jeffonthetrails: Dizzy Goat 12 Hour Trail Race

Dizzy Goat: The 3:45 am alarm came way to early yesterday, but out of bed I roll, lather on my Squirrels Nut Butter, get dressed, brush my teeth, and away I go. I was actually smart this time and pack my gear the night before. Ohhh wow almost forgot, I brewed 1/2 pot of coffee for the 1:45 minute drive. So with coffee in hand, I head out. You know you are up early when watch the sun rise as you approach your Destination. In this case, Schramm State Park for the 12 hour Dizzy Goat Trail Race.

Temps were pretty great for this time of year. 65 at the start; high of 82, but man was it humid!! Anyway, heat doesn't bother me, so on the the start, picked out my tent spot, set up in a few minutes and I'm ready to roll!

I felt great when we started and saw my friends Jeff and Jenny Merrick before the race. It was a treat to see Jeff going for his first 12 hour and longest race to date (ended up being 18 miles longer that his previous 50k distance, he crushed it!)

Smiles Around ..even after 49 miles!

This race was a 3.25 mile loop at Schramm Park, with 600 feet of elevation change on each loop. Once you come across the finish line, they switch your green or pink wrist band for the alternating color, then you turn around and complete the loop in the opposite direction (Hence the name DIZZY GOAT). It's a way to see people all the time and experience the loops (and What the Hill section) from two directions.

Everything started out great, with my Spry vest the first two loops, then I switched to my UltrAspire 550 handheld as a pack was not necessary. This bottle rocks! Most of the day I forgot I was holding it. You slip your hand through and it just hangs there, no gripping, no squeeze, nothing (in fact sometimes I would get to the aid station 1/2 through the loop without drinking anything lol). Then I got scolded by the aid station folks :-) Speaking of which, aid station volunteers are so great. Pretty much every Ultra I do is filled with awesome volunteers. For now, I have to give the Motivation Aid Station crew (most of which were out there all 12 hours) my vote for #1 aid station I've ever experienced. They change their theme (music, decorations, food, and yes their clothes) every 3-4 hours to keep things hopping. There were jamming, joking, and jabbing all day.


Motivation Aid Station


Runners Heading into Motivation Aid

OK back to the loops, rinse and repeat for 7 more loops. Loop 8 would get my 26 miles and I wanted to hit that mark by 6 hours (finished it in 5:40). I knew now the 13 required loops for finisher medal was in the bag, barring some injury or major wipe-out on the roots (which there were plenty of). Loop, 9, 10, 11 and then I had the great privilege to have my brother Jim stop by for some company/pacing for 2 loops! What I treat.. we had a good time, walking, jogging, and talking. This made the early to mid afternoon go by much quicker. Thanks and love ya my bro!

Jim Tagging Along for 6.5 miles woohoo!

Bam 12 & 13 now in the bag. With 2.5 hours left, I knew I could press on for 2 loops to get 15 in and 49 miles. It was time to bring out the tunes and I was getting tired, the sun came out, and oh my goodness so did the humidity! My new favorite soundtrack is from the motion picture "The Greatest Showman". I played the entire thing twice through, did a little singing on the trail, and came through for my final lap of 15!! I had 22 minutes to spare, but not enough time to do number 16.

But hey; 15 loops and 49 miles was A-Ok for me. Sometimes you just have one of those days when everything goes according to plan? That was this race: No falls, no injury, felt good all day, saw friends, ran with my brother, met some incredible Ultra Runners on the trails, and had no issues with my knee! It was a win, win, win, win all day!!!