2012 Sierra Club One Day Hike — 100K

4.29.2012 — Sierra Club One Day Hike

During the Sierra Club One Day Hike — 62.1 miles from Georgetown to Harpers Ferry — in 2011, I often told myself, “There’s no way I’m ever doing this again.” It was that painful, that brutal, that excruciating. It was the most difficult day of my life.

Yet the accomplishment I felt at the end was so great, so like nothing I’d ever felt before — and I’ve gone on my fare share of crazy, physically taxing adventures — that I knew, just days after, that I wouldn’t pass up the chance to do it again, and do it even better.

So there I was on Saturday, April 28, 2012, waking up at 12:30am while most of my friends were either at the bar or heading to the bar or preparing to head to the bar. I took a shower in an attempt to “loosen up,” packed my Camelback, and headed out.

Two and a half hours later, I stood amongst 128 other “crazies” as final instructions were relayed to us. It was maybe 40 degrees outside. The sky was pitch black at the Thompson Boat Center in Georgetown.

I wondered to myself (and these are all internal thoughts): “What the hell am I doing? What did I get myself into … again?”

The following are mostly excerpts of my inner thought process (because I barely said a word to anybody) from my 62.1-mile hike to Harpers Ferry.

Enjoy. And try not to feel the pain.

(All times and miles are approximate)

3:47am, mile 3

Why, why, why? Why am I doing this?

This is, by far, the most mentally challenging part of the hike. I still have 60 miles left. It’s pitch black all around me. The only sound is of cars passing by on Clara Barton Parkway across the canal to my right. My mind wanders. Work. Social life. Basketball. Whatever. It can’t settle on anything. I duck off the trail to take my first of many leaks. I walk back up and pass the same people I passed 12 minutes earlier. I trudge on.

6:13am, mile 13

I have cleared the first hurdle! Having reached the first of seven support stations, I now feel much better about everything. There are no more questioning thoughts. I’m doing this and it’s going to be amazing. It’s light outside, finally, and from here on out, I won’t have to hike more than 10 miles without a rest station. Speaking of that, just 10.5 miles — I know; it really is a damn long way — to breakfast!

8:07am, mile 19

My first 14-minute mile! Starting after the rest stop, when I could actually see every mile marker — which, on the C&O Towpath are short brown, concrete posts on the left side of the trail — I have taken pictures of each marker to gauge my progress. I did mile 19 in 14 minutes, my first recorded sub 15-minute mile. Since doing a mile in 15 minutes is 4MPH, anything better than it is very fast, in my book. I truck on.

9:03am, mile 23

Breakfast! Finally! This is a big spirit-boosting accomplishment. Not only am I feasting on Starbucks coffee, bananas, oranges, trail mix and, yes, half a blueberry muffin (this is one day when I will cheat, just a little, on the gluten), but from this point to Harpers Ferry, I won’t have to trudge more than 8 miles to a rest stop — and after the next leg, that will decrease to 7 miles or less.

How do I feel? Sore. And in a little pain. But nothing I didn’t expect. I have one of the awesome volunteers snap a photo of me, and I head on my way.

10:24am, mile 27

I look down at my hands and still can’t believe how ghastly they look. They’re puffy. They’re red, and maybe even a little purple. Since I took my gloves off at the first rest station, they’ve never warmed or lost this coloration. I don’t think it’s “cold” outside. It’s probably about 50 degrees. But my mitts sure don’t agree. The weather is a far cry from last year, when it was ideal — in the mid to high 60s and sunny the entire walk.

11:15am, mile 31

People. Conversation! With the exception of a few words spoken to the friendly volunteers at the breakfast table, I literally haven’t said more than “How you doin?” “Hey,” “Hello” or “Hi,” to people on the trail for the past eight hours. But now, as we approach the Edwards Ferry support station, I run into a pair of hikers. They ask where I live in DC. I answer. They tell me they live in the same neighborhood. They inform me of a post-hike meal they have planned for Sunday at Big Board, one of my favorite neighborhood restaurants. I say I might be there if I can get out of bed.

We quickly reach the station, where a lively volunteer belts out, “WELCOME TO EDWARDS FERRY!!!!” I gulp down some Gatorade and take two painkillers. This next stretch, I know from experience, could be brutal.

12:21pm, mile 34

Take that, trail! After a mysterious, hard-to-understand 21-minute mile to reach the “Mile 33” stake, I have responded as only I know how. I have pumped my arms up and down, I have moved my feet in my best stay-at-home-mom, neighborhood fast-walk impersonation, and I have achieved my first 13-minute mile of the day! Unlike a year ago, when I could barely move during this stretch, I’m feeling pretty good.

But not, apparently, as good as the first people through Edwards Ferry. It’s worth mentioning that the voluble lady at the support station said they had come through at 8:50am., only about two and a half hours before me! They must have ran the whole damn thing.

1:47pm, mile 40

Yes, that’s a dead black snake in the middle of the trail. This is by far the most bizarre thing I’ve seen all day. I guess when you’re on the trail for so long, you’re bound to see something esoteric.

I march on.

3:18pm, mile 45

Wow, it’s desolate out here. I literally haven’t seen another hiker since the lunch stop at the 35.6-mile mark, some two and a half hours ago. Part of the reason, I think, is that since I’m way ahead of last year’s pace — almost two hours — I have passed all the hikers whom I was passing at this point in 2011. But the hikers ahead of me are the beasts, and I’m starting to wonder if I’ll catch any of them.

Whatever the case, it’s quiet except for my iPod — and the occasional chirping from birds. (A note on the iPod: I wouldn’t be able to do this hike without it. Unlike mountain hikes, the scenery isn’t too interesting, and very repetitive; I already mentioned the lack of conversation on the trail, and everyone’s going at their own pace; and, finally, but most importantly, the iPod is an excellent way to stay motivated from mile to mile. Yes, I’m talking about the Three Song Prong, which means that I try to complete each mile during a set of three songs. Obviously, the length of the songs vary, so some sets are easier than others to achieve this against. Regardless, it gives me a measure of where I am on a given mile, and when that third song is winding down, I know that it’s time to step up my pace!)

4:40pm, mile 50

Now here are all the people! Despite hordes of 50K hikers — they started at 10am, and I’m beginning to catch a great deal of them — I manage to navigate my way to a 13-minute mile on the not-so-wide trail. I keep looking for someone with the white 100K bib number as opposed to the orange 50K bib, but my efforts are fruitless.

That is, until I spot an older gentleman, probably in his late 60s or early 70s, moving at a good pace. Another 100ker. Finally. After 15 miles without seeing one. As it turns out, I won’t see another the rest of the hike. But I’ll see this guy again, when I pass him, again, at the 58-mile mark. He’s so impressive. Such an inspiration.

(Which leads me to a brief tangent. The most respected 100ker is a man, I don’t know his name, who, according to everyone who tells the story, is 73 years old and has done the 100K for 16 consecutive years (the hike has existed since 1974, so this was the 39th edition; the 50K was created for the less ambitious, or less “nutso,” in 2000). Last year, I caught up with the legend around the 42-mile mark when I was at the peak of my struggles and he offered some encouraging words; this year, I passed him around the 25-mile mark.)

6:11pm, mile 56

Ugghh, why did I sit down??

At the final support station, at Brunswick, I thought I deserved a break, which I did. So I sat down in a comfy chair for about 8 minutes with a cup of hot coffee in one cup holder and a cup of chicken noodle broth in the other. Yes, the temperature hadn’t warmed all day. It was probably around 50 degrees and rainy. For the previous hour and a half, a consistent light rain had fallen — not enough to necessitate a break to change cloths or anything, but still rain. I had finally put on the raincoat and gloves for the final stretch.

Then it was time to get up…

And oh, the pain…

Now as I made my way toward mile marker 56, I could feel the agony everywhere. The tops of my feet ached like they hadn’t all day. My left knee was in pain, although that would dissipate within a mile. And my shins/ankles burned. A year earlier, I had felt great down the stretch, having caught a ridiculous second wind that had me doing a few 12- and 11-minute miles at this point.

Not this time around.

7:39pm, mile 61

Oh, the euphoria! I am crossing the bridge into Harpers Ferry. After that, it’s just a long 1-mile uphill climb — nothing! — to the Bolivar Community Center and the end to this epic day. As I shoot footage for my soon-to-be-posted ODH video, I note that with this journey, it’s not about the first 10 miles, or the second 10 miles, or the third 10 miles, or the fourth 10 miles, or the fifth 10 miles, or even the 9 miles after that!! … it’s about this incredible feeling I have right now that erases all thoughts pertaining to the pain I’m in. It’s about the notion that I’m so close to finishing something so incredible, so amazing — something that only 129 people signed up to do (and who knows how many finished).

I descend from the bridge, grab a final Gatorade (I’ve probably consumed 80 ounces of the stuff plus another 120 ounces of water during the day) at a final, makeshift support station (the volunteers are so amazing!) and begin my climb…

8:02pm, mile 62.1 … DONE!

Oh, so close!

My ambitious goal, entering the day — ya know, back at 3am — had been to finish by 8pm. I just missed it. I did my best speed walking uphill I’ve ever done. I ignored the jarring foot pain. I thought I had a chance. But in the end, I came up just short. It should be noted, however, that my stopwatch, which I began at the exact beginning of the day, read 17:00.53. So, technically, I was only 53 tics off my objective, not 2 minutes.

Believe it or not, I didn’t let my failure ruin my night (I know, I know — hard to believe). I entered the building and immediately the comedian hiker showered me with his customary “I’m not worthy, I’m not worthy” bow, which he gave to every finishing 100ker. I then got my picture taken, as I had the year before, next to the ODH flag outside. After that, it was time to get my feet checked out, and amazingly for the second straight year they lacked a single blister. Then I dug into a final meal of the day, thoroughly enjoying the veggie chili, pizza and salad without having to think about that “next leg.” As I waited for the shuttle, I chatted with a nice group of people who had done the 50K. Maybe — or doubtful — I’ll have some company on the trail in 2012.

Yes, I said it. I’m coming back for Year 3.

(Note: As I was walking through the medical room before catching the shuttle back to DC, a man lying down, his feet wrapped in mummy tape, piped up, “Hey, aren’t you the YouTube guy???” It definitely caught me off guard, but he had watched my YouTube video of the hike from the previous year and, I guess, it motivated him to give it a try this time around. I’m glad my crazy ass can serve as inspiration. Just don’t sue me, please!!)

NOTES and NUMBERS from the 2012 Sierra Club One Day Hike

• Miles hiked: 62.1
• Average pace (including 7 support stations): 3.74 mph
• Time of hike: 17 hours, 53 seconds
• Compared to 2011: 83 minutes better
• Probable position: 20-25th (out of 129 who started hike)
• *Won’t know for sure until results released
• Best mile: 13 minutes (a handful of times)
• Worst mile: 21 minutes (Mile 33)
• Support station mileages: 12.2; 22.7; 30.7; 35.6; 42; 48.2; 55
• Best motivational songs: “Sweat” (Bump n Grind); “Somebody That I Used to Know” (Gotye)
• Worst motivational song: “Comfortably Numb” (Peter Gabriel)
• Average number of times each song on Shuffle was listened to: 3
• Number of conversations on trail: 2 (both less than 5 minutes)
• Number of states (and DC) passed through: 3
• Gatorade consumed: Approximately 80 ounces
• Water consumed: Approximately 120 ounces
• Gorp consumed: 2 bags
• Painkillers taken: 4 pills
• Number of 50K hikers: 221
• Number of 50K hikers I passed: 75 (approximately)