This is probably one of the toughest and most unique races on the east
coast. http://escarpmenttrail.com/
Summary:
This was my goal race of the year, and I had an absolute blast. I finished
in 71st place (out of about 175) in 4:24:34, beating my goal time of 4:30.
6peat winner Ben Nephew (who set the course record last year 2:45:20, ran it
this year in 2:56:54. Temps were in low 60's up to upper 70's, and there was
mist, then clouds and then a bit of sun. High humidity made hydration
essential.
Very long version:
Ever since I first hiked the escarpment trail 12 years ago, it's been my
favorite trail in the Catskills. The views become more frequent as you go
south, and the southern end (where the race ends) is the site where several
grand mountain hotels were built in the early 1800's (all since burned
down), and where there are dramatic cliffs and views overlooking the Hudson
river valley 2000 over feet below.
When I learned there was a trail race there I wanted to do it, though I knew
how hard it would be since even hiking it is difficult. Even though I've
been a technical trail runner since I was 15, running sections 100 miles
away from the escarpment trail on the very same long path, I knew some
serious training had to be done.
Finally after a few years of getting back into running after a switch to
cycling, I ran a 50k trail and a marathon last year, which qualified me for
the escarpment trail run. This year began poorly with a series of illnesses
in February, so I started with little base in March, though my training from
last year seemed to carry over and things went well. I worked up my long
runs to 4 hours, did LT training once a week for the last 10 weeks, and ran
hilly trail routes for part of my long runs, with two sessions dedicated to
uphill and downhill training near threshold. I also ran the 30km
double-trouble trail race 5 weeks ago as training, and though that race has
almost no flat, it's hills would feel flat on the escarpment trail.
My taper went well, and my legs really needed the rest. I had a bee sting
between the toes on my left foot this Friday before the race, and it hurt to
walk on until Saturday night, despite repeated icing. Luckily after applying
tiger-balm that night, Race morning it felt fine. I was satisfied with my 5
months of training and with a weight loss of 16 pounds since mid May,
getting down to 165/166.
Race morning had me feeling well rested, having caught up on some missing
sleep Saturday afternoon. As I rode the bus to the start I had my 2 bottle
waistpack ready to go with accelerade in the bottles, extra powder for 3
more bottles, a clip 2 pouch, salt tabs, and a gel. I felt more relaxed than
ever before a race, knowing I'd done all I could to prepare, and having
hiked the trail a few times before. This is exactly the kind of terrain I
love running on: extremely technical singletrack.
Start: Going up Windham High Peak
1800' to 3500+', 3.2 miles:
Owing to the course profile and a healthy respect for the climbs to come,
the plan was to go up Windham very conservatively. This was also Doug's
sagely advice. This race is kind of like one of the long mountain stages in
the tour de France where you're foolhardy to go up the early climbs too
fast. With a couple of days of glycogen in my legs, I had no desire to go
out hard, and I wanted to warm up carefully during the run to get readings
from my body (didn't wear a HRM, just listening to all the little signals).
I started with about 150 people in front of me and 25 people behind me -
ensuring a slow start. It took 2 mins for everyone in front of me to file
onto the singletrack trail, then walking then jogging slowly. As I settled
into my jog, then walked the first mildly steep section, a few more people
passed me. After that I settle in behind a group that was running while I
was walking uphill.
It never ceases to amaze me, as it did throughout the day, how many people
run when they could walk fast more efficiently. I mostly walked fast up
Windham, but jogged the flatter sections. Toward the top, I passed several
people who started too hard. The last guy I passed was breathing way too
hard, and not long after I passed him I heard him take a hard fall. Calling
back to him, he was ok, but, I thought, he was in for a long hard day. I
reached the top in a very conservative ~54 mins.
Windham was the first of SEVEN water stops, every one of which is a serious
haul for the volunteers, and it was really great to see 10-15 of them at
each stop handing out water and gatorade and cheering us on - just fantastic
support. Since my bottles were both pretty full, I just sipped a little
water. I was feeling good, my legs warmed up and ready for the day.
Down Windham to Red BD trail
2700', 2.65 (5.85) miles:
This is a steep descent at first, then less so, then drops again. Here is
where I started passing lots of people, still running conservatively just at
my normal downhill pace using short quick steps, and a bit of gallop on
steeper sections (you never fall when galloping).
For me, the more technical the trail, the better. Even going up Windham,
wherever it got technical, I would gain on people and finally had to pass
some. Now on the first downhill I easily passed about 10 people.
At the red trail intersection is the 2nd water stop. It was here I learned
that my hydration strategy was out the window. I had emptied one bottle, so
I wanted to refill and mix with a baggie of accelerade powder I'd
pre-measured. I asked them if they could fill a bottle but they said they
could only give 2 small cups - enough for drinking right there - but only
enough to fill 1/2 my 20oz bottle.
I totally understand why they are careful with the water and I was thankful
to get any. So I put the powder in and had to wait for the next water stop
to finish filling it. I pondered my hydration strategy as I continued.
Across to the Blackhead Mt climb start
2800', 2.55 (8.4) miles:
In here, I got stuck behind a pack (it happened a few times later too) and
it was difficult to pass so many people at once (about 7-8 running close
together). While I don't mind running in a pack, whenever the trail gets
very technical they slow down, and I don't need to slow as much, so I feel
encumbered.
Still running under control, and finally past the pack, I hit the yellow
trail that marks the start of the Blackhead climb. There was also a water
stop there, so I put 2 small cups of gatorade in my bottle and started up
the climb.
Up Blackhead
3940', 1 (9.4) miles:
As I started walking up, I felt ready for the 1100' climb, but not sure what
pace to set, as I knew I wanted to save a lot for the last section of the
race. Basically it's so steep you get pegged and you breathe very hard even
taking very short steps. I probably take much shorter steps than most
people, partly because my legs aren't long, and partly because I've found it
saves the legs more to take short quick choppy steps.
While on the early part of the climb, as I heard some other runners talking
behind me, it occurred to me that since early on the Windham climb, I'd
passed many, but had not been passed by anyone. An easy start and a steady
pace was working out well. But I also didn't want to let myself go up
blackhead too slow, so I just went by how my legs felt and not by my heavy
breathing. If they started to burn too much I slowed a bit.
Toward the top I caught up to several people, one of whom was asking someone
for salt caps. I told her I had succeed caps and I gave her one as I passed
her. She was the first of many I talked to who were cramping. (I took a cap
before the race, and at 1:15 about 2:25, then at about 3:30).
Cresting the top there were party balloons on the trail and a horde of
people up there, lots of cheering, and a water stop. There were a bunch of
runners standing around rehydrating. I just put some gatorade in my bottle
and kept going, so I passed 4-5 people right there.
Down to Dutcher Notch
2500', 2.6 (12) miles:
Soon after leaving blackhead, on the steep downhill I came up to several
more runners and passed them, once again taking the rough technical sections
smoothly where others slow down. For me up, down, or flat, the rougher the
better. One of the guys I caught on the milder downhill section was running
well, so I ran with him for a while and found out we both ran double-trouble
in almost the same exact times (1:35 first loop, close to 2:00 the second
loop).
When it got steeper again, I passed him and then got to dutcher notch and
yet another water stop - and an enthusiastic crowd! Those people were
fantastic for lugging the water so far, especially to dutcher notch,
blackhead, and stoppel point, where I was headed now. During this downhill
section, I had picked up the pace a bit from my downhill on Windham, but I
was still under control and not running all out, trying to save something
for the finish. I just tried to run relaxed and smoothly, especially down
the steeper sections.
Up to Stoppel Point
3420', 2.1 (14.1) miles:
After drinking some gatorade, putting some in the bottle, and retying my
shoes a little tighter, I started walking up the climb. The transition from
downhill running to hiking up a steep climb is always interesting, and it
hit me hard at first - I had to get my climbing legs going again.
I had caught another 4 runners at the notch, and due to a quick stop, I was
out ahead of them all. But soon I had to slow a bit and 3 of them passed me
again. I let them go, thinking of what Paul Sherwin always says on the tour
de France coverage - 'there he is going off the back of this select little
climbing peleton... all he can do now is to climb the climb at his pace and
not go too far into the red zone'.
Actually it wasn't that bad, and I trailed the group of 3 up the climb, but
it made me think I might have gone a bit too hard up Blackhead. After about
10 mins I had recovered, and by the time we got up to the plane on Stoppel
Point, I felt pretty good and was right behind them.
At the water stop on Stoppel, I downed a little gatorade, put some in my
bottle, and ate an orange slice; feeling good. My stop was fast again, and I
passed the group of 3 plus someone else at the stop. With mostly downhill to
the finish, I felt confident I could finish strong - my quads had felt
absolutely fine going down the punishing hill from blackhead to dutcher
notch.
To North Point
2900', 1.7 (15.8) miles:
I still felt pretty good, though not exactly fresh, and I decided to really
let it rip the last 3 miles. I caught up to a guy pretty soon and it felt
fantastic to still be passing people so late in the race. I hadn't been
passed since early on Windham and that made me really appreciate the
slow-start steady-pace strategy.
Soon I passed 2 more people, and I was loving the downhill again - where my
hamstrings where worn out from the climbs, my quads were fine. I hammered
the technical sections leading to North point but there's more fairly smooth
slightly down trail here. At north point I drank 1/2 cup and kept going.
Down to finish
2100+', 2.45 (18.25*) miles:
After North point there are *many* very rugged technical sections all the
way to the finish, many of them steep little drops of 10 to 20 feet that are
close to being cliffs. This is my element, and I carefully but confidently
ran down everything without hesitation, and began passing more people fairly
quickly. I was flying and loving it.
Where it got flatter my legs felt heavy, but I was enjoying the difficult
sections so much that I didn't mind. I passed someone on many of the little
cliff sections. When the trail loops out left to the edge of the escarpment
after about a mile it goes up and down and is fairly flat a good bit of the
time, and I was not liking those little uphills.
I knew the finish wasn't far, so I kept holding my increased pace, and
passed a couple of more people. The 2nd to the last guy I passed with less
than a mile to go was stronger on the flats, and he passed me back as the
trail got smoother for a while. He was the only one to pass me since early
and I couldn't stay with him on the flats. He finished just ahead of me. I
passed one more guy and then shortly thereafter I heard the cheering at the
finish and came in still running smoothly, but getting very close to empty
since hammering all the way down from north point.
I was pleased with my finish time, and felt like I'd paced it fairly well,
and it feels damn good to pass people all day! Thanks Doug for the tips on
this race, and others who have shared their training advice.
When I set my time goal I really had no idea how fast I could go, I just
wanted to beat the median time since I'm usually in the middle of the pack
at trail races. I just tried to go out easy and finish strong and had no way
to check times along the way.
I had no falls, and just 2 stumbles, despite running pretty fast down the
hills. My quads were strong the whole way, despite really hammering all the
down's the 1300' all the way down from Stoppel. My hamstrings weren't really
sore or cramping, but they were out of gas. In retrospect this comes as no
surprise since I train 3 days a week on the bike and 3 days running. I also
did some specific downhill and uphill training and this helped, but on the
flatter sections my hamstrings got tired out a bit. Thus my strength remains
downhills, and any difficult technical trail sections. Those are the places
where I passed about 80 people in the race.
This race is very unique, has wonderful and interesting people both running
in it and running it and I had a great time. I plan to run it again next
year.
For those interested and not bored to death with my report, here's a good
read from last year from 6 time winner Ben Nephew: http://tinyurl.com/ap56k
-Tony
* note: I used the NJ/NY trail conference map mileage since it gives
distances between landmarks. The maps say its 18.25, but race course
measured out at 18.6 miles - but it's a trail race - so whatever, besides in
many sections it's literally too rough to run a wheel over it 🙂