DAY SIXTEEN The race... I am not sure how to begin... The race was supposed to start at 1am Saturday morning but the previous years the heat had been an issue. So this year we began at midnight. Zigzagging though town, the people cheered us on in Italian. It was a party. We broke off on the trail and began our 1400m climb (3300ft) up... up... up... 10k (6miles) in the dark. It was slow and I was very tired. Not physically but sleepy. It took us about 2 hours to make the first climb. Then down, straight down this un-runnable path with sharp mud covered rocks and steep ledges. We practically had to slide on our butt to get down at parts. We hit the first aid station and there was only water. We filled up and headed out. I was having some issues with dizziness and nausea. We continued our run back up the mountain again... Still dark out and sprinkling, we worked our way through switchbacks & grassy pastures. I am sure that had it been light out, it wouldve been beautiful. I was extremely sleepy at this point and very nauseous. We got to a gravel road and could finally run a bit. It went down... down.. down to the next aid station. What an interesting aid station. All men, dressed as if it were 20 degrees. The food was very picked over. We had packed enough food for the race though in anticipation of that, so no worries. Mike was concerned that I was going to have to drop out of the race because I was so dizzy and not feeling well. The Italian men kept asking what I needed and I said something for nausea. Cokea, cokea... they made me guzzle a glass of coke and we headed out. They were laughing at mike cuz he was in his shorty shorts and a tank top and everyone else was dressed for winter. It was about 50 degrees but it was windy, foggy, and lightly raining. We began to climb again... up a gravel road... we could hear bells in the distance. Morning finallly came and then figured out what we were hearing... cow bells. We were in a pasture. We got to the top of the next climb and I was FINALLY feeling better. We jogged and hiked through steep climbs and plunging switchbacks until we reached an area that looked a lot like the SHT (superior hiking trail). It was beautiful and the first section of the trail that we could really run. We ran to the next aid station to find that there was a good chance that they would be canceling the race do to thunderstorms on the high peaks. It had been raining for days and the weather wasnt improving. The next climb was up to theGallery, and into the caves and along narrow rocky ledges. We continued in hopes that the weather would pass. We got out of the trees and what we saw was jaw dropping. Thunderstorm clouds loomed around the peaks, the wind was howling, and It started to rain. Not the light rain that we had earlier but buckets of rain. The trail and caves became water falls of slippery unstable rocks. Some of the caves were short and some were close to a half mile long with switchbacks. Yeah thats right! Switchbacks in the caves, because the climbs were so steep. We laughed and joked about the rain and still thought that finishing the race was an option. We stopped for a snack and to put on heavy trash bags that we had packed just in case. The rain was cold, and the winds, and exposure were becoming dangerous. We ran on the rocky path and through caves climbing into the clouds (about 6000ft). The rain and wind was relentless. At times we were running thru 4 inches of water, on a path maybe 5ft wide on the edge of cliffs. We passed some rescue workers and they informed us the race was being canceled. We still needed to make our way to the next aid station. Thats when things got a bit more interesting. The lightning and thunder started to get close... really close.... We were in one of the caves when the lightning hit and the walls resinated with the shock. We continued to climb. Cringing every-time there was a close flash, all while speeding through the rain as best we could. It was intense. We couldnt help but feel like we were running thru the Hallelujah mountains from the movie Avatar. Amazing... although we didnt have time to completely absorb the beauty. Temps were dropping and the storms were not letting up. We finally hit the peak and begun to run down. Passing hypothermic runners hiding in the caves, unable to continue, and the rescue workers tending to them. Thru the mud, rocks, and waterfalls... down to the aid station that would be our last. Canceling the race was no doubt the right decision on behalf of the race management. We were satisfied knowing we persevered through all adversities, and that we represented MN well :) All-in-all, it was with out a doubt a worthy race, and an even greater adventure than we could have imagined. So we got back a bit earlier, showered, napped, and hunted for more good food.
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 18:55:03 +0000
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