Total feet climbed: 6,947
Time: 8 hours
Yesterday I finished my first ultramarathon, the Crown King Scramble. It is a trail 50K that starts near sea level and runs up into the mountains. After the hell that was trying to finish a marathon with a very ambitious timing goal, I was looking forward to a race where I did not have to push the pace. How hard could it be, I thought? I'll jog the flats and downhills and walk the uphills. I can hike for hours. This will be fun! After the marathon, I had every intention of doing a couple more long runs and some trail work to prepare for Crown King. Well, I didn't. My longest run between the marathon and the ultra was 7.25 the Monday before Crown King. And it was completely flat and on the road.
The Crown King has a course limit of 9 hours. They allow an early start for runners who are concerned they won't make it. I signed up for the early start (1) to take the pressure off, and (2) to get some miles in before the hot sun came up. The race accommodates two drop bags: one at mile 15 and one for the end. I packed a change of clothes and snacks (Pringles and granola bars) in each as well as a bunch of ziplock baggies. They store things, they keep things dry, they are always useful! As luck would have it, the Crown King came at an unfortunate time of the month (just like my first marathon, I'm a lucky girl!). So I packed for that contingency as well. This was particularly complicated as there are no bathrooms on the trail course and you must pack out what you pack in. I'll just say that after reading a bunch of women's running blogs, I've discovered the Diva Cup, which is awesome. And, while I'm happy to answer any questions privately, I'll spare the rest of you any further discussion, and sorry for the tangent, but hey, it's biology!
(The race shirt has a helpful elevation map on the back.)
Peppy and Go Pro picked me up at 3:00 am. They weren't even running. They were taking Peppy's Jeep and manning the aid station at mile 19. We picked up KO Kennedy and headed to Lake Pleasant, just north of Phoenix. The advantage to running a race with only about 200 participants is that logistics are easy. We picked up our shirts and bibs and dropped of our drop bags, then lined up at the start. I felt like a pack animal. I had a Camelback packed with water, Gu, powdered Pedialyte, salt pills, chapstick, tissues, baggies, and Pringles. Then I had two waist packs holding my phone (in a baggie), two pairs of wireless headphones (in case the battery gave out), my ID/cash/credit card, and Body Glide. One of the members of my new running group, Bisbee, had also signed up for the race after weeks of me talking it up on our group runs. He and KO Kennedy and I started out together at 5:00 am. I started out to Eye Of The Tiger, like I do every race, and then realized Bisbee was down for sticking with me, so I took out my headphones so I could socialize.
The first 15ish miles are rolling hills. We started by running up and down and flat. Then by about mile 3, we started walking the steeper inclines. I didn't need my headlamp for long and the desert sunrise was beautiful. The regular race start was at 6:00 am. Bisbee and I talked about when we might expect to be passed by the 6:00ers. We were hoping to make it to the 8-mile aid station before being passed. In fact, we made it 12.5 miles before three speedy men ran by us making the trail look easy.
The first cut-off for the race is at mile 15, which you have to make by 9:30 am. That allowed us 4.5 hours, but I really wanted to make it in the 3.5 hours allowed for the normal start time. We cruised into the aid station just under 3 hours. I picked up my drop bag and proceeded to find a bush to offer privacy so I could change out of my sweathy top and sports bra and attend to other issues. Desert foliage is not what you would call lush, so I had to walk quite a ways before I felt comfortable disrobing. Once I had dry clothes on again, I felt amazing. I grabbed some Gatorade, put some more water into my Camelback and dumped in some Pedialyte to keep my electrolytes up. Bisbee waited patiently through all this. Then we put on some sunscreen and set off again. We'd spent about 15 minutes at the aid station, but it was well worth it.
Everyone said 15-19 was straight uphill. That was only partially correct. There were a bunch of steep downhills. While it was nice to jog them, I couldn't really enjoy them because I knew we had to go up to 6500 feet before the end of the race. For every foot of decline there are several feet of incline. Around mile 17, I got shaky and dizzy. I realized I hadn't eaten anything at the last aid station. Oops. I sucked down some Pedialyte and consumed all the Pringles in my Camelback with all the style and grace of cookie monster. There was one particular downhill where I was afraid my legs were too shaky to support me. But, I made it without falling. My blood sugar stabilized soon after. We finally made it to the 19-mile aid station and I saw Peppy and Go Pro. They were happy and festive and gave me a little Tecate. I also drank Gatorade, ate some fruit and salted potatoes, and discovered a love for gummy worms.
(These Altras went from gray to mud-brown throughout the day and still, no blisters!)
Miles 19-27 are kind of a blur for me. I know we descended more and crossed a stream multiple times. There was lots and lots of climbing, too. After the 22-mile aid station, it was basically a hill until the 27 mile station. The worst part is, you can see the aid station for more than a mile before you get to it: perched at the top of a very steep hill and never (seemingly) getting any closer. Bisbee and I walked. A lot. On this stretch, I discovered my knees were aching and blamed it on the short, but numerous, downhills. Perhaps I should have run some trails to train for this race. Another complicating factor during this portion is that we began to see a lot more traffic on the course, which follows an ATV/Jeep road. ATVs were blowing by us with fair regularity, kicking up dust. I had a buff that I could pull over my mouth and nose, but doing so caused my glasses to fog, so it wasn't sustainable. Bisbee and I spent much of our time in silence, occasionally trying to stay positive by pointing out things like "this is the best I've ever felt after 22 miles" or "this is the longest I've ever been on my feet" or "now we're officially past the marathon!" It was good to have a running partner at this point, too. We took turns reluctantly pointing out that we should probably jog the downhills and flats. Left to my own devices, I probably would have walked a lot more.
(The view from mile 27. As I posed for the picture, I thought "I'm on top of the world" and then had the Imagine Dragons song stuck in my head for the rest of the race. Hey!)
The aid station at mile 27 is at 5600 feet. We had a spectacular view of the the area, all the way down to where we started. So, of course, I made Bisbee take my picture. This aid station was distinctively less of a party atmosphere than the prior stations. There was no music or alcohol. Bisbee and I refueled and refilled (I had run out of water completely about a half-mile before the station). I reapplied sunscreen and discovered a massive loss of skin when I tried to spray the back of my neck. OUCH!
(The aftermath of running with a Camelback. And this is with multiple layers of Body Glide.)
We plodded off toward the finish, knowing we had 900 more feet to climb over two miles before the "screaming fast" (the race organizer's words, not mine) final two miles towards the finish. A little before the aid station, I had told Bisbee I was looking forward to being in the cool pines and being done with hills. Bisbee pointed out that the foliage around us was still desert-scape and he seemed skeptical that we would ever end up in the pines as none were visible from the trail. Well, at about 28.5 miles, we came around a bend and, lo and behold, PINES! The smell of the pines baking in the sun invigorated me. Soon we were at the summit and ready for the "screaming fast" two miles into Crown King. Relatively speaking, they were pretty fast. ATV-ers rode by us and clapped, by far the oddest crowd support of any of my races. There was finally shade and the trail was nice, smooth, and sandy. My ankles and knees felt like they would explode with every downward step, but I just let gravity take me. My last mile was 9:22, which is not bad considering. We turned the corner and finished in the Crown King Saloon, where we were presented with a mason jar beer mug and a finisher's jacket. Eight hours. A lot faster than I thought I would do it, without headphones! My joints ached, so I took a couple of Advil.
(Me and Bisbee with our victory beers and our big victory smiles. I am wearing comfy, dry sweats and my finisher's jacket -- aaaaaaaah.)
Poor Peppy and Go Pro were sidelined with a flat tire and never made it back up to the finish line. I enjoyed a couple beers with KO Kennedy, Bisbee, and some other folks from my running group. We were a happy, if tired, crowd. Husband #1 picked up me and KO Kennedy (who came in just a little after me and Bisbee). The drive back to Phoenix was long. 28 miles on a dirt road and then lots of freeway. I have to hand it to Husband #1 for always going along with my crazy ideas and providing the support I need to accomplish them. At home, I took a shower, then a bath, then ate 3 pieces of pizza and fell asleep. Today I woke up feeling really good. I haven't had any Advil since right after the race, so I decided to go to my normal boxing boot camp. With the exception of a leg exercise during which my quad just said "no," class felt fine.
This race was harder, but so much more enjoyable, than my last marathon. I think I've got more ultras in my future! In closing, I'd like to heap some praise on Aravaipa Running for putting on an amazing race. It was well-organized. The course was beautiful. The aid stations were well-stocked. Everything ran smoothly. And I LOVE my finisher's jacket.
