Okay, spoiler alert: I didn't finish Canyons this year. Things started out pretty good on race day and I had high hopes. But once the heat kicked in, my condition steadily declined. That's how it goes sometimes in ultramarathons. Sometimes I feel good throughout most of, or all of the race. Most of the time it's a series of ups and downs. And there are also instances like Canyons 2023, when I start off feeling good and I slowly deteriorate. That's okay, as long as I can hold myself together until I get to the finish line, which I've done numerous times in the past. Unfortunately that didn't happen this time and I tapped out at mile forty. When I left the aid station at No Hands Bridge at mile thirty-six, I was convinced that I could still finish. I was falling apart, but I was ahead of the cutoff times and all I had to do was keep moving forward. I made a right at the intersection of highway 49 and Old Foresthill Road and began a horrendous two-mile walk up the winding mountain road. It was completely exposed, the sun was shining right above me, and it was eighty-eight degrees Fahrenheit. I was dying. Eventually the course diverted off the road and onto the Confluence trail. From there, it was two miles to the next aid station at Mammoth Bar. When I arrived I was greeted enthusiastically by volunteers, which was uplifting, but I felt like shit. I was completely miserable during that climb up Old Foresthill Road, and my mood only slightly improved when the course dumped me out on to the Confluence trail. As I sat down and sipped on an ice cold Coke, the volunteer briefed me on what I could expect between here and the next aid station at Driver's Flat Road. "It's eight miles to the next aid station. The next three miles are all uphill, and it's exposed." Those three points made by the volunteer were the final three nails in the coffin for me. After hearing the first point about the eight miles, I thought "okay, maybe I can do this". When I heard "three miles uphill" I thought "oh man, I might not be able to do this". But when I heard "and it's exposed" I thought "okay, nope, I'm done". I still decided to think it over. It took twenty minutes of sitting in a camping chair deliberating my next move, and trying to regroup, but I ultimately decided to call it a day. I only saw things getting even more ugly from there on out.
Up until about mile thirty-seven it had been a good day. In fact, aside from the weather, it seemed like just about every factor that would contribute to the outcome of this race was working in my favor. It had been a turbulent week leading up to the race. All three of us, Sam, Aidan, and myself all had Covid. This was the little dude's first time getting sick. He had a good eight-and-a-half month run, but all babies get sick at some point, and his time had come. Thankfully it didn't hit him too hard. The previous Friday, eight days before the race, he had a fever and was pretty cranky, but his fever broke within twenty-four hours. He had a few coughs after that, but was otherwise feeling much better. Sam and I both managed to get through it relatively easily. I had a few sniffles and some congestion, but that was it. The thought of going to Canyons while being Covid positive irked me. Even though all three of us were virtually symptom free the Thursday before the race, I still had a positive test. I wrestled with conscience. I just wanted to have a negative test so I could be in the clear and I wouldn't have to worry about anything. After we arrived in Auburn on Friday evening, Sam and I both took a test and both tested negative. If we were negative, then Aidan definitely was. I was relieved and delighted. I really felt like the gods were smiling on me. As we had dinner at Public Station that night, I was feeling cautiously optimistic about Saturday. I no longer had Covid, my training had been pretty solid, I had good vibes in my head, and I felt ready. There was only one problem: the ridiculous heat wave that Auburn was having that weekend. Temperatures on Saturday were forecasted to be in the high eighties with lots of sunshine. These conditions were rare, but not unheard of in April. I don't do well running in heat, but I tried to not let it deter me. I could still have a good race, I would just have to contend with the weather. It wouldn't be ideal, but I had ran in heat before and knew what I needed to do.
On Saturday morning at 3:15 AM, my alarm broke the silence in our motel room at Super 8. Sam and Aidan were good sports about waking up in the middle of the night to give me ride to the start line in downtown Auburn. I was super thankful that they had both joined me on this journey. Aidan was my biggest inspiration when I ran FOURmidable two and a half months prior and he continues to inspire me every day. Sam has been nothing short of one-hundred percent supportive and encouraging. I fumbled around getting myself ready, and after having some coffee, courtesy of the tiny coffee machine in our room, we headed for downtown. I arrived at the start line around 4:25 AM, thirty-five minutes before race start. I quickly located Arjun, who had also arrived in town the night before. We had both run FOURmidable together and it was cool to be back in Auburn running with him again. This was going to be his first 100K, and man, he sure knew how to pick them. But then again, Canyons was also my first 100K, so it takes one to know one. We hung out for a little while in the pre-dawn darkness checking out the scene. It was cool to see how much this race had evolved over the last few years since it became part of the UTMB series. There was a big banner stretched out over the start line, an elaborate "village" with several sponsor booths, and more runners than I had ever seen at Canyons. This was also the first year that they had the 100-mile distance. With approximately three-hundred runners signed up, the 100-mile runners had began running at 9:00 AM on Friday morning, so most of them were still out there. Friday was pretty hot and today was going to be roasting as well. I wondered how well the runners were carrying themselves in the heat. As much as I disliked running in hot weather, today I wouldn't have much of a choice. My only choice was to deal with it, so that's what I planned to do. At one point, Alice Dowdin Calvillo, the mayor of Auburn, approached Arjun and I. We chatted for a few minutes and she thanked us for being part of the race. It was an uplifting start to what was going to be a long day. We packed it in, and after the national anthem and a few announcements, the race emcee began counting down from ten. "And, go!". Five hundred and seventy eight runners charged forward through the streets of downtown Auburn. Canyons 2023 was officially on.
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