, no rain.  Cloudy, a perfect weather for a run.

    I did not have a drop bag.  We entered the Convention Center to use its bathroom.  Then we waited some more, not too bad, mostly for the line to the bathroom that stretched many miles. They did have potta johns outside but I think everyone preferred the nice indoor bathroom. When it was time for the start, we walked out and crossed the road to the other side, there were people directed us to our starting place.  I did not want to line up too close to the front, but the crowd was great and there was no where I could line up, so I was put with the 8 min pace people.  I run around 12-13 min.

    We sang the anthem.  People around me were excited.  I made a few friends, many were their first marathon or first half marathon. We all started together.  The Full Marathon pretty much ran the half marathon course first, then we did a second half by ourselves.

    I prefer doing the first half with all the people, the second half was quieter.  I did have my beer.  Read on.

    I was just recovering from my 100 mile the week before, also, I was not in great shape, so it was hard for me to run.  I tried.  First mile gone by.  There were still a lot around me.  Slowly people passed me.  Mile 2, then 3, and 4.  Slowly, I drifted back to my pace group.

    Then there was an urge to pee.  I looked over the potties lined at each aid station, there were always a line.  I did not want to stop for too long.  So I held it in. So mile 5, 6, 7.  I think by mile 8, I found an empty porta-potty and I stopped to pee.  An accident.  The person before me didn’t close/lock the door, so I thought it was empty and opened the door.  Oopsie. So I waited till it was my turn.   and when I could let it out that was the best feeling in the world. I didn’t care about my time by then.  I knew I would finish.  Eventually.

    We got to the Harbor.  I saw the small light house.  We passed by where we had our pasta dinner with the RWB people the night before.  That was interesting.  It was my first time on a navy ship. It was really cool.

    Anyway, I continued to run.  I saw Dan, he was a mile ahead of me.  I tried to look for Caroline, but somehow did not see her.  There was the young man I saw at the start and he was struggling with a leg cramp.  I offered him my bars but he refused.  I told him not to give up since the halfway point wasn’t far away. He did finish.

    Then mile 9, 10, 11.  Almost halfway.  I was still moving great.  I started to look for my pacer.  There were still faster people running past me. 

    Then I saw Caroline up ahead.  Poor her, hmm.  I usually catch up to her around halfway.  She asked if I would run with her.  Surely, no, not today.  While, I was not targeting a particular time, but I wanted to run my best.  So I passed her. 

    Mile 12, 13.  Not much I could remember.  The second half were way less crowded.  There were always someone in front of me. I started to get into my pace.  I was not passing people and less people were passing me. 

    I stayed with a guy who said it was his first marathon and he did not train for it.  We stayed together until mile 18.  I again offered one of my candy bar.  I told him, don’t eat it all, but eat it a bit at time when he is feeling the wall.  He did not carry any water or gels.  So he was screwed.  But I told him to run and walk and he will finish.  I did not get to see him again. I hope he finished the race.

    I started slowing down myself.  I think mile 20 or 22 was the the turn around point.  I was running through a neighborhood, and they offered me beer.  It was quite refreshing. By then, I really did not care about time.  I stopped and had a good cup of beer.

    I knew just few more miles and I would reach the finish.  The course was good enough to have mile marker at every mile.

    RWB people had their aid station at mile 25.  I made it my goal to get there to thank them and for their pasta dinner they hosted us the night before.

    I also wanted to chase down Dan.  At Coast Guard, I came in before Dan, so I felt I had a chance.  So I started to lay down the fire and pick up the speed.  I did beat my Coast Guard time by a min or so, but Dan was no where in sight.  Later, I found out he finished 15 mins ahead of me, likely bested me by a mile and half.  He is in his 70s, with 321 marathons under his belt.

    Caroline came in 15 minutes after me.  At the after race lunch, I met some local famous runners (forgot their name).  They made into the evening news, for having done like 100 marathons.

    Overall, I enjoyed the marathon.  I was running my best.  I used to run faster, hopefully, I could work on my speed and get the time down to 4 hours.  I have long put away my dream of being Boston Qualified.  That requires me to run sub 3 hour. Impossible for me now.  I run just to enjoy and to go to new places. 

    Our next stop will be Ohio for the Air Force Marathon in September and then The Marine Corps Marathon in October in DC.  Yes, we are doing the military challenge.  Too bad, the Navy and Space Force, and Army don’t have a marathon.

  • [702] MMT 100 race report (DNF)

    I stopped at mile 50.  The day started well. The weather was cool in 40s. The day was looking good.

    I was not fast but believed I could pull it through by fast hiking. 

    That proved me wrong. 

    The first aid station, I was 30 mins from the cutoff.

    By second aid station at Woodstock, my time was slipping by couple minutes.  I was hoping to hold the slippage.

    Then came Fort Powell, mile 26.  I slipped again by couple minutes. 

    I was still in the game as long as I held on the pace.  It is now past noon and sun was at its hottest.

    I climbed the road, went around the reservoir.  Then it was the Side Winding Trail to Meneka Peak.  This was my trying period.  I had to make several breaks.  Then I walked the four miles down on the other side.

    Eating and drinking was hard.  I was feeling light headed every time I tried to pick up my pace.

    Randy, my crew, was concerned.  He told me everyone came into Elizabeth Furnace looking beat up.  He helped me through and got me ice for my cap and pack.

    Out I walked Elizabeth Furnace going the wrong way.  The volunteered corrected me, and I went the wrong way second time, unable to follow the course ribbon.

    Then my fellow buddies, Charlie and Caleb left and I followed them up Shaw Gap.  This by far the hardest climb for me.

    Rain then came.  It cooled me down.  I could descend the other side to Shaw Gap aid station.  There Randy met me one last time.  He said he might not be at Hebron, mile 55.  I agreed.  He needed his rest before pacing me at 2 am.

    I knew deep down, possibly I might not get through the next three aid station before I see him. 

    I reached Veach with 15 minutes to spare.  From there, we had 3 hours to get to Indian Grave, mile 50.  In my mind, I misread or misremembered my arrival time at Veach, thinking I had 4 hours instead of 3 hours to get to Indian Grave.

    My chart says the cutoff time was 9:25, but my running companion, I newly met, mr. Vinny, told me it was 9:30.  So, I did not felt the need to do a full pace press to make the cutoff.

    As we decending at the Indian Grave trail, I thought, we had about a mile to go, Vinny told me we had 2.5 miles left.  We picked up a female runner on the way down. She asked if we are going to make it.  I checked my watch with about 30 minutes left, 2.5 miles, likely not but I will give it a try.

    So off I ran as fast as I could.  I got to the aid station at 9:30 thinking, they might still let me through.  I received the bad news, they said. I was pulled.  I accepted it.  On the bright side, I could go back to camp Caroline Furnace and have a good sleep.

    I needed it. My head was still spinning.  I could not eat yet I was hungry. I could not drink but was thirsty. I was tired and hurt all over.  I just wanted to crawl into bed.

    My friend Charlie made it to mile 54.  His friend Caleb went on.

    I thank you for the volunteers and race management for making the race possible.  There will always be next year.  I will train better and finish it next time.

  • [700] March Update

    In a blink of an eye, March is gone and April is here.

    I accumulated a pile of journal entries to be written.  I know every weekend was busy but now I cannot remember why.

    March 7:  Naked Bavarian 40 in Leesport, PA. Was it a good day?  We drove up the night before and stayed in Reading.  We had dinner with a friend of Caroline.  He brought us a lot of sweets – I had Cream Cheese and Lemon cake for breakfast the bext morning.  We were at the start bright and early and got the first parking spot, maybe first 20 spots.  I got my bib.  Caroline and Jeremy ran with me on the first loop for 20 miles.  I went back out for the second loop.  The cutoff was quite close but I made it and finished, avoiding the DFL (dead last).  Finished 10:01:38

    March 8.  Reston 10 (X) Miler. A race I have done almost every chance I got in my local area. Somehow, I got Caroline to join in my craziness.  I finished with a time of 2:03:34. We will see if next year too, we will do it again for 3 year in a row.

    March 14: Elizabeth Furnace 50k.  A lot of my friends ran this one, but I was quite slow so I was near the last place and only saw a few people. Scott started late but caught up and passed me.  Same for Dan, who passed me could hours in. I kept on trucking along and made the last cutoff at Elizabeth Furnace.  There I left my buddy Bill from PA to finish the final 10 miles.  My time was 10:36.

    March 21:  Terapin Mountain 50k.  A lot can be written about this if I have the time.  We went out the night before and camped out. It was beautiful. We had a slight rain.  The course has some big climbs, water, but mostly roads/fireroads and was easy until the final third, maybe mile 27-28.  We had one big humongous hill (mountain).  Barely made it through the last cutoff with 5 minutes to spare and finished in 8:34. I avoid the DFL.

    March 22.  Virginia Half Marathon. As if the weekend was not enough, we (Caroline) were crazy enough to go and we ran a half marathon a hilly course the next day, mostly just to stretch the leg out.  I had a time of 3:01:28.

    March 28. Lucky 13.1 in Tucson, AZ.  2:34:19.  A lot can be said about this.  Is it my first far away half marathon race?  It was hot, and fun one.  I was out in Tucson to support a friend running a 300 mile (Arizona Monster). I had a free Saturday morning, so why not sign up for a race. It was the only running I did out there.

    That was my March.  I had very little training done but a lot of races.  I hope that April would be the other way around, more training and less racing.

  • [699] onto D700 (February update)

    Why I have not written much?  Time. Not much time to write.  There are other priorities in life.  Also I have not been running much.  Another reason is writing requires thinking.  I have not had much time to sit and think.  Every day is rush rush to do this and that and at the end of the day it is bed time and then another sunrise and another month flew by and before you know it , it will be Easter.  Lastly, the app I used to post has changed.  I like the WordPress app but finally gave up on it because some settings I made, and it was no longer work with my blog.  I switched a “new” app called Jetpack.  It is not bad, but I am not used to it. I like the old WordPress app. I was one of the few holdovers who refused to migrate to the newer app. So, very little blogging done.

    Since the last post, I ran in two races.  Holiday Lake and the Reverse Ring and last weekend, the Massanutten Training Run #2.

    Holiday Lake 50k:  I was looking toward running the race with friends.  Like every year, I wanted to run it fast.  This year was not a fast year.  Jeremy, my buddy paced with me on the first loop.  We got through just shy of the cutoff.  After that, the second loop did not have a cutoff, but I did not know.  I was trying to finish before 3 pm.  I came in a bit over that.  Don’t remember my time.  8:03:43.  Three minutes over.  One of the last three runners to finish.  I could blame on the snowy icy condition that made me a tad slower.  Snow and ice was all melted by the  second loop though.  In theory, I could pick up my pace and run faster. I was out of shape.

    Holiday Lake was on the same weekend of the make up day for Angela Ivory 24-hour run.  The race I originally signed up to run, but could not because to snow.  The date then moved to the same weekend as the Holiday Lake.  I will wait till next year to attempt a 100 mile in Delaware.  As far as I know, it is the only 100 mile run available in Delaware. Caroline went to it and had a great time.

    Also due to snow, I could not run the Mid Maryland 50k that was scheduled for end of January 31 and was then rescheduled for this coming weekend (in March), which conflicts with the Naked Bavarian 40 race I will be doing. Note, we all be running fully clothed. Nothing scandalous here. Naked I think is a ket word for no frills and not getting a shirtsl.  More will be written if I do finish.

    The next run I did was the Reverse Ring 70 Mile.  This is a counterpart to the Ring I did in the fall (post). 

    Because it was in the winter, there was risk that it wouldn’t happen due to snow and the weather.  Last few weeks, we had two or three ice/snow storms that made the trail inaccessible.  Suddenly, right before the event, weather warmed up a lot, and most of the snow melted. We are talking high 40 – 50s F and it felt like summer to us, having been in the 10s on most days.  I could not ask for a better weekend to run it.

    To us, here local runners, running the Ring and the Reverse Ring is like a badge of honor. It is the most crazy thing we runners can do and brag about.  “I run the Ring in the winter.”  Of course, there are harder stuffs out there like doing the Barkley or The Wild Oak.  Those truly are ones people can brag about.  There are many other races too nowaday.  Some did the Swammie, which is another run I have my eyes on.  The Ring though is our local version of the big boy run.

    So, I have not been out on the course since mid January when I ran MMT training run #1.  I wanted to go out the week before right after Holiday Lake race to check on the part of the Orange trail that I was not so sure of, especially the turns at Duncan Knob.  Scotthorn and Duncan and Gap Creek intersect with one another always confuse me in the past and even now. Because of snow and ice that weekend and I was also pretty tired after the race, I did not go out to the trail.  The time I got to finally see the trail was on the race day itself. I have to just trust the motto to stay on Orange (the blaze color) for the course. The motto of Staying on Orange sounds easy but there are yellow, blue, white, purple,  green (is there green?) They all look the same at night under moonlight/headlamp light. 

    By Wednesday night, pretty much at the last minute, our beloved Race Leader Daisy gave the Go Ahead Signal.  So I packed up running things that I needed and made several calls to my friends and crew get them into place.  Everything sounds simple and well planned, but what the heck, I just like let things fall and hoped that they all landed feet up. Guess what?  It ended up better than expected.  My pacer at the last minute Friday night was still calling around for a ride!  I told him to reach out to my friend Jeremy, whom I did not know if he would come or not.  Just hoping that he would.  He did. They coordinated and got each other to where they needed to be.

    Caroline drove me to the start during the bright early 0400  Saturday.  The race started at 6. The sun was just about to rise. There I turned in my one and only drop bag.  It had a dry pair of clean shoes.  Plus a shirt, some snacks, two cans of Red Bull, some socks, pair of headlamps, and misc stuff like toothbrush, which I did not get to use at all (I was chasing the cutoff). They said keep the bag small and light.  Mine was average.

    We would see our drop bags at various aid stations minus couple remote ones like Crisman Hollow and Milford.

    There were many familiar faces at the start.  The Daren brothers.  They are local farmers and they joined us in past events.   John C and Charlie are my friends.  Charlie said I could stay with him.  Amanda, someone I ran with at my first Massanutten and quite an amazing runner when she first told me she did the Ring that year.  Back then I had no clue what the Ring was. 

    Then there was Robert P, who I am forever thankful for introduced me to his friend in Utah who was my pacer for my Wasatch 100 when I attempted my 100 mile Grand Slam in 2024. 

    They are my dearest friends.  I ran with many of them before.  They were running at about my pace.  Charlie said he would stay with John and I could too join up with them.  I said we will see.  John as I know is a fast bunny.  I like to go at my own pace rather than trying to keep up with faster people.  If it happens we would be going the same pace later in the race, then we be staying together.

    I had my friend Wayne to pace me at halfway after mile 46 during the night. It was something I was looking forward to.  He paced me several times in the past at other events such as the Devil Dog and Grindstone and we always have a good time.  He is a seasoned runner and highly respected runner.  He also went out with me to Wasatch and the whole idea of me running the Grand Slam and my motivation originated from him. Though if asked, he humbly said he has very little part in it.

    So up we went up the Signal Knob after starting and caught the morning sunrise.  It is interesting to note how much easier it was to go up at the Reverse Ring and to descend this mountain during the Regular Ring. 

    Pretty soon I was joined by Andy and Robert.  Robert stayed with me most of the time. Andy was always lurking behind.  I felt like I was being chased. We chatted and talked on various things.  Time slipped by quickly as we lollygaged.  He stayed near the start the night before and met some people at the bar.  He shared how a random stranger happened to be the father of one of our runners.  I thought that was so cool.  In no time, we reached our first aid station — Woodstock Tower.  The goal was to get there within 3 hours, but it took us 4:10.  Slightly behind schedule, but no big deal since it was not a strict cutoff aid station. I could still be in the game as long as I move a bit faster at the next section.

    Caroline was there. Later I found out she drove back home to get something and rushed back to the race to meet me at Woodstock.  If I had held my planned pace, we would have missed each other.

    She got me the things I needed. Refilled my water and out I went.  I did not wait for Robert. Maybe in my haste, I tripped over some roots.  I landed on my thumb…not sure how, maybe I was trying to brace the fall.  My thumb took the hit and started bleed on the edge where the nail and skin meet.  Nothing can be done but to suck on it. Up I got up and continued.  Soon Robert caught up to me.  We pushed on to the next station at Edinburg Gap.  Originally I planned to arrive there by noon, but now I was an hour behind, I thought I would not be there until 2 pm.  There will be a cut off at 4 pm at the 3rd aid station.  I wanted to get to Edinburg with three hours to spare to tackle The Short Mountain.  So I was rushing and made up the lost time and arriving at Edinburg at 1 pm.  Robert came in a little after me.  John and his two friends were in front ahead of me.  I got some food.  Caroline gave me the coffee that I saved in the morning.  That was great and best thing in the world.  We filled up a bottle of coffee for carrying out.  Then I bookied out leaving John and everyone behind. 

    Again in my rush, I missed a turn while hiking up on the fire road.  Luckily John and his two friends were right behind and called out to me.  I was saved and turned around.  John and team were faster runners and soon I lost sight of  them on the Short Mountain.  We had a cutoff right after this, so everyone was hustling.  We had exactly three hours to get through this.  I was trying to make it before the cutoff.

    I told myself to slow down with the first real technical trail, and eventually I would make it out.  Indeed by 3:45 pm I arrived at Moreland Gap.  In time before the cutoff. 

    John and his friends too were still there.  Caroline was there again with a lot people I know. Bruce.  Simon.  I had my lunch from a can of chicken soup, my favorite trail food and off trail food. She got me the Red Bull I asked for.  She said, she looked around the car and found it.  I swallowed that.  I packed some food out with me to attack the next and possibly the hardest section, Kerns Mountain.

    Up we climb Kerns.  The goal was to get through it before sunset.  Kerns is always a troublesome place because it is so rocky that it was impossible to run fast.  Having been through Kerns so many times now, I have memorized all the turns.  So again, a bit slower than the last section, I got through in about 3 hours, arriving at Crisman Hollow just before 7 pm.  It was still light.

    It was normally a no crew station.  This year, the gate was open for us (our event) so   Caroline could drop off my stuff like a pole, a jacket, and some drinks.  I did not ask for them but they were all helpful.  Without a pole, I would have a hard time getting down the Waterfall Mountain and through Big Run and Duncan Hollow.  Also because evening was approaching, temperature was dropping rapidly to 30s.  The jacket was came in handy.  My friend Jeremy and Wayne were volunteering there and they got me out as quickly as they could.  Also John H and Charlene were there.  People who are kind and helpful.

    John and his gang were no where in sight.  I did not know Erin dropped.  And Amanda just left a bit earlier.  My friend Robert came in not long after me.  We kind of left the aid station together. I was like a few minutes ahead of him, but his headlamp was visible to me.

    This was another hard part, to descend down the Waterfall Trail.  Luckily there was no snow or ice today.  The descent was uneventful.  I caught up to Amanda at the bottom.  There we climbed Big Run together.  It only took maybe 40-50 minutes to get to the top.  It might have felt a long time.  Now it was completely dark. 

    From there we headed to Duncan Knob.  The place was always confusing to me in the past.  Scothorn, Gap Creek, and Duncan, they all look the same.  Anyway, just follow Orange they say.  I paused at every turn to check my map.  I heard story how someone I knew stuck there for 12 hours during the night in a previous Ring event.  I was praying, let it not be me.  I got to get to Camp Roosevelt before 10 pm. 

    8 pm went by.  Then 9 pm.  It was about 9 miles.  So in theory should take about 3 hours since we were moving at 3 miles an hour.  However, I think it was a bit longer, 9.5 miles.  So accounting the extra half mile, I would have to run on every down hill.  Glad there were a lot of that.

    Then 9:30.  Robert who was behind me, too got nervous decided to break into a run.  He passed me at Duncan Hollow when I was struggling with mud and swamp.  I tried my best to chase.  He was soon out of sight.  I knew, I should have about a mile left.  And then out I came arrived at Camp Roosevelt with everyone there. 

    It was a happy reunion with all my friends.  John, Phil, Charlie, and Robert too were sitting around.  Dan and company were getting burgers for us.  Caroline helped me changed into night gear.  We heard it would going to snow that night.  I wanted to bundle up.  The next segment is not hard, it was just long.  25 miles with only one limited aid station at halfway. 

    Wayne was ready to pace me.  Jeremy reminded me to change out my headlamp.  It was a great advice since one I was using died.  So I picked up a fresh one.  He gave me caffeine tablets for the night.  I forgot mine.  I tried my 2nd can of Red Bull, but it did not taste right, so I could not drink it. Caroline helped refill my water and changed my socks and shoes.  I was now ready.

    Robert left 5 mins ahead.  Wayne was ready.  So we chased and passed Robert on our way up to Kennedy Peak.  Through out the night, I felt John and his team were on my tail and occasionally I would see their headlamps.  But in truth, they were an hour behind.  It might have been my halucination. 

    I now the fastest one in our group except that we were moving really slow.  On ocassion it was like 1 mile an hour.  I was struggling with every hill.  Milford seemed forever far away.  The wind picked up and it started raining at 2 am.  Wayne said, we should move faster to try to reach Milford before it changes to snow.  I agreed.  Yet I was battling sleep deprivation.  The caffeine pills Jeremy gave me, I misplaced them and could not found them.  I must have dropped them when I tripped over a root. Wayne gave me his gels. Oh well, we fought through the night.  Soon we saw a headlamp coming toward us.  It was Jeff Pence, another my good upbeat trail friend.  He was wondering why we were so long in arriving, so he back sweep from milford.  He is a local farmer so had the permission to be out at night.  Boy did that lifted me up, so now the three of us rushed toward Milford. 

    Milford though a limited aid station was sufficiently provided me with everything I wanted.  I had my water refilled.  They had oven baked pizzas.  I had some broth, some cake or something. This was a limited aid station because volunteers had to hike in over couple miles carrying all the supplies.  It was staffed by the local people. Larry and Jamie, also good trail friends, were there taking care of me. One of the Darren brothers was there.  Was I glad they were there in the dead of night.  I stayed till 2:50 before moving out.

    Now, there were only 12-13 miles left.  It should be easy.  We had to get to Veach, descend it.  Then climb up the other side.  Some Ridge running and soon we would be at Elizabeth Furnace.  I was estimating, that I could arrive between 6-7 am. In four hours max.

    Weather was getting bad.  Snow started falling.  We got to Veach when it was still dark.  Climbing out out of Veach was not too bad.  It was a gentle climb.  Up we went for like 3-4 miles.  Once we got to Ridge, I thought then it (the end) would be near.  However, I think we hiked another 7 miles. It seemed forever.  Soon it was light.  Snow now came down heavier.  The trail was almost covered by snow.  The hard part once the trail is covered, it would be hard finding the way.  My feet started feeling the cold.  It got numb and then my toes started hurting because of the cold.  Our pace was slower because we did not want to slip.  Trail got a bit more technical.  I was thinking how much longer before we start descending. 

    Wayne thought the cutoff was at 9 am and urged me to leave him to run ahead.  I said I would not even if that was true.  Because of the weather condition, we should stay together.  I could not and would not leave my pacer out on the trail.  Two are better than one.  Slowly we made our way down.  Once we descended sufficiently, the trail got easier.  There was no snow near the bottom.  I think we were back on 3 miles an hour pace.  Eventually, we started running.  Wayne then said, this part he knows well familiar with.  Me too.  We saw Elizabeth Furnace Campground.  Then , just a mile left.  I arrived back at the Signal Knob parking lot at 8:40.  So my finishing time was 26:40.  Not bad.  It was a faster time than my Ring time diring the summer, by 20 mins. 

    Jeff B (another Jeff) prepared a wonderful breakfast.  Toast with Grit.  Good grit.  I was too sleepy by then. After the meal, I went to Wayne’s car and we both dozed off while waiting for rest of runners to finish. 

    It was good seeing Amanda came in.  She was paced by my good friend Ram.  Phil came in next. Then Charlie and John came in.  It was a high finishing rate.  They had their story of not staying on the Orange.  Robert came in last. Robert also had his story of following John and Charlie off to a wrong trail and added like extra five miles.  The younger guys took off leaving Robert behind.  He perservered and finished.  Everyone got off the mountain safely and earned our badge as the Master of the Ring. 

    What a weekend.  I could not remember much.  Snow was beautiful.  It was a good time.  I would have made it if I was by myself.  However, it was infinite 100 times better to have good friend Wayne being with me during one of the loneliest stretch. My friend Jeremy waited for me to finish before heading home.

    It is one of the races/events only way to experience it is to do it.  I am just grateful I got to try it and got it done.

    The following weekend, I ran the MMT training Run #2. The highlight was having good food from Jeff.  It was another beautiful day.  There were many friends on the trail.  We did it.  I finished the day running with Dave and Jesse.  But most of the time, I was by myself. 

    I like to capture all my memories and such.  The run is like life.  We moved through from place to place.  Unless I write it down, I would forget.  Many things happened in between.  And that is it.  A long hard race. That a small window of the joy I had in the last month.

  • [698] Jan, for the record

    FTR, very little running and plenty things to do, but finally got a breather to update my blog.

    MMT 1 – training.  (50k) Was going to do a report, but very little to say.  It was my most anticipated toward event since Devil Dog 100. We  started early and shuttled to the start at 6 AM, lined up.  Wayne was there. Was going to do a no-wait pure focused run.  Yet, the first climb up on Moreland Gap put me at last of the pack.  There’s John and some other people behind, but found out they intended to drop out early at the next aid station.  That put the fire in me of not get cut.  It was then just me, Laura and Ram to duel it out. Since it was not a race, I eased up a bit by midday and took on the role of the unofficial sweeper.  We three finished relatively same time in the dark (7pm). I stayed a bit to catch up to the amazing RD Larry who will attempt the Thru Hike this year (his YT channel is up, DishragHikes, look him up).  Pretty much in line of last (2024) time. Was wondering if I have pushed my pace, I could have got it done by 5 pm?

    Next Up was a new race I have not done.  Angela Ivory 24. (100, though aiming on 50k that weekend) Signed up late and missed the free 50k option and was going to check out the event for a future 100 mile attempt in Delaware.  However, winter finally arrived and we had some icy snow condition that changed the plan around.  Race was deferred to a later date.  So I elected to cancel it altogether because the make up date is in conflict with another race.

    Mid Maryland 50k. It would have been my third time.  Weather again had another idea.  The race was canceled.  Caroline and I attempted to check the course anyway.  I wanted my premium even though I won’t be able to do the race at a later date.  It was an ice field and my memory of the course escaped me.  It was difficult to way find.  If I had time, I think I could do it.  But I was under pressure to get the run done, so we pretty much make a big figure 8 loop and called it a day. While Caroline could run on top of the ice, I had much harder time and kept punching through the ice layer.  It was not a fun experience with ankles being turned unexpectedly at every step.  My crampon did not stay on, I think they were too small for me.  The rest of the afternoon was shopping at REI trying to look for better Yaktrac.  Well many others have that idea too, because they were sold out.

    Where did we go this past weekend?  Oh, Uwharrie 40.  It was not my race.  Later did try to sign up but was full them.  The race was too far away, 7-8 hour drive in NC.  Supposingly 5 hours on Google Map but accounting for traffic and rest stops, it was one long trip.  Caroline ran.  I went back to the hotel to rest and later picked her up. I could have planned better to bring along my outdoor running gear to check out the local trails.  Indeed, town was about 30-60 mins away. Trail was well marked.  I was out walking about a bit, but got nervous after finding it is a hunting ground and I did not have a map with me.  I did not want to wander off trail too far. Yes, could have printed out a trail guide and I would be set.  I did not want to interfere with the race by running on the course itself, since banditing a race is a no-no in many places.

    I rolled my ankle right just before all the snow during Bull Run Run Training Run #1.  Also no report.  I did not officially signed up, but we were doing the run in reverse.  Let say there happened to be people from my running club there. I did take food from their aid station. Thanks Larry and volunteers. Totally unplanned, which Caroline was mad of me for diverting to after church.  Too long a story.  We got separated and the rest of run was not going to take place once we happened to meet back up.  I rolled my ankle that morning, so it would not be too sad if I had to cut it short.  We finished the run when the sunny day became dark and gloomy. Winter storm arrived that night and froze us in place for the next couple weeks. We also got to see the trail work project I took part in six months ago. I did not take any photos.

    That is all for January. For next year, maybe Long Haul, Forgotten Florida, and maybe Donna 110. Forgot maybe another Feb race, oh possibly Uwharrie. Big Horn for this year is still open. The Mid state Massive too.  I learned in Bible study this week about Balaam and his talking donkey, why did God tell him to go and then prevent him when he went.  There seems to a lot indecisiveness and unclear direction.  I might need a talking donkey myself to sort out which races to sign up.

  • [696] Thankful for 2025

    Wow where did 2025 go?  Not long ago, I was writing resolutions for the new year, actually, I did not write one for 2025 but reused one I did not published from 2023 (part1). Now I will be doing again for 2026 soon and maybe also for 2027. They were goals I have been working on for the past few years.  They are still my current goals.

    It is challenging that I have not made much headway into them.  So same this year. 

    Why/why not?  I think I have too many things to focus.  Some were not explicitly stated.  Well they are distractions too, I got pull into many short term goals.  Or seriously, I need time to sit down and decide again what my real goals and priorities are. Better control of what to take on and what to decline.

    This year has been a good year, that I survived.  Last year, I was too hung up with the Western States race and I said this year, I will take a step back and do things I enjoyed the most. I did tame down a bit with my running.  2024 was an unbelievable year in term of achievements and time commitment I gave.  2025, I did not train as much or as hard.

    I did still do a lot of running.  Most of my weekends were around either running my races or involved with Caroline’s races. We said we will do less of them next year.

    Stats:  I did 29 events out of 52 weeks.  A little more than every other week! Many of them required long driving for flying to another state.

    I ran 6 100 milers (2 dnf).  2 Marathons. 4 x 50 mile (2 dnf), 1 x 100k (GSER). 2 x 40 mile, 1 x 70 mile (the Ring).

    I reached 4895 measured miles (life time). Of course many of my training miles were not logged, maybe 4-5 times this amount.  The earth circumference is 24,901 miles.  I’m not there yet, but it is almost 1/5th of that.  The reason I mentioned the earth is with a team of 10, last year we finished running around the world.  It is a distance dream that maybe one day I could do it for real.  I might have already did enough miles to equal to the distance of going around the earth once (if included my training runs over the last nine years).

    Here are some race highlights of 2025.

    My good races:  Grindstone 100, finally finished this after 3-4 tries.  I lost count how many years since I got hook into this race.  Last year was the most brutal DNF.  This year was its redemption. No, I won’t go back there next year other try other than more camping at the Twot.

    Vermont 100 – squeaked by this one.  Hope to do it one more time.  Third the charm they say!  As well as Virginia 100, I squeaked by it, but it was very satisfying.  It will be my motto next year.  The only reason I finished was the song: “He went leaping and praising God.”  I was the lame man whom God made whole again!  The race felt like a meraculous healing. Then, the latest race was the Devil Dog 100.  I just grinded it out.  I was thankful I got it done.  Hope to run it again in the foreseeable future, at least for 2026.

    Massanutten 100 –  I was a pacer to a very good friend at the MMT100 for 2025, the only year I sat out because I was too exhausted.  God is gracious I was able to help a runner that totally aligned with me own goals.  As a pacer, we tried to get our runner to the finish, but ultimately, it was the runner who puts in the work.  It was thrilling we got it done.  I signed up for next year to run it myself. It will be me, myself to be in the driver seat again.  It is a thrilling race to write about.

    Old Dominion and Eastern States 100.  Both, I did not finish.  Old Dominion was harder than I anticipated.  Same for Eastern States.  Eastern States was at the level I thought where it should be.  I needed to work hard at it if I want a finish.  I think Eastern States is easier than Grindstone though and even easier than Massanutten.  Some of my friends disagreed.  Just my opinion.  I felt Eastern States is “rubnable.” But I am strong on hill climbs, so it makes it easier.

    Thank you Caroline for being at my every race this year.  Whether they were successful or a failure, it was a good run.

    Trips:  I was proud of being able to camp out on July 4th weekend on the Grindstone course.  It was my one and only backpacking trip of the year.

    Holaday Lake.  50k++ Nothing to write about the race itself but my time surrounding the race was memorable.  Most of my trips are also races.  We went to Farmville and ran on the High Bridge.  It was my first time to visit Farmville.  I passed through several time but this time, I actually knew where I was.

    GSER – 100k in Atlanta.  I went there almost every year since 2020.  Last year and this year were most memorable.  I got to show the city to Caroline.  Of course she’s been there before.  What so special is we ran 62 miles through the city from Kennasaw Mountain to Stone Mountain.  We rode the train around Stone Mountain and looked at the carving on the rock face. Not sure if I will be back next year, I hope to be.  There will be scheduling conflict with the C&O 100.  Not that I plan to run the C&O, but I likely will be there to help out.  I love my local races anf the Harper Ferry area too.

    Utah – DC Peaks.  I learned a lesson about winter running.  Got to met friend and pacer.  I went out twice this year, one for Wasatch to crew a friend and one for my own race.  Happy Caroline helped me there. The race itself was too short (because I dropped out early).  What we did other than racing left behind better memories.

    Savannah.  (no report) It was a busy trip.  My goodness.  I think the journey what captured my imagination.  We came back when it was snowing and our plane/trip took us to Baltimore instead of DC.  We took the train back to Virginia.

    End of the year, it made me to think about what I accomplished what I set out to do for next year.  I think my one goal this year was to finish Grindstone (and Eastern States, alas).  All other goals were pretty much incidental.  I am happy the year did not broke me too badly. 

    Relationship wise, it has been a roller coaster ride.  I don’t even know what to say.  There are successes and failures.  Not sure if that is appropriate to call them successes/failures like races.  They were Events, high points and lows.  We finished a course of counseling. There were many crying and times of joy.  More laughters than crying.   We trudge on.  Relationship is not like races.  There is no redo.  There are a lot changes in the future expected.  One step at a time.  To me life is like a 100 mile race, there will be slow portion and fast, we go from one aid station to the next.

    What’s next.  That will be part 2.  Somehow, I need to align my current goals with those coming up. I mean for the next few years too. I will be evolving.

    Personally, I already signed up for races: MMT 100, Eastern States, Devil Dog, Vermont, Hennepin (new race for me, In Oct.), and Kettle Morraine (new for me, in June).  It is quite a load.  The one I will be stressing the most will be Massanutten and Eastern States.  I will be perpetually training again.  Also, Thinking of Angela Ivory 100, should I or should not I?  Likely not, but would like to, and that for another day.

  • [695] Race Planning for next year

    Every time this year I become poorer because many race signups opening for registration.

    And I will have a hard time limiting myself to run only one race for each year. Yes, it is a joke if I could limit myself to running just one race.

    It has been quite a splash for me the last few seasons. 2024 was my grand slam year. My schedule was jampacked to do all the required runs and all my personal (goal) races.

    2025, I said I will slow down and run some races I did not get to run during my grand slam year [last year’s (2024) Plan], which still got me running almost every weekend.

    Now 2026 is here. I want to slow down yet it will be pretty much the same  with 5-6 big 100 mile races and then all the 50k and marathons in between.

    I will try to cut back some and only run races I did not get to run in 2025. I’m lying of course. Well, that is the goal anyway, to run fewer races and cherish the ones I get run.  Move the ones I did not get to into another year.

    As I look at my schedule, they are getting fuller. My mom says I should spend time more with family, with sister, wife and kids and everyone else.

    I love running above anything. And these 8-9 years have been a blast. I started running 2016. Each year is something more. So next year would be my 10th year.

    Caroline also said, she cannot be with me in many of the races going foward. We won’t be together much if we don’t plan things to be together. So on my 10th year anniversary (2027?) since when I ran my first race, I got to choose my races carefully next year.

    I have been wanting to do a 200 miler. Never get around to do one. So maybe 2027 is the year. Note, they cost a fortune to do!

    So here below is what I have on my race calendar so far. More races will be added and some will be remove.

    My forever Goal: Run in all fifty states (38 states left)

    Here are next few races I have in mind for this year and the next. Letting the world peek into my race calendar. See the race history for my past races.

    —-

    ~~2026~~:

    vision: /go to the Canyon with Caroline/

    Marathon Goals: xxxx_none_xxxx

    Ultras: unfinished Eastern States 100, Kettle Morraine 100, Hennepin 100. Devil Dog, MMT, Vermont.

    Jan 31 (reg’d) Mid Maryland 50k!

    Feb 14 (reg’d) Holiday Lake 50k++ (heated cabin reserved, +pizza dinner)

    Feb 21 (reg’d) Reverse Ring

    Mar 7 (not yet reg) Naked Bavarian 40/20

    Mar 21 (,) Terapin Mnt (opens Dec 1)

    Mar 28 (,) Hone Quarry (opens?)

    Mar 27-Apr 3 (a friend is running, support,) Arizona Monster 350

    Apr 4. (reg’d) Bull Run Run 50 (BROT)

    April (last week, reg opens Jan 1) C & O 100

    April (last week) (‘) Promise Land 50k++

    May 2.  (,) Maine Coast! is in Maine

    May 16.  (reg’d) MMT 100. Third time the charm, see if I can have 38 cutoff. start at 3 AM.

    May 24, (,) Vermont Marathon (opens Nov 1) (V4)

    Jun 6: (not reg yet) Old Dominion. opens Nov 29. Need a qualifying race.

    Jun 13-14, (conflict, reg is open) OSS/CIA 50

    Jun 14, 2025. (,) **Kettle Moraine 100** (Reg opens Jan 1, 11 am CST) (V)

    July last week? (,)  Vermont 100,!! (V) opens Jan 1. drawing on Jan 11.

    Aug 8: (reg’d) Eastern States 100. (V)

    Sep 25. (conflict) Yeti 100. (Reg opens Jan 1, 00:01) (V)

    Sep 26-29 (,) Cowboy 200??

    Oct 10-11, 2026. (not reg) Mid State Big Massive Tr 100!!! (early reg opens dec 1), ask for wave 1-3 (eta 31-33hrs), (V3) 8am start for wave 1, 9 am for wave2.

    Oct **, 2026, 10/11?, 10/18? (‘) Bimbler Bluff 50k

    Oct 25, 2026, (‘) Greasy Goony

    Oct 25, 2026. (reg’d) MCM 26.2

    Nov 1, (not yet reg) MMTR 50

    Nov. Grand Canyon (2 week vac) during Thanksgiving.

    Dec 3 (,) Devil Dog 100 (V2)!!

    ~~~Following year Goals~~~

    January 5? New Mexico Las Cruces Marathon. RRCA race. flat

    Jan 15. Baton Rouge Marathon. Louisiana.

    (Jan 31) (likely) Dark Anchor 100, Savannah, GA (Charleston, SC, airport) or Long Haul 100.

    (Feb 2) (maybe) Forgotten Florida 100, Christmas, FL

    (Feb 5) Mississippi River Marathon (Delta). Mississippi

    (Feb 12) (not likely) ALQ Feb 12 50K / DUC100K, reg opens black friday

    (Feb 17). Austin Marathon. Texas

    (Feb 24) (on the fence) Lousianna Red Dirt 100 mile

    (Feb 26-27) (considering) Atlanta Publix Marathon. hmm. I think they changed the course (reg open $100)

    (Mar 3, 2025) (considering) Ultra Caballo Blanco Copper Canyon Ultra, Mexico, Ramamuri (Tarahumara)

    (April 2) (Considering) Dogwood Ultra – 24 hrs. down in central VA

    (April 5) (Considering) Bootlicker 100

    April 20. One Day Hike.

    Apr 26 (conflict!) St Louis Marathon

    May 4, 2025 (considering) Vancouver BMO Marathon

    (May 22?) (considering) Fargo Marathon, ND

    (May 28?) (maybe) (memorial weekend) Vermont City/ Burlington Marathon / rebranded M&T Bank Marathon. RRCA race

    (May 28) Coeur D Alene Marathon

    May 31-Jun 1: (conflict!, see below) Fargo Marathon, ND

    (June) Alaska Marathon

    June 22, 2025?, (considering, but not likely) New York City running Exposition (100 mile)

    Jun 20. Highland Sky. Race opens Feb 2

    Jul 16-17. (considering 2024?) (Hyped) Tahoe Rim Trail (TRTer) 100/50. reg lottery open in Dec 5. Drawing Jan 1, Stroke to sign up. race is on Sat. 8 hr trail work req for 100Mi. Q: Can I tackle a 100 on the west coast?

    Sept 29-30, 2023. Yeti 100. reg opens Jan 2. Virginia Creeper Trail

    Quebec Marathon (Oct 5)

    (Oct 13-15, 2024,) (considering) **Tahoe Marathon Super triple, 2 marathons plus 70M**. road. around Lake Tahoe. very interested, opens when, Feb?

    (Nov 5~) (considering, maybe) Alabama Pinhoti 100. something worth considering or, am I dead focused on Grindstone?

    (Nov 11) (conflict, next year) Chickamauga Battlefield GA, Marathon

    (Nov 18-19) (considering for next year) Route 66 (Tulsa City) Marathon – Oklahoma (fall), might defer or last minute Audible. Wait till July to decide (money issue).

    Nov. (considering) Tampa 100.

    (Dec 4~): (not likely/conflict) Rocky 50 PA Fatass. http://www.rocky50k.com/. Always been considering, 1st of Dec

    (Dec 3-4) (conflict) San Antonio Marathon.

    (Dec 7?) (considering, maybe) CIM – California Marathon.

    ~~NEAR FUTURE~~

    (R2R2R) or Nepal trip, Sydney Marathon

    Capadocia ultra trail run

    -Jan: (defer) Charleston, SC

    -March: (defer) Myrtle Beach SC

    –March: (defer) Atlanta Publix Marathon, GA 2024

    -April. (considering, alternative) 100 mi NC. Umstead. (likely will defer). Might be boring, loop course

    (Jun) (probably won’t) SF Dipsea race. America oldest trail race. believe reg open in Dec. Too far and the race is too short. Plan D.


    June: (possibly) Bay of Fundy, Maine

    August 23-24 (conflict) Tromsø/Oslo Trip, likely 2026.

    -Sep: (defering) Air force, Ohio

    (Sep 25) (no for 2022?) Yeti 100. Abingdon, VA. fast, flat, race around 9/25/20. Or wait for another year

    -Oct: (considering) Mt Desert, Bar Harbor, Maine

    future races:

    -(defering) Detroit Marathon, MI, or Niagara Falls Marathon, NY.

    -Hawaii Maui Marathon (Dec) (will save it till last) or HURT (Hawaii Ultra Trail Run)

    -the big ones, LA, NY, Chi marathons
    –Buffalo Marathon (Jun?). Chance to go to Niagara Falls again
    –Niagara Falls Intl Marathon, (OCT) It takes place at Niagara Falls, and will cross over to Canada

    Overseas:

    –Hong Kong Marathon (Feb 2022)
    –Sydney Marathon (Sept 2024)
    –Inca trail (June/July) (2021/2022)
    –Santiago Marathon (April – Easter Sunday)

    –Patagonia Ultra (50K). Oct/Nov

    –Tata Mumbai Marathon on 20th January 2019
    –Vietnam HCMC Marathon (Jan 10)
    –Belfast Marathon (May 5, 2019)/ –Causeway Coast Marathon (Sept) (Ireland)
    –Dublin Marathon (Oct 27, 2019)

    Ultras: (run100s.com)

    –Yeti 100, Abingdon. Or VA Big Butt ultra

    -R2R2R (rim to rim to rim of the Grand Canyon) (October). Need 1 year booking in advance

    (Dec 7) (Sat. – considering) Rocky Fat Ass. Philly, PA. free event. no medal, no support. fun.

  • [694] Devil Dog 100 (4x)

    December – another year gone by.

    I finished the year with my own tradition of running the last ultra at Devil Dog Ultras (100).  I have gone to this race for the last five years. (2024 race report).

    To me it is a low stress, fun, but also known as a sneaky hard race, which it still surprises me after so many times how hard it is. 

    I usually don’t train for it but just go in and wing it.

    Some people got a natural talent.  Mine is to squeak it out and that I did it again.

    I think the downfall comes when people underestimated how hard the race is. Pointing finger at me!

    Speaking from experience, I did not finish (DNF) this race on my first try at their 100k distance. Ever since, I got a bit better at it.

    The finishing rate for this 100 miler is around 50 percent to a low 30%.  This is surprisingly low since the trail is not that hard (just my opinion) and is in the suburb of Washington DC, meaning it is easily accessible for training and the terrain is nothing like on top of a mountain or something. It is in a Forest Park, meaning both easy and hard.

     This year 61 runners finished out of 112 started, and 8 did not show up, which put it right over 50% and this is a good year with the most finishers ever.  The race was sold out too this year.  I remember a year when only 37 people finished, was that last year maybe? That speaks a lot.  The race is definitely sneaky hard.

    I think it is hard because there are slight elevation changes (rolling hills) and roots and a little bit of technical footwork where it feels very runnable, but as the miles pile up, with a slight unfavoritable condition like a drop in temperature (always since it is winter)  would easily derail one’s race plan. Even obe slight fall would do it.  I took two falls this time and twerked my ankle twice. Each could have been a race ending event, but I walked it off.

    While I love running other 100 mile races, such as The Massanutten 100 or Vermont 100 and calling those my favorites, my action proves stronger than words, that Devil Dog 100 is the one race I have come back again and again. I might want to get a 1000 mile, joke one would receive a puppy.

      I almost could not finish it this year or the last year or the year before that.  I have always firted with cutoffs and this time around too.

    I thought I had a plan coming into the race.  I set a goal to run 17 min pace first 33 miles and 18 min pace for 2nd third and 19 min pace for the final third.  And it is a slow progression, easing my way to the finish two a 31 hour finishing.  It was a bit ambitious, I finished at 31:22 (hours).

    My body and my feet had a different goal.  It ended up being moving slower than I wanted to, 18:05 min (per mile) first third, and 19:30 second third and then 18:30 final third. Noting it down for future planning, if I happen to reread it before my next Devil Dog.

    So what happened?  The usual.  I could not run fast maybe due to lack of training or feet just not ready for the trail.

    On the very first loop, I rolled my ankle on a flat section about halfway in maybe at mile 10 or 12.  And it hurt. Silly me. I went limping to walk it off.

    Then with maybe 3 miles left in the first loop, I slipped and landed on my butt because I was trying to look cool like everyone else running down a steep hill.  The cooler 50k people people were passing me at the time.  In my mind, I still got that cool light steps of flying down a hill and I wanted to be like them.  Nope. Not any more. The back of my shoe slipped and down I went. Luckily, I sat on my butt and all the cool kids from behind started asking if I was okay. Embarrassing.  Me an old man trying to run and fall. A fellow runner, Bruce, who is a bit older than me was right behind but did not comment.  Then he ran off and I did not see him again until the last loop.  Apparently he gained an hour on me by the third loop.  That is quite impressive.

     So my pace was not going well.  I started slow on my first loop and ended up even slower in subsequent 4 loops.

    It is a typical ultra thing.  I was wishfully thinking I could do a reverse split.  I proud that I did pull it through for a finish.  No reverse split but did save the race. It took me all effort.

    I ended up pushing harder to make the late cutoffs.  It was never fun to chase cutoffs. 

    Overall, the race was peaceful.  I have done it so many times and each time is a little different.  Some years I was very excited.  Last year was cold.  This year was still cold with light snow covering the ground. But we are thankful the worst such as freezing rain that was forecasted a week out did not occur. 

    The temperature was 37F (the car reading) in early morning and it got to maybe low 50s.  Overnight dropped again to high 20s and low 30s.  Wind was calm.  It was foggy at times.

    It was not as cold as last year (17F). Still, it felt pretty cold without proper clothing.

    I did prepared by dressing well though.  Two layers, shirt underneath, and a long sleeve on the outside.  I had a winter coat on while waiting for the start and ditched it once we got moving. Gloves, hat, bluffs, arm sleeves, and a windbreaker or light jacket too is almost a must.  Note, the park is big so there are some places that feel cooler than in another.  So from time to time, we either put on or pull off what we were wearing.  I think Camp Gunny is a bit nippier than the rest of the course.

    At night, I added a third layer, it was a thin thermo material, maybe wool on the outside and that did the trick for me.  I threw on a fourth layer, a light windbreaker after midnight.  Since I was moving (running) fast to chase (soft) cutoffs, I did not feel the cold. In the past years, I would put a hoodie or even a winter coat in the middle of the night because my pace was too slow to generate enough heat.  Night time was near 20s, subfreezing temperature and many people quitted because of the cold.

    Coming into the race with prior years’ experience, I told myself not to worry too much about the race, but I did. 

    I made a pace chart on a spreadsheet, searching things for my drop bags, packing them and delivering them to the race a day before, and messing with my nutrition plan.  It was hectic trying to pick up bibs two days out.  Then I went to the race site again the day before.  Plus, I did couple training runs there a few weeks out.

    I was rushing to get the right stuff into drop bags even up to the last minutes.  I started purchasing my food and supplies couple weeks out! The best purchased I did was headlamps from Costco for $25. They served me well, maybe more on it later.  I need another pack because it was such a good deal.

    The race consisted of 5 loops of 20 miles.  Well, technically the first loop is 23 miles and the rest then are 19 miles.  In my mind though, I treated them as equal distance for easy math/splits in my head.  Generally, I was aiming for 6-6:15 ish hours per loop.  With 5 loops meaning 30 hour ish finishing time. The race allows for 32 hours but really one should aim for 31 hours due to the earlier than expected cutoff on the last loop. You have to start the last loop with more than 6.5 hours or else it is very tough to finish. I personally, recommending minimum 7 hours for the last loop.  Start the last looo at 7 AM and will be fine.  For the 100K, start the last loop by 6/6:30 PM. Otherwise, tricky. Yes, the 100 milers could go at the 100k pace (almost, maybe at the first or 2nd loop).

    There are three aid stations on the course with 3 additional water only locations.  However this year, I did not use any water-only station to save time.  I might reconsider that in future race as part of my race strategy.  It worked out well this year for not stopping for water at any station but the first one.

    I drank only about 1L of water sometimes even less on an  entire loop 20 mile loop.

    I did have an extra 12-16 oz of gaterade or various other liquid that I would sip for time to time.  I actually did not use my extra bottle until the third loop. I had extra liquid like Red Bull in my drop bags, but because I was short on time, I did not get to use my drop bags often. Later in the race, I just skipped by aid stations or drop bags due to lack of time.

    Oh, I wasn’t going to carry the extra Gatorade bottle but someone forgot it in the dinning area before the start of the race and a volunteer thought it was mine and rushed out with it saying I’ve forgotten it, so I took it. It was unopened.  It might have been someone’s race plan to run with a bottle of Gatorade. Sorry, but thank you for whoever left me the bottle in the dinning hall. I would complain that it was a zero calorie version, but free is free. 

    I started off slow at the back of the pack and met other people around my pace.  My friend Bruce was there and I wanted to run with him  and so was Scott and his son Brandon.  Then there was Kevin. Charlie, John, Jeremy, Caleb and Ben we met and chatted before race but they were way far ahead.  I met my idol Phil for the first time, who I only know through his race reports for Eastern States.  I finally met him in person.  I think it was awesome.  As the race got going we settled into our own pace.  I was mostly with Scott and Bruce on the first loop though later they too either took off or fell behind my pace by the second loop. Scott’s wife was kind enough to crew me too at various aid stations before Scott and son dropped out. I was pressing for time then and it was good to have someone to help the resupplying when I came in. She was back at the finish to cheer.

    The course has a portion of out and back and so I got to see some faster runners.  Jeremy and friends were 3 miles ahead of me by end of the first loop.  I anchored in the rear as the unofficial sweeper I called myself.  I came across Sisou too twice, end of the first loop and then third loop. We chatted and were happily reunited again.

    First two loops I maintained an average pace of 18 min.  I wished I could have gone out faster. I thought I was doing great too on the third loop but I realized by the end of it, I was slipping behind with my pace.  I wanted to finish the third loop around 12:30 am but I did not come in until 1:15 am.  This makes finishing the fourth loop by 7:30 am tough. I realized I would have to run for it to make the cutoff.

    Volunteers were great.  I arrived middle of the night at Gunny 2:45 am, and I was going to be quick.  They brought me hot cider. I was going to skip the aid station table.  I drank it while I swapped out my headlamp for a fresh one.  Note, pro tip, don’t change the batteries but swap to a new/fresh lamp to save time.

      I was wearing the new headlamp I just brought from Costco.  They could last 7 hours on low and 3-4 hours on medium brightness and 2 hours on high.  I had it for 5-6 hours and I felt safer to swap it out before it dies.  They were available at Costco, 3 for $25. Sorry don’t know the brand. They were well worth the money spent.  They work like a $100 headlamp with all the features such as using rechargeable as well as can be used with AAA batteries.  I trusted plain AAA battery headlamps over rechargeable ones in the past because I know with new batteries they will last me through the night but with rechargeable ones, you can’t ever be certain.

    I got to say it works out well.  The downside with AAA headlamps is they are dim.  Costco ones are bright and the battery life is good enough. It just a bit heavier in my opinion but about just slightly more than my normal AAA headlamps. I had heavier lamps in the past. Of course, some of those $100 ones are super light.

    So I started chasing my self imposed cutoffs on the fourth loop.  I wanted to be at Gunny (mile 66/67) by 3:15 am and I arrived by 2:42 am.  That was really good.  I surprised myself of able to move that fast this late stage in the race.  I knew I did it in previous years but this time was a bit harder without a pacer to draw motivation from.

    I wanted to arrived next at Toofy by no later than 5:25 am and I did it by 5:12 am.  If any later, I would not make the first morning cutoff.  Then I wanted to reach Camp Remi (mile 81) by 7:25 (7:30 is the first official hard cutoff), I arrived there at 7:12 am.  I added some cushion to my cutoffs.  It was not right up to the cutoff, but generally 10-15 minutes to spare.

    I had an extra motivation because about 6 miles out from Remi (middle of the fourth loop), I met Alex, who is a godsends fellow runner, as I was passing people one after another and I thought he was struggling on his 4th loop and did not realize he was on his fifth and last loop.  He was in pain at the time was stopping for some ibuprofen (note, not recommended for ultra runners to take but that seems to what everyone I know does). He said he promised his wife to be finishing around 7 AM.  So he and I partnered up, though none of us was going to wait for each other.  We spurred each other on to run our heart out and chatted on hill climbs when slowed down.  I had to make my morning cutoff, but he had a faster pace than me and is a really good strong runner.  So we ran and we made it.  He made it in like at 7:05. I arrived at 7:12, just a bit after he did.

    I still had a final lap to go.  There, Bruce asked if I am going out again or I asked him the same thing.  I was suprised to see him still there. While I just got in so I needed fueling on water and stuff, he was ready to go.  He waited for me a bit and that might be his undoing because he unfortunately missed a later cutoff by a few minutes. I believe he would have finished, if he got out the station ahead of me instead of waiting.

      I knew the day time would warm up and I wanted to ditch my layers.  I kept my gloves because my hands were freezing.  That is another story of misplacing my gloves and head bluffs in my drop bags that I could not find them when I needed them. So my hands were cold to freezing the whole previous day until night fall when I realized I could use a spare set of socks as mitten and I wore my sock mittens.  I finally found my gloves later on and had them on the whole final 6 hours of the race.  Only regret was I did not took off my long pants in the morning.  I could have ran with just shorts I had on underneath.  The frictions and heat created chaeffing during the morning time.

    Well, Bruce left first (not by much though) but I caught up in no time.  We had to get to Gunny by 9:00.  So I was running my heart out again and did not wait for Bruce, with the best hope of reaching it by 8:45. Running is a cruel sport. At any other time, I would have stopped to chat and walk with Bruce. I arrived at Gunny around 8:43.  It gave me couple minutes of buffer for my next cutoff attempt.

    The next cutoff at Toofy, which is mile 94 is at 11:30.  I made some wrong mental math errors thinking I now have three hours to get there instead of 2 and half hours. So I wasted a bit of time with  slow walking.  I told myself, I pressed hard on the last loop and it took me 2.5 hours to get to Toofy, so if I realy want to make the cutoff, I should be running just as hard as the last loop regardless what the math says.  So I started running all over again, pushing my pace at every opportunity.  I got there by 11:20.  The plan was to arrive before 11:25.  I prayed hard as I ran, please don’t let me be cut with just a few minutes over. I was not sute how strict the aid station captain/timer was (the Bligans), though they are my friends. Rules are rules I told myself. I have to make a good effort to arrive on time.

    From Toofy to Gunny, I knew I had enough time to finish. Another 2.5 hours but only 6 miles to go instead of 8.5 miles on my the last push.  My pace slacked down a bit.  I sat at every bench available whenever I saw one to rest my feet.  The first two miles after Toofy was an eternity.  Then I toughened up mentally because if I had continued at the current pace, I might not make it in by 2 pm.  I must aim to reach the unmanned water station at midway (mile 97). I seriously believe I was the very last one on the course. So I again tried to go at a faster pace by brisk walking.  I reached it around 12:30. I wanted to let Caroline know I had only 3 miles to go, but phone had no signal. 

    These last three miles are familiar to me.  I tried to memorize every feature there is in my previous loops.  I said there are two big hills to climb and three bridges to cross. And however many rock piles (1) to climb over.  I was expecting every unusual tree and turn. I got to the final turn at 1:15.  Caroline was waving at me near the top of the hill.  Together, we climbed the rest of the way  to the finish line.

    Like every year, there was good finishing line food in the dinning hall.  I got to wind down.  Caught up on things.  I avoided the DFL (known as dead last finishing) by finishing in 2nd from the last place. It was good enough.  The whole time I thought I was the DFL.

    Any lesson learned? The Goods:  I finally have a good set of headlamps.  When I have the chance, going to buy an extra pack for future races.

    2nd: set short clear goals during the race.  Reach for them. Thank you Jeremy for teaching me this at Grindstone when he paced me.

    Bads:  Have to train better next time, and not get caught behind the cutoffs.  I had a pace chart written out but did not get to use it when I was rush for time.  3. Know where I put my stuff. I spent so much time packing my things (2 hours) but still could not find anything.

    Nutrition/water was spot on. Clothing was almost perfect. I still packed too much in my drop bags, working on being more efficient, but it was better to overpack than underpack.

    Thank you for friends, family, volunteers, race management team of making the race possible. Thank you Caroline, my love, for putting up with all my stresses and fusses in my preparation. Those who finished or did not finish, may God grant me another chance to come back and do it again and run with them.

  • [693] catch-up, Philly Marathon (cheering crowd), NCR Marathon (half)

    So it has been some time since my last race. Holiday and such we are into December at the very end of the year.

    So many things happened in personal life, with all the ups and downs, and racing, it is hard to say or remember what happened in between.

    Of course, if I run I would remember. Last few events, I have sat out, maybe due to lack of money, motivation, and also to let my body recover from some hard runs I did such as Grindstone and the Virginia 100. Sometimes, it is not the body needed rest but the mind.

    It was a season for me to do nothing. One stand out was going to Mountain Masochist 50 Run to volunteer. It was a course I hiked on in my earlier days 2016/2017. Never had I thought that trail was runnable. So it will be my future project to go back to run on it. That reminded me, I forgot to ask the Aid Station captain to sign my volunteering form for Vermont 100 for 2026. Oopsie.

    The second event I did was going to Philadelphia to cheer Caroline for her marathon. I ran it two years ago now seemed ancient. I had a good time when I ran and I believe the condition was same this time. We had nice weather.

    We executed the plan like my previous trip to Philly. We arrived a day before. My cousin happened to be there at the Convention Center for a gaming event and so I asked him to pick up the race Bib for Caroline, otherwise we would have been hard press to try to get there before the closing. We arrived two hours after closing (5 pm). It would have been tight if we had tried to pick up the bib ourselves.

    With the assurance that the Bib was secured. We stopped for lunch in Virginia (Yechong, my favorite Korean place) and later met up my cousin in chinatown at a pizza place where I tried the authentic philly cheesesteak. It was too rush to truly enjoy my first cheesesteak in Philly, so one day, I got to go back and try again.

    We stayed in New Jersey since hotels in Philly were either fully booked or many times the price we were willing to spend.

    It meant the very next day, we had to get up 3 or 4 in the morning and we made the drive to Philly. I was worried that there would not be a place to park our car but there were plenty public parking garages near the community school. Sorry, I forgot which street that was on. Parking was around $12 for the whole day, which was good. We paid like $15 the night before for an hour in chinatown.

    We stayed in the car until reasonable time to walk to the start. I was anxious to get my runner into the chute and into runner village. As I remembered, the walk might be a mile out and for me in the previous year, going to security took a long time. Caroline though breezed through the security check. The runner village where runners waited for the start was restricted to runners only, so I waited outside.

    She did not use a drop bag and she wore a light jacket, so she was cold before the race even started. I had on plenty of clothes and winter coat and whole shebang so I was toasty. I saw many runners tossed away their throw-away jacket. She could have done the same like at the MCM earlier.

    We waited and finally by 7 am, the first wave came out. Caroline lined up in the 5th wave. There were two sides of the street where runners would be running through. I stood on the midian and betting she would come through from the left. However, it happened just too fast and I did not see her went by. She could have gone by from the right.

    When I was sure, no runners were left, I walked to mile 6, which was just a few blocks from the start for us, but runners had ran 6 miles by then. There, I set up to catch her. This time was a success. The street was narrower only like 5 runners deep, so it was easy to spot. Also, by now runners are pretty much slowing down. We could even read out runner’s names on their bibs and cheered by calling their names. I stayed maybe an hour and then had another breakfast at some food truck nearby.

    So, I checked the map and followed the crowd to the next location by the river. This was maybe 3 miles away. It was so exciting with everyone screaming. For runners, it was their mile 12. They went up to the reservoir and then running back down, so we could see them twice. So I heckled Caroline again. She was moving well. Pace-wise, on pace for me to arrive exactly when she appeared. So I was please for not having missed her.

    After the river section, it was my lunch time. I stopped by some grocery store and brought a bag of chips. Caroline had a long way to go to a turn around point at mile 20. I had plenty of time.

    If I had a car or bike or know how to take the public transport, I could have gone to mile 20 to see her. I spent maybe two hours trying to get there but in the end I realized I wouldn’t make it so I started cutting across town to where I think she would be. It was just passed the cementery. Someone told me it was mile 23. Caroline arrived like a few minutes later. So it was perfect.

    The final stop would be the finish line. I walked and run using a shortcut to mile 26, learning from earlier wandering around the race course. I think it was using 19th st or something. Caroline came in strong and happy. I was happy but she was tired for sure.

    We ended our day at a dimsum restaurant nearby and then it was a long drive home.

    #####

    I ran the MCM turkey trot. Nothing say about that other than I love 10K.

    At the NCR Marathon, I was not going to run originally, but Caroline signed up so why not do some light running too. I decided to do the Half marathon instead of the full. Caroline then dropped down from the full to run with me. We would receive the same swags anyway – a sweater and a blanket.

    I was not as anxious doing a half than if it were a full marathon, knowing I could finish by the cutoff (5 hours). The day was cold but sunny. It has been a long time since running a half so I did not know how to pace. I told myself to go out slow. I used my recent 10k race as a guide, running around a 10 min pace. At the turn around, I pushed a bit harder. In my mind, Caroline was a few minutes ahead and was out of sight. But at the turn around, I saw her again. She just did a marathon a week ago so there was no way she could keep up my pace. Then the full marathon runners came back and caught up with four miles left to go. There I met the second place runner and he seemed struggling. So he said he will follow me, I said no, I am too slow for him. Indeed, he followed me and we finished together. He was dropped down to 5-6th place.

    It was his first marathon. He said never again will run a marathon. Oh, brother, I told him to try again. To me, I will never get podium or anywhere near. I was just glad I could finish. I hope he will find joy in running.

    We went back to the school and had a lot of soup and later had a good meal at Yechong, a Korean restaurant.

    Happy Turkey Holiday and xmas if I am not able to post before then. I wish everyone a safe holiday.

  • [692] Stone Mill 50

    It was my 6th time running Stone Mill. I believe you can’t step into the same river twice.  Indeed.  I can’t repeat the same race and have the same experience each time, but I still try.  Stone Mill 50 miler is such a race.  Usually, I try not to do a race again since there are so many races out there and I want to do as many as I can before getting too old.  However, some races you just love it so much you want to go back for more and with each time I ran, I am adding more to the experience I had.

    I have not reread last  report [2024].    It is probably more the same. Each year new memories overlap the previous. I got to say, they all have been good.

    Last couple times I ran it, I have gotten slower.  This time was probably my slowest still.  But a race is not just about having a finishing time but whether I enjoyed it.  I knew I could have done in a faster time and maybe to finish together with some of my fast friends.  Indeed, I ran with the same people each year, Wayne, David, and Jeremy.  I didn’t know Jeremy last year but he has been my favorite running buddy. We just have great time out on the trail.  This year too, Caroline joined us, and she is elevated above all my friends.  It was an honor to able to share the course with her.

    I finished 14:22:56. In the end, in any race it is about having a finishing time.  Thank you for volunteers and race director of keeping it open long enough for me to finish. It could have been other way, uff-da. More below.

    I elected the 1 hour early start, starting at 5 AM instead of 6 AM, like last year.  Not because I did not think I would not finish in time, but it did come close. 13.5 hours would have been a struggle for me, for I run like an old man.

      I got several of my friends to start early with me, that is, Caroline, David and Jeremy. Not that they are slow like me.  I just need my buddies around me. David and I have done this race together the last three years. David got it down under 13.5 hours. Jeremy, maybe 12 or 11.  Wayne around 10. Caroline, well, it was a good run for her.

    This was David’s fourth Stone Mill, in keeping with the tradition, he did it. And I hope he will do the fifth time next year for a special award.  Last year was my fifth and I got a jacket.  David is a new ultra runner, he does not run as many ultras like me.  This might be his 7 or 8th ultra. He has done the JFK, Stone Mill, Bull Run and Highland Sky, which seem to be a lot.  But mine are uncountable…, well about a 100 for me in the same time frame. And every year since he has joined me running the Stone Mill.  I felt special.

    I was expecting to finish between 13.5-14.5 hours.  I could run faster according to my prior year’s finishing times.  However, this year, I have not trained to run as hard or fast as before and I was recovering from several recent hard 100 races.  13.5 hour finishing was the race’s (target/required) finishing time.  The finish line doesn’t have a strict cutoff. They do want to go home around 8:30 pm and it was not good to make volunteers waiting around. People coming in after 13.5 would still be considered finishers. So that was good (unlike JFK another of our local area race).  Stone Mill as I heard was started in counter to to the JFK50, with lower registration cost ($65 without shirt), generous cut offs (with an early start option), a return to the fun low key trail community event (many of my trail friends were there — it was a whole day saying hi as they passed me by). 

    The early start gave me a buffer so I would not have to worry about  chasing cutoffs. In the end, I did kind of have to chase it, I came close to not making the 5:15 cutoff at Riffleford (mile 41/42).  I believe the course for that section was maybe a mile longer than reported (or as planned in my pace chart) so I had to put effort in running to make the cutoff.  I think the over all miles were closer to 51 or 52 miles.  However, I did not wear a tracking watch so, all these extra miles are hearsay, to be taken with gain of salt.  I know every year I felt that the section from Rt 28 to Riffleford is a bit longer but I’ve always forgotten to take that into account when planning my pacing strategy.  So putting it here for next year, if I happen to reread this race report to allow myself plenty of time to get to Riffleford!

    The weather was mild this year.  I could have worn a T shirt and shorts.  It was probably the warmest Stone Mill.  Earlier morning hours were a bit chilly because it is fall, but could have done it in a Tee. Temperature warmed up quite quickly.  I had a long sleeves on.  I am not worry about being too hot.  I think I had the long sleeve off around my waist as it got warm. I ran in shorts (I think, could not remember now).

    I started with 20-30 other runners.  David stayed with me for a while.  I think Caroline ran at her own pace.  For a while we lost her because she went ahead.  I got slightly lost after missing a turn.   David was with me at the time and said he thinks we should gone the other way.  He was right.  I was a bit embarrass because I was proud of myself to be able to do the race with my eyes close.  Here I was lost.

    God gives grace to the humble.  Amen. We backtracked and found the turn we missed.  I was not paying attention to turns since I have done this race so many times and never had gotten lost.  There’s always something new every year.

    I kept a steady pace. We reached the first aid station at mile 4, joking unofficial aid station since they were just setting it up.  I did not need to stop.  They had water ready for us.

    Eventually, I caught with Caroline and stayed with her.  David then went off ahead.  Caroline veered off at the Clopper Lake when the regular people, those started later at 6 AM caught up.  We did not know where she went, possibly to a rest room but later we saw her again at the Long Draught aid station. My plan was to start chasing David later in the afternoon as I have done in previous years and usually would catch up to him. That was my plan anyway.  Eventually, Caroline caught up to me on Riffleford outbound and I ran with her.

    Caroline and I arrived at near halfway point Pennyfield (mile 24) at 11:40 (we arrived maybe at 11:30, 11:40 was when I recorded leaving Pennifield).  Timewise was slightly behind pace I set (10 mins or so) but I believe was within acceptable range to pull off a finish.  Note, I’ve forgotten that the later section to Riffleford would be quite long and we should have been quick about getting through all aid stations. Uff-dah big time. We did tarry a bit maybe another 10-15 minutes, which is too much time to spend at an aid station since this is not a 100 miler.  I was overconfident my handy-dandy pace chart that it couldn’t be wrong.  I used the same procedure for setting a pace chart for all my races this year and always, they have been accurate. Well, garbage in-garbage out, is all I got to say.  I got bad mileage data for Stone Mill, and hence the pace was a bit off.

    Then we got on the C&O towpath.  My legs were tired and like every year, I did not feel like running on the towpath.  We walked first couple miles there and later broke into a jog to the Stone Mill Aid Station with was maybe about 4 miles away. It was beautiful and sunny.  I was enjoying the views along the river.

    This year, the Stone Mill (race’s namesake) aid station was set up inside the Stone Mill’s Ruins.  In the past, the aid station was in the parking lot.  It took more effort to move into the ruin building.  I thought that was a very nice touch though.  I also stayed very long at Stone Mill, maybe another 10-15 minutes than needed.  I was sitting on a rock to rest my feet, since my legs were killing me.  They were tired. Again, way too long.  We were about 40 mins ahead on our pace chart plan of the hard cutoff there and I thought we had the luxury to rest a bit, which came back to bite us at the end.

    After Stone Mill, there was some more road section before entering back onto the trail.  We kept pace with another couple, Nathan and his wife, people I met at the MMT couple years ago.  I believed we were moving at a decent pace.  Nathan was holding his wife’s hand.  People were commenting how romantic that was.  I’d held Caroline’s too but she wants to run on her own.  This was a 6-7 miles section on the Seneca Ridge Trail.  It might not seem long on paper but actually was quite long.  I think it was a section with the most climbs.  We went up and down on hills and eventually arrived at mile 34-35, RT 28.  Again, I overstayed a bit resting at the aid station.  My friend Mike was there.  So chatted a bit before leaving.  We were ahead of the cutoff by maybe 40 minutes.  I felt confident that according to my pace chart we should arrive at the next aid station by 4:50, well ahead of the next cutoff of 5:15.

    On paper, we had about 8 miles to get there and we had 2.5 hours to do it. If only we had 3 hours to do this, I was thinking. It was not a lot of time but also not impossible to make it.  I felt if we kept the pace we had been doing, we should be able to make it.  However, I forgot that this section was a bit longer in real life than on paper.  Likely it was 9.5 miles instead of 8 or 8.5.  We would need to move at 15.8 min pace instead of 17 min pace we have been doing. That two mins over 9 miles equates to 18-20 minutes eating into our buffer. We needed that 20 minutes we had earlier.

    The friend Nathan and his wife started running and passed us.  I felt it might be too early to panic like they did.  I would start running if it were 4 PM, an hour away from the cut.  My pace chart projected of reaching the midpoint (water only) aid station about 3 miles out at 3:30. We could re-evaluate the pace then. 3:30 passed and we were not there yet.  I started to get antsy.  Caroline was dropping further back. I knew I would not pressure her to run faster.  She would tell me to go on ahead anyway. She has to go at her pace. I knew at this point it was everyone is for themselves.  I could sense the atmosphere from other runners we passed or those that passed us, a sense of urgency and desperation — meaning we likely the last ones on the course at the time.  It is my special super power to sense when I might get sweep by the sweepers because I was usually near the last one on the course.  So I started to walking faster hoping the aid station would be around the corner.  I only arrive it after 3:45.  There were several other runners around. 

    Now there is another 4 miles to go and about an hour to do so.  I told myself I have to pick up my pace or else I wound be hard press to make the hard cutoff at Riffleford.  If we did not tarry long at earlier aid stations, we would not have to rush to get to Riffleford.  Always there are some tradeoffs.

    So I started running, maybe at around a 12-15 min pace.  I think it was more than 4 miles but I got to Riffleford by 4:55. 20 min ahead of the cutoff, and I was relatively back on pace according to my chart.  I think every year, I hustled to get here to be on pace with my pace chart.

      By now I knew I was safe, that is, plenty time to make the following cutoff at RT 355, which was at 7:20/7:40 and about 4-5 miles away. With two hours plus to do it, the next four miles was a luxury.

    I ran the whole way from then, since there was no reason for me to walk or hold back.  Just an itsy 4 miles.  It is a race for me and I was guessing all my friends would soon be done and now be waiting for me.   By pressing hard I reached the finish at 7:20, well ahead of my expected time of 7:45-8 pm, if I had walked.

    At the time, I was not sure if Caroline was able to make the Riffleford’s cutoff or not.  I last saw her about 4 miles before Riffleford and estimated she was 10 minutes behind of me (She was on one ridge while I was on the other at the time).  I was guessing she could be 20 minutes behind me by the time I reached Riffleford, and so it would be down to the wire for her to get there by 5:10-5:15, right at the cutoff.  Later, I found she missed it, maybe by a hair.  My friend Nathan too, was only 5 minutes behind me, they made the cutoff but elected not to continue, for they legs gave out. Nathan could have finished it, but I believe he elected to stay with his runner to drop out.

    As I arrived at the finish. Caroline was there already. The truth revealed, she arrived to the finish before me.  I was trying to catch up to my friend David too but he bested me by an hour.  At the time I did not realize it but was hoping to finish as early as by 7 pm and possibly a chance to catch him from behind.  It was a long shot but it kept me motivated to run as fast as I could.

    I was happy to reach the end.  Finishing was not too hard, rather it was how soon.  This concluded another year at Stone Mill.  As for next year, I might or might not run it.  If my friends are doing it, I likely would.  And I have been on a streak 6 years in a row, and it would be good to keep the streak going.  However, I would not want to run it base on that alone.  I want to run it to challenge myself on the trail and being out there with friends, doing what I like.  Stone Mill was a good run for me.

    Until next race…