Idaho Mountain Trail Ultra Festival 100 Miler
 |
| Start of IMTUF 100 |
Over three years had
passed since I ran my last 100-mile race in Leadville, Colorado. I chose to
make my first race back the IMTUF 100 in McCall, Idaho. The race was touted as
one of the most difficult in the country; which further piqued my interest. I
completely changed up my training and attitude toward hundred-mile racing and
unfortunately experienced little change as a result. However, this race defined
my summer training and encompassed unmatched mental and physical preparation.
As one of the most challenging feats of my life thus far, I would be remiss to
not at least describe the journey…
I signed up for IMTUF
after my friend Anthony Jacobs recommended it back in May. I knew that I would
be in Peru in June and then moving to eastern Washington in July, so I would
have plenty of mountain training time. I put in more vertical feet and had
accumulated more time on my feet than ever before. When the day approached for
the race, I felt ready. My wife picked up Anthony in Spokane, who had flown in
from Austin and then the next day we were off for McCall. It was great to catch
up and we had a relaxed road-trip highlighted by a stop at Washington State
University. We put together drop bags, attended the pre race briefing and
mentally prepared to race.
 |
| Coming into Chinook |
We awoke at 3:30am
in order to allow plenty of time to get to the 6:00am race start at Burgdorf
Hot Springs. The elk bugle sounded, and we started off into the darkness toward
our first aid station at Willow Basket Junction. Anthony and I wanted to start
the race conservatively and run no faster than 8:30 pace. We knew that even
this would be quick, but we wanted to bank away some time on the easier
sections of the course. We settled into a large group as we floated along on a
wide gravel trail which eventually narrowed into a rolling single track as we
experienced first light. We encountered our first aid station around mile 10;
this was our Segway from the Ruby Meadow trails to the Loon Lake Loop. Anthony
and I stopped and refilled while most of our competitors continued on. We were
able to catch them back before reaching Chinook Aid Station at mile 16.7.
This aid station was
quite busy; we regrouped while Apryle and the RD Jeremy helped us refill for
the next 16.2 mile stretch. The single track continued on very rolling and
manageable and Anthony and I settled into a good rhythm. Shortly after Chinook,
the stream crossings began… and little did I know this would be the last time
my feet were dry for the duration of the race. The climb to Diamond Ridge was
much easier than I anticipated, and I made the ascent pacing with Sam, the
eventual 2nd place finisher. The top was quite cold and windy and
the dead trees produced an eerie whistle as the strong breeze moved over them.
We caught a runner up ahead and another runner joined us from behind and we
formed a group of four on the descent.
 |
| Upper Payette Lake |
We popped out on
Warren Wagon Road and then followed a gently down sloping stone road to Upper
Payette Lake Aid Station. Looking at my watch I knew I was going to be too fast
into this aid station, and as I expected, Apryle was a little upset with my
deviation from the plan. I refilled water, tailwind, and gels and waited a few
minutes for Anthony; and started the slow trot back out to the trail that would
take me over Duck Lake Pass.
I knew I had banked
away some time so I took this section quite easy; retrospectively, this may
have been my lowest point of the race from a mental/physical standpoint. The
trail was more runnable than I thought and though I was looking forward to some
power hiking, I could not justify it; I began jogging. This was a beautiful
section of trail that broke free of the understory as it neared the pass; but
the sky was showing signs of rain. Duck Lake came and went to my left and
before I knew it I was winding down to the aid station at mile 43.2. Here I
grabbed some ‘real food’ as an alternative to the gels that were starting to
wear on me.
 |
| Zach & Anthony |
Luckily the next few
miles were on Lick Creek Road, which were quite runnable to the Lick Creek
Summit. After cresting I started clicking off 8:30 miles down to the Snowslide
Aid Station where Apryle waited with a raincoat, food, and most importantly
herself and encouragement. The rain was really pouring while I regrouped at
mile 47.8; but I donned the raincoat and broke out the black diamond z poles
for the first big climb to the Snowslide Summit (7875’). This was a great ascent,
offering some narrow single track trail through some steep rocky sections. As a
bonus, the rain-soaked vegetation overhanging the trail thoroughly soaked my
clothing by the time I reached the top.
I took one last
moment to soak in the views at the top before gingerly picking my way down some
tight switchbacks. The more technical section quickly gave way to a runnable
descent all the way to the East Fork of Lake Fork crossing. Past this point I
was joined by Jesse, eventual 8th place finisher and we paced
together to mile 59.3; Lake Fork Aid Station. Apryle and I made a
miscalculation on calories to this point, due mainly to my 50 minute delay in
reaching this checkpoint. However, I was still only 11:45:00 into the race at
mile 59.3; I was confident I could break 24 hours.
 |
| Apryle & Zach in Tonasket |
We were at a
crossroads at this point; Apryle was forced to leave drop a bag for Anthony at
Snowslide because she had to make it to Lake Fork and we were unsure of his
position on course. Also at this point Apryle did not want me to run… (walk)
the crux of IMTUF alone so we wrestled with options. Ultimately Apryle decided
to create another drop bag for Anthony at Lake Fork and we started out on the
two mile road section to the start of the Fall Creek Trailhead. Most of the
trail to the Fall Creek Summit would have been runnable, but I hiked due to
exhaustion. The final push was quite steep but I actually enjoyed the change of
pace (Apryle would definitely report differently based on my outward attitude).
Reaching the top of
the Fall Creek Summit took a healthy amount of resolve. I walked for a while,
then tried running down the sandy gradually down sloping saddle. My knees were
beginning to ache and I decided to change into my tights in the middle of the
trail. This instantly warmed my legs and seemed to add some stability to my
knees and I quickened the pace down to the South Crestline Aid Station at mile
67.0. Here Jesse had caught back up and passed me and Apryle and I soaked up
the heat in the tent while eating some warm soup.
 |
| Elevation Profile from IMTUF Page |
My race was all
downhill from mile 67; not literally of course, there were still two more
Crestline climbs and one more mammoth climb; Bear Peat Ridge. I was relegated
to a slow walk on runnable trail that meandered through vast upland valleys. The
course description claims this is a beautiful section, and I am sure that it
is, but for me this was a endless muddy, swampy, arduous task that was simply a
means to an end. I took one wrong turn and added about a quarter mile (an
advantage to going so slow) before regaining the trail. In this section I was
passed up by about four more people. With each headlight gleaming in the
distance, I grew more and more frustrated, but there was no response my
competitiveness was gone.
We finally reached
another aid station that was packed in with goats at 74.4. I sat by the fire
and had some soup while Apryle took pictures with the baby goats. I was happy
to see such dedicated volunteers, but we were secretly hoping that this aid
station did not exist and that we were further along than 74.4 miles at this
point. At any rate it was great to warm up and see some friendly faces, both of
the human and goat variety.
I felt bad for
Apryle, having to crawl along in the muddy waterlogged trail for over nine hours
when it should have taken only seven. I was disappointed that the plan that
Anthony and I set out was completely unachievable and that again it was back to
the drawing board. I thought back to riding the bus on the way to a cross
country meet 2006, reading an article about Anton Krupicka and the Leadville
100 and my dream of succeeding at the 100 mile distance. I remembered my
failures at Leadville in 2012 and 2013; and all the training and planning since
that time. I thought about making this race my last 100 miler, that maybe I was
not cut out for it and that I just was not good enough. My spirit was broken,
but there was no way I was going to hang it up; even if I had to crawl to the
finish in 36 hours.
 |
| R Ankle Post Race |
While I was busy
feeling sorry for myself, a bigger problem began flaring up. With each step on
my right leg I felt a sharp pain radiate from the talocrural joint to my mid
tibia. I knew I had developed reactivity tendonopathy of my anterior tibialis
muscle. This coupled with the ever growing blister on the plantar surface of my
left foot added another complexity to my already waning motivation. We pushed
on an reached the aid station at the North Crestline Aid Station at mile 80.1. The
next eight miles were an easy gradual descent down a stone road, followed by a
tough semi-bushwhack through the Terrible
Terrance section, then a stream crossing and finally a long flat stone road
to the Upper Payette Aid Station 88.8.
I actually enjoyed
the Terrible Terrance section, it was an interesting wooded stretch with
countless numbers of salamanders scurrying along the trail. It was also here
were I stopped and broke the blister, providing much needed relief to my left
foot for the remainder of the course. I rested at the Upper Payette Aid Station
for a few minutes, then said good-bye to Apryle and headed out on my own once
again. I tried to stay with a pack of two guys that were keeping a good pace
but fell back on the start of the Bear Pete climb. Then another pack of six
rolled on past; which dropped my overall place to 20th.
 |
| Burgdorf |
The climb to Bear
Peat was steep and forested all the way to the Cloochman Saddle. When I reached
the Cloochman Saddle Aid Station at mile 94.2; I could not believe that I still
had another nine miles to go. I ate a little and then started up the trail
moving at a slow crawl. I felt like I was in a trance at this point; like my
mind was programmed for Burgdorf Hot Springs and that was the only thing
keeping my legs moving forward. I followed the outline of headlamps above me as
they snaked up the switchbacks up Bear Pete. The rain continued its persistent
drizzle and the clouds engulfed the sky obscuring any hopes of the rising sun
or actually seeing trail markers (even reflective ones).
After about 25 hours
and 30 minutes on course, I began to see the full majesty of the landscape once
again. I turned off my headlamp and enjoyed the foggy Bear Peat Ridge. After
about a half hour of meandering around the ridge, I thought that I may have taken
a wrong turn because it appeared that I was simply going around in circles. I
could have sworn that I had seen the same rocks, trees, and even foot prints
before. I was convinced that I had ran myself into the Twilight Zone. I was convinced I had entered another dimension of both sight and sound; but I saw a sign post up ahead and my next stop was…
Bear Pete Aid Station .5 miles. I was elated, I had somehow covered about 98.1
miles across the wild Idaho mountains and escaped the Twilight Zone.
 |
| Bear Pete Ridge |
It took me 27 hours
15 minutes and 1 second to complete the 103 mile course that featured about
21,000 vertical feet of climbing. Jeremy congratulated me and handed me the
IMTUF 100 buckle and that was the end of the journey. In the hours following
the race I relaxed in the hot springs and reflected on all the training and
time on course. The finish was anticlimactic for me, I was happy to finish but
ultimately was a little disappointed, Anthony and I were supposed to finish
together in course record pace. However, things, especially in ultrarunning, do
not always go according to plan.
 |
| Work Attire on Monday |
The course lived up
to its name, it was wild and remote, demoralizingly challenging, and both ruggedly
and at times hauntingly beautiful. The path was very well marked, the course
descriptions were detailed and accurate and the aid stations were well staffed.
I extend my gratitude to all of the volunteers who made the experience
possible. To Jeremy and Brandi for putting together a truly remarkable event in
a truly remarkable place. To Anthony for the miles on course, all the prerace
Strava battles, and pre race strategizing. And most importantly Apryle for her
steadfast and unwavering support. Not only did you do all of the driving to the
event and to each aid station, you also paced me through the races most difficult
section. You kept me fed, upbeat, motivated on and on my feet.
Month
|
Days
|
Miles
|
Time
|
Vertical (ft)
|
Long Run
|
July
|
3 to 9
|
95.55
|
18:31:29
|
13,494
|
26.1
|
July
|
10 to 16
|
75.52
|
11:33:38
|
10,643
|
18.37
|
July
|
17 to 23
|
75.75
|
12:51:59
|
7,779
|
20.06
|
July
|
23 to 30
|
89.36
|
17:25:04
|
23,556
|
39
|
August
|
31 to 6
|
61.62
|
8:32:27
|
10,640
|
11.6
|
August
|
7 to 13
|
66.87
|
10:28:29
|
10,883
|
26.25
|
August
|
14 to 20
|
95.56
|
17:35:30
|
18,963
|
28.82
|
August
|
21 to 27
|
65.22
|
9:39:51
|
6,200
|
15.01
|
September
|
28 to 3
|
77.99
|
18:24:32
|
16,746
|
22.8
|
September
|
4 to 10
|
55.88
|
10:16:09
|
9,003
|
10.81
|
September
|
11 to 17
|
143.78
|
33:05:56
|
24,428
|
103
|
Final Result: 27:15:01
20th Place
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