by Perry » Tue Sep 05, 2006 10:27 am
I was somewhere in the top 20 but not 4th and not that close behind. I almost didn't run the race because I am still recovering from climbing Shasta and Rainier, but I did enjoy running the devil's backbone despite a weird race. There was no megaphone announcement "runners set." I didn't even see the starter. Somebody just fired the gun while we were standing around chatting. Right before the lodge there was a "Y" that was very badly marked and had nobody there to tell us which way to go, so a lot of us went the wrong way and had to return back. In fact, the 4th place guy Sol (sp?) is a professional runner, has run a 1:05 half-marathon, and probably would have won the race if that turn was well-marked. One of the other lead runners, Eric, got bit by a dog. He didn't seem too bloody, but his shorts were torn up, and for sure it messed up his focus. He ran faster last year on less training. Altogether a weird race, but they did have lots of SAR people and plenty of snacks and water.