The race started out easy for the first mile. The goal was to get an average heart rate in the mid 150's for the entire race with the Ascent portion in the low 160's and low 150's for the return. I was really comfortable the whole climb and I kept dialing back my effort when I saw my hr exceed the predetermined levels. I was nailing all my splits, consistently hitting the markers at about 4 minutes ahead of schedule. I went with Carpenter's pace calculator so splits were taken at the Top of the W's, No Name Creek, Barr Camp, A-Frame, and lastly at the mile to go to the summit. I hit tree line as was still feeling good. However my run did turn into a rhythmic shuffle, but still not quite walking yet. Hit the 16 Golden Stairs and it was almost all power walking at that point. That section is so technical and there was still a little ice on the rocks. Got to the summit at 3:10 and change. I knew if I wanted to make my goal of a sub-5 hour run I had no time to lollygag. Got my bib marked and immediately headed down. I wanted to get down to under 12,000 feet as soon as possible cuz I could feel the effects of the altitude. At this point I was feeling slightly hypoxic so I took it easy until the long east facing traverse. When I got there I started drilling it and made some serious time. I was still dizzy but all I could think about was getting down in 1:50. Just before treeline things went horribly awry. I didn't even see it, but I nailed a large rock with my left foot. This sent me hurdling through the air and landing square on my right hip bone. I laid on the ground for a minute and spit out what I thought were pebbles. I stood and I realized the fall shattered my left lower molar. I thought I was spitting pebbles, but I was spitting tooth! My shoulder, arm, hip, and knee were pretty scraped up. So after collecting myself I stood and continued my descent. Every time my right foot struck the ground the impact would travel all the way up my leg and into my hip. I was pretty much in survival mode. I saw a Search & Rescue buddy of mine and he asked if I wanted a ride down, but at this point I only had 4 miles to go and there was no way I was quitting. It was serious gut check time. I wanted to walk so bad. I would slow down, realize my pace was slow, tell myself to HTFU, and try to speed up. I finally came out of the single track and almost wanted to bend over and kiss the pavement. Put my head down and drilled the final mile. Hit the finish line and stumbled into a chair. I was done. It was over. I was shelled.

Do some high altitude training. What bit me in the rear was getting dizzy and losing focus. This was my ultimate downfall.

None


Lack of specific training.


This was a serious soul searching race for me. I was in more pain than I've ever voluntarily subjected myself to. It was beyond the bonk and fatigue I've felt in any previous race. I went into this race as a one time bucket list race, but I feel like I have unfinished business on that mountain now. I will come back and do it again. Not sure if it will fit into next year's race plan, so I may do it on my own. If anyone wants to do it with me, let me know and we'll come up with an attack plan. I don't care about official results... the next time is just for me!