Subject: AC100 - a view from the crew From: Stan Jensen Date: Thu, 04 Oct 2001 19:34:43 -0700 I spent last weekend at the Angeles Crest 100, in a role that I don't usually have: crew. My friend Monica Scholz had asked me to pace her, but a nagging injury ruled that out, so I flew down to be her "token crew". The last time I was at AC was in 1999 for the end of the Last Great Race, but the memories quickly returned. We drove up Hwy. 2 on Friday, stopping at a few of the aid stations and road crossings and arriving just in time for the medical check and drop bags. Next up was a trip across the road to Jensen's Market for deli sandwiches that we ate at the Bates Motel-wannabe where we shared space with fellow runners John Metz and Richard Hayes. The briefing at 2:00 was the first real chance to see old friends and wish them good luck. Ken Hamada talked us into a spaghetti dinner a few miles down the road where every table had at least one person with the red medical wrist bracelet. Saturday started way too early at 4am. Monica took a quick shower while I went to get coffee. Even at that hour, I was able to wear a T-shirt without being too cool: an omen of the hot weather ahead. Monica started her day with half a sandwich, some salad and the coffee. We finally headed out and got her checked in with 5 minutes to spare. At 5am Hal Winton sent off the 118 runners with the aid of the local fire engine's siren. Most of us retired to the nearest source of coffee and food. Crewing for Monica was easy and much easier than what I saw of most of the other crews. She had six small drop bags and tried to minimize her time at the aid stations. I think last year she spent about 42 minutes in the aid stations and this year seemed to be similar. Since she was trying to run close to her splits from last year, I had a good idea of when to expect her and for the first half of the race she was within five minutes of her prediction. I reached the first aid station, Inspiration Pt. (mile 9.3), in time to see the leaders and schmooze with their crews: Leah Jurek, Suzanne Brana, Carl Andersen, etc. After Monica went through, I had an hour to get to Vincent Gap (mile 13.9) so I only waited a few minutes to see who was running close behind her. By the time I got to Vincent Gap, the leaders had already gone through, but I had time to help fill water bottles and get people hydrated before the long next stretch. The runners still looked good: happy, clean, uninjured, etc. It was early. After staying at Vincent Gap for about an hour, I drove a few miles up the road to Islip Saddle (mile 25.9). The leaders came through about 9:45, Monica about 11:15. I got to see lots of runners and most of them were starting to show the first signs of wear and tear. This was the first medical check and several runners were already down a few pounds. Many also came in with two or three empty water bottles. Soon after Monica left I drove to Eagles Roost (mile 30.0), where she arrived on schedule, tanked up and headed down into Cooper Canyon. After she'd left, one of the three French runners came in and was asking for a "bouteil" which someone remembered meant "bottle", so we borrowed one from a crew and sent him off. By this time the pack had spread out and the runners were several minutes apart. At Cloudburst Summit (mile 37.5 and 7000') we could see the runners work their way out of the canyon several minutes before they arrived. Some said it wasn't too hot in the canyon, but several runners went straight to the chairs in the shade. Monica was slightly upset to arrive and find that her drop bag wasn't there, but she headed out quickly. I was beginning to understand the frustration of waiting for hours for your runner, only to have them spend less than three minutes with you: cranky runner, endless waiting = CREW. Monica arrived at Three Points (mile 42.7) with Richard Hayes. They'd run together most of the morning and seemed to be having a good time. By now it was around 3:30 and the heat wasn't yet showing signs of leaving anytime soon. After hanging around a bit longer, I drove down to Newcomb's Ranch for a bacon cheeseburger and then went on to Chilao Flats (mile 52.8), the "Foresthill" of AC. Here's another medical check and the first chance to pick up a pacer. It's also the point where many runners pick up their light system. Monica arrived a few minutes early and without Richard. She charged out and he showed up 40 minutes later, with a bladder pack that had been leaking. I hung around Chilao for a bit and by the time I reached Shortcut Saddle (mile 59.3), it was dark. John Metz was having problems and decided to drop there, so when Monica arrived, John's pacer, Paul Schmidt, took off with her. She told me to get a motel room for when she finished. So, after seeing a few more runners come through (and in better shape, now that the sun was down and they had a pacer for company), I drove down to Pasadena, got a room, took a quick shower, bought some KFC and drove up to Chantry Flats (mile 74.6). The radio folks once again had a TV system so you could see the aid station at Newcomb's Saddle (mile 67.9) and they could see us. It was neat to see Bill Ramsey come through and have a quick video conference! Monica and Paul came in a little after midnight, a few minutes behind schedule. She'd been having problems with some socks she'd borrowed, but made a quick sock change, grabbed a drumstick and took off up toward Mt. Wilson. I drove back to the motel, grabbed about four hours of sleep and got to Johnson's Field an hour before sunrise. The finish line setup was great, with coffee and breakfast and radio updates on your runner. They said that Monica had indeed slowed down and would be a few minutes slower than in 2000. It gave me a chance to see Bobby and Barbara finish their Last Great Race. Around 8:45 or so, Monica and Paul appeared and they both sprinted across the field. She had a big grin and way too much energy: you'd think she enjoyed running 100s and you'd be right. By 2:00pm 64 runners had made it from Wrightwood to Johnson's Field and another 54 had stopped along the way. One of them was 1992 Grand Slammer Gary Wright, who pushed it too hard in the heat and collapsed in the last mile. He was taken to the hospital for IVs and seems to be recovering. Crewing is hard, but it's rewarding. So is running, pacing, volunteering and even just being an encouraging spectator, like Mr. Trail Safety. It's all part of this great sport and I love it. Stan P.S. Watch Monica's progress at: "http://www.Run100s.com/monica.txt" -- Stan Jensen, P.O. Box 3426, Half Moon Bay, CA 94019-3426 http://www.Run100s.com/ mailto:StanJ@Run100s.com