Tahoe Rim Trail 50 Miler

July 18 I ran the Tahoe Rim Trail 50 Miler. 2 years ago I did the TRT 50KM as my very first ultra event and fell in love with the course. It's incredibly scenic and challenging and the next morning I felt like I had been run over by a truck. Did I mention that it's tough?





Last year I was hoping to run the 50 miler but was injured and volunteered at the finish line instead. That just served to fuel my desire this year. The timing couldn't have been better in my build up to the Leadville 100.


I drove up to Tahoe by myself allowing my family to sleep in and come up later. They would meet me at the halfway point at Mt. Rose Hwy and again at the finish line.

Milling around the start line

The first thing I noticed when I arrived was how comfortable the temperature was. Would this be a precursor to how warm it would get later? I checked in and discovered that my coach was volunteering behind the table. Finally, after 7 months, I got to meet him. After getting my stuff together I made my way down to the start line where I ran into Gretchen. She's been having a great season but I had no idea how well she'd do in this race.

We started promptly at 6am after being reminded by Dave Cotter to only do the Red House Loop ONCE. After sorting ourselves out on the dirt road we hit the wonderful singletrack that would take us to Marlette Lake. I did a walk/run on the uphills, feeling pretty good but saving myself for a long day.




Marlette is beautiful this time of day. It's a magical feeling to be making your way up into the high sierra knowing that you will run 50 miles before the day is over. It's a peaceful time of day with the flowers just opening up with the first rays of sunshine.






I made my way toward the first aid station only to discover it wasn't there! I kept running and finally it appeared through the trees. I wondered why they had moved it. I didn't need to fill my hydration pack and moved on quickly. I really wanted to work on keeping my AS times short.




After leaving Hobart AS you come across one of the best views on the course. I was still feeling good but I knew my pace was very controlled.

Marlette Lake with Tahoe behind

The section from Hobart to Twin Lakes is one of the most enjoyable for me and I started to push it a little. Once again, as I came into where the AS was suppose to be, it wasn't there. It was now up in the saddle with Tunnel Creek Rd. I filled up with water and a little food and started the descent into "hell". This 6.5 mi section has the reputation of being extremely tough but I actually don't mind it too much. I descended quickly and moved through the AS to the flume road. This road seems to go on forever so it became my goal to just keep running and I managed to pass a couple people here. As I hit the steep, sandy hill I was reduced to a walk.

About a month before, I had done a training run from Mt. Rose hwy to Twin Lakes, the Red House loop, and back to Mt. Rose. I was happy to see that today's Red House loop split was only 5 minutes slower than my training run, considering I was going to be running twice as far. After another quick stop at Tunnel Creek I made the split with the 50K runners (who headed back toward the start) and made my way north to Mt. Rose.






















Meanwhile, Pat and the girls were also making their way to the halfway point of the race and getting things set up for my arrival. The job of a crew is pretty thankless though. You spend hours waiting patiently for your runner, only to spend a couple minutes them him/her before they're headed back down the trail. Even though a runner may not always show it, the support they receive from their crew is priceless and always appreciated.

The girls find ways to pass the time

The 9 mile section between Twin Lakes and Mt. Rose includes some wonderful rolling singletrack as it follows the ridgeline with the Tahoe Basin to the west and Washoe Valley to the east.




It was on this section that I passed a lot of 100 mile runners as well as the front pack of 50 mile runners heading south. I was impressed to see Gretchen so soon and as I checked my watch I remember thinking "wow, she may break 10 hours". Very nice.

Washoe Lake to the east

Gretchen on her way to a 9:57 finish

Coming into Mt. Rose aid station

I made it into the Mt. Rose AS in 6:15. I really wanted to be there in 6 hours but I was happy to see that my split time from Tunnel Creek was only 1 minute slower than my earlier training run. After getting my water refilled and enjoying an Otter Pop, I spent a few minutes visiting with my family. Back in April at the American River 50 Mile, my family once again met me at the halfway point to support me. However, I found myself getting very emotional when it was time to head down the trail and I just didn't want to leave. I spent some valuable extra minutes giving more hugs and kisses. As it turns out, I missed breaking 10 hours at the finish by 3 minutes. As much as I enjoyed spending that extra time with everyone, I didn't want to lose any more time than I had to.

So after getting a new full gel flask and replenishing my S Caps, I gave out a few quick hugs and kisses and got back on the trail. If I wanted to finish in 12 hours, I needed to pick it up a bit.

Caitlyn giving out helpful advice

During my training run I really enjoyed this section heading south. But I was fresh then, having already run 25 miles made it a bit more challenging now. I ran as much as I could but the last couple miles just seemed to take forever. It was along this section that I ran into Catra and Andy. We visited a bit and I asked about the aid stations being in different locations. Andy said it's because the new sites provided better cell site coverage. I made it back to Tunnel Creek with a split that was 9 minutes slower than my training run. I spent a few extra minutes here eating watermelon. Lots of watermelon. It just tasted so dang good. I finally tore myself away from the table to start the home stretch. This section is predominantly downhill heading north so I knew it would be quite a bit slower heading south. Looking back, I wish I had pushed harder on this section. I know there are areas where I could have jogged that I continued to walk. But I had already run 35 miles and with another 15 to go I didn't really know how much I had left in the tank. I'm still learning the art of pacing in the world of ultrarunning.

I made it through the Hobart AS and got ready to tackle my favorite challenge of the course, the climb to Snow Valley. I loved this section 2 years ago and it was no different this time. I found myself feeling and running very strong. I tackled the uphills like they were flat. I've never felt so strong before. I was in a groove. I passed quite a few people and they were full of encouragement. It was super windy at the aid station (is it ever not windy?) so I moved straight through after grabbing some M&M's and tackled the next 6 miles of downhill. I had 1:15 to cover this last section if I was going to beat 12 hours. But I kind of dreaded it knowing that it lasts FOREVER. By now my Garmin 305 battery had died so I was in the dark as to the time or distance.

Snow Valley Aid Station

I ran hard and soon my quads were protesting quite loudly. I starting catching up to the tail end of 50K runners and they were all very courteous about moving to the side of the trail as I ran by. I was running as fast as I could but I knew it wasn't going to be enough. My legs hurt so bad I really didn't know how I was still running. But I kept struggling, pushing my body to the limit. I knew there was light at the end of the tunnel and the faster I could cover that distance, the sooner the pain would end. But it was a euphoric pain, the kind of pain you feel when you push a strong body.



After leaving Mt. Rose, my family headed to Reno to get Caitlyn a pair of running shoes. She wasn't happy with her slipper type shoes and she wanted something that she could run across the finish line with her mom. Not only did she end up with a genuine pair of running shoes, they had laces!

The girls right before the finish line

As I came out of the trees and into the meadow, I could hear my girls calling me. There's nothing like having your family cheering you on to give you one last strong push.

Caitlyn fell into step with me and then immediately went into a full sprint. I just laughed as I watched her go, there was no way I could keep up with her. Finally she slowed down and I caught up and she said "Mommy, running this fast makes my chest hurt". We fell back into step together and crossed the line together. I glanced at the timer and it read 12:10:41. Not the 12 hours I was hoping for but I was happy none-the-less. Results are here.

Sara finishing at her speed

Checking out Caitlyn's new shoes

After resting for a bit, I started making my way back up the hill when I ran into my coach, Howard Nippert. We hadn't been able to visit in the morning so it was good to finally get to talk to him and discuss plans for the next 5 weeks until Leadville.

Howard and I discuss running

Suddenly, without warning, I started feeling pretty queasy and light headed. I guess running for 12 hours and then suddenly stopping can do strange things to your body. After sitting for about 10 minutes I was able to walk up the hill to where the cars were parked.

Once again, this proved to be a wonderful event. The weather was perfect. Some people complained about the heat but I never thought it got too hot. I think all the Bikram yoga (hot yoga) I've been doing has been really helpful to getting acclimatized to the heat. Thank you Dave and all the wonderful volunteers. I've now done the 50K and 50M so maybe the 100M is on the horizon. But let's see how Leadville goes first.

Breathing Thin Air at 10,200 ft.

In order to help improve my chances of finishing my first 100 miler next month, I signed up for the Leadville training camp which took place the last weekend of June. Unfortunately, that was the same weekend as Western States so I didn't get to be there. But the 5 days I spent running on the Leadville 100 course was very beneficial.



I left Reno as soon as my relief showed up at work and hit the road with a full tank of gas and lots of snack food. My first solo road trip in quite awhile and I was excited. Pat was suppose to be going with me but due to some unforeseen circumstances, he had to stay behind.



I drove non-stop and after about 16 hours I pulled into the parking lot of Safeway in Leadville at 11:30 pm. I found a dark corner, snuggled into my sleeping bag, put the seatback down and slept fitfully for about 4-5 hours. The front seat of a 1991 Toyota Corolla is not the most comfortable place to bivy.



I awoke and made my way to Halfmoon Rd where I set up camp next to Elbert Creek. This is where I camped for 2 weeks prior to my 2002 Leadville 100 Mountain Bike race. No amenities but it's free, my kind of deal.

Home Sweet Home

My view and my future ice baths

After getting set up I made my way to the Turquoise Lake dam to run to Mayqueen campground and back, about 13 miles. I immediately felt sluggish and slow, an effect of the altitude (and maybe driving an insane amount of miles the day before). I decided not to sweat it and just enjoy the gorgeous views. I haven't been to Leadville this early in the season and I loved all the water, every river was running full.

Mayqueen Campground is straight ahead and the trail follows the right shore.

I finished my run and took a dip in the lake before making my way back to town and checking things out. I just love Leadville and it was great to be back.




The next day I set out early to drive to Winfield, the turn-around point of the race. It's at the end of a long dirt road in a gorgeous valley. Everything was so green and lush. I tried to imagine what it would look like on race day. All the crews, runners, pacers. I walked around a bit before heading to Twin Lakes.

The old ghost town of Winfield

I drove through Twin Lakes to the Willis Gulch trailhead. Normally we would cross Lake Creek near TL but right now the river is running way too high so this alternate trailhead offers a bridge crossing. I wanted to just do a short easy run and scout out the beginnings of Hope Pass. I found where we will probably cross the creek and the river is raging. I felt good on this run, the legs not nearly as sluggish as yesterday.

Where we cross, hopefully it will be lower on Aug 22.

The bridge crossing Lake Creek

So those were the 2 days before the camp even started. I visited the LT100 store and met up with Ken and Merilee and got myself volunteered to stuff the race (camp) bags Thursday evening and then help hand out the bags to runners on Friday at packet pick up. It was really great meeting so many runners from so many places. There was one guy who was in the middle of a bike tour and Sat would be a layover day for them. He decided to do one day of the camp but didn't have transportation so I offered to pick him up where he was camped and drive him to the start on Saturday morning.


Saturday started at a reasonable hour with breakfast served to us at the National Mining Museum before we boarded buses to the start of this 26 mile day at Mayqueen campground. There were quite a few experience Leadville runners there and they wore the pink with black striped flagging used for course markings to identify that they had done at least 10 Leadville 100 runs. Very impressive. They were a wealth of information and advice the entire weekend.


The course leaves Mayqueen and immediately gets on the Colorado Trail and goes uphill. I was working way too hard and none too happy with how I felt. Not going to be a good day. Things got better when we got on Hagerman Pass Rd and made the climb over Sugarloaf but even the run down powerline was painfully slow

The infamous Powerline

The 7 miles to Halfmoon was tortuous and slow. It was the third day I had been at altitude and I've heard that that's when it can really hit you. The only highlight of this section was when Anton Krupicka ran by us like we were standing still (were we?). I could only get a shot of his back. I did get a chance to talk to him more at Provin' Grounds, the coffehouse where he works but I never did get a better picture.

Anton disappears up the road. I wouldn't see him again until the finish at Twin Lakes

After Halfmoon you get on the Colorado trail again for a very enjoyable 9 miles of rolling, sweet singletrack. At least it should have been enjoyable, for me it was just tough. Finally I started the descent to TL but the trail just seemed to go on forever. It would deteriorate before popping out on a rocky jeep road and after an eternity, I was in Twin Lakes. 26 miles in 5:45. As tough as this run was, I was really happy to have pre-run this section so I wouldn't have any surprises on race day. I understand this is a tough section mentally.

Part of the beautiful Colorado Trail

The bus took us back to Leadville where my evening continued to deteriorate. I sat in the creek by my camp for a bit to cool the legs off and wash some dirt off. I had no appetite but knew I had to eat something. I snacked a bit and laid in my tent in a fetal position fighting a headache and nausea for a couple hours. It finally started getting dark so I got up to get my stuff ready for the next day's assault on Hope Pass and was surprised that moving around made me feel a bit better. Maybe I would survive to run another day.


Sunday dawned beautiful (each day the clouds would threaten and we'd get some scattered rain but nothing serious, typical Colorado weather). I had no idea what to expect. I ate a bit for breakfast before boarding the bus once again for Twin Lakes. We would do the double crossing of Hope to Winfield and back, 21 miles.

Merilee checking runners in before heading up Hope

After checking in (safety was a huge issue for this very exposed climb) we hit some rollers before hitting the main climb. As the trail headed up, I asked a guy nearby if this was the official Hope climb. He said yes. All uphill from here. And it was sure steep in places but I managed to not stop which was my goal. I wasn't the fastest but I didn't lose any time by resting. There was only one bit of snow that had to be traversed but Ken and some volunteers had shovelled a path through it a couple days before.

The good news is that this was going to be a good day. I knew it right away and I was excited about doing a big run over a 12,600 ft mountain. I bounced back from the day before feeling strong, both mentally and physically. Yesterday I was doubting my ability to run 5 miles, let alone 100. Today I knew I had made the right decision to sign up for Leadville.

Top of Hope looking north

I barreled down the other side only to find that the trail gets steeper as it re-enters the trees. I'll have to remember that coming back. They had set up an aid station at the bottom of the trail as it hits Winfield Rd so I grabbed some munchies and started walking toward Winfield. I tried to get caught up on some calories and walked/ran the 2.5 miles to the turn-around. I spent a short time in Winfield because I didn't need to refill my hydration pack until I got back to the AS before the final climb up Hope.


Boy does that trail start out steep. I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and as I broke out of the trees I could see runners up on the switchbacks near the pass, some of them silhouetted against the darkening sky. The clouds were moving in and the thunder reverberated against the surrounding mountains. Maybe I'd have to use that rain jacket I'd been carrying after-all. It wasn't very cold and as I neared the top I noticed it wasn't very windy either. I must be in the eye of the storm where it's calm. After talking to other runners who had passed over the summit before me, they said it was extremely windy and cold. I guess I just got lucky.

I took a quick picture before racing down the trail. I was feeling great and I really pushed the pace, passing quite a few runners in the process. I came into the finish in 6:33, half an hour faster than what I hope to do race day.

A very well marked trail junction

That evening Ken and Merilee put on a nice dinner at the Mining Museum then we were treated to a question and answer period with the experienced runners. It was pretty informative and motivating. My husband and I have done a lot of endurance events, both racing and crewing so I have a pretty good grasp of what to expect. But even I know to expect the unexpected. I'm going to go through ups and downs that I can't even imagine right now.



The next day we were free to do what we wanted before the 12 mile night run from Twin Lakes back to treeline on Halfmoon Rd. I chose to sleep in, have a huge breakfast of biscuits and gravy at The Burro, then walk the town, buying a few things for my girls. I met up with Jael, from camp, and we drove out to the bottom of Powerline to hike a few miles up the trail so she could get an idea of what to expect. I have fond (and not so fond) memories of this hike a bike section from the 100 mile bike race.


We headed back to town to listen to a lecture about crewing before grabbing a burger and onion rings at Wild Bill's. I talked Jael into picking me up at treeline this evening so I could leave my car at the finish spot so I wouldn't have to shuttle back to town, pick up my car, then drive right back to my campground since the finish is only a mile from my camp.


We caught the last bus of the weekend to Twin Lakes where it was just getting dark. Finally, about 9:15 we were headed north on the part of the Colorado trail that I was dreading because I had had such a bad run on this section on Saturday. It's amazing what a couple more days at altitude and switching on the headlamps can do for you. It was an amazing run. The group stayed pretty compact for the initial climb but then things got spread out along the rollers. I was surprised at how well I had this section memorized from only running it once. I was having the time of my life, enjoying the quiet, dark, stars, and thin ribbon of trail that my eyes were focused on.


The last 5 miles were run completely solo. I started having this weird time-warp feeling like I'd been running for many hours and I started wondering if anyone would be at the finish. Thankfully, as I rounded the last bend, there was Merilee serving hot chocolate and burritos. The feeling was light as the runners compared stories about the weekend. I know we will be watching out for each other come race day. We had experienced a lot over the 3 days and will be pulling for each other.


I changed into some dry clothes (I was so glad to have my car right there), had some hot chocolate and just a bit of a burrito before driving back up the road the 1 mile to my home away from home. I was able to sleep about 4 hours before waking up, packing up camp quickly and getting on my way back to California. It would be another marathon of driving that would get me home about 9:30pm.


This camp was definitely worth it in boosting my confidence. I have now run almost every mile of the course so there shouldn't be any surprises in that department. Only 3 1/2 weeks to go. Thank you Ken and Merilee and the wonderful volunteers for putting on another wonderful event. See you in August.


Next up: race report for the TRT 50 miler.

Angel Island

Sorry for the long delay between posts. I haven't disappeared. Just busy running and got a little lazy about blogging. I want to start with a recap of my run on Angel Island (near San Francisco) and my training camp weekend in Leadville. Then I can get to my big run at the TRT 50 Mile.

Life started getting really busy mid-June when we headed to San Francisco to meet my folks to celebrate my birthday. We always love visiting "The City", it never gets old. So many great places to eat and visit. And low and behold, there happened to be a trail race happening that very weekend. How lucky could I get. PCTR put on the Angel Island trail race with distances ranging from 8K to 50K. I chose the 25K because it consisted of 3 loops (perimeter, middle and summit) which would allow me to see most of the island but wouldn't make my family have to hang out for 6+ hours if I did the 50K.

Caitlyn and Sara enjoying ferry with Nana and Papa

We took the ferry from Tiburon to Ayala Cove. Wendell and Sarah (race directors) have developed a very smart way of moving supplies: every runner grabs something as they get on the boat and then they take it off the boat as they head to the start line. A very efficient way to move a large amount of food and equipment.












We couldn't have asked for better weather. Blue skies and comfortable temperatures, made to order. It wasn't long before we were on the start line and Wendell sent us on our way. I had decided that despite PCTR's logo (runs that aren't races in beautiful places), I was going to "race" this race. I needed to put in a good effort over a medium distance to build my confidence.

At the start line, gorgeous day

However, I always start slow and we were faced with a pretty steep uphill right off the bat. It wasn't long before we were on a paved road that would take us around the perimeter of the island. I was surprised at all the buildings on the backside and I quickly settled into a rhythm. I would use this first 5 mile loop to get warmed up.









I came through the start/finish area (and aid station) where my family was waiting for me and cheering enthusiastically in about 54 min, happy with that. The middle loop consisted of more singletrack and I found myself running and pushing a lot of it, even the uphills. It felt good to stretch it out and push my abilities. I fell into a rhythm with a guy with a Big Sur Marathon shirt and we found ourselves passing quite a few people who were running shorter distances and started a bit behind us but didn't do the perimeter loop.

Evidence of last fall's wildfire

I finished loop 2 in 51 min and after having a speedy volunteer refill my bottles, I quickly set off on the last loop. My 5 year old has recently taken to running across the finish line with me so I told her that the next time she saw me, she could run across the line with me. I ran the beginning of the next loop with "Big Sur" (I was "Auburn" based on my shirt) and we congratulated each other on a strong, fast finish to the last loop. I settled into a quick pace up the singletrack of the summit loop. There were a few steeper areas so I worked on my fast hiking but tried to run most of it.

Beautiful singletrack

Soon I was at the top and I decided to take a moment to enjoy the view because I know these clear days are rare and I wanted to soak it in. Now for the fun part: downhill to the finish and it was trail that I was now familiar with, having travelled most of it a couple times already.

Golden Gate Bridge from the top of Angel Island

Looking down on Ayala Cove (S/F) and Tiburon across the water

I put it into gear and ran as hard as I could to the finish. What a blast. The singletrack is smooth and I felt like a kid just screaming down the hill. As I rounded the last corner I saw Caitlyn and we ran across the line together in 2:38:02, good enough for 44th overall (out of 131) and 4th in my AG.

It was a great day out on the trails and I thanked Sarah later for ordering up the perfect weather. My family and I enjoyed a picnic afterwards before catching the ferry back to Tiburon.

Thank you Wendell and Sarah for another wonderful event and the volunteers were great. I would love to do this race again. Full results are here. I'll be back next with my report on the Leadville Training Camp.