Wow. What a
difference a year makes. This race went
from a total bummer last year, to my new favorite 50 miler. The volunteers were fantastic, the weather
perfect, and the trails in pristine shape.
What a great way to end the season.
And what fun it was.
Surf the Murph is a series of three races set in the 2,800
acre Murphy Hanrehan Reserve in Savage, MN.
A single loop of the park nets a little less than 17 miles, so we get races
at 25k, 50k and 50 miles depending on the number of loops you feel like
suffering though. The terrain varies
from dirt road to technical singletrack with about 2,000 of elevation for each
loop.
This race is a bit unique to the ones I tend to choose. Ignore the trail markers at any time, at your
peril. You’ve got to pay attention. On every loop. The RD’s worked a great, well-marked course,
and it is our job to follow it and not create our own. As I tend to zone out on long runs, this
always proves a challenge. And as I
know, I can be attention-challenged.
My goal for this race was a top-10 finish, under 9:30. I find this course a challenge to move
through quickly, especially on the final loop, so I may have been a bit
delusional. The first loop was a planned
easy glide, the second a major push, and the third, well, whatever I had left in the
tank, if anything. Also, after getting
pretty dehydrated at North Face, I committed to drinking plenty and keeping the
electrolytes coming.
Before the race –
I’ve been trying something new with pre-race nutrition: starting on the Monday
prior, I greatly reduced my starch intake (no pasta, no potatoes). Then on Friday I snacked all day on a trough
of mashed potatoes. 4:00 Saturday
morning saw a cup of oatmeal, a banana and a caffeine-free Gu about 20 minutes
prior to the 6:00 am start. Though
nutrition is probably my weakest link, this plan seemed to have worked well this
year.
The temperature at the start was upper 20’s and felt vastly
better than the 22° at last year’s start.
I was wearing a technical long-sleeve turtleneck with compression
shorts, gloves and a knit cap. I brought
lots of clothes along though, because I knew the temps would be rising. Though the aid stations were close-spaced,
most people carried water. I had mine in
the form of a single 22 oz bottle in a waist-pack. The parking, check-in and pre-race brief went
very smoothly.
And then we were off
– About 50 bobbing headlamps trundled into the woods for the first of three
loops. This initial portion of the loop consisted
of about 5 miles of wooded hills, which seemed like the bulk of the elevation
for the course. My easy glide was
working fine for me. I kept telling
myself to ignore the other racers and focus on my pace. I know it sounds silly, but the urge to race
at mile 2 of a 50 mile race was so strong.
Like being first into aid station 1 was the goal. Way to go.
I didn’t mind these hills in the dark when I couldn’t see them
approaching; so much easier to zen through.
Before we knew it we were through the cheerful aid station 1. What a great group of volunteers; I drew on
their fantastic energy (and their orange gels, mmm). The hills weren’t done yet though. Among the challenges following aid-1 there was a series of three
step hills that gave you a steep 370 feet of slogging. If someone has named these, I’d love to hear about
it; I like cursing them with their proper names.
Into Aid-2 – It
was still dark when I met my wife Beth at the second aid station. This station doubled as aid-4 as well, and had
room for crew. As I rolled in I was met
with a “Hey Hon”, followed by a chorus of “Hey Hon”s from the aid station volunteers. What a great group; they cracked me up.
Beth and I planned a quick pit stop and it worked pretty
well. I exchanged my (almost) empty
bottle with a fresh one filled with warmish water. That aid station water can get cold, and very
uncomfortable to drink. Beth also warmed
up a gel in her arm pit. Tasty
Tropical! And then I was gone.
Smooth and Flatish
– While the first 5 miles of the course had some hills I tended to hike, the
remainder were mostly of the short or unsteep variety, and thus pretty
runnable. And the sunrise was
gorgeous! What a wonderful feeling to be
in the first 10 miles of a trail run, early on a clear Saturday morning, at
sunrise, among friends. Ahhh. Hmmm.
Uhhh, I haven’t seen a trail marker in a bit. At about this time someone yelled “Trail!”
behind me, and saved me from a long, unplanned excursion. Thanks.
In and Out of Aid-3
– The third aid station was a bit more business-like, really getting us in and
out fast. Great energy. I grabbed another gel, (tropical again) and
was out, down a mouse path through the woods, with a limbo tree thrown in for
free. I knew that I would curse that
tree by the third loop.
Following some very relaxing trail running, we started the
first of two technical, wooded singletrack areas called Smurph Village. I loved this section. It was like the snowshoe section at Afton,
only a bit more technical (and shorter).
The signs placed throughout were humorous, but I’d have to stop if I wanted
to read them. I needed to keep my eyes
on the terrain. At this time, three deer
came flying like missiles though the woods, toward a group behind me. The deer just put their heads way down and
turned on the turbos. Yikes.
The Final Bits –
Into aid-4 (same location as aid-2) I did another bottle swap, along with an
S-cap and gel, and a quarter of a PB&J with a potato chip inside. This seemed to work very well at keeping my
stomach happy as I had no digestive issues throughout the race.
The final 4.5 miles of the loop had gentle hills and nice
flats. That is, except for the second
technical, wooded singletrack, called the Fun Zone. Last year I missed the turnoff for this
section. Twice. And it really set my mood for the remainder
of the race. I was bound and determined
not to miss the turnoff this time. The
RD’s placed what looked like a billboard at this turnoff this year. Thanks.
I guess I was not the only dork not paying attention last year. The Fun Zone was pretty short, but had a nasty
climb and descent in the middle. The
trail was covered with leaves the first time through, and thus traction was very
difficult to maintain.
And then the first loop was complete! As the temperature was climbing (mid 30’s I
think), it was time for a technical tee and a pair of running sleeves. After a gel (still caffeine-free), S-cap and
PB&J, I was into my second (and toughest) loop.
Loop-1 plan: 3:10, actual: 2:50
Second Loop –
After an easy glide on loop-1, this loop was to be the one where I pushed
myself. But not in the hills. I tried to take the first 5 miles with an
easy perceived effort; I knew I would see these one more time. On the flats following aid-2, I started my
push to about 7:30 miles. My legs were
not happy, and I went through my first difficult phase. My respiration climbed and I was afraid I
would not be able to hold that pace.
After what seemed like about 5 miles (shortly after aid-3) my
respiration relaxed. I did go off-course
again in Smurph Village, though not very far.
I also cut back on the gels to about every 45 minutes; instead of the
every 20-30 minutes.
Following aid-4, I started with the Double Espresso-flavored
Clif Shots. I can’t stand the taste of
coffee, and these gels make me gag. But
wow, what a kick in the shorts they gave!
I loved those things. I also
dropped the running sleeves, as the temperature was now in the low 40’s.
Loop-2 plan: 3:00, actual: 2:55
Into My Last Loop
– I was feeling great heading into the hills for the last time, and was very
optimistic. I knew that a sub-9 hr race
was within reach. Of course, it was
easier to be optimistic before the
hills. I was trumpeted in to aid-1 by
one of the volunteers. Awesome! The crew here was very energetic and
supportive. I heard that trumpet booming
for the next 2 miles or so, accompanied every so often by a drum. I flew through aid-1 with a smile and a
thanks, unlike last year when I slogged up to the table in pretty sad shape. What a difference a year makes.
Following aid-1, there was a gate we needed to squeeze by followed by an immediate left. It was here that
I took my biggest off-course excursion.
I went straight after taking the left correctly on the first two
loops. Agh! This was almost exactly a 1 mile off-course
jaunt which cost me about 10 minutes. I
was really upset with myself. It took a
bit of self-phych to get myself back into the race. After getting back on course a guy with a skeleton
shirt on flew by me, racing up and down the hills. I think it might have been the first-place
50k racer. Wow did he look fresh and
friendly. Way to go!
Following aid-2 my legs felt as useless as tree trunks. Ugh.
My respiration was fine, so I did what I needed to do and concentrated
on keeping my stride and pace consistent.
Finally working though that, the flats went by quickly.
Out of aid-4 I was told I was in 9th
place. That felt pretty cool. As this was the start of the final 4.5-mile
portion, I dropped my hat and gloves.
The cold became my motivation to finish fast. I passed a racer who was looking pretty beat
up and tried my best to motivate her with encouragement, stating she was “very
near the finish”, and “as good as done”.
And then I was Done –
The best pace I could manage into the finish was about 7:00, but that felt right. My time was 9:12, well under my 9:30
goal. At first I was hard on myself for
the 10+ minutes I spent off-course, but not for long. Paying attention is a big part of this race,
and those ahead of me did that well. I finished
in 11th place (vice the reported 9th), with the elusive
top-10 only 26 seconds ahead. Motivation
for next year!
Also, that racer I tried to motivate in the last loop bypassed
the finish mat and headed back out again.
She was just starting her third loop.
I can only imagine what she was thinking when I told her she was “as
good as done.” Way to persevere!
What a great way to end the season.
I felt I ran a strong race and took from
it motivation to run stronger and smarter next year.
Thanks to the RD’s and volunteers for a great race. Thanks to God for the wonderful gift of
running and the freedom and peace it brings.
Now it's time to relax (a bit) and get fat (for
a bit). Until next year.
