Hagg Lake 50K - Hagg Lake, OR - April 19 2011

Let me put it this way...the website for the race is www.haggmud.com.

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The first race of 2011! I was excited, especially since I was properly trained and eager to see some familiar faces. The weather leading up to the race was 5 days of rain, so the course was bound to be a muck fest. I've heard of people losing their shoes in this race! Bound to be the muddiest run of my life, there wasn't too much I could do about it aside from tying my shoes snug as a bug (New Balance MT 101).

Race morning I picked up my crazy friend Magda, who had only signed up for the race a few days prior. I never knew it was possible to wing an Ultramarathon, but she was going to give it a shot. I mean, for finisher socks, wouldn't anybody? We headed to Hagg Lake in time to see the sun rise over the Lake. The roads and parking lot had icy patches, and I almost ate shit at least 10 times when walking around. Despite the frosty morning, the weather forecast for the day was 100% Sunshine, something us Oregonians hadn't seen in a while!

Ready or not, Magda joined the Early Start crowd at the starting line. She didn't look too nervous, so I figured she'd do alright. Sometimes, the best thing for nerves is to start running the damn race, especially when it's freezing outside. With the early starters lined up, the race director gave her speech and gave them a modest countdown. When the race started, everyone ran in slow motion since the parking lot was slick with ice. They ran up the road for a quick out-n-back section before coming back through the start/finish area to begin lap 1 of 2 around Hagg Lake. Go Magda, Go!

After the early start, everyone started showing up for the 8:00 AM start time. I started chatting with John Lotts, and we talked race gibberish for a bit. I also ran into Gary Daubenspeck from the Columbia Gorge Running Club and Nathan Blair from the Trailfactor group. Ultra runners seriously are some of the coolest people ever. As we all lined up for the icy start in the parking lot,  I noticed the guy next to me wearing American Flag shorts. How do you NOT notice a guy like that? His name is Matt Carrell, and I can tell he was eager to run.

GO!

The race director counted us down, and slowly everyone shuffled across the icy parking lot. We turned up the road and continued up a gravel street, where we would climb uphill for 1.5 miles before turning around and heading towards the start/finish. I started out quick since this was going to be the steepest part of the course, and I also wanted to beat the crowd to the single track around the Lake. At the turnaround, I was in 7th place or so but got passed by a few runners on the downhill. Turnarounds are fun because you get to see everybody going up the hill as you're going down (and vice versa). I saw my friend Marta and a couple others before reaching the start/finish and the single track trail.

Only a 1/4 mile into the trail, I see a group of runners heading towards me. Huh? Oh! They missed the turn, and I did too (but I only had to backtrack 15'). I let the majority of them in front of me, since they were pushing the pace pretty hard. The trail section was definitely runnable, save for a few large puddle-muck sections. Captain America (Matt) wasn't too far ahead, and I made it a goal to keep him in site. The frontrunners were well ahead, and I was settling into my comfort zone. My goal for the race was to break 4 hours 30 minutes, and I was using the runners in front of me to keep my pace up. I wasn't running with a watch, so I was going by feel...Felt good so far!

After the first aid station, I lost site of the runners in front of me (I usually take my time at aid stations, it's like a snack buffet). I then reached a fork in the road and saw no trail markers anywhere. My instinct was to go straight, but I decided to try the left path for a little ways. After quickly reaching a dead end, I flipped a 180 and went down the path of truth...I really need to get better at reading the footprints in the ground, but this particular section was hardpacked and didn't leave much of a track (I can sometimes guess what shoes someone wears just by looking at the footprint...makes me feel like a true hunter).

The section of trail between Aid Station 2 and the Start/Finish was the muddiest I have ever seen. When you're looking down at the ground and getting blinded by the reflection of the sun, you know it's muddy. I did a decent job keeping on my feet, but traction was almost a complete zero. And running uphill was pointless, because half the time I would be running in place due to the mud. AHHHH!!!!! I was slightly frustrated. F-bomb here, F-bomb there...

Eventually I caught up to Matt and we finished the first lap at the same time. He was just coming off foot surgery from 4 months earlier, and he was still getting his fitness back. I was still feeling good and pulled ahead, trying my best to keep up a good pace. My first lap time was 2 hours 15 minutes, including the 3-mile out and back section...so far my pace was on target!

The 2nd lap around Hagg Lake was rough, considering hundreds of runners had just run out the only sections of the trail that had any kind of traction. My energy was getting zapped by every destabilizing muddy step, and by the time I reached Aid Station 2, my pace slowed to a comfortable/cautious pace. This mud was relentless, and so I just kept it steady and tried not to wipe out. How many times did I wipe out? At least 3 times I all-out hit the ground. Other times my feet would give way and my hands would catch me, saving my attire from an extra layer of mud. A dirty glove can be ignored for a while...until you get to an aid station and throw a bunch of dirty m&m's in your mouth. Nom nom...nom...bleh.

Seeing the finish line area, I finished with a respectable pace. As I turned the final bend, I saw the giant race clock for the first time in hours. Holy Shnikees!

Results:     4:29:19 - 13th out of 211 Finishers

Pace:     8:41 min/mile

The fun thing about not wearing a watch is being pleasantly surprised at the finish line by whatever time you get. This occasion, I made my goal by 41 seconds...Needless to say, I was ecstatic! I quickly put on some overlayers and grabbed some food (granola bars, grilled cheese sandwiches, cookies, soup, etc). As people were finishing, I started chatting with anyone I recognized. I Love Ultras!

For a while I was chatting with Matt Wilson from Pennsylvania near the finish line. Great guy, him and his wife were in town visiting Portland and decided to run the 50K. When in Rome, right? As we were talking I saw my friend Magda finish! After 8 hours of running, I didn't think anybody could smile as much as she was...well done!

Overall, the course was fun and frustrating at the same time. Lots of people sign up for it, so you're bound to see someone you know either before or after the race. The race directors did an amazing job, and the volunteers prepped some awesome Aid Stations for the race. I'll probably sign up again next year, despite the muddy nightmares I had after the race.

Na zdrowie!