PORTER FORK 22 MILER

1

Derek Blaylock,34

3:42

DESOLATION HALF MARATHON

1

Joan Moellmer,54

5:30

MILL D 12 MILER

John Bartely Cynthia Daniels,54 John Diroll,46 Bob Henderson,57 Ruth Zollinger,16

MILL D 10 MILER

Cindy Andrus Stephanie Killian Althea & Shawn

CHIEF COOK AND SUPPORT FOR THE RACE
 (put in many miles over many days just for us)

Stan Crane

BLUNDER FORK AID STATION (4 miles+)

Claude Grant John Grobben

Additional Support
Cindy Andrus
Charlie Vincent
Grizz Randall
John Moellmer
Irv Nielsen
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               20 YEARS OF DESO
     This is  the 20th Desolation Marathon.  Kerry Fletcher started all this madness in 1982 with a triathlon on the course.  He biked to Desolation Lake, swam across it, and ran the rest of the way. Paul Hart and John Moellmer remember the first time it was run as a trail marathon in 1983.   I don't know  what happened in 1984, the second year,  since I took myself fishing and missed it, but I know a few Striders ran it.  I ran my first one in 1985 and the 1986 run was snowed out with 2 to 3 feet of snow accumulating.  For a few years the numbers of participants was way down.  When only six participated one year, I thought we would see the end of it but it built back up until the first Bear 100, when we saw numbers drop again.  This year we climbed back up to 38 participants not including a few volunteers to make it into the "very popular" category.  Not bad at all.  Twenty years!  Who would have thought back in the early days this would be one of our favorite events?
     This run begins in early summer, actually.  Stan Crane, Destructo Man, spent many days up on the trail trying to maintain it.  The trail is, of course, pretty rough to begin with and it seems to me after running it this year to be even more challenging.  The two big trees we had to work our way around were more difficult than the usual steeplechase variety he have to jump over.  Thanks to Stan, the branches on the second one were cut just right and I made my way around that quite easily.  You could see many of Stan's handiwork on sections of trail that would just be a root scramble if he hadn't been there.  He also hauled water up to Mill B at the Utley tree and John Moellmer and Grizz Randall did likewise.  John Grobben was back for his 11th year of putting up an aid station at Blunder Fork with Claude Grant.  Evidently, from what I hear, Claude and Cindy hauled water up to Blunder Fork earlier in the week.   Kudos to all involved.  Grobben evidently lured 4 or 5 of you away with his breakfast invitation once they hiked down Mill D and drove down the canyon.  Anyone know where they go to eat?  This sounds like quite a temptation.
   Running the race from the front
    This year, after looking at the numbers, I realized I needed one more Desolation Marathon for an official 10th finish.  I was previously counting a 9 1/2 hour finish when I pushed a measuring wheel the entire distance in 1988 to check on the mileage's Kerry Fletcher gave us.  This put me in a tie with Grizz Randall and Stephen Utley with 9 official finishes.  Stephen ran his consecutively before passing the baton on this year. Since he never got to finish his 10th, maybe I could make this sort of a "This ones for you, buddy", kind of thing. I haven't had a very productive year for long runs (longest was a 22 miler in April - Nankoweep), so I knew I would be slow.  So slow, that starting early seemed the only way to go.  At 6:05 am, I found myself starting from the Brighton Store parking lot and trudging in the dark down the road.  I carried a flashlight but found I didn't really need it.  I was not running any of the uphill.  It got light by the time I left Sleepy Hollow junction and was half way to Scotts Pass. It was a little eerie going the reverse direction of the Wasatch 100, the voices and momentum of a thousand ghostly bodies pressed against me as I plodded up the road. I was 45 minutes into the run when I reached Scott Pass and as I forged ahead on the trail to Deso Lake, I was passed by a group of awe struck Georgia trail runners who just couldn't get enough of the gorgeous yellow aspen leaf colors down on the Big Cottonwood side.
At the exact time the race started at 8 am, I was just coming in sight of Red Lovers Ridge above Desolation Lake.  I came though Blunder Fork in a time of 2 hours and 40 minutes an average of 15.7 minutes per mile.  Eventual winner Pat McMurtry, in contrast, ran about 10.1 minutes per mile for the whole race and was undoubtedly running a little faster at this point.  So far, I was really enjoying the fall colors, the carpet of yellow dollar coin size leaves on the trail in places and I loved the trails empty of mountain bikers.  What a treat.
     The scenery kept getting better and better.  The climb up to Dog Lake took me longer than I would have liked but that is always the case, isn't it?  I picked the pace up once I was past the lake and out on the Desolation trail as I left Butler Fork East behind.  I hit Butler Fork West in about 4 hours for the 14.2 miles.  Somewhere between Butler Fork West and the Divide junction, the first runner to pass me, Marti Pahl came by.  I pulled over and he ran on by and disappeared.  About 10 minutes later, Mark Dunn came by just after I got past the Divide Junction followed closely behind by Jon Eagar and Derek Blaylock as we headed around the south side of the Mount Raymond bowl (east side of the mountain). I tried staying behind Derek for a little while.  I think I lasted maybe 30 yards before he was gone.  Arne Hulquist passed me before Mill B.  The water at Mill B,  the Utley tree,  was a comfort to me as I had drained a nearly full bag of water.  The run was turning out to be hotter than I expected.  The air was also cleaner than I thought, considering the controlled burn that went out of control a few days earlier above Midway. This would be a very critical problem for Marti Pahl who missed getting water here.   Doug Wahlquist, last years winner passed me just after the Porter Fork junction where Derek Blaylock, first time runner on this course learned all about "Foolish Dog junction".  He ran down the wrong way and finished at Box Elder in 3:42 for the 22 miles.  A winner in his own race.  He is in excellent company going that way.  Many first time runners have executed that bail out inadvertently and Derek now owns the fastest time for that event.  That is an average of 10 minutes per mile.  Very fast for tough trails.
Three more runners would pass me on the way down from Porter Fork.  I tried staying with Reyn Gallagher and John Moellmer for awhile but after a mile, I just had to back off and soon made it to the Salt Lake Overlook about 1 minute behind them.  Roger Adams soon went by smelling pay dirt.  That last 2.8 miles seems to go on forever and those rocks and roots get real tricky trying to negotiate.  Finally, the finish came in view and the pain could stop.  Let the suffering and celebration begin.  This one was for you, Stephen.
   ***************
   This is the second annual head butting incident in a row for John Moellmer.  There is no truth to the accusation leveled by Many Dots that I hide a tree up there across the trail to knock him down.  Pay no attention to these statements.  Personally, I suspect someone else, someone close to him, might be the culprit.  Mmmm. Let's see, Joan wouldn't know anything about this, would she?  Speaking of injuries, the best noted was Grizz Randall who would have earned a nickname if he didn't have one already of Bloody Knee.  Nice one. Congratulations on your 10th official finish Grizz.  Good luck at the St. George marathon (his 21st, I believe).
    Andrew Wittwer redeemed himself nicely after getting lost and going over to Neffs Canyon last year.  Steve Kaufman ran this race in 1987 and then took a 15 year break.  Guess you won't have to run it again until 2018, Steve.  While he was renewing his bond with this race, he accompanied the woman's winner, his spouse, Eve.
     This "dance with the leaves" usually happens with some "peculiar" ways of doing it.  Kathie Utley (*), for instance has forsaken the road and starts at Sleepy Hollow junction.   The Brunhart's (# ) opted to go up and over Mount Raymond instead of around it.  The Glenn's usually start in Park City but this year started at Guardsman Pass (**).   Don't you think they should take a small penalty and swim across Desolation Lake as penance?
   Last but not least, Jodi Martin and and Wendy Wittwer showed everyone in the crowd how to really use up the whole day in collecting visual leaf delights by setting a new course record for slowest.
    Congratulations to you all for keeping this run going.  Lets do it again.
Irv