Inexorable.
This word, defined as "unyielding, unalterable" became my mantra for 16 hours yesterday. One foot in front of the other. Don't stop moving. I will cross the finish line. I am an inexorable force of perpetual motion traveling by ski from Crested Butte to Aspen, Colorado.
The race is called the Elk Mountain Grand Traverse (elkmountainstraverse.com). It stretches 40 miles between the ski resorts over the Elk Mountains following an old route used by traders who (wisely) took multiple days to complete the journey. The race starts at midnight to allow racers to finish in the daylight the following day. Along the route racers gain about 9k vertical feet and spend about half of the race above treeline in the alpine.
Explore Fitness entered two teams. Team A consisted of two time Olympian Carl Van Loan and Land Monster Taylor Leary (Bubba). These guys finished in 13.5hrs and by their accounts were almost as miserable throughout as team 2, consisting of Brandon DeBenedet and myself, finishing in 15:57.
Preparation for a race this long is intensive. We were required to carry emergency shelters, avalanche rescue gear, food and water for 24hours and other sundry equipment that added up to a 25lb pack in my case.
Physical preparation called for long backcountry tours, cross training and lower body strength conditioning. The biggest challenge for us as soft city-dwellers in training was finding opportunities to get out and train in race conditions. As preparation we signed up for the Vail Mountaineering Challenge in February, which was a grueling, brutal, race in itself that taught us a lot about our equipment, what kind of food was easiest to digest etc. In addition we pt treadmill miles in whenever possible and performed three interval training sessions per week for twelve weeks approaching the race.
The race started at midnight on Friday the 29th. The timing is arranged so that racers are over the steep alpine sections of Star Pass before the sun has a chance to warm the snow and increase the likelihood of avalanches.
Beforehand at the pre-race meeting I noticed that people were noticing me, and specifically noticing my Liberty Helix skis with Hammerhead telemark bindings (20lb approximate weight), and snickering at the relatively massive load I was preparing to cart 40miles through the backcountry. The average person involved in the race was 40-50lbs lighter than I and ratty facial hair abounded. Skis were skinny, light and had expensive backcountry bindings with their weight measured in ounces not pounds. It was evident to me that this was a real mountain man race and worried I was in over my head.
Taylor Nate and Carl Prepare to start
The first five hours of the race seem e a blur. We climbed two thousand feet to exit the resort and skied into the Brush Creek Drainage where we found long flats and breakable snow crust that kept us in a single file jam for some time. Those who dared to try to pass out of turn were rewarded by being dumped into several feet of snow on the perimeter of the track set by the course officials.
Several downhills and stream crossings later we began the gradual climb to Star Pass, where we would need to pass a checkpoint by 7am to avoid being disqualified, turned around and sent back to Crested Butte in ignominy and defeat.
I called a break at about four in the morning hoping to intake some calories and rest my legs. Five minutes later Brandon and I were shivering and our hands and feet had grown completely numb. Realizing that we needed to start moving again, we set off at a furious pace and remained in danger of frostbite and hypothermia for forty-five minutes after. We realized that extended breaks were dangerous until the sun rose and had a chance to warm the air.
ROUTE MAP FROM CRESTED BUTTE TO ASPEN
Uncertain of how far we were from the cut-off at Star Pass, we pushed harder to gain the high ridge line by dawn. To my surprise and relief, we made the12,500ft pass an hour before the cutoff.
Nate Lawrence on top of Star Pass
Our relief at crossing the high barrier was short lived as we began the next ascent towards Taylor Pass. We would end up traveling for over fifteen miles at an altitude over 11,000ft, and the altitude and distance would make the journey a true test of determination and focus.
Brandon's feet started to cramp and seize, my breathing became ragged and it was all I could do not to collapse into coughing fits and the ridges we knew we would cross seemed to get farther away even as we worked.
Regardless, we pressed on. Having passed the turnaround point and an aid station, we were now committed. Rescue at this point would have taken hours and potentially have cost thousands. We chose not to consider whether rescue by snowmobile was possible. Pressing on was mandatory.
Carl Van Loan feeling confident at dawn
I wanted to see the distant finish line so bad it brought tears to my eyes. Surprisingly, I found that this desperate yearning brought much needed energy. I decided to embrace what I normally consider negative emotion and channel it. These are the lessons that physical struggle can help to teach.
After some hours we reached the final backcountry checkpoint at Barnard Hut, a mere eight miles from the Aspen Sundeck from which we would descend to the finish line at Aspen Mountain. At Barnard we were asked some cursory questions about our health, fed hot soup and "Aclimate" the dubious tasting but undoubtedly nutrient filled supplement sponsor of the race.
We felt we were nearly home at Barnard, but the last eight miles stretched in distance. Fatigue set in and it took us three and a half hours to cover the distance, a pace significantly slower than our previous. I fought heat exhaustion, dehydration and nausea.
Regardless we were confident in our ability to finish. What's eight miles when one has covered thirty-two?
We finished the trek with enough energy to plan a descent to the base in style. We cut tight figure-eight turns and embraced a purple haired volunteer at the finish.
Carl and Taylor had finished two and half hours previously and were fast asleep at the hotel before we arrived but I did not begrudge them their rest. They later told us that they were tracking us online and that they felt happy that we would finish and sympathetic as they relived the challenges of the terrain we were covering.
Brandon and Nate hold their medals for display.
Carl and Taylor enjoy their victory
We made it.
Some stats along the way:
40+ miles
7800 veritcal feet
14,500 calories burned/person
Average Heart Rate of 135bpm (Nate)
Pace 2.3mph
Moving Time: 14:50
Stopped Time: 1:20
240oz of fluids consumed
Five open blisters created (Nate)
Two toenails lost (Brandon)
Thanks to the Crested Butte Nordic Counsel and all of the volunteers it took to pull this thing off, Jeff Koether for letting us crash at his place pre-race, Ali Lind, Paula Van Loan, Stephanie Pobrislo and Jackie Dauw for meeting us at the finish and resisting making comments about the stench and to all of you who followed our progress and sent your thoughts and prayers in our direction.
Nate Lawrence
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