Pilot Mountain To Hanging Rock 50 Mile Race Report

Disclaimer
**Actual mileage & terrain may vary as my memory is not very good and my field notes got wet somewhere between mile 0 and 50☺**

To all those runners who ran the 2017 PM2HR 50 mile, 50 mile relay, or 50 K – regardless of your finish time, regardless if you even finished, if your toe(s) crossed the start line, like me, you undoubtedly put in considerable work up to that point not because you had to but because you wanted to and dare I say you liked it. When it’s all said and done that is why I run, because I love it, and if allowed I will continue to run and push my limits. See you on the trails

The Pilot Mountain to Hanging Rock 50 Mile race took place on Saturday October 14 hosted by Trivium Racing which is a race hosting and event management company run by Richard and Libby Swor. According to the race results page this is the 4th running of this race.

The Course

85% trail and 15% road (due to trail closures), the 50 mile course took you through Pilot Mountain State Park, the Sauratown Trail System, Hanging Rock State Park, and ending at the Green Heron Ale House. The course was well marked with surveyor flags, ribbons, large and small signs, as well as spray paint on the roads.

Packet Pick Up

Friday October 13 (yikes!!) I stopped in to the Green Heron Ale House and was met by 2 cheerful ladies, one of which had a very cute newborn strapped to her chest. I was handed my bib, hoodie, and other various swag inside a clear bag that I was instructed to use as my race drop bag. After some questions about the bus arrangements for the next morning I took a peak at the abundance of beers that were on tap and reluctantly decided that I better not indulge. I stayed in the town of Danbury which was a quick 5 minute drive from the finish line and where I would catch the bus in the morning to ride to the start line. I found a nice little house that was being rented out as a vacation rental by the General Dan Tubing Co. and this is where I spent the remainder of my Friday the 13th. (no visits from a scary man in a white mask)

Race Day

As the 1st of my 3 alarms went off at 3:00 AM I slowly rolled out of the comfortable bed the cottage had and pressed the ON switch for some much needed warm brew. After the usual morning routine, I will spare you the details I was in my truck making the short drive to an awaiting school bus with about 30 other tired and anxious runners perhaps contemplatingwhy they chose to start the day that they were going to be on their feet for 50 miles, with a 50 minute bus ride at 4:00 AM. After an uneventful bus ride (which is a good thing) we were dropped off at a parking lot where the RD was standing in the beams of his car headlights ready to check the runners in. I had brought an old sweatshirt hoping it would be cool enough that I would need to wear it but it was not, the temperatures around starting time were in the low 60s.

Over the next hour the parking lot filled up with cars, runners, and their supporters as the 6:00 AM start time approached we were herded over to the trailhead where a very benign but fitting start occurred. At 6:01 the RD counted down from 10 and on the word “GO” 60-ish runners (most with headlamps) began their journey to the Green Heron Ale House.

The first 7ish miles consisted of a nice, very run-able, double track that had some stream crossing that, due to the previous weeks rainfall, where about 10 feet wide and ankle deep. No way around a few of them you just had to suck it up and get your feet wet and then manage your feet for the rest of the race. No significant climbs in this section just some rolling ups and downs which I walked to manage my HR because it was still only the first hour, of what I hope to be a sub 10 hour day.

As the sky started to lighten I exited the first trail section to another parking lot, similar looking to where I had begun the day, where aid station #1. This is where the 50k runners would start their day at 7:45 AM, so a large group of runners had began to assemble. I didn’t partake in the aid station, but was very accepting of all the way to go and atta boys from the 50k runners. After the parking lot it was onto the Pilot Mountain trail system.

This trail was not like the last and I remember saying to another runner that I was glad that it was starting to get light out because it was very rocky and required careful and quick consideration as to foot placement, and the fact that I could actually see the trail without the use of a headlamp made this job much easier. The first part of the Pilot Mountain trail was an annoying gradual 500 foot climb that my body couldn’t decide if I should run it or walk it. After doing both for what I think was about 2 miles (my GPS lost signal multiple times during this race so mileages are not going to be spot on) the course made a turn and we began a much steeper ascent to Pilot Mountain. This ascent began with a wide fire road type trail that I and many others walked the entire portion.

Once at the top of this section you could run again but only for a short period till you hit the steps…

…. Ohh the steps, these were by far my least favorite part of the course. Largely because they sucked and made my legs hurt. The surrounding scenery took my mind off the unpleasantness of these massive stone steps. Once at the top, I am sure the view would have been amazing but due to the dense fog I could not see much farther than a few trees, which in itself added a neat feel to the morning, and kept the temperatures from climbing.

700 feet later we reached the top of Pilot Mountain and began to head back down. The descent consisted of wide dirt steps each held up by railroad ties. I was sure I would feel these later on in the race and unfortunately this was not the last time the course would see a descent like this. Roughly 4 miles later and 1100 feet lower the course transitioned out of Pilot Mountain State Park and onto the Sauratown Trail which would encompass roughly 20 miles of the entire course.

This was a very run-able chunk of the course and consisted of forest dirt single track trail for a large portion of the first half but then gave way to roads for the second half. Before I continue let me add that I fully understand that circumstances can happen and finding 50 continuous miles of trail is not an easy feat. So I had mixed feelings about the upcoming road sections. On one hand I could pick up the pace, open up my stride and check out for a period of time, not worrying about where my next three steps need to be. On the other hand, it did not take long for my legs to let me know that they most definitely prefer the soft supple touch of single track over the hard bone crushing feel of asphalt. After a short stint of road running I came to aid station #3 where I refilled my fuel bottles with Generation UCAN, filled my hydration bladder with water, and took an S cap offered to me from the marvelous aid station worker. I was starting to notice tightness in my left calf and was worried about cramping (which is not a good thing if you are only 17 miles into a 50 miler). I was given hope by these aid station workers that in just under 4 miles boiled potatoes and salt was waiting at aid station #4. They were not lying in a short 4 miles I down 2 pieces of boiled potatoes which I dipped in a plate of salt, thanked the aid station workers and continued on my way.

After a small creek crossing there was about a mile of trail before hitting the road again. The next 2.5 miles ticked off rather quickly and before I knew it I was at aid station #5 (MM 24) where I indulged in a small square of a peanut butter rice crispie, which for a low carb eater was like rocket fuel. Onward and…. Upward was the theme for the next 4 miles. Quickly after this aid station you climbed over 400 feet on what felt like a death march of switch backs but once at the top you were “rewarded” with a quick decent and some great single track running all the way to you drop bag at aid station #6 (MM 27.5).

This is the most time I spent at any one aid station, maybe 4 minutes. I changed my socks and shoes, swapped out a sweat soaked bandana for a dry more patriotic one, refilled both fuel bottles with new Generation UCAN, refilled my hydration pack, and down a not very tasty but effective HOT SHOT to combat what I thought was impending muscle cramps.

Quick note on HOT SHOT, this was the first time I had tried this during a run (I had one a few days before just to taste it) and was not sure how it was going go but aside from the fireball hot sauce taste I quickly learned that this product was the right one for the job on this day. No more tightness in the calf and none for the remainder of the race.

Ok, now back to our regular programming. After feeling like a new runner with dry socks and new shoes I left aid station #6 with more than half of the 50 miles behind me and I was feeling great. The next 9 miles was largely fire road and regular road till you entered Hanging Rock State Park. However it was this section was not an easy one. From mile 31-ish to mile 40-ish we climbed nearly 1,500 feet with 1,000 of it between mile 35 and 40 within in hanging rock state park. Here is where I really felt like my power hiking has improved 10 fold from both purposely having big elevation days in my training plan and also from doing CrossFit.

A quick note on the weather, up to this point the skies were completely overcast and the temps couldn’t have been more than 70. However somewhere while on the road before hitting Hanging Rock State Park the clouds parted and the sun started to do its thing. However I do not believe it got over 75 that day which as compared to my last 50 miler where it hit the 90s, I will take it!!

After reaching aid station #9 at MM 41 I filled one more bottle with Generation UCAN, refilled my hydration bladder for the last time and was told that it was all downhill from here…. mostly. Well I soon found out that she was not lying, everything from big stone rock steps that were just wide enough that you had to take a step in-between each one to get down on your butt and slide down to some really fun somewhat technically single track that I absolutely destroyed. I think I even remember yelling “WAHOO” at the top of my lungs at the bottom of one.

The final 5-ish miles were a beautiful wet forest single track that had numerous stream crossings that I did my best to splash around in and dip my bandana in as the cold water was extremely refreshing. One of the neat aspect about this race is that the 50 mile and 50 k runners were started 1 hour and 45 minutes apart so I as I was nearing the finish line and feeling amazing and in 100% best mode. When you would see a runner ahead of you on the trail you were not sure if it was a 50k or 50 mile runner so it forced me to push to pass every single runner I could, just to add a little carrot in front of the horse kind of feel.

Since my watch had dropped GPS signal several times throughout the race I was not absolutely sure exactly how many miles I had left but soon I popped out of a trail and hit a dirt road and knew I was close. I made one left hand turn and started hearing the sweet sound of music and a female announcer on the PA system. Shortly after I crossed the finish line just seconds behind the 2nd place finisher of the 50 miler putting me in 3rd overall, finishing in 8 Hours 53 minutes and 41.9 seconds!!!! I was beyond stoked as I had bested my last 50 mile time by more than an hour and half. The weather conditions were by far more favorable but man did I feel strong, and the more I sat on it the more confident I felt in my training plan programming.

Finish Line

As noted before the finish line was in the parking lot of the Green Heron Ale House which was also the parking lot for The Dan River Company. This was awesome because they had an outdoor shower which was amazing, because I was not looking forward to a 4.5 hour river covered in salt and trail grit. As for post race food they had chili fixins, soda, water, and apple juice and each runner received a beer ticket, which I gave to another runner because of my aforementioned 4.5 hour drive home. After chatting up some of the other runners, eating 2 bowls of relatively low carb chili, taking some pictures, stretching and using THE STICK to massage my legs I hit the road back to West Virginia with a great sense of redemption, from my last 50 miler, and accomplishment from my training