Mother Road 100
by Sarah Huhn

 

Plenty of people told Steve he was crazy to want to run a hundred mile ultra marathon, but I knew it was something more than that.  He started running only about five years ago, after having been an avid cyclist for a number of years (he did Ride the Rockies twice).  When he discovered running, it soon became apparent that he'd found what he'd been looking for.  Not only was running a great way to get in shape, but it also offered physical, mental, and even spiritual challenges that appealed to him.

Steve ran in several 5K, 10K, and 15K races, and that was enough to keep him going for the first few years.  But it wasn't long before he started wanting something more.  Last year, he decided to train for his first marathon, the New Las Vegas Marathon in December.  He signed up for a marathon training group, and during one of his Saturday group runs, he met Dan Threlkeld.  Dan was friendly and talkative (a fact to which anyone who knows him will attest with great affection), and Steve was captivated by his infectious enthusiasm and upbeat sense of optimism.

 

Dan introduced Steve to the idea of ultra marathons, having competed in several ultra running and cycling events, as well as iron man competitions.  Before long, Steve found himself amongst other ultra runners who inspired him as well.  In December, he finished his first marathon, and by February of this year he participated in his first ultra event, the Dan Man.

 

The Dan Man is named for Dan Little of Madill, OK.  He hosts a fifty mile ultra trail run on his property outside Madill which is done in eight six-mile loops with a two-mile loop at the end of the run.  Steve and his friend Brain Dacus ran the Dan Man together, and it was my first exposure not only to ultra trail running, but also to some of the people I consider good friends in the running world now~ Dan Threlkeld, Brian Hoover, Kathy Sager, Ken and Dana Childress, Alex Eaton, and Mandy McCollum.  It surprised me to see women participating in a fifty-miler... boy was I green!

 

Steve had problems with his IT band on one knee, a malady that plagues many runners, and had to drop out after 27 miles.  But it was a good way to get his feet wet, and I even ran one six-mile loop with them.  At that time, that was the furthest I had ever run.

 

Soon afterwards, the indomitable Brian Hoover founded a new running club in Tulsa called TATUR, or Tulsa Area Trail Ultra Runners.  You can read more about that in some of my previous blogs, or follow the link in my Yahoo Groups.  Steve and I attended the first meeting and signed up right away.  Dana Childress was there, too.  Her husband Ken was planning to run the Lake McMurtry trail ultra run 50K, as was Steve.  She told me she was doing the 25K and would run with me if I wanted her to, so I went ahead and signed up as well.  We did run together, and had a blast!  Steve was the last finisher in that 50K, but by God he got it done.

 

My next trail run was the Turkey & Taturs 25K, sponsored by our group.  Dana and I ran together again in the rain and mud, and again had a fabulous time (even though I had knee problems from about mile 6 on).  Steve was to have run, too, but didn't get back from the Winfield bluegrass festival in time (a source of disappointment for me). 

 

At that point I began to have doubts about his devotion to running.  But we both signed up for the Palo Duro Canyon run.  I did the 20K and Steve attempted to do the 50 mile. Once again he had to drop out when his knees started giving him fits.  He wisely opted to save himself for the physical demands of the upcoming Mother Road. 

 

On November 10th, we traveled to Edmond, checked into our hotel, and then went to fellow TATUR John Hargove's place for the pre-race meeting and packet pick-up.  Hargrove's place turned out to be a wonderful, quirky roadside attraction along Route 66~ the perfect place for the pre-race meeting.  We ate dinner, picked up Steve's packet which contained all kinds of fabulous swag, and mingled with the other ultra runners (some famous in the ultra running world, such as Catra Corbett and Barefoot Ted), pacers and crew members.  Dan Threlkeld did a live remote weather cast from Hargrove's, and an enjoyable time was had by all.

 

The next morning, the runners assembled bright and early at the round barn in Arcadia.  The race started at 7:00 a.m.  I was crewing for both Steve and for Brian Dacus and there was a thirty hour time limit, so we all had a long day and night ahead of us.  But it was a beautiful, cool,  sunny fall day in Oklahoma and a festive spirit prevailed.

 

There were approximately 8-10 miles between the aid stations in each small town along the route, so I would drive on up to the next one and check it out, then drive back to see where Steve and Brian were, ask them if they needed anything, and park a few miles ahead of them to wait for them to catch up to me.  Part of the time they were together, and part of the time they were a mile or two apart.  If I knew they were going to need something that wasn't available at the next aid station, I would find a mini-mart or grocery store and buy it for them so it would be ready the next time I saw them.  Otherwise, I just got everything ready that I had in the car and had it out waiting for them when they got there.   Occasionally, Steve would call me on his cell phone to alert me to have something specific ready for him or to find out if I knew how far he was from the next aid station, etc.

 

It actually wasn't bad crewing for two, even when they weren't running together.  Sort of broke up the waiting time when I attended to each of them separately.

 

The race directors had gone to each of the towns along the route and enlisted volunteers to run aid stations.  They gave them a list of things they'd need to have on hand, and then the individual towns got everything organized and funded the stations themselves.  Some were better than others, but each station was a welcome sight to the runners as they completed each leg of their journey. 

 

The aid station in Warwick had everything you could think of, amid an atmosphere abuzz with excitement.  In Chandler, the route ran right through the downtown area, and people sat along the sidelines to watch the runners coming in.  The Davenport aid station was in their city park, and boasted seating for the runners as well as pbj, ham & cheese and tuna sandwiches made by the ladies there.  Davenport was also the last stop before Stroud, which was the fifty mile mark. 

 

I pulled alongside the highway between Davenport and Stroud and settled in to await their approach.  I talked to my friends Mary, Bridget, and Barb on the phone after it got dark.  That really helped me to stay awake and not to be too freaked out about being out on the highway by myself at night.  Actually, there weren't usually huge gaps when I didn't see at least a few runners.  I'm sure it was far more disconcerting for the runners themselves.  In fact, one of the female runners was followed by some redneck in a pickup truck when she was running in the dark alone and eventually had to be asked to leave the course for her own safety when the pickup was found abandoned along the road with the driver nowhere to be found.  

There was a dedicated highway patrol officer patrolling the route from dusk til dawn.  Dr. Tom Coniglione, an M. D. whose practice specializes in treating runners, rode with the OHP and administered aid to runners all night long.  He's a runner himself, and his mission is to keep you healthy and get you back out on the road as quickly as possible.  I got to see him in action at the TATUR aid station, and he was wonderful.

 

After meeting up with both Brian and Steve between Davenport and Stroud, I went on to Stroud to find the fifty mile point aid station.  Steve made it there in good time and weighed in just fine (if the runners lose too much weight, they have to take measures to rehydrate, etc. before they're allowed back on the course).  Their fifty mile time was chip recorded and could be used as a qualifier for another ultra.  So the fifty mile point was important in several ways, not the least of which was the mental aspect of knowing that they made it halfway.

 

I ate dinner in Stroud at the Rock Cafe', and Steve actually stopped in to see if I had ordered a Pepsi to drink.  I ordered a hamburger for him before I left and bought a Pepsi at the mini-mart across the street.  He ate part of the hamburger, but he said that was the best Pepsi he ever drank!

 

By the time Brian and Steve reached Depew, they were together again.  I had been there waiting on them for a while and had caught up with Dana Childress, JoAnn Threlkeld, and some of the other people who were crewing for runners.  Dana was not feeling well, but she had slept some at the motel and was doing a little better.  Bless her heart, she sure didn't want to miss out on crewing for Ken.  While I was waiting for Steve and Brian, I got to see Dan, Kathy, Ken, and several others come through.  It was cold and pitch dark by then, but unbelievably, everyone was still going strong. 

 

The aid station in Depew was a beacon in the night.  There was a place to go inside and get warm, hot coffee and hot chocolate, steaming chicken soup, and homemade cookies.  Both Brian and Steve seemed rejuvenated afterwards and ready to go on.

 

By this time, it was late and I was getting tired.  I stopped once to check on them after Depew, and they didn't need anything.  So I went on ahead to Bristow and slept in the parking lot for about forty five minutes.  I didn't really see what they had at their aid station, but there was a nice, warm, well-lit building with hot coffee, clean bathrooms and cots set up.  When I woke up, Steve and Brian had been to the aid station and were heading out again.

 

The next leg was where things got a little weird.  The course was routed to follow old Route 66, and got confusing when it turned off next to a cemetery and then crossed the newer part of 66 and curved off into some trees.  They were supposed to come out next to a barbecue place, but the sign wasn't lit up and was difficult to see.  I made several wrong turns myself and had a hard time finding my way back to where I was supposed to be.  When I finally found the barbecue place, I was the only one there in the parking lot.  I sat there for a little while and eventually some runners turned at the lot and went on.  Then someone came running out from the road on the other side of the barbecue place.  He ran up to the car and asked me if I knew which way they were supposed to go, and when I pointed off in the other direction and told him I'd seen some runners going that way, he hung his head and said he'd just gone about six miles out of his way.  I felt so bad for him, but he said he didn't need anything and went on down the road.  I was able to tell him the next aid station (the TATURs station at mile 78) was only about 3 1/2 miles away, and that seemed to help a little.

 

When Steve and Brian got to the parking lot, they were tired, cold, hungry, aching and miserable.  Steve was having stomach trouble to boot.  Luckily, I had packed a couple of blankets.  I got a chair out for Brian and wrapped a blanket around him, then sat with Steve in the back of the truck with a blanket and tried to warm him up.  At least I knew which way they were supposed to go, how far it was, and that the next aid station would be a really good one.  I think that was the low point in the race for both of them, and it was really hard to leave them behind and go on.  But that was all I could do.  To meet them again before the next stop would only slow them down.

 

So I went on to the TATUR aid station, and let me tell you... that was an oasis to runners and crew members alike.  They had tents set up, a bathroom, soup, hot coffee and every imaginable snack you can think of.  They were playing upbeat rock and roll music, everyone had an uplifting and helpful attitude, and best of all they had a campfire!  Is it any wonder we love the taturs so much?  There were plenty of seats around the campfire, along with pillows and blankets, lively conversation, and a well-timed visit from Dr. Coniglione.  There were a couple of runners who really needed him there.  Barefoot Ted came in very discouraged.  He had taken that same wrong turn at the barbecue place and added miles to his run.  He had been forced to cover his feet with his Vibrams, and as a result had gotten a blister.  He was talking about calling it quits.  The doctor rebandaged his foot, he rested in front of the fire for a bit and took in some sustenance, and the next thing I knew he was on his way.

 

When Steve and Brian got there, I could tell it really lifted Steve's spirits.  In fact, he seemed to get a second wind and it was at that point that I knew without a doubt that he was going to make the whole 100 miles.  He rested up, got something to eat and drink, warmed himself by the fire, and then he was ready to go on.  Brian's knees were really hurting, so he took some ibuprofen again, rubbed some ointment in his knee joints and slept for about twenty minutes in the Suburban.    When he woke up, he went on again, but it was a slow go.

 

I caught up to Steve about four miles down the road, and he was booking right along!  He said he felt better than he had for a long time, and in fact was moving faster than he had in the last fifteen miles.  So I went on to Kellyville, got a cup of coffee, and settled in at the aid station to wait for him again.

 

He got there in good time, stopped briefly at the aid station and went on.  Kellyville was at the 85 mile mark, and he was still going strong.  I drove up a couple of miles, parked my car and got out to walk with him about half a mile, then went back to the car.  I went back to Kellyville and Brian still wasn't there!  So I doubled back to find him, and when I did, he was moving slow.  His knees were really hurting, and he could only manage a slow shuffle.  I stopped and gave him some more ibuprofen, then went back to the aid station to wait.  When he got there he turned in his time chip and called it a day.  He made it 85 miles, which is pretty damn good by anyone's standards.

 

I had signed up to pace for Steve, and this was my opportunity.  Brian and I went to the final aid station in Sapulpa and waited for Steve.  Charlie and Robin showed up, and Robin drove Charlie back to find Steve and run in with him to the Sapulpa station.  Steve said later that helped him more than Charlie knew.  He was tired, and not sure if he was still going the right way or not, and having Charlie run with him made it all better.

 

When Steve got to the aid station, I was ready.  I gave Brian the keys to the Suburban and walked/ran the last eight miles with Steve.  He wasn't moving real fast by then, but was keeping a steady pace.  There was no way he wasn't going to make the finish line within the thirty hour time limit.  Charlie and Robin drove up and told us to watch for the Conoco station, that it would only be .8 miles after that.  That helped Steve mentally, too. Once he saw that Conoco station, his spirits lifted considerably.  Randy and Marcie Ellis also drove by and offered encouragement.  Randy had already finished the race.  Every little bit of encouragement helped Steve at that point.

 

When we got close to the turn into the Carl's Jr. parking lot at the finish line, I ran up ahead and took a picture of Steve.  I could see the finish line and yelled back at him that it was just ahead.  Kathy Sager was there to cheer him in (she's so GREAT!), and she took my camera so I could run in with Steve and let her take the pictures.  He made it in 28:46:55 ~ an hour and nearly fifteen minutes to spare!  I don't have the words to express how proud I was (am) of him.  I'm thankful to have had the opportunity to witness first-hand what it takes to find it within yourself to accomplish an achievement of this magnitude.  My baby's got the stuff!  He proved to himself that he could do it, and he's a changed man for having done so.  He never ceases to amaze me.  I'm a lucky woman indeed. 

 

You can see the race results at www.motherroad100.com  What's next?  December 10th, Steve runs the New Las Vegas Marathon again (I'm running the half), and then it's the Rocky Raccoon in Huntsville, TX next February.  Steve's running the 100-miler, and it will be my first 50-mile ultra.  Wish us luck!