Cool Moon 100: chasing the speedy bears!

Sister Moon, over Bear territory, in Cool, California, here is the back drop of the Cool Moon 100-mile and trail runs which happened this weekend, all themes well captured in the even logo. And I'm still in awe about what I was able to pull off there although the numbers, place and time, don't tell 10% of the story. Starting this race report on Sunday evening, on 1.5 hours in the car before driving, another 1.5-hour nap after doing the laundry as I'm alone for this Father's Day, with Agnès already vacationing overseas. Let's see how far I can go while all the images are fresh in my mind, before I crash...

It's the second year we selected this 100-mile race in our USATF Pacific Association Mountain, Ultra and Trail (MUT) Grand Prix, and I was sorry to miss last year because of my torn meniscus.

Anatomy of a course

With 8 laps on 2 different side-by-side loops (4 laps on each), this is quite a convoluted course and it would be hard to follow a race report without understanding some basics and a map. I have to say that not getting mixed up became my top concern in the last days leading to the race, up to bothering my Quicksilver teammate and Race Director, Martin Sengo, an hour before the start. Martin is an accomplished ultra runner with several Bad Water and 200-milers under his belt, little worries him. He told me: "you'll see, everything will make sense while on the course..." More on this in a few paragraphs, but at least I had done my serious homework.

The race starts in Cool, which is really a super cool village, 6 miles from Auburn, the Endurance Capital Of the World™, famous among other things for the track of its high school, hosting the finish of the legendary Western States Endurance Run. Speaking of Western States in short, Cool Moon 100 is a WS100 qualifier so it tells you about the difficulty of the course.

There is a North loop, the longest at 13.5 miles but more importantly the hardest with 2 killer hills. Then a shorter and flatter South loop at 11.5. At least each loop is run the same way, no washing machine style, phew!

Now, the trick is that, in addition to the start point of course, both loops share one physical point and aid station, Knickerbocker. Not only this but the South loop goes twice through that aid station, making it the busiest one with 12 passage, versus 8 for the start area. Conveniently, timing mats are both at the start line as well as that Knickerbocker aid station, providing 20 splits and a live tracking on UltraLive.net.

The aid stations are the following (from the race website):

• On the North 13.5 Mile Loop:
• The Ranch at mile 4.5 (full), then +25, 50, 75 miles
• Top of Dam Switchbacks at mile 8.8 (water only)
• Knickerbocker at mile 10 (full)
• The Ranch at mile 12.3 (full)
• Cool Staging Area at mile 13.5 (full) start/finish area

• On the South 11.5 Mile Loop the aid stations are:
• Knickerbocker at mile 16 (full)
• Pilot Hill at mile 19 (water only)
• Catecroft at mile 20.5 (full)
• Knickerbocker at mile 23 (full)
• Cool Staging Area at mile 25 (full) start/finish area

The North and South loops maps, respectively.

And the combined two loops, to illustrate the potential confusion. As we say in ultra, you can't fully rely on volunteers to get directions, you remain the ultimate responsibility of not getting lost and on course, so better keep a cool head throughout the day. And night. And potentially another day as the race gives 37 hours to finish.

Now that we have our aid stations almost in order, let's get to the race.

Friday the 13th

And speaking of getting to a 5 am start, better sleep closer the night before to avoid a 2.5-hour ride from the South of the Bay. I picked a hotel near Cal Expo which left 37 minutes to reach the start on Saturday morning so it worked perfectly. Well, except to get there on Friday. Early Friday morning, Google Maps was giving 2 hours and 6 minutes though Vallejo, or 2:07 on I580/205/5. I had planned on leaving early, that is at noon. By that time though, the ride was now given at almost 3 hours. But then a major accident blocked 580 and I took me almost 4 hours. A good test of patience, at least I was happy to made it to my room by 4 then in bed by 6. Things could have been worse on a 13th...

Early checkin at 4 am on Saturday, with the cool moon already up!

And with Martin, who was already sleep-deprived, but so welcoming!

Loop 1

You got the loop format, and I'm going to go with 8, rather than 4. It's a classic and recommended mental strategy in ultra running, decomposing long distances into smaller chunks, that loopy format makes it easy at least. Although it's also harder mentally to have to go back on the same loop after you might have experienced some struggle. At least we were alternating an easier loop after the tougher North one.

Martin sent us, 100-miler and 100K runners in the first wave of 5 am. Later, a bunch of trail races were following, ranging from 50 miles down to 5K. It was still dark but I decided not to carry a headlamp for the first loop. The first mile was ok but, for the steep and rocky downhill of mile 2, I stayed as close as possible to the lead gal, Brianna Santos, who had a light. There was another guy ahead of us whom we lost sight of in the first mile. To my surprise we weren't following the same trail as the one of No Hands Half in January or Knickerbocker 30K of March. Similarly, we didn't start K2 from the bottom, but started the insane climb on Pig Farm trail, getting on K2 about half way up. What a crazy start of the morning, the glutes were already burning! I passed Brianna half way on Pig Farm then pushed rather hard to the top.

No stop at the Ranch aid station and on to the long descent down to the American River, also on a trail I had never ran on. I pressed on the downhill so much that I caught up with the lead runner before the next big climb of the course. That runner might have some personal business to do because he wasn't actually on the trail when I passed him, I just saw him behind when I was running the switchbacks. As usual, I felt great that early in the race, albeit worried for being in the lead, wondering about the pace.

As I was approaching the Knickerbocker aid station, on the trail just before getting back on the road, I saw a black bear on the trail, about 200 yards away. How cool, that was the first time I saw one in the wild. Oh wait, these beasts are dangerous, aren't they? I stopped for a few seconds but saw it disappearing in the bushes after seeing me so I kept going, albeit at a fast pace while passing along that bush. The moon was still up in the sky and I checked the bear sighting, I completely got the race logo!

Carrying my vintage UltimateDirection bottles (GU Brew and water), I didn't stop at the station except to ask the volunteers to confirm the right exit. Over the first mat, at mile 10. And kept moving. Photo credit: Facchino Photography (purchased/licensed).

I made a quick stop at the second passage through the Ranch station, at mile 12.3, and kept running to the start line in Cool clocking 2:07 for the first loop, oops! Oops because a 9:24 min/mile pace might have been a little too fast and, with the first two big climbs, my adductors starting being painful, already; way way too early in a 100-mile race! I've suffered from painful adductors in 24-hour races before, this is almost impossible to come back from it as even walking becomes excruciating. Bottom line, I had to slow down, like seriously!

Loop 2

My main goal was to run more efficiently. I realized that, with the fast start but more importantly the lack of light in the first technical downhill, I must have been super too tense and put too much pressure on these adductors in particular. Focus was now on relaxing and enjoying the early morning hours.

Shortly before the return to Knickerbocker at mile 16, I see a runner coming from another trail on my right, second oops! He was on the in return to Cool, having missed the out fork. First I was afraid I had done a mistake but I studied the course so much and the course marking was pretty obvious, it was him. I told him he should get back to that fork but he decided to get on the out loop, in reverse. He said he didn't care to get disqualified. He was wearing bib 83 I think, which I believed meant he was on the 100-mile too, and that episode kind of got my mind really off track, losing the good spirit I was in, as it reminded me my Skyline 50K 2011 win after a faster runner ran the course in reverse which I didn't feel was fair (unless the course is completely flat, trail races are rarely symmetrical). Anyway, losing my mojo helped me slow down my pace, which I needed in... the first place.

After Knickerbocker was the main difficulty of that South loop, crossing the Knickerbocker creek steep dip or gap. Which we'll have to cross 8 times overall as we had to cross again to return to that station at mile 23. The rest of that loop had no major challenge, a long single track in the woods, just quite some poison oak to avoid (it will take a few days to see if I've been cautious enough...).

Martin was still filling water tanks at the water-only station of Pilot Hill, when I got to mile 19. Another quick stop at the Catecroft station on highway 49 to grab a few pieces of watermelon and banana, and off I was again. Quick stop at Knickerbocker where my cumulative average pace was now down to 9:33, all good! And, with some relaxation, my adductors weren't yelling too much at least, phew!

Overall, I was back to Cool for the second time just under 4 hours (3:59:56). For what is likely completely worthless, that might be a record split on the 100 mile. With a course record of 19:24 after 15 years, it was really crazy to start that fast. After 201 ultra races, you'd think I'd know better... But I still want to run like a kid! Photo credit, Marko Cater:

Loop 3

9 am, the sun had replaced the moon, it was warm already but wasn't too hot yet. I stopped for a minute or two to take a few GU Energy gels in my belt, drink some Coke and was quickly back to running. This time, in the Pig Farm wall, I paid more attention to tune down a bit the power walking, to preserve my glutes. And I stopped a few minutes at the Ranch aid station to eat a few pieces of fruit. And take a whole banana with me, which I placed in the front pocket of my belt. I know, what do you care about such a detail...

Well, I was going to eat it in the next uphill, just after crossing Salt Creek but... 500 yards before, I spotted a hiker on the trail ahead and that distracted me for a second, I missed a rock and, boom, I was sliding down in the dust of the trail, all flat of me. Exactly the same fall as the one I had back in June 2012 on the Tahoe Rim Trail while preparing for Gary Gellin's TRT group record expedition and... breaking my shoulder. For a few seconds, I wondered how bad the fall was this time... Thankfully, it was more dust this time and loss of skin on the right knee and the exterior of my hands (4th and 5th fingers, on each side). I lost a minute or two to dust myself off, look around to find one of my bottles which had flown 5 or 6 feet away, then stop at the refreshing Salt Creek to wash my wounds. While at the creek, a runner passed me, Kellen Scott, 34. Stupid way to lost a spot but it was still early and not leading anymore actually got some bad pressure off my mind, all good! That fall, though, big third oops... Oh, and the banana which I was carrying in that front pocket of my belt? Smashed and open in my belt, it wasn't pretty, but I still ate most of it as I needed the calories and magnesium!

My knee was still bleeding after the creek wash but the heat helped stop it before the end of the descent to the the river. I could still see Kellen a minute or so ahead but decided to not kill myself in the switchbacks given we still had 70 miles to go. To my great surprise though, I did catch him at the water/ice-only aid station at the top of the switchbacks. Well, not that he had slowed down but he was with another runner who were lapping. Kellen was quite agitated, I thought he was assisting that other runner but, no, it was something else. He had seen a big momma bear with two cubs, vandalizing that aid station before the cubs climbed the tree just above. He thought the cubs were still in the tree but I couldn't see any so, like with the first bear on loop 1, I went straight to first put the bags of ice back in the coolers, get some ice in my water bottle and in my hat, but then Kellen yelled that he was still seeing the momma coming back so we left promptly and I didn't even have time to close the coolers, 4th oops.

Kellen was running really easy and, with all this adrenaline, took off to warn the volunteers at the Knickerbocker aid station, about a mile away. I was still on my mission to slow down which, with the distance, was getting easier to do anyway. This time, it took me 2 hours to complete the 10 miles, compared to 1:35 on lap 1. Progress, sort of...

That time includes a few minutes to refill and for a volunteer to help me clean the wounds again. I finally manage to get most of the dirt out of my knee. For the hands, it was more painful as I kept passing the fingers through the handles of my bottles every time I stopped.

I completed the third loop in 2:41, instead of 2:07 for loop 1.

Loop 4

Now that I had figured out the convoluted course, it felt easier to navigate but also to walk some rolling sections. With that, I started wondering when I would lose my second place but there were still 60 miles to go and I really wanted to finish so it was more important to run conservatively. I still managed to run that loop in 2:22 versus 1:53 for loop 2, but the average pace went down to 10:51 by the 4th return to Cool. The key event of that loop was to get passed by bib 84 at the Catecroft station at mile 45.5. There goes my second place!

I was now 2 pm and the heat was getting serious, albeit not extreme between some breeze and even a few clouds through the afternoon. Plus the sections under the trees. Still, I felt a bit toast by mile 50 and much appreciated William Dai's offer to help. His photo credit, my start of loop 4, armed with ice bandana:

Loop 5

This time, it wasn't even a need, I had enough and started walking most of the time. The Pig Farm and K2 climb became epic and it took me just above 20 minutes to walk a mile, dang! So steep that, if you don't keep pushing hard, you can go back a few steps... I was quite happy and relieved to make it to the Ranch aid station this time. What was so easy in the morning became so challenging in the afternoon. Even the long descent to the river was painful, not to mention the pain in my right knee, bearable but annoying.

No bear to report that time at least. With all the walking, it took me 3:15 to cover these 13.5 miles, but at least I had covered 100K by now, in about 12 hours. Photo credit to Marko, as I was finishing loop 5 while he was pacing Miriam as she started that loop.

Loop 6

I still felt sluggish on that easier South loop and walked more and more. Actually, I also became nauseous which, even after 200 ultra races, was a first for me. To the point that I thought I was going to puke before I could make it to the Catecroft aid. In the mile leading to it, I stopped a few times to take deep breaths as I knew about the trouble you are getting if you throw up, with dehydration in particular. Then I remembered about the ginger trick so I stopped at the station for 15 minutes to not only cool down but drink a whole can of ginger ale, something I never drink otherwise. The say you should never try something new on race days but it was an exceptional situation requiring some remedy. And that did the trick, I was able to walk back to Knickerbocker safely. Still, I had not taken any gel on that lap so I certainly had not much energy left to run.

It felt great to get William's attention and support. He offered me a few options and I picked on the lightest, some broth. He also gave me a fruit bar which I place in my belt along a few GU gels. It was getting dark, I actually had to jog for make it to mile 75 before the end of daylight. Perfect timing to get my head and belt lamps. William also assisted me in changing top, and socks, a much needed pit stop overall before getting into the night. All in all, I stopped for 30 minutes so it was already 9 pm when I left. William checked his phone and saw me in second place after all! His photo credit, while refueling and before setting the lamps up (phones are too good with light, it was way darker than this!):

Loop 7

Second overall, that was a pleasant surprise and shock. That being said, there were a few runners who had passed through the station while I stopped so I wasn't sure I was still in second upon leaving Cool. That, plus the cooler temperature, gave me a kick and, now with two lights, I hammered the descent to Pig Farm trail, passing 4 runners, then power walked Pig Farm and K2, this time clocking 17 minutes for that steep mile. Brief stop at Ranch, jogging the descent to make sure I wasn't tripping again and power walking the switchbacks, with my fingers crossed that all the bears were getting a good sleep through the night. I was also excited to run that loop for the last time of the day and by the fact I was able to take and keep gels again.

Clocked 3:28 for that loop, not too bad given the night conditions. Almost 19 hours since the start and now approaching midnight. As much as I was far from my 20-hour finish goal, I was back and still moving! Finishing was the goal, with a potential podium as a cool bonus. Seeing the cool and red moon rising again was pure magic, with this poor picture not giving much credit to it.

Loop 8

I checked my phone and I recall seing 3rd place not even at Knickerbocker yet, so there was quite some buffer. But the lack of pressure got me to lose my mojo again and walk a lot in the next section to Knickerbocker, then the one to Catecroft. Besides, despite running on Vespa, I needed to still ingest a few calories. I lost a few minutes trying to swallow pieces of rather dry quesadilla and cheese bread. But the effort was worth it.

Leaving Catecroft though, a runner with a sub 100 bib number was approaching and I got scared I was getting caught so that gave me the ultimate kick of running most of the next 2 miles to Knickerbocker, then race the last 2 miles to Cool, at a 12:33 min/mile pace. There was no rush, that wasn't a 100-mile runner, but that helped me to finish earlier at least! 3:08 am, a time of 22:08:54 and, indeed, good enough for 2nd place this year. Although I have to admit far behind first place with Kellen winning in 19:36. I'm still getting on the top 10 performance list.

With 13,600 feet of cumulative elevation, and a few technical sections, this is definitely a course worth a Western States qualifier. Still, Western States has +18,090 and -22,970 of elevation, quite more. So it's only a matter of time before speedsters shave a few hours from the course record at Cool Moon. But, meanwhile and at my age, I'll gladly take a podium spot! It was one of the quietest finish ever, with only one volunteer at the finish line tent upon my 8th return to Cool, who handed me the cool finisher medal and 2nd place trophy. 

I had forgotten to deactivate the heart rate monitor of my Coros watch so it died about 2 miles from the finish. Still quite a long Relive fly over with all these loops... you've been warned, you might get dizzy... (click on link or picture)

William was still up to help me pack, what an angel! (As I write this, he shows 2nd on the Western States wait list, he so deserves to get in, all fingers crossed!!) I slept in the car from 5 to 6:30 am then really needed to eat something (there was nothing left at the finish at 3) and get some coffee so drove back home and stopped at a MacDonald's on 80. Got home by 10:30 am and really enjoyed a shower, then a meal delivered by my boys for Father's Day, before another 90-minute nap. I did sleep for 9 hours on Sunday night after starting this post. On Monday evening, my eyes were hurting so much, probably from all the sun taken on Saturday, I didn't touch the post and got 8 hours of sleep. Finally finishing the post on Tuesday evening, after work. The wounds still hurt so I couldn't go for a run. Thinking of the race, sure, I started too fast but I'm super proud of having recovered from that mistake. I did sweat a lot but I was able to take one S!Cap an hour, and stay on my target of one bottle of GU Brew for every 15 miles. One pouch of Vespa every 3 hours, although I missed the 6-hour one. Quite a few gels plus fruits, some Coke, ginger ale, one thin slice of pizza (I love pepperoni but I went on the safer side of removing them). It's the water that I might have over used and which got me nauseous. At least, with all the walking, I never felt cramps coming so there is that on the electrolyte management.

Some post pictures of their apparel before the race. Past the disgust, this post-race pictures tells quite a story between the dust and the salt...

On our Quicksilver team, Miriam took 4th. Unfortunately, Charles dropped at mile 73 so we won't score a team. Pamakids has showed up in force again, big scoring advantage as we just passed the half of our Grand Prix season, resuming with Skyline 50K at the beginning of August. What a treat and relief to see Shiran, the Pamakids Captain extraordinaire, and now bionic, standing on his feet and helping out, with his two new knees: ultra respect!

Apart from the bears, wild turkeys, rabbits, I didn't see a snake at least. And I didn't see the mysterious animals buzzing loudly over the lake at night, that was quite something, and I'd welcome knowing what it was.

For a big change I spent quite some time at aid stations and I'm therefore even more grateful to the volunteers who assisted us throughout their weekend, for 2 days! Initially, I thought that was too many aid stations but ended up appreciating all of them as I started walking more. With a cut off time of 37 hours, it may get to quite some time between stations, and in the heat, mind you. Thank YOU, all of you! And then, my club and team mate, Martin, for putting up such a trail festival. Martin ran Bad Water and 200 milers, on top of his job and a family, raising twins, so that's mere ultra sleep deprivation training for him, but still. What a treat to run in Auburn territory! Oh, and all these bears, what a... cool way to trigger adrenaline...

To the next cool moon then!

Jackpot 100-mile Nationals: it's long to be back

I know, the actual saying would rather be: it's good to be back! Who wants the road back home to be long, really? Actually, there was a bit of be back flavor this week as I flew to Austin for a business trip last Sunday, got back home late Wednesday night, then on a flight again to Vegas on Thursday evening. So long for a proper birthday celebration but that used to be the life I enjoyed so much for several decades, until the pandemic hit. I miss this engagement and spending more time at our clients although I acknowledge the carbon footprint was way too high.

If you have been following this blog for a few years, you know I've been struggling to get back to my better self, running wise, since my 2018 hamstring tendon injury. It took 4 years for the pain to disappear and it felt really good to be running a solid 50K at Jed Smith 4 weeks ago. Finally a good step in the right direction, that is... back, in comparison with the last four sloppy years.

I logged 377 miles in January: not a crazy number for some, but my highest monthly mileage since September 2018, 2 months before the injury... when I was training so hard before flying to an invitational 100K in Wuhan, China (yes, that Wuhan...). I eased up a little in February, plus took a week off to taper before Jackpot. A bit of trouble though: my body is so used to run efficiently, for every day I don't run at least 12 miles, I tend to gain a pound... Between the tapering and the business trip, I had 6 extra to carry for the race, oops!

Back to the topic... I love opportunities to run national championships, I find it a great perk of our USATF membership. And it's really open to all, it's not like qualifying for the Olympics, it just requires being in good standing. Becoming an Official 8 years ago, I also gained much more appreciation for the organizing Race Directors as the financial burden falls all on them: having to sanction their event, to pay for course certification and, more importantly, to chip in prize money from their own pocket (I initially thought USATF was paying that part). Now, since most of the income comes from registration fee, not sponsors, I'm also grateful to my fellow runners signing up. And this where the Jackpot running festival is particularly interesting, by offering a wide range of options: 9 fixed-time events (1 x 48hr, 1 x 24hr, 3 different 12-hour and 4 different 6-hour races) and 3 different fixed-distance ones (100-mile Nationals, regular 100-mile, 50-mile): yes, a running festival over 3 days, think of the energy and organization skills that one takes to direct!

After 9 years under the direction of co-founders Ken and Stephanie Rubeli of Beyond Limits Running, the event is now part of the broad portfolio of Aravaipa. If you didn't know about the switch, you could have barely noticed: except for a few changes of banners, the same professionalism, same focus on the runner experience, almost identical layout of the aid station and start/finish area (named Jackpot Strip), same Vegas spirit with the presence of costumes at the start. And the traditional dry weather of the Nevada desert, one key factor to manage throughout the day and the night (and twice more for the valorous 48-hour participants).

Below, with World Record Holder for most 100 mile finished in a year (among other crazy feats), Ed (Ettinghausen), aka The Jester, today going for 48 hours again. Ed would end up logging 180 miles, slightly short of his 200-mile goal, one which the 48-hour winner, reached, followed by 190 miles for the female winner, Rachel Entrkin, wow!

With M80-84 legend, the other Ed (Rousseau), from Minnesota:

This was my 5th participation out of 10 editions: as this event used to occur mid February, it survived the pandemic blackout of March 2020 and even happened in 2021, great resilience! I ran 2018 (15:34), 2019 (14:47 still managing to set a new M50-54 American Record while injured), 2021 (pathetic 21:25), 2019 (disappointing 19:06).

In a screwed capacity the first 3 times, that is, in our ultra jargon, without a crew, and with Max's help last year. This year, Greg and Jennifer (Lanctot, from Pacific Coast Trail Runs) offered to drive down from Reno; I gladly accepted and that allowed me to fly the night before instead of driving 1,100 miles (16+ hours round trip)! All in all, between the logistic and a very solid training so far this year, all lights were green for a good run. Definitely not aiming at a record as I just turned 59 last week and our M55-59 record is even lower than the M50-54 one since Rob Hayes lowered it to 14:35 in 2021. My main goal was to run 15:30, about 9:15 min/mile. There was only one other runner in my age group, on the entrant list, with marathon marks between 6 to 8 hours: winning my age group definitely seemed doable again.

As part of the green lights was the weather too: sunny, not too cold at the start, not too hot in the afternoon, and just a breeze. With the views of snow capping all surrounding mountains, a magical and perfect setting!

Lat year, Camille Herron won the race and set a World Record for both the Open and Masters division. That was before an official measurer noticed that a cone had been moved and invalidated the record, stating that the overall distance missed a couple of tenth of a mile, ultra dang! With that, a very special and extra attention was put on the course design, and we had a slight revision of the start with an extra 0.4 mile before running the 85 full laps. 85 laps, a good number to make for a boring race report... No mountain to climb, no river to cross, no rocky terrain but mostly cement. 85 laps also mean 85 passages through the aid station, better not stop every time or that's at least an hour wasted right there!

Not too far from the front line action this time, ready to start!

With my main goal being averaging 9:15 min/mile, the hardest part of the morning was to run really slow. Coming back from the injury last year, training at 8 min/mile didn't feel easy. But, mile after mile, I was able to pick up the pace and I can train more consistently around 7:30 min/mile. I made sure to build some distance with the youngsters right off the bat, yet could not manage to run slower than 8:45 for the first 20 laps, and that even including 4 pit/pee stops. Even 8:45 felt like an easy jog. While I knew the numbers never lie and that there isn't such a concept as banking miles early in an ultra, I couldn't help slowing down more than this. Greg joked about this problem unique to faster runners... This pace got me to 3:49 marathon (versus 3:05 during the Jed Smith 50K last month) and 4:35 for the first 50K (versus 3:42 at Jed Smith). So far so good. I even didn't feel bad at all for being passed by the leader and legendary Zach Bitter every 4.5 lap, consistently; on the contrary, it was almost reassuring, a reinforcement that I couldn't have started too fast. In 2019 Zach clocked the world faster 100-mile ever at 11:19 and even continued to set a new world record for 12 hours at 104.8 miles! Except Zach, everybody else was getting lapped anyhow, even our other Bay Area representative, Jonah Backstrom, in second place, at 49!

For me, the wheels started to fall off a few miles after the 50K mark, way way too early, yikes and dang! Mostly upper leg fatigue, especially the glutes and adductors. Nothing dramatic physically but that forced me to slow down a notch. I ran laps 29-33 (mile 32-37) at 9 min/mile this time. I was more worried about my mental state as I didn't like this early fatigue at all. Then, at the end of lap 33, I saw Zach in a chair, not looking good at all while Lin, the USATF Official, was checking on him. I learned later that he had started the race with some fever, that wasn't going to be his day (I hadn't noticed that at previous races, I was also surprised by his asymmetrical stride: his left left foot kicking back over the knee level, while the right foot stayed much lower; but such an efficient stride nevertheless, proved by mind boggling performances otherwise). Anyway, just to say that I felt sorry for him, and that even got my spirit down. He had run 47 miles, I was at 39 miles and already wondering what it was going to take me to get to 50...

I eased up because I had to, now running miles between 9:30 and 11:30 depending on how long I was stopping at the aid station, wondering what to do better from a fueling strategy. But the issue was at least half in my mind, a lack of motivation and self-confidence about the last 50 miles. As you probably know if you've read previous race reports, I hate walking. Later, as I walked more, I expressed this frustration to the legendary Eric Clifton, who walked a lot this Saturday, yet managed to get another National title in the M60-65.

Passing the 50-mile mark, I stopped by the timing booth and teased our timer, Mike Melton, with a: "it's all up hill from here..." His reply was the classic, "no, no, all downhill" but I was the one knowing what was going on in my mind and my legs. A few things kept me moving forward at this point thouhg, thankfully:

1. First and foremost, seeing the battle raging in the M80-84 age group. It was so impressive and inspiring to watch these 5 competitors power walk so consistently and with so much energy, focus and will power. That brought back memories from the times I was racing along my Stevens Creek Striders club mate, Bill Dodson. Bill can't run anymore and I felt bad that his 32-hour record might fall today.
2. Then there was Andy Wilkins-Jones who was energizing the livestream: referring to the quote that the Western States race only starts at Foresthill, mile 62, beginning at mile 35 I told him I was trying to find and get to the start... And he made the cap 65 miles for me, so I at least needed to go that far then...
3. Of course Jenny and Greg weren't taking a DNF as an option, having driven all these miles to get me to the finish.
4. Then a few other encouragements from our USATF Officials, Meghan and Lin, and other crews, like Rich.
5. Last but not least, I had not made such a trip to just drop that early and come back empty handed. At that point, I could still jog. After all, I had run 50 miles in 7:45, still 2 minutes ahead of the pace to get to my goal of 15 hours and 30 minutes. Except that the derivative of my timing chart was way negative now, not a good thing at all when you still have 50 miles to cover.

I reached 62 miles (100K) around 6 pm as the sun had said goodbye for the day. I was getting cold, it was time to change layers. And then get back to the mill, lap after lap. I had to push and limit the walking to maintain a pace between 12 and 13 min/mile now, not fun.

Then a second change 20 miles later:

By mile 80, I was seeing myself barely breaking 24 hours and I started arguing with Jenny and Greg, that I'd rather have them going back to the hotel and sleep until I call them in the morning. That wasn't an idea they liked but, after seeing the first men and women finish, and after getting enough of my whining, they accepted. In some sense, that freed me from any pressure and I recall running a few laps (76-79) before that short-lived second wind faded again. But at least, using my Hypervolt massaging gun earlier than last year, while keeping moving on the course, I was able to remove a few knots in my glutes and adductors. I was proud to walk not fast, but much faster that I'm used to in such conditions, there is that.

I still paid attention to my fueling, keeping taking a Vespa Power pouch every 3 hours, drinking consistently and eating gels (GU Energy), some banana and brownies, and that avoided stopping to a halt to a halt, like last year. It helped that, after all, I was alone in my age group, that removed some of the pressure. It was just me against the clock, although, when I noticed that I was still in 9th place in the men, with 2 hours to go, I felt that I'd better keep moving faster, silly me...

Although it felt like taking for ever, I was glad to keep moving through the night. 1 am, 2 am, 3 am. As I finished my 84th lap, what a surprise and joy to see Greg who had drove back from the hotel when he saw that I was making up some time. He was there to catch this picture of my finish. Like a colleague at work put it, I seem to be wondering where everybody was! ;-) No it was more "finally done... sorry it took me that long!"

And, yes, I felt quite ashamed for missing the end of the livestream again, missing my goal by 4 hour. Although, after 187 ultra races, it had been a long time since I received so many congratulatory messages, thank you all!

I went to bed at 5 am on Saturday morning, woke up at 9:30, got breakfast, worked a couple of hours from the hotel, then bought a pass to the lounge with a flight which kept being delayed, leaving Vegas at 6:30 pm instead of 2:55... The following night I slept for 11 hours and got a huge sweat all night. Something was really off, and I don't know what it was, just that, beyond some well earned soreness in my legs, I felt fine on Sunday, no fever, phew! Maybe my mind getting rid of so many dark thoughts, that was quite weird. Anyway, I ran 10, 15 and 20K respectively, Monday though Wednesday and, feeling much better on Thursday, decided to sign up again, this time for the 50K Nationals this Sunday, 8 days later... Yes, crazy...

That result and craziness earned me a nice piece in the largest regional print newspaper in France, Ouest France, credit to Stéphane Cugnier, journalist and marathoner himself, living in South California:

My first thanks go to Greg and Jenny for their great help, and friendship. To Agnès for letting me play this way, even when it's not that playful... To Jamil and his Aravaipa crew for continuing the Jackpot tradition and this successful 10th edition. To Ken and Stephanie who came up with this championship idea in Vegas, it's so valuable to get Nationals distributed nationwide. To the encouragements from crews along the course. Last but not the least at all, the encouragements from all my fellow runners, through the day and the night: what a supportive community we form!

If that report wasn't long enough, or if you want to see how slow some of us were going, here are 17h30 of livestream, enjoy! Caveat: following a 100-mile race isn't as thrilling as sprint races at the Olympics...

1. Livestream #1 (11h30!!)
2. Livestream #2 (next 6 hours)

Headlands Hundred 2022: back at the big game with guts and glutes!

Ultra trail running and 100-miles in particular are great sources of stories. We all know some people have the guts to turn them into successful books, and even talent to embellish these stories to captivate even larger audiences. With 205 100-mile races a year per Stan Jensen's run100s.com website, there is definitely no shortage of inspiration, although we certainly don't hear about 1% of the personal journeys despite so much social media activity, great coverage by Ultra Running Magazine, and a few persisting and stubborn bloggers... But when Dean Karnazes is on the entrant list, that does boost the odds! And it can even eclipse the full moon... (picture taken at 5 am on Saturday morning)

What a weekend it has been. As I start writing this race report, 6 days later, the results are still being tabulated. 12 days later as I come back at it after another work week, I'm still unsure about the conclusion, read on... While the participation was on the low side, even by our American standard, PCTR (Pacific Coast Trail Runs) put quite a production with 7 distances and 8 staged stars over 4 days: 150-mile on Thursday, 100-mile early start at , 100-mile regular start at 6am on Saturday, followed by the 75-mile     and Night Sweats Trail Runs 15K and 8K on Saturday at 8 pm! Add to this the convoluted washing-machine style and 8-shape course, we were in for seeing and crossing many happy faces.

The 100-mile being part of our North California and Nevada Pacific Association USATF Grand Prix, I joined the fun on Saturday morning. It wasn't even 5 am when I got to the start and Jennifer and Bree were already busy welcoming us to the check-in. With the last full sturgeon moon of the year, and no fog, the light over the Pacific Ocean was magic!

Despite being relatively well prepared, I still missed the emotional briefing where Greg talked about the importance of supporting our community, especially those battling the stress of mental challenges exacerbated by the pandemic in particular. When I thought I was ready, with 9 minutes to spare, I cross someone at the bathroom who wishes me luck. As he didn't have a bib, I ask if he was crewing but he mentioned he was on the 50-mile. Oh shoot, I didn't have my bib on myself, I had left in the car! There you have a good sprint as a warm up! With that, when Greg asked if I was going to lead on the first loop, I declined the offer because I wasn't visualizing the initial unmarked "white loop" from the website description.

I managed to snap a Quicksilver Ultra Running Team blurry selfie before the start, albeit without Charles that we had not seen around.

The beginning of the first loop is straight up and, this year, after last years' DNF, I was resolute not to start too hard. A blessing to see Martin forging ahead, that's our Auburn guy! I even lost sight of him in the down hill, so much that I wasn't sure I was on the right (white) loop anymore. It felt a bit long to go around the buildings/barracks but I knew we were trying to lot 2 miles before the big loops which were originally right on 25 miles when we were going under the Golden Gate bridge, but now reduced.

Before you get too confused with the confusing course, let's do a bit of course anatomy. After the initial white loop, we were following the yellow ribbons, the left side of the 8-shape course, first through Tennessee Valley, then Muir Beach. From Muir Beach, switching to the pink ribbons, starting with a new section reminding me of the start of Headlands 50K. Back again through Tennessee Valley then up to the SCA ridge, down to the Golden Gate Bridge aid station. From there, we then switch to the blue ribbons, retracing our footsteps on SCA, then taking left down to Rodeo Beach. That's one main loop. From there, we retrace the first loop in the other directions, blue, pink, yellow. Then change direction again, yellow, pink, blue. And one last time, anti-clockwise, blue, pink, yellow. Phew, now that's clear, right?

As for elevation, the following chart looks impressive but that's not even meters, only feet. When I ran 18:22 for the win in 2013, I even stated that everything is runnable. Well, now approaching 60, I'll admit this is aggressive, if not foolish... ;-) At least it's safe to say there isn't much flat (the longest is about a mile on the East side of Rodeo Beach).

After that digression, let's get back on... course, or track. And if the course configuration still doesn't make sense to you, watch the Relive fly-over (longer than usual as, after 10 years or so, I finally fell for the Relive Plus subscription which allows to edit 12+ hour runs...).

Despite the low light still after completing the initial 2.3-mile loop, Greg caught two shots of my passage through Rodeo Beach.

Martin was still leading as we climbed toward Wolf Ridge (notice I didn't say Coyote, only Wolf...) and I just caught up with him at the top.

Martin stated that I was better in the downhills, so let me pass, which allowed me to snap a couple of pictures, including one of him.

Carrying two bottles (water and GU2O, aka GU Energy Brew), I didn't stop at Tennessee Valley. I later learned from a special volunteer at this aid station, Agnès, that this was bad. Indeed, with runners coming and leaving from 4 directions, through 4 days and 3 nights, it got them nuts when runners weren't checking if the aid station staff got their passage. Anyway, at least Shiran Kochavi was quick enough to spot me as I flew by!

The sun was rising fast and, climbing Coastal Trail toward Pirates Cove, I recall thinking how cool it looked that we were running straight up the Moon, which is gaining so much popularity with the upcoming NASA trip.

I crossed the following 100-mile runners on my way back up from Stinson Beach. There were 5 of them running and chatting together, and I had built a lead of about a mile.

From sea level to 1,000 feet, this is the longest climb. Last year, I recall pushing a lot on that one, so I took it easier and power walked some. I got to Tennessee Valley after 2:27 of running and about 15 miles, which is typically the distance I refill my GU2O bottle at least. I was welcomed by Shiran again as well as Janeth and they asked what I wanted/needed. I replied "just my drop bag!" Oh shoot, with the later 50-mile start, drop bags hadn't been delivered yet from Rodeo. I had all my GU Energy gels in that bag and there were 26 miles before our next passage to Tennessee, that was going to be interesting... At least I still had a couple of gels left in my Ultimate Direction belt, as well as a Vespa concentrate (1 take one dose every 3 hours), plus one supply of GU2O; that will have to do.

As a matter of fact, with the cooler temperature at the start, I refilled the GU2O at Golden Gate Bridge and grabbed a whole banana.

Thanks to a short and efficient pit stop, my lead increased to about 2.2 miles when I crossed the pursuit group.

I also passed Chuck Amital who was on his 5th lap, on his way to his 150-mile win!

Stephen Strauss was doing Security Patrol all weekend as a prep for his upcoming Bear 100. At Rodeo, which I reached in 4:21 (26 miles), he offered 2 GU gels, which I gladly accepted! He even offered a pouch of Vespa but, that, I had one in my Victory Sportdesign drop bag. I squeezed it in my belt and out I was after 2 minutes.

I crossed the pursuit group again as I was retracing my way back on Bobcat Trail (note that I did not say Coyote Trail!). The lead was closer to 3 miles now or about 30 minutes as I was still averaging 10 minutes per mile. The volunteers were surprised to see me back already at Golden Gate Bridge and I didn't stop for too long which helped increase the lead to about 3.6 miles when I crossed the pursuit gang again on SCA. I still managed to snap a few pictures of the bridge and San Francisco in some fog, which I shared on WhatsApp with the family in France. They replied that the live tracking on Ultralive.net wasn't working.

I was back at Tennessee Valley just after noon (6:24 of running, mile 38). This time my drop bag was there and I did pick a few gels as well as a ziplock of GU2O powder. And a Coke with a view pieces of watermelon I think. Look at this outstanding presentation from Janeth, you couldn't resist such an attractive all-you-can-eat buffet!

Then it was time to get back up on Miwok Trail. I love the Native American heritage of this reference to the Miwok tribes, and being carried by their spirit, but it was getting hotter and harder to run that tricky section. Poles might have helped but, before I knew it, I was running again up on... Coyote Ridge Trail. Note that I did mention Coyote now! By the way, that's where I crossed George Rehmet, current National RRCA President, who was running the marathon option:

This time, after a quick stop at Stinson Beach for some ice in my bottles and hat, I climbed up toward Pirates Cove Trail without crossing the pursuit squad and ran most of the 4 miles back to Tennessee Valley. I rarely run with my phone in the Headlands which I mostly visit for races (Miwok, Tamalpa 50K, Quad Dispsea, Headlands Hundred), this time I couldn't resist stopping to take a few shots in order to share these outstanding views with you. When pictures are worth more than a thousand words... It also gives some some scale of the area we are going through, along the Pacific. If you look closely, you'll also see in the background the steep trail coming up the bottom of Pirate Cove, one of the hardest section on this course, actually in either direction (both a tricky descent and tough climb).

I reached the station at 2:15 pm and met Agnès who was volunteering on the 2-10 pm shift. She made some mashed potatoes which I took with me on the next climb on Old Springs Trail. It was too hard to jog while eating so I enjoyed a slow walk for the next mile. Notice the cut corner of the Ziplock, which allowed me to squeeze the mashed potatoes through. First time I try that and it was a hit!

After some running on the short section of Miwok Trail, more power walking on the short (0.7 mile) but brutally steep Wolf Ridge Trail. I remained super careful in the irregular stairs of Coastal Trail then reached out Rodeo Beach again in about 9 hours and 12 minutes (~4:51 for loop 2).

I drank some chicken broth from an insulated bottle I had in my drop bag, got some ice in my bottles and quickly returned on the steep Coastal Trail. Also took a Vespa Concentrate that Vespa athlete and Club teammate, Bree, captured in this picture.

As a way to relax, I also took a few pictures on the climb back up Coastal Trail, now retracing the outbound yellow section for the second time. Views of Rodeo Beach, then the easy part of the stairs.

I crossed over Wolf Ridge and flew down on the other side, crossing Jacob Huston now chasing me alone. That was at least a 4-mile lead, some cushioning but he looked in good spirits and ready for a good fight. This time, back at Tennessee Valley, I skipped the mashed potatoes and, thanks to an efficient refill from Agnès and William (Dai), didn't lost much time before going back on Tennessee Valley Trail. With less pressure on my shoulders I did walk more sections of the Coastal Trail climb toward Pirates Cove, and descended in the cove, balancing speed and caution, to avoid a bad fall.

Nothing worth mentioning in my journey back to Tennessee Valley, but the increasing heat on these exposed trails. There was some breeze but I've never experienced such a heat on these trails overlooking the Ocean. Crossing Charles after Pirates Cove:

Another view of Muir Beach, now at 5:20 pm.

The heat led to more power walking and stopping for pictures. Look at this other gorgeous view over Sausalito.

I was really happy to see Agnès for the third time at Tennessee Valley around 6:10 pm. (Both photo credits to Shiran.)

With an average pace now closer to 11:15, and 26 miles before I return again, I told her she would probably have left by then. I took another cup of mashed potatoes in a ziplock, on my way up Marincello Trail. I like jogging this long and steady gradual up hill so I only ate half of the bag to keep moving. Because we had to have a headlamp by 6 pm, I had taken my Petzl at Tennessee although the sun was still quite high. I even recall being dazzled by the sun on my way back on SCA after coming back from Golden Gate Bridge. That's where I crossed Jacob whom I pointed at about 3.6 miles. I had experienced a loss of energy on the descent to Golden Gate Bridge, which explained the decrease, but was feeling much better now. So much that I pushed the pace on the way down to Rodeo, while still managing to eat the second half of my mashed potatoes ziplock. I noticed Jacob looked to have a pacer now, so I'd better keep moving!

I arrived at Rodeo Beach just before 8:30 pm (5:18 for lap 3), and without the need to use my headlamp. I was ready to just touch and go, or maybe just get some of my prepared chicken broth, feeling so ready to kill lap 4 when Mark Gilligan (founder and ex-owner of UltraSignup) told me I could stop my watch. Knowing Mark, I was convinced he was just teasing me but eventually, I saw the Ranger chatting with Greg and Greg confirming that the race was interrupted, suspended until 7 am on Sunday morning. If I learnt anything from 16 years racing ultras is that you don't argue with RDs, and even less so with Rangers. I still asked Mark what was the reason and it came back to a post I had seen on Friday, without realizing it was from a runner on the 150-mile race. That viral post was showing Dean Karnazes' face bleeding, with Dean mentioning he had just been attacked by a coyote coming after an energy bar he was eating. And that, like Saint Michael taming the dragon, he was able to fend the coyote off with his running poles. Pretty epic, right? From interviews to interviews, the news got amplified, spinning around the world, with Dean even adding he got so scared, he peed his shorts. Certainly, after that, it was easy for the Rangers to imagine an enraged coyote in the SCA area, which now presented unsafe conditions for the runners, although that was on Thursday night and it was now Saturday night (not live...).

I didn't make too much fuss about it, I was just disappointed the Rangers wouldn't even allow us to sleep in our cars. Agnès arrived shortly after I got in, she had driven two runners out of Tennessee Valley after the race got suspended. We drove back home (55 miles) in two cars, her following me on the highway to make sure I wasn't falling asleep. For one thing, it was so entertaining seeing the moon rise when we reached Paolo Alto, I wasn't going to miss this! Not only it's hard to take pictures while driving, but the picture doesn't do justice to the impressive size of the raising moon on he horizon.

The time to unpack and prepare for the next day, then get an hour of massage in my Normatec boots, I got to bed after midnight and slept for about 3 hours to get a new breakfast in, 3 hours before the new start (7am) and drive back up to Rodeo Beach on my own. All runners were supposed to resume running at 7 am, from the spot (respective aid station) they had been stopped on Saturday evening. At Rodeo Beach, it was only Jacob and I on Sunday morning. 2 minutes before the start, I asked Jacob when he got in, he said 9:30 pm, which showed that I had gained about 20 minutes over his last 6 miles the day before, for a total of a 60-minute lead.

By the time Greg sent us out at 7 am, Jacob still had 3 layers on and a cup of coffee in his hands, so I started alone. A few hundreds yards later, Jacob had caught up and actually passed me, after telling me he wasn't going to chase me on that last loop. By mile 3 (now 79), his lead had increased to about 2.5 minutes, then I lost sight of him in the fog bathing the ridge and SCA. It didn't help that I stopped to try to capture the grandeur of the sun piercing through the fog, on the ridge.

I kept pushing the pace on my way down to the Golden Gate Bride aid station, trying to minimize the gap at least. Just after crossing Conzelman Road, near the area Dean fell (see more on this later), Martin and I exchanged a high five, we were both on the move! To my surprise, I caught Jacob in the next switch back, just before the station, which we left together after a quick stop. Jacob mentioned he had stopped to chat with Martin. Martin seems so focused, I doubt he had stopped for a long time. I did pass Jacob and, despite a good effort, we never caught up with Martin, before he went down toward Rodeo to finish his 3rd loop, while we went down toward Tennessee Valley. Jacob was taking the lead in the uphills, and I was in the downhills. Just before Tennessee, I stopped to finally take a picture of this inspiring lady, 6-month pregnant who, instead of running the 150-miler she had initially registered to, was running the 100-mile over 4 days, 25 miles each day. She is also the person that Dean talks about in his podcast below, who also encountered a coyote, although, her not making a drama about it, just got rid of the coyote by just agitating the ribbons she was carrying to help mark the course on Thursday, and raising her voice. An extraordinary runner for covering such a distance while carrying a baby, but a normal runner from the coyote encounter.

With two bottles, I didn't stop at Tennessee though and built a good lead on Jacob in the next 4 miles to Muir Beach. He arrived at the station at the time I was leaving and I could see him a quarter to half a mile back on the Pirates Cove trail. I even stopped to capture more views of the treacherous trail in Pirates Cove.

I then pushed the pace in the downhill to Tennessee Valley Trail but lost some time alternating walking and jogging in the gentle uphill back to the station. Without a drop bag and a crew on that second day, I briefly stopped at the aid station to get some ice in my water bottle and hat, now served by our team captain, Coach Marc, who spent his Sunday helping out at the station.

Without having to ingest mashed potatoes this time, I jogged a good part of Old Springs Trail and even some of the insanely steep Wolfe Ridge Trail. But, catching Eldrith who was finishing her 50-mile, I could not resist to stop to spend some time with her, snapping a few selfies and teasing her for the 122-year age profile on UltraSignup. Apparently, running and completing such hilly ultras at 81 isn't enough of a fame for her, let's go with 122! Of course, she had no idea about what I was talking about, this way to discreetly and humbly hide her age wasn't deliberate! Like Jim Magill or Roy Pirrung, she is one of these models who make us say: "when I grow up, I want to be like..."

With that social encounter, I completely missed the fact that Jacob had closed the gap, literally didn't see that coming. We finished the climb together as well as the subsequent downhill on the short paves section but I let him go as we approached these tricky stairs where I do fear on the way down (one of the reasons I can't compete anymore in the Alps). I kept pushing on the way down to Rodeo Beach and could see Jacob crossing the finish line. Checking on my Garmin, I realized I could still make it under 19 hours, way under my wildest dream of breaking 20 hours this time (4th loop in 4:28). Speaking of time, I'm still astonished with the difference between my Garmin watch giving a total elapsed time of 18:58:01 and Strava giving a moving time of 18:00. I didn't feel like stopping much at aid stations but going through them 20 times do add up: an average of 3 minutes each.

Now, two weeks later, I'm still unsure about what just happened. On one hand, the pure joy of having met more goals than I had even dreamt about for this edition. Finishing/not DNFing: checked and checked. Winning my age group: checked. Breaking 24 hours: checked. Breaking 20 hours: checked. While I ran 18:22 and won in 2013, even discounting the aging part, I'm still painfully coming back from that 2018 injury. Checking all these boxes at once was certainly a big success in my books and pure joy right after finishing.

I had told Jennifer that I would run for and thinking of her this time, you can see her communicative joy as well on this picture.

On the other end, I didn't see all the detractors coming. I had seen that Instagram video of Dean Karnazes circulating on Facebook on Friday but hadn't even realized he was running in the Headlands, and much less at that event, on the 150-mile. I'll come back on that below. As the Chair of our Pacific Association USATF MUT committee, I had to deal with the question about scoring. While there was only a small contingent of PA members enlisted on the 100-mile, most of them were counting on the generous 33-hour time limit for the 6am start. As a matter of fact, some actually took advantage of the Friday 8pm early start, giving them 43 hours to cover the distance. Now, with the Saturday evening interruption, some were just half way after 13 or 14 hours. With the new 7am-7pm window allowed by the Rangers on Sunday, some decided it wasn't worth coming back on Sunday to see how far they could go; others might have had other plans for their Sunday afternoon as well. Bottom line, not counting other participants who had started on Friday evening, only three PA members made it to the 100-mile finish by Sunday evening: William, Charles and I, spanning two PA clubs, Pamakids and Quicksilver respectively. That easily addressed the question of team scoring: no clubs (teams of 3) getting to the finish given the circumstances, no team scoring. Regarding the individual scoring though, I have to admit I was blown away by non PA runners even complaining about unfair it would be to publish results for a 100-mile race ran over 2 days. That it should be called a multi-stage race with the 10-hour or so interruption mandated by the Rangers to the Race Director. That it was unfair vis-à-vis other runners having ran real 100-mile races elsewhere. Like you can compare two 100-mile races ran on completely different hilly courses, or in different weathers, at different elevations. Like there was even something important at stake, like prize money or a global ranking. Well, if you even discount the first reason we run ultras for the personal challenge and joy of testing our limits in the outdoors, committing to the Grand Prix is certainly important for some, worth a few hundreds dollars. And then there is the consideration for the Race Directors, or lack thereof, who had to scramble to preserve the value of the runners' investment given the changing directions and instructions. All this thanks to one man's action...

<rant> (warning: beginning of quite a rant section, in HTML markup language...)

As I mentioned above, it has been 2 weeks and the dust hasn't even finished to settle. Earlier this Saturday, as I was coming back at this post and doing more research on the topic, when I got into this recent podcast from UltraRunning Magazine yesterday, which looked to finally get the truth out. After all, as opposed to the community and amateurs blogging, you can expect some good journalism from an established and specialized magazine, right? Well, forgive me for being either naive or negative, but I'm not just disappointed but shocked by the content. While I was really eager to hear about the real story after so many different versions spinning from direct sources of information delivered by Dean, I couldn't help noticing even more contradictions, for instance:

1. Dean's multiple use of the words "highly groomed" and "wide" to describe the area of the so-called attack. For anyone who has run this course, you know how narrow the switch back is between the road and the aid station, plus the irregular stairs at both ends, not to mention the tricky roots just before and after the station, especially under the trees at 3 am.
2. Just before that it was Dean boasting that this was the first edition of this 150-mile race. Well, while it's irrelevant to that story, that's not true, there was one last year. Maybe Dean didn't know, although he most likely knew since he is so familiar with the area and this race in particular. Again, not helping in a segment which is meant to be factual and... finally truthful.
3. Then we hear about "face cut open". Sure, nobody can deny the bleeding in the video but, less than 2 weeks later, no trace? Or maybe it was just a bruise (indeed, any bruise on the face can get quite bloody)? No need for stitches?
4. What about Dean denigrating coyote specialists by wondering if they even have experience of trails. How a specialist of coyotes can even be a specialist if they stay in the city or roads. So, yes, if you are a specialist of these wild animals, then
5. After hearing Dean depict the coyote "healthy looking" and well fed, he mocks the Rangers for asking him if he saw a tag, arguing it went too fast, he couldn't see anything in the dark. Given the close encounter at 3 am, certainly can't blame for not seeing much, but why being specific on certain aspects, then denigrate the Rangers for asking? If you didn't see a thing because if was dark and so quick/short --I'm surprised I haven't heard if there was fog that night, or a clear sky with the full moon-- just admit it!
6. I had to rewind quite a few times to try to make sense of the account at 6 minute, then another account at 11, after Scotty asked again "but what really happened?" In 5 minutes in a single podcast, I feel the story event changed. In the first round, "I heard quick foot steps behind me and thought it was a dog" (doesn't matter this is the noisiest part of the course, above 101), and "I got slammed to the ground because I wanted to get out of the way". Then "the thing was in front of me, I used my hiking poles and it was gone" (I have to assume the it refers to the beast here, not the cereal bar). And more "I got slammed to the deck, hurt my rib, cut my face" while "I was shuffling along, chewing and holding a bar."After this first round it's hard to understand how the coyote moved from being behind to in front of Dean shuffling then falling flat on his face. The second round at 11 is more picturesque and contains more action. Now we have "it was freaky, it went for the food", "the coyote lunging, it hit me, it bounced off me." Now, yes, that's really getting freaky. In the initial Instagram we had "I got attacked by a coyote, it's a first, it knocked me down, I was running with poles so I whacked it and it run away." Should we remind the audience how muscular Dean is? All this would leave Sherlock Holmes quite perplex I'm afraid...
7. As for the shark attack, come on! So, one day, Dean was spearfishing in the Keys in Florida and a shark stole the fish he just got caught. And he is calling this an attack? Close to an area sharks do attack surfers so badly, and he dares to describe such encounters to attacks, when this one looks like an unfortunate fall with no trace of cuts 2 weeks later. Sorry, still not buying it. Not saying he hasn't been surprised by a coyote right after the switch back, maybe even tripping in the poles he was holding while his other hand was holding the bar, all that in a blink of an eye. But, if you turned because you heard a coyote walking on a trail (I've hard time believing coyotes make noise with their pawns on dirt tails when hunting), then turn around to face it, then how do you fall flat on your face when you want to get out of the way. More questions and inconsistencies for Sherlock...
8. Last but not least, before I could keep going with more observations, how smart to conclude with "look, there are only two people knowing the truth: Dean and the coyote." With that, I certainly feel completely screwed because, as far as I know, a coyote isn't a person that we can interview so we are now down to only one person. And yet, we would love to hear about the real, raw, unedited, non manipulated and embellished truth. Eventually...

Of course, when it starts with "Dean Karnazes, arguably one of the ultra running most accomplished runners", you know the journalist isn't biased. Sure, Dean enjoys an amazing fame built upon outstanding and super well marketed accomplishments, but after looking at the duel between Kilian Jornet and Jim Walmsley to only take two runners of an exceptional UTMB edition last night, or ultra running queens like Ann Trason, Camille Herron or Courtney Dauwalter, there are quite different levels at play here in terms of ultra running accomplishments. Besides, while we can fall for Dean's ability to make ultra running more extraordinary and intriguing to a large audience with his books and interviews, I'm pretty sure many others in our community wouldn't use "genuine and authentic" to describe Dean and the accounts of his achievements and adventures.

Editing this post to add a link to the Park Rangers' statement on Twitter, the following Wednesday, after their own official investigation of the events:

"While we appreciate the coverage on this, we want to emphasize that the injuries shown were caused by a fall. The coyote did not bite the individual involved in this encounter."

I get it, it's not popular to question popular people with such a huge international audience but, after hearing from other supporters of Dean's multiple versions of that story, it feels a bit like a cult. And I feel it's important to voice concerns about how some people leverage a skill to distort reality to their advantage. It's everywhere these days, I do fight this at work on a daily basis and of course we all on social media as well. I know I'm screwed because I still want to believe in the value of raw truth, we all have a weakness... And screwed because this divisive event undermines and damaged our ideal of a supportive ultra community.

Sadly, in this case, it would have been anyone else than Dean tripping while surprised by a coyote, the race would have most likely just proceeded without any complication. What a waste of time, money and energy this generated, all that for some additional fame for one person!

</rant> (end rant)

So, what this leaves us with? So much bitterness across this year's Headlands Hundred edition, and confusion. Complications for the event organizers. And division within our ultra running community. Discord between those who managed to finish on Sunday and those who claim it's unfair because they didn't have enough time with the reduced time limit, that they didn't even dare to come back on Sunday.

Has anything like this happened before? I pinged quite a few people but couldn't find anything exactly matching that situation. In 2013, Miwok got shorten at the last minute from 100K to 60K because of fire risk, but the decision was made the day before. In 2021, at Silver State 50-mile, some runners were stopped for 20 minutes at aid stations because of risk of lightning in some exposed section, but the rest of the field did proceed. A few years ago, the UTMB course got swallowed by sim mud slide and the organizers re-routed the runners and shortened the course. Last year, a runner died during the TDS (Tour des Ducs de Savoie) and the Race Directors decided that those ahead could finish their race, while those behind had to stop. This looks the closest to our case here. Actually, the same thing happened to be at a Marathon National in France where they had to send the police to enforce the decision by the Race Directors to let the front of the pack finished the race while calling the race off because of the heat, for most of the field (I was lucky to made that cut-off again, but no written account as it was in June 2005, 2 years before I started blogging). Despite consulting with ultra historians, I'm sure there must be more cases like that. The only rule which remains common among all these cases is that Race Directors do rule, and they have to comply with higher governing and official agencies.

I'm so bitter about the spoiled opportunity to celebrate another alignment of stars, finally after almost 4 years of penitence since I fissured this hamstring tendon in November 2018. I was going so strong at the end of lap 3, I'm convinced I was going to at least break 20 hours. I might have not hold the 1-hour lead over Jacob who had the support of a pacer, but that would have made an entertaining last lap at least. But I'm even more bummed that the incident did cost our Club a Men win and potentially a win for this season. And bummed for the other PA members who had committed on that key race, despite other odds. And bummed for Greg, Jennifer and the whole PCTR gang for such negative outcome. Grateful to them for allowing runners to finish their race in an open format until October but, of course, such a different flavor and taste.

I admire Greg's resilience in such adversity. He was so upbeat to celebrate our finish and podium, look at all this beer! ;-)

I can't resist including an image of another podium of that weekend, in France. Apart from the failed backdrop --you can't beat Rodeo Beach for that-- spot the 6-pak of mineral water. Ok, time for me to confess that I do prefer water over beer as a matter of fact... I know I don't fit with some ultra circles on this... ;-)

And look at who joined PCTR as a business partner, Chef Yaku! Under his big wing, there is no coyote to fear! ;-)

What a family PCTR has been and is for our local ultra and trail running community!

For more prosaic lessons learned, at least for my own records, nutrition worked very well thanks to a consistent taking of Vespa every 3 hours, as well as a new addition on Saturday afternoon: mashed potatoes. Reading about Jeff Browning's OFM and Vespa experience at his amazing Hard Rock (5th overall at 50), I increased the intake of carb calories a bit (Coke and GU Energy gels). I also drank quite consistently, close to my 2 bottles/15 mile (one with water, one with GU Energy Brew). It was a warm edition and I enjoyed ice in my bottles and hat throughout Saturday, and even on Sunday morning. Unusual for a run along the Pacific Coast. For one thing, there was less fog than usual, maybe another sign of global warming... :-( Despite all the sweating, no major cramps thanks to a consistent taking of Succeed's S!Caps. Actually, a couple of times during the run I could feel cramps coming in laps 3 and 4 but I used my new technique of hyper ventilation and that did the trick! Overall, the only glitch I experienced is a sun burn on my forehead, and my lips.

I'm so grateful for the support of aid station volunteers through Saturday and Sunday, what a dedication to support such an event spanning more than 3 days, and nights! And for Agnès' presence at Tennessee from 2 to 8 pm on Saturday, helping out between the 6 minutes of crewing across my 3 passages. Here is Tennessee Valley Aid Station Captain over the weekend, David Thomas, with his Saturday crew:

I'll write more on this in another post but, and while not sponsored by Brooks anymore, I am blown away by both the bouncing comfort and the grip of the Caldera. I had used the original models, this time I went with last year's version 5 which I got on sale just before the race. I can't wait to try the model 6 which advertises an even more bouncy nitrogen-infused sole. While Hoka has pretty much bought all the major ultra events and elites, this is quite a response from Brooks. Worth considering.

Beyond a perfect race, it was so good not to feel a pain around this hamstring attach this time, that pain which got me to drop last year while I was leading after the first loop. I took the following Monday off to recover then ran 85K for the rest of the week. And this past week, another 100K, even going back to the track on Saturday for some speed work and sub-6 miles. Finally! Indeed, so much work to regain all I lost the past 3.5 years, while it's remains critical not to go too fast. For 20 years, I used to take being injury-free for granted, but I now know potential injuries are just around the corner, ready to show up on every mistake you can make. And, with age, they become even nastier and harder to fix. For instance, this week, I took Thursday off because I could feel something off in my knee (actually something which started bothering me back in June). I used to be in the camp of those proudly saying that "age is just a number" but I'm more careful now. Maybe even a little be wiser? I can only hope...

Again, sorry for the rant, I had to take that off my chest, I couldn't remain silent and passive about this notable episode for our ultra running community. Dean is the guy anyway, the only ultramarathon man, he can keep controlling the narrative and the noise he created, to his own benefit and advantage. Our ultra running sport is in constant evolution, we'll see what we all make of this experience.

Back to the title, I'm really pleased how my glutes behave throughout the race, you certainly need some to handle this hilly course. And it was also a good test for our guts, how we all handled adversity throughout a long weekend. To the next ultra test!

Finally, for those who read that far, here is the promised enhanced Relive.cc flyover, a whole blog post concentrated in 3:30 video, without the rant at least... (click on image below, or this link)

And a few bonus pictures...

We got a Victory Sportdesign Cougar II this time, why did some make a big fuss about coyotes...?;-)