Race Report: El Vaquero Loco 50k

Distance:  32 miles (8200' vertical)
Time:  6:02:43
Place:  2

Wow.  That is about all I have to say about this race.  If you call yourself an ultrarunner, you'd better do this one at least once.  Ty Draney puts on this race in the beautiful little town of Afton, WY.  Cody and Jon, my two training partners, talked me into signing up for this race, but then Jon wussed out and moved to South Carolina (something about some job with GE or something), and Cody has been out basically all year with an ITB injury, so I ended up going this one alone, as far as training buddies go.  Anyway, on to the report.  Ty reserved an entire campground for the participants and their families (courtesy of the Forest Service), so I got to stay there for free instead of having to pay for a motel room or paid camping.  The minute I pulled into Star Valley, I knew that this was going to be a memorable race because the scenery was just majestic.  I was not to be disappointed.  I went to bed around 9, and slept like a baby, as my old CC coach from high school let me use his air mattress.  I woke up once at about 3 AM because the moon was so bright that I thought that someone's headlights were on me and I had missed the start.  I didn't sleep much after that, but it was ok because I didn't feel tired.  I got out of bed at 4:25, 5 minutes before my alarm, and packed all my camping gear back into my car and got all my things for the race ready.  I did accidentally leave my Garmin sitting on my dash, but other than that I had everything.  I boarded the bus to the start line at about 5:10, and after a few minutes of lurching up a dirt canyon road we arrived.  The weather was clear, and quite chilly, so it was a lucky thing that Ty had included a hoodie in the packet instead of a shirt, because I didn't even think about bringing one, thinking the summer weather wouldn't be cold.  After a few minutes of warming up I was fine though.

The race started on time, and I joined up with the lead pack going at a very comfortable pace.  Luke Nelson had won this race the previous three years and held a very respectable course record, so I had no intention of going out with him, and he quickly dropped the three of us following.  We kept a loosely formed chase pack all the way to the turnaround of the first lap.  The group consisted of a guy named Ryan, Micah who had run with Jon and Cody last year, and myself.  The pace was pedestrian, but I knew that it was for a reason, as this course is very difficult in the later stages.  Due to snow problems, the course had been revamped to be a double out and back on the Swift Creek side of the course, and consequently clocked out at 32 miles and 8200 feet of vertical, instead of the usual 31 miles and 9,000 feet (this according to Luke's assessment, as I forgot my Garmin).  The trail climbed very gradually for the first 5.5 miles, with just a few steep sections before we got to the aid station.  Micah and I had plenty of stuff, and I had just taken my first gel,I so we blew through.  Ryan stopped, but quickly caught back up.  The next section is incredibly scenic, but is equally grueling.  I don't know the exact figures, but it climbs a LOT.  Even being fresh we found ourselves power hiking most of this section.  The second lap became an ominous prospect.   We finally got to the top of the first major ridge, and were able to look out over the mountains.  The view was stunning with the sun coming up over the mountains to the east.  Taking the trail to the right, we ascended a few more feet up to a saddle at about 10,000 feet.  From here, the trail took a big nose dive down to a small alpine lake.  There was a big snowfield here too, and on the second lap when the snow had softened, many people simply glissaded or simply slid down it. Once we ran around the lake, the trail quickly climbed up again, and we gained almost all the elevation we had lost.  We then took another, bigger nose dive down an incredibly steep slope to the second lake and the turnaround.  Here I grabbed a few pretzels and we were off again, heading back up the crazy slope we had just come down.  I could feel the fatigue in my quads, but before I knew it we had reached the top of the main saddle above the first lake again and were beginning the long descent back to the start line/turnaround.  At this point in the race, I could feel the fatigue setting in, but I was still feeling pretty spry.  I was glad, however, that Micah didn't try to set any land speed records heading back down.  We moved at a quick, but sustainable pace all the way back to the first canyon we had entered.  By now, I could really feel that my quads were slowly being shredded, as they began to complain at any change from downhill to uphill or vice versa.  But I was still feeling pretty good otherwise.

Ryan had long since dropped off, so it was just Micah and myself who arrived at the turnaround/aid station.  I was feeling pretty good, and Ty gave me a nice little pep talk while I was grabbing some Nuun and some more pretzels.  I was in and out in probably under 30 seconds, leaving Micah doing something with his drop bag.  I reasoned that if I wanted a chance to win or take second I would have to put the hammer down on this lap, so I moved into a faster, but still relaxed pace.  I was mentally comparing this race to running a mile back in HS track.  My coach would always tell me that the race was won or lost in the third lap, so this leg of my journey became my "third lap."  As I ascended up onto the single track, I could feel the burning in my quads.  It was going to be a long 16 miles until I could finish.  Surprisingly, however, I was able to maintain a good clip though.  I was running all but the steepest uphills and generally feeling great.  I had taken a few of my Shot Bloks during the final stretch of the first lap, and they were apparently kicking in.  I figured that my best chance at this point was to go hard as long as I could maintain it, and then just try to keep it respectable after that.  I was very pleased with my mental state in this race.  It's been a weak point for me for the last few weeks of training, but in this race I was really able to push hard even when the going was tough.  I made it most of the way to the aid station before that happened, but when it did, this race showed its teeth with a vengeance.  I did not bonk, but when the terrain became steep and rocky again my fatigue really began to show.  I had long since lost sight of Micah (as I found out later, he dropped out at the aid due to ITB issues), but I was still trying to spread the gap as much as I could, and also make up time on Luke.  I reached the aid in good enough shape, but very tired.  I filled up on water and took a Honey Stinger (too sweet, but they work wonders) and began the long hike to the saddle.  And it was a hike.  I was able to run a few seconds at a time here and there, but for all intents and purposes the entire section was at a fast hike.  My consolation was that everyone was doing the same, even the 25k guys.  It was nice to have them to pull me along, and they all offered words of encouragement which was very helpful.  Despite the slight trail congestion, it was really good to have them there, and they were all courteous and let me by.  It's always better to be around people when you are trying to gut out a hard climb like this.  After what seemed like an eternity of burning quads and calf muscles, I finally reached the top of the ridge.  From here I was able to run most of the slight uphill to the saddle.   The descent into the lake was slow and brutal on the quads, but I made it in one piece.  I passed Luke near the top, going the other way, and was able to take heart in the fact that I had made up 3-5 minutes on him, though that was probably as close as I got to him.  The climb to the second saddle was excruciating, but somehow I made it.  The second descent was similar.  At the aid station I paused to fill up on water and Nuun, and grabbed a few more pretzels.  The hike out was absolutely horrible.  I felt like I was barely moving.  I think it took me 10 minutes at least.  I had to quit looking down or up and just look at where my feet were going.  Somehow I made it to the top, only to drop down again into the first lake.  This climb was not quite so bad, but was still torture.  I had no idea how I was going to run the last miles downhill.  My quads were totally gone at this point.  I did make it to the top, though, and somehow I forced myself to begin running at this point.  And I just kept running.  I thought that if I stopped I might not be able to start again, so I willed myself forward, if for nothing else but to just get this over with.  I was passing all the runners at this point, some for the second or third time, and as before it was good to hear the encouragement.  It really kept me going.  I made it to the aid station again with no problem, filled up my water, and kept running.  I thought about taking more Shot Bloks, but the thought of eating made me feel like I would throw up if I did, so I didn't.  I had long since thrown my uneaten pretzels to the squirrels.  Hope they enjoyed it.  The task now was just to make it through the last 5 miles.  I had to walk a couple of small uphills which before I wouldn't have even thought about, a sign that my body was nearing the end of its rope.  I just hoped to finish before that happened.  After running through what seemed like endless meadows of wildflowers, I finally made it to the final stretch, running west down the canyon towards the start/finish line.  From somewhere I got the energy to really start to run hard again, though I was still forced to walk nearly all of the uphills.  Maybe I was just "smelling the barn," so to speak, but I was able to make surprisingly good time through this final section, though it seemed interminable at the time.  I was so tired.  I could barely think of anything besides just putting one foot in front of the other.  I wanted to walk the uphills, the downhills, and the level, but the thought of finally finishing kept me pressing onward at the best pace I could muster.  Eventually I could finally see the "lower trail" below me, and I knew I was almost home.  The final section was rocky, and I took it at a snails pace, but before long I could hear cheering and gave it one last push, taking the final turn into the finish.  I was done.

Finally.  After 6 hours, 2 minutes, and 43 seconds of running, I had finally completed the famed Vaquero Loco trail race.  My legs were shaking, and I could think of nothing but drinking some cold water and soaking in more of the same.  Even the burgers being prepared for everyone sounded awful at the moment (though they were quite tasty later on).  I received congratulations from Ty, Luke, and some of the other runners present, and just tried to sit and relax for a few minutes.  I had earned it.  I came into the race thinking I would be happy if I finished in the top 5, but I had taken second in a very tough race with some good competition.  At 32 miles, it was the longest distance I had ever run, and was also the longest time period I have spent running.  I was pleased with my effort, and pleased with the results.  The race was wonderful, and could not have been done better by Ty and all the volunteers.  The course was hands down the most scenic course I have ever run on.  It was everything an ultramarathon should be.  Tough, stunningly beautiful, remote, and long, but ultimately worth every step of the journey.  It's definitely on the docket for next year.