I have loved Pine Mountain 40 since 2012. I read the book “Born to Run” in May 2012 while I was in grad school and it lit a fire in me. It took my every day road running and transformed it into something that would become a huge part of my physical, mental, emotional and social life. It was the first ultra I trained for, and its fun vibe and less-fun rocks and leaves have had me coming back for more and more over the years. The race started at 6AM on some wet, slick trails. We got a little rain and dense fog that let up shortly after sunrise. I started out in fourth place and don’t ever recall passing anyone, but apparently maintained second place overall for most of the day. I made a first-ever race-specific playlist (heavy on Billy Strings and new-to-me First Aid Kit) and just jammed out and ran alone all day. Every aid station was hosted by several sweet friends that lifted my spirits and cheered me on. I felt like I was running as fast as I could without risking taking a header into some rocks but that’s just so hard to avoid out there – so I took a couple tumbles. My hydration and nutrition were rocking the first 30 miles and the hotter it got, the less I wanted to take in, and I could feel it starting to wear on me.
There is on spur trail just past Mollyhugger outbound that I’m never tempted to take on the way out, but I always make a mental note of it – DO NOT take it on the way back. Well I’ll be damned if I didn’t do just that and ended up in a holler between some mountains. My heart sank and I remembered the quote I had just shared with a friend: Sports do not build character, they reveal it. Then I started thinking about Stoicism, which Alex Y. had just introduced me to. Move on. You cannot change what happens, but you can change how you react to it. I let myself have a 15 second pity party about how I might not be in second place overall anymore, then pulled up my Alltrails app and bushwhacked up that mountain towards the next aid station. Ironically, this uphill bushwhacking was almost on the one-year anniversary of our Georgia Loop uphill bushwhacking. And similarly, I fell in a hole from where a tree root had rotted, rolled around in some old mulch, and finally pulled myself together! I came in to Mollyhugger which was a welcomed party scene. Kevin was nice enough to pick some bark out of my hair. I found out I was still in second but a 19-mile runner I had passed was just in front of me – so I wasn’t sure how much time I’d lost. Didn’t matter. Stay the course. And stay ON course!
On a short out and back section a wee pack of younger men saw me and I heard one of them say, “There she is!” Eek! Just when I was feeling sluggish, I had a call to action. I was not giving up my spot now with six miles left. So I pushed myself as hard as I could and that finish line was so good looking. Seriously, Nick, that finish line was a sight to behold. With its fancy screen, inflatable pine trees with real tree trunks, a vat of pulled pork BBQ, and dear friends – it was perfect. One of my best friends, Rebecca, was there and had just came in second place female in the 19-miler (to none other than Emily who has the CR for the 40 miler).
This was a top-notch race. Nick and his wife and their team of volunteers went above and beyond and I can’t wait to be out there again next year as a runner or volunteer. Congrats to all the other finishers too!
I came in 2nd OA in 7:49 (previous best time was 8:20 in 2012 on an arguably slightly shorter course). It wasn’t my goal time but you know my other favorite quote: “A man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what’s a heaven for.” -Robert Browning. And this girl isn’t complaining. I left it all out there and that’s about all I can do.
TrailCats 