24 Hours of Utah Race Report

I am now on summer break so I have time to update my running blog!

Michelle and I drove to Moab, Utah on Friday to arrive in time for the race starting on Saturday at 7 AM.  We both ran the 12 hour solo race.  When we arrived we drove to the starting point to make sure we knew how to get there the next morning in the dark and then went back to town for a delicious pasta dinner.

We were very, very nervous for this race because it was the first time we've attempted a race that you run for a certain amount of time instead of a set distance.  You also run the 5.37 mile loop clockwise on odd numbered loops and counter clockwise for even numbered loops.  I thought I would get bored running the same loop over and over, but I was wrong.  The scenery was beautiful!

Onto the actual race...it was 22 degrees at the start!  I didn't have a warm enough jacket so Michelle let me borrow one of hers.  The pre-race meeting was short and sweet and we were off!  The first part of the course was a dirt road that lead us up to some single track trail.  We ran through dirt, sand, and slickrock.  Once you reach the top of the course and go around the rock formations, you run down more slickrock and down through more sand and by a beautiful little stream.  You then connect back with a dirt road and make your way back to the aid station.  Michelle and I left all of our supplies in the car so we visited the car multiple times throughout the day.  The aid station that was provided by the race had lots of food choices and I mainly ate that food.

Michelle and I stayed together for about 20 miles and then split up because her foot was really hurting.  I liked the alternating loops because we were able to see each other each loop to check on each other.  At about the 5th or 6th loop, I was really feeling beat up and every joint hurt.  I was walking a lot.  That dang slickrock is HARD HARD HARD to run on!  Somehow I got that magic runner's high and felt better.  I kept negotiating with myself how many miles I would be able to finish in the 12 hours.  I agreed (with myself) that I could complete 9 loops within the time limit so that was my goal.  I met great people like Ernie and a man from Colorado Springs that was turning 76 that kept me motivated; both of these men were running 100 miles.  Seeing Jeff Owsley, who was running his first 100 mile race, also kept me feeling motivated!  There were lots of cool people on the course...a man wearing a kilt, a man wearing a jester hat, a lady with a head gash (that kept on going), an attractive Australian, and many more!

Anyway, Michelle ran 8 loops and I ran 9.  At some point I turned off my garmin for about a mile, but I am guessing my total mileage was about 48.6.  I am very proud and happy I did this race!  This video isn't pretty, but shows how tired we were at the end.  This was at the pub after the race!

Garmin Info