Loup Garou 100…Humidity, tree roots, and gumbo
I’d heard some many great things about this race, and I had been wanting to check it out for years, so I finally made it down to Louisiana to finish out 2023. The race consists of five 20-mile loops for the 100 with other distance options of 20, 40 and 60 miles. It had rained leading up to the race, and we had a light rain the first 3 hours of the race, so I expected some mud and the wooden bridges to be very slick. The 3.5 miles are the toughest with short climbs and descents along with big tree roots. These miles were also the muddiest, especially later in the day after several people had traversed them. The trails are covered with leaves and pine needles, so some of the roots are hidden, but there are also some really nice runnable sections where you can stretch out your legs.
The first aid station is at mile 4. I tried to make up time and had plenty of nutrition on me at this point, so I skipped it on all of the loops. The next aid station is at mile 8. I had my drop bag here. I tried to be as efficient as possible and not waste any time. I refilled my bottles, grabbed some GU’s and hopped back on the trail. The longest section is from mile 8-16, to the next aid station. It had some smoother sections with multiple wooden bridges but it was one of those sections where you feel like it takes an eternity to get there, especially in those last 2 loops. The aid station is at the end of a long wooden bridge. I found that if I ran in the middle and shortened my stride I could go at a decent pace and not lose my footing. I definitely did not want to bust it off the bridge with everyone watching me.
I finished my first loop right on pace of where I wanted. The rain had stopped, and the humidity was so thick. I could feel the sweat running down my arms, but at least we didn’t have the sun baking us. Now that I knew the lay of the land, I was really enjoying myself. These are the type of trails I love. My nutrition plan was working out well, and I saw my husband at the end of each loop to refuel and grab more food. My goal was to get through the first half in 10 hours. I did it in 10:01. It was going to get dark very soon, and I couldn’t wait to do those 2 loops in the dark. I absolutely love running in the dark. Although I only saw armadillos, there were definitely critters out. I finally started to feel a little break from the humidity at the beginning of the final loop. My legs and feet were still holding up well, so I kept pushing, trying to run as much as I could and power hike the short climbs. Halfway through the last loop I knew I could beat the female course record, so I kept moving as fast as I could. There’s a small wooden bridge with rails right before you hit the pavement to head to the finish. I kept looking for that bridge and was elated once I saw it. I ran down the pavement toward the finishing chute excited to be done with a finish time of 22:29. First female and third overall with a new female course record.
They had a nice fire pit and some of the most delicious gumbo at the finish. This is a low-key race with amazing volunteers and aid stations and good ‘ole southern hospitality.
22:29:58
Time
3rd
Overall
1st
Females
