The Laurel Highlands Ultra is a 70.5 trail race that takes place on the Laurel Highlands Trail. The trail’s southern terminus is located in Ohiopyle, PA, with the north end completing just outside of Johnstown, PA. The trail is single track for all but 1 mile that follows an old dirt road. It runs across the top of the Laurel Ridge in the Appalachian Mountains. Its highest point is located at Seven Springs Ski Resort.

This race had been my focus since reading the book Ultra Marathon Man. I had just run a poor race at the Rock and Roll Half Marathon and was pretty down on running. I had no desire to run any distance over the half. I was in Barnes and Noble one day and picked up The Book. It changed my life and after reading it I decided to run the Laurel Highlands Ultra. I trained hard and ran 2 50Ks in preparation. I, like many others had my life changed by ultra running and Ultra Marathon Man was the catalyst that started the fire burning.

The Friday before the race Kathy and I headed to her Moms house to meet up with my brother in law who would also complete the race. We arrived and I prepared for the day ahead. Luckily my Dad and Kathy were going to crew me and I gave them last minute instructions and directions to the areas they could meet up with me to lend moral , equipment, and nutritional support. Read the rest of this entry »

The Laurel Highlands Ultra is a grueling 70.5 mile ultra-marathon. The race takes place in SouthWest Pennsylvania along the Laurel Highlands trail. The course consists of rocky, rooty, hilly, muddy single track for 95%, with one small 1 mile section on a dirt road with pot holes large enough to swallow up a Jeep. For some reason I ran this race last weekend. I finished in 21:43. I have a new respect for this trail that I grew up backpacking on. I am going to post a full up race report soon. I promise……

How I arrived at Promise Land

How did I arrive at the start of the 2008 Promise Land 50K? I was pondering this question as a drove home after finishing the race. The short answer is that I drove to the Promise Land Youth Camp on Friday afternoon, but that is not how I arrived. It all started back in September of last year when I read Dean Karnazes book “Ultra Marathon Man”. I know it sounds like a corny movie script, but that book ignited something off deep inside of me. Up to this point I was a 2 hour 1/2 marathon runner. I had always loved backpacking and hiking in the mountains so this Ultra Marathon thing seemed like it would be a good fit for me. Read the rest of this entry »

Friday evening I loaded up my wife and 5 month old daughter and we headed to Farmville to spend the night at a Super 8 motel. We arrived with no problem. I tried to sleep but the race was dancing through my head and the person in the room above us was watching a loud tv and jumping around. Finally around 2AM I fell asleep only to be woke up by my alarm at 4:30. I woke Kathy and Sydney up and got dressed. It was 10 degrees warmer than I first thought it would be, a great sign. We drove the 40 minutes to Holiday Lake and Kathy dropped me off in the parking lot. I was very anxious and nervous. This was my first Ultra, I have never even run a marathon before, but I had trained hard and was 100% injury free. I walked to the dining hall to find a busy scene of strong looking athletes. I remember feeling a little out of place at that moment and not sure about what I was getting myself into. I checked in and got my race number. Then I prepared for the run. I started talking to a man named John and he eased my nerves. We all went down to the start line and Dr. Horton called out names of those people who had not signed in yet. One lady yelled from the parking lot “I am coming”. Then without any fanfare we were off.

We ran up the road and hit a large bottle neck were the course turned into single track. It was slow going until we crossed the dam. Then things opened up a bit. I was feeling good at this point. I was carrying two water bottles, which was one to many. This gave me the luxury of skipping the first aid station all together. I ran hard down the hill after this aid station and into the woods. I was taking an occasional walk break, mainly on the uphills. This was all part of my race plan. As we hit the pavement I was running hard again downhill. I was thinking about how much fun it was going to be coming back up all these hills in lap 2.

I arrived at the second aid station and filled up a bottle. I quickly ate some food and continued on to the first water crossing. I crossed on some rocks, next time I will just run right through. We ran down a long hill and then back up the other side. Aid station 3 was more of the same, fluid and food. I was still feeling great. I was at 12.3 miles when I passed Bradley Mongold, the eventual winner. Of course he was going the other way! I was announced as I entered aid station 4.

I was feeling good about making the first loop in 3 hours and hopefully on pace for a 6:30 finish, but the extra distance I heard rumors about had other ideas. The last few miles of the first loop was difficult as I was passing other runners on steep and narrow single track trails. I finally hit the start finish and had plenty of time to spare. I dropped a water bottle and continued into the second loop.

The second loop was like a late round heavy weight fight. I was on the ropes for a while, but as they say things do not always get worse. The trip back to aid station 4 was long and brutal, but I fought hard and made it. On this section I saw a lady running in a long heavy dress. She looked like she belonged in another era. I thought I was seeing things for a while, but my wife and I saw her on the road as we were driving away from the race. Very strange experience.

After I saw the lady in the dress I tucked in behind an experienced runner named Pete and struck up a conversation. We ran together to the next aid station. Soon after this he passed me and I never saw him again.

The trip from aid station 3 to 2 was almost all uphill and I walked a lot of it. Pete had told me not to walk to much because it gets addicting and before you know it you will be walking for 10 minutes. This section is where it began to feel better running than walking. Aid station 2 to aid station 1 was another struggle, but overall I was feeling better. I stopped at one point to clear the debris from my shoe and then continued on. I heard the cow bell ringing as I approached aid station 1. Only 3.5 miles to go!

Everything was feeling good now. I had weathered the storm and made it to the last round. I realized that I could make it in under 7 hours if I picked up my pace a little. I started to run as hard as I could. I was not going to walk, I wanted 7 hours bad. I dug deep inside myself. I wish I could of found this inner strength 10 miles ago, but at least I had it now. As I neared the dam a lady passed me. She looked fresh and was moving very fast. I crossed the dam and soon could hear the finish line across the lake. I was running hard now. I passed another runner named Sam who had been leap frogging me most of the second loop. He said “looks like you get the last pass”. I told him to follow me and we can make it in under 7 hours. He started running hard behind me down the trail.

I pushed hard up the last hill and onto the road. I knew I was going to make 7 hours. As I sprinted down the hill I saw my wife and daughter, video camera in hand cheering me on. What a great way to end the race. I finished in under 7 hours and Sam finished right on my heels. We had done it. It was a great feeling to shake Dr. Horton’s hand as I finished and congratulate Sam. It felt great to hug my wife and hold my daughter.

Thank you Dr. Horton for putting on a great event. Thank you to all the volunteers for giving up a beautiful day to make this possible. Thank you to Kathy for always being my number one fan. Lastly and most importantly thank you Jesus for giving me the ability to complete such a task. I now have the Ultra bug. I could not have asked for a better race or better weather (50 and sunny) to run my first Ultra.

Full Photo Albumn

Results
Professional Picture

Sunday September 2, 2007 is a day I will remember forever. This day marked the 1 year anniversary of my first road race, the 2006 Rock and Roll Half Marathon. That day I ran the race in 2:17. A PR simply because it was the only half I had ever ran. One year later I thought I was wiser and faster. I have completed 3 Half Marathons with a PR of 2:00 flat. I ran this time in both of my previous two marathons. I was hoping to set a PR in this race, but that was not the case.

The day started early as my wife and I arose at 4 AM. We met up with our friends at there house, near the start of the race. My friend Rex and I were dropped off at the shuttle bus. When we arrived at the start we had some time to kill. It was a cool 70 degrees Fahrenheit that morning. This is a large race with 20,000 entrants and I watched in amusement as peope in costume milled around the staring area. The best costumes were two Geico Cavemen, and of course Elvis. As we lined up to start the race I chugged a gatoraid. I had not eaten much this morning and that would turn out to be one of my larger mistakes of the day. As I awaited the start I had the urge to go to the bathroom, it was too late now and I would have to go during the race.

The race started and we hit the line at around 7 minutes on the clock. I ran hard the first mile and was feeling ok, but not good. I hit the first set of bathrooms and lost a good 45 seconds right at mile one. I then fell in behind the 1:52 pace group. This is where I would stay for the next 3 mile. I got a huge boost as I ran past my wife cheering for me. She is my number one fan. Over the bridge I ran. Then I started to tire. This ended my hope of running with the 1:52 pace group for the entire race.

At mile 5 I fell off the pace and began to slow down. Clearly I had not eaten enough that morning and now I was paying for it. For some reason I waited to eat a gel that was in my pocket. The long trail run I ran the past weekend was taking a toll on my legs as they felt like lead blocks by mile 6. I started walking through the water stops. Not a way to set a PR. I was quickly revising my goal to just finish in 2:05.

As I ran mile 9, back over the bridge I knew I would soon get a boost from my wifes cheers again. This kept me going as I counted streets along the Atlantic Ave. Street by street I ran, quickly realizing that 2:05 may not be achievable. It is fascinating how you can revise goals so quickly while on the run. My mile 10 goals was now 2:10. I got a huge boost by all the cheering people from miles nine to the end of the race. They really kept me pushing towards 2:10.

I felt pretty good physically. My legs were heavy, but nothing was hurting more than usual. I sped up as I made the turn onto the boardwalk and ran hard for the next 1/2 mile. Then I had to slow down again. This process repeated itself for the last 2 miles. When I was within 1/2 a mile of the finish I sped up and started to sprint with 2/10 to go. I almost ran out of energy, but was able to cross the finish in 2:07. This was a PR for the course, but not anywhere close to my pre-race goal.

I love the crowd and the noise and the other runners on the course. It feels like a big happy family out there with everyone pulling for everyone. Before I ran I did not know what I was missing. The feeling I had when I crossed the finish line was amazing. Such a feeling of accomplishment. It is strange what goes through your mind while you are racing. I went through a lot of lows in this race and never really hit a high note. I was not able to reach that place where you push yourself beyond your known limits. I just never got my mind to that place. This race is quickly becoming my rival. I just have not been able to perform up to the level I have in other races. Maybe next year I will be able to conquer it…..