I wanted to test out my Hoka shoes on a a long run so I got up bright and early (2:00 a.m.) and ran all the way around Lake Mountain which is really close to 50K with 3,664 of climbing along the way. Not really a race, but a race against my course PR time. It is mostly 4WD/ATV roads with some 2WD dirt roads thrown in and a little bit of pavement. I have run this course eight times before, but this is the frist time that I did most of it in the dark. I turned off my light for the last half mile.
How did the Hokas do? My first thought is, Wow! I shattered my PR and course record by 30 minutes! Doing this all in the dark just adds to my amazement. I can't give all the credit to the Hokas because I was prety well-rested, with not much running since Bear 100 two weeks ago. Also, I used a Garmin 305 for the first time and it helped to push me.
But still, the shoes felt fast! Usually at night I have to very carefully keep my eye on the trail but with these babies I can keep my head up more and just run over the rocks. Minimalist critics say, "That is a shattered ankle ready to happen." I think they need to pipe down until they test drive these bad boys. I ran up and down some pretty technical stuff in the dark and not one time was I even close to twisting my ankle. So, barefoot dudes, before you poo-pah these, go give them a whirl. Yes, I didn't feel like some Native American out there touching Mother Earth, but I was speedy. In fact since I could look around more instead of staring at my feet, I could see more of nature around me.
I started out a little after 2:00 a.m. For this run, I started in Eagle Mountain where main street intersects with Lake Mountain Rd. That is a nice place to start because you don't have to drive on any dirt roads to get there. I put some aid station stuff at mile 8.5 (Israel Canyon Rd) and mile 17.5 (Redwood Road). I brought with me only one handheld water bottle and some gels in my pocket. The temperature was great, with the low at 41 degrees.
To help push me, I set the Garmin virtual trainer to my PR time for the course of 5:29. I would simply use that to push me to try to stay ahead of that imaginary runner. By the time I reached the power lines at mile 5.6, I was already almost a mile ahead of my PR pace. My goal was to keep that buffer clear to Enoch Pass along some pretty technical stuff and lots of ups and down. The lights across Utah Lake were spectacular.
I reached Enoch Pass (mile 12.5), the high point of the course at 2:04, just under a mile ahead of the PR pace. I knew the next 5 miles downhill were critical to run fast. I pushed hard to approach 7-minute miles. I reached Redwood Road (mile 17.6) at 2:48. I stopped for about seven minutes to drink and eat from the stuff I had dropped off there. I needed to drink a bunch because there would be no more aid station stops. I was 1.8 miles ahead of my PR pace.
The next mile or so was pavement running on remote Redwood Road, miles away from anything. A couple cars passed by, I'm sure wondering about this crazy guy with a green light running in the middle of nowhere at 5:00 a.m.
I made the turn at the far south end of the mountain to make the 700-foot climb up to Solder Pass. I knew this would make or break my race. I just had to push this uphill section hard, so I ran every step and at the top I was still 1.75 miles ahead of my PR pace. I could taste victory. I reached Soldier Pass (mile 21.5) at the 3:31 mark. It was now almost all downhill and flat. By the time I reached the bottom of Cedar Valley, I was 2 miles ahead of my PR pace.
The home stretch is almost totally flat dirt 6.5 mile road run to Eagle Mountain. To really smash my PR, I needed to run it all, no walking or shuffling. So I did it, not terribly fast, but I kept my pace most of the time under 10-minute miles. I hit the marathon distance at 4:15. Not bad for dirt, 3,600 climbs and in the dark.
By the time I reached the finish, I was more than 2.5 miles ahead of my PR pace. I hit the finish line in 4:59:20. Add about ten minutes for aid station stops. It is interesting to consider my best 50K time was a 4:59 split at Across the Years two years ago. I don't run very many 50Ks.
For Pony Express Trail 100 on Friday, I hope to reach the 50K mark at about 5:00, so this is a very good indicator that it will be possible. I felt great at the finish and could have gone on and on. As I reached my car, I caught up with a couple runners out for a morning run. I didn't talk to them, but it would have been funny to tell them I just finished a 5-hour 31-mile run around Lake Mountain.
The Hokas held up well. I'm glad I tested them because there are some hot spots that I now know about. The edges of the shoe are a little bit too high on my ankle and rub against the ankle bone, but I know how to deal with that. | 