Masanutten 100 Mile Run

Yes, some ultra runners are weird and like to wear mango colored women’s panties on their head while running.

We went to northern Virginia to crew for our friend Brennen’s 100 mile run. The crew included Brennen’s wife Debra, his best friend Danny, and Elizabeth and I. We all piled into Danny’s Jetta Thursday afternoon and were at Brennen’s brother’s place in Towson, MD by dinner-time. The next morning, we woke up and were on the road to George Washington National Forest by mid-morning. We arrived at the hokey campground in the mid afternoon – just in time for Brennen to attend the course briefing. Elizabeth and I also attended for about 10 minutes. At which point we were bored out of our minds and needed to go for a trail run on the last few miles of the course. Elizabeth wasn’t too stoked that I was dragging her along because there was a light drizzle and she had not been having very good runs recently. But, once her legs started moving and we found our way climbing up the final downhill of the course, she felt pretty good about the run (plus the drizzle had subsided). Our run ended up being a Bryan-Alex run (named after years of confused trail finding during runs involving Bryan Kirk and the author of this post). A Bryan-Alex run has the intention of following some sort of designated trail but more or less ends up being twice as long as intended for a multitude of reasons. None of these reasons really make sense once the run is complete. The only thing one remembers from a Bryan-Alex run is that there were some moments of wondering where one is relative to where one desires to finish. Yet, Bryan-Alex runs end up being more pleasant in hindsight and quite tiring. So, Elizabeth endured a Bryan-Alex run that included a 30 minute downhill on a beautiful dirt road that wound its way through the misty chill of the northern end of the Blue Ridge mountains.
We arrived back from our run to find Danny and Brennen discussing crew and pacing strategy for the next day. Danny was walking around showing off his poncho and how it might be the best way to stay dry while running.
The next morning Brennen started the Race with a friend from last year’s race, Kelly Korovec. Kelly and Brennen ended up running near each other for the first 20-some-odd miles, just like last year. During last year’s race, Debra, Elizabeth, and I ended up getting attached to helping Kelly complete the race. This ultimately led to me pacing him for several hours through the night. If nothing else, he reminded me of myself during my first few ultras – so it was nice to run with another young guy who is stoked about seeing how far he can push himself. Unfortunately, both Brennen and Kelly had to deal with getting what is perhaps the shittiest shirt from a race EVER. I know JFK had an ugly shirt this year (bright orange with an image of JFK on the front) But the Masanutten shirt was a disappointment. The primary reason the shirt was disappointing was because the RD or whoever chose the shirt made a horrible assumption about racer’s style preferences when not running. Bad decision. Racers are quirky people and come from all segments of the population. As a result our clothing styles are all over the map. Pretty much the only thing we are guaranteed to have in common is running. So, as an RD why not play it safe and give everyone a shirt that can be used for – oh, I don’t know – running? Do not give people a faux denim pseudo-cowboy western shirt with your race logo embroidered on it. If in fact you do decide to give a tacky shirt to your runners, at least have some balls and get a real western shirt with snap buttons, embroidered rope designs and bucking broncos. I should note that the only non-running item that seems to be widely accepted by runners – out of tradition and the roots of the sport – is the gaudy belt buckle. In an effort to make the most out of a horrible race shirt, we cut the sleeves off with the hopes of having me blend in with the rural inhabitants of the surrounding Appalachian region. Danny went for the eastern bloc emigré coach. Both Brennen and Kelly had decent runs during daylight hours, with Brennen pulling slowly away from Kelly as the day wore on. Throughout the day, while waiting at aid stations for the runners we had the pleasure of lounging in the warm Virginia sun.During one of these lounging sessions, Danny and I had the pleasure of sitting near some genuine Virginia road kill.Oddly though, the road kill was missing some of the primest cuts of meat.

All ultra-runners should be forced to crew for someone. Being a crew person for a 100 mile run requires a different type of stamina and endurance compared to running the race. Literally this is like walking in someone else’s shoes for a day. The other side of the experience is the run. There isn’t too much I can say about Brennen’s run, because I didn’t experience it in the first person. My personal opinion though, after watching him do the same race 2 years in a row is that he was much more psychologically ready to “run” this year.
My guess is that his training was a bit more intense this year and that
he knew the course (which always helps), but I think most importantly he knew the level of pain that he would have to endure and he was prepared to see if he could endure more than the last time around. Needless to say, he finally suffered – in a good way. He felt like shit after the race and was as cranky as a rusty Schwinn. From my past races, it also helps to have one of your best friends from your youth involved in the pacing/crew. Danny definitely helped keep Brennen and Debra at ease because he has known Brennen the longest and has the opportunity to see him at the lowest moments of his life. So, Danny could look at Brennen at any point during the race and know that he looks alright. He may smell and look pretty beat up, but man you shoulda seen him this one time…

Brennen finished in the wee hours of the morning. After showering he and Debra hung around to watch some of the other runners come across the finish line. We all subsequently slept for a few hours, posed for a victory photo and took off for our 9 hour drive home through the beautiful congestion of Delaware.