March 30, 2007
This run turned out to be a 50-mile training run on a 100-mile course I designed. I am enjoying the 100-mile distance more and more. In 2004-2005 I started my 100-mile run career with 3-out-of-4 DNFs (did not finish). I seriously questioned whether my body could handle that distance and each time proclaimed that I would never try again. But since that time I have successfully completed a consecutive string of nine 100-mile finishes.
One problem with 100-mile races is that they are expensive to travel to and enter in. My recent quest has been to create my own 100-mile runs. I recently ran a Grand Canyon 100 that involved a quad-crossing, another Grand Canyon 100 that involved a double crossing to Hermit’s Rest, a Pony Express Trail 100 in Utah, and another Pony Express Trail 100, setting a Person Record (PR) of 23:26.
The challenge with these type of 100-mile runs is: support. The Grand Canyon runs involved hauling a bunch of food, clothes, and emergency items – much more than you would run with in a supported 100-mile race. The Pony Express runs required a mobile crew to provide support. This was great because I could run without carrying much at all, but it was a major commitment to family or friends to drive along for 24 hours out in the middle of the remote Utah western desert.
Would it be possible to lay out a 100-mile course that would give me the best of both worlds, no crew needed, no hauling of stuff needed, but still have a remote experience? In this search, I found a good course only 30 miles from my home in the Nutty Putty cave region, west of Utah Lake. My course involved four loops, like a clover-leaf, and would be 100% dirt (4WD mining roads and trails). I could place my van in the middle of the clover for my aid station. The loops are 4.5-6.9 miles each. 100 miles could be achieved by running a combination of 18 of these loops. To make things more interesting, I could alternate my direction of travel through these loops.
Course Map
Blowhole Hill Loop: 5.2 miles
Wanlass Hill Loop: 6.9 miles
Prospect Loop: 5.3 miles
Each loop would run around a high hill. I selected roads and trails that were soft and didn’t receive very much vehicle travel. The profile for the course would be mild ups and downs — all runnable. There would be spectacular views along the way of various high snow-capped mountain ranges. Most of the course would be very remote, with no human to be seen. There would be expansive fields and desolate open sage areas. Most of the course would be without trees, with wide-open views into massive valleys further below.
This region used to get a lot of human traffic because of Nutty Putty Cave, a naturally formed thermal cave located on Blowhole Hill. This cave was very popular by locals and considered a good cave for beginners. However because of the need for several rescues, in 2006, Utah State Trust lands granted the Timpanogos Grotto the right to manage access to the cave. They put a gate on the entrance and set up access rules. This year the region has returned to a quiet, peaceful area.
I was anxious to give the course a try. A week ago I set a 50-mile PR running the Antelope Island Buffalo Run. In two weeks I will run the McNaughton 150. Using warped and twisted logic, I thought another long run might be good to further prepare me for the 150-mile run coming up. How far should I go? I planned to run at least 50 miles and depending on how I felt, continue on. I planned on a nice slow pace, 13:20 minute miles (including stops) for the first 40 miles, and then back off to 15 minute miles.
I wanted to share this adventure with some local running friends. Several planned to join me on the course, on the following morning at 5 a.m. I realized that after 50+ miles, I wouldn’t be able to keep up with them, so I planned to flag the Blowhole Hill Loop and the Wanlass Hill Loop at some point during the day.
I took Friday off work and drove to the region. Snow had dusted the sage, weeds, and desert hills overnight. I reached my starting point about 8:30 a.m. The morning was overcast and the clouds were low, blanketing the high mountains in all directions. The temperature was right around freezing.
Looking across Cedar Valley, on the Rattlesnake Pass Loop
I started running on the Rattlesnake Pass Loop, a loop I had never run on before. The road was moist and soft from the recent rain and snow. It felt wonderful. I headed west toward the expansive Cedar Valley. I ran by a broken down, rusted tanker truck and connected with a faint soft, ranch road that boarded range fields to the west and a large unnamed hill to the east. I was having a blast running fast along this soft route. I looked to the west and could see a few cattle grazing far away in the expansive valley. As I continued on to the south, I could see Allen’s ranch, a few isolated buildings and trees far away across the bare and open fields. I passed by a huge crow that was watching my progress. It took off, beating its long wings and then glided gracefully low to the ground, above the sage and bushes. It was a magnificent sight.
At the far south end of the loop, I joined the main Allen Ranch Road for about 100 yards. It was muddy and slippery. I was glad that I kept the course away from the main dirt roads as much as possible. I quickly reached a fence-line road that would take me north all the way back to my van. This road was more like a trail, soft and smooth with some occasional rocks as obstacles. I made a fast run up to Rattlesnake Pass and then had a blast running quickly down a long straight fence-line road toward my van that could be seen far down and to the north. I finished the 4.5-mile loop in 0:48 minutes. I was feeling fine, with no painful after-effects detected from the race a week ago. So far, so good.
The road near Nutty Putty Cave
I would run down or up this valley 8 times
Prospect Loop (mile 4.5-11.5)
After a quick stop at my van, I was off again. This time I would run for the first time a loop I named, Prospect Loop. I ran past the Nutty Putty Cave road and then made an easy long climb through a valley east of Blowhole Hill. As I made the climb, I noticed that my left calf muscle was causing me pain. I felt this problem during the last 7 miles of the Antelope Island race a week ago. I hoped that the muscle would calm down as I returned to flat ground, but the tightness continued. I checked my GPS to make sure I went the right way. I was puzzled that it told me to go straight instead of making the turn around a hill that had some mine prospecting on it. I trusted my GPS. But that was a wrong choice. I finally remembered that the waypoints were for a bigger loop. I never went back and recorded the smaller loop. Thus, I went further northeast, through another pass, and then descended down into Goshen Valley near some massive power lines.
View of Utah Lake and Wasatch Mountains on Prospect Loop
As the morning temperatures rose, the mud unfroze and started to become a serious problem in the valley. Also, the soil consisted of more clay and less sand at this lower elevation. Soon I was slipping and sliding, trying to avoid shoe-sucking mud. I came very close to doing a pace plant in the mud. I ran on grassy shoulders along the roads instead of trudging through the slick mud. Finally I rejoined the correct route, climbed out the valley, and the mud problem improved. The sun was starting to peek through the clouds and I hoped that it would quickly dry up the trails. As I ran up a straight two-mile road back to the van, after consulting with my GPS, I figured out that my extended detour had included about 1.7 extra distance to my route. To correct this, I decided to substitute a Blowhole Hill Loop (5.2 miles) for a Wanlass Hill Loop (6.9 miles). That would allow me to synch up the distance with my pacing spreadsheet.
Road descending down a valley on the Blowhole Hill Loop
Note the car fender I propped up like an arch
Blowhole Hill Loop (mile 11.5-16.7)
I completed the loop at 2:10, 20 minutes ahead of my schedule. Next up was a loop around Blowhole Hill. A couple weeks ago I ran this loop in the dark. I looked forward to seeing it in the light. It first ascended a mile long climb up and over a saddle and down into Cedar Valley, west of Blowhole Hill. To keep me company, I recorded observations into a mini recorder.
At 11:22 a.m., I said, “Now I’m in Cedar Valley. I had a beautiful view of the expansive valley coming down. I’m in the very lower foothills of it and can see the whole valley clear up to Eagle Mountain and Cedar Fort, 16 miles away. I can see the whole thing. I’m kind of out in the middle of nowhere. I can see all the snow-capped mountain ranges around me: The Wasatch range including Timpanogos to the east, Lake Mountain to the north, the Ochirs to the west, and the Tintics to the south. It is really beautiful view. I’ve seen many jack rabbits bounding on the roads. Now I’m climbing to the west up out of Cedar Valley. I’m doing pretty well. The mud slows me down and the calf is still sore slowing me down.” As I circled Blowhole Hill to the north, I soon descended through a small valley to the east. I had a blast running quickly down the trail. I arrived back at my van at 3:22, still 20 minutes ahead of schedule.
Remote valley plateau north of Blowhole Hill
I took a long stop at the van to search for some batteries. Finally I was on my way running the Rattlesnake Pass loop again, but this time running in the opposite direction. As I circled around on the west side, I noticed an animal watching me about a hundred yards away. At first I thought it was a deer, but it trotted instead of leaping. It was an antelope! I stopped to watch it. It stopped to watch me. It was a wonderful sight. The sun finally was poking out and I hoped for clear skies. I arrived back at the van the 4:31 mark, nine minutes ahead of my schedule.
An ant hill about a foot high seen on the Blowhole Hill Loop
Blowhole Hill Loop (mile 21.3-26.5)
Next up was another loop around Blowhole Hill, this time in the opposite direction. As I circled around to the north, I recorded: “I’m finding that there is a big difference keeping the pace up on these solo adventures, verses races. First, there isn’t a soul out here. I haven’t seen any humans yet. No fans or competitors to motivate you to move faster. Also, as I arrive at the van every hour or so, it is an easy temptation to sit for a couple minutes – and I’m doing it.” I started to notice that my left shin muscle was starting to bother me. In my attempt to protect my calf muscles, I wasn’t extending my shin muscle enough. Typical – one problem causing another. I returned to my van at the 5:53 mark, two minutes behind schedule.
My faithful aid station
Prospect Loop (mile 26.5-31.8)
I had plenty of nice goodies in my van to feast on including warm potato soup, warm chicken broth, and warm Ensure. The potato soup really hit the spot! Finally I pushed myself out the van and was on my way again. The loop started out very well, I had a nice fast pace going, but then the shin muscle started to burn – a real problem. I slowed down to try to stretch it out. I ran this loop on the correct course this time. It was very pleasant. The warmer air had dried up the mud – no more shoe-sucking mud. I could see my tracks in dry mud from my previous run through the loop. My pace drastically slowed down as the pain remained. I hoped that I could run through it, but I didn’t want to injure it enough to jeopardize my race in two weeks. I arrived back at the van at the 7:12 mark, eleven minutes behind schedule.
Wanlass Hill and the fence-line road leading to Rattlesnake Pass
Wanlass Hill Loop (mile 31.8-38.7)
Now for the first time on this adventure, I would run the Wanlass Hill Loop. I started running the long loop by running up a straight fence-line road up toward Rattlesnake Pass. I was pretty familiar with this loop because it traveled through a popular valley on the south that I have run through several times. It should be filling up with campers for the weekend. I realized that my run may be coming to an end because of my shin splint, so I grabbed a bunch of ribbons to mark the route for my friends in the morning. My pace was slow as I carefully hung flags at each intersection. As I ran through the beautiful valley to the south of the hill, I finally saw my first humans for the day. There was one large family reunion group setting up camp by Chimney Rock. I ran out of ribbons on the west end of the loop, but I knew that wouldn’t be a problem, the route would be very obvious. I recorded at 5:15 p.m. as I traveled north on the loop: “I’m not moving very fast. Everything feels good except my left leg, the calf and the shin. So, I’m being careful. Right now it looks like I will probably have to stop at 50 miles. I don’t want to do any real damage. I think at this point I can heal within two weeks. I’m nearing the fence-line trail. The flagging really took time. Going through the valley, there was so many places that needed to be flagged.” I arrived back at my van at the 9:10 mark, 26 minutes behind schedule.
View of Mount Timpanogos on the Wanlass Hill Loop
Blowhole Hill Loop (mile 38.7-43.9)
I grabbed the rest of my ribbons and headed back out on the Blowhole Hill Loop, again flagging every intersection. Looking at into Cedar Valley, I could see many cattle grazing across the fields. My spirits were low, frustrated by the pain in my shin. It wasn’t getting worse, but it prevented me from doing very fast running stretches. I arrived back at the van at the 10:44 mark, 42 minutes behind schedule.
Rattlesnake Pass Loop (mile 43.9-50)
Next up was my favorite loop. It was my favorite, because the route ran on a surface most like a trail. The sun was setting to the west as I again gazed out across Cedar Valley. To my surprise, I spotted the antelope again, very close to the spot I saw it during the morning. Clearly there was something that kept it close to this location. We both watch each other for several minutes. I continued on and then turned on my flashlight as I climbed back up to Rattlesnake
I returned home by 10 p.m., and tried unsuccessfully to sleep. I carefully treated my shin splint with R.I.C.E. At 4:30 a.m. I met my friends to drive back out to the course. Two arrived and two decided not to come. So, I would crew for two of my Wastach Front 100 pacers, Will and Mark. At about 5:20, they started running the Wanlass Hill Loop counter-clockwise from the far southeast corner. I drove my van around to the junction of the loops and looked out into the dark for the lights of the headlamps. I walked out a quarter mile and back, wishing I could run too, but knew that I needed to rest and recover. Soon I could see bouncing lights far down the trail. I flashed my green light to them and they flashed in return. They covered the first four miles very quickly.
Mark nearing my aid station
I explained the Blowhole Hill loop and how I flagged it. I mentioned that there would be some long stretches without flags, but if they got stressed out about being on course, they could look down and see my foot prints. I had been the only one on the trail. They quickly went on their way. I noticed some puddles near my van that had a sheet of ice over them. The temperature must have been in the upper 20’s. The dawn arrived and I could tell a beautiful sunrise was on the way. I spotted a light coming up the road. My friends had completed that loop in a fast 45 minutes. They refueled, quickly ate and drank, and then were on their way to complete the figure eight course by running the rest of the Wanlass Hill Loop. I drove in my car around the valley and enjoyed watching them run on trails across the valley. They finished the 12-mile loop in less than 2 hours. They both were enjoying the run and decided to run both loops again.
Will, the small figure on top of a saddle next to a tree
I drove back to the junction. Will had arrived first, about a quarter mile ahead of Mark. Neither stopped, but headed back onto the Blowhole Hill loop. I was impressed at their strength as they ran strongly up the road. Then we experienced an amazing noise. A pack of coyotes, far out in Cedar Valley to my west started to howl and bark. Then another pack, high up on Wanlass Hill to my southeast returned the call. I rested in my car and watch a pair of rabbit hunters hiking around on Blowhole Hill. Will soon arrived, completing the loop in about 50 minutes. He made a long stop, but took off before Mark came into view.
Will nearing the finish
After I crewed Mark, I drove back around to the finish. Just a couple hundred yards from the finish, Will took a face plant near a muddy watering hole. Mark really poured on the speed and finished just a couple minutes after Will. In addition, Mark had collected all the flags on his second trip through the two loops. They completed the 24-mile route in a little over four hours. Wow, that was fast. Neither were experienced trail runners, so they were impressed with the difficulty of this training run as opposed to running roads.
My long 25-hour adventure was over. I arrived home in time to watch the LDS General Conference. I concluded that the course was a great success. I know that I will return and look forward to some day running 100 miles on it.
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