2024 Ridge to Rails 50K
6/1/2024 Race Report
There was a bicycle lying in the road in front of the car that held both my wife and my children. I could see it 100 yards down the road as I left the mile 25 aid station, where I had been expecting to see my family, but they had not been there. Instantly, the worst ran through my mind. Did she run over a cyclist? Is she going to jail? I am going to be a single father? As I got closer, I saw the car was stuck and the bike belonged to a good Samaritan that stopped to help. Relived, but not a problem I wanted to deal with 25 miles into the hardest race I’ve ever done.
The second annual Ridge to Rails 50K, Half Marathon, and 10K, took place at the Old Fort Trailhead on June 1, 2024 in Old Fort, NC. This year was the first edition of the 50K. I happened to be visiting the area around the same time, so my family and I decided to extend our vacation and start it off with a 50k. My wife liked the idea of hobbling me at the beginning of the vacation so I would not be bouncing off the walls. Little did she know that I was in the best shape of my life and full of stupid ideas.
We the started the day at the Old Fort Trailhead. The sky was overcast, and the air had a bit of a bite to it, the perfect whether for an ultra. I chitchatted with my friends Natalia and Mary in the parking lot and at the start. My “A” goal was 9 hours, “B” and main goal was 10 hours, and “C” was to finish. I had my Ultrapacer table set to 9 hours. Nine hours was a stretch but not totally out of reach so I figured I would target it. Plus, my 50k times have been inversely proportional to the amount of vert in the race, and this would be a vert PR.
Brandon Thrower, the Race Director of Tanawha Adventures, gave pre-race announcements and then started playing the banjo, signaling the start of the race. The course had only been released a few weeks prior due to the fact that it included a brand-new trail, the Lower Heartbreak Trail. We hit this trail very early in the race after passing through Camp Grier. The trail was plush and almost entirely uphill. A few of use were passing each other as I was the faster hiker, but they took the downhills faster. The climb was not anything that I could not manage, especially on fresh legs.
I came to the aid station, which had been pushed out a little further than previously communicated. I refilled my bottles with Skratch provided by the race and got a PB&J out of my vest to eat. The aid station worker told me that I was 30 minutes ahead of the cutoff, which was something no one has ever told me before in a race, but I’ve never done a race where I was chasing cutoffs like this one. As a left the aid station and started the next climb, my foot caught a root, causing me to lurch forward and fall on my sandwich and scrape up my hands. After I cussed, I heard “are you ok?” Later, that guy told me that he was about to turn back because it took me a second to answer. I would be fine, just shaken a bit.
The climb out of aid station 1 was about 500 ft. We started down the Star Gap Trail. This trail switch backed the whole way down and I was growing frustrated with my watch telling me I needed to turn every 100 ft. This was the first time I had every loaded a race course on my watch for a race. I particularly like the climbs on the watch because it keeps me present in that climb and not worrying about what is next. The Ultra activity setting also includes descents, which I had never seen before in the few times I had practiced with loading courses because I only use the Ultra activity on my watch for races. After reaching the bottom, we started a climb up a paved road that eventually turned to gravel and twisted and turned up to the next aid station.
Aid station 2 was where we turned back into the woods from the road. The aid station volunteer asked if I had seen any wildlife and made mention of bear sightings. I left there right on pace according to the pace table. The climb was up a gravel road that narrowed into single track trail as it descended. I lost a good deal of time on the descent according to my pace chart since I’m not a great descender, especially on single track. I eventually came out of the single track to hit aid station 3 on a paved greenway.
Aid station 3 had my drop bag. I had little bags of Tailwind in there in case the Skratch was not cutting it. I had taken a risk and decided to use the race provided Skatch drink in order to save time with making my own Tailwind, but it seemed to be working well. I loaded up on water. It had gotten warm and seems like I could not get enough water.
I budgeted 10 minutes for that aid station and even though I came in a little behind 9 hour pace, I left ahead of it with a long, gentle climb ahead of me that I knew I could keep the pace on. I checked my phone as I was leaving and saw a text from my wife that she was going to be there with the kids I stopped and looked around and she was not there, and I did not have signal. I decided seeing my family was better than some race goal, so I waited. I waited about 5 minutes, and I saw them down the road so I ran to see them and gave them all hugs. My daughter saw that I was covered in dirt, and I told her I fell and she started crying. I ended up losing about 10 minutes, but it was worth it to see them.
The next aid station was 5 miles away and it was all uphill and paved so I made pretty good time. I did have to stop at Point Lookout and get a photo. This greenway gets good use by mountain bikers and I was constantly getting passed by them and they all gave me encouragement and chatted with me. One came up from behind and said, “you have some mean calves!” Well, I must if I’m going to weigh 265lbs and run ultras. Another gave me the details on the upcoming Kitsuma climb, which would be the steepest climb on the course. He said there were 13 switchbacks to the top.
At the Kitsuma aid station at mile 20, I was very thirsty and drank a half gallon of water. The aid station volunteers also loaded me up with ice and I got a brain freeze, so I stuffed the ice in my shirt. I had done the Kitsuma climb before and it was fairly mild, but still tough. I had almost made it to the top when a came across another runner lying on the trail, one switchback from the top. He said his legs were locking up and he could not go on. I offered water but he declined. I wanted to tell him that they were going to make him get off the mountain himself but figured that was not my job. Once at the top of Kitsuma, there is another short climb that is hidden in the profile and then it’s down hill to the mile 25 aid station. I lost a lot of time on this section because I could not run much of it, mostly due to me not training to run on single track.
At the mile 25 aid station, I saw my friend Zach who was volunteering, he filled my bottles and we chatted for a bit. I headed out and saw another text from my wife saying that she was going to be at this aid station, but she was not there. I headed out figuring I would see her driving in and that’s when I saw our vehicle stuck on the side of the road. People told me to move on but then I informed them it was my family and I was not leaving. Zach arrived and told me that I needed to keep moving and that’s when I introduced him to my family. Like God had placed him there purposefully, he had a tow strap and is a mechanic. He sent me on and pulled our car out and inspected it for damage. I will be forever grateful for that.
The next section is on the road for just a bit before it turns back up into single track and the whole time, I was thinking about how irritated I was at my wife, but I let it pass because it had not cost me much time and I trusted Zach to help them out. There are a couple of climbs in the last few miles of the race, but I made it back through Camp Grier and to the last aid station and had myself a little bit of Coca-Cola.
During the last section, I noticed that my watch was going to hit 31.1 miles soon and I decided I was going to get there before 9:30:00 for my Strava PR. I ran for a mile, which was nice because I never push myself at that point in an ultra. I hit 31.1 right before the final “screw you” climb. At that point, I walked it in.
My wife and children were at the finish and my daughter ran up to me and I picked her up and carried her across the finish line. Brandon gave me a high five and handed me the beautiful medal that his wife made. Katie was waiting with my son and Zach was there also. A few of us runners reminisced on my fall earlier in the race.
Overall, this was a great experience. It was my best executed race ever. Set a Strava PR and official 50k PR, even with it having the most vert. I try to minimize ups and downs during races and I was able to stay steady for most of the race. I felt good even when it was hard.
Stats
Strava Link: 2024 Ridge to Rails 50K
Weather Permitting Podcast Recap
Official Time: 9:43:12
Overall Place: 141/145
Gender Place: 92/96
Watch Distance: 31.82 miles
Watch Time: 9:42:57
Average Pace: 18:19/mile
Elevation Gain: 5,820 ft
Average Heart Rate: 156 bpm
Active Time: 9:24:58 (not in aid station)
Rest Time: 18:26 (in aid station, skewed because my watch on not on rest while waiting for family)
Run Time: 2:41:11
Walk Time: 6:31:59
Idle Time: 29:47
Gear
Shoes: Altra Superior 6
Poles: Leki Ultratrail FX.One (I carried them but did not use)
Vest: Ultimate Direction Ultra Vest
Shirt: Vuori Strato Tech Tee
Shorts: Vuori Kore – 7 inches
Socks: Injinji Ultra Toe Sock
Hat: RNNR
Watch: Garmin Forerunner 955 (Ultra Activity)
Lube: Squirrels Nut Butter and Vaseline
Electrolytes: Relyte and Skratch
Food: PB&J (homemade) and Untapped Maple