WF100

WASATCH FRONT 100 MILE ENDURANCE RUN
8 September 2001
Kaysville to Midway, UTAH

RESULTS: WASATCH 100 link for 2001-
Deseret Newspaper Article & Picture link 13 Sep
Deseret Newspaper Article & Picture link - 12 Sep
Deseret News Newspaper Article link - 10 Sep
Pre-race Deseret News article link - 5 Aug

DNF's link
Various DNF codes are are listed on the DNF report. They are as follows:
DNFD - runner was disqualified for an infraction of race rules
DNFM - runner quit due to a medical problem such as an injury
DNFQ - runner chose to quit, usually due to being worn out or exhausted
DNS -- runner did not start the race
DNFT - either time ran out or the runner was so far behind that time limits could not be met

We also use location codes. They are as follows:
CPA - Start
CPB - Francis Peak
CPC - Bountiful 'B'
CPD - Sessions
CPE - Swallow Rocks
CPF - Big Mountain
CPG - Alexander Ridge
CPH - Lambs Canyon
CPI - Upper Big Water
CPJ - Desolation Lake
CPK - Scotts Peak
CPL - Brighton Lodge
CPM - And Knolls
CPN - Pole Line Pass
CPO - Rock Springs
CPP - Pot Hollow
CPQ - The Homestead
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                Correction: Wasatch Front 100 Mile - Deseret News September 14
               Endurance Run home stretch
               A story Thursday about the Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run
               should have described the home stretch of last weekend's grueling race
               as "Irv's torture chamber," crediting Irv Nielsen for designing a tough
               new finishing section. The story misstated the description.
              ("Rats! I liked 'Earth's Torture Chamber' much better." said Irv.)
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Ultra running report:
I got back from Wasatch 100 last night so here is my kinda long report. This was my second time to pace Linda at Wasatch.I paced her in last year for her Grand Slam finish. I ran the last 61 miles. Next year I will run the whole race. This course is beautiful. I got up with Linda at 2:30am on Saturday and would not get any sleep until Sunday night at 12am when I arrived back home in California. Me and Pat Linda's brother went to the start. I wished Linda good-luck and told her I would see her at mile 39 when I would pick her up to pace her to the
finish. I got to the mile 39 aid early and watched all the runners come through. It was exciting.
I really wished I was them. It was fun hanging out and helping all my running pals while I waited for Linda. Linda made it in after 3pm, she looked great and was eating. This was a good sign. Last year she was puking the whole race and was not eating any food. I was so excited to get going. It was cold at the top of the aid station and I wanted to get warm. Off we went around 3:30. It was Linda's birthday so I sung her happy birthday as we ran down the trail. Linda was doing great until around 60 miles. She was having a hard time staying awake. She took a no-doz. That seemed to help. She was quiet so I new things were going to get ugly. Linda talks a lot so when she gets quiet you know there's a problem. Our plan was to keep moving until we got to the Brighton Lodge AKA The Morgue. The inside is all nice and cozy. Runners check in, but they don't check out. Well some don't! When we got there she was two hours ahead of last year. This was mile 75 only 25 to go. She told me she was not leaving. I told her to rest a half hour then think about it. I was getting nervous. I didn't want her to get to comfortable, otherwise she might not leave. I tried to get her to leave and she gave me 10 different excuses why she couldn't finish. I told her to sleep some more and we would leave in 30 minutes. I sat there telling stories to other runners of my hallucinations I was having heading in to Brighton. I saw Frosty the snow man riding on a hover craft. Well 30 min. past I couldn't get her up. Thankfully Eroll ("The Rocket") Jones came by and talked to her. He
picked her up but she couldn't stand. He told her she could finish and needed to get going. She ended standing up on her own, only to go to the bathroom to puke. Well, finally she attempted to leave The Morgue. She got out the door, took one look up at Catherine's Pass and said" I'm sorry Catra I can't make it". I turned away from her as tears started running down my face. I new at that moment she really could not make it. I tried everything I could and it was her choice and it was the right choice. This was the saddest moment in my running career. I walked Linda back into Brighton. I asked if I could head back out solo since my runner was dropping. It was only 25 miles to the finish. I was really tired, but something told me to go. They told me it was ok. I ended up heading out with Wasatch Fred and Eroll. I stayed with them for an hour then I moved on ahead. I met another pacer along the way whose runner had dropped. He wanted to get a 25 miler in. I told him I was getting a 61 miler in and asked do you wanna pace me. He said sure we could hang together. He told me he had never ran an Ultra, but had paced at Wasatch for the past 4 years. I told him all my running stories.
We passed several runners along the way. We got to the last aid station 7 miles from the
finish. We were talking to aid people when in comes a guy and his young pacer. He asked what the last seven miles was like. The guy I was running with (I can't remember his name) he new the course, so told him what to expect. We took off and headed out. This whole time I was thinking this runner is not going to make it in under 36 hours. He has come so far. I new I had to take over and take control. I never saw this person before, but I so badly wanted to help him. Something clicked inside, that was it, I new there was a reason I went back out without Linda. I was supposed to help this guy. I told the guy I was running with we need to stop, we need to help this guy, he will not make it unless I help him. He reached the top of the hill I asked his name, he said Robert from New York I told him my name and that if he wanted to make it he would have to listen to me. He said ok. I told him he would have to run and he did. He pushed hard. We kept him going. He really had no time to slack. I really was worried at times he would not make it, but he kept going. We finally got to the last mile we had 14 minutes, I think, to go. I told him just keep running - it was almost over. He did it and even had 9 min. to spare. He was the last official runner in. I cried when he ran through the finish line. I was so touched by the effort that Robert put in to get through his race. I was happy I was part of Roberts successful finish. All things happen for a reason. This is what ultrarunning is all about. I am a better person because since becoming an Ultrarunner.   I have become a more compashionate person. Congratulations to Robert and all the other finishers and all of you who at least attempted to start.
                 Catra
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Charlie Vincent story:
Catra: I found your story very moving, thanks for sharing. I was also at Brighton Sunday morning when you were trying to cajole Linda out the door. I left before I saw if you were successful. Perhaps your friend Linda might like to know that her performance last year was an inspiration to me this year. Last year at Bigwater I was in the process of trying to convince my crew to let me drop. I remember the moment like it was yesterday, I was telling them that they had no idea how I felt. At that moment I heard a voice from the chair next to me say "oh yes I do" and then she punctuated the statement by turning her head and hurling. I ended up dropping, but went to the finish to watch my friend Paul finish. While I was there I was incredibly impressed when you two came over the finish line and I saw what determination had overcome.
    Fast forward to this year. I was stronger, better trained and more determined, but it still felt like deja vu half way through. The race went incredibly well for about 45 miles. I hit all of my target times (~ 30-31 hour pace) within a couple minutes, I was eating and drinking, and I felt pretty good. But apparently my quads were more beat up then I thought. The first hint of the impending injury was on the steep downhill going into Big Mt check point (39.3), but it went away. The real damage to my quads was done on the punishing downhill section going into Alexander Ridge aid station (47.2). After the next uphill, I found I could no longer run or walk downhill without a huge amount of pain at the insertion point of my right quad into the top of my knee.
    Sitting in the aid station at Lambs Canyon (53) was a real downer. Hammered quads leading to a groin injury (and exhaustion) had forced me out of last year's race and the albatross had been hanging around my neck ever since. At that point, I wasn't sure how I was going to finish or even if I could, but I really wanted to try. I was feeling pretty good except for the injury. With some very helpful input from my crew and some friends we decided I'd wrap my thigh above the knee for the descents for now and my crew would try to buy me a knee brace and bring it to the Big Water aid station (61.5).
     The knee brace, ever increasing amounts of naproxen, and my pacers and crew got me to the finish one aid station at a time. I really owe the finish to my crew and pacers. They supported me the whole way, but when it started getting tight they pushed me well beyond what I thought I was capable of doing. My pacers, Olaf and Dan did an amazing job getting me through the last 47 miles. I might have gone 100 miles without them, but I wouldn't have done it within the 36 hour time limit. I finished with 13 minutes to spare. Thanks again for sharing your story.
Charlie Vincent
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Mark Williams Story
Just returned from a romp in the Wasatch mountains. Not much has changed with the mountains they are still mean and tough as ever.
    Prior to running this years race I was plagued with metatarsal pain. this has caused me discomfort since running Rocky Raccoon this past February. Like I always say "it something that a little ole 100 mile race should take care of".
    Another problem I've had is damn blisters. I tried everything. Different socks, Vaseline, bag balm, longer shoes you name it. This year i decided to try a wider shoe and take the dry approach. So I bought a pair of New Balance 904 EEs and used Dr. Scholl's foot powder. Other that some irritation from the eyelet's this seemed to work like a charm. I had one small blister on one of my toes compared to hamburger feet after this years Western States. If you have problems with your feet, experiment until you find what works best for you.
    Now back to the race. I arrived in Park City on Wednesday before the race to try to get a bit of altitude acclimation. Mike Price and his wife were gracious enough to invite me into their home for the race. After a brief rest Mike wanted to stretch his legs and show me one of his training trails. Well this ain't no Missouri trail. Mike lives close to 7,000 feet. To the top of the trail put us well over 8,000. That may not sound like much but when you come from the flats of Missouri, this is a climb.
    Weather reports had us concerned that we might be visited my snow flurries and low temps. We saw rain on Thursday and the temps did drop drastically. This could mean only one thing, a trip to the local REI for warmer clothes. I was lucky to have found a Polartec vest on sale and a few other do-dads.
     The course this year would be different from last years. Seems there was a problem with the Sundance folks (the buisness leadership exchanged Wasatch for a Blue Grass Festival) so RD John Grobben redirected the last 20 miles to the finish in Homestead, UT. I would find out later that this last 20 miles was a hell of a lot tougher than last years.
     My goal was to try to break 30hrs. and get one of them thar blue buckles. These buckles are for folks that finish under 30hrs. All other finishers above 30hrs. receive the standard finishers buckle. My time last year was 32:40 something.
    The Wasatch trail is very tough as any previous competitor will attest. The trail never gives you a break. Climb after climb after climb. I had not planned it this way but two of my friends were ahead of me on the trail. Bobby Keogh from NM who I had ran 80 miles with at this years Rocky Raccoon and Robert Taverini from Dallas Tx who I had met last year as he was competing in the last Great race and staying with Mike. Having these guys in front of me really gave me the drive to push hard from the start. Not that I wanted to beat them but just to share the trail with.
    One of the best ways to kill your finishing times in a 100 is wasting time in the aid stations. You would be amazed at how fast minutes can be eaten up. Last year I wasted over 3hrs. 30 miles into the race I thought I was sweating way to much for such a cool day. The back of my shorts were soaked and my shoes were beginning to fill with water. As a fellow racer came by he said he thought the bladder in my hydra pack had a leak, so I pulled to the edge of the trail took off my pack and discovered he was right. I was only a mile from the last aid station. I had left with a refilled bladder. I was carrying a hand held bottle also and was I glad. Me and dehydration don't work well together.
    I the night and around 70 miles I finally caught Bobby and Robert at Scott's pass aid station. Running on technical trails at night can tricky when it comes to seeing all of the trail markers. The last thing you want is to run off course and burn precious energy. I enjoyed the conversation with these guys as we made our way to the 75 mile aid station at Brighton.
    The remainder of the race was very tough mentally. Just when you thought the trail would drop back down to the valley it would climb again. Somewhere along the way Bobby got ahead of us but we caught him again running with Barbara Frye-Krier of Fla. Bobby and Barbara are both Last Great race competitors.
    As the 30 hr limit loomed we were constantly asking each other if we were on pace. Bobby being an ole crow....I mean pro.....assured us if we continued this pace we should have no problem.
    Leaving the last aid station, Pot Bottom, the captain informed us we had only a 2 mile up and a 5 mile down to the finish. Sounds simple enough...right? WRONG! The up wasn't so bad but have you ever ran 5 miles of down hill after 95 miles on tired legs? We knew the finish was by a local golf course and as we came to a clearing on the trail we could see it in view. MAN. was that a great feeling. As we made our way down the trail a hiker from the race area told us the road was just ahead. as we broke from the trees and on to the road Bobby's wife was there to great us. We made our way through a white rail fence and entered on to a field with arms raised. Together we had conquered this beast called WASATCH!!! A three way tie 28:48:49.
    Once again to Mike Price and his family for there support during the race.
                                    Mark
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Tuesday, September 11,
2001
        BY JANET RAE BROOKS
        THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

            On Sunday morning, Wasatch 100 runner Mindy Niitsuma left the Brighton aid station
        blind, walking and holding her pacer's hand. A few hours later, the 41-year-old mother
        of seven became the first competitor airlifted off the course in the 22-year history of the
        100-mile endurance race.
            "My vision was gone," said Niitsuma. "It was like a cloud. I couldn't see anything but
        white. But I just really felt that it was going to get better. I thought, 'When the sun
        comes up and the heat, it'll be fine.' "
            But it wasn't. Niitsuma's breathing became shallower, her heart raced and her chest
        hurt. Finally, after repeatedly sitting down, then struggling to take a few more steps, the
        Francis resident told her pacer, her sister Janeal Capson, that she couldn't continue.
            "This is it," said Niitsuma, who had run almost 78 miles. "I can't go on."
            While Capson -- dressed in shorts and a tank top -- ran toward Ant Knolls aid station
        for help, Niitsuma shivered in a down jacket, fleece vest and two underlayers.
            An emergency medicine technician from Ant Knolls, running in street clothes,
        reached Niitsuma about an hour later. After examining her, he told her she had
        pulmonary edema -- an altitude-induced, potentially fatal condition -- and needed to be
        airlifted off the mountain as soon as possible.
            Two other volunteers from Ant Knolls also arrived to help. "They were down on the
        ground, rubbing her back, taking off her shoes," said Capson. "One of them built a
        lean-to to keep the sun off her face."
            Soon after, an Alta fireman appeared and began administering oxygen. A nurse from
        a AirMed helicopter, which had landed on Point Supreme above them, had also walked
        down to help. Search and rescue personnel and another AirMed employee, who began
        giving Niitsuma intravenous fluids, were also on the scene.
            Niitsuma was carried almost two miles, partly over steep and rocky terrain, to the
        Alta parking lot, where Niitsuma had her choice of AirMed or LifeFlight helicopters and
        an ambulance.
            At the emergency department of the University of Utah Hospital, Niitsuma was
        diagnosed with "multiple problems," including renal failure, hypothermia, dehydration and
        pulmonary edema.
            Niitsuma was released Sunday evening, six hours after she was admitted. She intends
        to try the Wasatch 100 again, probably skipping next year's race to spend more time
        with her children. Even as she was being carried down the mountain and in the
        emergency room, Niitsuma was wishing she had finished.
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                 My first attempt at 100 miles.....
Miracles happen when you least expect it.    By Troy B. Marsh
Seven miles into the race the unthinkable happened. I was cruising along the
spine of the Wasatch feeling fantastic, fresh and alive. Snap! My left ankle
turned sending me into a one-legged two-step to catch myself before I
tumbled down the mountain.
    Daily obsessions with this crazy adventure and a year's worth of training
flashed through my mind. "I can walk this out," I thought to myself. Doubt
entered my mind as soon as I bore weight.
    Not able to change my circumstance, I changed my attitude. Maybe there is a
lesson in all of this. Isn't this the reason I run anyway?
    I expected that running in this year's Wasatch Front 100 mile run would be my
metaphor for life. Lots of challenging ups and downs marked with periods of
joy and bliss.
    I figured if I could walk at a fast pace and mix in bouts of running on easier
terrain, I could still complete the run in the allotted 36 hours. By mile 30, my
pace slowed and my gait was obviously lame. Runners started to pass me like
I was standing still. Some offered their sympathy at my plight. Others
encouragement.
"I'm done," I told the aid station volunteers at Swallow Rocks mile 35.
"When's the next taxi down the mountain?"
Inspecting my ankle the swelling was evident. The wind blowing made me shiver
in my layers soaked with sweat. Two hours to wait for the last runners, a sense of
pride, and a cussing angel got me back on my feet to make the last 5 mile trek to
Big Mountain. My family would be there and then I could quit.
    Wendy's knees were hurting from the downhill pounding. Her obvious
frustration at her demise led to a royal whine session between us. She cussed
a little and I think we were having fun. It felt good anyway. She eventually
pulled away and disappeared as I struggled to avoid the knife-stabbing pain in
my ankle.
    I accepted my fate. The cards had been dealt. I would quit at Big Mountain,
disappoint my crew, and let my pacers know I would not need their company
through the freezing cold night.

There's a saying from the good book I often recite. Something about relying
on higher power and having wings of eagles, and being renewed in strength.
Mentally, I played it over and over until my miracle on the mountain happened.
Somehow, the pain subsided or at least my strength was renewed. My limp
turned to running and with wings of eagles I sped down the mountain passing
Wendy who had a surprised look on her face as I did mine.
    Familiar cheers at Big Mountain were a welcome sound. With strength
unknown I continued to Lambs Canyon, mile 53, where I would pick up my
pacer and continue through the night.
    The night was cold but moving kept us warm. We talked and laughed and
enjoyed the stars and moonlit sky. I hurt, but miraculously, we kept going up
the steep elevations and brutal descents.
    I decided to officially quit for medical reasons at Upper Big Water aid station,
mile 61, realizing I would not make the cutoff in time.
    Somewhere along the trail, I was taught lessons of the human spirit, the joy of
friendship, and the importance of family. I felt a higher power intervene in my
lowest moments and take me far beyond what I thought was possible.
    Life is what happens when you have other plans. Sometimes that is a good
thing. I can't wait until next year's race.
Gotta run! Troy
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Gorilla Chat:
    It is the day after the World Trade Center and Pentagon were struck by terrorists. It has
seemed to hit me doubly hard, catching me in a very vulnerable time. While I did not run the Wasatch, I was out on the trail for 7 of 8 days prior to the race putting in my "100" in little bites. With incredible help from Stephen Utley, Stan Crane, and Doug Wahlquist, we put out ribbons on the course except from Lambs to Brighton. That portion of the trail was done by Joan Moellmer, Jane Pattee, and Paul Allard to Upper Big Water and Tom McFarland with Paul Alsop did the glow sticks, ribbons to Brighton. At the finish awards ceremony, Fred Denys made me cry by giving me a painting. I am still shocked and feeling unworthy of such a thing. Thank you Fred from the bottom of heart. Anyway, this week Stephen (Mr. Power Ultra Driver to the max) and I went out on Tuesday morning to take off ribbons from Rock Springs to the finish. I did "Irv's Torture Chamber" and Stephen went to Pot Bottom to Homestead (on his very sore heel from an early injury this year). When I went to work today, the impact of the terrorists destruction along with the tail end of the Wasatch seemed to work its way through my soul. I was openly weeping every time I heard the tragic stories unfolding. I feel really down today - post-race blues and sad. As is a habit of mine when I am facing emotional turmoil, I turn to Poetry. LJ Staton was kind enough to send this to me off the Ultra Serve chat line:

This is by A.A. Milne.

Spring Morning

Where am I going? I don't quite know.
Down to the stream where the king-cups grow-
Up on the hill where the pine-trees blow-
Anywhere, anywhere. I don't know.

Where am I going? The clouds sail by,
Little ones, baby ones, over the sky.
Where am I going? The shadows pass,
Little ones, baby ones, over the grass.

If you were a cloud, and sailed up there,
You'd sail on water as blue as air,
And you'd see me here in the fields and say:
"Doesn't the sky look green today?"

Where am I going? The high rooks call:
"It's awful fun to be born at all."
Where am I going? The ring-doves coo:
"We do have beautiful things to do."

If you were a bird, and lived on high,
You'd lean on the wind when the wind came by,
You'd say to the wind when it took you away:
"That's where I wanted to go today!"

Where am I going? I don't quite know.
What does it matter where people go?
Down to the wood where the blue-bells grow-
Anywhere, anywhere. I don't know
            *******
   So, I sit here contemplating the Wasatch again and again realizing how every runner has a story of agony and ectasy. I got off easy in the Deseret News article today (9/13) when the author misunderstood the "torture chamber" name and called it "Earth's Torture Chamber" rather than "Irv's Torture Chamber".
Close call that one. Whew!   It did no good to describe the exceedingly great scenery and the steady selection of trails as the prime reason for moving the race there. Everyone blamed me for "toughening up the course considerably". I can only hope inspired individuals will improve that section of the course so that the Dive and the Plunge and perhaps further on get new trail improvements that make it easier on them by removing the worst of the descents and ascents. We shall see.
The summer was very hot and dry. All the locals were very well trained for the heat. Were runners fortunate to have a cold front move in 2 days before the race? I would hope so but some thought it led them to overdress and drink less. A warming spell on Sunday really made the activities at the finish line nice.
When I got home Sunday at 2:30am and got regrouped, a dead battery in the Tahoe had to be dealt with and the wife got sick and so my 5 year old and I didn't get up to the finish line until 1:30pm. The day was just a blur as to who finished and not. My most vivid memories are of Fred Denys finishing after the 36 hour cut off time, then Erroll (The Rocket) Jones, and lastly, Fred Riemer coming around the back way to the finish to avoid drawing attention to himself and interupting the awards ceremony. Those 3 are truly the heroic figures of the Wasatch 2001 for me personally.
   The men's race was won by northern Utahn, Leland Barker, his 2nd win. Karl Meltzer was the man everyone was chasing until Millcreek. Ah well, Karl, we admire you greatly for the courage it took to give another tough 100 miler a go the way you did. Breaking the Hardrock 100 record by 3 hours isn't too shabby an achievment.   Most of us would like to just finish under 48 hours. So Karl has the Hardrock and Wasatch records. Leland has 2 wins over Karl he will have to content himself with. Could next year be the tie breaker? Or will they go after records at other 100's? Curtis Anderson, now from Colorado came in second. Derek Clayton took the 3rd spot and what a great race he pulled out of the hat. This is his second Crimson Cheetah and what a great effort on his part.
   The race amongst the women was tight. Susan Hunter-Yates gave it a good go but eventually had to retire and Californian Betsy Nye came up with the win in just over 26 hours. Pam Reed was 2nd in 28 plus from Arizona and Barbara J Frye-Krier from Florida (big hills there, no doubt) was 3rd. Interestingly, Betsy Kalmeyer finished the race after winning and setting a course record at Hardrock. Very impressive.
The Spirit of the Wasatch award went to Cynthia Daniels who has run many Ultramarathons and had to drop this year. She had helped organize the trail work this year.
Wasatch is still not over for me because the ribbons are not down yet. I will be out there thinking about all the valiant struggles the runners made, thinking about all the lives snuffed out by evil and hatred, and wondering where I am going, caught by winds of sorrow and loss, going anywhere, anywhere, going, going, gone.
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