2014 Free State Trail Marathon

Location: Clinton Lake in Lawrence, KS
Date Run: 4/19/2014, 0800 start
Place: 1 out of 100
Duration: 3:43:25
Average Pace: 8:30
Elevation: ~1000'
Weather: 50-72F
Race Website: http://www.psychowyco.com/id1.html

By mid-April it's mud season in the mountains so I decided it was a good time to get away and continue my slow pursuit of 50 marathons in 50 states. Since moving to Summit County, CO road running has all but completely lost its appeal. For that reason I was stoked to find this trail marathon in Lawrence, KS.

I've done a handful of trail races in the last several years, and the Free State now ranks among the top. It was somewhat of a last moment decision to commit. I attempted to register online before the deadline but the website was not cooperating. Luckily, the race director Ben had provided his personal number on the race page and assured me I could register in person at packet pickup. He was even kind enough to honor the lower online registration price. Perks of a smaller sized event.

Clinton Lake Trail Network

The Race
The distances offered were a 100k, 40 miler, marathon and a half, all of which were run along trails on the north shore of Clinton Lake. In order to spread the runners out, the ultras started at 0700 while the marathon and half started at 0800.  The race started abruptly. Ben essentially said, "We have a great course, it's well marked, marathoners split from the half marathoners early on, rejoin them, and then split off again... sound good? Alright... GO!"

Listening intently to Ben the race director

The first split was after the first mile. ... Aaaaand I completely missed it because I was following closely behind a runner of the half. Fortunately another marathoner I had talked to before the race corrected my error by shouting after me after I'd only proceeded 200' in the wrong direction. There was a race volunteer standing at the split but he wasn't really paying attention. No harm but it could have easily ruined my day had it not been for the other marathoner.

The correct route continued along a cross country ski trail for about a mile before suddenly cutting left directly into the woods off trail. The deviation into the woods was well marked by flagging although I'm sure a few runners thought, 'can this be right?' The race director called this character builder "exfoliation". No joke. I was repeatedly clawed by branches and bushes. It was actually kind of invigorating. After briefly bushwhacking, the route led to a single track trail that quickly crossed a stream. This trail looped around rejoining the original split at about mile 3 and continuing along with the half marathon route.

Typical trail segment with flagging. (Image credit: http://runmoretalkless.blogspot.com)

At this point I was surprised to pass half a dozen (slower) marathoners. Apparently they had somehow gone off route around the bushwhacking bit and shortened it. This really irritated me - having missed the split and then passed marathoners that had clearly cut some corners - so I took off a bit faster than was prudent. I started passing half marathoners asking them if any other marathoners had passed. Before long I realized I was alone in the front so I tried to settle in to a comfortable pace. And the scenery made that easy. There were views of the lake through blooming redbuds as the sun was rising.

Running through a woodchuck nest

The route was moderately rocky with short rolling hills having moderate pitch in general. This was a welcome reprieve from the long steep sustained climbs I'd become used to in the mountains. One section -Red Trail- along the waterfront was more technical with lilypad-like rock hopping. It wasn't made any easier by having to pass half marathoners along this portion but it was enjoyable having to pay close attention to footwork.

The second and final split from the half marathoners at the end of Red Trail about 13 miles into the race was well marked with an aid station. The turnoff provided additional mileage for the marathon and ultra runners. Along this stretch I passed a few ultra runners but by and large the trail opened up with the absence of half marathoners. This segment of the trail looped around to the aid station at the split before continuing on for the final 3 miles to the finish.

Ratings
Race Organization (5=phenomenal, 1=atrocious): 3/5
The start was sudden. Some of the course markings in the beginning were questionable. But for the most part, being an area with a lot of intersecting and interweaving trails, it was remarkably well marked to avoid confusion. There were no mile markers until the very end, making it simultaneously pleasant and painful not knowing where I stood. The aid stations alternated between manned and unmanned. The manned aid stations were fully stocked with HEED, water, gels, candy, fruit, etc. I really liked that runners were required to carry their own hydration containers minimizing waste from once used small cups.

Course Difficulty (5=Pikes Peak Ascent, 1=a flat dirt road): 3/5
The uphill portions were brief and moderately steep. There were a few technical sections, particularly along the Red Trail segment. And the bushwhacking completely off trail was new to me. It was a lot more difficult than I expected but nothing like I've experienced in Colorado.

Course Scenery (5=engagement proposal backdrop, 1=concrete walls): 4/5
A picturesque lake and blooming trees within a clean forested area. The only drawback was the prevalence of close proximity parallel trails interweaving making them feel like they were nearly on top of one another at times.

Schwag (5=a tech T, embroidered towel & warmup pants, 1=a cotton shirt): 4/5
Got a tech tee and... (((drum roll)))... a beer mug. The medal was burly and unique to the marathon distance.

Overall: 4/5
Like I mentioned earlier, one of my favorite trail races despite the early hiccups.

Elvis's Crotch Couloir (Buffalo Mountain)

Access: Ryan Gulch TH above Wildernest in Silverthorne
Start: 0800, 4/11/2014
Total Distance ~5 mi R/T
Duration: 4 to 5 hours
Vertical: ~2500'
Aspect: North
Weather: 30F-45F/clear, 10-20 mph winds above TL
Conditions: from high to low - hard pow, soft pow, corn, slush

Silver Couloir is one of the lines in 50 Classic Ski Descents of North America By Chris Davenport et al. Little Elvis Couloir is the line skiers right of Silver. And Elvis's Crotch is the rarely ridden, narrow deep cut couloir that bridges the rocky ridge between the top of Little Elvis and the bottom of Silver. It is best to ski it in soft stable spring conditions, as an avalanche or fall on this line would be high consequence.

The Approach:
From Ryan Gulch TH, proceed to the first marked trail intersection and turn left up the Buffalo Cabin trail. Continue through the trees to TL, gaining the ridge between the glacial cirque in Buffalo and the northern summit.

Glacial Cirque with Tenmile Range in the background

Topo credit: the late George Dirth, http://grandlin.es

The top of Little Elvis is 100 to 200 yd before the first/southern access to Silver. Upon entry to Little Elvis, the entrance to Elvis's Crotch is guarded by a jagged rock pinnacle skier's left ~100' down.

Rock Pinnacle at top of Elvis's Crotch

Elvis's Crotch entrance is 45º sustained into a narrow choke that approaches 50º.

Choke at the top of the photo

The rest of the line is 40-45º with another narrow choke before the entrance to the bottom of wide open Silver. The chokes vary in width considerably with the snowpack. On this day, both the top and bottom chokes were little more than 2 yds across.

Approaching bottom choke

Beneath bottom choke

Looking down on Silver proper

Bottom 1/3 of Silver proper

The exit of Silver is skier's right into the trees along an aqueduct at the base of Silver above the Gore Range Trail. Exiting Silver can be a pleasant skin along an established skin track or a grueling bootpack over deadfall with ample route finding. After only a couple hundred feet along the aqueduct is the right turnoff onto the moderately steep uphill Buffalo-Willow Connect. It is not uncommon to miss the right turn and continue along the Gore Range Trail adding unnecessary miles to your trip. The Buffalo-Willow Connect will lead directly back to the Ryan Gulch TH.