Quick report- Jupiter Steeplechase today in Park City. Great race. I ran it last year in 2:08:00 and placed 4th. The field was much more competitive this year- I improved my time by over 5.5 minutes, but got 7th place (my time this year would have taken 2nd place last year). But I had a blast, loved the downhills, and am excited about a huge time improvement...
Long report- My family had a 2 night stay in PC, so I was able to sleep in this morning. Ran a few miles in the hotel facility (no hills) and bumped into another runner, who ended up finishing just ahead of me. Saw Twinkies at the start, plus **lots** of good runners- this is on the La Sportiva racing circuit with big prize money, so it was stacked. Weather was 45 deg and absolutely perfect. Last year I started off too slow, so wanted to fix that this year.
Race started with the field heading out very quickly. I eventually settled into about 8th spot for most of the ascent, with a bit of passing and being passed. It is a very steady climb of over 3000 ft in 8 miles, with the last .25 mile being so steep it is barely walkable. Splits were 9:22, 9:07, 8:48, 7:27 (this mile had some flat and some down, which was a very welcome respite from the never ending uphills), 9:59, 9:34, 14:48 (includes the very steep ascent to Jupiter Peak). Luke Nelson (La Sportiva runner) was a couple minutes ahead at the summit, and Brad Mitchell (also La Sportiva) and another guy barely edged me out over the summit (I can't really say they passed me, since we were all just slowly bushwacking up the mountain on our own paths, but they were just ahead), so I was in 10th place at this point, with another guy just behind. It sure is hard to breath at 10,000 ft while climbing straight up a mountain while eating Shot Blocks. Then it is a slight downhill, then another steep climb to Tri-Counties peak. This mile was 9:07, and I hit the summit in 1:16:50- last year was 1:21 and 7th place at this point, so I was more than 4 minutes ahead of my time but further back in the standings. At least I can say I didn't go out too slowly this year.
I love trail running, and by that I primarily mean I love downhill singletrack. LOVE it. I tolerate climbing just for the downhills. So, now the race was getting fun. I quickly caught the 2 guys in front of me but could not pass them due to the singletrack. Rather than force anything, I just relaxed for about a mile and let them carry me along. 6:33 mile. Then we turned onto a jeep trail and I picked up the pace, moving into 8th place. Next few miles were 5:30, 5:42, and 5:16 (what!?! That split surprised me, given the technical nature of the downhill- flying). At this point, Luke Nelson suddenly popped into view much to my surprise. He pulled off so I could pass him, moving into 7th place- I was very surprised to pass him, since he beat me by 7.5 minutes this year at the Wahsatch Steeplechase. I had no idea who else was ahead of me. Next miles were 5:40, 6:12, and 6:11. The last 3 miles of the course have lots of switchbacks which make it very hard to keep up the pace or to see where the competition is. I would say some miles have as many as 15 or more switchbacks. The last mile actually has some very painful, though somewhat short, uphill which saps all momentum. No one ever appeared ahead of me, but I finished with a fast kick (aided by a nice downhill) and 6:04 mile pace. Total time 2:02:21, 7:38 pace- 22 seconds faster per mile than last year. I was very, very happy with how I raced and how I felt, though nowhere near my top 3 goal. Winning time was 1:52, 3rd place was 1:58. Man I love trail races!
Ended up in 7th overall, which was great since the top 7 got prizes. There were a bunch of free shoes and some ski passes to PC- I ended up with a ski pass. Sweet. Hopefully I can use it. Talked to a bunch of nice guys after the race, cheered Twinkie in, then headed back to the hotel for a nice shower. Now I'll spend the rest of the day enjoying Park City, then fly to Florida tomorrow. If I get in some good miles and BW while there, I'll aim for a PR at TOU 1/2 and full, my next 2 races. Then I transistion fully into my ultra training for my 100 milers next year. Should be a blast.
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