The North Face - Endurance Challenge

THE ENDURANCE EXPERIENCE

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE TRAIL - BELLINGHAM, WA - 2009

RACE REPORT - THE NORTH FACE® ENDURANCE CHALLENGE BELLINGHAM - 2009

By: Sam Thompson, The North Face® Athlete and GORE-TEX® 50 Mile Competitor

Camp Lutherwood, Bellingham, WA (June 6, 2009) - With the mercury exploding into the 90s last week here in the Pacific Northwest, tension was high in the days approaching The North Face® Endurance Challenge in Bellingham on Saturday, June 6. The weatherman seemed optimistic, forecasting cooler weather for race weekend, but in the Pacific Northwest accurately forecasting the weather is next to impossible. But as runners emerged from their beds in the wee hours of Saturday morning, the skies looked promising; it was slightly overcast and definitely a good deal cooler than the previous week’s heat wave. As runners assembled at the starting line, the usual nervous chatting before a race was in full force. The weather couldn’t have been better. 5:00AM arrived quickly, and we massed at the starting line to dive into what would prove to be an amazing day.

In moments, the crowd of eager runners was off. For the first few miles, it was a little difficult to see clearly because of the low light and thick tree cover, but it was so nice to start without a headlamp that nobody complained. After some fun, winding trails around Camp Lutherwood, we emerged onto a fire road and started a lengthy climb. The lead pack stayed virtually shoulder to shoulder through this section, and at about the five-mile mark the course shifted to a nice singletrack trail, taking us over to Chuckanut Mountain. Our first really gnarly climb of the day -- certainly a harbinger of what was to come -- met us quickly, and the pack began to shake out.

As we cruised along the beautiful Chuckanut trails, it quickly became apparent the singletrack was in perfect condition. There was hardly any mud, and the trails were nice and soft - ideal for a day of running. The lead pack was separated, but still quite close together going into the aid station at mile 11.6. But that was the last time I would see the leaders, and their race played out on a separate stage.

Following the aid station came some of the more technical sections of the course, requiring serious concentration. The Salal Trail -- a super windy, technical mountain biking challenge trail -- followed immediately by the demanding Chuckanut Ridge trail made for a thrilling back-to-back combo and a mind-numbing test of endurance. This was followed by screaming down the Chinscraper trail and eventually looping down and around to the Fragrance Lake aid station and the half-way mark. The weather remained ideal; though it was quite muggy, the temperature was pleasant, and the cloud cover continued to hold back the stinging rays of the sun. There were even a few short patches of light, almost imperceptible drizzle to cool us off.

A lengthy climb back up Chuckanut began just past the Fragrance Lake aid station, and we eventually wound our way back to the Blanchard Mountain side of the course. With about 15 miles to go, we plunged into the fun trail system on Blanchard, and began a new chapter in the adventure. The views of the serene mountain lakes on Blanchard -- Lily and Lizard -- were fun rewards after each climb up the mountain, and the challenging technical trails here lived up to their reputation.

After miles of punishing trail, we emerged at mile 42 for a spectacular view of the Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands at the Samish overlook. Following this aid station, the trail rolled nicely before the final coup de grace for many runners -- the climb up Oyster Dome, aka “Kill Bill Hill”. An unexpected surprise for many, this climb is an incredible, knuckle-scraping challenge at any time, but after 45 tough miles it becomes a grueling ordeal. Once we topped out at Lily Lake, it was a fairly steady downhill cruise back to the finish.

The quad-busting final five miles flew by, and the finish line was in sight in no time. Ideal conditions and an extremely talented field made for some amazing finishing times, with three people breaking the previous course record. I personally ran over an hour and a half faster than last year, so that felt great, too.

The North Face® Endurance Challenge in Bellingham is truly a landmark for the ultrarunning community, and I feel it will soon become a marquee event. The Pacific Northwest is well known and respected for its amazing running terrain, and this course showcases the spectacular beauty of the area wonderfully. Though the views were somewhat obstructed by cloud cover, what we could see was breathtaking, and I think all were grateful for the lower temperatures. The course provides the perfect mix of fire roads -- where you can find a comfortable pace and tempo -- and extremely challenging technical singletrack. The race itself was extremely well organized; it couldn’t have been better. When I consider all the work that’s involved, the task of marking a 50-mile course boggles the mind, but this course was marked flawlessly with clear directional arrows and colored ribbons aplenty. The aid stations were well stocked, and volunteers were extremely helpful, supportive and encouraging.

Saturday’s The North Face® Endurance Challenge proved to be an ideal Pacific Nothwest day in the mountains on amazing trails, and I honestly cannot wait to do it again next year. (Okay, in all honesty, since I live in the area I won’t wait until next year to get back out on the trails, but I still can’t wait for next year’s race!)

WORD FROM THE TRAIL:
“Reading from the race website, I expected to run on a beautiful, challenging course. Everything far exceeded my expectations! I usually run races with my mp3 player. With this course I didn’t even want music. Everything was so beautiful that I just wanted to take it all in.”
      -   Jamie Donaldson, 1st Place Finisher in the Women’s Gore-Tex 50 Mile race

“The high point was the atmosphere: There were lots of helpful volunteers, the course was well marked, the terrain was varied and - although it was a little cloudy - the views were very nice. The low point... I can't really say there was one.”
      -   Allison Moore, 3rd Place Finisher in the Women’s Gore-Tex 50 Mile race

“I expected a challenging race and tough competition, and that’s what I got! The best part was running the fairly technical trails on the north half of the course. These were fun, challenging and generally pretty fast-paced. Having the opportunity to shake hands with Dean Karnazes wasn’t too bad either!”
      -   Amy Roesler, 3rd Place Finisher in the Women’s 50K race

“The experience was great. One thing that I’ve noticed about the Ultra Running community is that the people are very friendly. Maybe it’s because we have to slow down enough to go the distance, which usually means we can carry on a conversation or two. The course itself was great: nice mixture of fire roads, beautiful singletrack, and some crazy, super-tough sections as well.”
      -   Julie Leasure, 2nd Place Finisher in the Women’s 50K race

“Reaching the highest point of the course was awesome; being able to look down and see how far I had come ‘up’ was a spiritual moment. Also, the unspoken camaraderie of other runners experiencing the same things was great. I felt strong and able to conquer the difficult terrain, inspired by those ahead of me and behind me. Also, you have the best staff and volunteers of any race I have been to. They were amazing. What service!”
      -   Joleen Rodgers, 3rd Place Finisher in the Women’s Half-Marathon

“I recall arriving at aid station 9 or 10 feeling pretty loopy and in need of calories but not wanting anything besides those little bite-sized brownies that many of the other stations had. ‘Do you have any brownies?’ I asked. Then I pounded my fist on the table and chanted, ‘Brownies! Brownies! Brownies!’ A startled volunteer handed me a brownie with impressive alacrity, and off I went. The volunteer probably thought that I was arrogant or insane, but I just needed a brownie really badly.”
      -   Greg Crowther, 3rd Place Finisher in the Men’s Gore-Tex 50 Mile race

The North Face® Endurance Challenge series totals four regional races and one Championship event. From May through December 2009, five endurance events will span the country, starting in Bear Mountain, NY, passing through the Seattle area in Bellingham, WA, then traveling to Washington, D.C., and Madison, WI, before culminating with the championship in San Francisco, Calif. The four race distances at each event are 10K, Half-Marathon, 50K and 50 Miles. Each men’s and women’s regional GORE-TEX® 50 Mile champion will take home $1,000 and a complimentary entry to the Endurance Challenge Championship in San Francisco in December, where $10,000 – the largest prize purse in ultrarunning -- will go to the top male and female GORE-TEX® 50 Mile finisher. Winners of The North Face® Endurance Challenge Championship (U.S.), and winners of The North Face® Canadian Death Race (Canada), The North Face® 100 (China), The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® (Europe), and The North Face® Ultra Maratón de los Andes (South America) will all receive an expenses-paid trip to race at their choice one of the other four races.

For more information, to register for the event or join your local The North Face® Endurance Challenge running club, visit www.thenorthface.com/endurancechallenge.

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