 posted Jun-04-2007 11:24 PM
  
 The Short Story: Deadwood-Mickelson Trail HM
June 3, 2007 Her Story
Chip time: 2:15:39 (slight PR)
Division: 37/83
Gender: 355/696
OA: 698/1139
His Story
Chip time: 2:18:29 (PR – 1st HM ever!)
Division: 50/59
Gender: 350/443
OA: 731/1139
The Long Story: “No pets, pacers, pedestrians or punks on the course….this is a race, not a parade.”
~~ Taken from the DMTM 2007 final instructions Background
In the wild, wild old west, Deadwood was notorious for its lawless reputation and murders so MrChoover and I decided we’d just slip into town, run the HM, and get out fast keeping our noses clean and our hides intact. We certainly didn’t want to end up like Wild Bill Hickok. Fortunately, we were in Aamos’ part of the country so if we were to run into any trouble we felt good knowing an attorney in the area. In retrospect, we should’ve built more days into this trip to better enjoy this quaint western town nestled in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. This is a destination race with something in the near vicinity for every one to enjoy: hiking, wineries, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Devil’s Tower, caves, and even some gambling if you like that stuff. Both the full and HM races take place on the Mickelson Trail. The surface is a hard-packed limestone gravel trail which follows an abandoned Burlington Northern Railroad line. The full marathon is a gradual uphill for the first half and HM begins at the 13.1 mile point (6,100 ft in elevation) and is mostly a gradual downhill to the finish. This was my third HM and MrChoover’s first. My previous HM time was 2:17:03. I hadn’t thought too hard about my goals other than I wanted to improve on my previous time. I hoped to be somewhere in the 2:12 to 2:17 range. MrChoover’s goal was to finish and do so in 2:30 or less. His mileage base was marginal at best as he’d made a rather last minute decision to switch from the 5K to HM. Race Director Jerry Dunn was kind enough to upgrade MrChoover for no additional charge so we took him a gift bag of goodies from Montana. He and his wife Elaine Doll-Dunn are very nice people. After switching races, MrChoover barely managed to squeak in two 10 mile training long runs. My training had gone well enough with my longest run being 12 miles. Next time I need to go longer than that. We had several friends from our running club go to Deadwood and several ran very competitively in their AGs. One of our club members took 1st OA Female with a time of 1:24. Race Day – His and Her Stories
Ideal Running Conditions.
Start temp: high 40s/low 50s?
Finish temp: low 60s Her Story: Fashion Report: black & turquoise We caught the bus at 6:45 a.m. The windy road took us through some beautiful Black Hills scenery and I enjoyed the ride. The trail is only 8 or 9 feet wide and I wondered about starting over 1,100 runners in such a narrow area. We arrived at the start and had plenty of time to use the Portajohns and line up at the 10:00 pace signs. The area had recently received a lot of rain and runners were warned to watch for muddy areas. As the gun went off, we hugged and wished each other and our friend good luck and said we’d meet at the finish line. It took us 3 minutes to get to the start. His Story: Fashion Report: black& white (always a classy combo) We were stuck in the back of the bus and I noticed a teenage girl wasn’t feeling well. She ended up getting car sick in her drop bag and then I started to feel a little motion sickness starting until someone finally opened a window to let in some fresh air. I’m not nervous but was starting too wonder how I would feel during those 3 final miles – unknown territory for me. But the biggest thing I worried about was how tight to tie my shoelaces. Miles 1 – 5 Her Story:
Nice-n-easy downhill running but I feel strangely light-headed. Otherwise, I feel fine physically and cardiovascularly. Could it be the altitude? This is about 3,000 feet higher in elevation than what I am used to. There were a couple of really muddy spots that required some fast tip toeing around but overall the trail was in excellent condition given the recent rain. Somewhere around Mile 5 or 6 the course starts leveling out and going slightly uphill, which was almost a nice break from the downhill. Her splits:
Mile 1 10:08 (mile 1 measured .15 long per my Garmin)
Mile 2 9:43
Mile 3 9:43
Mile 4 9:42 (how’s that for 3 consistent miles?)
Mile 5 10:17 (stepped on a rock, rolled my ankle, & nearly fell) His Story: The race started really slow and while I’m not fast, I wondered how I would get around those even slower who were ahead of me. I could see my wife briefly ahead but I knew that once she got out of sight I wouldn’t see her till the end. No big deal. I tried to avoid the wet and muddy spots to avoid getting my shoes wet. His splits:
Mile 1 10:44 (trying to stay calm and not start too fast)
Mile 2 10:15 (going a bit too fast)
Mile 3 10:06
Mile 4 9:59 (hard to slow down with the downhill)
Mile 5 10:05 Miles 6 – 10 Her Story: I still feel light headed and a bit like I am having an out-of-body experience. But otherwise, I feel great. I wish I could redo Mile 7 where I came to a complete stop to wash sticky gel off my fingers. I think this was also the mile with the very steep downhill. There was so much water running off the side of the hill that a river of water and mud was running down the middle of the trail. I opted to walk in the sloppy grass next to the trail but was still nervous about slipping and falling on my fanny. Somewhere along here we also ran through an area with steep, rock walls on either side of the trail that looked like petrified wood. I thought about collecting a few of the pieces for my son but realized Spareribs would probably have a heart attack if I loaded my pockets with rocks. Smpankowski picking asparagus was bad enough. Mile 6 10:37 (starting to wonder how MrChoover is doing)
Mile 7 11:58 (this pains me to look at)
Mile 8 10:18
Mile 9 10:03
Mile 10 10:42
His Story:
I’m a dirt track race fan and I know a good, tacky surface. After testing the slipperiness early in the race, I knew it was like the same stuff at the Black Hills Speedway so I ran right down the middle of it. I realize I run looking down too much and need to start trying to look up more. I am missing too much of the scenery. About mile 8 I start feeling fatigued and begin looking forward to the 10 mile mark. Mile 6 10:32
Mile 7 11:18
Mile 8 10:57 (knee suddenly gives out and I nearly fall)
Mile 9 10:28
Mile 10 10:22 Miles 11 – 13.1 Her Story: The sooner I get done, the better. I ended up feeling light-headed all the way to the bitter end. Mile 11 9:55
Mile 12 10:29
Mile 13 9:50
.10 9:11/pace (My Garmin measured 13.23 total) Final Chip Time: 2:15:39
 His Story: It took everything I had to finish both mentally and physically. The right hand side of my knee would give out but then I’d stop for a few seconds and then be good to go again like nothing happened. Mile 11 10:32
Mile 12 10:40
Mile 13 10:30
.10 ? (also measured over 13.2 but didn’t hit stop fast enough) Final Chip Time: 2:18:29
Retrospectively Hers:
This is a stunning course that I would enjoy running again. Most of the route is a very nice downhill and the mile or so of uphill is barely noticeable; however, the course ended up being harder than I initially thought. Part of the time we followed a nice stream and we also went over several small wooden bridges which I loved. This is not a spectator race but more of a quiet run through a spectacular natural setting. At some of the roadway intersections small crowds gathered to cheer and take photos and there was also a nice group at the end when you really need the support. The RD personally congratulates every finisher. Later that afternoon we enjoyed a delicious $6 buffet dinner with friends and drove up to see Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse monument. Every time I see Rushmore, it’s like the first time. Truly Amazing. On the way back to Deadwood a gorgeous elk walked right in front of our car. If you are into burgers and such, Mustang Sally has a joint in Deadwood:
 Retrospectively His: I started running in September 2006 and could only run about 50 yards until my wife put me on a walk/run schedule. I felt a little emotional at the end of the race because I never thought I’d be able to run this far or enjoy it as much as I have. I never expected to become part of a running group. I was so different from people who ran that I never expected to be sharing this with them. This is a beautiful course and a great surface to run on even though a few parts were wet and muddy. Lastly:
We highly recommend this event. The Mickelson Trail is 114 miles long and someday we want to go back with our bikes and take a few days to ride more of the trail.
Finisher medals made from Black Hills alabaster:
Elevation chart.
Thanks so much for reading! [edited to add the elevation chart because I know how much everyone enjoys them]
[This message has been edited by choover (edited Jun-05-2007).]
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