Zion 100K

My wife told me to find an epic race to help me maintain focus on my goal for my first 100K. Not a local looped course, but instead something more grand. So the Vacation Races, Zion Ultras fit the bill (and schedule). 

The 100k was listed as 63.5 miles for this race, and elevation gain was 5700’, with a major ascent early and that same descent later. 

The general idea was you'd run to, and then up to the top of a huge mesa, run around several points overlooking the valley floors and Zion National Park, then back off the mesa onto the desert floor to loop back around to the start. 

Aid stations were usually 4-7 miles apart, so nothing too drastic, all well stocked, and there were several locations for drop bags and a few points for crew access. 

My goal for a first time, was to complete the race. Then my ambitious goal was to finish sub 15 hour. 

The weather stayed cool most of the day and my training was solid, so my final result was 13:15:35 (!) 

Here's the link to my Flickr album with a bunch of photos: Flickr.com - Zion

Here's a detailed course review by miles and aid stations, take it with a grain of (sweaty) salt :)

• 1-4.5, you leave the start/finish area before sunrise, and run some concrete followed by gentle jeep road.  Good time to warm up and really try to throttle back in the crowd. 
• 4.5-5.2, the climb up the mesa.  I swear much of this was 45 degrees, over this short distance you'll climb 1500' or so, and the ground is pretty unstable, so take your time.  By now the sky is light, turn off the headlamp and look out over the valley floor as your heart-rate spikes. 
• 5.2, you hit the first aid station, Goosebump Aid, and are done with the climb.  Grab some snacks to reward yourself, and hit the trail. 
• Miles 5.2-11.4, nice runnable dirt road, hard pack and overall a downhill direction, but early in the race, so pace yourself! By now the sun is rising, enjoy the light.
• 11.4, your first visit to Grafton Mesa aid station and primary crew spot, then off down the road some more.  More dirt road, more ups and downs, good for a chance to walk some of the short hills. 
• 13.3, Wire Mesa aid, preparing for your first mesa loop.   Hit the snack bar and head out for around 7 miles, it's now bright out so you can see the views looking into Zion park, some low cactus and granite rock, otherwise pretty great single track for the whole loop.  At 20.8 you'll hit that same aid station before hitting the road back. 
• 22.7, you hit Grafton Mesa (for the 2nd time), refuel and head out to run that mesa, that's about a 6 mile loop.  A little more exposed in some places, also running through taller brush, but great single track running through the high desert still with a new set of views. 
• 28.2, third and last time through Grafton Mesa Aid, refuel and see your crew goodbye as you won't see them again for a marathon distance.  Leaving here you start to run back up that relatively downhill road that you ran earlier, except now it's relatively uphill. Slow and steady, not terrible, still can make some good time as you head back to Gooseberry Aid 6 miles away. 
• 34.4, 2nd time through Goosebump Aid, you're headed out into the 3rd mesa loop and depending on your pace, the hottest part of the day.  8 miles until your next aid, so stock up.  This was the hardest part for me to run, you're running mountain bike trail through slick rock and it was like running through a skate park, navigation took serious attention and the surface was always changing (and as hard as concrete), but, you got some epic views off of the edge, so enjoy!  You'll run out to the absolute edge of the mesa to a turn around point, if you're scared of heights you may not loiter here, but the views are fantastic. 
• 42, a small aid station to refuel in the middle of nowhere, Gooseberry Aid, for me, this is where I refilled my bladder with another 2L of water. 
• 45.7, Goosebump Aid, stop #3, this is it, refuel and get ready, you're a few feet away from running downhill to the valley floor!  This became my hardest mental section, as once I passed the 50 mile mark, it was all new distances for my body, and as I fatigued the rolling hills and washes you ran through took their toll, but I shadowed a fellow runner and got my pace back. 
• 53.8, Virgin Desert, you get to see your crew!  Stock up, you have a 10 mile flat race back to the finish, eat up, grab your headlamp maybe.  Also, limited places to pee after this as you get into the open desert, so take advantage of the little bathrooms if you need em. 
• 55.7, Virgin Dam, a quick stop (with a great view), again, just grabbed a few quick snacks as I passed through.  Shortly after here is the point in which I finally turned on my music, that was the final bump I needed to keep moving and get motivated. 
• 59.4, Sheep Bridge water stop, just a self serve water booth.   I was pretty well stocked here so I kept on trucking, after this you hit gravel road so if you have any energy left, start to throw it down!
• 63.5, you get a nice gentle mile or so to run it in on road, so get to it!

Down below you can find a bit more of my personal notes for how my day went.




I absolutely don't want to be that guy who gets lost, so I obsess over the course, I deeply analyze everything and make sure I know what I'm doing.  I make maps, I make pace charts, I'm a planner.   It also helps my crew (aka Wifey) know how I'm doing and when to possibly expect me through the next stop.  I suggest you do the same, plan and plan some more, so when race day comes, you can just go have fun and leave the worry behind!

Here’s a granular list of my personal details. 

Hydration: 

The sponsor for liquid was Go Gnarly, having never tried that before I bought a bag right before leaving for the trip.  I didn't get to really train hard with it but at least got to get a feeling for how it'd be. Definitely sweet, mid race it tasted more like fruit juice than anything else, good on the taste buds but also too much sweetness for me to solely rely on.  I took my own Nuun electrolytes and Nuun performance to mix my own as crew stations allowed, as well as one double dose of tailwind for a long stretch in the later miles. 

Also carried my camelbak with 1.5-2L of water, which I refilled once at mile 43.

My crew chief would have a bottle of my own stuff mixed and ready to go, so I could get my preferred hydration at crew points and then drink go gnarly at the non crew stations. 

Additionally, at the aid stations I'd usually drink half a soda and/or some hydration, in addition to swapping or refilling my front 600ml bottle. 

Overall it all did well, and the variety was appreciated, drinking calories and carbs and electrolytes as well as balancing it out with good old pure water, but regardless, by mile 54 I was complaining about the feeling of not being able to drink enough, feeling parched and thirsty, but knowing that tanking on liquids weren't going to do it. 

My optional beer motivator was not needed, actually sounded not good so it remained untouched. 

Nutrition: 

The food sponsor was Honey Stinger, a tried and true product that we like. Not able to fully rely on that to be everywhere, I started out with my typical assortment of chews, gels, and beans, as well as some new stuff (also failed and barely brought any Muir which is my preference). Also new, my Crew chief opened all the beans or chews and put in baggies, so I only had to open a zip lock bag instead of a sealed pouch, and then we'd swap out empties with full bags as I ran through aid. That worked really well and I know it saved me time, only would spend 30 seconds grazing the station tables. 

We planned & prepacked pb/tortilla wraps, home mixed trail mix with various safe nuts and a few chocolate or yogurt items and dried fruits, as well as having other things ready as needed. Quickly became frustrated by the inability to access my wing pockets, so I transitioned to front pocket storage. 

My goal was to get 200-300 calories in per hour, tried to do a solid food then gel/chew back and forth, the trail nut mix ended up working really well as I could put a few pieces in my mouth and chew while jogging, without needing to consume a whole gel at once. The wraps worked great too, again small pieces on the run. 

Aid station snacks I was drawn to pb&j sandwiches, Nutella wraps, pickles, boiled potatoes, large pretzels, & Swedish fish. 

Still, by mile 54 I was running low on gas and my appetite was waning. 

We tried to add up what I ate, still feel it wasn't enough, but, a marked improvement over previous runs.  Our calculations estimate around 3000 calories taken in. 

Mental:

I felt strong all morning. Scoping out a few aid stations and hiking a little of the trail prior to the race is proving to be a huge boost for understanding the terrain and sights. 

This course has 4 miles of flat roads followed by a huge climb, so a perfect warm up jog deep in a crowd of people and a major climb which I find less annoying than gentle hills. 

As I approached the 45 mile mark and the heat increased, I found fatigue surfacing, especially at the terrain of that location. 

By mile 50 I was starting to tire, realizing that this was new mileage records for me, I hadn't seen my crew for over 20 miles, but was almost done with the elevation and was primarily gearing up for a relatively flat half marathon finish. 

Leaving the final crewed aid station was a good reminder I was almost done, and seeing the wife was really a nice boost, at that point I started to solidify the idea that my pace was great and if I could keep it up, my time was going to be way ahead of schedule and I'd be off the course before dark. 

But I was tired, and a few minutes later I was walking more, just tired and finding myself irritated by things. A passing runner stopped to chat with me for a moment about poles, then he plugged in his earphones and took off (turns out he was a 100 miler). So for the first time in an ultra race, I finally pulled out my emergency headphones and cranked up the metal. 

I got chills, I found energy, it felt like a drug. I had maybe a 10k or so at this point and I turned up the fire, I've done this distance tired before, I can do it one more time. I pushed, continued to throw down quick enough miles and passed numerous people, according to the crew, I jumped 4-5 places in that last stretch, ran several 9-10 minute miles in the final push. 

I threw out encouraging words to the fellow runners and ran a strong finish. I know music is my fuel, but I am shocked still with how much that fanned my inner fire to carry me through a hard day. 

Body: 

Outside of my big toes had small blisters under the callouses, not huge, but a reminder that I need to deal with those. (a few days later they’ve disappeared and are not a lingering issue)

Top of my calves and neck are a little sunburned, but not bad. 

3 days later, my quads hurt a little bit, nothing big. 

I'm truly shocked in how little I am hurting right now and completely acknowledge that training volume and intensity was crucial in helping me prepare. 

*5 days later, ran a flat 5K at home, so quickly on the path again. 

*8 days later, ran a flatter 9 mile trail and feeling great!

Gear:

My shoes did great (Inov-8 TrailTalon 290), now that I understand how to make the gators fit, I had almost zero dirt get in.  I've ran in these Inov-8's for several hundred miles now and feel my feet are comfortable with them and really have no issues as of yet. 

A brief damp step in a wash didn't make it too bad, and the smartwool socks did great, no changes were needed mid race. 

The Columbia hooded shirt that I wanted to try out did exactly what it was supposed to and kept the sun off my arms and body without jacking up the temperature, and helped the crew see me approaching.  It definitely was easier than putting sunblock on sweaty arms. 

Same situation with gloves and mittens, same for most other things, really nothing to report there except my trusty blue shirt is just about in need of retirement (once I can find a replacement).

No chaffing or other issues, the smaller pack doesn't swing or shift so nothing beyond a little collar bone bruising. 

They provided digital maps you could track yourself on via GPS, besides that I really poured over the course data and profiles and even plotted my own map on Caltopo ( here if interested: https://caltopo.com/m/18UJ  ), all of which was unnecessary, but I feel like I truly had a solid and competent understanding of the routes and terrain, and I'll be damned if I'll be the guy who gets lost.

Training:

Without a doubt, the extent of the training, time on feet and increased miles definitely helped make this work.  The mental confidence of knowing I’ve covered this quantity of miles was strong, and the physical toughness of my feet and legs made so many things not become issues.  Focusing on climbing and descending helped, I feel like a strong climber as is, but really getting those vertical steps in really helped, even if this time the slope was so steep and loose that you couldn’t really run it anyways out of safety!  

Other Notes: 

It was also interesting, the 100k & 100M started at the same time, so there were us long runners and some more really long runners out there, it was refreshing to be around them and be reminded that they were going to be out there all night so I shouldn't have too much self pity. 

My initial expectation before traveling to Utah, may have sold myself short. I was expecting a barren and hot desert of nothing but red rock, but there was an immense amount of variety, vegetation, and color that I wasn't expecting. Hell, it snowed the first few days we were there and snow was still present at higher elevation. Even on the one large plateau, each of the 3 points we ran, had unique characteristics. 

First was almost like the Sierra Nevada mountains around Tahoe. 

Second was strikingly similar to volcanic rock found around Hawaii or Mt St Helens. 

Third was slick rock, essentially hills and valleys made of natural concrete. 

During the climb and descent you hiked through reds and browns and greys that you normally would only see from a distance. 

And the final loop through the desert was indeed a desert, lower scrub brush but you could see such wonderful sights all around as the afternoon sun came through!

There's no denying that this was hard, but it didn't hurt like I thought it would. Matter of fact I'm feeling ready to go again (once I recharge my energy stores). I've got 2019 booked out with races, soon an upcoming 50k, followed by a mountainous 50M, and all this leading to my “A” race, Tahoe 100k in September. Beyond that, I need to find my goal for 2020. Do I push to 100M? Do I try to push my speed and place in the shorter 50M distance? Do I throw my name in the hat for Western States? 

Guess time will tell. 

For now, I need to continue to push my legs for focused speed and elevation, as well as figuring out core strength, the more I can do the better I will perform reliably.