2014 Alyeska Climbathon
Monday, September 29, 2014 at 01:47AM 
The end of the summer has been busy with work and moving into a condo I decided to purchase. I know. That sounds crazy. Many felt I would never stay in Alaska, being perpetually homesick for the Tetons. But I spend at least 50 hours a week at my job and I tend to like this one so I think I’ll stay for a bit. I’m not one to plan too far into the future but I decided that having my own place to base from makes sense. The other thing I noticed is that if I don’t go back to Jackson too often, I forget how great it is.
To really milk what AK has to offer, you have to be here. So, I’ll do my best to make the most of it and explore when time and conditions permit. There’s a lifetime of fun here if you get lucky with the weather and time off.
In spite of my busy schedule, I’ve managed to get out enough to stay fit and race a bit, if not write about it. I’ve been pretty lame on that front, for sure. But now that I’m getting settled, I’m trying to get back to writing some and posting interesting stuff from the summer.
Alyeska Climbathon
Even with standing in the operating room 20-30 hours a week in addition to busy clinics on Tuesday and Thursday, I managed enough time in the hills to make competing in the 2014 Alyeska Climbathon a reasonable objective. I wasn’t getting many long days during the week but had enough 3-5 hour days on the weekends to make racing again attractive. Last year’s winner was going to be a no show due to other commitments so I secretly held delusions of finally winning. I matched the record 12 laps last year and felt great doing so. But I also knew that being the first to hit 13 was not likely in the cards for me. I did the math on several occasions leading up to the race and realized that I would likely suffer the same fate as previous racers attempting the feat of climbing more than 12 and burn in spectacularly.
I really struggled with the idea of whether to try for 13 or not. The whole, “Go big or go home thing” resonates with me to a certain degree but so does smart racing strategy. Athletes with way more talent than me have tried and failed spectacularly so I wasn’t fooling myself about my chances to succeed where they have failed. On the other hand, the first one to go 13 laps gets to name the feat. Traditionally, each number of laps carries the name of a famous mountain of a similar vertical gain. Oddly, 12 laps gets the moniker, Chomolungma, the Tibetan term for Mt. Everest, even though that peak is nearly 29,000 feet high and 12 laps only gains a runner about 25,000 feet. But if I could get 13… Mt. Maximus maybe?? That would be fun.
With that in mind, I decided that I would try to race a little harder earlier in the day in hopes of gaining at least one tram advantage early in the event and hold on for 12 laps in less time than last year. That might be good enough to garnish a victory. You see, trams leave the top on the ten-minute mark, closing doors 30 seconds early. The trip down is about 4 minutes. I know from two previous additions of the race that I typically settle into hitting the 50-minute tram all day long with enough time at the top to refuel and relax for a minute or two. But I schemed about making the 40-minute tram on the second lap, which would put me in the lead right away. The winner last year hit several of these 40-minute trams but then paid dearly and nearly didn’t finish. But I figured I could do it once on the second lap and see who came with me.
I trained enough on the course for the few weeks leading up to the race to know what my pace would need to be to be at the top in 35 minutes. I wasn’t sure what such an effort would cost me hours later but I knew it wouldn’t be a freebie. I figured I would feel out my form on the first lap and see who was game and then punch it on the second and see what gains I made.
Of note were two other stories taking place on race day. My friends Valerie and Karol, both of whom raced last year and were coconspirators this year with me, had personal goals for this year’s event. Valerie was trained up and motivated for 9 laps and Karol was shooting for 10. Karol did 9 relatively untrained last year, not quite “off the couch” but was fit this year for the new objective.
Unfortunately, race day dawned wet and stormy. Winds were low but it was raining hard. The course was a mess although promoter Brian Burnett did a great job adding some plastic grating over some of the sloppier sections that helped out greatly. The middle of the course was still shoe-sucking mud but the upper sections were fine. I knew intuitively that the mud was going to cost us. In fact, Brian suggested to me at the start that I probably wasn’t going to be “going for it….right?” I had other ideas, of course.
250 runners lined up with at least 3 others who had finished 12 laps in previous additions. These were capable mountain runners. In hindsight my fast start was stupid since the first tram doesn’t head down until 40 minutes after the start. But I wanted to see who was running fast and how I was going. I felt good. One other competitor really went hard and finished the first lap at least a minute ahead of me. Another was just in front of me. But we all needed to wait until the tram headed down and by then the tram was nearly full with others making the time cut. Most would not last.
I stuck to my guns and ripped out of the gate and started up the road in front. I wanted that 40-minute tram. The three of us stayed pretty tight and I wasn’t sure what I was really gaining by committing to this strategy with two others in tow. But I pushed on knowing that if we made it there would only be three of us in the lead for the time being. But oddly, in spite of our brisk pace, the tram left about 20 seconds before we arrived. I initially thought the tram left early but I may have simply mistimed my effort. Either way, I was bummed to have spent the energy only to sit up top waiting while the more prudent arrived with time to spare. I had a feeling I was going to pay for that later.
I easily settled into the 50-minute tram mode for the next few laps. This is when I started losing my psyche. I realized that there was no mystery in the event for me now. I was on pace to do 12 laps. Been there, done that. I figured I could do that or at least 11 if I started to cramp again. It simply did not take a big leap of effort to make the 50-minute mark. Suddenly, I wasn’t having fun. It was raining. I wanted to quit. What was the point? Then I started thinking about all the explaining I’d have to do if I dropped out. I’d actually jokingly told people I could win this year. I felt I could, too. How lame would it be to just drop out without knowing? I decided I would do five laps and see how I felt.
Somewhere between laps three and five I lost sight of my immediate competitors. People were sick of the mud, I guess, and either slowed down or went home. Just like that, I was alone on my fifth lap. The cramps were starting but I’d been through that before. The rain stopped and the sun even came out a couple of times. Not that I wanted warmer temps. But the absence of rain helped my mood immensely.
So, I just plodded along, no longer being pushed, giving up time each lap so I made the tram with just enough time in hand to get another GU flask and some water. I realized at some point I didn’t need to do 12 laps and my cramping was making that unlikely anyway. So, I decided to relax around lap 9 and let a tram go. I could then sit for a spell and let the cramping ease up.
I felt better the next lap. As I topped out on lap 10 I thought I’d relax again and let another tram go but as I topped the stairs to record the lap I heard “one minute!” from the operator and knew I could make it. I didn’t need to but the competitor in me made me run and jump in the door just as it was closing. I knew the cramping was going to suck on the last lap.
And it did but it didn’t matter. I adjusted my pace and enjoyed my final lap, likely the last time I would do the event. After three attempts I was finally awarded a victory. At my age, I don’t get to win much anymore. There’s so much mountain running talent up here that winning is far from my mind in most events. But the Climbathon suits my abilities so it’s nice to finally succeed. Of course, I realize that the conditions had a lot to do with who finished and who simply got sick of the mud. But, like they say, you can’t win if you don’t finish so I guess I was just the most stubborn on that day. So be it.
Climbathon 2013 vs 2014
Here are my splits for the first 11 laps of each year with 2014 on the left and '13 on the right. Running laps are the odd numbers and rest intervals are the even numbers. I certainly went faster for the first 2 laps this year but you can see that I slowed faster through the middle and end. Of course, the last two laps this year were slow by choice and my need to move fast was considerably less. Competition matters. Other than that it's hard to make meaningful comparisons.
Interestingly, Karol settled into her all day pace on the first lap and didn't make the 40-minute tram, even though she could have easily. But she ended up paying for that all day since her closest competitor had made it and maintained the advantage to the finish. Karol finished strongly, running all the way to the end, finishing 10 laps with 20 minutes to spare but sadly 10 minutes back from the winner. What an interesting race she would’ve had if she had made the first tram and those two had to duke it out for the win. But she was still psyched to hit her goal of 10 laps and the second place finish was just icing on the day.
Karol topping out on lap 10 - mission accomplished.Valerie was also successful in her bid for 9 laps. She dug deep on the upper half of the 9th and made it with 5 minutes to spare. Her success capped a great day for the three of us and we all admitted that we were likely done with the Climbathon now and would look to new challenges next year.
Feeding
Once again GU Energy provided all my needs. I went a little lighter in calories this year, grabbing a 200 calorie gel flask each lap along with some water as my thirst dictated. My stomach was never an issue but I was a little hungry at one point prompting me to eat a pack of GU Chomps around lap 9. GU sent me a care package of flasks so I had each one pre-filled and ready to go. This reduced any stress I might have felt if making a tram was going to be tight. I used a mix of caffeinated and non-caffeinated gels, regular GU and Roctane. Once again, I feel that in an event of this length where energy output is predictable and constant, keeping nutrition simple is key. Most people were eating all sorts of stuff, from Coke, orange slices, bananas and French fries. This kind of random intake ensures gastric chaos and unpredictable fueling levels for the day. For those out there just having fun and raising money for GYN cancer, this is acceptible. But for others on a tighter schedule with clear objectives, more consistent fueling is key.
Shoes
The Inov-8 X-Talon 190
After my experiences on Mt. Marathon this year and using Inov-8 shoes for such a punishing event, I thought I would take advantage of their lightweight and superior mud traction for this year’s Climbathon. I was a little concerned about how my feet would fare after 9 hours but felt the trade off was worth it. I also had a back up pair of stouter shoes waiting if they were needed. My feet were fine and the lugs were the ticket for the slop on the trail. I love the race fit and seriously nimble feel of these shoes.
Reader Comments (9)
Congrats!
Strength, stubbornness, and solid science for the win.
Any specific plans for new challenges next year?
Congrats on a great race. You are more inspirational than you probably realize for folks who are hitting their late 40s/early 50s and have not lost the will or the love to train and compete athletically at a level that objectively deserves RESPECT!
After reading this post, I looked at some of the ones from earlier this year when you were in Chamonix. Saw the pictures of Andreas Fransson. He was a very interesting, talented, and thoughtful guy. He left us far to early. But he did leave us with a unique perspective and more than a few things to reflect on regarding life in the mountains.
Ah, Fransson. I was so star struck seeing him in Cham a few times. Sat right behind him one day on the Montenvers train after a lap on the VB. I didn't feel worthy enough to strike up a conversation. I wish I had. He remains my number one inspiration in the mountains and skiing. I have more to say in a post coming.
I saw ski poles were allowed this year. Any thoughts or comments?
Hey Eric,
For whatever reason, the organizers apparently put an asterix next to your name each lap you used poles. Not sure what that's about. I don't know if they're a big advantage on such a long event. Perhaps they were good in the mud. One front runner used them but he was always behind me so I didn't notice his technique. I'd be curious to hear his impression. You see them on the super hard vertical KM races in Europe. Not all top guys use them, though.
Hi Brian - My name is Gavin. I happen to have been second in the 2014 race (technically a true statement, but given that, if memory serves, you had lapped me by one entire lap by the time we were both on the final tram ride up, I was hardly much competition), which I did basically on a whim, scant specific training and no prep.
I found this blog entry while thinking a little more in advance about this year's race. And I conclude that... the artificial math problem nature of this race is really unfortunate. So long as a lap finished in 44:00 counts the same as a lap finished in 35:01 - i.e., they both put you on the 50-minute tram - the strategy choices for this race are going to be really limited.
Also, the mythical 13 laps in a day is always going to be really difficult to achieve, because you have to drop a lot of sub-35 laps to do it. Assuming for a moment infinite continuous trams, then you could just do 41-minute laps all day, and pull it off with relative ease. (I mean, I'm not sure I could quite do that, but probably you could, and certainly Brent Knight or Matt Novakovich could.)
Thanks for the thoughtful writeup. I appreciate the review of 2014 going into this year's race.
Hey Gavin,
I agree that the race fails to be very interesting once you hit the 12 lap ceiling, which is real for most reasonably talented people given the time constraints of the tram schedule. Doing 12 laps was no means easy for me but it was predictable with good pacing and attentive nutrition. It's really that simple. Given that my talent is modest at best and I was 53 years old at the time, it speaks volumes to the limitations of the current format that I could nearly beat men of much higher caliber. Assuming that no truly world class runners will show for the event and hit 13 or more under the current schedule, the only way that the record will fall is to change the tram timing. Since that is unlikely to happen, the mystery is gone for me. That said, I loved the 3 editions I did for they provided a very interesting laboratory for endurance pacing and feeding for me.
Very well put, on all fronts. I agree completely. (Not much to add to that, but mostly wanted to acknowledge that I'd seen this reply. Thanks.)
I'll see how things go out there for me on Saturday. I think that, for me, finishing 11 laps should be relatively easy. I similarly think that, if I effect 11 this year in my second time doing it, I will probably move on from this event in the future. It's fun rather than not fun, to be sure, but one reason to do races more than once is to see if something different happens, which sounds less likely with this event. (Though if they changed the tram timing, I would absolutely come back once more.)
Oh, and personally I used Hammer Perpetuem rather than Gu, but I thoroughly agree that something other than french fries is basically required for something of this duration.
Perpetuem seems to work for a lot of people. I used to live in Jackson, WY, not far from Hammer headquarters. A lot of Hammer athletes like Perpetuem for long events like LOTOJA. Whatever works. But keeping it simple makes sense to me. Way too much gut confusion and variable absorption with all the funny "real" food going down. Humorous to watch the ebb and flow.