East Tennessee is one of the most beautiful parts of God’s creation. On October 6th, 2012 I had the wonderful opportunity to run 31 miles through this marvelous landscape along the Cumberland Trail. As the Race Director welcomed us at the start on the bullhorn, he referred the beautiful trails that we would be on in the lower east corner of Tennessee as “God’s Pocket.”
My family and I left home Friday afternoon to drive to Cleveland, TN where we would have supper and spend the night at my in-laws house. I had my pre-race meal at a favorite Cleveland eatery known as Jenkin’s Deli. Usually before endurance events like marathons or my previous ultra I would carbo load and have a lot of penne pasta, chicken, and bread (lots of bread). Then for a snack before bed and a breakfast the next morning of cinnamon crunch bagels from Panera Bread. However this year I have been on a Paleo/Primal diet since Aug 1st. So instead of all the grains and carbs, I opted for a salad, buffalo burger without the bun, and sweet potato fries. I didn’t notice a deficiency of energy during the race, in fact, just the opposite. I got to bed early knowing that I would be up early and on my feet a lot the next day.
5am Saturday morning I got up to start getting ready. We would have to leave by 5:30 to get to race in time to get my packet, bib number, and ready my drop bag. I had slept fairly well and 5am is not that early for me because I am used to getting up earlier than that on MWF for BootCamp as it is. Amber and I got into the van to drive the 1hr trip to Signal Mtn for the race start leaving the kids with their Grandmaw and Pee-Paw for a fun day with them.
Amber and I arrived at Signal Mtn Middle-High School parking lot at about 6:30am. It was 63 degrees and it started to rain. Once there I went and got my packet and bib number. Inside our bag there was a sweet Patagonia tech shirt, some coupons, and I also got an Outdoor Research hat. On the way to the check-in table I ran into my buddy Nathan Judd and his dad. Nathan and I were roommates at Freed-Hardeman for 3 ½ years. Even though we are very different and have different likes, dis-likes, and pet-peeves and that we live roughly 8 hrs apart, we are best of friends. Nathan was one of the people that encouraged me to start running about 3 years ago now. At the time he was training for the St. Jude marathon and I was fat. Last year he came out to see me run the StumpJump and he got the itch to crank his training up so that he could run it with me this year. This was the second of 4 races that we plan to do together this year. We ran Country Music Marathon in Nashville on a warm April day earlier in the year. We also plan to run the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon and the Lookout Mtn 50 miler in November and December, respectively. When we met that morning, we exchanged hellos and then went on to finish preparing for the race.
For a race like this you get the option to have a “dropbag.” The dropbag are supposed to be no larger than a gallon zip lock bag. In mine I packed an extra shirt and pair of socks, bodyglide, 2 packs of honey stinger chews, some gels, and a powerbar. I would have access to that dropbag at mile 20.
A light rain continued as we lined up for the start and took our last pre-race pictures. For this race I wore my Reebok running shorts (I love these for long-distance because they are light and have deep pockets to hold gels and other things), and my RunItFast tech shirt (RunItFast is a running club I joined and have enjoyed, look them up!). For footwear I wore Injinji toe socks, Brooks Cascadia 5 trail shoes, and my HOV Lane DG Gaiters. I also carried my awesome camelback handheld bottle and my ifitness race belt/pack. Nathan and I made our way up to the middle front of the pack waiting for the race to start. Last year I started at the very back of the pack, a critical mistake that plagued me with a frustrating pace for the first 10 miles. The RD said go and then 700 or more runners started to run out of the parking lot toward one of two trails.
StumpJump is divided into two different races that start and finish at the same place but that divide after leaving the parking lot of the school. 50k turns right, 11 mile turns left. Unfortunately some of the elite runners either did not hear the announcement and did not see the sign, or just run way too fast. The “Lost boys” as they were called ran several miles the wrong way. By the time they got to the 10 mile aid station of the right course, many of them decided to drop from the race. They gave some others the opportunity to do very well in the race.
Entering the trail after about ½ mile of roads, we circled the campus of the school on their part of their cross country course. The first 3 or 4 miles were very enjoyable. Nathan and I talked about various things, we ran most of the minor climbs and were only passed a few times (I believe I eventually passed all of them back). At mile 4 we got to Mushroom Rock, which is a pile of rocks that looks like, well you guessed it, a mushroom. There were some people there setting up an aid station that would be used as the last aid station on the way back. The course is set up like a lollipop, 10 miles on the stick, 10 miles on the pop, and then 10 miles back on the stick again.
Once leaving Mushroom Rock the course narrows to single track, and also takes a turn downward, descending several hundred feet before you reach the Suck Creek Road crossing at 6 miles. Nathan and I keep a good pace, hiking the steep climbs and running the flats and downhills. Nathan would run the downhill very fast, sometimes I thought he would bust he was moving so fast. We cross the scenic swinging bridge that was very wet and slippery, made a climb then another steep technical downhill to the Suck Creek Aid Station at mile 6.1. Refilled the water bottle, had some grub and an electrolyte replacement capsule and we were on our way. We had run 1hr and 3 mins and feeling good.
Crossing over Suck Creek Road is in some ways fun, it is one of the few times during the trail race that you have a large audience, albeit that they are people stuck in traffic waiting on trail runners to get out of the way. Immediately crossing the road is a pretty good climb, over 300ft in 1 ½ miles. I was pleased to hike the steep portions. Nathan was a head of me for most of this and I would say to him, “Let’s hike.” I wanted to conserve my energy and I wanted him too. So much of a race like this is trying to be efficient with your energy, don’t waste your time getting more tired by trying to run something you have no business running, we had no business running that steep terrain. After the climb we came to a pack or train of people that we would run with till we reached the next aid station. Nathan had gotten ahead of me on a downhill section and I was stuck in the back of a pack of about 10 runners, 4 behind Nathan. I did not like running in that pack partly because there was a girl in front of me that couldn’t have been more than 5 feet tall. She was doing find as far as pace, but her stride being so short was very inconsistent and I found myself having to stop and wait on her in fear of rushing her or being rude. There was no reason to try and pass, because there were so many people in front of me. I was going to ride it out until Indian Rockhouse. Then…something happened that has never happened to me before. I had run this trail once last year. I have logged probably close to 500 miles on trails in the past 2 years and never have I fallen. But there, at the end of the pack, behind the short girl, I fell and fell hard. I don’t know what exactly tripped me up but I do know that the next 2 seconds seemed like 5 mins as I began to descend from my highest point at 6’ 4” to the hard rocky ground below. In that moment where time stood still I decided instead of trying to catch myself, I would tuck and roll. I didn’t hurt anything, but it did hurt. The short girl checked to make sure I was okay, I was and we continued to Indian Rock House.
The Indian Rock House is another natural rock formation that makes for a great shelter and place to set up camp. On the opposite side of the Rock is some rock stairs that we would run down later in the race. One thing the StumpJump does well with is aid stations. Everyone is so nice and helpful to get you whatever you want. I had a handful of trail mix, handful of peanut butter filled pretzel bites, small cup of coke, 2 salt capsules, and some potatoes with salt on them. I got my water bottle filled and then walked over to see the best part of the race. My wife! She had hiked down the mile or so from the parking area to see us and to bring me the rest of my Gatorade from that morning. I downed the 16 ozs or so, posed for a picture, gave a kiss and was on my way again. 10.6 miles done in right under 2 hrs.
We now entered the “pop” part of the lollipop course, known as Mullens Cove. The next 3 miles felt like they flew by. We were running at a good pace, running most of the inclines and Nathan blazing down the hills. We passed several people during this part, including a guy that wore sandals…I don’t know what he was trying to prove or if he was really in to minimal running, but his feet had to hurt. As we approached our next aid station at 13.3 we stopped off the side of the trail to stand on Snooper’s Rock. This is a Rock out cropping that hangs on the edge of the mountain and lets you see one of the most spectacular views of the Tennessee River Valley. Breathtaking, awesome, inspiring, realization of God handiwork. We stood there a couple mins and then headed back to get to the aid station. All the people we had passed now were ahead of us at the aid station, but we would shortly pass them back again. After topping off water bottles and grabbing a quick bite to eat we were on the trail again. I also reached into my belt and pulled out some Honey Stinger chews that I was going to munch on for the next few miles. Over a half-marathon done but still a long way to go, 2hrs and 40 mins of running complete.
On our way to the next aid station at mile 17, there isn’t much to write about. We enjoyed beautiful trails and good conversation. Running with Nathan made this race so enjoyable. There was never that lonely feeling that can sometimes creep in and cause you to doubt your feel depressed. We ran at a good pace until making another climb that included the old dirt and rock Haley Road. At the top of the road was another little aid station before turning back into the woods and continuing to climb. The next 3 miles were some of the longest of the race.
From the aid-station at mile 17 to the aid station at mile 19.5 it took us nearly 45 mins. The forest seemed darker through here. The terrain was definitely tougher. It included some good climbs and the dreaded Rock Garden. The rain that morning mixed with the fall leaves made for even worse conditions. However we pressed on and were walking/hiking strong. During the Rock Garden we passed at least 6 people, 2 ladies, and 3 or 4 guys. I thought we were never getting to the next aid station, then there was a guy sitting in the woods drawing, that made me think that we must be close. The parking area along a dirt road was just around the corner. This would be the end of the “pop” and another opportunity to see Amber.
We got to the aid station and began to refuel and grab our dropbags. We expected to see our families but they were not there. I assumed that we were just running so fast they didn’t get here in time! But we decided to take our time there and see if they would show up. I changed into my RIF singlet and reapplied bodyglide. Then I changed into some smartwool socks that I had got the weekend before at the Moonshiners 5k on Paris Mtn. It is amazing how a fresh shirt and pair of socks can make you feel. Nathan meanwhile was trying to bum a phone so we could call our family and tell them we are headed on. While he was dialing, they showed up! It was great to see Amber to tell her how I was doing and good the awesome encouragement. We posed for a few more pictures and I was itching to get going! Down the hill we went back to the Indian Rockhouse. 2/3rds done! 4 hours of running behind us. I for a moment thought about breaking 6 hrs..that moment was very short lived.
We had a long 5 miles or so to get back to the Suck Creek road crossing and our next aid station. Nathan and I yo-yoed for the next 3 miles. He would fly past me on the down hills and I would hike past him on the climbs. We passed a few more runners until we made a wrong turn and had to back track a little bit and re-pass the same two guys. It was shortly after this that we had another climb where I passed Nathan along with another runner and I decided to open it up. I ran the rest of the way to the steps that go down to Suck Creek Road only hiking one or two climbs and running the rest. Once I reached the road I yelled, “Hey Judd! Judd!” I heard Nathan answer back and could tell he was still a good ways up on the mountain, I then yelled, “Hurry Up!” and crossed over the guard rail to the aid station.
6.2 miles to go! Last year at this part of the race I was ready to quit. Everything hurt and seeing people along the trail sitting down did not give me any hope. This year I was ready. I refueled at the aid station and grabbed a power bar out of my belt that I was going to munch on as I started the climb. I kept reminding myself that I had trained for this. That I am a strong hiker and that these two climbs were not going to beat me. It is during this time of endurance events where many people start talking to themselves...or at least I do.
The climb to Mushroom rock at mile 26.8 is brutal, especially on tired legs. The first climb is close to 400ft of gain in under 3/4th of a mile. Then the beat up quads get beat up even more as you pound down 400ft of descent back to the swinging bridge (here I fell, again!). Past bridge begins the hardest climb of the race, 600 ft of vertical gain. Mushroom Rock becomes a beacon of safety 3/4ths of the way up the climb. I downed two cups of coke there and ate a little bit wanting to move on and finish.
The last 4.2 miles are very deceiving. What was a gradual downhill at the beginning of the race, seems like a steady climb now. However I was ready for the challenged and started to play tricks on myself to keep my mind off the pain and the discouragement of going uphill. I reasoned that I had 4 miles to go. That means that I had roughly 12 songs to go. I can usually run a mile in 2 ½ songs or so, so 3 songs should be plenty even with the climb. So I started counting songs and running towards the finish. I tried not to walk at all these last few miles…I did some, but I ran most of the way and was even able to pick off a few more runners.
At mile 3 you can begin to hear the loud speaker from the finish line…this is cruel. But you have to know that you still have 3 miles to go or just 9 songs. It was at song number 6, almost there, that I crossed the road on the campus of the school again and was also crossed by a girl. This was the first and only girl that I am aware of that passed me and I never caught back up to…I got “chicked”. With now just a half mile to go the Foo Fighters song “Monkey Wrench” came on. I decided to put both of my earphones in, crank it, and run hard. It was all road now to the finish. 31 miles in 6hrs and 26 mins. I was happy.
I enjoyed this race tremendously. It was beautiful. It was great fun to run with Nathan.
After the race I walked with Amber to get some clean clothes at the car. While walking there my right leg cramped up and threw me to the ground, it was very painful, but I didn’t have to run anymore today. I went and got my complimentary hamburger and ate while waiting for Nathan to finish. I was proud that he had finished his first 50k! I look forward to the Battlefield Marathon in November and the Lookout Mtn 50 miler in December.
A special thanks goes to my lovely wife Amber. She is my number one encourager and is always the best thing to see during a difficult race. I could not do it without her support, nor would I want to.
Here is my Garmin info: http://connect.garmin.com/player/230694112
