This is a first draft of an article I will submit for December's Ultrarunning Magazine. I'll add comments from other runners and crew as I receive them.
Pony Express Trail 100
The Pony Express Trail 100 is one of the most unique 100-mile races in the U.S. It runs on the historic 1860 Pony Express route in the western desert in Utah. This very remote section of the country has been untouched by modern development, except for the wide dirt road we would run on. Herds of antelope are seen on the course. This year runners even got a treat in seeing wild mustangs galloping in the desert. They are believed to be descendants from the original Pony Express herd of horses.
I dreamed up this race four years ago after doing an adventure run on the historic route. To me, it felt amazing to be out in the beautiful desert, far away from civilization. I could look around me in every direction and not see a single man-made structure. Here I was, Davy Crockett, in the Wild West. All I could see was low mountains, sage brush, huge ant hills, and jack rabbits hopping away from me. I went away wishing that I could share that experience with others.
For the 2009 race, thirteen 100-mile and nine 50-mile runners assembled at the starting line at Lookout Pass (6570 feet). This pass received its name because Pony Express riders and stagecoaches were often ambushed here by Indians. They were told to “Look Out!” To avoid any such dangers along our long run, we would each have a crew vehicle providing support along the entire route. This is the most popular feature of the race. Family and friends can witness an entire 100-mile race, and get out at any point to pace their runner. While this is a very fast 100-mile course, it is deceptively tough with a finishing rate of less than 50%. There is only about 5,000 feet of climbing along the way, but during the night, with a nice warm car driving near you, mentally it is tough to continue when those low points arrive.
Nine runners took the two-hour early start at 6:00 a.m. and the rest of the pack started at 8:00 as the sun just started peaking over the mountains. Phil Lowry (running the 50) and I (running the 100) led the pack through a beautiful winding canyon dotted with cedars (junipers). After three miles at a 7-minute mile pace, we spilled out into the wide-open Skull Valley where we could see for miles to mountain ranges to the west. In the 19th century this area was known as “Piute Hell” named after the Indian tribe there and because the desert was blazing hot in the summer and frigid cold in the winter. On this day, we had perfect running temperatures all day with not a cloud in the deep blue western sky.
Near Government Creek, the location of an 1860’s telegraph relay station, we spied two lone antelope watching us. Last year I counted a herd of 50 antelope here. Several runners reported seeing some wild mustangs near the 16-mile point at Simpson Springs where a historic pony express station has been reconstructed. We caught up with many of the early starters and it was quite a scene to look out and see the crew cars along a stretch of dirt road that extended across the desert for miles. For many miles as crew cars leap-frogged me, waiting for their runners, I could estimate how far they were behind. Most runners would send their crews ahead about 3-4 miles to wait for them.
At mile 25 we dipped down into an amazing dry ancient riverbed and passed by the site of a Pony Express station that 19th century visitors believed was haunted. There were no spooks to bother us today, but I knew that I would be returning in the night and needed to be careful. By mile 33.5, at the 5:38 mark, Scott Dakus of Henderson, Nevada, caught up to me and took the lead. I told him he was now in first place. He laughed, slowed down to let me pass, “now am I in second?” “Yes.” He yelled to his passing crew car, “Look, I’m in first, now I’m in second, now in first.” We had a good laugh. I watched him become a small figure far down the straight road heading toward the Dugway Mountains.
By mile 40, I had run up and over Dugway Pass and now felt very isolated. My crew was three miles behind helping Phil Lowry as he struggled with stomach problems. Scott was now about three miles ahead. All the other runners were miles behind, spread across the massive desert valley. As a race director, I started to get very worried feelings. What have I done? I’ve led about 60-70 people (including crews) out into the wild remote western desert, a place most had never seen. The responsibility seemed daunting. Just at that moment I almost stepped on a coiled snake in the middle of the road. It too was surprised and only started to rattle as I passed by. Wow, that was a close one. We were about three hours away from any hospital.
I soon rounded a low mountain range and could look out clear to the horizon across salt flats. Near the 50-mile turnaround, where I arrived at 9:23, a relay team who had arrived a couple hours earlier set up an amazing aid station with a party atmosphere. My spirits were perked as their cow bells rang out across the expansive remote desert. The turn-around point was marked by a “Slow, Children at Play” sign. It seemed quite appropriate.
I now turned around and headed back, greeting all of the runners over the next six miles. The all had wonderful smiles on their faces and thanked me for the incredible experience. The sun went down and I was presented with an explosion of stars. Without any light pollution from cities, the Milky Way was incredible. At times, I would turn off my light and run along the road with my head pointed to the skies. Shooting stars were seen continuously through the night. After climbing back over Dugway Pass, at the 64-mile mark, I could see the first place runner’s crew vehicle light ahead on the long straight 18-mile stretch of road. How far ahead was he? Two miles? Five miles? It was hard to tell. All I could do was push the pace faster and faster.
At around mile 73, at about 11:00 p.m., I passed Scott’s crew van. Where was Scott? Little did I know that Scott was now snoozing in the van. I had retaken first place. However, I didn’t realize it because I thought two crews were helping Scott. Behind me I could tell that the next runner was about 4-5 miles behind. Along this stretch, the story is told that during the 1860s a lone woman passenger on a stagecoach awoke to find the horses and coach standing still. Her driver had an arrow in his heart. She drove the team ahead to my next destination, Simpson Springs. I had no such dangers to deal with. Many of the 50-mile runners drove by and cheered me on as they returned to their homes.
For the last 25 miles, I took it somewhat easy, thinking that I had no chance to catch Scott. The nighttime temperature was strange. There were pockets of cold air dipping down into the low 30s, and just a mile later it would jump into the 50s. Layers on, layers off. It was a lonely feeling running in the dark desert at night. But looking behind me I could see crew car lights up to 18 miles away stretched across the dark desert floor.
I had agreed to use a Satellite phone to call into an outdoor radio show at 6:00 a.m. So, at about mile 98, I paused for 25 minutes to make the call. After the call, I attacked the final climb back up to Lookout Pass. I looked at my watch and pushed very hard to finish in a faster time than last year’s course record. I knew there was still a chance that Scott had not finished. I finished in a new course record time, at 22:58. There was no sign of Scott at the finish and I didn’t find out until two days later that I had indeed won the 2009 Pony Express Trail 100. My desert run was finished. It was an experience that I would relive in my dreams for days. Five other runners would cross the 100-mile finish line later in the morning. Join us next year in mid-October when we plan to transform this race into a premier 50 and 100-mile race.
Results
Race date: October 16-17, 2009
near Faust, UT, dirt roads
100-mile – 13 starters
1. Davy Crockett, 51, Saratoga, Springs, UT, 22:58:19 (course record)
2. Matt Watts, 53, Broomfield, CO, 23:31:54
3. Scott Dakus, 45, Henderson, NV, 26:09:00
4. Don Landry, 64, Montreal, Canada, 28:05:00
5. Olaf Questereit, 41, Murray, UT, 28:45:36
6. Gary Stosich, 53, Sandy, UT, 29:18:00
50 mile
1. Phil Lowry, 43, Mapleton, UT, 9:30:30 (course record)
2. Jarom Thurston, 35, Payson, UT, 9:42:00
3. Matt Ricks, 32, Bountiful, UT, 10:42:49
3. Craig Lloyd, 36, Holladay, UT, 10:42:49
5. Rand Nielson, 49, Sandy, UT, 11:54:00
6. Frank Bott, 52, Asheville, NC, 12:39:00
6. Pablo Riboldi, 41, Saratoga Springs, UT, 12:39:00
8. Quintin Barney, 50, Salt Lake City, UT, 13:12:02
8. Marilynn Phipps, 15, Layton, UT, 13:12:02
10. Leslie Peterson, 54, Cottonwood Heights, UT, 13:19:00
11. Gary Horlacher, 41, West Jordan, UT, 13:25:00
12. Steve Gray, 48, Henderson, NV, 13:30:00
13. David Loveland, 48, Jessie, UT, 13:57:00
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