COTW's "marathon" has been discussed often enough here that it doesn't really need any introduction. The reason I put quotation marks around the marathon part is that while it's advertised as a marathon the mileage really comes in at an official 27.5 miles while many GPS units measure it at 28 or slightly over. Regardless of the actual mileage it's a tough race. As is typical for north central PA races it's rocky, rooty and just a tad hilly.

Last year I got to around 16.5 miles into it and rolled my ankle really bad. For some reason my ankles were rather "floppy" that day. It seemed like every rock, root or depression was causing a near ankle roll. Landing on a unsteady rock caused one of the worst sprains I've ever had, and I've had some bad ones. That ankle is still stiff and sore. But enough about last year, on to this year.

There are 5 main climbs on the course. I had done three of them so I knew what to expect. The word on the trail was that the last two were the worst so I knew I had to do some hill training. I have several trails that are close to home but simply run straight up and down the mountain. One gains 1000' in 1.1 miles, the other 950' in 1.5 miles. Both are moderately technical with some very rocky areas. I spent multiple runs doing hill repeats on these trails. While good for race preparation it was also good for some boring runs. I had decided to run with trekking poles, not so much for the climbs but for the descents and rocky areas so most of my runs were with the poles. I planned on using ankle braces for the race but decided not to use them for training. Just about every training run resulted in near ankle rolls regardless of the shoe or the stack height. Since it was a August race I ran all training runs in dark shirts to try to build heat tolerance. Once a week I would try to get onto some nicer trails for 20+ mile runs. Due to a sore right foot I only got in 4 of those runs.

This year we both took off work and rented a cabin at the resort that is about a mile from the start/finish line. I was hoping to get a good night's sleep before the race. The beds were rock hard so I ended up on a love seat. Only got about 4 hours even though I drank a huge glass of wine and a Mike's Hard Lemonade. The previous two days were spent just enjoying some time in the area riding on the rail trail and hiking. I took DW up the final descent, a medium hard climb, to see the rattlesnake den and the bastards were hiding or I didn't know where the den was. Weather was gorgeous with fairly low humidity. DW was going to meet me at two of the aid stations so I had to show her how to get to them.

The morning of the race was really nice for lounging around but just a little warm to start a long run and the humidity had returned. I got up, ate, relaxed, applied the final coat of nail polish, because we all know that trail running is all about appearances , and headed off to the start. Several people that I knew were supposed to be there but I missed finding any of them.

A little hazy from the humidity

The size of the crowd was a little bigger than last year. At 7 we were off. I took my normal spot at the back of the pack. It was a long race and I wanted to finish strong.

                    Near the back of the pack in my white shirt and UD pack.

The first 1.3 miles were on the road. Last year people were pushing at a 5k pace, This year I did it at a 10 min/mile and was closer to the middle of the pack by the time we hit trail. The first section of trail is more double track and I did a little passing and got passed some as well. Once we got into the single track a conga line formed and things moved a little too slow for my liking. The first main climb has quite a few rocks and little good footing. I don't think there had been any trail improvements done there but it wasn't as hard as last year. I credit both my hill training and the poles for that.

Moderately Technical Section

The Chubby guy in the white shirt makes an appearance

After about 5 1/2 miles we came to the first aid station. I had only went through about 24 oz of water so I added that much and some Tailwind. I grabbed a few items from the aid station and was on my way.  From there it was a long downhill. Here it seemed, there had been quite a bit of trail work done. Last year was brutal but this year I ran a lot of it.  Again the poles helped tremendously.  What goes down must go up so back up we went. At the top the trail opened up and was really nice. Very few rocks or roots.

                                                 Nice Groomed trail

Time to make up some time and while I was feeling OK my stride length and leg turnover was off. Ended up running in a group that was quite chatty. Soon it was time to head back down. This is a very long, approximately 1 mile, downhill with switchbacks. Last year it was brutal on the toes. This year it was too. The difference was that with the poles I was going much faster. At the bottom we hit the road, ran along it for about a 1/4 mile to the 2nd aid station.

This is not the steepest section but is still deceptively steep. The camera doesn't do it justice.

Here I ran into something I've never had before at a aid station, Pepsi. That washed down a PBJ really well. Leaving there you head south for a short distance on the rail trail then turn back up the mountain. This is another steep climb with some gorgeous views of the valley below.

View from near the top.  Taken last year.

Last year I had stopped, this year I didn't. The temp was climbing and I wanted to keep plodding onward. At the top it opened into a nice runnable double track. I had caught up to two other runners and stayed behind them, running when they ran, walking when they walked. After awhile there was a short climb on a dirt road. At the top was a impromptu aid station. I took a bottle of water, drank most of it and poured the rest over my head. The next section starts out with quite nice trails but it was just a little too hot for me to run it all. It was here that I met up with another runner that was from the area. A very nice talkative guy. We ended up flip flopping throughout the remainder of the race, Whoever he was around he was talking, constantly. Normally that would be annoying but he was a good conservationist so it was actually pretty nice.

After awhile we got into a rocky mess. This was the area where I busted up my ankle last year. This year I didn't even have a close call. Partly because of trail work and partly because of the poles. Still I was very happy to get into the nicer section at the bottom of the descent. At about the 17 mile marker they had rerouted the race from the year before. Then you went back uphill though the woods to get to the 17.5 mile aid station, then came back down to the road on a paved road. This year it was reversed with a small section cut out. By this time I was running by myself and started to question if I was going the wrong way. I ended up backtracking a little and lost some time before I was convinced I was right. By this time others had caught up to me and we started up the road to the aid station. The heat radiating off the blacktop made it miserable. Everyone else started bitching and slowly walking up the hill. I ran most of it and power hiked some. Near the top and vehicle pulled up alongside me and the driver started "harassing" me. It was Dave Hunter, a real nice guy and the RD of the Megatransect. He was telling me how good I looked and that I had this race locked up. We had a brief conversation as I finished the hill. While I was feeling pretty good, that buoyed my spirits a little more. Dave's a great guy.

Last year's result.

This was where I dropped last year so I was happy to be feeling good and uninjured. DW met me here with more Tailwind and a bottle of Perpetuem/Sustained Energy mix. I took way too long here, maybe 15 minutes. My stomach had started to rumble with the beginnings of a bear attack but I thought that I could make the restrooms along the rail trail as there were no Porta Potty's here. This station is at the DCNR headquarters and I suddenly realized that it was unlocked and we could use the rest rooms there. Ahhhh, air conditioned bliss .

After finishing my business I headed out again. Far too many people had caught and passed me. Running down the hill was easy as it was nice grass but at the bottom we crossed the main road and ran about a 1/3 mile across a bridge. While I didn't feel bad I didn't feel real good.

On the Rail Trail. Chatting with DW to see if she needed help with getting the bike off the rack. She told me to get running .

We then did a couple of hundred yards on the rail trail before veering off into the woods. DW had parked at the parking area and was going to bike up to the nest aid station and meet me. For her it was nice rail trail, for me a uphill slog. Here we had something that is so uncommon on the up hills, switchbacks. Still it was tough climbing.

Start of the switchbacks

It was here that I realized that my strength was climbing. I caught and passed a lot of people. Soon the switchbacks ended and we were on a old logging road but still going up too much to run. At the top we headed back down, straight down, no switchbacks. Here I again caught Mr. Talkative. We chatted awhile on the descent. I could have passed but didn't want to make him stop to let me by. At the bottom we turned onto a old road bed.

Running and walking with Mr. Talkative.  I think it was his family that set up the first impromptu aid station. Chatting made time go faster.

This was rolling and nice running. It basically runs alongside the rail trail but up the mountain about 50-150 feet. I had thought this section was on the rail trail but I guess they just couldn't make it that easy. Soon I was alternating running and walking and was by myself again. After about two miles I could see that I was approaching the final aid station. As I jogged in I was met by a volunteer holding a nice slice of watermelon. I damn near cried, really. It took a lot for me not to for some reason.

DW was there waiting and I was so hot that I was going to walk about a 1/4 mile to the creek to lay in it. Instead they had a kidde pool set up with water so I contented myself with dumping water over my head. I refueled, relaxed and got a lot of attention from the aid station workers including the medical staff. One girl came in with fingers so swollen she had them massage the fluid back up into her arm because her wedding ring was cutting into her finger. Later I asked DW if I looked bad because they were giving me a lot of attention. She stated that she thought she had seen me looking worse before, but she couldn't say where. In all honesty, I felt bad but not real bad. Certainly not drop out bad. This one was in the bag. And then the Race Director struck again.

Leaving there, I was warned, was the worst climb. Mr Talkative had passed me again and had headed back into the woods. I followed and soon was climbing. Straight. up. Google earth measures the first 3/4 mile at >30%, and it was a sustained grade. No places where it eased up. Thank God for the poles. But the heat was now unrelenting. I caught and passed Mr. Talkative and then I overheated. I. had. to. stop. Either that or fall over. So I rested. Then walked 100 steps. Then rested and repeated. Fortunately a stiff breeze sprung up. As the grade lessened I was able to keep walking with no rest. On the top the trail was smooth and wide, runnable.  And I did but cautiously because I was so hot. I again caught Mr. Talkative and he said that there might be another impromptu aid station before the next downhill, and there was. Cold water. Drink some and some over my head.

He lingered and I took off. Just before getting into the woods my stomach turned. It had been slightly bloated but I was able to belch some so I thought it would be OK. Suddenly it felt like everything was going to come back up. Two huge dry heaves and the pressure was released. I quickly drank a bunch of Perpetuem and ate a granola bar. Now I felt fine. So it was into the woods and back down a very rocky, gnarly trail. Again, thank God for the sense to use poles. At the bottom was some runnable area. Still on the knife edge of overheating I stopped at a spring and soaked my visor in the water. After doing this several times I was on my way. Back up the friken hill.

Mr Talkative and a buddy of his caught me. He pointed out that the finish line was just a short distance downhill from the spring, but no, that would be too easy. First we had to do a final climb. This one really was not too bad. He and I stuck together and slowly left his buddy behind. When we go to the top he showed me the rattler den. Turned out that DW and I had been at the right place, they were just hiding. He poked around and found two medium ones stretched out under a rock. That was good enough for me. We headed down hill and I wanted to push the pace so I passed. I caught another runner and passed him. I could smell the finish. The last part was quite steep and the legs held up very well. I hit the bottom and decided I was going to run it in from there or fall over trying. It wasn't a pretty run but I made it. 9:47:54. A little more than a hour less than ultrasignups prediction.

Shuffling in to the finish. No sprint. Probably doing 11 minute miles here.

Overall I was happy with the way it went. I didn't run as much as I wanted but I finished fairly strong and with a good feeling belly. My equipment worked out well. I used BD poles with flip locks. I saw a lot of Z-poles but still prefer my flip locks as it's easy to adjust them on the run if needed. I wore two ankle sleeves with straps. It's not impossible to roll a ankle but it's very difficult. Finally, this was the first run for the Speedgoats. They are not as padded as Mafates but they did well for me. I had zero cramping, not even a twinge. I think this was a result of my hill training, Tailwind and Endurolytes. If my stomach started to bother me a few swigs of Perpetuem/Sustained energy always calmed it.

Bald Eagle in the center of Picture

This was supposed to be a redemption run then I was going to be done with this race. If I'm off next year I'll most likely be back. My biggest disappointment was not seeing any of the people I wanted to see, including Keystonerunner.

So my 9:47:44 was good for 104/148 and 16/19 in my age group, the 50-59 year range. If I had been in the 40-49 range it would have been 30/46. Both of the 60 year olds beat me. Either those young pups are weak or the geezers are strong.

Nice job, dreamer. Glad you were able to get your redemption. Mr. Talkative was probably a blessing since he took your mind off of things.  What percentage of runners were using poles?

Way to get it done.  Sounds like a rugged trail with enough climbs to keep everyone occupied.

Congrats !!!  Nice RR and photos too.

Great Job and great recap Daydreamer! Mr. Talkative that's hilarious! There always seems to be a few of those. Those two bandit water stations were HUGE! They were life savers! And yea totally agree that blacktop slog to up to the DCNR aid station #3 sucked! I actually rinsed my head off at that hunting cabin outside faucet right before that final 500 ft climb. I believe it was right along a little creek. The water was brown coming out so I dare not drink it! ...I am definitely doing that one again next year if someone doesn't convince me to jump head first into the 100.

Congrats on your redemption and thanks for the report and all the photos. I can't quite convince myself that a 100 miler in PA in August is a good idea. Maybe I'll get some sense one of these years, though it sounds like the marathon is plenty hard!