From: "Matt Mahoney" <matmahoney@yahoo.com>
To: <ultra@LISTSERV.DARTMOUTH.EDU>
Subject: The bugle sounds
Date: Tue, 3 Apr 2001 11:15:33 -0400
Sender: owner-ultra@LISTSERV.DARTMOUTH.EDU

I had been planning a sub-24 hour 100 at Barkley, but, you know, things
happen.  My pacing plan had called for a sub 40 minute 10K split at Son of a
Bitch Ditch, but to my dismay, my watch read 3:27.  I guess the 7 oz. racing
flats weren't a good idea, but I had left the 5 oz. shoes at home.

Things got worse after that.  There were some really big hills, and I
finished the first loop in 11 hours under overcast skies and fog.  I had
been running with Sue Thompson and Chip Tuthill for most of the second half
of the loop, but they both quit.  Sue twisted her ankle early in the run,
and Chip had stomach problems, so I started the second loop in the dark by
myself.  I lost the trail near book 1 and spent quite a while wandering over
not so nice terrain until 3 other runners who had left an hour later came
from behind.  We made good time from there, though when I checked my
marathon split at Son of a Bitch, I was again dismayed as my watch read 16
hours.  At Coffin Springs at around 4 AM we had rain and sleet, and Joe went
back leaving me, Leonard "butt slide" Martin, and Dick West.  Leonard
dropped after climbing Little Hell around 7AM leaving me and Dick.  We
climbed Rat Jaw in light snow, after which the skies cleared.

We passed Blake Wood and David Horton together, already on loop 3 in the
reverse direction, between the fire tower and the "hump", a new section of
sawbrier covered ridge north of Mart Fields before Indian Knob.  Hans Put
and Sue Johnston were resting at the top of the Zip Line, and we saw several
others on loop 3 after that.

Nobody seemed to be in any hurry except us.  We had 90 minutes to get back
to camp before the 26:40 cutoff.  We looked for an easier route down Zip
Line to the east, but we found a route twice as hard instead, climbing over
boulders and deadfall covered in leaves on a 50% downhill.  It took us an
hour to drop 1500 feet in less than a mile.  It took us just as long to
climb Big Hell, same distance and elevation change, except up.  It was here
we met the last runner on loop 3, Andras Low from Hungary, inquiring as to
the location of book 9.  He had left camp, about 3 miles away, 5 hours
earlier.

Running down the good Chimney Top trail, my pack broke.  I had already lost
my compass, and my legs were sore, but I had finished 2 loops in 29 hours.
I figured that my enormous effort was worth a welcome with a red carpet and
a brass band.  Well, there wasn't any red carpet, but Gary, ever so
thoughtful, did have a bugler play me a tune as he unceremoniously tossed my
hard earned pages into the fire.

I would have liked to stay longer, but my ride was leaving.  I did hear a
few amusing tales, such as Rich "the Troubador" Limacher and Norm "my God,
it's only 20 miles, surely I won't need a flashlight" Carlson reaching Zip
Line after dark and deciding to quit, which took them ANOTHER 11 hours as
they huddled under some rocks in rain and sleet to wait for dawn.  And of
course, the designated sacrificial virgin Channenon, who I met on Jury Ridge
on the first loop inquiring as to the location of book 1, which was only a
mile back and 1000 feet down.  Her misery was only beginning, however.
After collecting 2 pages and unable to find Leonards Butt Slide, she decided
that the easiest way to quit would be to continue down the dirt road, out of
the park, and 30 miles around on the paved roads.

-- Matt Mahoney, matmahoney@yahoo.com, www.he.net/~mmahoney/ub/