Race 10-109 Quad(ruple) Dipsea

November 27, 2010
28.4mi. - 6th/201 - 4:40:29

Today I ran my 4th (total, and consecutive) Quad Dipsea. I had modest expectations due to low (read: non-existent) training and my sub par performances at the Whiskeytown 50k (5:25:53 in the rain) and Morgan Hill Marathon (3:12:56 in the rain). Also, the forecast for today was rain.

I arrived in usual fashion, with just enough time to park, get my bib, and get to the starting line. I saw Leor Pantilat, Gary Gellin, and Victor Ballesteros, all of whom I wouldn't be surprised to see in the top 3.

I started at a fairly normal pace and as things settled in I found myself around 12th place. There were a few guys around me with whom I traded places as the terrain went uphill and downhill. Caren Spore, the first woman by far on her way to a 1 minute course record 4:38, passed me for the last time in the Dynamite Section just after Muir Woods. Other than turnarounds I never saw her again.

For most of the first two legs I traded places with the same couple guys, with me passing going up and them passing going downhill. I entered the half way point in 12th but I left in 10th, I think due to 2 DNFs (Victor was one of the 2, he had a calf problem). I immediately passed 2 more people moving me up to 8th because there first mile from there is all uphill starting with a 676 stair climb. I didn't see them again so by then I was gaining more on the ups than what I was losing on the downs. On the 4th leg I passed a guy in a red shirt within the first mile. It was clear he was having some issues, maybe leg cramps. As I was getting to the Cardiac end of the Gale Scott section I passed Toshi Hosaka, who normally I can't keep up with. This put me in 6th. I ran down Hogsback as fast as I've ever done in this race but I took it easy on Dynamite because the mud there is almost always slippery, and it was extremely slippery by then. Toward the end of the 4th leg I was told Caren was anywhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes ahead. Not knowing which was correct I didn't make any special effort to try for another place, knowing that 4th place was well ahead and uncatchable. I ran my own race from there, struggling up the non-shortcut way parallel to Suicide (Suicide is off limits in the Quad). I walked some of the road section and the subsequent trail to Windy Gap and then finished the last mile very strong.

My official time was 4:40:29 and shortly after seeing it I wondered whether a quick restroom break on leg 3 cost me a sub 4:40 time (close but I don't think so). Several people were surprised to see my place and/or time as good as they were including me! I came in thinking 4:50 would be tough to beat so i far exceeded expectations.

I felt very happy knowing that the people in front of me were 3 people I'll never catch (Gary, Leor, Mark McManus), plus a guy who finished 3rd (one place in front of Mark), and Caren Spore who set a new women's course record with a 4:38. The old record was 4:39 by Beth Vitalis in 2007. During Beth's race I ran around her most of the way before fading to a 4:47 myself. This year I didn't see Caren after mile 3 and she was more or less 2 minutes in front of me at each of the turnarounds. I get the feeling she was relatively more of a climber (like me) compared to the rest of the field around us, so we didn't really have any back and forth since she gained ground when I gained ground. next year the goal will be 4:35, provided I'm in good shape.