Upchuck 50k
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Race Details: Man, oh man… what an Upchuck! Upchuck is always a memorable experience and one of those small and challenging races that truly embraces the ultra running experience at it’s simplicity. Runners won’t find loads of swag here or pre-race bags stuffed full of useless flyers and junk. Runners get a basic cotton t-shirt and a white paper barf bag with one gel and a few choice stickers. Heck, my favorite part of the race is that runners won’t even find a racing bib and definitely no fancy timing chip. You can expect a sharpie marker to any exposed skin for your number and the most sophisticated timing system known to man, each runner must write their name and time on a tri-fold white board after slapping the infamous trashcan at the finish. This race prides itself on no frills, scarce course markings and very minimal support. There are two official aid stations at miles 8 and 18, and if you’re lucky there is another around 26 miles, but it’s more like an emergency water-only aid station for those who have fallen victim to the relentless beating the course delivers. A history of the race can be found here as well as a video account from the founders, Chad Wamack and Matt Sims.
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Race Details: Man, oh man… what an Upchuck! Upchuck is always a memorable experience and one of those small and challenging races that truly embraces the ultra running experience at it’s simplicity. Runners won’t find loads of swag here or pre-race bags stuffed full of useless flyers and junk. Runners get a basic cotton t-shirt and a white paper barf bag with one gel and a few choice stickers. Heck, my favorite part of the race is that runners won’t even find a racing bib and definitely no fancy timing chip. You can expect a sharpie marker to any exposed skin for your number and the most sophisticated timing system known to man, each runner must write their name and time on a tri-fold white board after slapping the infamous trashcan at the finish. This race prides itself on no frills, scarce course markings and very minimal support. There are two official aid stations at miles 8 and 18, and if you’re lucky there is another around 26 miles, but it’s more like an emergency water-only aid station for those who have fallen victim to the relentless beating the course delivers. A history of the race can be found here as well as a video account from the founders, Chad Wamack and Matt Sims.
For
anyone that knows me, they know that Upchuck has long been my favorite
Rock/Creek run and probably my favorite trail race period. This course offers some awesome single track
along the Cumberland Trail, has plenty of technical running and some relatively
big climbs. The thing that really makes
Upchuck so difficult is that the early November weather always brings lots and
lots of leaf coverage that really makes spotting a good runnable line tough. There’s something about spotting trail blazes
20-30 yards out, putting your head down and trying to run a tough technical
section without wiping out in the rocks.
It adds another element of risk that makes the experience all that more
memorable. All runners can expect to run
off course a handful of times throughout the race… hopefully you just realize
it before you’ve gone too far!
I
was kind of on the fence about signing up for the 2014 Upchuck since I had made
the decision to run the Pinhoti 100-mile race the weekend before. However, when I saw that Upchuck was a raffle
for 2014, I really wanted to put my name in the hat to see if I got drawn. Anyone with two or more previous Upchuck finishes
were placed into one drawing and anyone with less than this were placed into a
second drawing. I knew my chances were
pretty good considering I had two Upchuck finishes and so I told myself and my wife
that if I got drawn I would just treat it as an easy recovery run following
Pinhoti.
Well,
following my Pinhoti finish I was feeling pretty stoked. I had been itching to complete a 100-miler
since my DNF at Rock/Creek's Thunder Rock 100-miler early this year and had put
all my focus on getting that under my belt.
With so much attention on the 100-miler I really hadn’t put much thought
into Upchuck and honestly figured my legs and body would be pretty shot. Coming off Pinhoti my right ankle and lower shin
was very inflamed and sore. I tried to
run on the Wednesday following Pinhoti but I made it 1-mile before having to
stop because of the inability to bend my right foot… Well, I figured with a couple more days of rest
and an ankle brace I might be good enough to hobble through a finish for Upchuck. In my two previous Upchucks I had tried to
break 5-hours but had fallen short both times. So I picked up an ankle brace
Thursday night and tried running around the store to see how it felt… It wasn’t
terrible so I figured I was golden for Saturday. Heck I figured I might as well give that sub
5-hour goal another shot. My legs really
felt pretty good with the exception of my right ankle but I figured with the
new ankle brace and a lot or prayers I could probably run through any leg/ankle
pain.
Friday
evening was the start of the Upchuck experience with a pre-race meeting at one
of the “Upchuck Founder’s” home, followed by a dinner downtown with some of
Huntsville, Nashville and other Tennesseans finest trail runners. Sharing some laughs and stories with these
friends is always the best part of any race.
After everyone was fed and sore from a couple hours of laughter we all
set off to find some rest.
Runners
gather Saturday morning at the finish area to start the pre-race shenanigans. This includes barf bag pickup, sharpie bib
numbers and getting loaded onto the school bus to be shuttled to the starting
area. RayJay, the hillbilly prisoner is
what makes the bus ride so hilarious. RayJay
rattles off everyone’s name to makes sure they’re checked in, warns everyone
about his redneck kin that live in the Soddy Daisy hills and makes sure to
embarrass everyone who’s turned out to run for the day. After a 20-minute bus ride everyone arrives
at the Rock Creek Trailhead for the 8 AM start.
Gathering
around the parking lot for the start I found myself standing near my Nashville
friend Cody Goodwin. Cody and I had
chatted a little before the bus ride and I asked him if he was going for the
course record today… I knew that he had
finished this race two years ago and only missed the course record by a few
minutes. He didn’t really say one way or
another, but I knew that Cody was a strong runner and was very capable of
breaking the record. With everyone ready
to run, Chad climbed onto the roof of some random car, snapped 1-2 pictures of
the group, looked at the time on his phone, and yelled, “Go!”
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| Reuben Watkins Photography |
A
few 100-feet down the asphalt and we took a hard right onto the blue-blazed
single track for the next couple of miles.
I fell in right behind Cody and figured I would sit there for a bit and
see how the pace felt. Well… it didn’t
take long to realize that Cody was on a mission and I wasn’t going to be able
to hang on. So, about a mile into the
race I was already running alone and was trying to find a groove that didn’t
irritate my ankle/leg too much. Somewhere
in the first couple of miles I came across a life-sized grim reaper mannequin
standing beside a tree and as I passed a voice asked if we had started the race
on time… I’m not going to lie; it scarred the crap out of me! Sheridan Aims, was out there cheering/scaring
on the runners before starting his grim sweeper duties. Sheridan runs sweep for Upchuck every year,
the Grim Sweeper, and starts 1-hour after the race start and if he catches you
before the 18-mile aid station you are done for the day. It’s not that he’s out there trying to run
people down but more to make sure that everyone makes it off the trail safely. This is a brutal course and getting stuck out
on the course in the dark is not good for anyone… Back to running… the first 6-miles are a
pretty consistent climb and are littered with technical rocky sections to throw
off your pace. I was feeling really
pretty good on the uphill and flat sections, but the downhill’s were giving me
some trouble. I usually let my legs fly
and really stride out my downhill runs but today my ankle really wasn’t
handling that too well. Somewhere around
mile 6 or so I finally heard some leaves rustling behind me and realized I had
picked up some company. Michael Barlow,
from Aspen, Colorado had joined me for the next couple of miles up to Aid #1
(8mi). After the climb tops out at
approximately 6-miles, the trail turns to a very soft, pine needle covered
trail. It’s a nice break from the rocks
and a good time to get some calories in before hitting the first aid station.
 |
| Reuben Watkins |
 |
| Reuben Watkins Photography |
After
climbing out of Possum Creek runners get a quick downhill before the last
3-miles up toward the Aid #2 (18mi). This 3-mile section is pretty runnable but
is not very fast considering the steady climb up to the aid station. This aid station comes out to a small side
road running parallel to Highway 111.
This is the last “official” aid station and it’s important to grab
plenty of food and drink to make sure you have enough to make it the last
13-miles to the finish.
Runners leave
this aid station and run about 1/2-mile up the road to the Jones Gap Road Convenient
Store mentioned in the Upchuck history, then they will cross over the highway
and run down the off ramp heading the opposite way onto Hwy 111. Just before runners leave the exit ramp the
trail picks back up on the left side of the highway. For those that have never run Upchuck, my
best piece of advice is to make sure that you save some energy for this section
of the race. If you can make it to Aid
#2 and muster up enough energy to push a good pace for the next 5-miles you can
really make some good time. Miles 18-23
are very runnable and a lot of downhill with very little technical running to
throw off your rhythm. In years past
I’ve never felt that I’ve done well on this section and haven’t been able to
take advantage of these easy miles.
Well, this year was different.
Other than a bothersome ankle I really felt good and was able to pick up
my pace and make some really good time on this section. I think it’s important to make good time from
miles 18-23 because after this it gets really technical again. This section can be very treacherous
considering most people are very tired by this time in the race, the course gets
very technical on flat sections, descents and climbs. My advice for running through these technical
sections is do your best to spot some blazes off in the distance, put your head
down and do your best to step on all visible rocks rather than gambling at a
faulty step on the leaf covered trail.
One wrong step on the leaf covered trail could mean a twisted ankle,
getting sprawled out across the trail or finding a shin-deep hole that swallows
the lower portion of your leg! All of
those will put quite the damper on a good run.
Lucky for me, I only busted once through this section, finding only one
foot swallowing hole and made it out without twisting anything. I really enjoy
this last 5-miles of trail. The gorge is
so beautiful and the rocks are a blast to run through. Around mile 25-26 you come across Big Soddy
Creek and arrive at the last “non-official” aid station for the day. Jarret Kinder had ran/hiked in to offer water
for anyone who may have run out and to get a good runners count to make sure
everyone made it through okay. Climbing
out of this gorge I ran across local Rock/Creek legend Brain Costilow. He and one of his sons were on their way down
to join Jarret and help aid and cheer runners as they made their way across Big
Soddy Creek. During my first Upchuck in
2012 I spent a fair amount of time running with Brian and he saved me a time or
two from running too far off course as I seemed to miss trail markings every few
hundred feet. Once runners leave Big
Soddy Creek they have somewhere in the 3-mile range of trails before descending
back onto the road that will carry them the last couple of miles back into
Soddy Daisy to find the finish area.
After making the last big climb of the day out of Big Soddy Creek runners
get a few flat runnable sections, a couple of quick downhills and a few tough
little climbs. Generally you can expect
to see some hikers on their way down to Big Soddy Creek and this really helps
when your legs are feeling shot and you really just want to grab a seat and
rest. There’s always something that
makes you want to look like you’re suffering just a little less when you come
across other people. After a couple of
miles I knew I wasn’t too far from hitting the road and I still hadn’t seen
anyone since about mile 10. Jarret had
told me someone was only a few minutes in front of me about 3-mile back but I
wasn’t sure if I’d be able to make up that time with only a few miles left.
As the road finally came into view and I
started the last couple of switchbacks down toward the road I really kind of
hoped that I wouldn’t see anyone else… I knew that if I saw anyone I would have
to run harder to try and catch them and I really didn’t feel like it to be
honest. Well, of course as I made the
turn onto the road I saw another runner a few hundred feet down the road…
Crap! This roughly 2-mile road section
down to the finish is all downhill but can really give the body a
pounding. I figured I would do my best
to try and reel in the next runner.
About a mile or so down this section runners come to a railroad crossing
and there have been quite a few runners that have been held up by a passing
train. Coming down to the crossing it
appeared that the runner in front of me and I were going to be stopped by the train
roaring by… just before the guy in front of me had to stop the tail of the
train came flying by and the chase continued.
I was about 100-feet back from the guy in front of me when I looked up
and saw that he had missed a hard right turn and I started yelling that he’d
missed the turn… He quickly turned around to correct his mistake and I rounded
the corner about the same time he made it back to the turn. With 3/4-mile to the finish I gave it
everything I had to push hard to the finish.
Legs burning and lungs about to bust I was just praying that I could
catch a glance of my wife and daughters at the finish area to get that extra
boost of energy. Finally I could see
them in the distance standing at the corner of the parking lot yelling and
cheering. It was exactly what I
needed. Hanging a left into the pavilion
parking lot I spotted that stupid trashcan that signaled your completion of
another Upchuck. You’ll never feel so
relieved to smack the fire out of a trashcan.
 |
| Cody Goodwin |
I
made my way over to the official timing log to write my name down beside my
finish time and check out Cody’s time to see how well he had done… Man, oh man… Cody destroyed the old course
record. He ran a 4:22 something and beat
the old course record by approximately 25-minutes! What a machine! As modest as he is fast, Cody never boasted
one time about his amazing run. Just a
few seconds after my name was logged and I was able to join my family and friends
around the finish area the 3rd place runner came in to find the trashcan and
log his name down as an Upchuck finisher.
It really was an awesome day and we were all so fortunate to spend such
a beautiful day in God’s beautiful countryside.
The beautiful weather and great running conditions allowed three new
time records, with the new course record being set a pretty high level for
future Upchuckers.
The
finish area is perfect for the small, family oriented trail running experience
that Upchuck offers. There is a small
pavilion with plenty of seating for food and drink, a nice playground area for
kids to play and run, and the perfect spot to sit and lounge around in the
grass and cheer on runners as they make their way to the finish. This really is the best race in around
Chattanooga and probably one of the best 50k races in the country. For anyone looking for a great course, a challenging
50k and one of the most enjoyable trail running experiences Upchuck is a
“must-do” for your future race calendar.
 |
| Cary Long |
This
year ended with the normal cuts and bruises and even a broken arm, but I still want
to thank Jesus Christ for a relatively safe day on the trails. Dreama, you definitely
win the toughest person on the trail award… You are my hero for being tough
enough to complete the last few miles of the race with a broken arm! I will continue to pray for a speedy
recovery. Thank you to all of the
wonderful volunteers. A huge thanks to
the locals who helped get out there and clear the trails as well. The course was spectacular and it’s all
thanks to your hard work. Of course to
my family/crew, thank you for sacrificing your time to come out and support
me. You mean the world to me and I’m so
thankful that God put you in my life. A
big shout out to Hanna Elrod for the awesome podium awards, these are stunning
and definitely worth any amount of suffering endured throughout the day. Last but not least, I want to thank Rock/Creek,
WildTrails and the Upchuck founders for the support and for hosting such an
amazing run!
Gear: Patagonia Air Flow Shirt & Strider Pro Shorts, Smartwool PhD Graduated Compression Socks, Pearl Izumi Thermal Sleeves, Marmot Trail Wind Jacket, Lululemon Gloves, Suunto Ambit 2 (HR) Watch, Ultimate Direction Handheld Bottle, Salomon Sense Pro Shoes &
S-Lab Advanced Skin Hydration Pack,
4:36:19 (50k PR), 2nd Place
Until
the next race,
Nathan
D. Holland
2014
Rock/Creek Race Team
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