The Never Summer 100k in Gould, Colorado had been on my sights and bucket list for some time. I knew it was a challenging race given the terrain and altitude, but from the photos I had seen online it looked absolutely stunning and worth the challenge. This 68 mile trail race boasts 15,000 feet of climbing while the average altitude sits at 10,000 feet. Talk about breath taking, literally! It sits right outside of Rocky Mountain National Park, in the heart of the Never Summer and Medicine Bow mountain range.
Never Summer was not a race I had originally planned to run this year, but there were a few factors that motivated me to head out west. The first factor and biggest reason I wanted to finish this race, was because it is a Western States qualifier. This will be my third year getting a ticket to enter myself in the lottery, and I had no other races that would have qualified me this year. So had I not run this race, I would have lost the two other tickets I had accumulated. This race was attractive to me because it was under 100 miles. I really have no desire to run any 100 milers this year or next, so finding a more challenging but shorter distance race had me stoked to check that box and earn that ticket!
The second factor was the timing. I am a Florida girl, but much of my summer in the last few months have not been spent in Florida. With summer travels up north to escape the heat and family time spent in the mountains of Maine in the early June, the months prior to this race were almost the perfect training to get all of the climbing in. I had run three self supported ultramarathons out in the wilderness alone that all had over 10,000 feet of climbing gain. My legs were primed for climbing in the two months leading up to this!
The final factor was that I already had plans to head out west in mid July anyway. I had been signed up for a race in Utah in August and decided to make it an extended trip and to just spend time out there. So given that I was already going to be in the area (ish), it was perfect!
So in June I put myself on the waitlist, crossing my fingers and hoping that I would get lucky enough to get selected! It was a pretty last minute decision but I really and truly wanted to not just race this race, but get my Western States qualifier for the year. It seemed like a great opportunity. Then finally, two weeks before the race I got off the waitlist! I had honestly forgotten about it and lost hope of getting in, but seeing that email invitation from ultrasignup got my fire going and I could not wait!!
Though I really hadn't trained specifically for this race, I had the confidence that my body and mind would carry me through it given all the mountain training I had been doing in the months prior. I was getting my nutrition and gear ready for the Colorado mountains!
I had high goals and ambitions for this race. I didnt have a crew or any pacers but I was fully confident that I could still tackle this challenging run. My goal was to finish in 14-16 hours, or at least right before sunset, and to hit the podium. Coming from the southeast, where there isn't as heavy competition at our local trail races, it really hasn't been "hard" for me to win races or podium. I knew this race would be different and I would have to fight my way to get there, but I was confident that I could get it done.
As with any ultramarathon, things don't always go as planned. The weather and elements are grueling on your body, and over time it takes it's toll on you. For me, I suppose it was the dry and dusty air. I had spent ten days in Colorado, at altitude, prior to the race, so I don't think that is what bothered me. Rather, all the dust in the air from the gravel road beds and dry air. I say this from experience with having run other races on gravel road beds or in extremely dry conditions. I develop edema in my lungs and slowly fluid build up begins to make every breath a challenge. This is what happened to me for this race.
I did not have the race that I had planned or hoped for, but I did get a finish. And I got some wild stories to tell! In retrospect, had I raced hard and finished early I would not have had near the adventure I ended up having out there, which I am grateful for. As miserable as much of it was, I am thankful for this experience and these memories. It took me 20 hours and 59 minutes to make it back to that finish line, but I made it.
Here's how the day went:
The day started off strong. Up until mile 20 I was holding 5th and 6th place. I felt pretty good and confident in keeping up a consistent pace to carry me through the race, and eventually pass a few women at the end where most people slow down or bonk out. In this case, I was the one who ended up bonking after that point...
After the mile 20 aid station is when everything started to hit the fan. You begin a grueling 4 mile climb to the highest point of the race, North Diamond Peak, and it's a real ass kicker. It's steep and it's brutal. This is where I really started to slow down. I got passed by five or six people before reaching the summit. Once you get to that point, it's a rolling net downhill to the next aid station. Rolling as in there were still some annoying uphills even after that gnarly climb! I was over it lol.
Once I made it to Ruby Jewel aid station at mile 31, we were just getting into the heat of the day. It was dry, dusty, and warm. I was starting to walk a lot more and climbing was getting harder and harder.
Between those miles 31 and 40 after leaving Ruby Jewel, I had decided that I wanted to drop at that next aid station (Clear Lake). My legs felt like lead, could barely eat/drink, I could not catch my breath and every step uphill was knocking the wind out of me. Truthfully I also have been going through a rough time in my personal life so that was also surfacing. My mind was everywhere but in the race. I felt like I had no fight left and my heart wasn’t there. That nine mile segment is a gradual 4 ish miles uphill then a nice runnable downhill. I walked all of it and wasted probably an hour stopping in streams to cool off and sitting on rocks soaking in my own sadness. I cried probably four times on this section and wasted a ton of time just sitting, dwelling and mentally being drained. I was in a dark dark place mentally and had made up my mind to drop at that next aid station. I walked the entire runnable downhill section. I had absolutely no energy to even jog.
It took me 4 or so hours to do this section. By the time I got to the aid station I was so behind on calories and I didn’t want to eat anything. But I did eat some aid station snacks. I sat on a cot for ten minutes contemplating dropping to all the other runners there and volunteers. Everyone said I should keep going! But I didn’t want to…
Basically it was a remote aid station and I wouldn’t get a ride back for six hours if I stayed there. We had a short 4.3 out n back section (with 1400 ft climb) before we hit the same aid station, then leave. They all encouraged me to at least try to do the out n back to see how I feel. So I downed some coke to get caffeine (didn’t help) and I started going for it.
I made it maybe 50 feet up and stopped and sat on a rock I could still see the aid station below and I just couldn’t do it. So I decided to sit there for five minutes and then go back to the aid station to just wait and DNF.
But then people kept passing by on the out and back and asking what was wrong, how they could help, and that I should just try to keep moving. So I tried again. This time I made it maybe another 50 feet up and was like NOPE found a log in the shade and decided to sit there before going back down to the aid station. Wasted probably ten more minutes there before another runner passed by and refused to let me sit there or drop out of the race. He INSISTED I eat a hammer gel to get some sugar in me to do the out and back. I told him I didn’t want to do it and every step uphill hurt to breathe. He didn’t give me a choice and said nope you’re eating this and coming with me, I’m slow anyway. He was extremely positive, uplifting and good energy to have around. I needed that. And we had two other people who caught up at that point who all promised to stay with me for the out and back. It was really hard but I was able to do it and keep going. Once we got to the turn around point we did the hole punch, and one of the ladies handed me a coconut bra to wear for those last 2 miles It was the aid station coconut bra and it put me in a better and lighter mood.
On that way down, we saw dark storm clouds starting to roll in. Within five minutes the wind started to HOWL and all of a sudden it was dumping rain, hail, and lightning. Five of us all took shelter under a tree (we were on a ridge !) and huddled together to stay warm. We covered each other in our rain jackets for warmth and shelter. It was gnarly and really cold at that point. It lightened up after five minutes and we started to layer up with our jackets and keep moving. I honestly had enough energy to jog downhill now and felt okay!!!
So I made it back to the aid station, gave them their coconut bra back, filled up my bottles and grabbed a snack for the road. The next six mile section was mostly downhill and the first two were pretty runnable. I was able to run but breathing was still hard.
However, after all that rain storm it churned up the road and trails into the biggest mudfest I have ever seen. Colorado mud is probably the worst stuff I have ever experienced. It was slippery, thick, would stick to your shoes and made you feel like you had bricks tied to your shoes. It was ROUGH. But I had enough energy to power hike with my poles through it. It kept raining lightly for about 1.5 hours during that section. We did get a rainbow during the sunset while it was still raining and that was beautiful!! I started to get cold though and it was getting dark soon. I neglected nutrition and hydration because I didn’t want to get cold/stop moving.
I made it to that 51 mile mark aid station just in time before having to get out my headlamp. I stayed there for 20 minutes or so to dry off and warm up. Had hot broth and noodles, got my gloves and hand warmers out.
Im so thankful to have met and made friends with Adam during that section. When we got to the aid station, he saw how cold and cold wet I was. I had a warmer outer layer rain jacket but my shirt and arm sleeves underneath were wet. He gave me a dry thermal that he wasn’t using. I don’t think I would have finished had I not had that dry warm layer.
The next six miles was a gradual up and gradual down to the next aid station. I decided AGAIN that I was gonna DNF at this mile 58 aid station Breathing was getting harder and harder. Every step I had to take three quick breaths and had fluid building up in my lungs. I was out of breath just going downhill and could no longer jog. It was a cold, dark and lonely death march.
Once I got there I figured, well, at this point it’s only 8.5 miles to finish and I could do 30 minute miles and still be hours ahead of the cutoff. So I just death marched it and was able to do 20 minute miles which felt alright. I still couldn’t breathe and was getting colder but I managed. I stopped eating after this aid station too.
Eventually I had to wrap a space blanket around my waist to make a “space skirt” since I didn’t have pants and my legs got too cold. I wasn’t planning to be out this late at night into the race. Lesson learned: always pack more than what you need and prepare for the plan to change. Have a backup race plan. But nonetheless,I finished.
This was a miserable and brutal race. By far one of the hardest finishes I have ever done. We went through all types of weather and terrain. Which made it that much harder. Heat, rain, hail, lightning, cold. Over ten miles of wet mud and bogs.
However during the day this was the most beautiful course I have ever been on. These forests and alpine lakes of the never summer and medicine bow mountains are something special!! It was magic all around, and wildflowers everywhere. The flowers were my favorite
Although I was miserable and unhappy for a lot of this race, I did enjoy the beautiful trails and views in the beginning. I AM happy that I finished this, despite wanting to drop so badly halfway through. It was hard but it was worth it.
I’m thankful for every person I met who encouraged me. I would not have finished had it not been for Jesse who picked me up to do the out n back and then also Adam for loaning me his dry thermal shirt.
Thankful for Brian and Steven who made me join them at mile 35 for some miles, Elijah, Scott, Alex, and all the other names I’m forgetting of people who I joined and uplifted me during some of the darkest times. It was quite an experience out there.
Colorado races are something else!! This place and this community is just wonderful though. Every volunteer was so helpful, kind, and encouraging.
I’m thankful for this experience and the growth that came out of it. Lessons were learned and memories were made. This was an adventure I could have never predicted!!
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