Ultra Faith

Old Dominion 100 Mile Endurance Run

2011-06-11T13:26:00.000-07:00

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18

Last Saturday morning, 4 June 2011, at 0400, as I stood at the starting line of the Old Dominion 100 Mile Endurance Run, I felt more prepared than I had for my previous 100 mile attempts to complete the distance. Unfortunately, the distance was not the competition for this race, the clock was. The OD100 is the second oldest 100 mile race in the country; this was to be the 33rd running of the event. Back in the day, to get the coveted 100 mile belt buckle runners had to complete the distance in less than 24 hours. Well over time and as we have become a more sensitive/feel good society most races have opted to award a buckle to all of those who finish within the cutoff time of the race, not Old Dominion.

My best 100 mile time coming into this race was 26h:26m on the Grindstone 100 course in 2008, so to win the buckle I would have to improve my personal best by almost 2h:30m. My preparation was strong, I had run most of the course in different training runs, I had some big mileage weeks, I was not injured and most importantly I had an attitude of success and a realization of why I was running this race. So here’s how it went.

68 athletes toeing the line at the Shenandoah County Fairgrounds in Woodstock, VA, temperature was in the mid 50’s with a little humidity in the air. We started with a lap around the outside of the horse track and then took to the darkened streets of the town. The pace was easy and the miles started to click away, the first aid station was a water only stop at 2.7 miles on the outskirts of downtown. The course took a right turn and headed to the base of the Massanutten Mountains. After another 2ish miles we crossed the Shenandoah River and started the first of the advertised “14 significant climbs” up to Woodstock Gap and the second aid station.

As I came into the aid station the sun was already starting to brighten the eastern sky and you could tell it was going to be a beautiful sunrise leading into a great day. From Woodstock Gap (7.2 miles) we had a nice 3 mile downhill run on gravel, country road to the first trail section of the race and aid station 3. This 3 mile section of trail was the only trail portion for the first 32 miles of the course. Old Dominion was holding the tougher sections for later in the race.

My pace was ahead of schedule, the temperature was still very cool, and the humidity was dropping as I ran into the first pit crew stop at 19.7 miles. My wife Debbie and my kids formed the crew for me during the race and they did a fantastic job supporting me throughout the day and night. Debbie got me everything I needed, told me I was about 25 minutes ahead of schedule and reminded me not to go to fast. I tend to go out like a lion and fade to a lamb, to be successful today there could be no fading.

The next section was all country roads through some beautiful old farms and great countryside. I uncharacteristically opted to run with my IPOD for this section. I think it helped to pass the time on a non-technical section of the course. I was able to keep a good pace and stayed right with my time card on this stretch of the course. There were three aid stations placed about 3 miles apart and they were manned by some enthusiastic volunteers, mostly local folks who had been associated with the race for a long time. This added to the grass roots/family environment feeling of the entire event.

So coming into pit crew stop 2, which is just over the 50K mark (32.5 miles), I was surprised to see an elapsed time of 5h:32m. That would have been a good time for me in 50K race but as the first part of a hundred I thought that I might still be going too fast. The next part of the race is a 15 mile loop back to the same pit stop. A significant portion of this loop is trail with two major climbs.
So off I went on the first climb up to the Luray Overlook about 1.5 miles of trail and then a quick 1.5 mile descent down the road to the Duncan Hollow Trail. This started a 5 mile gradual climb up to Scothorn Gap. The trail started off as a nice single track and then turned into an ATV trail and then back to single track. There was an aid station about 2.5 miles into the trail that the volunteers had driven motorcycles into and brought bottled water in backpacks, I’m glad they were there.

Although the humidity was staying low I could definitely feel the temperature beginning to rise. The final couples of miles, up to the gap, were tough and seemed to drag on forever. I finally reached the gap a little behind schedule and started the 2 mile trail descent to the first medical checkpoint at Crisman Hollow (43.2 miles). I was down about 6 pounds at this point but was feeling very good and pressed on for the continued descent to Four Points and pit crew stop 3.

The Crisman Hollow Road descent was a 5 mile downhill on gravel roads that took forever to complete. Eventually I got into Four Points and met up with the crew (48 miles). I was still ahead of schedule, under 10 hours. The crew did another great job of getting me in and out quickly. The next 9 mile section was all road and I once again opted for the IPOD. From Four Points the course climbed 3 miles to Moreland Gap, about half way up this climb there was a line spray painted across the road with 50 MILES written on it-Half Way in 9h:45m.

There was an aid station at the top of Moreland Gap with some incredibly energetic kids (I needed to harness some their energy). I fueled up and continued to climb along the Moreland Gap Road. This section saw a dramatic slowdown in my pace as the heat of the day started to take its toll. Although a good portion of the road was shaded whenever I got into the sun, it was hot. I finally got to the top of the road and enjoyed a good 2 mile downhill into pit stop 4 (56.5 miles). I was feeling tired and this was the first time I choose to sit down. I needed a cold towel on my head and shoulders to try and cool down. The crew did their job and kicked me out of the chair and down the trail.

The next section was the Peters Mill Run ATV trail, this was the only portion of the course that I had not previously been on and had no idea what to expect. Well let’s start with a climb and climb we did for about 2 miles up a pretty exposed trail-feeling the heat. Once I topped the hill the rest of the trail was downhill into Little Fort Valley, about 5 miles. The trail was fairly well covered and the slope was gradual. I was able to keep a good pace and had the opportunity to get wet in a couple of shallow stream crossings; this helped to keep the morale up. I came into pit stop 5 (64 miles) at 13h:10m and again opted for the chair. As a side note: My best time for the 100K distance (62.2 miles) was 13h:56m and here I was at 64 with a 100K personal best-Praise the Lord.

The goal for the next section was to get to Elizabeth’s Furnace, pit stop 6 (75 miles) by 2000, it was 1720 when I left Little fort Valley and I was projecting 2h:30m to cover the next 11 miles. The crew was going to take the opportunity to run into Front Royal and get something to eat and then meet me at Elizabeth’s Furnace.

How about we start with a climb, up Woodstock Tower road we go for about a mile and then a repeat of miles 8-10 from the morning. I was moving good and looking forward to getting into the Mudhole Gap aid station to replenish my water. Prior to getting into Mudhole I tried to stomach a Hammer Gel, no luck; stomach revolted and purged all contents. This unfortunately would start to become a trend but luckily did not affect my performance too much. As I pulled into Mudhole I was informed that they were out of water but that it was on the way. Didn’t have to wait too long and had the opportunity for some great conversation with another Christian Brother. The water came, I refilled, and left feeling reenergized (more by the conversation than by the water)-God is Good.

Mudhole Gap Trail went fast and then onto the forest service road and the fast continued. I was amazed at the pace I was able to keep and as I looked at the time I saw that I was about 25 minutes ahead of schedule. After about 3 miles I turned off onto the Bear Hollow Trail still way ahead of schedule, then onto the Tuscarora Trail and downhill into Elizabeth’s Furnace. As I approached the Fort Valley road crossing I saw Debbie and the crew pulling into the parking lot, what timing. I arrived at the pit stop (75 miles) at 1930, 30 minutes ahead of schedule and feeling good as I got ready to attack the toughest section of the race.

I have been up Sherman Gap many times and I knew what I was getting into. I knew it was rocky, steep, and slow but up I went and slowly I went. The goal was to get to the top in one hour, well I missed that by about 20 minutes, much slower than I thought-good thing I had come in early on the previous leg, almost as if Someone knew I would need the extra time… curious. So, 3 miles to the top and then 3 miles to the bottom. The trail down the backside is terrible, steep and rocky for the first 1.5 miles and then it gets a little better. Well just after I started the descent I caught a rock with my right toe and took a hard fall. Luckily, I was able to get my hands out in front of me and didn’t hit my head. I just rolled over on my back, turned off my headlamp, and looked at the stars for a minute-man it was peaceful. After I came back to reality, I did a quick system check and everything appeared to be good to go, so downhill I went.

The climb up Sherman Gap had taken most of my water but I knew that there was an unmanned aid station at the bottom of the trail. As I came up on the aid station I saw that there was just one 5 gallon jug and wouldn’t you know it, it was empty-not good. There was 2 miles to go to the next full service aid station and that was a long 2 miles for me. Fighting off cotton mouth for 2 miles, I finally got to the Veach East aid station and took a good 10 minutes to rehydrate and prep for the next climb-Veach Gap. I started to watch my time slip away but had to take care of the machine if I was to have any chance of completing the mission, this was the low point of the race for me.

After seven cups of mixed Mountain Dew and water I started the second to last climb on the course, Veach Gap. It started slow and I was getting concerned about the slow pace when all of a sudden I came out of the low I was in and started to push hard on the last, long switchback to the gap. My trick was to set a constant cadence, look directly at the ground in front of my feet, count out 50 paces and then look up the trail for the next chem light. I just kept moving at the same pace and count all the way to the top.

My prayers were answered, my attitude was great, and I started to hit the 2 plus mile downhill section hard. I came into Veach West, pit stop 7 (86 miles) behind schedule but with 3h:30m to finish in under 24 hours. I knew that I had it.

All I wanted to do was filled my water bottles and get down the road. It was 0030 in the morning and the crew was fired up, although I had taken a long time on this section they could feel the positive energy that I had and they knew I was going to get it done.

The rest of the race was on roads, with one more climb ahead I started out at a slow but consistent pace. I moved on schedule up to the last pit stop at 90 miles, gave my wife a kiss and told them that I would race them back to Woodstock. They had about 25 miles to drive and I only had 6.5 miles to run-they beat me.

I moved pretty well up the last climb to Woodstock Gap and then pounded hard for the 2.5 mile descent to the Shenandoah River. Once I got to the river things slowed down a little, as I evaluated the condition of my body against the amount of time I had left to complete. This resulted in a little more walking in the last 5 miles of the race. I was still able to run the downhills but the uphills and flats were mostly a walking event. Heading back into Woodstock, the crew met me at Water Street (2.7 miles left) and told me they would see me at the finish.

I weaved my way through the dark streets of Woodstock in the reverse order from that which I had run out less than 24 hours ago. Mixing in a little running with the walking, I kept my eye on the time and knew that I was in good shape. Coming up the final hill before the Fairgrounds I had my last stomach revolt which ended with 5 or 6 solid dry heaves and let me know that I had given my all in this race and nothing was left in the tank and I mean nothing. I crested the hill and entered the fairgrounds for a final lap around the horse track and crossed the finish line at 0309, for a total time on course of 23 hours and 9 minutes in 27th place, all for His Glory.

After having some time to absorb the impact of the race I have to continue to praise God for giving me the ability to achieve the goals that I set. Not only was I able to finish the race in under 24 hours, I was able to improve my 100 mile personal best by 3h:17m. We like to think that we are in control of our own destiny and that we can change the outcome of events through our own actions but the bottom line is that we are at mercy of a sovereign God. He has a mission and purpose for each of us and He reveals that purpose to us as we prove ourselves ready and worthy to receive it. All things happen for a reason and I know now more than ever that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Phil 4:13.

I would like to close by saying thanks to the Race directors, Volunteers, fellow runners, and my excellent CREW. The clock was the competition and it was a very worthy opponent-100 miles in One Day is worthy challenge-The Challenge was accepted-the Competition was won-May all the Glory be HIS.

RUN STRONG!

Semper Fi and God Bless,

Michael Huff

“Huffer”

Promise Land 50K++

2011-05-01T09:16:00.000-07:00

“On that day I swore to them that I would bring them out of Egypt into a land I had searched out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most beautiful of all lands.” Ezekiel 20:6

Well the Promise Land Youth Camp in Bedford, VA is not filled with milk and honey but it sure was filled with good people and great food last Saturday when I had the chance to run the Promise Land 50K++. This is another of Dr David Horton’s Lynchburg Ultra Series Races and a spring classic in Virginia. As with all of Horton’s races the distance is not as advertised and there are always some “Horton miles” thrown in for free. The race starts and finishes at the Promise Land Youth Camp and with an early 0530 start, I headed out Friday night for the 3 hour drive to Bedford. I got a late start from Fairfax and ended up getting in to camp around 2100. Having missed most of the evening’s festivities, I got checked in for the race and headed to the car to turn in for the night.

It rained on and off all night and the temps dropped into the low 50’s but by the time we stepped off at 0530 the rain had all but stopped and it would not return for the rest of the race. The first 4 miles or so of the course is a 2300’ climb up and past Overstreet Falls and up Onion Mountain. It starts out mild on a paved road which degrades to a slightly steeper gravel road. When state maintenance ends the road gets significantly steeper and then you hit the trail for the last mile and a half. Once on top of Onion Mountain we hit the smooth, grassy trails of the Glenwood horse Trail and part of the Hellgate course and just like on the Hellgate course this is where some of the Horton miles are hidden. This takes you into aid station 2 (~10 miles) and the kickoff of the next big climb up to the high point of the race on Apple Orchard Mountain, just over 4000’.

Crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway, in a very thick fog bank, we were done with climbing for a while and from the top of the course we started the constant descent to the "Dark Side" and the lowest point on the course. The first couple of miles were a gentle descent on a dirt road that paralleled the parkway into AS 3 (Sunset Fields, ~13.5 miles). At that point we jumped on the very steep Apple Orchard Falls Trail to the Cornelius Creek Trail to AS 4. This 5 and a half mile, 2500’ descent went fairly quick but it took a toll on my quads and hips. Passing AS 4 the drop continued for another 2 miles down a gravel road until we finally hit the bottom of the course.

Leaving the road we started the climb out of the “Dark Side” on the White Tail Deer Trail. After about a mile of mostly uphill trail we came into AS 5 (~21 miles). This aid station is famous for having ice cream sandwiches and this year was no different. Unfortunately, my stomach was not going to cooperate with ice cream so I passed and continued on. The next 5 miles are a hard section of this race. It is a gradual uphill along grassy jeep trails and gravel roads. The good news for me, on this day, was that the sun was just starting to peak through the clouds and the temps were still relatively cool. Mentally, this section seems to go on forever and as it follows the in and out contours of the landscape it is hard to see what is up ahead, so if you’re not mentally prepared for this it can be very frustrating. Finally the trail takes a hard turn to the right and you know that you are on the final stretch in to the aid station.

Returning to the Cornelius Creek AS (both AS4 and 6), the good news is that we had less than 8 miles to go to the finish, the bad news is that we had the smack down 2000’ climb UP Apple Orchard Falls. I was now 26ish miles into the race and my legs were still feeling pretty good. The first mile or so of the climb up the falls trail is a semi runnable (for me) but once I got to the falls proper it was a hike all the way back up to Sunset Fields. I was hoping to make it up the section in less than an hour but it ended up taking 1h:5m and it was just as brutal as the last time I ran this race three years ago. The benefit of all the rain we had was that the creeks were full and the falls were beautiful. This offered a momentary distraction to the steep slope of the climb. Topping out at Sunset Fields (AS 7) was a great feeling and I knew that I only had one more small climb and then a 4 mile downhill to the finish.

Although the four mile downhill sounds nice, after 6 plus hours of running my legs ability to absorb the downhill pounding was severely diminished. Needless to say I would have liked to have made better time moving downhill but was satisfied with the pace I was able to keep. Coming down Onion Mountain and into the final aid station I could smell the barn. I motored past the aid station and started down the dirt road toward the “Promise Land”. I passed the one mile to go marker and before I knew it I was turning into the Promise Land Youth Camp and be greeted at the finish by Dr. Horton (6h:41m).

It was fitting that this race was run on Easter weekend. The descents and ascents of the Blue Ridge Mountains were symbolic of the sacrifice that Christ made for us on Good Friday and His glorious resurrection on Easter Sunday. During the race, the hard climb up to Apple Orchard Mountain could symbolize Christ’s hard climb up Golgotha to the place of His crucifixion. The descent down Cornelius trail, to the depths of the “Dark Side”, represents Christ’s descent into Hell. The struggle along the long and winding, grassy road reflects His hard fought battle to atone for OUR sins. The tough ascent up Apple Orchard Falls symbolizes His resurrection and rise from the DARK into the LIGHT, for us it was the light of Sunset Fields. And it was with the glorious feeling of resurrection that we ran, with joy and confidence, the final downhill section into “The Promise Land”. Many thanks to Dr. Horton and all of his great volunteers, this was a great run.

For His Glory,

Michael Huff

2011-04-22T10:07:00.000-07:00

"Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all of your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3: 5-6

I know that it’s been a while since the last post and I wanted to let everyone know that the 2011 Ultra Running season is underway. This year has started off well, to date I have completed 4 Ultras (Willis River Trail 50K, the ICY 8 Hour Adventure Run, Seneca Creek Greenway 50K, Bel Monte 50 Miler, and The Sweetwater 50K). My next event is this coming Saturday in Bedford, VA – The Promise Land 50K.

This is the fourth year that I will be supporting the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and I have included a link to the 2011 fundraising page below, it has changed from last year’s site http://www.active.com/donate/SFFCOMMATHL2011/HUFFER2011 . Over the past 3 years we have managed to raise approximately $14,000.00 due to gracious contribution and support. I know it's a rather difficult time, financially, for everyone and to ask someone to give is even more difficult. But we are getting more and more injured service members back. We had over a dozen double amputee or higher injuries come into Bethesda Hospital this past couple of months! This fundraising effort is helping them. It's going to be a complicated time for them and the Semper Fi Fund is able to make a major impact on their lives when it matters the most.

Since I started working with the Semper Fi Fund, more than 4 years ago, I have seen them grow as an organization. Due to their streamlined structure they are able to keep overhead very low – at 5% – which allows more of our donations go where they are truly needed.

The basic ideal that drives the Semper Fi Funds effort is simple: as much as these American heroes have sacrificed, they deserve the best care and support available in their hour of need. Injuries are often severe, and the road to recovery or rehabilitation can be long and costly. Many of those that the Fund work with must have their homes modified, or even move into a new home designed to accommodate a serious disability; adaptive transportation is needed. The list goes on and on, and so do the bills. That’s where the efforts and support of the Semper Fi Fund come in.

Since establishing this fund in 2004, they have issued close to 26,000 grants totaling more than $46 million to thousands of our heroes and their families. Clearly, the program is working. But our challenges are actually increasing, especially due to the level of severe trauma sustained in areas like Afghanistan and Iraq.

Tax-deductible contributions make up the lifeblood of the Semper Fi Fund. Whether the donation is large or small, a one-time gift or ongoing endowment, you have the power to make a real difference, here and now – no matter where in the world you live.

I have dedicated my running effort s, once again, to those that protect and serve. This year’s goal event is to complete the Old Dominion 100 Mile Endurance Run on the 4th and 5th of June. I have a couple more races prior to this event and then I will attempt to complete the run in less than 24 hours. I will try and do a better job updating the blog site with race reports.

Thanks again for all of your support, please join me in spreading the Semper Fi message and supporting this noble cause.

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

2010 Hellgate 100K

2010-12-22T01:43:00.000-08:00

"For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with the birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves. Eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance." Romans 8 : 22-25

I don’t know if doing something 3 years in a row makes the event a habit or a ritual but for the third year in row, on the second Saturday in December, at 12:01am, I found myself standing at the beginning of the Glenwood horse trail anticipating the start of the Hellgate 100K. This year there were 126 anxious runners at the start and following the traditional singing of the National Anthem and a prayer we were off on our 66.6 mile “Special” journey of the soul. It was about 22 degrees at the start with clear skies and a good forecast for Saturday, the best weather in the three years I have run this event. The trail was in great condition and the stage was set for a great race.

The Hellgate is unlike any other ultra-event that I have competed in. I have only been doing this for about three years but the group of runners that assemble here for this race are a gritty, determined, and tough bunch. Dr. Horton advertises this as a “Special” race and for me the “special” has been something different each year- the journey down the trail has been different each year but the feeling as I enter Camp Bethel for the last stretch to the finish line has been the same, the feeling of accomplishment.

Coming off of a year of injuries that started after the Bull Run Run in April, included a DNF at 38 miles at Western States and ended with 3 months off to heel a stress fracture in the left tibia, I was unsure how the race would unfold. The first stretch was uneventful, as the heard thinned out and everyone settled into their pace for the night, the stream crossing prior to the first aid station was not even that bad. I was able to run a good portion of the climb up to AS 2, Petite’s Gap and crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRPW) in good shape. Of note, due to some new gates that the park service installed and some icy road conditions, crews were not permitted until AS4, Headforemost at mile 22-24 (depending on whose mileage you trust).

So I started the rugged downhill after crossing the parkway and tended to run fairly cautious and conservative. The trail still had a good 2-3 inches of snow on it but the footing was pretty good and before I knew it I had dropped out on to the dirt road and the long climb up to Camping Gap, AS3. Approaching Camping Gap at about 2:45am I saw that the Liberty University crew had the aid station well stocked and they were energetically and efficiently getting runners fueled up and back on the trail.

The longest stretch of the course was made longer this year due to the relocation of AS4, it measured just over 10 miles and it took a long time to get there. The highlight of this leg was the 2 mile downhill to Overstreet Falls. This is a pretty rugged trail but there was a good 5-6 inches of snow cover that tended to even out rocky sections and allowed for a smooth descent to the road. Last year climbing the road up to the aid station I ran in to a severe bout of sleepiness and was literally sleep walking up the hill, fortunately that did not happen this year and I ran into AS 4 just after 5:00am. I was able to meet up with crew (Mom, Dad, and my oldest daughter, Ashley), drop the camelback that I was carrying and get down the trail to Jennings Creek.

The long, persistent descent in to AS5 is where my lack of downhill training started to materialize as my quads began to scream at me. This was a long leg and I was starting to feel the effects of nearly 7 hours of running. As I ran in to AS5 I met the crew again fueled up, dropped off my headlamp and started the long climb up to Little Cove. The sun began to rise on the climb out of Jennings Creek but the temperature did not. It seemed to even get a little colder in the early part of the morning. I noticed that my pace was starting to drop off and the downhill running was becoming more painful, quads and hips were not feeling good at all.

Knowing the I was starting to fall off of my normal pace was not the motivation that I needed going in to the next leg and by the time I started down the single track portion of this leg I was starting to have serious doubts about continuing on past Bearwallow. As I started the last big climb and headed across “the devil’s trail” I had all but confirmed that I was going to call it day at AS7. I had all sorts of good, rationalized reasons: my legs hurt, my hips hurt, I had finished twice before, and 100 more good reasons. So, as I walk in to Bearwallow I told the crew that I was done, to which they toldl me that they don’t think so. What they said and what they were thinking were two different things, they were thinking “No way pal, you drug us out here in the cold at midnight-you are going to get your butt down that trail, suck it up”. Which is, reluctantly, what I did.

Leaving Bearwallow there is big 2 mile climb and then about 1000 in and out sections of the trail as you traverse the side of the ridgeline. It took a long time for me to slog my way through this section but my attitude had changed from wanting to drop to wanting to get to the finish and be done. So as I came in to Bobblet’s Gap I told the crew that I was physically feeling worse but I was going to push through. There were 14 miles left and I had plenty of time. The next leg of the course is known as the forever section, probably because this is Dr. Horton’s biggest measurement error on the course, under estimating the distance by more than a mile, so his 6.6 miles is really closer to 8.

This leg starts with a 2.5-3 mile downhill on a dirt road and I was moving slow and hurting. Once I got to the single track I knew that I had three big climbs and a final descent into Day Creek. About half way up the first climb I pulled off the trail for an environmental break and noticed that although my urine was clear, there was a nice red tint-blood. I have never had this happen and it concerned me. I had about 4 miles to go so I kept drinking and moved slowly down the trail. Once again the mental demons came out and talked me in to dropping at the last aid station.

As I came in to Day Creek, I told the crew what was happening and that I didn’t want to push the condition, this time they didn’t try as hard to push me on. However, much to my surprise, my daughter Ashley, was dressed in her running gear and ready to escort me the final six miles to Camp Bethel. Fortunately, others did not give up on me as quick as I had given up on me. Adam Casseday had some words with me and basically said “you’ve got 3 hours to go 6 miles, take it slow and get to the finish” – thanks for the push. The other determining factor was that Ashley was willing to run with me (she is not a runner) although I wasn’t really running at that point. It was at this point that I took an internal survey of “why do I race?” I race for the Glory of God and the fact that He allows me to go these distances; I had forgotten that fact and needed some coaxing from a godly man to get me moving. A piece by Ralph Waldo Emerson from his essay entitled “Circles” describes well what was going through my head:

"It is the highest power of divine moments that they abolish our contritions also. I accuse myself of sloth and unprofitableness day by day; but when these waves of God flow into me, I no longer reckon lost time. I no longer poorly compute my possible achievement by what remains to me of the month or the year; for these moments confer a sort of omnipresence and omnipotence which asks nothing of duration, but sees that the energy of the mind is comensurate with the work to be done, without time."

“Don’t wish it were easier, wish you were better” – And Ashley and I started up the “Redemption Road”. I was tired, my legs hurt, and I wanted to be done, so I kept moving. I’m not a big talker on the trail but it was nice to have the support on the final leg. As we crested the ridgeline and crossed the BRPW, I knew we had about 3 miles to the finish-downhill. I started to run and was told by Ashley that I really wasn’t running, it was more like a fast walk-so we picked up the pace a little and before I knew it we had crossed the 1 mile to go marker and had the entrance to Camp Bethel in sight. For the third year in row God gave me the strength and endurance to cross the finish line of the Hellgate 100k, this year He also strengthened me through the assistance of others to which I am eternally grateful.

This race is special, and it’s special to each and every runner for a different reason. Be it a habit or a ritual, I know where I plan to be on the second Saturday of December, 2011. Thanks to Dr. Horton and all of the diehard volunteers and a special thanks to my crew and family and finally to the One whom goes all of the Glory, God.

God Bless and Semper Fi,

Michael Huff

P.S. Don't let anyone tell you that Hellgate won't change you. Just look at the before and after pictures below!

Bull Run Run 50 Miler

2010-04-14T01:48:00.000-07:00

“Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

Saturday, 10 April, was the 18th running of the Bull Run Run 50 mile trail race and the third year in a row that I was fortunate enough to be able to participate and complete this event. This race is run along the Bull Run-Occoquan trail in Fairfax County and is a mere 10 minutes from my house, so this is definitely a backyard event for me. I do a lot of my training on these trails and it was great to see more than 300 other runners get to share in its beauty. The run is sponsored by the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club (VHTRC) and they do a great job each year. This has become a major Ultra event on the east coast.

We could not have asked for a better day for running; “This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24. The temps started in the low 40s and rose into the mid to upper 60s with low humidity throughout the day. The race started promptly at 0630 and it started out fast. Now with every race there is some strategy, for this event I like to get out a little fast so that that I can get ahead of an inevitable traffic jam that occurs at a very narrow and rocky section of the trail, just prior to the 2 mile mark. I was able to do this but in my haste I think that I kept the pace a little to fast for the first section of the race, fast for me anyway.

The first 16ish miles of the race, or the up river section, went very well and I was very much enjoying the day. As I approached the turn around in Bull Run Regional Park I started to see the lead group coming back down the trail. Leigh Schmitt was leading and he was flying down the trail, he would eventually go on to win and set a new course record in 6h:09m. I was able to complete the up river section and get back into Hemlock in 2h:39m, just a few miles behind the lead pack.

The next section of the course started the 11 mile down river stretch to Fountainhead Park, with a couple of aid stations in between. I was continuing to make good time and everything was feeling good. It was during the section that I realized I was running this race at my 50K pace, more on that later. After passing the marina aid station after 5.5 miles I had a 4 mile stretch into the famous Wolf Run Shoals aid station. These guys are known for their ever changing annual theme, this year it was “The Wizard of Oz” (reference the picture) and as usual the service was great.

The Fountainhead Loop is about 10 miles long and includes the shorter 3 mile Do-Loop . The Do-Loop aid station is at mile 32 and I hit that at 5h:25m, a real good 50K time for me. Everything was feeling good but I was noticing that I was dehydrated and starting to play catch-up. I was able to complete the Fountainhead loop in 1h:50m and start back up river at the 6h:30m mark, which was about 10 minutes behind my time last year.

I was still moving good but could definitely tell that I was slowing down and the last 12 miles seemed like the drug on for 2 hour and 26 minutes. About 44 miles into the race my left knee started to hurt a little, which was new for me. It was a discomfort at the time but nothing that raised to much concern. However, as I type this morning my concern has grown to fear as knee has gotten progressively worse. I have been icing and elevating since Saturday but think I will be consulting the Doc today. I was able to complete the race in 8h:56m, which was not my fastest time on the course but it was under my 9 hour goal time and it was a great day to be running. I was able to run fast enough to get to my son’s baseball game, always a good motivator to keep moving.

I have continually praised God for the ability to be able to run in some of the events that I have completed over the past 3 years and have relied on Him to provide direction, purpose and protection for my running; He has never once failed me. So as I work my way through this knee injury, I ask for your prayers for both a quick recovery and patience. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 5-11 April: Weekly Mi (78.1), Monthly Mi (109.6), Yearly Mi (697.0)

Mon: 5.2 mi – PRECOR EFX 546/Upper Body lift/ABs
Tues: 10.5 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute / ABs
Wed: 7 mi – Roosevelt Island
Thurs:
Fri: 5 mi – Bull Run Trail Marking
Sat: 50.4 mi-Bull Run Run
Sun: Recovery

Easter Morning, Son Rise Run

2010-04-05T02:09:00.000-07:00

“. . . Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen, as He said. Come see the place where the Lord lay.” Matthew 28: 5, 6

Yesterday was the celebration of a great event and the opportunity to renew and re-energize ourselves for the rest of the year. I was able to get in a good run at the Bull Run Conservancy and watch the sun rise on what was a glorious day.

As I left the parking lot and headed up into the Bull Run Mountains, there was a bright half moon still hanging in the sky and it was a perfect 60 degrees. I took the run at a nice slow pace and enjoyed a little over 2 hours and 13 miles preparing myself for the rest of the day. The final part of the run was up to the top of High Mountain where the views towards the west were awesome. The sun was fully risen in the east and shown brightly down into the valley below. I was looking toward the Massanutten mountains that I will be running through in 6 short weeks.

This run capped off another good week of training leading into the Bull Run Run 50 Miler coming up on Saturday. I have been feeling pretty good and able to remain injury free. I am going to try and run under 9 hours at Bull Run, but we will see what the day brings. The beauty of the race on Saturday is that the start/finish line is only about a 10 minute drive from my house so I don’t have to worry about the travel plans and transit times.

Easter is the culmination of a season of remembrance and sacrifice in the Church year and serves to remind us of the incredible gift that Christ has given each of us. As I remember His sacrifice; I think of all that I have to be thankful for and those that I am thankful too. We are not called to be mere spectators in this world but active participants. God has a mission for each of us and I continue to pray for wisdom and guidance as I try to figure out exactly what mine is. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 29 March-4 April: Weekly Mi (52.7), Monthly Mi (243.8), Yearly Mi (618.8)

Mon: 5.2 mi – PRECOR EFX 546 / Upper Body Lift / ABs
Tues: 8 mi - Potomac Heritage Trail
Wed: 8 mi – WO&D Trail PM Run Commute / ABs
Thurs: 10.5 - WO&D Trail PM Run Commute
Fri: 8 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute / Pull Ups / ABs
Sat: Off Sun: 13 mi-Bull Run Conservancy

Terrapin Mountian 50K

2010-03-30T01:56:00.000-07:00

“Inspiration, move me brightly. Light the song with sense and color;
Hold away despair, more than this I will not ask. Faced with mysteries dark and vast, statements just seem vain at last. Some rise, some fall, some climb, to get to Terrapin.” The Grateful Dead: Terrapin Station, July 1977

I usually lead off my race reports with a biblical quote but in this case, being a closet “Dead Head”, I could not resist a quote from The Grateful Deads, Terrapin Station. However as the tunes of the Dead were filing through my head on Saturday, I remained forever “Grateful” that the Lord provided me with another opportunity to run in the beautiful mountains of Virginia and open my ears to hear: “The voice of the one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth.” (Isaiah 40:3,4).

I ran the Terrapin Mountain Marathon in 2008. This was the second year that the race was run as a 50K and it was a great opportunity to run on some trails during the daylight that I had only run in the dark. The race started at 0700 from the Sedalia Center with a loud bang of the gong. It was a little cold at the start, about 28 degrees but it would warm up to 50 by the end of the race, perfect day for running. The 50K runners and the half marathoners started together and ran the first four miles to Camping Gap. The race started out on pavement for about a mile, then switched to dirt road and finally dumped out on to a trail for the last 2 mile climb to the first aid station.

After hitting Camping Gap for the first of three stops it was down, down, down for about 5 miles. This section was run on some of the Hellgate 100K course. It was nice to see it in the day time because during Hellgate I usually hit this section of the course about 0230 in the morning. This section was all on dirt roads and a little pavement and moved very quickly but I was careful not to overdo the downhill. Once we got to the Goff Mountain aid station we started the slow climb back up the mountain. Again we started on dirt road and after about a mile we got back on the trail to the next aid station and then the steady climb, on dirt road back to Camping Gap (16ish miles).

Leaving Camping Gap for the second time we headed out to the White Oak Ridge loop, which was 6 miles and covered some trails that will be used in the upcoming Promise Land 50K. I was feeling pretty good at this point and was able to run the loop in 1 hour. Coming back into Camping Gap for the last time I knew that I had one last big climb and then a lot of step, rocky downhill trail up ahead.

I left the aid station at 1100 with 22 miles under my belt and started the hard climb up Terrapin Mountain. The views from the summit were awesome, you could actually see the Sedalia Center and the finish line from the rock outcropping. Playing off the adrenaline rush of being on the summit I picked up the pace on the downhill and made good time in to the last aid station. With 5.5 miles to go I knew that I was going to be able to finish under 6 hours and in fact was able to run the last part of the course on a 10 minute per mile pace and crossed the finish in 5h:43m (results).

This was the second race in “The Beast” series and is 7 weeks out from the Massanutten Mountain 100 miler. At this point in my training I am feeling good about my conditioning and am looking forward to the Bull Run 50 miler in two weeks. The Race Director, Clark Zeeland, and his volunteers did an awesome job with the race. The only drawback for me is that most of the races in this series are about a 3 hour drive from my house in Fairfax, so it’s a little disappointing when the total time in the car exceeds the time spent running on the trails; a small price to pay. The Lord continues to keep me healthy and I continue to feel His joy as I run and for this, as always, I give Him all of the thanks and the glory. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,

Huffer

Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K

2010-03-17T18:54:00.000-07:00

“But the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of Heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year.” Deut. 11:11-12

It was good to be back in the mountains. Over the past couple of years I have had the chance to run in some pretty challenging weather conditions; 100 plus degree temps at Western States, sub zero temps at Swinging Bridge 2009, 6 inches of snow at this years Holiday Lake and on Saturday--the mix of constant rain and melting snow led to some spectacular flash flooding at Elizabeth's Furnace. First off, thanks to the VHTRC, Mike Bur, Quatro Hubbard, and the hearty volunteers that battled the weather to ensure that we had good support during the race.

The Weather Channel was forecasting 2-4 inches of rain throughout the day and looking at a raging Passage Creek as I drove to the start at Signal Knob parking lot, it looked like the Front Royal area already had their fair share of the wet stuff. We started at 0700, in a light rain, with about 50 runners. The trail quickly turned into a stream and after about a half mile my feet were soaked and would remain that way for the rest of the day. The first 4-5 miles of the course is a steep climb up to Meneka Peak, a mile across the ridgeline and a 2 mile drop into the first aid station. The gameplan for the day was to try and continue with the success I had the previous week at Seneca Creek and start out slower and try to maintain a constant pace for the entire race. I felt like I was able to pull that off.

This being a Fat Ass event, the aid stations were a little more spread out than a normal race. Runners were expected to be a little more self sufficient, especially for the "big loop" section of the course. The big loop was about 13 miles with two big climbs. Leaving the first aid station I headed down the purple trail, or should I say the purple stream, over to the Mudhole Gap trail. We were briefed about the Mudhole Gap trail in the pre-race meeting--there are 5 "stream" crossings and the stream is about knee to mid-thigh high. Normally this stream is a foot deep, gently flowing and can be forded by stepping on rocks--NOT ON SATURDAY. As I came up on the first crossing I stopped and thought to myself that this could go very bad with a wrong step. Not only was the stream deep, but it was flowing fast-real fast (refer to pictures). Long story short, the first 4 crossings were all about the same, mid thigh to waist deep 15-20 feet wide and raging, the last crossing was wider but not flowing quite as fast, all of them presented a significant challenge.

Having run this race two other times I knew that the worst of the stream crossings were behind me, now it was up to Three Top Ridge and about 3 miles of rock hopping. This section of the course is extremely tedious due to the amount of rocks and boulders on the trail, this is true Massanutten running. After coming down off of Three Top I started another climb up to Signal Knob and back to Meneka Peak and then a good 5 mile downhill run to the Elizabeth's Furnace parking lot and the 22 mile aid station. I came in there at 4h:45m and was hoping to run the small loop in about 2 hours.

The small is 9 miles and has a huge climb up the Sherman Gap trail. The first mile of the small loop runs parallel to Passage Creek, fortunately we didn't have to cross that. However, the creek was running so high that it was spilling onto the trail in multiple locations and ensured that the feet stayed plenty wet. The climb up Sherman Gap was tough but I was feeling pretty good and still taking in calories. Once on the ridge, there was another round of rock hoping to Shawl Gap and then a steep 3 mile descent back to the parking lot.

The last .9 miles of the course parallels the Fort Valley road back to the Signal Knob parking lot. I crossed the finish line at 6h:47m soaking wet and very pleased with the condition I was in. I grabbed a bowl of chili and started to hear some of the stories from the trail, there were some who got to the stream crossings on the Mudhole Gap trail and turned around and still others that got swept down the stream for a while as they were attempting to cross. There is always something that sticks in your memory from these races and those stream crossings will remain with me for a while.

It was awesome to see the power of nature at work and I found myself thinking how lucky I was to be able to see Gods wonderful creation up close and personal. I ran this course alone from about the 3 mile point to the end and during that time I had plenty of opportunity to reflect on many things. It’s good to feel secure in the grasp of a loving God and to once again realize the importance of a strong Faith and Family. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Pictures by Doug Sullivan

Pictures by Stephanie Wilson

2010 Seneca Creek Greenway 50K

2010-03-08T04:30:00.000-08:00

"Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Philippians 4:6

The Seneca Creek Greenway 50K is in the books. I ran this race on Saturday and could not have asked for a better day to run. First of all I have to say thanks to Ed Schultze and his great group of volunteers, especially those who contributed to the trail clean-up the week prior to the race -- awesome job. The Seneca Greenway Trail is a runners trail. Starting in Damascus, MD and ending at Riley’s Lock on the Potomac River, the course is a net downhill run and even with some snow, ice and mud, it ran pretty fast.

I was lucky enough to have two of my daughters follow me down the course and provide some crew support. It really warmed my heart that two teenagers would be willing to get up early on a Saturday and follow their old man around Maryland. I have said it before; I am a lucky man to have such a wonderful family that supports my ultrarunning habit -- THANKS.

We started the run at 0800 from the Damascus Park. Due to the trail conditions, Ed had offered an early start option at 0700, so the total of 300+ runners were spread out pretty good and congestion was never a problem. It was about 30 degrees as we left the park and ran downhill for about the first mile on paved trail to the creek. Once on the trail it was single track all the way until the last mile at Riley’s Lock. The goal for the day was consistency, I wanted to try and run similar splits for the entire race. I started this race way to fast last year and paid for it in the end.

Coming in to the first aid station, at 7 miles, I was just over a 9 minute pace (1h:4m compared to last years 54 minutes) and just where I wanted to be. My youngest daughter, Abby, had the camera duties and was very good at snapping shots at each of the aid stations, while Ashley gave me a fresh bottle and I was down the trail.
Aid Station 2 was at about 11 miles; I was staying right at my 10 minute pace and covered the distance in 40 minutes. Quick aside on nutrition; I have been struggling fiercely with caloric intake during my runs, stomach just doesn’t want to cooperate. I have been a big fan of Ensure drinks and have used them for over 2 years, well Saturday I tried some Odwalla Superfood Products and they seemed to work great. The fruit smoothie drinks were loaded with potassium and the protein drink contained a whopping 33g of soy protein. These drinks combined with some early Hammer gels, water and SCaps seemed to do the trick. Throughout the race I drank 2 of the 16oz fruit smoothies (320 calories a piece) and 1 chocolate protein drink (500 calories) and I had consistent energy all the way to the finish.

Aid Station 3 is the Clopper Lake aid station and the split for the marathoners and the 50Kers. The loop around the lake is about three and a half miles and I was sticking to the 10 minute pace, finishing in 35 minutes. With 13 miles to go, I was feeling pretty strong.

This next section of the trail is where I lost it last year. From Clopper Lake to Riley’s Lock the trail is marked every half mile with wooden markers. Last year just after the 12 mile marker the course left the Seneca Creek Trail for about 2 miles and then rejoined just prior to the 11 ½ mile marker, I wasn’t expecting this and it really got inside my head. This year that section of the course was not in use due to the trail conditions so the mile markers were accurate all the way to the finish. Not that the extra distance was a problem last year it was the psychological impact of thinking I was further down the trail than I was. If the Rifleford loop had been in effect this year I would have been mentally prepared.

Maintaining my 10 minute pace, got me into aid station 5 (25.5 miles) about 15 minutes earlier than planned and I caught the crew sleep in the parking lot. No worries, quick refuel and onto the final 6.5 miles. This section of the trail was very muddy but nearly all of the snow cover was gone and I was once again able to keep on pace. I broke off the trail with 1 mile to go and heading into a strong finish at 5h:07m which averaged out to be just under a 10 minute pace. It was a good day. Thanks again to Ed and all of the volunteers -- Great Race!!

With the MMT100 just over the horizon on 15-16 May, I am feeling pretty good about my running. I think Saturday gave me two steps forward on the nutrition front, now I just need to hold that ground. I have a pretty heavy race schedule for the rest of this month and into April and continue to pray for guidance and wisdom I try to prepare my body for the upcoming events. The Lord continues to bless me and keep me injury free. The support of my family, motivation of running in faith and for the pleasure of Christ along with the knowledge that my efforts are contributing to fundraising for Injured Marines is all of the sustainment that I need. My next event is this coming Saturday, Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K - - back to the mountains. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,

Huffer

Holiday Lake 50K+

2010-02-21T05:13:00.000-08:00

“But you, O Lord, are a shield for me. My glory and the One who lifts up my head.” Psalm 3:3

Last Saturday I ran the Holiday Lake 50K in Appomattox, VA. This is the second time I have run this race. The first time was two years ago. This year would prove to be a much different experience from the last time, not only was the course changed but there was about 6 inches of snow on the ground. We have had an incredible winter this year in Northern Virginia, so I guess it was fitting that we ran the race in the white stuff. I was grateful to Dr Horton, the race director, for not giving in to the “snowmaggedon” hype and not cancelling the event. Dr Horton had been sending threatening emails all week, warning of the heavy snow on the trails and impending slower times. He said that no one would be setting personal records this year and then laid down the ultimate challenge by asking if we were “Man Enough” to face the course. Well, with a challenge like that you have to run, Honor is at stake.

The race started at 0630 form the Holiday Lake 4H Center, which is about a 3 hour drive from my house, so I felt comfortable leaving at 0300. However, just north of Richmond it began to snow and with deteriorating road conditions I arrived at the start with about 5 minutes to spare. In traditional Horton fashion, we said a prayer and sang the national anthem and then we were off. As we ran up the hill away from the 4H center, it was obvious that I was not the only one affected by the early morning snow; a lot of folks were still arriving and would join in at the end of the pack.

The course follows the road for about .6 miles and then takes a hard right turn into the woods and we stay on trail for the rest of the 16 mile loop. I was running in about the 40th position or so and as we got onto the trail I discovered that this was going to be a slow day that was going to call for some patience. Even with 40 or so runners in front of me breaking trail, I found that I was not able to stay within others tracks and I was continuously stomping down new snow. After finishing the first loop I would find out exactly how much of an impact the snow was going to have. The first four miles seemed to go by quickly, as everyone settled into their pace and tried to figure out the conditions. The snow was still coming down and it probably gave us about an inch of fresh powder to contend with. The views of frozen Holiday Lake and the snow covered forest were incredible.

The first aid station came and went and I felt like I was settling into a pretty good pace. At about 6 miles we came up on a good size stream crossing that helped to ensure that our feet would stay wet for the entire race. I stopped to refill water and get a bite to eat at the second aid station (about 8.5 miles) and then it was off to a section of the course that I thought was the most difficult, a two mile stretch of trail that followed some power lines. The trail was a little more open and the snow was about 2 to 3 inches deeper. This section really took some life out of my already tiring legs and slowed down the pace even more. It was nice to get back into the woods. Aid station three came at roughly 12 miles and I got a little more to eat and then pressed onto the 4H center.

The last 2 miles of the loop are run on the opposite side of Holiday Lake and once again the views were great. With about a mile and half to go we started to see the leaders coming back for the return loop, they were looking strong. I could not imagine having to break trail for the entire race but these guys were trucking right along. I got to the 16.5 mile turn around at about 2h:50m, fueled up, and hit the trail to retrace my steps on the return loop.

Typically, it’s motivating to get to see everyone in the field as you run back on the loop but this year the snow trail had become a very narrow ditch that required a good bit effort to get out off the way of oncoming runners. So this was an additional energy drain for about the next two miles and coming into the 20 miles aid station I knew that my energy reserves were tapped. Heading out of the aid station I walked up hill for about a half mile before I started slowly running. This section of the course would be the slowest of the day. The temp had warmed into the high 30s and there was a little bit of melt occurring, however this just turned the trail into a slushy, muddy mess that was just as tough as the powdery snow on the first loop.

As I came up on the power lines I was hopeful that the trail had been pounded down, it was in better shape but still very difficult. Having made it through that section it was a welcome sight to roll into the 24ish mile aid station and know that I just had eight miles to go. I ran through the big stream again and it surprisingly warmed my feet up and melted all of the ice that had accumulated. Following the stream there was a good hill that I took some time to walk, my energy was gone and I was moving very slow.

I finally got to the last aid station and with 4 miles to go I tried to keep a consistent pace, albeit slow. I made it down to the lake and eventually popped out of the woods and onto the road a short .6 miles from the finish, which was all downhill. I crossed the finish line at 6h:24m and felt like I had just finished a 50 mile race not 50K. The snow on the first loop really had and impact on the second half of the race. The snow forced us to use some muscles that typically are not stressed this much. I really noticed that my ankles and hips were very sore and would remain sore for a couple of days.

I would like to thank all of the volunteers that braved the conditions and took care of us crazy runners throughout the day. I would also like to congratulate all of the runners that crossed the starting line, even with the conditions the finishing rate was very high which shows a great commitment and dedication to finishing what you started. Holiday Lake is a race that a lot of folks use as their introduction to ultra running and for those first time ultra runners that persevered, welcome to the club and I hope to see you again on the trails. Run Strong!

Photos from Doug Sullivan

Semper Fi and God Bless,
Huffer

Injured Marines Semper Fi Fund

Swinging Bridge 50K

2010-01-19T02:18:00.001-08:00

“… if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.” John 8:31,32

I started off 2010 Ultra Running season this past Saturday with the Swinging Bridge 50K Trail Run in Bear Creek Lake State Park, just outside of Richmond, VA. This was my second year running this race and I must say the conditions were much nicer this year. Last year it was -2 degrees at the start, this year we were greeted with temps in the low 30’s with it warming to almost 60 during the race. Once again Kevin O’Connor (former Marine, thanks for your service) did an outstanding job as race director and the volunteers were first class, thanks for your support.

There were two distance options for this race, 35K and the 50K. The course is laid out with two out and back sections. The first section is about 10.6 miles, which gets you back to the start at the 35K mark and the second section is a 5 mile out and back for the full 50K. 30 runners would complete the 50K on Saturday. The course was almost 100% single track trail and was marked very well this year and I managed to stay on the course for the entire race, however a couple of runners were not as fortunate. We had a couple of stream crossings that kept our feet wet for the majority of the day.

We started right on time at 0800. The first section was just over 5 miles to the first aid station and I was running at a very comfortable pace. The trail was mostly gentle hills that were fairly short and mostly runable. It took an hour to get to the first aid station. The trail continued toward the “swinging bridge”, however the course was changed slightly this year and the turn around was just short of the actual bridge. I reached the turn point in 1h:40m.

We retraced our steps back toward the start / finish line and I got back there in 3h:24m. I took about 3 minutes to refuel and refill the water bottle and then I was off on the 5 mile out and back. Leaving the aid station they told me I was in 8th place and despite my effort to move up in the standings, that is where I would finish. The second part of the course, in my opinion, is tougher than the first. I wanted to finish this section in 2 hours or less. I hit the 5 mile turn around at 4h:28m and pushed hard on the return trip. I was rewarded with exactly 2 hours on the second section for a finishing time of 5h:28m (results).

I am still finalizing the rest of the schedule for this year but it looks like it’s shaping up to be a busy season. My next race is the Holiday Lake 50K on 13 February. Once again this year I am racing in support of the Injured Marines Semper Fi Fund. This is the third year that I will be supporting this great cause, over the past two years we have raised over $10,000.00 and hope that this year will be just as successful, our Marines deserve that. As I continue to pound out the miles on the trails I need to constantly remind myself that the Lord is my strength and that through His glory I can continue this mission. Run Strong.

Semper Fi and God Bless,

Huffer

STS-129

2009-11-22T05:36:00.000-08:00

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

Have you ever fulfilled a lifetime dream, not a goal but a “DREAM”? I look at goals as something that are measurable and attainable and view dreams as a step beyond goals, bordering on the verge of immeasurable and unattainable. I consider myself a “GOAL” oriented person but if I was asked what my lifetime dream was, I would have a hard time providing an answer. Well this past Monday, 16 November 2009 at 1438, I was able to witness my good friend, LtCol Randy “Komrade” Bresnick, attain a lifetime dream as he lifted off of Launch Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Space Shuttle Atlantis.

This was quite possibly the most emotional experience (next to the birth of my children) of my life. I cried like a baby as I watched that shuttle blast off into space. I was honored to have been invited to watch the launch and even more excited that the whole family could attend. Having grown up in Orlando, FL, I could see the Space Shuttle launch from my front porch. I would watch the initial lift off on TV and walk out the front door as it cleared the tree line, but I never saw a launch up close and personal. When I ask my kids what they thought about the experience I get one word answers like “awesome”, “amazing”, etc…, but they, nor I, can seem to put together a worthy description of how they felt. It is truly something that is undescribable.

I have known Randy for about 24 years. We met at The Citadel in Charleston, SC in 1985, were commissioned in the Marine Corps in 1989. We did our required basic and advanced flight training and were selected to fly F/A-18s. During our time in the Marine Corps, we both continued to achieve “measurable and attainable” goals; however Randy continued to keep his eye on the “DREAM” of becoming an astronaut and eventually making it into space. Not only did he make into space on the shuttle, but yesterday he stepped out of the shuttle and did a 6.5 hour space walk. So to put that in ultra marathon speak-I run a 50K in about 6.5 hours but for Randy, moving at 17,500 mph, I figure he covered about 113,750 miles; pretty good run.

The Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to return to earth on Friday the 27th. I look forward to being able to visit Randy and his family sometime in the near future, raise a glass and toast an amazing milestone achievement. My prayers and thoughts are with Randy and his family, as well as with all the members of the Atlantis crew. Safe return and Happy landings. Run Strong!

Semper Fi and God Bless,
Huffer

Marine Corps Marathon 2009

2009-11-01T04:03:00.000-08:00

“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4

Why do you Race?

On Sunday, 30 Oct 1988, I ran the Marine Corps Marathon with 10,000 starters and this past Sunday, 21 years later, I ran it for a second time with just over 30,000 people. If you would have asked the question above, “why do you race?” to the starting field, you would have received 30,000 different answers. A lot of the answers where worn on runners shirts. They were supporting breast cancer research, Leukemia Foundations, in memory of a mother, father, brother, or sister, Wounded Warriors, Injured Marines, and many more worthy reasons.

This race last Sunday was surprisingly emotional for me. Running the Marine Corps Marathon as a young college senior in 1988, I did not have the life experience to process all of the micro stories that were developing around me during the race. I ran on ego and got upset when I hit the wall on Haines Point (mile 21 in 1988) cramped up and got passed by many runners that I thought should not be passing a soon to be US Marine at the pinnacle of physical fitness. This time it was easy for me to see and understand the motivations of runners. I was able to put my ego behind me and be supportive of those runners that moved faster, challenging themselves to pursue their individual goals. They tell you at the beginning of the race to remember the climb up the last hill, to the finish line at the base of the US Marine Corps War Memorial, that you are running on “Sacred Ground”. Well, after serving this great country for 20 years as a member of the world’s finest fighting force, truer words could not have been spoken.

Here are a couple of observations from the race. 30,000 runners are too many folks for me. I managed to work my way up to the 3:40 expected finishing time corral and it still took about four minutes to get to the starting line after the gun fired. After crossing the start line I spent the next 3 miles working in and out of traffic and finally was able to get into a running rhythm as we started running down Sprout Run. I was amazed by the number of spectators that lined the course for almost the entire 26 miles. There support and enthusiasm were very motivating throughout the day. Haines Point came at about mile 12 in this years race, what a difference that made. Haines Point is a 3 mile loop with limited access for supporters, so you lose the fan support that was driving you through the Mall area. When I ran this in 1988 the Haines Point loop came at a terrible time (mile 21) and it almost ended my race. Having this loop in the middle of the race is much better physically and psychologically. The stand out supporter of the day was the guy dressed up as the grim reaper standing alone on the 14th street bridge (mile 21ish) with the sign reading “the end is near”.

As I said in my last race report, no matter what the distance of the race is, the last 10% always hurts and this race was no different. Over the last 4 miles my times were starting to slip and my legs were feeling the pain of 3+ hours of pavement pounding. As I approached the finish, running past Arlington National Cemetery, the crowd got bigger and louder. I made the left turn up to the War Memorial, saw my family on the side of the road cheering me on and was instantly overwhelmed by a flood of emotions. Twenty one years ago I ran up this hill as a hard charging young man looking forward to college graduation, a commission in the Marine Corps and getting married to a beautiful woman. Well, there stood my (still beautiful) wife and our four incredible children, 20 years of service to this great country, and a prayer that the next 21 years be as exciting as the 21 previous.

The last 200 feet brought tears to my eyes as I really thought about the question, ”Why do I race?” The verse from the Book of James at the top of the post is a very accurate description of why I race. I consider it a great joy and honor to be able to support the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and it was awesome to meet some of these inspiring men and women after the race. I enjoy the physical and mental challenges that surround the events that I compete in. Challenging myself physically provides me the opportunity to get outside my comfort zone and in those situations to step out in faith, faith that I have been saved by the grace of God. Testing my faith continues to grow and mature me as a man, husband, father, and disciple with the final hope that my actions will be able to speak louder than my words, that’s why I race! Run Strong

Semper Fi and God Bless,
Huffer

Finisher Website

Freedom’s Run 2009

2009-10-07T01:55:00.000-07:00

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

21 years ago I ran my first and only marathon, The Marine Corps Marathon. I was 21 years old and I thought to myself, as I crossed the finish line in a respectable 4h:11m, that this was a “one and done” experience. That held true for another 21 years and even though I have run a lot ultramarathons over the past two years, I have yet to go back to the 26.2 distance, until this past weekend. Saturday I ran in the inaugural Freedoms Run Marathon which started in Harpers Ferry, WV and ended in Shepherdstown, WV. I didn’t find out about this race until about a month ago but could not pass up the chance to run through 4 National Parks, including Antietam Battlefield. I would describe this as a marathon with an ultra feel.

Saturday morning was beautiful, clear with temps in the low 50s for the start. I parked at the finish line at Shepherdstown University and jumped on a bus to the starting line at 0600. We arrived at the Harpers Ferry Visitors Center about 30 minutes later and got ready for the 0700 start. There were a little over 300 of us at the start and right at 0700 we were off. The first mile or so covered an out and back to the Murphy Farm and then a good downhill section into the old town of Harpers Ferry. We passed John Browns Fort, crossed the Potomac River and joined the C&O canal heading north.

Going into the race, I had a goal of sub 4 hours but was more concerned with enjoying the day and having some time with my thoughts and prayers. Unlike ultras, there were mile markers each mile and I was keeping an eye on my times. I felt really good running, legs were strong and I felt like the heart rate was staying in control, even though my mile splits were running about 7:45ish. These times were surprisingly fast for me and I initially chalked it up to adrenaline and thought that I would soon slow down. As we continued up the Potomac, which by the way was an awesome run this time of year, the splits stayed pretty consistent and I continued to feel pretty good. Passing the half marathon point at 13.1 miles I was at 1:41 and knew I had about a mile and a half before the course left the flat C&O canal and headed into the hilly battlefield.

We left the trail at mile 14.6 and headed up Sawmill road and the up and down hills continued for the rest of the race, nothing drastic, just enough to get the heart rate up and make the legs hurt a little more. I ran all of the hills, even though my normal ultra routine is to walk most of the hills I decided to press on through. Running through the battlefield was great. The park service was out in full force to support the race and kept the traffic under control. We ran past Burnside’s Bridge and up to the Bloody Row. Coming up on the Bloody Row you could see the observation tower from a long distance away but as I got closer you could hear the haunting sound of bagpipes rolling across the fields. Sure enough, right in front of the tower was a piper in full garb piping for the runners. That was a run highlight. After running by the Cornfield and the Dunker Church we left the battlefield and headed into Sharpsburg with about 5 miles to go.

I don’t think it matters what distance race you in, the last 10% always hurts. I continued to check my mile splits and they had been running just over 8 minutes in the battlefield section. There was a gentle uphill from Sharpsburg that started to take effect and slowed me down al little and then we rolled over the Potomac and climbed up to Shepherdstown University Stadium and the finish.

The official finishing time was 3h:29m:35s, and I could not have been more surprised. That gave me an 8 min mile average for 26.2 miles. My typical tempo run from the Pentagon to East Falls Church Metro station is 8 miles. I usually run an 8:30 2.5 mile warmup to the custis trail and then run 4 miles at 7:30ish and finish with a 1.5 mile cool down in the 8-8:30 range, feeling like I have had a good workout. I find it hard to explain that I could maintain an 8 min pace for 26 miles, especially in the second half of the race when the hills kicked in. Lately, when I get surprised by physical feats, I come back to Phil 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. I feel that my running has a purpose that Christ is using it in way that I don’t fully understand. I believe part of His purpose is this blog, and the fact that I can at least spread my story of how Christ is working my life and I hope that it has had an impact on some of you that continue to follow. I once again offer up all the praise and glory for this race to God and pray that He will continue to run with me. I have found that He is a pretty good pacer!! Run Strong.

God Bless and Semper Fi ,
Huffer

Catoctin 50K Race Report

2009-08-04T02:55:00.000-07:00

“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” 2 Chronicles- 16:9

Sorry for the long hiatus but I have been enjoying the remainder of my time off for the summer. Sadly that time has come to an end and I am out of retirement and back to work. I have been very fortunate to be able to spend so much time with the family this summer. We had an incredible trip out west through the Rockies and up into Yellowstone and to finish off my vacation time I was able to run in the Catoctin 50K on Saturday.

This is the first time that I had run this race and was anxious to see how well my body had recovered from the Western States 100. My training leading up to this race had been sporadic at best. In the five weeks since WS I had run a total of 88 miles, fortunately I did run an out an back training run on the first 9 miles of the course so I had a little idea of what I was in for. This race is advertised as a low key, no frills ultra and that may be true from a swag perspective but the organization, volunteers, and runner camaraderie was first class.

First things first-running a 50K on August 1st, starting at 0800 in the morning, in Maryland-two things come to mind immediately: Hot and Humid, and we were not disappointed. There were about 160 of us toeing the line for the start in Gambrill State Park and even though the temps were mild, the humidity was thick and would remain that way all day. The course is a 15.6 mile out and back along the Catoctin Trail with about 6000’ of climb and descent. At 0800 we started the train moving down the mountain and I settled in for the day.

There was a little over 6 miles to the first aid station and as we hammered down the first steep hill over the incredibly rocky trail I was remembering how nice the western trails were. The good thing about running on these rocky trails is that it keeps you intensely focused on your foot placement to the point that the pain gets pushed aside. The section went very well and as I came up the hill to the Hamburg Road aid station I was feeling good and got in and out quickly.

The next section was a short 3 mile stretch into Delauter Road and then into the last section of just over 6 miles to the turn around point. The last 2 miles is a pretty good downhill run into the aid station which keeps you thinking about what you have to come back up. I got to the turn at 2 hours and 47 minutes and the heat of the day was just starting to reveal itself. After a quick refuel and water I started back to Gambrill State Park and up the hill.

I was very pleased with how I was feeling and was able to mix some uphill running in with power hiking to get up the slope in a respectable time. It took about 15 minutes more to cover this section of trail going in the opposite direction. The next 3 mile stretch I was able to do in 35 minutes which was the same time that it took on the outbound leg. However coming into the Hamburg aid station for the second time it was almost 1300 and the effects of heat and humidity were starting to take there toll.

I quickly refilled and started on the last section, 6 miles to the finish. I had covered this distance in 1 hour 12 minutes on the way out and was shooting for 1 hour 20 minutes on the way in. I knew that I should be able to run the first 3 miles or so of this section before the big uphill started and I did. Once I got to the bottom I was ready for a hiking break, I was also very ready for the 5 stream crossing that I knew were coming on the uphill leg, they could not have been spaced out any better, this really helped to keep me cool on the climb. I stayed true to my 1 hour and 20 minute pace and crested the final climb to cross the finish line in 6 hours and 18 minutes and a strong 15th place.

I was very pleased with how my legs felt but I am still having problems with my stomach and can not figure out how to get more calories into my body during the run. Although I never got sick or even felt sick during the run, as soon as I finished the urge hit me and stayed with me the rest of the afternoon- this something that I have to figure out. I would like to say thanks to all of the great volunteers and to Kevin for putting on a great event, for pictures of the race follow this link to Geoffery Baker's photo site. The next race is the North Face 50 miler on 19 September. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

2009 Western States Race Report

2009-07-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

“Because Your loving-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. . . Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me.” Psalm 63: 3-8

Wow, Praise to the Lord! To sum it up in a single word, I would have to say, Epic. Webster defines epic as – extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope. Well for me, all aspects of the WS100 extended beyond the usual in both size and scope. The race management was first class, the army of volunteers was second to none, the competition was tough, and the course was brutally honest and unforgiving. This was truly an epic journey.

We arrived in Squaw Valley on Wednesday night after spending the day touring Yosemite National Park and spent the next couple of days soaking in the pre-race events going on around the Olympic Village. On Thursday I took a hike up to the flag raising ceremony at the Escarpment, which covered the first four miles of the course and then took an easy jog down, that was my last run before the race on Saturday. Friday was filled with excitement as everyone was at the official check-in and medical assessment. I had some trouble with blood pressure and had to wait a while for it to get back to a normal range (a little anxious). I was able to get it down low enough for them to put on the yellow medical bracelet that remains on your arm until you cross the finish line or are dropped from the race. The big buzz on Friday was about the hot weather that was being forecast for Saturday and Sunday, but little could be done about that.

I got a pretty good night sleep on Friday night and was up early at 0330 on Saturday. I ate breakfast, stretched and got over to the starting line about 0445. At exactly 0500, 399 runners crossed the starting line in Squaw Valley in quest of running 100 miles to Placer County High School in Auburn, CA, for 238 of them the quest would be fulfilled for the other 161 the Western States Trail would take its toll and the quest would have to wait for another year.

The first 4 miles of the course is right up the slope of the big ski runs in Squaw Valley, 2500 feet of climb. As I climbed out of the valley I was thankful to be in the middle of the pack as the lead group immediately went off course for about 3 minutes, they quickly corrected their error and passed me never to be seen again until the awards ceremony. I had two time goals for this race, first I wanted to complete in under 24 hours and if that was not possible I was going to finish in under 30 hours. As I ran into the first aid station I was about 10 minutes ahead of my 24 hour pace and feeling good. I knew the next seven miles to Lyon Ridge AS was mostly downhill.

Cresting the summit of the Escarpment and looking west, you could see the next 30 or so miles of the course, which was pretty incredible, almost as incredible as looking east and watching the sunrise over Lake Tahoe. Regardless of where you looked we were now in the wild and surrounded by the beauty of creation. The ridge running from the Escarpment, through Lyon Ridge and into the Red Star Ridge aid station was awesome and I was able to maintain my 24 hour pace, covering 16 miles in 3h:10m, it was 0810. At Red Star Ridge I had a drop bag with an Ensure and some additional Clif gels. I had been drinking plenty of water and taking S-Caps (salt supplement) about every hour.

The first section of the race (30 miles from the start to Robinson Flat AS) covers what is commonly referred to as the High Country due to the fact that you stay at about 7000’ elevation until just after 30 miles. The temperature was great but you could tell it was starting to warm up. The climb out of Red Star Ridge was along an exposed east facing slope and the sun was coming on strong. I continued with a solid pace along the ridge and ran hard on the downhill into Duncan Canyon and the first opportunity to see my CREW (Mom and Dad).

I am going to segway into the crew for a moment and provide them with the thanks and appreciation that is due. The WS100 is not an easy race to crew for, the aid stations are remote and far between. My Mom and Dad were at every planned stopped and provided me just the support that I needed to keep running toward Auburn. The common definition for CREW is Cranky Runner, Endless Waiting, these guys endured endless waiting and dealt with a cranky runner for the entire race and I appreciate everything that you did. Thanks for being a critical part of the journey.

Duncan Canyon was a blur, I was in and out in about 4 minutes. I got a new shirt, my FCA visor, put on sunscreen, drank an Ensure, refilled the water bottles and was down the trail to Robinson Flat. After a nice downhill section we crossed Duncan Creek, got good and wet and climb a gentle but long hill up to the Robinson Flat aid station and first medical checkpoint. I had covered 30 miles in 6h:13m and was in 97th place. I was still on the 24 hour pace. I weighed in 6 lbs over my starting weight which told me that my water to salt ratio was out of balance, I was holding onto too much water. So it was time to cut back on water and increase the sodium intake. I would work this out over the next couple of hours and it would not be much of a problem for the rest of the race.

Leaving Robinson Flat, I climbed for about a mile up to Little Bald Mountain and looking east I could see the Escarpment and the past 30 miles of trail. I was leaving the High Country and starting into what would be the hardest part of the course for me and many, The Canyons. The canyon section goes from Robinson Flat to Foresthill AS (30-62 miles) during this section there are three major canyons back to back and with the heat climbing into the 100s, they were brutal.

On the west side of Little Bald Mountain the trail started down through the burned out section of a past forest fire. The signs of rebirth were abundant; unfortunately the new growth was not tall enough to provide any shade on the trail. I ran through Miller’s Defeat aid station and got sponged off with ice water, refilled and pushed on down the trail. On the way down to Dusty Corner’s AS I had the chance to run with Dean Karnazes (The Ultramarathon Man) for a couple of minutes and told him that his book is what got me excited about running Ultra’s (so he is to blame). I wondered why he was back in the pack and asked how he was doing, I thought his answer was great, he said “today is the kind of day that makes you re-evaluate your expectations”. This coming from a guy that was going for his 12th Western States finish, spoke volumes about the conditions on the trail. Dean quickly pulled ahead and vanished down the trail and ended up calling it a day at Foresthill AS.
I cruised into Dusty Corner’s AS, 38 miles and got to see the CREW again. This was another quick stop and I was back on the trail. I was still on my 24 hour pace but the heat was starting to take a toll. The next time I would see the CREW was at mile 55.7, Michigan Bluff AS and that would be after two of the three canyons.

Out of Dusty Corner’s I had about 8 more miles of downhill running to get to the bottom of Deadwood Canyon. The first 6 miles were on good trail and a fairly gentle slope. Leaving the Last Chance AS, which by the way is the only aid station on the course that I can’t remember anything about, I had about 2 miles before the bottom dropped out of the trail and we went straight down the side of Deadwood Canyon and a series of very narrow switchbacks. I kept a good pace but could tell I was getting extremely hot, at the bottom of the canyon; I took a couple of extra minutes and totally submerged myself in Deadwood Creek. This got my core temperature down and I was ready for the climb up Devil’s Thumb, so I thought.

As soon as I started up the first of 36 switchbacks (1500’ of climb in 1.5 miles) I knew that I had completely underestimated my ability to climb this slope. I started moving up the hill very slowly, laboring step by step. The trail was shaded but the air was stagnate and it was very hot. After about 6 switchbacks my stomach revolted and I vomited violently. I took a couple of minutes to recover and then started moving up again, counting the switchbacks as I went. I was making 5 switchbacks a milestone, and taking a short break and re-hydrating. It was during this section that I had serious considerations of not completing the race. I never once thought that I could not finish, this was different, I was having thoughts about if I wanted to finish, was it worth the pain that I was going through to finish. I have never experienced those kinds of feelings during an Ultra, but they were real and I was having a hard time suppressing them. In pre race planning I had estimated 30 minutes to climb out of Deadwood Canyon, it took me an hour.

Devils Thumb AS looked like a MASH unit, runners all over the place, on cots, getting medical help, or like me, just sitting in a chair with a very blank expression on their face. This was the first time I had to sit down during the race and boy did I need it. The good news was my weight was back to pre race numbers at 174 and all I needed to do was to cool off and continue to keep hydrated and moving. It was now about 1530, I had covered 47.8 miles in 10h:33m and was having serious motivation problems. I had just completed one of the three canyons and the next two would not be any easier, picking myself up out of the chair and continuing to Michigan Bluff took a leap of faith, knowing that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” PHIL 4:13 was the thought that kept me moving down the trail.

I had a 5.1 mile, 2500’ descent to El Dorado Creek in front of me and then a 1700’ climb to Michigan Bluff. Somewhere on the way down to the creek I passed the mid point of the race, I maintained a pretty good pace down into the canyon, fortunately my legs were still in good shape. When I got to the bottom of the canyon I took another opportunity to dive into the creek and cool off and then I started the long haul up to Michigan Bluff and my CREW. This climb was slow but not as hard as the Devils Thumb climb, my attitude was improving the higher I got on the canyon wall. I came into Michigan Bluff at 1803, 55.7 miles and 13h:03m on the trail. I had fallen behind the 24 hour pace but it was still a possibility. It was great to see the CREW and they got me out of there in about 8 minutes, I wanted to stay longer but Mom was pushing me to get going. Two canyons down, one to go, Volcano Canyon.

The name, Volcano Canyon, sounds worse than it turned out to be. After some initial climbing and some more vomiting, the descent into the canyon went well and the climb out, although slow was the best of the three. I passed the Bath Road AS and climbed up to the Foresthill Road for the one mile downhill run into the Foresthill AS at 1952, 62 miles complete, 14h:52m, The Canyons were behind me, the Lord provided me with the strength that I needed and the faith to continue. I was about 52 minutes off of the 24 hour pace and I had serious doubts about being able to finish 38 more miles in under 9 hours. The good news is that I had overcome the very strong desire to quit and recommitted myself to finishing the race. My weight was checked, still 174 lbs-good, and I got ready for the night portion of the run. Mom and Dad were on the spot as they were for each aid station and they got me going before 2000. My faith was renewed but the canyons had taken a toll on my body and I was moving slow.

I walked down Foresthill Road for a moment in an effort to get the body loosened up after sitting for a while and eventually started running on the next section of the course know as Cal Street. Cal Street is a 16 mile section of the course that takes you from Foresthill AS to the river crossing at mile 78. This section was mostly downhill with some shorter steep climbs thrown in for good measure. I made it the 3.7 miles to Cal 1 (Dardanelles AS) without having to turn my light on, which was my goal leaving Foresthill. From Cal 1 we had some pretty good climbs and steep descents over the next 5 miles moving into Cal 2 (Peachstone). At Peachstone I was able to take in some soup broth and extra calories. It was a short 2.3 mile run from Cal 2 to Cal 3 (Ford’s Bar AS) and then a final 5 mile push to the Rucky Chucky river crossing at mile 78. I arrived at the river at 0047, now 19h:47m into the race and I still had 22 miles to go.

The river crossing was surreal. It was about 30 yards across the American River and the water was about chest high, it felt great (I am the second guy in the picture following Scott Dunlap). There were two huge aid stations, one on either side of the river and the river itself was lined with volunteers tending a cable strung across the river. The volunteers in the river were insuring that each runner got across safely. It was a truly impressive operation and I thank each an every volunteer for their time and effort.

I spent very little time at the river and after crossing I started the steep climb up to the Green Gate AS and my CREW. I arrived at Green Gate about an hour later and took too long of a break, about 20 minutes of resting and recouping. I think that Mom and Dad saw the toll that the trail had taken on me and let me recover a little. So at about 0200, I was ready to get going for the final 20 miles, the next time I would see the CREW would be at the HWY 49 crossing, mile 93.5.

The last 20 miles of the trail is the Homestretch, mostly gentle terrain through meadows, in and out of small canyons, there are two descents back to the river level and two significant climbs including the 700’ climb up to Robie Pt at mile 97. I ran the entire race without a pacer, so I had a lot of time alone on the trail with my thoughts but you really get the sense of isolation at night on the trail. The glare of my headlamp would only illuminate about 30 feet ahead of me but I was able to look to the sky and let the view of the stars remind me how vast the area was that I was running through and always confident that I had the Ultimate Pacer running with me.

At mile 85, I came into the Auburn Lake Trails AS and was about 4 lbs under weight; the medical staff wanted me to sit down until I could gain a couple of pounds. So after eating some watermelon and drinking about a quart, I gained the 2 pounds and was given clearance to proceed. Now, I knew exactly what was going to happen and I was not surprised when after less than a quarter of a mile down the trail I gave back the 2 lbs that I had just consumed and with that out of the way, I continued down the trail towards the Brown’s Bar AS. I got into Brown’s Bar at about 0500 and only stayed for a couple of minutes knowing that HWY 49 was the next AS and it was only 3.5 miles away. Out of Brown’s Bar there was a good downhill section and was able to turn off my headlamp for this because the sun had started to rise—AGAIN! The last 1.5 miles of this section was over the first of the two big climbs, but we overcame and emerged at the HWY 49 AS at 0604, 93.5 miles and 25h:04m on the trail.

I could definitely smell the barn and only spent about 4 minutes at this aid station. I thanked Mom and Dad and told them I would see them at the High School shortly. I left the AS and climbed up to the Pointed Rocks section and some beautiful meadows and then started down a very steep and seemingly never-ending hill to No-Hands Bridge AS. I finally got to the AS refilled water bottles and left immediately for the last 3.5 miles to the finish. I wish I could say that I ran the final stretch strong but the truth is that I was spent and the final hill is a very real challenge. The slope up to Robie Point is east facing and even though it was still early in the morning you could already feel the heat building. I walked most of this final hill. 1.3 miles from the finish I came to the Robie Pt AS. I came out of the woods and off the trail for the last time (the rest of the course was on the paved streets of Auburn). I continued a slow climb up the streets of Auburn towards the Placer County High School, knowing that in short order I would be crossing the finish line of the 35th Annual Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run.

I began running Ultramarathons about 2 years ago and from the beginning my goal was to complete the WS100. I had a very bittersweet experience over the last half mile of the course. I had not really thought about my running goals after the WS100. I focused solely on preparing for this race and now I was less than 5 minutes away from completing it, then what? I pushed that aside as I ran down the hill toward the High School and onto the track for the final steps of my 100 mile journey. It had taken 27h:09m:47s to run from Squaw Valley, CA through the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the Placer County High School, Auburn, CA. During that time, the Western States Trail challenged the limits of my physical, mental, and spiritual conditioning. It was an epic journey in every sense of the word.
I have emerged from this experience, a man that continues to be blessed with an incredible support network of family and friends that allow me complete these events. I am still struggling to find a solid answer to the question; why do you run these distances? Because it’s fun is not a good answer. But I do know that I am running for a very noble cause, Injured Marines, I truly believe that God smiles while I run and I hope that others can see what His presence in my life allows me to achieve. The journey is the destination; the destination is unknown; the journey continues. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi, Huffer

Western States 100-Week 6

2009-06-21T06:49:00.000-07:00

“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, because He cares about you.” 1 Peter 5:6,7

D-6 and counting!! This was a great week of fine tuning and altitude acclimatization. I rolled into Estes Park, CO on Monday and was able to get in five awesome runs during the week. I plan to leave for Squaw Valley on Tuesday with my crew (Mom and Dad) and feel that I am ready to go for the 0500 start on Saturday. Anyone interested in following the race can click here to follow the live webcast, my bib number is 262. The webcast should be up and running by Friday.

I started off the week on Tuesday with a 5.1 mile run around Lake Estes and was lucky enough to be accompanied by my son and daughter on their bikes. The lake sits at just under 8000 feet elevation and I could definitely feel the difference, there were a couple of hills but the run was mostly flat. On Wednesday I dropped my three daughters off at The Girls Trail End, Cheley Colorado Camp, where they will spend the next 4 weeks having a great time playing in the Rocky Mountains. After we dropped off the girls, I went for a good 9 mile run to Gem Lake. This had about 3500 feet of elevation gain and 1800 feet elevation loss. I met my dad and son at the lake and then we hiked down together.

Friday we went into the Rocky Mountain National Park and I was dropped off in Moraine Park and ran up to Bierstadt Lake to meet my dad, son, sister and her kids. This was another great hill run with 2500 feet up and 1200 down. The first 4 miles of the run was gentle uphill to Cub Lake, the last 4 was on very steep and rocky trails. After I met up with the crew at the lake we hiked 1.6 miles down a very rocky trail to the parking lot. It is awesome to watch young kids get such a kick out of being in nature, they had a great time an did a super job on a difficult hike.

Saturday was my last long training run and I could not have had a better confidence building run. I was dropped off this time at the Alpine Visitors Center, elevation 11,800 feet and I ran down Old Fall River Road to the Alluvial Fan parking area (10 miles and 3500 foot descent). I had planned on running this at an easy pace that would keep my heart rate low and keep my legs feeling good and I thought that would be at about a 10 minute per mile pace. I got to the bottom in 1 hour 20 minutes which was an 8:05 minute per mile pace and I felt great. I hope to ride that run into next week.

Well the training is done and all that lies ahead is 100 miles of beautiful Sierra Nevada mountain trails. I have come a long way from where I was at this time last year. I think that my training has been more focused, I am in better shape than I was last year. The 100 mile distance is not as big of mystery since I was able to complete that distance last October, however the respect for the distance is greater than ever. So the goal is to focus on crossing the finish line in less than 24 hours. My Faith is stronger than ever, the Lord will define how this race will be run and I will praise Him regardless of the results. I have been put in a position to accomplish a feat that is only possible with His help and for this I will give Him all the glory. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,

Huffer

Training for 15-21 June: Weekly Mi (34.3), June Mi (138.3), 2009 Mi (1183.6)

Mon: Cross Country Travel

Tues: 5.1 mi - Lake Estes

Wed: 8.5 mi - Gem Lake Loop

Thurs: 2 mi - Lake Estes

Fri: 8.8 mi - Bierstadt Lake

Sat: 9.9 mi - Old Fall River Road

Sun: Off

Western States 100 - Week 5

2009-06-16T07:27:00.000-07:00

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I praise Him with my song." Psalm 28:7

D -11 and counting! This was the first week of tapering going into the big race. The goal was to try and reduce my miles by 25% and I was able to accomplish that with a 45 mile week and some pretty good running. The body is in pretty good shape, nothing is bothering me at the moment. I kept my pace slower this week , in an effort to keep anything from breaking.

Last Friday I unofficially retired from the Marine Corps, I am actually on a period of terminal leave with a final retirement date of 1 September. So this week I got to enjoy some low stress taskers around the house as well as some easy running. Monday I got out to the Bull Run Conservancy and ran a solid hill routine for about 8 miles. While I was running my dad and son had the chance to get in some hiking in the Bull Run mountains.

Tuesday I had plans of running 10 miles around the battlefield but a nasty thunderstorm cut that short and I ended up logging 6 miles of very soggy running. I took Wednesday off and ran 15 on the Bull Run-Occoquan trail on Thursday morning. I ran this at a 10:30mpm pace and felt real good at the end. The trail was in pretty bad shape from all of the ran we had the week prior.

Friday I took a 7 mile run in the neighborhood and tried out a new pair of Nike Lunartrainer road shoes that I had sent to me by a College classmate and Nike Running representative. Thanks Phil, the shoes felt great and even though I don’t do much road running these will be the shoe of choice for those kind of runs.

Saturday was my last run in the Virginia area prior to heading west and it was fitting that I ran out at the Bull Run Battlefield. As I have said in previous posts, this has become my favorite place to run and this last 10 mile run was just the send off that I needed going into the Western States.

Sunday my dad and I loaded up the car with 4 kids and started the drive out to Colorado. The kids are going to camp and I will be able to get some altitude acclimatization as well as a couple of good mountain runs. We are planning on driving out to Squaw Valley starting next Tuesday, arriving on Wednesday. Right know all systems are go and the Lord continues to watch over me. I need to stay focused and healthy, continue to plan and study the course and remember where my strength comes from. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 8-14 June: Weekly Mi (45.6), June Mi (104), 2009 Mi (1149.2)

Mon: 8.1 mi- Bull Run Conservancy
Tues: 6.1 mi- Bull Run Battlefield
Wed: Off
Thurs: 15 mi- Bull Run-Occoquan Trail
Fri: 7 mi- Neighborhood
Sat: 9.4 mi- Bull Run Battlefield
Sun: Off

Western States 100 - Week 3 and 4

2009-06-09T06:59:00.000-07:00

“I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope.” Psalm 16: 8,9

This has been a hectic couple of weeks. Last Friday I retired from the Marine Corps after 20 years of service and my time has been split between running and finalizing the details for that event. The ceremony and post party went over great and now I get ready to start the next chapter in my life. Even with all of the commotion of the retirement I was able to continue to get some good final hard training weeks in.

Week 3 training continued to focus on the tempo and fartlek running; however I had a couple of good long runs. I started out on the hills of the Bull Run Conservancy for a great 13 mile Memorial Day run and then took to the WO&D trail for the rest of the weekday running. We spent the weekend at Lake Anna and I took a good 12 mile run on Sunday in the Lake Anna State Park. I ended up with 68.2 miles for the week and felt pretty good about the pace that I was running.

I knew that week 4 was going to be a busy week and that most of my miles would come during the weekdays, so I went out heavy on the WO&D trail. Monday I got both an AM and PM run commute for a total of 15.5 miles at about a 7:30mpm pace, 8 miles on Tuesday and then a big 15.5 mile AM and 8 mile PM commute on Wednesday for a 23.5 mile day. The only run I got over the weekend was a great 5.4 mile run at the Bull Run Battlefield with my good friend Randy, who was in from California for the retirement festivities. By the way, Randy had just completed his first marathon the week prior to coming out to Virginia (San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon)—nice job Brother, I’ll see you in October for the MCM. I ended up week 4 with 58.4 miles and am now looking to start into my tapering process for the 27 June WS100.

With the bulk of the training complete, I feel that I am better shape than I was last year. The speed training has made a big difference in my fitness level and I hope that it is enough to get me to Auburn under 24 hours. I will keep the blog posts rolling in and hopefully they will be a little more frequent now that I have a little more time on my hands. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 25-31 May: Weekly Mi (68.2), May Mi (284.8), 2009 Mi (1045.2)

Mon: 13 mi- Bull Run Conservancy
Tues: 5 mi- Crossramp, Upper Body Lift
Wed: 8 mi- AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Thurs: 15.5 mi- (Tempo) 8 mi-AM / 7.5mi-PM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Fri: Off
Sat: 14.7 mi- Bull Run Battlefield
Sun: 12 mi- Lake Anna State Park

Training for 1-7 June: Weekly Mi (58.4), June Mi (58.4), 2009 Mi (1103.6)

Mon: 15.5 mi- (Fartlek) 8 mi-AM / 7.5mi-PM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Tues: 8 mi- AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Wed: 23.5 mi- 15.5 mi-AM / 8 mi-PM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Thurs: 6 mi- Crossramp, Upper Body Lift
Fri: Off
Sat: 5.4 mi- Bull Run Battlefield
Sun: Off

Western States 100 - Week 2

2009-05-29T02:22:00.000-07:00

“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in inequity, but rejoices in truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” 1 Corinthians: 13:4-7

Sorry for the late posting this week but time has gotten the better of me. Twenty nine days until the Western States 100. I had another good week of training and was able to get in 62 miles including a great 25 miler on the Appalachian Trail. The Lord continues to fuel the machine and hold the body together.

I started out the week with a gym session of weightlifting and 5 miles on the Precor Crossramp. For the cross ramp I ran a double hill set and got the resistance up to level 13. Tuesday through Friday I was able to get 4 commute runs accomplished for a total of 32 miles along the Custis and WO&D trail. These runs were all AM run commutes from the East Falls Church Metro Station to the Pentagon. I ran two Fartlek runs, a Tempo, and an easy run on Friday. All 4 of the runs were run at a sub 8 minute mile pace.

Saturday, I was able to get out early on the Appalachian Trail for about 25 miles. I started at the Manassas Gap Trailhead and ran through Sky Meadows State Park up to the Ashby Gap Trailhead. This was a great training run with about 4500’ of elevation gain and loss; it also offered some long stretches of downhill running. The highlight of the run was a very large black bear encounter about an hour and a half in to the run. As with most of my bear sightings this bear was more scared than I was, however in his attempt to get away he ran parallel to the trail for about a hundred yards and refused to turn in to the woods. Finally, he decided that my following him was too much, so he darted across the trail in front of me and down a steep hill. This allowed me to get by, needless to say my pace accelerated for the next half mile or so. The rest of the run was uneventful, compared to that.

The run through Sky Meadows was awesome, what a beautiful view up on the ridgeline. The day did start to turn hot and very humid. I was hoping to make this a 30 mile run but by the time I got back to the car I was out of water (I carried a 72oz Camelback and 20oz handheld) and all I had to refill with was warm Gatorade. So that combination helped me talk myself out of another 5 mile stretch. The trailhead parking lot was at the edge of a nice mountain stream that I sat in for about 5 minutes at the end of the run and it did wonders for my legs. The run took 4 hours and 45 minutes and gave me some great training on the hills and hopefully started to work on my heat acclimatization.

On Sunday I had planned to put in 10 miles at the Bull Run Battlefield but was pleasantly surprised when my wife asked if I would walk with her that morning. So we ended up walking at the Battlefield early Sunday morning and she was able to get what I call “the deer experience”. Starting from the old stone bridge parking lot it’s about a mile to a very large meadow. If you can get to the meadow early enough it is full of deer eating breakfast, we were lucky enough to get there early. She has heard me talk about the deer at Bull Run often and I usually count how many I see during my runs out there but for this day I was just content to share this experience with her and didn’t bother with a count.

I am well into week 3 training but won’t ruin the write up, which I hope to have posted in a more timely fashion. The WS100 is closing in and I feel stronger than I did last year. I think that the training over the next couple of weeks is going to set me up for a good taper and leave me in a good fitness position. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 11-17 May: Weekly Mi (62), May Mi (206.6), 2009 Mi (977.0)
Mon: 5.5 mi- Crossramp and Upper Body Lift
Tues: 8 mi- (Fartlek) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Wed: 8 mi- (Tempo) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Thurs: 8 mi- (Fartlek) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Fri: 8 mi- (Fartlek) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Sat: 25 mi- Appalachian Trail
Sun: Walk at Bull Run Battlefield

Western States 100 - Week 1

2009-05-18T02:33:00.000-07:00

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah: 40:31

Forty days until the Western States 100. I had a solid first week of training this past week and totaled out at 61.6 miles. I was able to run 39 miles during the work week and most of that was speed training. The speed training continues to work well and I have been able to knock off a couple of minutes from my standard 8 mile morning run commute.

The week started light with a 50 minute run on the Crossramp stationary trainer and about 30 minutes of upper body weightlifting. Tuesday and Wednesday were morning run commute days along the WO&D / Custis trail. The morning commute has been working out pretty good the route is 8 miles long from East Falls Church Metro station to the Pentagon. The trail itself is an asphalt bike path and has mile markers every ½ mile. The standard on this run has become to run a fartlek or tempo type of run. For the fartlek, I run a 2 mile warmup and a 4 mile fartlek, running hard for a ½ mile and then recovering for a ½ mile, and finish with a 2 mile cool down.

Thursday, I was able to run in to work in the morning and follow up with another 7.5 mile run on the way home, this was from East Falls Church to Vienna Metro, again along the WO&D trail. Friday was supposed to be another 5 miles on the crossramp but things got busy at work and I was unable to get to the gym at lunch.

Saturday was the highlight of the week! At 0730, my daughter Abby and I toed the line for the Girls on the Run (GOTR) 5K. This was the second year that Abby was running this race and we had aspirations for improving the time over last years 37 minutes. Just over 5500 people were in this race, of which about 2400 were 3rd through 6th grade girls. GOTR is an awesome opportunity for young girls to get exposed to the world of running and also work as a group to accomplish a common goal of completing a 5K race.
The race started off a little slow, we were in the 5th corral and had to wait for a good ¼ mile before the crowd started to thin out a little. The first mile or so was in the parking lot of Fair Oaks mall and we were making good time. After leaving the mall parking lot we got ourselves into a couple of pretty good size hills, which Abby did great on. There was an aid station at the half way point and that helped to get Abby motivated for a long climb. Just over 2 miles into the race I could tell that she was starting to feel the pain and we adjusted pace as necessary, but she kept pushing hard and never stopped running, even on the hills. The last ¼ mile was downhill into the finish line and I told her to pick up the pace and finish strong. Well she gave it everything she had, and then some. We were moving fast and about 50 feet prior to the finish Abby said she couldn’t breath, pulled up, and lost her breakfast right in the middle of the road. In true road warrior fashion, she wiped her mouth and ran across the finish line. I could not have been prouder, 34 minutes and 19 seconds.

It was awesome to be able to run with my daughter and to see her accomplish a goal that she had set for herself. She is 11 years old and has completed three 5K’s and a 5 mile trail race, the sky is the limit for her. I think that she has recovered from the embarrassment of the puking episode and is starting to embrace it as a badge of honor, as well she should.

I finished off the week with a great 22 mile run on Sunday morning along a portion of the Fairfax Cross County Trail. We had some big storms on Saturday night and it was still raining a little when I started a 0600 on Sunday. It rained for most of the run but that actually felt pretty good, the trails were incredibly muddy and that made for tricky footing most of the morning. I ran this pretty hard and finished the 22 miles in 3h:21m for about a 9 minute per mile pace.

For the week ahead, I hope to be able to continue with some speed work during the commuter runs and get a 30 mile mountain run in on Saturday along the Appalachian Trail. The goal is to get between 60 and 70 miles for three more weeks and then go into the taper. Like I said before, I have no idea if this training plan will work but I feel like I am able to run better than I was at this time last year and only time will tell. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 11-17 May: Weekly Mi (61.6), May Mi (154.6), 2009 Mi (915.0)

Mon: 5.5 mi- Crossramp and Upper Body Lift
Tues: 8 mi- (Fartlek) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Wed: 8 mi- (Tempo) AM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Thurs: 15.5 mi- AM and PM Run Commute WO&D Trail, AB
Fri: Off
Sat: 3.1- GOTR 5K
Sun: 22 mi- Fairfax CCT

Western States 100 - Week 0

2009-05-11T02:34:00.000-07:00

“I will lift mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help comes from the Lord, which made Heaven and Earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: He that keepth thee will not slumber.” Psalms 121: 1-4

The Western States Endurance Run is now a mere seven weeks away. I have completed all the races that I plan to run prior to the WSER and will now focus in on seven weeks of training that will hopefully get me in position to make a run at the 24 hour mark on 27-28 June. So the gameplan is to have four intense weeks of training, trying to get 70-80 miles per week of quality miles and then use the last three weeks to taper and rest going into the race.

I have built up a good base and have worked out some bugs on the long races during the first part of the year, but I noticed the recovery from the longer races kept my miles down the week after the race. I am going to concentrate on running shorter but faster runs during the week and mid range runs on the weekend. The incorporation of Fartlek and Tempo runs has made a big difference in my overall physical condition and I plan to increase the use of these techniques during my weekday runs. This is a plan to deviate from, as life has a way of frequently rewriting my schedule, but a plan none the less. I will write a weekly training update, so check back and follow the progress for the next seven weeks.

This past week, I will call it Week-0, was used as a recovery from the 24 Adventure Trail Run. It worked out perfectly, I happened to be on travel to St Louis and it was the perfect time to rest and regroup. I did manage to get a run in on Thursday morning before flying back to DC. I ran 10 miles on the Katy Trail in St Charles, MO. The Katy Trail is a 264 mile bike trail that runs along the Missouri River and provided a good place to run in a busy city environment.

The plan was to get a run in on Saturday and Sunday, however priorities and that life thing intervened on Saturday and when all was said and done the run did not happen. I was able to get out early on Sunday for a 14 mile run around the Bull Run Battlefield. It’s always good to be the first one on the trails at the battlefield before the deer get spooked. Whenever I run out there I keep track of how many deer I see, Sunday was a record breaker at 46.

Although it was a low mileage week, it was a needed recovery for my body and it sets me up nicely for four hard weeks of running. The Lord continues to bless my running efforts and I am constantly reminding myself that, it is through his perfect plan for my life that I am able to continue to forge ahead in this sport of ultra running. I have a deep respect for the challenge that lies ahead in the WSER 100, however I have no fears, for my faith in the Lord is strong and my confidence in His plan is stronger. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 4-10 May: Weekly Mi (29.0), Monthly Mi (93), Yearly Mi (853.4)
Mon-Wed: Off
Thurs- 10 miles: Katy Trail
Fri: 5 miles: Crossramp
Sat: Off
Sun: 14 miles: Bull Run Battlefield

24 Hour Adventure Trail Run

2009-05-07T14:01:00.000-07:00

“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” Galatians 6:9

Running for 24 hours or running 100 miles, I don’t know which sounds more insane, but I do know that however you slice it, that’s a lot of running. This past Saturday and Sunday I competed in the Athletic Equation 24 Hour Adventure Trail Run. The majority of people running this race were competing in the solo category. I was part of a two man team, along with fellow Marine, Bill Rysanek, competing in the three man team category. The concept for the team categories was that you had to alternate running the 8 mile trail loop and could not run consecutive loops. At first glance the idea of getting a break after each loop sounded pretty good but as the night wore on it became exceedingly difficult to get back out on the trail after the break, more to follow.

This was the fourth year for this event and the fourth year that race directors Alex Papadopoulos and Scott Crabb have donated 50% of the event proceeds to the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. As a fundraiser for the IMSFF for the past 2 years, I was thrilled to participate in an event that would make such a gracious gesture. This is only the second Athletic Equation event that I have participated in and once again Alex and Scott put on a quality event. The volunteers that offered there time this weekend were fantastic, thanks for your support.

The run is conducted within the Prince William National Forest, located in Triangle, VA. The course is 8 miles long, set up like a lollypop with a 2 mile out and back (stem) and a 4 mile loop. The start/finish line is headquarter at Camp Miwavi, which provided great support throughout the race. We started at 0700 on Saturday morning and I led off for our team. The strategy for this race was different than a normal ultra, in that I would have a break in between loops. This allowed for some great training as I was able to run pretty hard on each lap and not really worry about pacing for the end of the race.

The course itself was in great shape. The “lollipop stem” at the start of the loop went down the south valley trail along the Quantico Creek and was fairly flat. The start of the 4 mile loop continued down the south valley trail to the mid-point aid station. We then turned left away from the creek and started up the Taylor Farm Road trail, this was one of the bigger climbs on the course. At the top of the hill we turned left onto the High Meadow Trail. This was a great trail that ran for about 2 miles back to the intersection with the South Valley Trail (lollipop stem) and back to the start finish.

Throughout the day there were occasional rain showers that felt pretty nice. The temperature started to climb in the late afternoon and the humidity was very high for the entire race. I was able to run the entire 8 mile loop for the first 4 four of my 8 loops, including all of the hills. Alex said that each loop was about 300’ of elevation change, I think that it was closer to 1000’ per loop. As night started to fall our times started to slow but Bill and I continued to run strong loops. About 2300 it started raining pretty hard and it continued through the rest of the race. I happened to resting when it started raining and it took a lot of motivation to get ready to leave the comfort of Camp Miwavi and head out into the rain to run 8 miles in the dark, in the middle of the night, but we continued to do it.

In the end, Team Fly Marine was able to accumulate 124 miles which was good enough to take first place in the 3 man team category (there were only 2 teams in this category). The race finished off with a great breakfast feast prepared by the volunteers. This race offered a great opportunity to train hard on tired legs and get in some much needed night running. The atmosphere of this event is very family oriented and Alex and Scott really take great care of the runners. Thanks again to the Athletic Equation group for the generous support of the IMSFF, you will certainly reap what you sow. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 27 April-3 May: Weekly Mi (74.0), Monthly Mi (197.5), Yearly Mi (760.4)
Mon: 5 mi - Crossramp
Tues: Off
Wed: 5 mi - Crossramp 8 mi
Thurs / Fri: Off
Sat / Sun: 24 Hour ATR: 64 Mi

Bull Run Run 50

2009-04-21T19:10:00.000-07:00

“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” Galatians 6:9

The Bull Run Run is a 50 mile endurance run that travels up and down the Bull Run-Occoquan River Trail in Clifton, VA. I was fortunate enough to be able to complete the run for the second year in a row on Saturday, 18 April. This is a good run for me for a couple of reasons; the start is only 10 minutes from my house and I am very familiar with the trails, which I think is a huge mental advantage in long races. The race is sponsored by the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club (VHTRC) and they do an incredible job. This race has some of the best volunteer and aid station support of any race I have competed in. Thanks to all of the volunteers for their time and effort.

On to the race – Looking at the weather forecast, I knew that the day was going to start out beautiful but get warm quickly, and it did, with a high hitting almost 80 degrees by early afternoon. I break this race down into 4 sections; the upstream (16.7 mi), downstream (11 mi), Do-Loop (10 mi), and the home stretch (12.5 mi). At 0630, 314

"Photo © http://www.oellaworks.com/ Geoffery S. Baker"

runners started out from Hemlock Overlook Park and began the 17th running of the Bull Run Run. After a quick, and I mean quick, .7 mile loop around the park to stretch out the field, we jumped on to single track trail and there we would stay for the remainder of the day and started on the upstream section.

This part of the trail leaves Hemlock and travels up the Bull Run Creek to Bull Run Park. The field was moving very fast, just as it did last year. My feeling was the faster I run now the less I will have to run in the heat, that thought process was flawed,

however it sounded good at the time and I was averaging about 9 minute miles into the first aid station (7 mi). Leaving the first aid station we continued upstream to the turn around point and then started heading back to Hemlock. This portion of the trail, being a pure out and back, gives you the opportunity to see the entire field of runners, everybody was still looking good at this early part of the race. I climbed the big hill into Hemlock and rolled into the aid station (16.7mi) at 2h:39m and was told that I was in 42nd place. After a quick refuel I was onto the downstream section.

Leaving Hemlock we went down the same trail to the river and this time took a left and headed towards Fountainhead Park. This is the toughest portion of the trail, no big mountains just continuous hills of 50 to 200 feet up and down for 11 miles. My aid station time was great during the race and I was able to efficiently get in and out all day, averaging just over a minute per aid station. The Marina aid station was at about 21 miles and provided for a good top off of my water and a couple of Succeed Caps (I took about 15 of these throughout the day). After a couple more big hills I was at the Wolf Shoals Run aid station (26 mi) at 4h 7m and feeling good, all systems were checking out great and I new that it was only 2 miles to Fountainhead and the beginning of the Do-Loop section.

I got into Fountainhead about 20 minutes later and started into the 10 mile Do-Loop section which is actually a couple of loops. The Do-Loop itself is a 3 mile loop on some nasty cross compartment trails, after about a 5 mile approach we got to the Do Loop aid station and entered into loop. For me this section is not as bad as it is for others, I actually enjoy this trail. The hills in this section are short but steep and the trails were still covered in leaves which forced me to concentrate more on foot placement and less on how tired I was getting. After about 30 minutes around the Do-Loop I came back to the aid station refilled and headed back to Fountainhead (38 mi).

I left Fountainhead at about 6h 20m and started the home stretch. A short 2 miles later I was running into Wolf Shoals aid station and then before I knew it I was back at the Marina with only 5 miles to go. The heat was definitely taking its toll and my legs had been on the verge of cramping but they never did. I knew that during this section there were only 2 big hills that would offer me an excuse to walk for a while and I was able to run the rest of the way. The last 2 miles of the course are along the river and they dragged on for a long time and I was happy to finally come up on the last big climb up to Hemlock and the finish. I crossed at 8h 41m 31s, in 32nd place, 10 minutes better than last years time (Results).

I felt exhausted at the end, which told me I had put in a good, hard effort. I think that the speed work I have been incorporating into my workouts has helped tremendously. The Lord continues to bless me and it is once again to Him I give the glory of completing this race. My next event is a mere 2 weeks away, the 24 hour Adventure Trail Run sponsored by Athletic Equations. This event is directed by Alex Papadopoulos and Scott Crabb, big supporters of the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. A portion of the proceeds from this race are donated to the fund each year. These guys are a class act and I look forward to seeing them in a couple of weeks. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 13-19 April: Weekly Mi (63.0), Monthly Mi (134.2), Yearly Mi (697.1)
Mon: 5 mi - Crossramp
Tues:
Wed: 8 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute / ABs
Thurs:
Fri:
Sat: 50 mi-Bull Run Run

Sun: Recovery

Easter Morning, Son Rise Run

2009-04-13T02:31:00.000-07:00

“. . . Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen, as He said. Come see the place where the Lord lay.” Matthew 28: 5, 6

Bull Run Battlefield has got to be one of my favorite running spots and this morning was no exception. I timed the run this morning so that I would be running in an open field heading east just about the time the sun rose above the treeline. It was a beautiful morning, cool and not a cloud in the sky and the sun rise could not have been brighter. It was a great way to start Easter. I was able to hammer out about 15 miles and get home by 0900, get cleaned up and off to church for the real celebration.

This has been a pretty good week of running even though the weather has been less than cooperative. The spring like temperatures of last week decided to give way to an arctic blast, hopefully we are done with that. I was able to get 40 miles in during the week and think that is about where I needed to be going into Bull Run 50 on Saturday. I will try and get a couple of short runs early this week and then rest up for a couple of days prior to the race.

This crazy journey into the world of ultramarathoning has resulted in some incredible revelations and discoveries over the past two years. However, I was really unprepared for the news that I received on Friday, when I was informed that I had been selected as the Henderson Hall Male Marine Athlete of the Year for 2008 (Henderson Hall is the Marine Corps Base that supports the National Capitol Region). I was aware that my name had been submitted but had no expectation of being selected. This award, although it had my name on it, was not presented to me solely for athletic accomplishments. The criteria for this award reached past athletics and into the USMC community at large. For over a year now I have been running to support the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and this effort was recognized as a significant factor. That being said, there is no way that I would have been able to receive this great honor without the support and generosity of all those that have contributed to the support of our wounded warriors, thank you for your continued support your contributions are making a difference in the lives of Marines and their families.

I have been blessed to be able to support such an incredible organization as the IMSFF. Their support and assistance for our wounded Marines is second to none and they continue to grow beyond expectations. If you have not had a chance to visit the IMSFF web site or have not visited recently, please take a look at http://semperfifund.org/ and see the good work that they are doing daily.

My name now gets submitted for competition as the Marine Corps Athlete of the Year and hopefully with that we can continue to raise awareness of the needs of our injured Marines. Run Strong!
God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 6-12 April: Weekly Mi (40.7), Monthly Mi (71.2), Yearly Mi (634.1)

Mon: Off
Tues: Off
Wed: 8 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute / ABs
Thurs:
Fri: 8 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute (Tempo)
Sat: 10 mi-Bull Run Do-Loop Trail

Sun: 14.7 mi-Bull Run Battlefield Trails

Bel Monte Endurance Run 50 Miler

2009-04-03T08:31:00.000-07:00

“The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.” Psalms 18:2

Saturday, 28 March, I ran the BMER 50 Miler in the George Washington National Forest just west of Charlottesville, VA and continued my evolution of discovery in the sport of ultra running. This was the second year for the 50 mile event and I came into it knowing that it was going to be tough with a 13 hour cutoff time and 11,000+ feet of elevation gain and loss. I don’t think there are many tougher 50 mile courses in the country and the final finishing rate proved that to be true, 42% (43 finishers out of 103 starters). As with every race I was able to gain valuable experience and discover new things about how my body and mind cope with the stresses of endurance running.

The day could not have been better for running. We were blessed with temps in the mid 50s and overcast skies for the entire day, the rain held off until about 1600 and even then it was a welcome gentle rain. The race starts and finishes at Lake Sherando Park, which is in a beautiful valley surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains. At 0630 a little over 300 runners were poised to head up the trail and start a long day of running. Three different length races were started at the same time, 25K, 50K, and the 50 Miler. I had it in my mind to start out conservative and feel that I did a pretty good job. The first section of the trail took us up to Slacks overlook (4.6 miles) over a great trail that climbed about 1000 feet, from there it was up to Camp Marty for the first of three stops.

The trail down the mountain from Camp Marty follows a jeep trail for about 2 miles and then heads down Kennedy Ridge, this is a great running trail and it was moving very fast (fast being a very relative term) for me on Saturday right up to the point when I turned my ankle on a rock. My ankles usually do pretty well on the trails but this time it was hurting pretty bad. I hobbled for about a quarter of a mile down to the aid station (13.1 miles) and had concerns about being able to continue. Knowing that the outcome of the race was beyond my control I relied on my Faith and looked to the Lord for His direction. Coal Mountain Rd offered 3 miles of even low stress running that was just what I needed to stretch out the ankle and run through the pain. By the time I reached aid station 4 (Turkey Pen 17.4 miles) the ankle pain was gone and I was doing as good as could be expected after running for almost 3 hours. The Lord will provide.

At Turkey Pen the 50 milers broke away from the 50Kers and went on a 5 mile out and back to the Torrey Furnace. This was great little trail that had a little over 500 feet of climb each way and got us back to Turkey Pen at 22.2 miles. The next section started out in a fairly gentle and runnable climb back up to Camp Marty until we got to the last mile and that was a very hard climb up multiple switchbacks (roughly 1500 feet). Some volunteers at the time were marking the aid station by ringing a cow bell, so I knew I was getting closer as the bell got louder. The conciliation of the climb was that at the top we would reverse course and run down the trail we had just come up. I reached Camp Marty for the second time (27.2 miles 5h:45m) drank an Ensure and started back down the trail towards Turkey Pen.

As with all of the races I have competed in, there are high and low points. Sometimes they are short and sometimes they last a little longer, this time it was a fairly long low point which started just before the Turkey Pen aid station and lasted for about 9 miles. My old nemesis, the stomach, started feeling sour again and that started to sap my strength and mess with my head. The run from Turkey Pen back to the Kennedy Ridge aid station, along Coal Mountain Rd was nothing less than a death run. Although I was able to keep running at a decent pace I was not feeling good at all, I was very much looking forward to the 2000 foot climb up Kennedy Ridge (that sounds kind of sick, I know). It took about 1h:45m to cover the 6 miles from Kennedy Ridge aid station back up to Camp Marty but along the way I was able (involuntarily) to purge my stomach contents and that seemed to be the change that I needed.

I rolled into Camp Marty for the third and final time of the day (42.9 miles 9h:30m) and was met by Race Director Russ Gill. He told me that a lot runners had missed the 27 mile cut off time and was anticipating a less than 50 % finishing rate and then he sent me off with an “it’s all downhill from here” comment. After more than 9 hours of running, downhill, uphill, it just doesn’t really matter. The rain had just started and was a motivator to keep running and get finished. The section of trail after Camp Marty is not the type of trail you want to be running on after 42 miles. The Torrey Ridge trail is extremely rocky and the rain on the rocks made it even more difficult. After about 5 miles on this trail we took a sharp right turn and went straight down the mountain to the final aid station (48.5 miles). I stopped here just long enough to get a quick drink and then it was off to the finish. The final 2 miles was a combination of asphalt park roads and trail that allowed me to move quickly (again speed is relative) over the final portion, averaging under 10 minute miles, not bad after 11 hours on the trail.

This was by far the toughest 50 mile run that I have competed in and I was completely satisfied with the outcome, placing 19th overall. Thanks to all of the great volunteers and to Frannie and Gill for Directing such a great race. The Lord continues to bless my running endeavors and through this blog I hope to be able to express my gratitude for His Grace and Strength. For those that might have a hard time understanding why someone would want to struggle through 11 plus hours running up and down mountains in the rain on a Saturday all I can say is that I find complete solace and peace during these runs and cherish the time that I can truly spend with God. The struggles that I face during the runs remind me of how weak I am alone but how strong I am with the help of the Lord. “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” Matthew 7:7,8. Run Strong.

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 23-29 Mar: Weekly Mi (70.5), Monthly Mi (201.7), Yearly Mi (557.9)

Mon: 6.6 mi / 60 mins - Crossramp
Tues: 8 mi – Potomac Heritage Trail
Wed: Off
Thurs: 5 mi / 40 mins - Crossramp
Fri: Off
Sat: 50.9 mi – Bel Monte Endurance Run 50 Miler
Sun: Off

Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K

2009-03-16T19:06:00.000-07:00

“But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me. . . Also I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”

II Timothy 4:17

The Lord has certainly stood with me and strengthened me over the past couple of years; He has allowed me to accomplished feats that I thought were impossible and for this I give Him great thanks. He has also brought me to a point where I can look past my pride and stubbornness, listen to my body and know when it is telling me that it has had enough for the day. This is what happened on Saturday at the Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K and the lion that I was delivered from was called “Sherman’s Gap”.

The day started out great with temps in the high 30s. There were about 70 of us grouped together in the Signal Knob parking lot at the north end of the Massanutten Mountains, when “go” was shouted and off we went down UP the trail. The first three miles or so of the run was straight up the mountain to Meneka Peak, the pace was good and I found myself running with John Cassilly and Jack Kurisky (who would eventually come in 3rd and 4th). We made our way across the ridgeline and down to the first aid station at about 7 miles. Thanks to Quatro and the others volunteers for hiking the support into the remote aid station (you’ve gotta love VHTRC Fat Ass events).

We continued down the sidewinder trail for a couple of miles and then started the 2nd climb up Mudhole Gap. This is a great section of the course with a lot of runnable uphill trail. The stream was low this year so it was pretty easy to keep the feet dry. The Mudhole Gap trail met back up with the orange blazed Massanutten Trail and turned into a very steep climb for about a mile, bringing us to the 11 mile “critical turn” point. Even though Mike Bur provided a stern warning about this turn, I some how missed it and took our merry band of three down the west side of the mountain. Having run this last year the downhill just didn’t seem right after a half mile or so, unfortunately, John and Jack had pushed on ahead before I yelled out that we I had made a wrong turn, so back up the extremely steep and un scheduled trail we climbed. This was a good 20 minute mistake.

Once on the “proper” blue blazed trail the beauty of the Massanutten’s shined through, ROCKS. This is a very slow and tedious section that is littered with rocks of all sizes. This went on for about 3 miles until we descended back onto a fireroad and started the 3rd climb up to Signal Knob. At the top, I stayed on the road and neglected to follow the orange blazes for the short detour to the Signal Knob Overlook (Sniper, I will not make the same mistake next year). The trail continued back up to Meneka Peak and back across the ridgeline. It was at this time that my body was starting to tell me that I might be asking for to much. Although I never got sick, my stomach was starting to turn and my legs were feeling the effects of the Seneca Greenway 50K the week before.

By the time I got down the mountain and into the 22 mile aid station I was certain that I didn’t need to continue and take the risk of breaking anything at this point in my training. So I called it a day and headed back to the Signal Knob parking lot. No regrets about stopping early, it was the right decision for the way my body was feeling. I have the Bel Monte 50 miler in two weeks and to push myself to hard would have been unnecessary and unproductive. I am trying to keep my eye on the goal for this year and that is under 24 hours at Western States 100.

As in every event, I learned more about my physical conditioning each run. This race showed me that I still have worked to be accomplished and through the strength and determination that God gives me, it will be done. Thanks to Quatro and Bur and all of the VHTRC volunteers, you put on a great show, I look forward to next year. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 9-15 Mar: Weekly Mi (44.2), Monthly Mi (90), Yearly Mi (451.2)

Mon: 5.7 mi / 50 mins - Crossramp
Tues: Off
Wed: 7.5 mi – WO&D Trail PM Run Commute (Tempo)
Thurs: 8 mi – WO&D Trail AM Run Commute (Fartlek) / Abs
Fri: Off
Sat: 23 mi - Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K
Sun: Off

Seneca Creek Greenway 50K

2009-03-11T02:06:00.000-07:00

"Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Philippians 4:6

Saturday, 7 March, I ran the Seneca Creek Greenway 50K which started n Damascus, MD and finished 31ish miles later at Riley’s Lock on the Potomac River. We could not have asked for a better day to run, the temps started out in the mid 60s and rose up into the middle 70s. It was hard to believe that there was 7 inches of snow on the ground just days prior to this run. This race was sponsored by the Montgomery County Road Runners Club (MCRRC) and they did an awesome job in taking care of about 300 runners all day. The MCRRC was taking care of active duty military by offering us free entry into this race, thanks for the support.

This was a point to point run, starting at Damascus Regional Park in Maryland and heading mostly south to the Potomac River. It was a net downhill run with some pretty good size hills in between, but for the most part it was an easy running trail. This was my 3rd race of the year and with the incorporation of some speed training in my workouts I wanted to use this race to test my fitness level, so I intended to run this race pretty hard.

We started out at 0800. The first mile of the course was on a paved park trail that went downhill to Seneca Creek, this gave me the opportunity to really over extend my limits and push out to hard, but the temperature was good, my legs felt great, what could possibly go wrong? After about a mile we jumped onto the Seneca Creek Greenway Trail (SCGT) and headed down stream. The trail continued with the downhill theme with the exception of a couple of small hills thrown in for good measure. I continued to run at about an 8 – 8½ minute per mile pace, the trail was in great shape and the miles were clicking by pretty easily. I got to the first aid station (~7 miles) in 56 minutes and met my Mom, who was crewing for me all day, grabbed a water bottle refill and kept on truckin’.

It was about 5 miles to the next aid station and I kept on pushing hard, reaching it in 39 minutes, refilled, and was on my way to the Clopper Lake aid station. Clopper Lake is the point where the 50 K runners and the Marathon runners part ways, with the 50Kers doing a 3.5 mile lap around the lake and then continuing south on the SCGT. I reached the lake (~15 miles) in 2h:14m and was still feeling pretty good, although I could tell the pace was starting to slow. The loop around the lake took about 34 minutes and offered great views the entire time. So I came back to the lake aid station, picked up some fuel from my Mom and started back down the SCGT. At this point I had completed just over 18 miles in 2h:47m and was feeling pretty good, that was about to change.

About 2 miles prior to Clopper Lake, wooden mile markers started to appear on the trail, counting down the distance to Riley’s Lock and the end of the race (so I thought). The last mile marker I had seen prior to the lake was mile 13½, so it was no surprise that the first marker I passed as I re-entered the SCGT was mile 13. Simple math for Marines 13+18=31 (50K), no so fast Cowboy this is Maryland and apparently they do math differently.

Mile 13 to 12 went well and I ran it in just over 9 minutes. I hit the lap counter on my watch and kept on moving. After running for quite a while without seeing another mile marker I thought that either I had missed it or it was vandalized but what I did not expect was that after 23 minutes of running to see mile marker 11½. Apparently the course left the SCGT for a couple of bonus miles and rejoined just prior to the 11½ mile remaining marker. Psychologically this hit me like a brick wall and I had a very difficult time reconciling the extra distance in my mind, I was prepared to see a 9½ mile remaining marker. I immediately noticed a slow down in my pace and the rest of the race was a slog to get to the finish.

I came into the last aid station about 20 minutes later than I predicted grabbed some water and started toward the finish which was about 6½ miles away. The pace during this section was run at about 12 minutes per mile and my head was still playing tricks on me. I finally reached River Road and knew that there was less than a mile left. I crossed the finish line in 5h:32m and was told that I finished in 25th place, I’m not sure how many completed the 50,the final results are not out yet, but there were 192 signed up for it.

After the race there was a great lunch buffet that was set up with plenty of food and drink. Overall the race was organized great, the volunteers were awesome, weather was perfect, and the trail could not have been in better condition. I was truly amazed by the impact of the mile markers. The perception of what was expected and what occurred nearly shut my body down. I ran a full range of emotions trying to figure out how to process 2 additional miles, knowing full well that my body could easily absorb that distance my mind was not willing to accept it and my anxiety overcame my physical condition. I believe that course familiarity is a great advantage when running ultras, it goes a long way to eliminating surprises. I think that my conditioning is about where it needs to be and I am going to continue to add speed training to my weekly routine. March is a busy month for races, I have a total of three. The next event is this Saturday, Elizabeth’s Furnace 50K, by Front Royal, VA. Run Strong.

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 2-8 Mar: Weekly Mi (45.8), Monthly Mi (52.8), Yearly Mi (406.9)
Mon: 7 mi – Rancho Penasquitos Canyon
Tues: Off
Wed: Off
Thurs: Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.8 mi / 50 mins) / Pull Ups and Abs
Fri: Off
Sat: Seneca Creek 50K(+)
Sun: Off

California Runnin’

2009-03-05T05:12:00.000-08:00

Wow! What a great week of vacation in San Diego, CA. My wife and I were lucky enough to spend 5 days in San Diego with some very dear friends and had great time catching up and of course enjoying some fantastic running. San Diego is known for some of the best weather in the country and this past week it did not disappoint, temps were in the 70’s with a couple of days hitting the 80’s. I almost felt bad when I would call back to check in with the kids here in Virginia. . . almost.

We were staying just a little north of San Diego in Escondido and I had easy access to some great trails. On Thursday, I had a great 20 mile run on the middle section of the Coast to Crest Trail. After training for 2+ years in Virginia, it was amazing to run on trails that had no rocks. The Coast to Crest Trail follows the San Pasqual Valley, this valley was almost completely burned out about 2 years ago by wildfires and the damage is still very evident with scarred eucalyptus trees throughout the valley. But life blooms anew and the abundance of early spring wildflowers made for a beautiful run. The relatively flat and rock free trail led to a faster pace that left me a little sore the next day.

Saturday, I was able to cover the Lakes Hodges portion of the Coast to Crest Trail prior to heading to my Godson’s baseball game. This was another great trail and the run totaled about 13 miles. After running in cold weather for about 5 months it was awesome to feel the heat of the sun and generate a good sweat. During the rest of the visit I was able to have a couple of great runs with one of best friends; you can’t buy time together like this. We ran trails around Poway lake and had a great run in Rancho Penasquitas Canyon. I believe that the running bug has overtaken Randy, as he mentioned a couple of times to me that he was thinking about running the Rock and Roll Marathon in San Diego this summer. Here is the link, http://www.rnrmarathon.com/home.html the time to sign up is now. Randy, thanks for the company, it was good to run with you again.

So the California trip ended a good month of running and I topped the 200 mile mark for the first time this year. The incorporation of some Fartlek training is making a difference in my overall conditioning. I plan to continue with the Fartlek training as well as starting some tempo runs. I am running in the Seneca Creek Greenway 50K on Saturday, with the intent of running hard. I would like to use this race to measure were I am physically and assess what areas I need to concentrate my training on. I will be providing a race report early next week. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer
Training for 23 Feb-1 Mar: Weekly Mi (44.2), Monthly Mi (202.7), Yearly Mi (361.2)

Mon: Off
Tues: Lift and Abs / Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.7 mi / 50 mins)
Wed: Off
Thurs: 20 mi – Coast to Crest Trail
Fri: 5.5 mi – Lake Poway Trail
Sat: 13 mi – Coast to Crest Trail (Lake Hodges)
Sun: Off

Honor, Courage, Commitment!

2009-02-16T13:12:00.000-08:00

"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Luke 14:11

HONOR, COURAGE, COMMITMENT

These three words encompass the Core Values of the United States Marine Corps. Upon completion of Boot Camp and/or Officer Candidate School, Marines are issued a “Core Values” card. On the back of the card the Marine signs his or her name acknowledging that Marines:

1. Obey the Law
2. Lead by example
3. Respect themselves and others
4. Maintain a high standard of integrity
5. Support and Defend the Constitution
6. Uphold special trust and confidence
7. Place Faith and Honor above all else
8. Honor fellow Marines, the Corps, Country, and Family

In an individual sport, such as running , it is easy to get tied up in your own personal story; personal best times and distances, how many miles I ran last week, my next event is going to be…, etc. It is at times like these for me that a reality check is needed as reminder that I am allowed to run only as far and fast as the Lord will permit and Faith will carry me. That reality check came Saturday morning as I was looking at the Semper Fi Fund website and saw the promo for an HBO Original movie called “Taking Chance”. The following is the synopsis from the HBO promo page:

In April 2004, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl, USMC, came across the name of 19-year-old Lance Corporal Chance Phelps, a young Marine who had been killed by hostile fire in Al Anbar Province, Iraq. Strobl, a Desert Storm veteran with 17 years of military service, requested that he be assigned for military escort duty to accompany Chance's remains to his family in Dubois, Wyo.Witnessing the spontaneous outpouring of support and respect for the fallen Marine - from the groundskeepers he passed along the road to the cargo handlers at the airport - Strobl was moved to capture the experience in his personal journal.

His first-person account, which began as an official trip report, gives an insight into the military's policy of providing a uniformed escort for all casualties. The story became an Internet phenomenon when it was widely circulated throughout the military community and eventually reached the mainstream media. 'Taking Chance' chronicles one of the silent, virtually unseen journeys that takes place every day across the country, bearing witness to the fallen and all those who, literally and figuratively, carry them home.

A uniquely non-political film about the war in Iraq, the film pays tribute to all of the men and women who have given their lives in military service as well as their families.

Please take the time to watch this trailer, the movie will premier Saturday night, 21 Feb at 8:00pm on HBO. These Marines, PFC Phelps and LtCol Stobl, represent the true essence of “Honor, Courage, Commitment” that is being displayed daily by brave men and women around the world.

With that being said, this Blog was started with the intent of tracking my weekly training enroute to the Western States 100. I will continue to humbly post my weekly stats and race reports, staying true to my mission of running for the Glory of God and in support of Injured Marines.

This past week served as a good recovery from the ICY 8-hour with 4 shorter runs during the week and taking the weekend off to spend time with the family. I am looking to ramp up the miles next week and try to get some good mountain runs completed on the weekend. Run Strong!

Semper Fi and God Bless,

Huffer

Training for Feb 9-15: Weekly Mi (27.5), Monthly Mi (98.8), Yearly Mi (257.3)

Mon: Lift and Abs / Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Tues: 5.5 miles-Wakefield Park Trails
Wed: Off
Thurs: PUs and Abs / CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Fri: 11 miles-Grover Archibald Trail in Georgetown
Sat / Sun: Off

Time

2009-02-09T02:26:00.000-08:00

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16

I completed the ICY 8-Hour Adventure Trail Run on Saturday, 7 February. Once again God blessed me with the opportunity to challenge myself both physically and mentally. “Time” was the watchword for this event. This was the first timed race that I had run and the clock management certainly added a since of strategy to the race that I had not dealt with before. The race was directed by Alex Papadopoulos and Scott Crabb of Athletic Equations. These guys put on a first class event and I highly recommend participating in the 24 hour and 12 hour events they have scheduled for later in the year. As you know I have been raising funds for the Semper Fi Fund for about a year, Alex and Scott are committed to donating 50% of the proceeds from the 24 hour Trail Run to the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. OORAH!!

The race was run on two loops of trails in the Lake Anna State Park in Central Virginia. Runners had the choice of an 8 mile “long loop” or the 4.7 mile “short loop”. We saw about a 40 degree temperature swing from the start of the race to the finish (mid 20s up to the mid 60s). About 100 people started the race at 0730, I myself started off on a long loop and would alternate between long and short for the rest of the day. The first two loops were pretty cold but by the third loop I had shed almost all of my layers including hat and gloves and finished the day in short sleeves, beautiful running weather.

The trails were in great shape initially but as the day grew warmer and the ground started to thaw several areas got pretty sloppy with mud and that always helps as you start to grow tired in an event, NOT. I am typically not a fan of loop courses but adding in the time management and the option of different loops allowed enough variation to keep me motivated and engaged throughout the race.

So what was the final tally? I was able to run 42.8 miles in 7h:51m:25s (3 long loops and 4 short loops). I am still waiting for the final results to be posted but I think I placed around 4th. The winner was a VHTRC member, Mike Bailey, who was able to run 50.3 in just under the 8 hour mark, awesome job.

What’s next? The next scheduled race is the Seneca Creek Greenway 50K on 7 March. At the end of the month my wife and I are going to California to spend some time with some very dear friends. It has been a while since we have seen this family and it’s going to be great to have some time to catch up. He has just returned from his second tour in Iraq and I am grateful for his safe journey home.

This brings us full circle to the race watchword “Time” and the Bible verse from Hebrews at the top. I know that in this Time of economic uncertainty everyone is apprehensive about what the future will bring, but one thing is certain; this country is at War and in economic good times or bad times Marines are going to continue to be killed and injured. Their needs are going to continue to be as great as they have been and I asked that for those of us that have the means to assist; do what we can. I am going to get the ball rolling this year and pledge to commit $25.00 for each race that I complete for the remainder of the year to the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. I welcome all of you who are reading this to join me in this challenge as we continue to “Serve Those who Preserve our Freedom”. Run Strong!

God Bless and Semper Fi,
Huffer

Training for 2-8 Feb: Weekly Mi (55.3), Monthly (71.3), Yearly Mi (229.8)

Mon: Lift / Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Tues: 7 mi Teddy Roosevelt Island

Wed / Thurs / Fri: Off

Sat: 42.8 mi ICY 8-Hour ATR (7h:51m:25s)
Sun: Recover

Snow, Sleet, and Ice

2009-02-02T05:33:00.000-08:00

“He giveth snow like wool: he scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes. He casteth forth the ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold”

Psalm 147: 16,17

This week of training offered many opportunities to skip a workout. The DC area had it’s first snow of the year and although it only amounted to about 2 inches of accumulation, it was a big deal around here. I have the tendency at times to be a fair-weather runner and fought with myself a couple times this week to lace up the shoes and get on the trail. In the end it all paid off and I was able to get my first 50+ mile week of the year.

After a good workout on Monday night I was treated to a couple of inches of fresh snow on Tuesday. Due to the “treacherous” conditions we were told to go home early Tuesday afternoon (no problem). I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and run the WO&D trail from the Pentagon to East Falls Church Metro station. The run was awesome, fresh snow, about 32 degrees and no wind. About 4 miles into the run it began to snow so more and kept everything blanketed in white. The snow offered a great cushioning effect as I sank into it, step after step. But all good things must come to an end and as the temperature stayed below freezing the snow quickly turn to nice thick sheet of ice over the next couple of days.

Snow running: Fun - ice running: Not so fun. I was able to run into work on a pretty clear trail on Friday; however the runs on Saturday and Sunday were done on very icy trails (I guess it was good training for the ICY 8 hour this coming Saturday). I was very close to skipping a run on Saturday but drug myself out to the Bull Run Trail and got in a good 8.5 miles before sunset. I would say that 90% of the run was in ice/snow, and it made for some slow going in sections. It was a good run and set me up for my long run on Sunday.

My goal this week was to try and get over 50 miles accumulated and after a tough 16 miles at Bull Run Battlefield I was able to get there. Trail conditions were not good. Thick ice in the center of most of the trails required running on the sloped edges just to get my feet to break through the thinner parts and get any type of traction. I am usually pretty good about keeping upright while I run, regardless of trail conditions, but I took 3 nasty falls due to the ice and found myself becoming extremely frustrated with the conditions. Trying to stay motivated became a challenge but I was determined not to let the conditions ruin a good run. Bull Run always offers the opportunity to see plenty of wildlife, especially deer. Lately, I have been keeping track of the number of deer I see during a run and yesterday was a record 43.

So after the dust settled (or snow melted), I was able to get 51.5 miles for the week and feel like I am in good shape for the ICY 8 hour on Saturday. I plan to run 2 or 3 times this week and rest up prior to the event. I’m still working out the strategies for a timed event but right now think that I will run (4) 8 mile loops and then evaluate how much time I have left to determine whether I run the long loop or a couple of short loops. I will provide the gory details next week, until then: Run Strong.

Semper Fi and God Bless,
Mike

Training for 26 Jan-1 Feb: Weekly Mi (51.5), Monthly Mi (158.5), Yearly Mi (174.5)

Mon: Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi /50 mins)

Tues: 8 mi, WO&D Trail(snow)

Wed: Lift

Thurs: Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)

Fri: 8 mi, WO&D Trail (Fartlek)

Sat: 8.5 mi, Bull Run / Occoquan Trail

Sun: 16 mi, Bull Run Battlefield

Press On!

2009-01-27T01:54:00.000-08:00

"Brothers, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead" Phillipians 3:13

This past week I felt like I was finally able to regain a little consistency with my running. With the holidays and some less than cooperative weather, it has been a struggle to maintain the discipline to keep a steady training schedule. I enjoyed a good couple of days off after the Swinging Bridge race and was able to get some chores around the house completed. Since Wednesday, I have been able to run everyday, it's the first 5 day stretch that I have had in while.

I was fortunate this weekend to be able to take the family down to Lake Anna and visit with some friends that have a place on the lake. This provided me an opportunity to run Saturday and Sunday on the trails of Lake Anna State Park. This is the site of my next race, the ICY-8 Hour sponsored by Athletic Equation. The ICY-8 hour is the first timed event that I will have competed in and started thinking on Saturday that I will have to managed the clock for the first time. The race is set up with the option of 2 loops, a longer 8 mile and a shorter 4.7 mile loop. To count toward the total mileage, a loop must be completed prior to the 8 hour time limit. I was able to run 2 of the big loops on Saturday and 1 loop and some additional side trails on Sunday. I am really looking forward to this event in 2 weeks. I think the addition of clock management will keep the race interesting, I'm not usually a fan of loop courses. If anyone has any timed event recommendations, please share, this is new to me.

Most of my training last year was done on a fairly consistent pace, although I varied the terrain, trails, and time of day for a lot of my runs, the effort level was pretty consistent. This year I am going to try and get some "speed work" into the training schedule. Speed is a relative term for me. I am not a track runner and absolutely hate running in small circles and think that I hate sprints even more. I have always been a fan of Fartlek training and on Friday was able to incorporate that into an 8 mile run that I have been doing on the way to work. I usually take the Metro into work for my compute option but have discovered the WO&D and the Custis Trails that allow me to get off the Metro early and run the remaining 8 miles into the Pentagon. It has proved a great way to get my run in early when life and work start to get busy. I hope to be able to maintain the consistent running this coming week, it feels good to be on a schedule again. Run Strong

Semper Fi and God Bless,
Mike

Training for 19-25 January: Weekly Mi (37.5), Monthly Mi (123), Yearly Mi (123)

Mon/Tues: Off Lift /
Wed: Lift / Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Thurs: Off
Fri: 8 mi, WO&D Trail (Fartlek)
Sat: 16 mi, Lake Anna SP trails
Sun: 10 mi, Lake Anna SP trails

Swinging Bridge 50K Trail Run

2009-01-19T04:42:00.000-08:00

Patience

“Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” Hebrews 12:1

Saturday I ran the Swinging Bridge 50K Trail Run in Bear Creek State Park, just outside of Richmond, VA. Checking the weather Friday night, I knew that it was going to be cold but did not anticipate seeing -1 degrees on the car thermometer as I stepped out to go to the starting line. I was layer-up pretty good and as you can see by the picture , had very little exposed skin. This event was sponsored by the Richmond Road Runners Club and is advertised as a low key running event. Kevin O’Connor (former Marine, thanks for your service) did an outstanding job as race director and the volunteers were first class and extremely cheerful considering the cold weather, thanks for your support.

About 100 brave souls started the journey down the Willis Creek Trail, however, in the end only 19 would complete the full 50K distance. Since I have been running Ultramarathons, I have picked a “watchword” for each of my races. A word, that I feel, captures my feelings about the event. The word for this race was “Patience”. I have an almost uncontrollable tendency to go out fast early in a race and then slow down. My goal for this race was to run a negative split (run the second half faster than the first half). The course was laid out as two “out and back” sections, the first was about 11 miles, and the second was about 5 miles, so it was difficult to determine the middle point of the race. I decided to try and run a negative split for each section.

The course was almost 100% single track trail and was marked very well, although I still managed to get pulled off track a couple of times. The cold temperatures did have a hidden blessing in that it kept the muddy areas frozen as well as most of the multiple creek crossings. As result I got to keep my feet dry all day.

We started right on time at 0800. The first section was just over 5 miles to the first aid station, it took about 3 miles for the body to start warming up to the point were I needed to uncover my mouth and nose. The trail was mostly gentle hills that were fairly short and that was a welcome relief compared with the mountains that I had faced in my last 3 races. Pulling into the first aid station, I had yet to drink even half of my 20 ounce water bottle, so I opted to grab a couple of Chips Ahoy’s and keep pressing on to the turn around at the “Swinging Bridge”. The next section had a couple of sizeable creek crossings that would have definitely resulted in wet feet had they not been frozen. I reached the turn point in 1h:54m.

I felt good at the turn around and believed that I had been conservative enough to run a negative split. As I attempted to refill my water bottle, I discovered that the top was frozen solid and I didn’t want to waste the time to thaw it out, so I took what I had and headed back down the trail. I was working the top all the way to the next aid station with no success. Luckly, one of the volunteers had a pitcher of hot water set aside that he was using to thaw water bottles. I got the top off, refilled, grabbed some cookies and headed back to the start/finish line. I hit the 22 mile point at 3h:47m, making a negative split by 1 minute…”Patience”.

Although it was warming up, it was still very cold as I started the 5 mile out and back portion of the course as indicated by the frost in the picture . I was starting to feel the effects of the distance and the cold. The second portion of the trail provided more hills than the first and as an added bonus the weather decided to become overcast and the wind picked up. This was actually the coldest section of the course for me. I reached the turn around point in 1h:04m, had sip of coke and gel pack and started toward the finish. It was at this point that I discovered I was in fourth place overall. Having never finished in the top ten in an ultra event, I was pretty fired up and kept the push on to run hard. As I started to pass the rest of the field that was headed down the trail I realized that out of the 100+ people that started there were only a hand full that attempted the full 50K distance (19 to be exact).

I came into the finish at 5h:59m:40s, fourth place overall and first in the 40-49 age group (results). I just missed a negative split on the second section by one minute, however I was very pleased that I was able to “run with patience the race that was set before me”.

As with many tasks in life, our motivation and strength is at its peak at the beginning and as things start to get tough and we grow tired, we slow down. Hebrews 12:1 reminds us to lay aside those burdens and sins that are weighing us down and have the patience to endure the hardships of this life, remembering always the sacrifice that Christ made for us. Run Strong.

Semper Fi and God Bless,

Mike

Training for 12-18 January: Weekly Mi (37.5), Yearly Mi (83.5)

Mon: Lift / Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Tues: Off (not planned to be)
Wed: Lift
Thurs / Fri: Off (not planned to be)
Sat: 32 mi, Swinging Bridge 50K (5h:59m:40s)
Sun: Recover

Introduction

2009-01-12T16:58:00.000-08:00

Hello all. This is my first journey into the world of Blogging. As it says in my profile, I am a Christian Ultrarunner, husband and father of four wonderful children, and a career United States Marine. I have only been running Ultramarathon distance for about two years. Initially, I started running these distances as a personal challenge but as the time ticked away on training runs I began to think that there must be something other than selfish personal interest to gain. I got myself involved with the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. Established in May 2004, the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund is a nonprofit organization that has provided over 11,000 grants totaling over $26 million in assistance to our Nation's OEF/OIF wounded heroes and families. I established a fundraising website and with the help of some great Patriots was able to raise more than $7500.00 for the IMSFF throughout 2008. I plan to continue to raise funds this year with the intent of raising awareness of the needs of our wounded American Heroes http://www.active.com/donate/semperfifund/MHuff8.

My goal race this year is the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, 27-28 June http://www.ws100.com/. The race is a 100 mile long ultramarathon that takes place on trails in California's Sierra Nevada annually. The trail ascends from the Squaw Valley floor (elev. 6,200 feet) to Emigrant Pass (elev. 8,750 feet), a climb of 2,550 feet in the first 4.5 miles. Runners then travel west, climbing another 15,540 feet and descending 22,970 feet before reaching Auburn. Runners finishing before the 30 hour overall time limit for the race receive a bronze belt buckle, while runners finishing in less than 24 hours receive a silver belt buckle. The Western States Endurance Run is one of the premier ultrarunning events in the world. My intent is to finish the Western States in less than 24 hours. I was supposed to run this race last year; however it was cancelled due to numerous wildfires in the vicinity of the trail. I plan to try and provide a weekly update and recap of training accomplished. I have scheduled quite a few work-up races that I will also provide race reports on. My first race of the year will be this Saturday, the Swinging Bridge 50K http://www.rrrc.org/events/swinging-bridge-35-50k-1 .

I will say that much like the rocky and hilly trails of ultramarathons, my life as a Christian has had it’s ups and downs and rocky points, but Faith endures. One thing that time on the trails has provided me is an opportunity to strengthen my personal relationship with God. There is great satisfaction for me, to get to a point of fatigue that requires me to look beyond myself for strength, and for me, that additional strength is found in Faith. The Lord has blessed me with the ability to run long distance and with that I have been able to raise funds for an extremely worthy cause, hopefully inspire a few people to take to the trails and try something that they might not have attempted, and also share my testimony of how Christ has provided a purpose for life as a Christian, Husband, Father, Marine and a Runner. Please keep checking back for updates, comments and suggestions are appreciated.

Training for 5-11 January: Weekly Mi (36), Yearly Mi (46)

Mon: Precor EFX 546 CrossRamp (5.5 mi / 50 mins)
Tues: Lift / AB
Wed: CrossRamp (7.5 mi / 1 hr) / Pull Ups
Thurs / Fri: Off (not planned to be)
Sat: 10 mi, Wakefield Park
Sun: 13 mi, Bull Run Battlefield

2008 Hellgate 100K Race Report

2008-12-20T04:03:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday I completed the Hellgate 100K and in doing so also completed the Virginia Beast Series. This past year has been incredibly rewarding. I have had the opportunity to push myself to and beyond what I thought were my physical limits, to push through psychological barriers, to run beyond painful cramps and sore muscles. I have had the pleasure to experience the true potential of the human body and the amazing conditions that it can endure. I have found the truth in Phiplippians 4:13, the Bible verse that I keep on the Semper Fi website https://www.active.com/donate/semperfifund/MHuff8: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".
99 brave souls stood ready at the head of the Glenwood Horse Trail in Natural Bridge, VA. It was 0001, Saturday morning and after a prayer and a singing of the National Anthem we were off, on what would prove to be a very long and challenging course. It was about 30 degrees at the start, crystal clear skies with a moon as big as it has been in 15 years lighting the way before us. Through the first 4 miles, to aid station 1, the group spread out and everyone settled into their pace. This would have been a fairly uneventful section but for the "creek" (swollen to a small river by the rains of the previous day) at mile 3.8. This "creek" crossing was knee deep for about 20 feet across, I tried to keep the bottoms of my sweatpants dry but with no luck and within 10 minutes they were frozen, as well as my shoes. Oddly enough this had almost zero impact on me during the remainder of the race.
Leaving aid station 1, we started a 4 mile climb up to the Blue Ridge Parkway and aid station 2, Petite's Gap. This section was on a very good dirt road, I was able to run some of the uphill sections and I was also able to turn of my headlamp and run by the light of the moon, once again experiencing the the ability to see beyond the beam of the headlamp and see more of what was around me. Little did I know that by the end of the race I would be less concerned with what was around me very concerned with what was inside of me.
Aid station 2, was at 8 miles and was the first opportunity to meet up with my crew (Mom, Dad, and my youngest daughter, Abby). It was a quick stop, I picked up my camelback for the next 2 long sections and was off, it was 0135. I was supposed to meet the crew at aid station 4 (23.4 miles) but the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed due to icing conditions so the next available crew stop was at aid station 5 (30 miles). The leg to aid station 3, Camping Gap, was 7 miles, the last 2 of which were a climb of 1200 feet. The temperature at Camping Gap was in the low 20's with a 10-15 knot wind. Leg 4 to Headforemost Mountain was the longest leg of the race 9.8 miles and was a great run on an exposed grassy fireroad. This leg required no light and offered great views down into the valley below. I made good time moving into aid station 4 and didn't waste any time moving on toward aid station 5 and the chance to see my crew again. I left Headforemost at about 0500 and started a hard 1.5 mile climb back up the mountain to cross the Blue Ridge Parkway again. Once across the parkway it was all downhill into AS 5, Jennings Creek.
As I rolled into AS 5 I was starting to feel the effects of 6.5 hours of running. I had covered 30.2 miles and the sun was about to come up, I was tired, cold, and had not eaten anything since Camping Gap. My stomach was really giving me fits, I never got sick but just couldn't bring myself to eat anything. For the rest of the day I would subsist on water and a little soda here and there. Leaving Jennings Creek, I started a long climb up a good dirt road and watched the sun rise. A short 2 hours later I got to AS-6 (37.8 miles) and was doing OK. AS-6 to AS-7 was almost all single track on the Glenwood Horse Trail. Leaves and rocks were definitely an issue but the veterans said the leaves were not as bad as the had been in years past, I could have done without them completely. This was a long leg that took us to 46.5 miles and 10.5 hours. They were making hamburgers at the AS but my stomach was having none of that. Onward and Upward to AS-8, Bobblets Gap. After the first 2 mile climb up Purgatory Mountain the rest of the leg was actually a very enjoyable run. This was almost all single track trail along the ridgeline and once again offered some great views of the valley below.
AS-8 to AS-9 was called the "Never ending leg" and boy was it ever. A long 2.5 miles downhill followed by 3 very steep and long uphill climbs covered 7.8 miles and ended at the last aid station (60 miles, 14.2 hours). It was great to see the crew for the last time before the finish. They were doing a great job of keeping me moving, the calorie deficit had taken its toll and I was beat. The last leg is the perfect ending for a David Horton race, 3 mile, 1500 foot climb followed by a 3 mile, 1500 foot decent. I had to dig deep to get up the mountain and oddly enough had to dig even deeper to get down the other side to the finish. I had a burning desire to walk on the downhill section but managed to push through the negative thoughts and keep running all the way back to Camp Bethel and the finish.
It was a great feeling to be met by David Horton at the finish and told that I had officially completed the Beast. 15 hours and 37 minutes to cover 66 miles of beautiful Blue Ridge Mountain trails, why? Hard question, which has many answers. I was told once by another ultra runner that people that run this far must be running from something. She then asked me what I was running from. My answer to her was that I didn't agree that you had to be running from something and that contrary to that I had the feeling that I was running towards something, at that time I didn't know what. I still don't know exactly, but I do know that over the last year I have lost 20 pounds, I have made an effort to see old friends and corresponded with others that I have not been in touch with since college. I have a new sense of how important family is and believe that my extended family has become closer as a result of this endeavor. I have been able, with the incredible generosity of all of you, to contribute to an honorable organization that is taking care of our wounded Marines. And personally I have seen how my Faith strengthen and take my body to physical levels that I would have once thought impossible.
I have run over 2000 miles in the last year, 13 ultramarathons, and completed a 100 mile race, what's next? I'm still working on that, but right now my goal is to run the Western States 100 under 24 hours in June. Your support during this past year has been humbling. We have done a good thing for wounded warriors, something that each and everyone of you should be very proud of. My deepest thanks and gratitude go out to each of you, I would like to give a special thanks to my wonderful family and ultimately thank God for all of the wonderful blessings that He has bestowed upon me. I am a lucky man.
God Bless and Semper Fi,
Michael Huff
LtCol USMC