My pacers
report. Ken Michal’s 5th loop
of HURT 100 2013.
Rob Lahoe
I want to
preface this report by telling you how I met Ken. A few years back, I’d injured my knee and
couldn’t run the HURT 100, so I decided to become the captain of the Paradise
Park aid station. After a very long day,
night, and another day, it was time to start breaking everything down. We were coming to the cutoff time for that
aid station and everyone was ready to clean up and go home.
We were
packing up the generator when, from very far down the trail, we heard this very
faint screaming and yelling. At first we
were alarmed and thought that maybe someone might be hurt, but quickly realized
that these were screams of excitement and happiness. On and on the yells and screams went. As they grew closer, the atmosphere around
the aid station began to get energized and excited. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It seemed to go on for at least 10
minutes. Finally, this colossal man came
running in, screaming and blithering and crying. I’ve never seen anyone so
excited to finish the HURT 100k.
Ken at HURT 10: 100k in 31:20:00 (10 minutes to spare!) Photo: Karen Gerasimovich |
As a
matter of fact, I’ve never seen a more emotional and exciting finish to any
race whatsoever. From that point on, I
was a fan of ‘All Day’ Ken. Just as a
side note, I think the 100k was going to be discontinued after that year, but
because of Ken’s amazing finish, the RD’s decided to keep that part of the race
for a few more years. Ed note: The 100k has officially been discontinued as of HURT 2013. 100k "Fun Run" finishers will no longer receive buckles or official results.
I wrote to
Ken about 6 months before HURT 2013 and told him that I was more than willing
to pace him on his 4th and 5th loops if he wanted. Although enthusiastic about seeing me, he
never really gave me a solid ‘yes’. I
also had plans to camp out at the top of Pauoa flats with Cindy Goh throughout
the night. I wanted to keep her company,
bring some music and disco lights, and increase the energy a bit.
Pauoa Flats: A runnable, flat section of the course! Photo: Rob Lahoe |
I told Ken
that although I couldn’t start pacing him from that point, (HURT rules say you
must pick up your pacer at an aid station) he just had to say the word and I’d
pack up and meet him at the next aid station.
He came around in the dead of night and we greeted each other with fist
bumps, but nothing was said about needing a pacer. As always, Ken was smiling and cheerful, so
it was hard for me to determine what kind of state he was in. My biggest worry was that he’d get to the
100k and drop, so when he was on his way down to that aid station I asked him if
I’d see him again. He said something
like “there’s no way I’m dropping” and “you’ll have to drag me off this
course.” I took that as a very good
sign.
The next
time I saw him was at the top of the hill after he passed 100k. It was about 6:30 in the morning, the sun was
coming up, and Cindy and I were about ready to pack up and head down. I asked Ken as he made the turn towards
Nu’uanu “what’s the verdict? You want me
to meet you at Nature Center and head out with you on the last loop?” He said something humble like, ‘yeah, if
you’re not too busy it would be nice.”
Mrs. CK Waits Patiently at the Nature Center! Photo: Sharon Smith |
Finally, at
10:30 Ken comes running into the aid station.
He gets everything he needs from his ‘pit crew’ and we’re off.
When we
started out going up Hogsback I was trying to judge where he was
physically. I’ve done Hogsback hundreds
if not thousands of times and I know that on that last loop you’re gonna have
to stop at some point to catch your breath.
There’s a point about half way up we call ‘roots and rocks’ where it
gets even steeper than usual. I normally
have to stop 3-4 time here to catch my breath on the last loop. I wanted to see how Ken would handle this
area. When we got there, Ken stopped
once for maybe 10 seconds to catch his breath and cough, and then took off
again. I couldn’t believe it. He was flying up this monster of a hill. It takes me 20 minutes to climb that hill on
fresh legs. We did it in 25:30. At that point I was thinking to myself—“he
doesn’t even need me! This’ll be a cake
walk at this pace!” I asked Ken for his
wife’s phone number and sent her a text:
“Top of Hogsback in 25:30. Very
determined & running about a 6.5 hour pace.
Ken looks really good!”
We continued
on towards the next landmark. There’s a
small stretch of paved road the runners have to cross. On a 6 hour loop it takes me 1 hour to get to
this point. My next text to Karen: “Made it to the concrete road in 1:05. About a 6:15-6:30 pace.” At this point I was very confident we were
going to make it with lots of time—maybe an hour or so—to spare. I just shut up and tagged along with him
because really, he was doing everything on his own. My next text to Karen was at the pig
gate: “1:43 to make it to the pig
gate. It’s all downhill from here to
Paradise!”
We rushed
down and through Pauoa Flats, still on my predicted 6:30 hour loop time. We then started on the dreaded switchbacks
down to paradise, and I sent Karen another text: “Be there in about 30 minutes.”
I’m now kind
of dazed out and not really paying attention because I know we’re doing really
well and there’s really no need to push Ken.
He seems happy (as usual) and very motivated. Although Hogsback was tough and there were
some other steep areas, I haven’t really noticed any signs of severe pain or
fatigue beyond what I’d expect at this point; and he’s keeping his food
down. Really, the only thing that
concerns me is that I haven’t seen him pee yet.
I ask him about it and he says he’s been doing well in that department,
so I let it go.
Up to this
point I’ve been following Ken at his request.
However, the area below the switchbacks is filled with tourists; young,
old, and VERY slow. I tell Ken I’ll take
the lead once we get to Manoa Falls and block the tourists for him. When we get to the falls I want to send
another text to let Karen know we’ll be there shortly. I look at my watch and notice it’s already
been 30 minutes since my last text telling her we’d be there in 30 minutes. We’re now about 10 minutes away, and I can’t
figure out where we lost that time. My
best guess is that I was wrong about which switchback we were on when I sent
the text. We must have been much higher
on the mountain than I thought. I’m a
little embarrassed about my mistake and feel bad that Karen is probably
expecting us right now. I send her a
very short text: “@ Falls.”
Photo: Ken Michal |
When we’re
about ¼ mile from Paradise Park I ask Ken what he needs and then sprint ahead
to let everyone at the aid station know and prepare. When he arrives, it seems 15 people are on
him--changing his tires, filling his gas tank, and checking his oil. It was an amazing sight to see. I can’t believe the amazing job done by the
volunteers there.
As I’m
putting the cap back on my water pack, Cheryl Loomis comes up to me and gives
me a serious look. She says “you need to
get him out of here by 1:30.” This
statement really surprises me, because we’ve just finished this leg in – wait. I look at my watch and cycle from “timer” to
“clock” and realize that it’s already 1:15 PM.
What the hell just happened? With
the speed we’ve been traveling, I thought we’d be out of there by 1 PM!
We’re in and
out of the aid station in something like 32.5 seconds and everyone is clapping
while I’m desperately trying to figure out what happened to all that time we
just had. We were on a 6:30 hour loop
and should be increasing our cushion times between cutoffs. We just went from a 30 minute cushion at the
Nature Centre to a 15 minute cushion at Paradise. While I was thinking we’d gained 15 minutes,
we’d actually LOST 15 minutes. Yes, I
have to admit. I was really freaking out
at this point.
I told Ken
to leave nothing left on our climb out of Paradise. I told him that this was the last climb that
needed his full effort. After this,
there was only the final climb—and I knew a combination of adrenaline and a
sense of finishing would get him quickly over the last climb. If he could put all his effort into this
climb, the rest should take care of itself.
From this
point to Nu’uanu I don’t send Karen any more texts. To tell you the truth, I’m a little scared to
do so. I really can’t figure out what
went wrong on that last leg.
Almost to the top from Paradise! Photo: Ken Michal |
So we get to
the top, rub Biens Bench, and start to make our way down to the last aid
station. From here to the bottom, I’m
expecting about a 40 minute run. With the amazing climb we just had, we should
get there about 30 minutes before the cutoff.
We head down 5-minute hill (which is 5 minutes of agonizing pain—no
matter if you’re going down it or up it), and I remember telling Ken that the
rest of it is runnable. I’ve been a
little pushier with him this time because I’m really feeling the cutoff pressure.
We get going
down the switchbacks. At this point I
start to worry about Ken a little bit.
He’s not doing well when he has to take a large step down. The grunts and exclamations of pain are
getting louder, more dramatic, and nearer to each other. Although he’s been in pain the entire time
I’ve been with him, I can tell this downhill is really hurting him. We eventually make it to the halfway
point. I look down at my watch and
notice that over 30 minutes have gone by since we passed Biens Bench.
An “Ah Ha” moment rocks me.
It’s at this
time I realize that Ken is kicking ass climbing these hills. He’s making up time and cruising through
it. However, it’s his downhill speed
that’s slowing us down. We should be at
the bottom of this hill in 10 minutes.
But at this pace, we’ll be there in 30 minutes, getting into the aid
station exactly at the 3:30 PM cutoff!
I quickly
take my right foot and bury into Kens’ ass.
I tell him the trail math which gets him moving. I didn’t realize how slow we were going down
these hills! So now we’re pretty much at
an all-out sprint heading into Nu’uanu.
I had
originally expected the last half of this hill to take Ken 20 minutes. That time shot up to 30 minutes based on how
long it took us to do the first half.
Once I
realized what was happening and told Ken, he did it in 15 minutes.
Again, the
aid station was a blur of activity as 15 people surrounded Ken, gave him a
manicure, cut his hair, and served him a prime rib dinner with all the
fixings. I yelled to the volunteers that
we needed to leave in exactly 2 1/2 minutes.
I think we left in less than 2.
"Oh my, look at the time! As much as I hate to eat and run, Freddy..." Photo: Sharon and Robert Smith |
Our final
climb!
Although
we’re almost done, I’m really worried that the last section from Nu’uanu to the
Nature Center will be the hardest part for Ken.
If this was a climbing leg I’d be secure in the notion we’d make it on
time. However, this section has the
longest downhill of the loop, and Ken isn’t doing well on the downhills. Almost every step he takes is accompanied by
a grunt or a cry of pain.
At the top of Nuuanu! Photo: Rob Lahoe |
For those
not familiar with 5 minute hill, all I can say is that it’s a monster. You’ve finally finished the switchbacks
coming out of Nu’uanu, and you find yourself coming out of a dense forest
canopy to a ridge where you can see for miles.
It’s like moving from night to day in 5 seconds. You make a hard left turn onto a hill that
rivals the hardest climb you’ve ever done.
As an initiation to new HURT runners, we make them do this hill in 5
minutes the first time they run a full 20 mile loop from the Nature
Center. It’s basically the last hard
climb of the loop, and it’s a doozy.
Many don’t make the 5 minute cutoff their first try. Ken did it in 7 minutes with 96 or 97 miles
under his legs. I was very impressed.
We made our
way through the pig gate, and like magic, all the cries of pain I’d been
hearing for the entire loop turned into laughing from this point on. We were done with the final climb, and it was
smooth sailing from here on out.
The only
problem was that, while Ken seemed confident about his time, I was not. I knew how much time we’d lost on the last
two down hills, and while those two took us a total of about an hour and a half
to finish, we still had another hour and a half of downhill in front of
us. We could not lose more than 15
minutes here. All I could think about
was how we’d taken 30 minutes on a 20 minute downhill from Biens Bench to the
midpoint to Nu’uanu. If we could lose 10
minutes there and 15 minutes on the downhill to Paradise, Ken was definitely
not out of the woods yet. The longest
downhill of them all was staring at me, and all I could think about was the
cutting knives back at Nature Center aid station that Karen, RD Big John, and
Gary Robbins would use on me if I didn’t get Ken back in time.
We had 90
minutes until the 6 PM race closure.
From the top of Hogsback to the finish it takes about 40 minutes, so I
told Ken we needed to get to Hogsback in ½ hour to give us a good cushion. At this point my biggest fear was the final
bone jarring descent down Center Trail (aka Pipes). It would be extraordinarily easy to lose
15-20 minutes there.
Off we went,
Ken laughing like a little school girl at each passing landmark, and me
sweating bullets. I did not want to be
forever known to the running community as the guy who got ‘All Day’ Ken to the
finish line 2 minutes after the cutoff.
It was at
this point I kind of felt like one of those old dirty men that you read
about. The only words coming out of my
mouth were, ‘yeah!’ and ‘just like that!’ and ‘faster!’
Although we
were moving down the hill, we weren’t going at the speeds I was hoping
for. I checked my watch every 10
seconds. We made our way down to the
final little cardio-pumping hill that takes about 30-45 seconds to climb but gets
your heart beating to about 200 beats per minute. We started down the other side and the runner
in front of us came into view once again.
Like I said before—I don’t think Ken is the type of person to actually
speed up in order to pass someone, but I nudged him on anyway. I really hoped his brain was so scattered
that he’d think he was back in 4th grade where passing someone in a
race actually mattered in some strange way.
About half way down that slope, we passed them with excited cheers
between all of us. We were so close!
Final Stretch! Look out, Cub Scouts! Photo: Sharon and Robert Smith |
When we made
it to the top of Hogsback, Ken asked me the time. I had wanted to get there by 5:15 to give us
a cushion to finish. When I looked down
at my watch, I read aloud: “5:05.” We
had 55 minutes to do what typically takes about 40 minutes on tired legs. I quickly sent out my last two texts to
Karen: “Top of Hogsback about 40 minutes
out” and then a minute later “Running like it’s his first loop.”
We did very
well at the crossover, but I did notice a lessening of the urgency we both had
over the last few hours.
We made the
final left turn which leads down to the Nature Center. This is also the point where you can turn
right and climb up to the first road crossing of the loop.
Couldn't have done it without Rob!! Photo: Sharon and Robert Smith |
Very happy for you, Ken. Can't wait to be on the trails with you for the full 100 miles next year.
ReplyDeleteOne small correction--At the top of Hogsback, the time was 5:05, not 4:05.
I don't think I have ever been happier to see someone finish HURT 100! Strong work, Ken and great job keeping that fire stoked, Rob!
ReplyDeleteWhoops! Sorry, Rob! For some reason, I changed the time to 4:05!! Not sure why... it just didn't look right to me at the time... Maybe I was staring at the page too long! It's fixed!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words, Marian and Rob!!!
All Day!
~Ken
Great report Rob!! Very descriptive and put me right there with you guys! Love it and great pacing. Disco stu
ReplyDeleteRob thanks for the write up. I am at work grinning like an absolute fool right now and am so glad for the little dose of HURT. Ken, you rock. I'm still pumped for you and will see you in a few short months! All day!
ReplyDelete