“Has anyone seen a flag in the last five miles?” …. “Nope. Are we lost?” Not what you want to hear the first 10 miles into a 100 mile race. But let’s back up and start from the beginning shall we?
As a (hobby) blogger, I love to read blogs and race reports. In 2012 I read Jen Benna’s Pine to Palm race report and fell in love with this race. That report planted the seed in my brain and through the years it has grown until finally, at some point, I decided, it was time to run my first hundred and to make it a memorable one, I chose Pine to Palm in the beautiful state of Oregon. Go big or go home right?
Training had gone exceptionally well. I ran Canyons back in April as my Western States qualifier because I wanted to run Pine to Palm for me. I did not want the added pressure of needing a qualifier. I ran this race for me and the challenge alone. My coach was 100% supportive of this and believed that I could do it too.
Finding a crew to drive to Oregon with me would be easy. All I had to do was tell Stonegate and Not Chris that I had signed up and they were practically packed and ready to go. Stonegate in particular had been waiting patiently for this moment for years. Burning Girl rounded out the crew and I could not have had a better group of friends behind me for this adventure.
Race week was filled with lots of excitement. Typical taper tantrums were in full flux. Every ache or pain was causing mini freak-outs in my head. My kids’ schedule was out of control as I found myself driving all over the place and work was also pretty crazy at the time. When it rains it pours right? All I could do was remember to breathe, trust my training and try to get decent sleep and food as much as possible.
Thursday before the race, I loaded Stonegate’s car with all that I thought I would need and we hit the road to Oregon. The best part about traveling with friends, is they helped keep me calm and relaxed. It was almost game time and while I joked with them about puking because I was nervous, they kept me laughing the entire drive.
We arrived in Jacksonville at our hotel and learned there was an Alpaca/Winery just a few miles down the road. Say what?! We didn’t even unload, we hopped back in the car after a 5 hour drive and drove straight to see the Alpacas … and have a few sips of wine. It is exactly what I needed to calm my nerves and these Alpacas were the best!! I even got a kiss!
Seriously one of the best times ever with my friends. We laughed, talked and explored the grounds making it the perfect start to our journey.
Friday morning we had serious recon plans. First we wanted to find Pacifica Gardens where packet pickup was going to be held later in the day, then we found the start location, next the first crew aid-station spot and then finally the road that leads to the second crew aid-station spot. We did all of this because it helped calm my crew to know exactly where we had to go at 4:00 am the next morning .. in the dark and because the area of Williams is pretty remote. It also helped me visualize the start of the race.
Pacifica Gardens is the coolest place. When we arrived back later in the day for packet pickup, it was all decked out in Rogue Valley Runners and Pine to Palm 100 signs making the reality of what I was about to do, come to life. Up until this point, it didn’t seem real, not yet, but seeing other runners, seeing Hal and actually picking up my bib changed all that. It was however, still very low key and down to Earth. Another bonus of doing this race.
Call it fate, luck or just a coincidence, when I approached the check in table, my bib was sitting on the very top of the pile, number 59 …. “That’s me. Right there on top.” I said to the guy as he checked me off the list. Next stop, medical where I had to fill out a contact sheet for emergencies and get my bracelet that I would wear for the next two days.
Last stop was drop bags. I had to leave what I thought I would need during the race for locations that crew could not reach me. Then, it was time to wait … and wait … wait for the pre race meeting.
Admittedly, my biggest concern about this race was getting lost. I’ve heard the stories, I’ve read the blogs and from what I could tell, it was very easy to get lost and getting lost was not something I was wanting to experience. Prior to the race, we were told that volunteers had hung over 700 ribbons throughout the course about a 1/4 mile apart each for confidence. That made me feel 100 times better and Hal reinforced that during his pre race meeting.
We left the meeting, headed back to the hotel connected with Not Chris who had flown into Medford and went over the race start and plan of attack. After that, nothing left for me to do but go to bed.
Sleep didn’t come quickly but it did come or felt like it did a little at least but I was awake before the alarm went off ready to get this show on the road.
The drive to the start was 35 minutes from our hotel. My crew played my pump up music and did everything they could to keep me calm. I was quiet but I appreciated their excitement.
We were one of the first cars in the quarry parking lot and I was the first to use a “fresh” porta potty. I had an hour to kill before we had to line up at the starting arch and I must have hit that porta potty a million times the nerves doing loop-de-loops in my stomach.
Finally it was time, Hal counted us down and we were off and just like that, my nerves went away … this was just another race. One foot in front of the other was all that I had to do. Just.keep.moving.
Start (mile 0) to Seattle Bar Aid-Station (mile 28.5)
You start on a fire road that goes up hill. Here I mixed up power hiking and running. Everyone around me seemed to do the same. When we reached the top of the hill where you veer right to hit the single track, I realized I had made it just as Hal, the race director, was pulling over in his truck with water. This was our first “aid-station” of the day though it came much earlier than expected. My pack was still full so I just continued on the trail behind a bunch of other runners as you go down a nice soft single track.
We had headlamps and the sun was rising yet the trees here are still too dense to let much light come through. One thing I noticed very early on in this race, was that everyone, and I do mean everyone, had hiking poles! I, however, did not. I am not a fan of poles. I understand the benefit of using them but I find that the more races I have done where people had poles, the more people do not know how to use them. I was poked or jabbed or a pole ended up in my shoe more times than I can count.
I tried to focus on finding flags but the terrain was so nice that it was more natural just to follow the runner in front of me … up…down…up…down. Finally, after a good solid period of hiking up hill, I noticed, that we had not seen a flag in a very long time. We were maybe 10 miles into the race and we were supposed to be (I thought) at the top of Grayback Mountain by now. I was in a line with 10 other runners when I posed the question, “Has anyone seen a flag in a while?” Silence. “Has anyone else run this race before.” I received 10 “Nope. This is my first 100.” … in return. Finally, at what looked like the top of Grayback (as I have seen from YouTube videos and other blogs) we all paused to discuss. Some pulled out maps. Finally, a runner approached us from behind and I said,”Have you run this before?” He said that he had and that they probably couldn’t hang ribbons on this section because of protected land. Whatever. I was just happy to hear we were on the right track. In reality, there really were NO other off-shoots or sections but the quarter mile confidence ribbon reference was still fresh in our minds from the meeting the night before.
Downhill came next and it was glorious! That is until I felt an excruciating pain shoot up my left forearm. I looked down and there was a yellow jacket sitting there stinging and biting me. Holy crap that hurt! I flicked it off my arm and just kept going. My arm started to swell and burn but I didn’t want to stop. Twelve miles into a 100 mile race and I was just stung by a yellow jacket. What the heck?!
I entered the O’Brien Creek Aid-Station (mile 14.5) and a sweet volunteer took me aside and told me I was third female. WHAT!? I actually laughed and choked on water at the same time. It was way too early to have that kind of chatter but he was sweet. He filled my bottles, I found my drop bag and then was quickly on my way.
Steamboat Ranch Aid-Station (mile 21.5) was next. Here I had found a nice group of runners who were into walking and running stretches. We had a nice time chatting about all the races we’ve done. I met Eve from Phoenix, Ryan from the Bay Area , Holger from Edmonton, Canada and another guy from Portland whose name I never caught. Together we all ran and just had a nice time each of us eager to get to the next aid-station where our crew would be waiting.
Seattle Bar Aid-Station (mile 28.5) appeared like a dream after a little stretch on some hot pavement. I saw Not Chris up ahead hooping and hollering for me. He was a sight for sore eyes. I was in good spirits and nothing was wrong at all, I was just eager to see my friends and get some ice!
Like a fine tuned machine, my crew met me, handed me a cup of water to drink and sat me down to remove rocks from my shoes. Stonegate poured ice down my sports bra and wrapped an ice bandanna around my neck. It wasn’t horribly hot but the next section up Stein Butte was notorious for chewing up and spitting out runners who were not ready for some exposed hot trail.
Seattle Bar was such a lively aid-station. Not Chris was showing me were I had to check out and I saw Eve from Phoenix sitting there and I called to her. She hopped up and joined me and Not Chris across the field and under the bridge. Holger also ran up and joined us. It was nice to have some company.
Stein Butte Aid-Station (mile 35) to Hanley Gap Aid-Station (mile 52)
The climb up Stein Butte was not too bad at first. I had expected something a lot worse. Both Eve and Holger had poles. Their uphill was strong. Mine was starting to slow a little and I took that as a moment to have more calories. Soon, I lost sight of the two of them and I was by myself just power hiking as much as I could. It was a solid 6 miles up hill. Then we entered a section I had been warned about, Elliott’s Tract and man-alive that section was brutal.
The top of Stein Butte, though hot, was pretty gorgeous. I had to stop and take a photo. I tried eating more calories but the sun and heat were making it a bit difficult. At one point I had found Holger and Eve again. We all entered the Stein Butte Aid-Station (Mile 35) together.
I made quick use of it because I wanted to get to the next aid-station desperately to see my crew. I left without Holger and Eve.
The downhill into Squaw Lakes 1 (mile 41) was AMAZING! It was shady, soft and just the sweetest single track ever. The forest was also incredibly quiet! Not even a bird could be heard. I was bombing it and I even commented on how awesome and quiet the trail was and another runner agreed. Together he and I were super excited to get to Squaw Lakes and see our crew. Stonegate was at the top and she let out a big “WHOOP!” when she saw me. My runner friend said, “Awe! That’s going to make me cry!” and so I told Stonegate to cheer for him too and she did. 🙂
Squaw Lakes is where you come into an aid-station and then have to run 2.5 miles around a lake and then revisit the aid-station and your crew again. My crew did exactly as I had asked them to do. They removed my pack and gave me a handheld to run around the lake with instead. Stonegate was allowed to run the 2.5 mile loop with me which was so nice. We walked and caught up and she had me run some too and try to eat. I shared with her the day so far. This lake is absolutely gorgeous. It was breathtaking. I would love to come back and camp and paddle board some day.
After the loop around the lake (Squaw Lakes 2 (Mile 43.5) I told them I needed a restroom and sure enough, there was one there and it was available. Score! While I had been running, the crew had refilled my pack and was ready to send me off.
The crew had did some recon on the next section of trail and warned me that it was a lot of uphill but that after that, I would see them again at Hanley Gap (mile 52).
After seeing them, I was alone for a long time. My climbing legs seemed to have disappeared completely but I still had my flat and down hill running legs. French Gulch (mile 47) was a water only aid-station which was a little sad only because it meant I would continue to be alone. Eventually some younger ladies passed me on the trail looking really strong. I told them to go get it!
When I came into Hanley Gap Aid-Station (mile 52) I was SO excited to see my crew. They had set up the perfect spot but they shared with me that I had to climb up to Squaw Peak to get a flag and bring it back down and that I had to do so alone.
They had me remove my pack again and handed me my hand held for the 1.5 mile climb up and 1.5 mile climb down. They also handed me baggies of food in hopes that I would eat. What I forgot to bring was my phone. The climb up was pretty relentless. Steep with a lot of switchbacks but on a fire road. You had runners running down with flags so that was exciting to see. I just continued moving, one foot in front of the other.
When I reached the top where the bin of flags were held, the view took my breath away. It was gorgeous and I didn’t have my phone. Probably for the best because it forced me to grab my flag and head back down.
When I reached the bottom my crew whisked me to the side. They massaged my calves, my quads, my hamstrings. They shoved food in my face, covered me in bug spray, gave me my charged headlamp … they were in short, fantastic!
Stonegate walked me out of the aid-station almost a mile. The next time I would see them it would be at Dutchman Peak where I would be able to have Not Chris pace me to the finish. It was all I could focus on.
After she left me, I ran some until all of a sudden I couldn’t. My stomach decided that every downhill step that I took, it would start to rumble. I’d stop to take care of business but nothing would happen. I’d start to run, rumble, stop again, nothing. This happened 8 times total. It was beyond frustrating. My saving grace was the sun had set so at least it was dark and I was alone on the trail.
Squaw Creek Gap Aid-Station (mile 59.5) to Grouse Gap Aid-Station (mile 80)
When I made it to Squaw Creek, I was excited. This was the last solo aid-station of my race. After this, I would have Not Chris with me. While here I ate a banana with a huge slab of peanut butter on top. This really helped my stomach situation. I asked the nice volunteer what was next, and she said, “You go that way, make a right at the parked truck. Then it is 6 miles straight uphill.” Um, what? No sugar coating it. It was going to be brutal.
Prior to this, a lovely trail angel had told my crew to give me a new buff to wear around my neck so that I could cover my face as the 6 miles up to Dutchman is the same fire road that every single car uses to climb the mountain so the smoke and the dust kicked up, was pretty bad. I am so thankful for that bandanna.
The climb up was pretty relentless but we had a full moon which made the sky absolutely beautiful. I just kept moving. I saw hundreds of dead and alive scorpions on the ground on my way up … I also saw a lot of puke from earlier runners.
The climb goes on forever, not going to lie … and at one point you can see the lights of the aid-station but you’re no where near close when you do. Just keep moving.
When I finally reached the top, there are some logistics to figure out. To the left is the aid-station where you need to check in but to the right is all the crew parking. Ryan from the Bay Area had informed us to go left and visit the aid first then go find our crew so that is exactly what I did.
When I reached the aid-station I was handed a cup of warm vegetable broth which was great because the winds blowing around at the top of Dutchman were probably 45 mph. It was also freezing .. if you stood still. The key? Don’t stand still. I found Burning Girl who helped me check in, made me take another cup of broth to go and then led me to our car which was 2 miles away. Yes, 2 miles.
When I finally reached Stonegate’s car it was go-time. Not Chris was ready to pace. I changed into some much needed warmer clothes, switched out to a stronger headlamp and tried to ingest some calories. Soon, Not Chris and I were headed off on the PCT to finish this darn race!
Going from running completely alone for 66 miles to running with a friend, is like Christmas. It was a whole new day for me. I was excited to tell him what I had seen along the way. He was in pure heaven running with me on the PCT. The sky was just littered with stars and as instructed, Not Chris made me pause and look up as much as we could.
The next aid-station was Siskiyou Gap (mile 73.5) and my stomach was doing that wonky thing again where if I tried to run down, it would rumble in an unhappy tone. I had asked for some Tums when I saw the crew but there was so much stuff blowing around from the wind, we all got distracted and I forgot to take one.
When Not Chris and I entered the next aid-station I made sure to ask and some Tums magically appeared. I took one (something I never take but I was desperate to make the stomach issue go away).
It worked. About 30 minutes and one stop later, I felt brand new though it was still hard to ingest anything other than liquid calories. I just knew we had to keep moving to get to Grouse Gap, mile 80 where Stonegate and Burning Girl would be waiting. For me, at this point, I had broken the race down into 10 mile increments. Looking at it that way, made it seem so much easier to conquer.
I came whooping and hollering into Grouse Gap (mile 80) and quickly found my girls. They whisked me over to the fire so I could remove my shoes and take out some stones while simultaneously feeding me some veggie broth.
The runners already at this aid-station looked like death warmed over. I wondered briefly if I looked that bad. I didn’t feel that bad, tired but not like death. I wanted out so I stood up ready to go when Burning Girl mentioned some “vegan treats” at the aid-station.
“Holy crap! I forgot! The balls!” Earlier in the week, a volunteer had posted to us runners that they had made gluten free vegan rice crispy balls – and they even used fresh new pans to avoid contamination (not intentionally but it worked). I ran back to the aid-station and asked about the balls and sure enough, they had some (I mean, how many gluten free vegan runners are there in a 100 mile race? haha). I thanked him profusely and started off up the hill excited to have one of them. They had to have been the most delicious thing in the world at that moment and probably the most amount of calories I had consumed in a single shot in over 5 hours. Heaven.
Weasle Creek Aid-Station (mile 90) to Finish line/Ashland (mile 100.5)
Next stop, mile 90 … then only 10 freaking miles to the finish. Nothing was stopping me now. I felt like I was moving decently but later on, Not Chris shared that I wasn’t exactly breaking any records. The sun would also be rising very soon, bringing life to the day.
Before we could hit mile 90 however, we had to conquer Wagner Butte, the last major climb in the race. An “easy” 7,000 foot climb to the top of the butte where I had to grab a flag and then descend 7,000 feet to the bottom. Piece of cake right?
The trail to and up Wagner Butte wasn’t smooth. It was semi technical or as technical as it can feel at mile 86 in a race.
The climb to get the flag was legit rock climbing and bouldering. Hand over foot up these giant rocks to the top. You had to laugh and even though my legs were shaking with fatigue, I was having a blast.
When you reached the top and grabbed a flag, you were met with the most amazing view and Not Chris and I had timed it just perfectly with the sun rising. I have never seen anything more beautiful. It was impossible not to smile ear to ear.
Then we soldiered down. Slow moving due to some tired quads but we just kept moving. I was on a mission. I was counting down the miles in my head and I knew I would finish this but I wanted to get to mile 90.
When we finally reached Weasel Creek Aid-Station (mile 90) I tossed my warm clothes into my drop bag that I had there. It was warm enough again for a tank top and shorts. I ditched my lights and any bottles I had too as I wanted to be as light as possible for the final 10 miles into town.
I quickly tried some goodies from the aid-station and just kept moving. Not Chris had to catch up with me because I didn’t want to stop. We were a little confused on what the volunteer had said the trail conditions would be like for the next 10 miles.
The guys hiking down around us were not in the best of spirits so we ran ahead. Not Chris turned to me and said, “So you are okay with 30 hours?” I looked at him like he was crazy, “It’s not going to take me 4 hours to do 10 miles. I can do this in 2.5 tops!” He said, “Okay, but you’ll have to run. We can do it. You just have to keep running.” So, run we did. The final splits the last 10 miles still blow me away. I would pick an object and run to it, take a quick break and run again. Along the way, there was one more aid-station, Hitt Road which was just a table with some water but it was at mile 95.5 and I wanted it. I didn’t need any water, I just wanted a marker, a destination.
Down down down, we continued to run. I was passing guys left and right along the way. To be fair, there was only 22 women that started the race and only 12 finished so the race was very male heavy.
Eventually we rounded a corner and was met with a slight uphill and another female. This girl had run strong all day long. She had passed me way earlier in the race but I had entered aid-stations just as she was leaving most of the day. I just had not seen her in a long while so it was quite a surprise to see her in the last 10 miles.
Not Chris looked at me, “You can do this.” So, I ran. I ran uphill past the girl and continued on down for as long as my body would go. Now, it was a matter of just how much I could run in a single stretch. Our little walk breaks became just a few steps and then no steps. Just run.
Finally we reached that water jug aid-station and I said, “Now I want the pavement. I want to see the pavement!” Not Chris laughed at that is not something I would normally prefer over trails but I knew pavement equaled Lithia Park and the finish line.
With 3 miles left to go, still on the dirt, Not Chris clipped a rock and went flying. He hit the ground bounced up and kept moving. I was shocked and concerned but he was hell bent on getting me to that finish line.
When we finally hit the pavement my heart swelled. This is it! There is NO walking on the pavement. As steep and as painful as that downhill section was, I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop. I wanted to get there and I wanted to get there as fast as I could.
Finally we rounded a corner and I could hear cheering. I pushed as hard as my body could go. It felt like I was running 8 minute miles hahaha I wasn’t but I was moving!
I crossed that finish line, gave Not Chris a high-five and was engulfed in the biggest hug from Stonegate I have ever had. An awesome camera guy near by caught the whole thing on video! I thought I would cry but I didn’t but I could not stop smiling.
This race meant a lot to me and I am beyond grateful to my crew, the volunteers and my family for all their support. I wanted a challenge and I wanted a race that was beyond beautiful and I received exactly that.
After celebrating at the finish, we went to our hotel where I had some time to shower and take a nap before heading back for the buckle awards ceremony.
This was one of my favorite parts. Hal, the race director handed out our buckles and some gifts. In return, he asked us to stand and say our name, where we were from, how many 100s this was for us and a turning point in the race. I truly loved hearing everyone’s journey while eating one of the best post race meals I have ever had.
Pine to Palm 100 is breathtaking. I had a near perfect day something I am forever grateful for and I will never forget. If the body breaks, the mind will follow and I was hell bent on not letting my mind falter, not ever. It wasn’t that hard, the trails, the beauty, the magic that is the Siskiyou Mountains makes it hard to get down in such a beautiful place and my crew is the most positive, uplifting and fun bunch of friends a girl could have.
I am still feeling that high, that joy of knowing that my two feet covered 100 miles up and over some pretty big mountains. It makes me smile just thinking about it.
A special shout out needs to go to Hal, the race volunteers and the other runners. The ultra running community is generally friendly and supportive normally but this race, everyone seemed to go above and beyond. Thank you to Adam Boyd for my finish line video!
To my crew, my friends, there is no one else I want by my side on our next adventure. I am forever grateful for all that you sacrificed for me and my dream and to do so with smiles, laughter and love really made the journey 100 times better.
Thank you to my Coach for your continued support, belief and never ending advice. I am so happy our paths have crossed and look forward to more adventures for us both.
To Vans and my girls, thank you. Thank you for supporting me and this crazy idea. Thank you for handling weekends without mom and all my early morning runs. I could never have accomplished anything without your never ending support.
If you are still reading this monstrosity, thank you. My blogs tend to be an ultra in and of themselves but you never know, maybe some day, someone will read this race report and it will inspire them to run Pine to Palm too. 😉
Happy Trails!
~Trailmomma
Some extra photos:
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