My North Face Challenge San Francisco Story
To begin, my wife Izabella and I drove from Los Angeles to San Francisco (~6 hour drive) and stayed in downtown San Francisco at the Hyatt in Fisherman's Wharf. Before arriving at the hotel, I stopped into the North Face store to pick up my gear bag which included socks, a performance shirt, and a beanie. We checked into the hotel and made our way to a small seafood restaurant called Grotto's in Fisherman's Wharf where I had a large bowl of pasta to help prepare for the next day's activities.
I nervously prepared for the race by setting out all of my gear out and packing my drop bag. I did a bit of stretching to loosen up my hamstring (which had been bothersome for the past month) and hopped into bed around 8:30 pm
I had trouble falling asleep and don't remember falling asleep. I woke up around 1:30 am, a good hour before our 2:45 am wake up time. I had prepared a small breakfast the night before (a bagel, orange, apple, and juice) to help load up on carb's before the race. We set out across the Golden Gate bridge arriving in Marin Headlands around 3:30 am and parked near rodeo beach.
Weather was rather windy and chilly. We boarded a yellow bus which took us to the start of the race. Heat lamps were set up to help warm the runners but there was not enough to warm all the runners.
I hit up the local port-o-potties several times before the race and tried to keep my mind off the race by talking to other runners. I meant several other runners including a young man named Shan who had taken several running exploits including a 195 mile 'jog'.
The countdown started ...5..4..3...2..1 and we were off into the dark of the night. At 5 am you cannot see anything and my headlamp did little to light up the path. As the trail led us further into darkness I could help but feel a little overwhelmed as I had prepared for months and dedicated hours upon hours of my time to one goal. The goal to run 50 miles. I also realized that the other 200 runners had also dedicated their time. As I stared up into the night sky, I and noticed how bright the stars were and at that particular moment life couldn't have been more perfect. My heart swelled with pride as I jogged down the trail. That pride and that moment soon turned to pain when I stepped on a rock and sprained my left ankle. I limped for a few steps and paused with disappointment on the side of the trail thinking to myself "How in the world am I going to run another 47 miles?" I decided to keep pushing on with the pain. I passed the first aid station at mile 5 where I filled both of my water bottles and trodded on. The extra water proved to much and I had the sudden urge to urinate so not wanting to waste the time I peed on the run. The sun started to come up over the hills and it dawned on me that I would be spending the rest of the day running! My ankle still throbbed and I started to feel a blister developing on the bottom inside of my right foot. This is not how I had imagined the beginning part of my race, in fact, it really couldn't have gone worse. I desperately needed to get to the next aid station! As I came down the hill into the second aid station, Izabella met me with a smiling face. At that moment, the pain in my ankle went away and I felt rejuvenated. I plastered a band-aid on my blister, popped a few pretzels in my mouth, and downed a cup of chicken noodle soup.
The next aid station was at mile 13, about 5 miles down into Tennessee Valley and into Muir Beach. Climbing the hills proved difficult given the ankle pain but I charged on just trying to reach the next aid station. I felt defeated as I reached the top of the hill. That was until I met 'Chuck' who was the oldest entrant in the race and just had turned 60 that day! It occurred to me at that moment if Chuck was running then I certainly could keep going. His company and advice kept me entertained as we descended into Pirates Cove. Pirates Cove sounds a scenic as the name implies. Rocky cliffs bounded by the edge of the Pacific Ocean. The despcent roved rocky which made watching the scenery a little difficult. Finally, I reached Muir Beach and Izabella greeted me with several big kisses. I decided not to linger long and shoved some skittles, brownies, pretzels, and a cup of chicken noodle soup into my mouth.
The next 5 miles into aid station 4 proved the most difficult part of the race. Mostly all uphill the climb was slow and arduous. I really had hit a low point and thought this was me quitting. At this point, my goal was only to reach the next aid station. I trudged into the aid station wearily. My blister had opened up and my ankle was throbbing. Again it was a huge relief to see my wife. I decided to sit down, change my socks, and popped a few Advil. Heading out of the aid station, I grabbed some grub and decided to keep running. I descended into a forest where all of a sudden my pain was gone, my legs felt light, and everything just felt great. At this point, it occurred to me that I just might be able to finish this race! The next 3 miles into Pantoll Station passed by with ease and I felt great. I passed through a forest which at this point seemed like something out of a fairy tale. The path followed a small creek and huge redwood trees hovered overhead. After leaving the Pantoll aid station at mile 21, I definately reached some sort of high. That was until I started climbing the next 2.5 miles which just happened to be straight up.
Events began to turn again at this point as every step I took resulted in quad cramps and slight pain to my hamstring. Halfway up the hill I passed a runner who complained of Plantar Fascitis or heel pain and it occurred to me that something would be hurting for the entire race. It dawned on me that instead of concentrating on the pain it would be beneficial to accept the pain and realize that it would simply transfer as the race went on. Never would it dissipate. I thought to myself maybe there is a life lesson here "Life will always have some associated pain - you just have to work through it and eventually it will get better and something else will hurt." I had climbed most of the hill and had reached another low. I felt a little light headed and needed food. The trail started to narrow and I realized as other runners started coming from the other direction that navigating this path for another 2 miles would be dangerous. I had a misstep on the side of path, the gravel loosed and my foot slipped off the hill. I fell, hitting my knee on the ground. I sat there for a few minutes trying to gain my composure. As another runner passed it dawned on me that he might have an extra running gel. He did! I tore the tip off with my teeth and downed it immediately. It provided the extra boost needed to get into the next aid station.
As I reached mile 26.2 and the next aid station, I mistakenly tried to process that I had come halfway and had another 24 miles to go. Up to this point, the most I had ever trained for on one run was 26.2 miles. I quickly dismissed the thought and headed out of the aid station. I simply needed to keep moving. As I rounded the next corner, I found another runner who seemed to be having difficulty. She was from NY and had flown in for the race. She desperately needed a companion, as did I.
The miles quickly passed by, mile 31 soon arrived and I was surprised to find how good I felt. I spent some time catching up with the aid station volunteers and my wife who were all very supportive. I was also invigorated by the next segment of the race as it wound through the Muir Woods. The first thing I realized was how well I could breathe! I was really moving now and my spirits were high. I was wondering how long this would last. It didn't. I looked at my GPS and it indicated that I was now at mile 36 which seemed odd given the aid station was supposed to be here. The course organizers messed up and put the aid station at mile 37.Defeated and now tired, I arrived at the Old Inn station. I took in as much food as possible and realized that several runners were waiting around. Nobody wanted to leave. Not wanting to get comfortable I took off on my own.
The next 2 miles were flat and easy although somewhat difficult given I had already run 37. Again the course aid station was supposed to be at mile 41. My GPS unit indicated mile 41 but no aid station was present. Additionally, the volunteer said that we had ~ 1 mile of climbing ahead of us. I really had a difficult time making my way up the hill. Every step was tiring and defeating but I finally reached the next aid station where Izabella greeted me. It was nice to see a friendly face! I spent considerable time here not wanting to leave but kept telling myself only another 8 miles.
With only 8 miles to go, I now knew that I would finish but the pain had really started to set in. Every step caused my quads to scream in pain. I tried to run 10 steps and walk 10 steps. It worked for awhile but the downhills were the most difficult and hard to descend. I joined a 2 other runners and we had now been running close to 12 hours now. We decided to walk the next couple miles to conserve our aching muscles. After reaching mile 48, we pushed off and started to run at much more brisk pace anticipating the finish. As darkness fell upon us, the trail became much harder to see and navigating rocks after running 49 miles became very difficult.
The finish line appeared in the distance and I noticed my GPS approaching 13 hours. I sprinted towards the finish to try and complete the race under 13 hours. I crossed the finish line with hands raised in victory!
My friend Gustav and Izabella greeted me at the finish line and a finisher medal was placed around my neck.
Tired, I sat down and spent the next hour eating some hot food. Getting up and into the car proved extra difficult.
The following week, I had trouble walking and climbing stairs was extremely strenuous.
The End And The Beginning …
