20th Century 100K Trail Run

When is Enough Enough ???

This is the story of a perfect trail running day. I had such a day on the 20th Century 100k Trail Run in Washington on October 13th 2007 but you’ll need some of the back story first.

I ran my first ultra in 1983 after several years of doing marathons and smaller races. To my surprise the average speed I had as a middle of the pack marathoner carried over into ultras and moved me up in the finishing placements to the point I had a chance to win a race if everything went just my way. That possibility kept my competitive juices flowing to train at both distance and speed for the next eleven years with some success.

In 1994 I had a major medical setback, not related to running, when I was diagnosed as having a brain tumor, which had resulted in such severe headaches that left me unable to walk let alone run. The operation to remove the tumor and the recovery period was the first break in training that I had had since starting running and the first thing I noticed upon returning to running was how much slower I was. The easy seven minute a mile pace was now almost an all out effort. I trained harder than in the past but the results were just not there. I continued to run and race but was no longer competitive in a race that required speed over distance as it’s main component. Continuing to try hard without any positive results had me asking myself "when is enough enough" ???

Over the next nine years when my running partner Christina Ralph competed together in races that required speed she would leave me far behind as she would finish in the top portion of most any race that we entered. When we entered races like the Marathon Des Sables, Iditasport, Yukon Artic Ultra and other race that speed was not the main component we both could finish near the top.

Not being able to run fast was a difficult thing for me to except. I still had the desire to do sub seven minute miles but no amount of training would help me achieve my goal and led to many internal conversations to stop running all together. When is enough enough ??? Having Chris continue to push me hard in training and knowing that when we raced the difficult adventure type races we could still be competitive kept me running.

Nothing in the life is guaranteed to you as I found out in 2003. Consistent severe knee pain resulted in surgery and a full leg brace for eight weeks. My recovery was almost 100% except for what little long term running I could muster was severally curtailed and now at an even slower pace then before surgery. Combine that with passing fifty – five years old and I had to ask myself "when is enough enough".

Chris and I continued running together however there was a new development that had never been present in the past. Chris who has over come so many physical issues dealing with MS had also slowed down to the point that I she and I were well matched again speed and endurance wise. That would seem to be a good thing until you look at it from Chris’s prospective of no longer being able to complete at a very high level. The questions again is "when is enough enough" ???.

What does any of this have to do with the 20th Century 100K Trail Run that debuted October 13 by local ultra veterans Scott Krell and Michael Cartwright? Well everything. When I first heard about this race I could not really convince myself that I was capable of running 100K under the published cut off time of fifteen hours. Nothing in my last several years of running would lead me to believe that is was a possibility for me except for the race format. The course is a combination of The John Wayne and the Snoqualmie Valley Trails that are both old railroad beds. Gently going up hill eighteen miles from the start in Easton Washington up over Snoqualmie Pass and down the other side to the town of Carnation. Good footing, no altitude, mild temperatures, good course markings, lots of aid stations and even mobile aid from bikes on the course makes this a very easy race from the runners prospective. The runner does not have to carry any extra weight at all, worry about getting lost or do anything but run. Being a 100K does add the element of distance beyond the typical fifty milers, which would be a good test. If I could not run well at this race then I might finally have my answer to the question of "when is enough enough".

Training had gone well the prior four weeks before the race. I had been able to put in reasonable mileage during the week followed by twenty eight to thirty miles on Sunday. All of the miles in training had been run at a pace that would bring we to the finish in thirteen hours thus giving me a cushion to make the cut off.

Chris and I decided to travel to Easton the night before the race and stay at the start line to get good nights sleep for the 6:00 am start. That plan did not work so well as one of Chris’s dogs, Roadie, decided that sleeping in the front seat of Chris’s car was not as comfortable as his bed at home and whined all night long keeping both of us up most of the night. Chris would be crewing for the first part of the race and then was going to work an aid station at mile forty-nine so we both were going to be tired to start the day.

Race morning was clear and dry which was a real surprise seeing that it had been raining in Washington all summer and in the last week almost now stop. The start was quick and we were off. A short out and back to the East to get in the exact 100K distances and then we started heading up the trail toward Snoqualmie Pass eighteen miles away. My goal was to run every step till mile thirty-nine at Rattlesnake Lake. The pace was to be steady at twelve minutes per mile with no walking breaks. I figured later in the race as my pace slowed and I had run as many miles as I could, I planned to mix in limited walking brakes. The early miles felt good. I was running without pain or concern for my pace. I was surprised when reaching the Upham Station that my pace was closer to ten minutes per mile and this was the uphill section. I made a note to slow down slightly and continue to run. The next aid station was Meadow Creek at twelve miles where I was to meet Chris for the first time. Again my pace was close to ten minutes per mile and for the first time in years I had some of the aid station folks remark on how fast I was. Not being last at this point seemed to surprise everyone and that was a huge lift to me as I quickly headed out toward Hyak aid station at the top of Snoqualmie Pass.

Arriving at Hyak aid station at eighteen miles in 3:17 confirmed for me that I was having a special day. A quick refill of what I needed and I headed into the two and one half mile Snoqualmie Pass train tunnel. Running through a pitch-black tunnel is a special experience and this alone should make people want to come to this race to experience it.

Once out of the tunnel the day turned beautiful. Bright sunshine, deep blue skies, large fluffy white clouds all contrasted against the leaves of the Vine Maples and various trees all turning into their full fall colors. The West side of Snoqualmie Pass cuts through some of most beautiful scenery the State of Washington can provide. Views of lakes, mountains, natural rock climbing walls, all viewed from hundreds of feet up in the air, as you cross old railroad bridges.

Once on the West side of the pass the trail starts a long gentle downhill for over twenty miles. Next couple of aid stations passed without incident and made the time to Garcia Station go by quickly. Again the aid station folks and Chris really pumped me up with their words of encouragement.

I continued to be focused on not walking till Rattlesnake aid station that was still eight miles away. I was getting tired now making promises to myself that once I arrived at Rattlesnake I could walk enough to gain back the earlier feeling of trouble free running.

My goal had been to reach Rattlesnake Lake (Cedar Falls Station) in eight hours for forty miles. This would give me plenty of time to run / walk the last twenty two miles and barring a complete collapse I would be on schedule to complete the course in about thirteen hours which was my pre race great day goal. Arriving at Rattlesnake in 7:35 was a big surprise.

The Snoqualmie Valley Trail leading out from Rattlesnake Lake is again an old railroad grade: big, wide, easy footing and gently downhill for easy running. The only problem was I was now starting to feel the effects of the forty miles of non-stop running, along with running those miles faster than I have for a long time. I fell into a run walk schedule that had me running till I was tired and then walk till my heart rate got back to 100 bpm. That worked. Upon reaching the next aid station at forty-five miles I was feeling a lot better. Seeing John Bandur, a northwest running legend and someone I had run with in races since 1983, manning the station was really great. John wanted to know what had gotten into me and did I know I was running fifth at that point? I told him I did not know why I was having such a good day and thanked him for the help.

Now I was on a new mission, to finish fifth. There were only fourteen starters in this race so this was not like I was winning Western States however that number just sounded good. Rejuvenated I continued on to the Golf Course aid station at mile forty-nine that Chris was manning, where I received additional words of encouragement and instructions to keep to the pace.

Passing the fifty-mile mark in 9:50 was a multi year best for me and set up a finishing time under thirteen hours if I continued my current pace. It had been a long time since I was striving for goals in a race instead of just surviving.

The course leaves the trail for a short time as it moves through the town of Snoqualmie, which was a big logging and train depot community in the 1920’s. Running down the main street of Snoqualmie takes you past a rail museum with full size trains complete with locomotives, sleeper cars and every type of rail car imaginable. Shortly after passing the trains the racecourse passes right through the overlook for Snoqualmie Falls, which is a most impressive site with a huge river, falling hundreds of feet to the riverbed below.

All of this sightseeing had taken my mind off of how tire I was and now I buckled down to get this race completed. The course enters a short piece of single track until again meeting up again with the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, which would carry me on to the finish. The afternoon light was fading as I left the last aid station with seven miles to go. Knowing I was going to be done soon and that a good effort over these last seven miles would secure a finishing time that I could only have wished for earlier in the day, drove me on to run almost the entire last section. Crossing the finish line in fifth place and a time of 12:36 was unexpected pleasure and has rekindled my competitive flame.

The 20th Century Trail Run is extremely well organized, on a very fast course. The race directors know what they are doing and have put on a race that did not suffer some of the problems first year races often do. I look forward to doing this race again next year and for many years into the future.

So the answer to my question of “ when is enough enough” must still go unanswered for now, because after all these years of running, with the commitment that must be made and all the obstacles that must be overcome I still have not had enough running to retire peacefully into old age.

Tom Ripley