“A few years ago while adventuring with a good friend of mine, Jared Campbell, I was explaining which events were left on my bucket list, and which ones I would never consider. There is a running joke at my house that if I ever told my family I was going to apply for Barkley or Badwater that I was secretly crying for help- and by doing so what I really meant was “get the pillow” and put me out of my misery so I could go quietly in my sleep. Why the change of heart? I’ve asked myself that over and over again. I like to tell myself that it’s not just the surge in popularity of the sport or the race itself, or just another notch on my belt. I believe that it is possible to finish, yes, but I’m also experienced enough to know that odds are- it’s not going to happen, even if I do get in.”

Now I was most certainly in and it was time to pay the piper.  My training was going okay.  Busy with track meets on the weekends it was making it difficult to get in the time and the vert that I needed to be ready.  My first test piece was RUFA in Salt Lake City.  The last few years this has become an early staple in training.  To add to the intrigue of repeated summits of Grandeur was that four of us were all in Barkley (at the time Erik was still on the weightlist, but would toe the line with us in April).  Throughout the day and part of the night I watched Jared and Jenilyn just kill it.  I took a bad fall on lap three and pulled out after 14 hours and 15k of climb and descent.  This was an eye opener for me.  I had a lot of work to do.  At home I found a few bare side hills included a 1,248 ft. climb in .58 miles.  Up and down I would go.  Every morning, every night I would find myself and my dogs going up and down.  I managed to put in a couple of 35k weeks and after a final “run” of 9 miles and 12k of climb without stiffness about 10 days out I knew I was as ready as I was going to be.

The trip to Frozen Head was uneventful.  Jared and Mindy, Erik, and I were all on the same flight.  Our only hiccup was when the room I had rented for us had recently re-glued the carpet.  To avoid asphyxiation, we ended up at America’s Best….well, spoiler alert, it wasn’t.  It was about 2.5 hours from Nashville to Froze Head.  By the time we got there I was more than excited to get started.  We picked up our maps at the visitors center then found a place to camp.  Luckily the weather was stellar.  I ended up throwing my stuff on the lawn and sleeping there for the rest of the weekend (trust me-there wasn’t a lot of sleeping).  The check in was fun.  I was anxious to meet Laz and start my Barkley experience in earnest.

After checking in we began the wait for the conch shell blast.  The previous year it had been a very late start so most of us assumed it would be extra early.  I do much better early in the day so I was hopeful.  Again, Laz threw us a curve ball.  After a fitful night of sleeping with one eye and ear open, I woke up and had a big breakfast, but till no conch.  People were resting, pacing, and making last minute gear decisions.  Anything to pass the time.  Finally we heard it about 9:45.  We now had one hour.  My plan was to latch on to a veteran “Barker” for the first couple of laps to help with navigation.  I knew that Jared and Gary’s pace would be too hot for me out of the gate.  Jason Poole was gracious enough let us tag along.  The first lap was as fun as I have had at a race in a while.  the terrain was steep, there were innumerable leaves covering all the rocks and sticks making the going slow.  We were rested, fueled, and having a blast.  It was a big treasure hunt in the woods, but there were not any Easter eggs, just well-hidden books with titles like “Undead and Unfinished,” “Too Far From Home,” “Where Do We Go From Here?” and even a special treat of a book in Braille.  Erik, Jason, and I kept cruising and working together for the entire first lap, getting in just after dark.  We were no worse for the wear minus a giant gash Erick had on his right butt cheek after a fall coming down Stallion Mountain.  Our first lap took us about 10 hours.

We quickly refueled and headed out into the night.  This time we had the luxury of doing the second loop in the same direction, which was helpful, but not as helpful I one would expect.  We knew that being sleepy and in the dark finding the books would be more complicated.  We slowed considerably.  Erik was having trouble with a knee locking up and we were getting tired.  Erik agonized over his options.  He had looked forward to the opportunity to run Barkley for so long- now his body wouldn’t cooperate.  Jason and I continued on without him.  We spent a little time wandering off course, getting too far west when dropping off of stallion mountain, we knew that eventually we would come to the New River highway crossing.  Eventually after some time wandering around getting our bearings we found the highway and made it down to the crossing.  The seventh book gave us some problems (again) then we headed up and over the new section of the course and thrashed through the brambles to Raw Dog Falls, to Danger Dave’s climbing wall.  We were pretty efficient from there to Rat Jaw and up to the tower.  It was cold and quiet at the tower.  Some of the water was frozen.  We grabbed our braille page and headed down through the prison, and up toward the last few books on Indian Knob and Chimney Top.  In this section Gary and Jared came blazing past us.  It was inspiring to see how quickly they were navigating the difficult terrain.

By the time we made it back to camp I had done the math and decided that there was no way to finish lap three in under the 40 hour cut off.  I also knew that the peer pressure back in camp to leave again would be difficult to ignore.  I was right.  I was completely prepared to tell everyone to go to hell and take a nap but the energy at camp was too difficult to overcome.  After a burrito, soup, and a hell-fire and damnation speech from Frozen Ed I found myself hustling to catch back up with Jason.  Climbing back up Zipline we joined forces with Dale.  His knowledge of the course helped us piece together some of the parts of the course we had been struggling with.  He helped us nail the pesky 7th book and the way up Stallion.  We made good time through the butt slide and we were hustling.  We still might be able to make an official fun run.  However after some problems getting where we needed to be at the Garden Spot and the second book put us over the limit.  When it was apparent that we weren’t going to make it back to camp in under 40 hours we discussed our three options; find quitters road, take a nap, or keep trudging on.  I really wanted to nap, and to get to the last (first) book.  The climb up checkmate was as long and as difficult as anything I’ve done.  I would find myself on all fours cussing climbing until I couldn’t then I would just lay down in the leaves and wait for Dale and Jason.  We were going to finish this thing (whatever it was at this point) together no matter what.  Every false summit continued to crush my battered morale.  Finally we found the book and made our way back to camp.  On the way down the final descent Jason and I briefly dropped Dale.  We opted to sit for a few minutes, head lamps off and stare at the stars above Frozen Head.  What an amazing experience.  So disappointing and so fulfilling all at the same time.  Once Dale caught up we cruised into camp.  42 hours and 4 minutes after we had started.  After scrambling to find a bugler, we finally heard our taps played.  The notes were spitty and pitiful, kind of like I felt at the time.  A perfect ending to a great experience.

Even now I find myself struggling to articulate my experience at Barkley.  I am incredibly grateful for the experience.  When people ask how it went I simply reply- it was awesome.  When they ask, “how did you do?” I tell them “ok”  The always follow that up with – “Will you go back?” And that I don’t know.  Thank you Jared for talking me into trying this beast.  The whole thing had me way outside my comfort zone.  Thanks to Erik, Dale, Jason and the others I leaned so heavily on to get around the course.  Thank you Laz for giving me an opportunity to test my limits.  Also thanks to Leon, Mindy, Billy, and others that were so helpful in camp during the race.  I traveled to Tennessee to experience the Barkley, and experience it I did.

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One of my strengths as an outdoor athlete is my perpetual search for bad ideas.  Late last year Luke informed me that Patagonia needed some cold weather photos and footage for upcoming projects-I knew just the place.  The Greys River is nestled in between the Salt River and Wyoming Ranges in Western Wyoming.  We decided it would be a good idea for a human powered push the length of the river starting at Poker Flat and exiting at the trailhead at the mouth of the canyon near Alpine.  Our trip would consist of about 110k over 3 days.  We knew the first part was groomed and would move pretty fast-the middle 20 miles was uncharted territory.  I had only been over it once, in a car, during the summer.

Monday night Luke, Fred, and I met at my place to finalize logistics and gear.  We needed cold weather footage and the weather guides were more than willing to oblige.  it was forecast to be -25 in Auburn the following morning.  We decided the Fred would accompany us running part of the time, and via snowmobile to get the footage needed.  Luke and I also packed some additional food/warm gear in Black Hole bags strapped to small pulks that we constructed the night before.  Our plan was to be at the top of Commissary Ridge at dawn.  This required a 4:20 wake up call and blitz for the backwoods.

Peeling the layers off to start was painful but it was nice to get moving.  It was a long grinder climb to the top of the pass but the views and heavily flocked trees were astounding.  The real pay off came when we were able to get our sleds to return the favor down the back side of the pass.  The groomed trail provided for the perfect bobsled run.  We just flipped the stays back, straddled the bag and let it rip.  Legend has it that we reached 30+ miles per hour on the descent off the pass and of course we had to try it again.  And again.  And again.

Finally we decided that we’d better get moving.  At the end of the groomed trail we refueled and relaxed at a warming hut then started toward the Cazier Cabin which would be our first stop of the trip.  There had been no travel in this section, the trail was not groomed, and we immediately began postholing and cursing our way to the cabin.  The going was slow and difficult.  The crusty, unconsolidated snow would punch right through sometimes and almost hold on others.  About this time I realized I had done a really poor job fueling and hydrating.  My energy began to wane and my digits started to get cold.  My 3 year old winter 110’s we soaking through and freezing.  Finally I decided to switch socks and then put on my Neos over boots.  They are a bit clunky but it was obvious that no land speed records were being set and the extra warmth, surface area, and traction was wonderful.  Part of our mission was to further test the Patagonia Nano-Air.  I had never used one of these jackets before and it turns out that running in -15 they are the perfect piece.  After 10 hours of nature I had no complaints.  It worked beautifully.

Finally about dusk we reached the cabin.  I was toast.  It was nice to peel off the sweaty layers and get some food going.  Fred and Luke decided that a lap down the river would make the next day much faster going.  We had Ultragen, mashed potatoes, smoked Salmon and some Patagonia Provisions lentil soup.  I made a vow to do much better the next day with my fueling.

We decided to get some extra sleep because of heavy cloud cover the next morning.  We rolled out late morning.  The weather had warmed and the trail they packed the night before was much easier to run.  We meandered by the river.  The trail rolled a bit and as the river grew so did the cool ice flows.  It would choke, flow, and freeze into cool formations.  We made much quicker work of the second day.  Eventually making it back to the groomed trail in Forest Park.  Forest Park is the home of an elk refuge where they feed the elk.  We stopped to check out the big bulls in the hundreds of elk before hustling down to the Meadows cabin near the Box Y Ranch.  We knew they would have a tasty dinner waiting for us.  By the time we reached the cabin we felt like we were flying.  I suppose we were-at 10 minute per mile pace.  We were getting tired of dragging our gear and looking forward to to switching modes of travel.  Dinner was delicious and it was good to see some other people.  In the previous 2 days we had not seen a soul-which we had hoped for but it was good to be getting back to civilization.

The third day we rode out on fat bikes.  McKay Erickson and crew, the Vaquero Race support specialists (think Cowboy aid station) brought our bikes in.  Due to some car trouble we got a bit of a late start but were grateful to be pedaling instead of running at this point.  The early season training was not sufficient for such long days.  At first the trail was solid and Luke’s tires were way under inflated.  Here we saw some of the most breath taking scenery.  Virginia and the surrounding peaks were popping.  Shortly there after it really became a drag.  the lower sections of trail had received a lot of traffic and the cold temperatures left the snow sand-like and loose.  It made the going tough.  4.5 hours and a half-dozen crashes later we finally made it back to the truck.  It was gave us all that we wanted.  We were pleased with our effort and that it had finally warmed up to -7.  Amazing how quickly the human body adjusts to its surroundings.  It only took 15 miles to thaw the ice from our beards.  Now that’s a sold door-smashing adventure for sure.

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Adjustable snapback one size fits most.

Cost: $22.00 this includes shipping.

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Fuel:  EFS Liquid Shot/EFS-Pro (Cucumber Water)

Gear: Patagonia Cap 1 sleeveles, Patagonia Strider-Pro Shorts, Ultaspire Iso Versa

Shoes: Altra One 2.5 (with superior rockplate)- Perfect for dry trails!

Full Results: https://pocatello50.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/35k-2015.pdf

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My best Lorax Impression:

All photos by Luke Nelson

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Winding down after a productive day. #patagoniatrailrunning

Spring is super busy at our house so I was excited to be able to make time in my schedule for a quick trip to the desert to meet with the Patagonia ambassadors and team members to run, discuss the future of the line, and present marketing for Patagonia Inc. After an alpine start and some great food at Don Chuy’s we found ourselves racing to the top of Observation Point in Zion National Park. With 2300 ft of climb in 3 miles it was good to shake out the legs after the long drive. It was sweaty and salty but a great precursor to the rest of the week at Gooseberry Mesa. After our run we pitched camp with the crew. The rest of the time was spent running, eating (amazing food- thanks Tracy!) and honing in the focus of the team in our efforts to promote sport and protect the wild places we love. I am honored to be numbered among the great athletes that represent this amazing company.

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“The Middle Ridge Trail would start near the junction of Greys River and little Greys Road to the north and would end near Deadman creek and ‘the elbow’ area to the south.”

“The Porcupine Ridge Trail would be extended southward to create a loop trail.  This proposed route would also include the existing spur which connects the former drill pad area and also the segment which connects the proposed Middle Ridge Trail.”

“The Telephone Pass Trail be converted to ATV/UTV trail along its entire length.”

“Strawberry creek from Star Valley is proposed fo a 2-track into the Meadows near Greys River Road back toward the east along its entire length.”

“From Dry Creek, near North Fork, a small loop back to the Sheepherders Flat is proposed”

These areas have not already been developed for a reason.  There is already too much resource damage and unmapped trails being made in the Salt River Range.  The Forest Service does not have the resources to maintain the trails that we already have.  The trails that are used by motor vehicles turn to gravel, then wash, making them unsuitable for any use, let alone mixed use.

Those that propose the creation of these trails agree to “maintain and manage the proposed trails listed above under an approved Forest Service agreement for maintenance, stewardship, and education.” I would argue that this cannot and should not happen on our watch.  I am not against motorized travel in our National Forest.  There is room for both.  Just not on the same trails.  If new trails are made they should be subject to a scientifically based travel plan that is economically sustainable for both proper creation and maintenance.  When these decisions are made the Forest Trail Preservation Council would just like a seat at the table to protect the fragile ecosystems that make this area unique.  Let your voice be heard. Contact the following people and let them know where you stand on this issue.

Richard Raione, District Ranger: richardpraione@fs.fed.us (307) 886-5310

Jerry Harmon: jharmon@lcwy.org (307) 877-2003

Robert King: rking@lcwy.org (307) 877-2002

Kent Connelly: kconnelly@lcwy.org (307) 877-2001

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Several of you have asked when I would have a report up about my Bear 200 adventure. It has been a lot to digest. Not entirely because of the enormity of the project but also the personal nature of it. I appreciate Leon for helping me articulate the experience. The article can be found on IRUNFAR.com

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