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C-Team and "g" arrive at Ascutney, VT, for race registration and packet pickup

Vermont 50M
Everything You'd Want In A Trail Race
(9/30/07)

It was 4:40 AM at the start line. 40 minutes earlier, C-Team and "g" left their hotel some 25 miles north of Ascutney (VT). Highly anxious, "g" planned to beat the rush of 1000+ ultra runners and cyclists to the RD's required course update at 5:45. When they arrived, the parking lot was empty. Note to self, "g" thought, Next time, arrive later... much later.

It was foggy and cold. Real foggy and very cold! C-Team and "g" sat chilled to the bone and bleary eyed with sleep deprivation on the floor of the check-in center (Cunningham's Ski Barn on the Ascutney Ski Resort compound). A reflection of "g's" pre-race anxiety were his numerous trips to the bathroom. His mind was racing. He had to say something to C-Team. Finally... Hey... I'm pretty nervous, "g" quietly spoke, I think I'm in over my head on this one. From everything I've heard, this course is steeper and hillier then I thought. I'm not sure I can finish the race. I think I'm really over my head on this one. He then bounded off to the empty, no-waiting-in-line, unlocked, indoor bathroom in Cunningham's (deliberately mismarked "closed" in an effort to prevent hundreds of runners and cyclists from killing their septic system).

At 6:15 AM, about 800 mountain bikers (including a small number of tandem bikers) and 500 runners (50K & 50M) were gathered for their staggered start; runners would follow cyclists into the wood.

By race time, "g" had composed himself. He worked to remind himself that he was an UltraRunner. He had run long and challenging distances, and he knew how to remain hydrated and fed on the go. But more importantly, he was able to refocus his anxiety onto the adventure of running the VT 50M! Yes. He was able to smile. He was ready to run...

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C-Team and "g" strolled into Ascutney Ski Resort for check-in at Cunningham's Ski Barn. There, "g" picked up his race packet, a free-be VT 50 skull cap, and some extra T-shirts. His secret mission was to corner a few race veterans and learn how difficult the course was. The answer...very hilly! Big time hilly! Oh, geez, he thought, I'm in trouble.

There was another challenge. Race handlers, like C-Team, had the option to drive to and meet their runners at 3 selected aide stations along the course. Because the course covered private and public land, there was an effort to minimize the impact of the race on private land by not supplying maps which runners could use year round to run the course. Consequently, there was only one race course map and it was pinned to a wall in Cunningham's. "g" was stymied. How would he direct C-Team to the 3 aide stations without having some type of handout to give her. As usual, C-Team had the solution: Take a picture with your camera!

Back at the hotel for the night, C-Team and "g" studied the digital image of the race course and it's intersecting roads for handlers to reach the 3 aide stations. Then "g" had an idea. They rushed into the lobby, knocked the kid off his stool who was surfing on the hotel's computer, and "g" typed in: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/. From this web site, he narrowed the map to Ascutney, VT, and printed out the region and roads identified on the digitized course map. NOW... C-Team knew where she was going! (Sort of.)

 

Chilled to the bone and bleary-eyed with exhaustion, C-Team and "g" pull it together at 4:45AM!

 

After the RD's required race and course update, cyclists (followed by runners) lined up for their staggered starts... just as the sun cracked over the horizon!
    

 

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