Vermont 100 Miler - Hey Dude, Where is the Trail?

Summary: The first 70 miles was vintage Vermont. A beautiful, wonderful yet challenging 
run. The last 30 miles was miserable. I see in Ultrarunning magazine that there is an 
Ultra called "Hey Dude, Where is the Trail?" This should be the theme of this year's 
Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run. It never occurred to me that someone would put up the 
glow sticks to mark the trail, the night before the race. When we ran through the trails 
the next night, most of the glow sticks were burned out. Fire flies gave off more light 
that the few glow sticks that still glowed. To the runners who asked me before the race 
on how well this trail run is marked, you have my sincerest apologies! In 2002, it was 
very well marked, but it was certainly a different story this year. More about this 
later.     For those of you not familiar with Vermont, there are three races: 100 mile 
foot run, 100 mile horse ride and a 50 mile night horse ride. This makes Vermont a very 
special event! The scenery is like looking at an ongoing post card.

There were several changes in this year's race. The start was moved to Josie's Field off 
Silver Hill road. All the other races were previously at the Smoke Rise Farm. About 20 
miles of the last 30 miles was changed. I was looking forward to this new section of the 
course. The pre-race meal was in the new tent. The meal was great with a wide selection 
of salads and pasta. It was great to finally meet some of the other Ultrarunning listers.

We arrived at Silver Hill 3:15 AM. The grass fields, where we parked, were very slippery 
as it rained most of the night. I looked up and it was clear with an incredible view of 
the stars. The field was very busy as runners checked in. The start of the race did not 
have the "class" like prior years. Previously, a gentleman in a tuxedo played a grand 
piano and 5 minutes before the start of the race, there were fireworks. Then the race 
started with the sound of "Chariots of Fire" playing in the background. This year was 
disappointing with just a count down from 10 and off went the runners. We went down the 
road and by the Smoke Rise Farm and into the trail through the woods. We followed the 
long line of bouncing lights into the darkness. There was no way to pass other runners as 
the road turned into a very muddy trail heading up over a mountain. You learn very 
quickly that people in Vermont don't believe in switch-back trails or roads. They draw a 
straight line over a mountain and that is the route of the trail or road. This made steep 
climbs and descents on the trails and roads very tough on the quads.

It was about three miles into run when Joy rolled an ankle in the muddy trails. Both of 
our hearts rates really went high as we thought this would be a terrible way to end the 
race. Fortunately, Joy walked it out and was back running after a few minutes. We went up 
and down very long trails trying to avoid the really muddy spots. The sky was getting 
lighter and we put our flashlights away. We were running on dirt roads and it was 1.7 
miles until the next unmanned Beaver Pond aid station (5.5 miles).  Along this section we 
heard a very strange sound, like a rubber band twang coming from the pond beside the 
road. We discovered later this odd sound came from bull frogs! We would hear this sound 
through out the day and night. We started to take our Endurolyte Caps and it was going to 
get into the mid 80s today.

The horses started to come by us in groups of two or three. Most of these horses are 
Arabian as they have the stamina to run 100 or 50 miles. The horses this year came by us 
at a more reasonable pace than two years ago when the first pack of 5 horses ran by us at 
break-neck speed up the road. We continued running downhill on our way to the town of 
Taftsville. We ran through the first covered bridge, probably the only flat section on 
the course to the Taftsville aid station (12.7 miles), and then traveled up a long hill 
on a dirt road.

We started to run with a runner who was struggling and not having a good time of it. She 
started talk to us about the many 100 milers she had completed, but focused on her DNFs. 
This was not a good topic and we tried to get her mind on more positive thoughts. She 
also was experiencing some pain in her legs. I related an experience I had in one race 
when my groin really bothered me. I had taken some ibuprofen and it settled down for the 
rest of the race. Joy then spoke to her about getting her mind off the pain and changing 
to a more positive outlook with mental distraction. She took our advice, and also 
mentioned she was a nurse, so I felt confident that she knew if the ibuprophen would help 
her as well.     The horses have their aid stations usually at various stables a long the 
race course. This year they had a "horse" aid station set-up on the road. There were many 
pickup trucks on the side of the road with buckets if water and feed for the horses. It 
was great fun running up the hill dodging horses, riders, trucks, trailers, handlers, 
etc. Just a beehive of activity! The Vets were checking the heart rate of the horses 
before they were allowed to proceed. We also saw some of the riders get off their horses 
and run beside their horses. Great way to take stress off the horse and the riders get a 
chance to stretch their legs.

After an uphill climb into South Pomfret aid station (14.9 miles), an unmanned aid 
station, we filled our water bottles and headed out. We ran with the runner who was 
struggling earlier. She looked much better and was talking about finishing the race! We 
headed over the top of a mountain on trails and down into Pomfret aid station (18.5 
miles). This was the first aid station that crew could drive in and can meet runners.

After this aid station I told Joy she seemed to be breathing hard for this early part of 
the race. She mentioned that her legs were hurting too much for this early in the race. 
Joy was running with a bladder backpack, rather than the two bottle hip belt that puts 
pressure on her sciatic nerves. She did not have much experience with this bladder 
backpack, and she thought it probably weighed about 12 pounds with all of her emergency 
supplies, even though she was only filling the bladder 50% full. Big mistake, as I will 
discuss later.

The horses kept passing us and I saw a great spot for a picture. I got out the camera and 
wanted to take a picture of two riders and horses in front of a beautiful house. Joy, the 
love of my life, was also looking at the horses and she ran right into me while I was 
trying to take the picture! The riders had a great laugh at us!     We headed down a hill 
and there was Top House aid station (21.5 miles). >From here it was another uphill out of 
the woods to a spectacular view of the Green Mountains. Some of the trails looked like we 
were the only ones to use them. On this section, we saw broken branches, likely from the 
horses and riders who had preceded us. After we ran down yet another hill and into 
Harvey's aid station (23.8 miles) we made our way down a very long downhill on trails and 
then roads to Stage Road aid station (28.2 miles). We went through Joy's bladder 
backpack. She was a running aid station! In the pack she had a jacket, gloves, bug spray, 
sun screen, first aid kit, pain relievers, several packages of food, sports bars, gels, 
tape, cell phone, mp3 player, etc. She must have had 10 pounds of stuff not including 
water! We left most of this in our drop bag at Stage Road. Joy was running much stronger 
now and I hoped that running with all this extra weight for 28 miles was not going to 
hurt her later in the race.

We ran up and over another mountain on trails and came out on a highway to Route 12 aid 
station (31.3). We saw a guy, whom we thought was a local, on a small dock in a pond. It 
looked like he was going for a swim. A minute later, we hear this "Yahoo!!". After Route 
12, we headed up another mountain onto open fields and then a heavily forested area. Here 
we met Luke. It turned out Luke was the guy who went for the swim! He said he had needed 
to drop his core temperature. Joy was yakking away and I mentioned to Luke "Lucky me, I 
get to listen to this for another 70 miles."  Yep, I don't need a radio, I have non-stop 
Joy!

We made it to Camp Ten Bear aid station (44.7 miles) 5 minutes off my 2002 pace when I 
finished Vermont in 25.5 hours. After running 1.5 miles we came to "Agony Hill". It 
starts off as dirt road and turns into a Jeep trail and then a single path trail. It goes 
straight up and over a mountain. The trail was really chewed up with about 200 runners 
and about 30 horses going up before us in the mud and rocks. About half way up, a thunder 
storm hit. There was thunder and lightning, transforming this already challenging trail 
into a formidable stream. We were really wet now. At the top of the mountain, the trail 
was a muddy mess with shoe sucking puddles. The rain let up for about 10 minutes and then 
it poured again for half an hour. "Agony Hill" really lived up to its name today!     We 
were running down a steep downhill when Joy screamed. She stubbed her foot on a rock, and 
she was limping badly, so I had her take off her shoe and sock. She had smashed her toe 
and the nail was half torn off. I had to clean and bandage her foot while get eaten alive 
by mosquitoes. Soon we were off again, and the heavens opened up, again, with a 
torrential downpour.  We were really soaked now!     Joy was now gasping and falling 
behind, tears streaming down her cheeks. I asked if her foot was hurting, but she said it 
was a serious case of chafing. We discovered later that her bladder pack had been leaking 
water down her back into the groin area for most of the race. Because of her battered 
toes and tendonitis in her ankle, she hadn't noticed the chafing until it was too late. 
We all know what water + heat + friction adds up to .. blisters or chafing. There is 
chafing and then there is CHAFING. She stopped twice and tried two different creams, but 
the damage had already been done.

After leaving Birminghams aid station (52.2 miles), we ran through a field and into the 
woods. After leaving the woods and running on a road, we had the first of five encounters 
with dogs. A Springer Spaniel named "Bandit" was chasing runners ahead of us. Once he saw 
us, he turned back and came charging at us. I picked up a big stick and the dog had 
second thoughts about continuing the attack. This was the first of five bad encounters we 
had with dogs throughout the run.  Our next encounter was several dogs chasing us at 
Cox's aid station (60.5 miles). I asked the volunteers to control their dogs, and some 
complied.

Joy was really digging down deep, pushing through the pain until we got back to Camp Ten 
Bear aid station for the second time. We were hoping the medical staff could help her 
with her injured foot and the chafing. We ran by another house when a Great Dane and a 
Rottweiler came charging out at us. I picked up a couple of big stones. Fortunately, a 
boy came out of the house and called them back.

The sun was setting and we were running in the dark on a jeep trail. We finally got off 
the trail on to the dirt roads. We ran down a long downhill and came up to a junction. 
There were no glow sticks, but I finally found a marker. We almost went by that one! We 
finally made it to Camp Ten Bear (68.7 miles). We were 40 minutes slower than my 2002 
pace. Considering all of Joy's problems, we did the south loop in great time.

The medical staff was busy with other runners, so Joy worked on her own feet while I got 
out our night running clothes and flashlights. All the medical staff had for chafing was 
Vaseline and some antibiotic cream. I got two plastic lunch bags and put extra Vaseline 
in one and the antibiotic cream in the other, as Joy was going to need it. We were 
finally ready to go and Joy limped out on the road. She had one ankle sore with 
tendonitis, the other foot had blisters and a smashed toenail, and of course the chafing. 
Oh man, how was she going to finish the final 32 miles?

We were going up a long muddy trail section that was really chewed up from both runners 
and horses. There were glow sticks out marking the trail. At the top of this mountain we 
started into the new section of the race. We were running down a road. The glow sticks 
were burned out and we were looking for the trail makers. It was so dark that you could 
stand beside one of the markers and not know it was there. Joy was really struggling and 
in a lot of pain.

At West Wind aid station (76.7 miles) we were told that most of the next 10 miles was on 
single track trail. We started out on the trails and the glow sticks were very dim. After 
a mile, most of them were burned out. We were continually stopping and looking for the 
trail markers. I was really getting angry about this situation, as I love running in the 
night, and this was an incredible frustration. The trails were very muddy from all the 
rain. About 200 runners and 50+ horses (more horses on the trail with the 50 mile night 
ride) had run through the trail and really chewed it up. It was a new moon that night, so 
it was very dark and most of the glow sticks were burned out. This was maddening, as we 
ran off the course several times and had to find our way back. Joy also fell, spilling 
her whole water bottle, at one point, so the two of us have to share my two water bottles 
for the next 4.8 miles. Needless to say, both of us were not happy campers!

Our pace was very slow and I started to do some math. We were starting to edge closer to 
cut-offs. It was time for a serious discussion. I told Joy she would not make the cut-
offs at our current pace. Joy had had enough pain for one day, and she wanted to drop at 
the next aid station. So, we decided that if she couldn't finish, at least I would. At 
the next manned aid station, I would arrange to have someone drive back to pick Joy up, 
and take her to the finish. She would continue at a slower pace, and get there when she 
could. I really hated to see her suffer like this! I made it to Goodman's, an unmanned 
aid station. I picked up the pace to the next aid station, Cow Shed. I ran into a fog 
bank and couldn't see any course markers. I watched my time and after 10 minutes, decide 
to run back, as I couldn't find glow sticks or the day trail markers. I finally found one 
marker in the fog. I must of have run right by it. I headed off back into the trails with 
the fog getting thicker. I finally made it to Cow Shed (84.4 miles). I asked "Who is the 
aid station captain?" A volunteer responded "What is an aid station captain?" I then 
asked "Who is in charge if this aid station?" She replied, "We're not sure." So I tried a 
different approach .. "Here is my problem. My wife is in a lot of pain and needs a ride 
to the start-finish line. Can someone please pick her up?" A young woman volunteer 
offered to go get Joy.

I left the aid station, running on dirt roads. Most of the glow sticks were burned out, 
but I had better luck finding the day trail makers on the road. Just as I entered Bill's 
aid station (89.2 miles), it was getting light out and three dogs came after me. I was 
really getting tired of dogs chasing me. In VT 100 they had Succeed sports drink. With 
due respect to the manufacture of Succeed, taste is not one of their criteria for a 
successful product. Since most of the unmanned aid stations are out of water and I was 
forced into drinking Succeed. I discovered a new use for Succeed; it makes a great dog 
repellant!  The Collie got so close, that I squirt him right in the face with a bottle of 
Succeed and he took off!   After checking into the aid station, weighing-in right on my 
starting weight of 166 pounds, tending to a foot blister, I set off again. That same 
Collie came at me again, but once I waved my bottle of Succeed at him, he took off. I was 
also told that Joy had not dropped and she was continuing. That woman is S-T-U-B-B-O-R-N!

The rest of the race was completed in the morning sunlight. Up and down the mountains 
three more times! I had a dog attack me somewhere between Keating's (92 miles) and 
Polly's (95.3 miles). I used my hat to hit and lamely tried to kick him. My legs were 
very useless at this stage of the race. I forgot to use my new dog repellant - Succeed! 
The last two miles were on a new trail cut into the woods. It was a real mess with lots 
of exposed tree roots. I fell several times going up Blood hill. What better place in 
Vermont to leave blood, but on Blood Hill!     I finally finished in 28.5 hours. Joy was 
cheering for me, as I ran across the finish line. She had dropped at Yates Farm aid 
station, at 88 miles. She had met her pain threshold and at her diminishing pace, she 
realized there was no way she could finish before the cut-off.

Two years ago, in 2002, I loved the last 30 miles. It had been absolutely magical 
running. I was running long down-hills, with almost a full moon, a mist covering the 
ground. I had looked in the grass fields and they sparkled with golden lights from the 
fireflies twinkling on and off, as crickets chirped in the background. It was like 
running through the Bayou in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride at Disneyland. Life 
doesn't get better than that! I only regret that Joy missed the course that year, as it 
was truly magical. It had been worth traveling 2000 miles to see! However, the revised 
final 30 miles of the course this year was not fun at all. I picked up my drop bags and 
decided not to go the awards breakfast. Maybe I am guilty of setting unreasonable 
expectations for the night run. But, now it is time to heal rest and get ready for Le 
Grizz 50 miler this fall!

From: Byron Chikinda <byronchik@shaw.ca>
Date: Thu, 22 Jul 2004 18:28:38 –0600