HAULIN' OFF THE MOUNTAIN

March 23, 2014

ELEANOR, WV - In search of returning to the world of ultra running, Gabriel drove out to West Virginia to partake in the Haulin' in the Holler 50 km trail run.

The drive was long... close to six hours, which Gabriel was unprepared for... nor was his Achilles. By the start of the race, exhausted from the long drive, Gabriel set out conservatively but within a few miles noticed a painful jab tightness in his right Achilles. He dismissed the pain and continued, letting his body work out the knots created by sitting for such a long period of time.

The course was great. Much hillier than anticipated, with a multitude of switchbacks and climbs. The trail was in good shape... muddy in some places, but overall good run on and a welcome relief from the rocks of the Mid-Atlantic. As he gained on the 25K leaders by the halfway point, the group went off course.. stumbling around, the found the red ribbons and continued on, adding about a half mile to the run. It wasn't too mentally devastating, but what was mentally devastating was the descent back to the finish line... for 5 miles one could see the finish, but the snake-like switchbacks just teased one to the finish line.

He crossed the first loop slightly over two hours... and the pain in his Achilles beckoned him to retire. But, he knew he had a substantial lead and was actually feeling quite fluid.. and so, he set off for the second loop, with a plan of just making it to the next aid station (20 miles). Time-wise, he was still good, and as he ran amongst the gun shots in the background (a little too close for comfort), he focused on the run. He had a great section of running from 20-25 miles, but then began frantically searching for the 25 mile aid station, which couldn't come soon enough. He was losing focus and energy (ran with 4 gels, no water). The 68-degree morning was getting to him and he re-focused, finally making it to the final aid station with a substantial lead (second placed would finish 12-minutes in arrears).

And thus began the mantra, "get off the mountain, just get off the mountain.." but the hills were relentless, the switchbacks unending.. until he finally made it home in one piece and disappointed he didn't negative split (he might have if not for all the stops to check his Achilles and longer stays at the aid stations).

It was a great run that wiped him out, but he was proud to his accomplishment: a course record by over half an hour.

It was a good day... and then six hours of driving back home was a welcome rest for his legs.