As Told By Jim Garcia
May 1997Hello All,
Here is my account of the recent Western States 100 mile Endurance Run from Squaw Valley to Auburn, CA.
I came in to the race with a sore knee and loose ankle that I received at the Old Dominion 100 miler 4 weeks previous. The Reebok Infernos I wore there had caved in on the arch, allowing my right ankle to sink inward and my knee to be wrenched to the inside. I was hoping to win the Old Dominion race, but bailed after 56 miles after leading the whole way.
My game plan for this race was to use more stable shoes, support the arch and ball of my right foot better, and tape the hell out of my ankle. I had 5 stable pairs of shoes (Etonic 42K (2 pr), Asics DS trainers, Adidas Trail Lites) ready to go with tricked out insoles, arch supports and heel lifts. I had no idea whether I would have a great race, or dropout due to the same knee and ankle problem.
Friday: I wrap my ankle and walk around for the rest of the day. Everything feels fine. After a motivational pre-race briefing I decide to go out hard at the start and get as much distance in before the knee starts to hurt. It's up to me to beat those darn Californians. Lat year I ran the rough downhill sections poorly, but made up good time on the uphill and smooth sections.
Sat. 5 AM. Squaw Valley, CA, elevation 6200 ft. I head off feeling great. Eric Clifton hits Emigrant Pass (elev. 8700 ft) a few seconds ahead of me, both of us a few minutes ahead of the pack. I take over and push to stay in the lead. Courtney Campbell and Mike Moreton catch me around 10, but I pull away. They get me for good at 24, then Twietmeyer and St. John pass me on the downhill at about 27. I push a bit hard, beating them into the Robinson Flat aid station (30.5 miles) by a minute, but several minutes behind the VA twins. The knee and ankle, although a bit sore, feel better than expected.
My hope is to lose minimal ground from here to 56, then gain time back on the more runable sections later on. However, this is the beginning of the end for me.
As everyone else runs on, I stop, remove the old tape, apply new tape and a stable pair of Pumas. I drop from 3rd to 10th in the 10+ minutes I spend here. When I get up to run, I feel terrible and walk out of the aid station. A couple of miles later on the rocky downhill my right hip flexor starts to hurt. I figure it is caused by my changed stride, due to favoring my right knee. In reality, I think I whacked my back out, pinching a nerve and causing the muscle to tighten up. The very same thing happed in the Nipmuck marathon in 1994. Then it did not loosen up til the next day. This was going to be a long 67 miles now. I run with Joe Scherelth through 40, then with Ann Trason through 43, but can't hold the easy pace. I see-saw with Tim Hewitt on the 3 canyon drops and climbs. Kevin Setnes catches me at 48, but I hammer the downhill and leave him behind, temporarily.
I arrive at Michigan Bluff (mile 56) in about 15th place, hoping for a miracle. A shoe change into some Asics DS trainers isn't it The shoes are softer, but less stable, causing my knee to start hurting again. My hip flexor is still pinched I plod on, slowily losing ground to everyone. Every step is painful.
At Foresthill (mile 62) I pick up my crew and pacer, Don Allison. I tape the hell out of my arch and go. The tape is so tight, my arch is killing me. Since this is the easiest part of the course, I swear I am going to run every step of the way from here to the river crossing (mile 78). Hopefully my back and leg will loosen up. I lose a few spots on this stretch, but reach the aid station about 20th place and only 37 minutes behind my time from last year. My only hope is to have the chiropractor there fix my back. Afterwards, I feel a bit looser, but the hip flexor is still bad. The river crossing feels good. A new set of ankle wrappings and new shoes encourages me. Total time spent at this aid station: a whopping 45 minutes. No hope now of a good finish. With luck I'll hold even or pick up some places. We shuffle up the hill to mile 80 in good time. By then it is dark and I have 7 1/2 hours to run 20 miles. The leg and knee have returned to their previous condition. I can't lift my right leg more than an inch off the ground. The next seven hours are a bad dream. All I care about is breaking 24 hours now and getting that sterling silver belt buckle. Some bad patches in the 90's keep Don worried. The last 3 miles are a death march. I literally have to use my arm to pull my right leg forward on some steep uphills. We finally hit the road with 1.3 to go, which I ran in 11 minutes last year. This time 34 minutes. Ouch! I finally finish in 23:19, earning my silver belt buckle. Gee, it is the same color as the one I received last year when I finished 6th.
Aftermath: My leg was locked-up for days. On Tuesday I did a lot of stretching and the pain almost went away. On Wednesday I hit the chiropractor and the weight room and the pain was totally gone for a while. Thursday, the hip flexor is fine, but the knee is still very painfull. The ankle seems a bit swollen still.
Long Term Prognosis: The knee will be fine. The hip flexor lock-up was just bad luck. Well, maybe the heavyhanded ankle taping, shoe support and my favoring my knee helped, but I still think this is just a problem that I just can't predict or prevent. Maybe I can work it out as soon as it happens. The ankle feels a bit stiff, and I don't know if I damaged anything (more than I did at Old Dominion). If so, it may never be as strong again. I might have to go through life with extra tape and support. Maybe (competitive) trail racing is over for me.
Much thaks to Don Allison for spending the weekend with me, crewing me, pacing me, and keeping me moving those last few hours. I've never DNF'ed with him around.
