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Well, the race has come and gone.

The race that has consumed me for over 12 weeks of training. The race that has made me question my decisions, my physical strength, my mental strength and my sanity! The Quest For The Crest.

First off, thank for all the good luck messages and check ins. I didn’t have phone service on the mountain and because it was such a long race, friends and family were beginning to worry.

I was beginning to worry too! Luckily, I crossed the finish line after 12 hours and 23 minutes…

Oh and I got a DNF, but more on that in a minute.

I’m not quite sure how to recap an almost 13 hour race, but I’ll do my best!

We’ll divide it up with prep work, race morning, race, after thoughts and a few tidbits about living off the grid (our cabin ran off solar and hydro power)!

Sound like a plan?

How To Prep For A 50K Trail Run

We knew going into this race that it would take us at least 11 hours to complete the course. So we needed to plan wisely.

Dan and I (and my mom) arrived Friday evening to our cabin to give us a full day to get familiar with the area, allow our nerves to settle, and go for a shake out hike (up to this gorgeous quarry) Saturday morning.

Saturday evening we met up with the other runners and Sean (R-D) to pick up packets, shirts and get last minute questions answered.

This was a very thought out race, and though Sean did a great job keeping us all posted via Facebook, it was nice to have all the analytics reiterated to us.

This was a self-sufficient course, meaning we were required to take care of ourselves. Sean, the race director, was very blunt by letting us know at packet pickup, if anything were to happen on the trail (aka a broken ankle), it could take up to 6-8 hours to get help. With that, there were a few mandatory pieces of gear/equipment required:

• Emergency blanket
• Whistle
• Water
• Jacket

And because we would have hours between aid stations (there were 3), we needed to pack proper fuel.

In the past, I always used typical runner’s fuel… you know: gels, chews, candy, etc.

But this time I decided to opt for REAL food…

Those bison bars were amazing and will forever be my go to fuel bars!

Dan did the same but with different options:

Once packets had been picked up, food made and squished into our backpacks, we headed down to our bedroom at 8:30pm for a 9:00pm lights out. I didn’t sleep well at all.

Our cabin simply wasn’t cozy and out of the 3 nights there, I slept maybe 8 hours combined.

At 2:45, I hopped out of bed, tossed on my clothes, drank a few cups of coffee with Dan and by 3:30 we were out the door, with a cup of overnight oats in hand, headed to the shuttle bus.

The Quest For The Crest

The start was about 20 minutes down the road from the finish (parking), so once we parked my mom’s car (she hung out at the cabin all day), we made our way to the buses. I was so happy to see my friend Stephanie there as we piled onto the first shuttle.

The drive was fast and before we knew it we were dumped off and told to chill while the rest of the racers were picked up. For almost an hour we snuggled on the road side and watched the sunrise before the others arrived. But then it was go time.

Sean did a great job by making the start begin on a road .6 miles before the trailhead to help thin out the runners. It wasn’t an easy “warm-up” with a 6-8 degree incline, my legs quickly woke up and I just focused on running the entire thing.

Once at the trails, Dan and I smiled at each other (we may have kissed, its all a blur now) and said good-bye. He forged ahead as I waited a moment for Stephanie so we could begin the first incline together.

Let me say one thing about this race before I go any further…

Many people were wondering how a race in the Appalachians could be referred to as the “Hardest 50K In The World” when compared to some mountains, these are hills. In fact, I questioned the title as well. But there were elite and regular trail runners from all over the country who all confirmed that this was indeed the HARDEST race they have ever done.

Why?

Because it was constant uphills for thousands of feet.

Basically, the race consisted of THREE 3000+ feet climbs followed by 3000-4000 feet of downhill. By the end of the race, runners would have completed 11,300 ft of gain and 11,700 ft of loss.

Here’s a gif Dan put together of the course. The elevations are off by a bit but it’s a great representation:

Here’s an entire picture (click to expand): 

It was technical, it was hard, it hurt, but it was amazing.

Stephanie and I stayed together for the entire race, helping to motivate, pass the time and remind one another to fuel.

When my legs wanted to rest (my quads have never felt the kind of burn they experienced this weekend), I reminded myself that I was with her and I wanted to really stay strong.

Plus, knowing Dan was ahead of me, I wanted to prove to him I could do this and I was so proud of him that it helped me.

I also wanted to prove to myself that I could stay strong, and I did! At no point during the race did I beat myself up or want to give-up. Mentally, this was probably the strongest I have ever been!

What I love about trail racing is the support and camaraderie you find along the course.

The volunteers were absolutely amazing, the other runners/climbers were encouraging and it was fun to find someone going your pace and add them to you circle. After the first cut off, our group of two increased by one as Nick joined in.

Then by the end, it increased by 3 more!

We pushed ahead mile by mile!

“I will persist until I succeed. Always will I take another step.
If that is of no avail I will take another, and yet another. In truth, one step at a time is not too difficult.
I know that small attempts, repeated, will complete any undertaking.” ~ Og Mandino

The BIG aid station was around mile 18, where we had bags dropped off with extra water and fuel.

I went through our bag and noticed Dan had clearly passed through. I smiled knowing he was okay and also realized I was experiencing a runner’s high. I was energized and ready for more which was hard because 90% of those around me where not quite as thrilled to have a half marathon still ahead of them.

Stephanie was beginning to experience a bonk, our new friends were thinking of dropping out, and everyone’s legs were exhausted from having completed 2 out of the 3 3000+ climbs.

I used my new high to get everyone moving and we headed off again into the woods. Stephanie recognized quickly she needed more sugar, so focused on taking fuel in over the next few miles. I was so proud of her for pulling out of her bonk. #BEAST.

Mile by mile passed and we thought we were in the clear to complete the entire race. Until we came to the final water station around mile 26…

It was here they told us that we had just missed the final cutoff time to complete a .5 mile up and down climb and therefore would not have a “FINISHER” at the end of the race.

To be honest, it didn’t bother me at this point. I was tired, I wanted off the course, plus I understood the rule.

Under the canopy was already quite dark, and with the sun falling, darkness came quickly and we had strict rules to get out of there.

So again, we pushed forward.

Running off and on for the next couple of miles to our final descent.

The last 4.4 miles where down the Mount Mitchell trail, the trail that Dan and I did back in April. So I was familiar with it and knew it was runnable.

But I was torn, my legs were KILLING me, my friends were exhausted and mentally… I was losing it.

Finally, after 2 miles of going down, I had to make the decision.

I was over the race and wanted to be done.

I also didn’t want to focus any longer on being tired, sore, hungry, etc so I asked everyone if they were okay if I tried to run the last 2.5 miles.

And that’s what I did.

My ass ran those final 2.5 miles with everything I had left. I felt as if I were flying, though I’m sure it didn’t look like it to others. I wanted to stop many times, but refused. I wanted to see Dan, I wanted to see the finish line and I wanted to get off the trail.

Seeing the finish line, brought so many emotions that I didn’t expect….

I Finished… Kind Of

After over 12 hours, I saw the finish and made as close of a sprint for it as I could muster. The bell sounded for me, and I heard someone shout to Dan, “Here she is!”.

I immediately, ran straight into his chest and cried. Tears of relief, pain, pride, disappointment and accomplishment came streaming down.

I kept saying, “I didn’t do it. I got a DNF.”

He kept saying, “holy cow, I didn’t think you would make it. I’m so proud of you.”

Sean also came over to congratulate me, I did what a lot of people weren’t able to do. I completed all 3 climbs, ran over 30.1 miles and passed through the finish line. His pep talk meant a lot and helped me wrap my head around what I had just accomplished.

Sorry for the tearful looking eyes here…

The .5 miles extended the course to over 32 miles, so technically it was more than a 50K which is why I am saying I completed the 50K!

As soon as I finished, hugged Dan and Sean, I grabbed a beer and watched my friends finish very shortly after me!

Do I have a DNF by my name? Yup.

Am I proud of that DNF? Yup.

Of course I keep playing it through my mind, if I had been by myself would I have been able to complete the entire race?

I don’t know.

Yes, there were times when I could have been faster, but having one of my good running friends beside me helped keep my mind in the game.

Hours passed quickly because of the camaraderie and conversations. If I had not had my friend(s) who knows if I would have been able to get through the first aid station at all.

You know?

What I do know is this…

This was the most organized race I have ever been to. Sean and his team did an amazing job of marking the course and his volunteers were wonderful.

I also know that I am incredibly proud of my husband (he FINISHED), Stephanie, the other runners, and myself.

This race boosted my confidence in myself beyond comprehension. For the first time, I feel as if I am allowed the title of “trail runner”.

Signing up for this race was the best decision ever. I honestly feel as if I am a slightly changed woman (in a good way) because of this experience.

I just freaking did the HARDEST 50K IN THE WORLD… almost. BAHAHA.

Boom.

How Do I Feel

I have never been this sore in my life.

My quads continue to beg for mercy and my calves cringe at the thought of heels or stairs. But considering the event, I’ll take it. There were no severe injuries for anyone.

Having an old woman gait for a few days is worth it.

Final Thoughts

Quick shout out to Sean for putting together an amazing race! I know that Stephanie has already registered for another of the BumRun events.

Quick shout out to my mom for helping us all weekend. She really did a great job at helping us to relax and took care of us after the race when we couldn’t move off the couch!

And as always, shout out to my life partner, Dan. I am so proud of you, of us, for committing to this, training with everything we had, and going for it. You’re an inspiration and I hope I can be the mountain goat you are!

I thought it would be cool, helpful, to share what we actually ate out of our food reserves?

I ate both bison bars and all of my sandwich thins (pb&j). It averaged out to be about every 90 minutes I would consume around 200-250 calories. This worked perfectly.

Dan on the other hand stuck to his almonds and just 1 sandwich. He learned that the thick bread was hard to eat on the go and dried his mouth out. He said he would eat at the first aid stations more often. But again, said he felt fueled the entire race.

Quick story…

Waaaay into the race, I came across several almonds that had clearly been dropped by a runner.

I actually stopped for a moment and thought, “I wonder if these are Dan’s?” I smiled, and pretended they were, feeling a sense of ease. Weird perhaps, but I felt as if I were closer to him. Later, I asked if he had dropped almonds and when he responded with a “ugh, yes, I did!” I started laughing as I told him the story.

Again, thank you all for your support. I can not tell you how much it has meant to me.

As for what’s next?

More rest. And once I feel recovered, Spartan training really kicks off! I have BIG goals for this race!

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