Race Director

After a hasty breakfast I made my way to the start at Spooner Lake, where there was a carnival like atmosphere with several tents for food / drink and some for runners to keep warm, ACDC’s “Highway to Hell” was blasting out my favourite song so I was having a boogie, singing out loud and getting psyched up, the song couldn’t have been a more appropriate choice for what was to come. The race adage also being a poignant reminder that this was not going to be an easy 100, simply states “A glimpse of heaven and a taste of hell” I was about to find out! I chatted to some of the runners and then just before the start we were given a final race briefing with the start being very punctual at 5am and we were off on out epic journey of self-discovery on this brutal but beautiful course.

The TRT start at Spooner Lake at 7000ft is on the Eastern side of Lake Tahoe, it was still dark when we started the sun comes up at about 5.15am so as I have bad night vision due to Retinitis Pigmentosa and no peripheral vision at all I opted to use a small hand torch albeit that several runners were using bright high lumen Headtorches. The single-track trail out of Spooner meant you couldn’t overtake anyone so I the pace seemed nice and slow but steady which didn’t bother me, the first steep hill climb started after 1 mile, and went on for 2 miles. By now the sun had come up and the vistas of Spooner Lake at sunrise were breath taking and I was in ultra-running utopia and feeling amazing.

The 1st Aid Station we came too was Hobart and they even had whisky at this CP, too early for me though! The food / drink on the CP was astounding the best I’ve ever seen at any 100-mile race of the 18 I’ve done now, really great variety for all the runners with even vegan, vegetarian runners catered for. After Hobart there is another half mile switchback section of steep uphill where runners are greeted with their first “taste of heaven” the views of Marlett Lake / Lake Tahoe, the most scenic 100 I’ve done too with changing views all the time. After the 11 mile Aid Station named Red House aptly named as you pass a Red House at the bottom of this old logging trail that you run on, on the Red House loop you get your first “taste of hell” as the trail drops 1000 ft very steeply and then you loop round only to have to run back up it, needless to say on the 100 you do this again for each 50 mile loop. On we went the course was just a procession of steep uphill slogs and downhill (sometimes technical) rocky and gnarly rocky trails mostly single track so you couldn’t afford to take your eyes of the trail, or you’d risk tripping on the jutting out rocks, the sections that were more runnable without these trip hazards were when I pushed the pace out a bit more. At the Diamond Peak section 30 miles (then again at 80miles) I found this climb the most challenging of all the peaks and though it only tops out at 7440 ft it involves a 2-mile sheer climb at about a 45deg uphill from the bottom of Diamond Peak ski station right to the top of the ski run. The sandy conditions underfoot really made this a real trudge, and I struggled doing this at 30 miles, so doing it again 50 miles later didn’t bare thinking about. The race being a 2 lapper goes back through Spooner Lake start/ finish and once you go through this point and carry on you know was you must confront again albeit that the next 50 miles will be even more challenging due to the fact, you’re extremely tired and that after 8.30pm you’d be running the technical trails in the dark and cold. I really started struggling after about 60 miles having gone through halfway in about 12. 5hrs.Having slowed down due to the cumulative effects of the heat (between 75degF – 95degF), the altitude and sheer challenge of the climbs I pushed on stoically, but this was taking all my mental resolve just to put one food in front of another.

I was getting depressed and feeling completely spent energy wise, the fact that despite being very fit I hadn’t been able to replicate or train at altitude was the singular biggest issue I had as well as the cold at night. So it was a massive psychological boost to me when I saw my pacer Ty Reilly and his girlfriend Samantha Henze-Hendricks at the Tunnel Creek CP. I had messaged Ty at the halfway point and asked him to please bring along a long-sleeved top as I was concerned that I hadn’t allowed for enough warm gear, this was a real benefit as not only was it a real boost to my flagging spirits that Ty was there to pace me but also as I now had better gear for the night section. The pace slowed considerably now as night fell and I’d been running for about 15hrs solid by now. It was great to chat to Ty and have the company of a buddy for this last 38miles though he was only initially supposed to be pacing me for the last 20 miles, so this was a bonus! At about 65 miles or 10pm the wind started whipping up and caused me to become very cold, so I had 3 layers on, we were reduced to a trudge by now and I was really feeling it. The wind increased in intensity, and I resorted putting on 6 layers to just keep my core body temp regulated.

I was having breathing difficulties as the dust on the trails had got into my lungs, so I had to also get a bronchial dilator at the CP which one of the medics was able to provide as I was coughing repeatedly by now and had a tight chest, so any effort caused me to cough, fortunately the inhaler helped. At the approach to the Diamond Peak section for the 2nd time this time at 80 miles, having run for over 25hrs with more recent chest problems and the fact that I’d been running for several hours in the cold at altitude had caused me quite a number of psychological issues and I seriously had thought of throwing in the towel at 80 milers I just couldn’t rationalise as to how I could go on for another 20 miles that would probably take me another 8hrs of so. I regrouped mentally at the Diamond Peak CP though after taking some much-needed time out to get some calories in and hot coffee. The sunrise was a great help in lifting my mood and having chatted to Ty we got going again and embarked on the long trudge up Diamond Peak which having now done this twice seemed to take forever. I knew that at least we’d only have 18 miles left after this as I was breaking things down into bite sized chunks to keep motivated, even though every step demanded an iron will. It was with a massive relief both mentally and physically when we finally got to the Hobart CP this time at 90 miles as I knew we’d only then have 3 miles to the next CP at Tunnel Creek followed by the next slog to the Snow Valley CP 3 miles on then up another mountain called Snow Valley Peak (the highest point in the race at over 9200ft, then a final slog to the Spooner Lake Summit CP (just a water station here) before the last 1.7 miles to the finish of the race at Spooner Lake. The last section was very tough as the sun had by now come out in force and I was feeling so hot that every time we got to a CP, I would douse myself in cold water and put ice cubes under my cap and in my Buff which I had worn all day to keep the sun off my neck. The ice helped a lot and drinking more by now was another factor I’d take account of, coupled with more Succeed Caps due to swear rates having gone up. As we only had about 4.5 hrs to do the last 7 miles, I said to Ty that I wanted to push the pace so we ran most of the last 7 miles which involved a steep downhill and long 5.3 miles stretch through the heavily forested Douglas Firs to arrive at the last Spooner Summit CP getting to this CP was awesome and I was so enthused that I literally topped up my drink bottles and off we went. The finish at Spooner Lake is amazing, when get to the lake the finishing line is all the way around the far side of the lake and you can hear runners being cheered and clapped in.

I pushed hard and we reached the final stretch to which involved crossing a bridge across the lake then meandering through a forested stretch before you can see the finishing gantry. I had said to Ty let’s run in together which we did, and I then sprinted across the mat in a time of 32.57.36hrs the singular longest time it’s ever taken me to finish a 100 miler. The feeling of sheer elation and an overwhelming sense of happiness will remain indelibly etched in my memory forever. These momentous experiences are what life is all about to me, pushing the boundaries and just being the best, you can possibly be. I prayed hard during the race and my prayers were answered, I’m so elated that I had the strength of mind and spirit to see this through and feel a massive sense of pride at having conquered the mighty TRT100.

It’s an event I would highly recommend, the check points were so well stocked, the course was well marked, scenery was spectacular George Ruiz the RD is a super friendly guy and the TRT100 buckle is the best there is! I’d like to say a heartfelt thanks to my very patient and understanding pacer Ty and his wonderful girlfriend Samantha for all their support you guys were awesome. Of course, running these epic races wouldn’t be the same without the support of some great friends. T

The TRT slogan “A glimpse of heaven and a taste of hell” really sums up this epic race after all “pain is weakness leaving the body”.