Pinhoti Report part 3

Bald Rock to Silent Trail...

Heading out from Bald Rock I knew that the daylight was running out and nighttime would soon be catching up with me. I'm guessing there was probably 3/4 to a mile of pavement before we peeled off back onto the trail and the infamous "blue hell".
It is easy to see where this portion of trail gets it's moniker. There is numerous blue paint to mark the trail at this point and it basically consists of probably 500 feet of rock garden descent over large, sometimes slick boulders. Fortunately at this point in the race we were descending blue hell as opposed to the Cheaha 50k where runners encounter it near the end of the race. I was just happy to get through this section in the last hours of light and not have to use my headlamp just yet.

After getting through the descent their was probably only a half mile of running on the trail before it kicked us out on the road. The remainder of this section was either on pavement or jeep road ending at aid station #8 and 45 miles. Jody was here again and I took advantage of a quick break to don my windbreaker and get a little hot cider. The temperature was definitely dropping and it was officially dark.

Silent Trail to Hubbard Creek
Heading out again, I knew I was in for a long section of trail at 6.8 miles. I was actually feeling great for the first couple of miles and able to make some decent time running as the trail was pretty mellow at the beginning. I was passed by a pacer looking for his runner early on. It is always a little disappointing to see someone so fresh when you've been running for twelve hours but also encouraging that they are out there helping someone out. At what was I guess halfway I ran into a runner who was literally laying down across the trail. He asked me how far I thought we were and I told him I guessed about halfway. He was looking rough and I was thinking that's not a good sign to be laying down on the trail. After probably an hour I saw him again when I thought I had taken a wrong trail and backtracked fifteen minutes or so. Again, he laid down on the trail while I went back to make sure we were where we needed to be.

While a very long section, and at night I can only imagine how pretty this section must have been in the daylight. I ran through several small creek crossing and along side what sounded like some beautiful cascades. Also ran by probably a half a dozen folks camping along the trail with big fires going, guitars playing etc. Awfully tempting to stop and visit!

Eventually I got through this section and ended up at the small aid station at Hubbard Creek.
The aid station was staffed by a volunteer boy scout troop who were super friendly and helpful as was everybody. I had a few potato chips, ibuprofen and coke and headed out.

Hubbard Creek to Adams Gap.
This next section was deceptive in it's description. At only 3.3 miles I figured I could easily knock it out in an hour or so. Unfortunately it seemed my leg kept getting tighter and tighter, especially after sitting in a chair in the cold for even 5 minutes. This section also contained lots of tight switch backs and a good deal of climbing. I got passed early on by the pacer who had now found his runner but continued on. All in all I think this short 3 miles took me over an hour and a half to complete.

Coming into Adams Gap, however, I was greeted with some AC/DC blasting out of a stereo set up at the aid station. It was like a mirage when I finally got there. Jody was again at this aid station as was a big bon fire and several other runners. By this point I was certain I could not make the 30 hour cut off but wanted to get in a few more miles. I sat around the fire for probably 10-15 minutes while my wife told me stories of other runners who were having troubles of their own. The most frustrating part was that I really felt great other than my leg. If I could have just swapped it out I felt like I could have hammered away easily for the rest of the night. At Adams Gap I had three bowls of soup, another Starbucks double shot and a coffee brownie. Jody assured me that the next five miles was all Jeep Road so I knew I could make it that far.
So I headed out armed with my ipod shuffle and set out to enjoy the remaining two hours of my race and began the reflective process of what I would do differently next year. I was passed by one other woman who I had seen earlier in the race who was looking weary but still running. I wished her luck and kept walking. Once or twice I tried out running, just for fun but the tendon behind my knee immediately would tense up on me, especially down hill.
I wound up making it to aid station 11 @ clairmont gap with probably 15 minutes to go till the cutoff for that aid station. It was almost midnight and I knew I wouldn't make the next cutoff so called it quits.

Jody had forgotten our sleeping bag at Adams Gap so drove back up to get it while I waited another ten minutes.
Apparently there were two other folks at mile 60 who had dropped, one of which wound up getting a trip to the ER for dehydration from what I hear.

We were able to call and get a room at the same hotel in Sylacauga so headed back to town and crashed out. I enjoyed hearing Jody's stories of how others were dong and some of the experiences she had waiting at the aid stations.

I'll try to post my conclusions tomorrow.