"Hardest 50K in the Northwest"

This is the trailhead to the race course it is an out and back

This is where we camped a mere 100 yards from the race start, it was nice we just rolled out of our tents ate a pop tart and ran 31 miles

Just one of the mountains we had to run over that is the race director's camper

Ashley presenting her 1st place medal

Campin out the night before. The particles in the air are high desert dust not
snow.

The website claimed the Grey Rock 50K trail race to be the hardest 50K in the Northwest. After Saturday's race I would have to agree. It wasn't just the hardest, but the most beautiful, a true mountain race in the backwoods. We knew it was going to be an adventure after the race director gave us the pre-race instructions. He told us what to do in case of a forest fire because of last year's "incident", in which a forest fire broke out and thanks to the wind direction no one got hurt and the race was able to continue. He also told us, as we were standing in 80 degree weather, to be careful once you get up there because there is still about three feet of snow in some parts! And the last instruction, to be aware of bears and "Timber Tigers" better known as cougars.

Brimming with confidence after the director's instructions we hit the trail. It was an immediate series of switchbacks for an hour. My plan for the race was to stay with the leaders from the beginning which was a blistering pace up the mountain. Because of my exertion in trying to keep up I foolhardily went over a log without my legs and face planted in the dust squirting water from my dual bottles about 15 feet in each direction. I thought to myself at that point maybe I should just race my own race and worry about the leaders later, it is a long race. The first summit was amazing, one the most beautiful sights I have ever seen, it was a field of purple and yellow alpine flowers with a stunning view of Mt Adams. I was later informed the flowers did not bloom until a day or two before the race, so we were lucky.

What goes up must come down, after summit it was a series of steep switchbacks down the other side of the mountain. After about an hour of going down at very fast clip (~6min mile) I kept think crap we have to go back up this mountain at the end of the race! The aid stations were pretty far apart and weren't stocked with the usual plethora of high calorie goodies. They had watermelon and baby potatoes. Yet, I kept thinking how the hell am I going to get up this next mountain on the 30 calories I just got from a watermelon wedge. As we neared the top I came up behind this guy and he asked in a very laid back way, "Did you see the bear back there?" Thinking he was joking I laughed and he turned around to show me in his expression he was not kidding. He said, "No really he just scurried in the bushes back there." Thinking to myself, well if he comes back I just can't be the slowest and I will be alright.

It wasn't until the turnaround aid station that we hit the snow. It was in patches, about 3 feet deep just like the director warned. It was exciting to be racing so high on a mountain!! I hit the half way point at around 3 hours which made my over ambition goal of breaking 5 hours impossible, but at this point I was so excited to be ridge top running I could care less about my time. I saw Ashley and Chris on the way back both looking strong Ash said, "I heard the mountain lion noises, but just for a second" I said, "The guy in front of me saw a bear" then we both said, " THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!" kissed and parted. When I saw Chris Drew he was navigating his way through a rock field we both agreed our feet were one big blister and this race was, "The hardest 50K in the Northwest."

The return climb up the mountain we came down in the beginning was just as I anticipated. Running on empty from the Watermelon Wedges I made the climb by reciting Dora from the Disney movie 'Finding Nemo', "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming" with a combination of brisk hiking with spurts of running. The view of Mt Adams Confirmed I had reached summit and was ready for the ~3 mile descent to the finish line. By then I was out of water and gels, dehydrated and bonking badly. What seemed to be a mirage there were 2 firemen on ATVs with a case of bottled water. They asked how I was, this confirmed to me that they were real and not a mirage. I answered by asking them if I could have some of the water they were heating in the sun. After chugging a whole bottle I felt revived to push it the rest of the way, I knew first place woman was right behind me and another guy and I wanted to hold on to fourth place. The descent would have been much easier despite both feet being raw with blisters.

All of our finishes were anti climactic as all trail races are just a hand full of trail enthusiasts and family members of trail enthusiasts hangin out in the middle of nowhere for 5++++ hours. The post race food was amazing, pasta salad, cesar salad, more damn watermelon, beans, and steak! We all agreed on the technical difficulty and the sheer beauty of the race and retired to our campsite that was so so far away.