Beautiful Greenery for 100 miles
I needed a Western States qualifying race and a hilly summer race in preparation for my upcoming 200. The Mohican 100 met those, and it’s one of the oldest 100 milers, so off to Ohio. We stayed at a local motel less than 5 minutes from the start/finish at Mohican stare park which was really convenient, especially with a 5 am start. The weather was cooler waiting to take off, but I knew it wouldn’t last once the sun came up. The race is composed of a large loop (27 miles) which is completed twice and then that same loop with a short cut making it 23 miles, also repeated twice. The majority of the course is single track mountain trails with short sections of double track and gravel. Since there were nearly 200 runners toeing the line, I wanted to get a good position on the single track in the conga line. I knew I could move at a good pace but still be conservative the first few miles and not go out too fast, so I positioned myself towards the back of the front pack. I found myself getting frustrated each time I ran the initial 4 miles of the loop because of the short hills and switch backs mixed in. It was difficult to get a good rhythm going. After about 4 miles though, it was smoother and I could pick up the pace to the first aid station, Gorge. From there, it’s nice, runnable single track to Fire Tower aid station where I saw my husband (and only crew). The music from this aid station carries through the woods, so I could it hear from quite a distance. Fortunately, I had read about this in race reports, so I knew to be patient and just because I could hear it, it did not mean I was as close as I thought. That can really screw with you mentally late in a race.
On the first 2 loops, you head up to Pleasant Dam where you can again see crew. However, on the first loop, they throw in a detour involving a short hand over hand climb up tree roots. This was not the challenging part, though. It was the half mile of climbing over fallen trees and through standing water, just enough to get your feet. The scenery was incredible, almost as if I was in a jungle. It did take extra time to navigate, so I was thankful we only did it once. After scrambling up the tree roots, it was a short distance to the dam where I saw my husband again and swapped out my vests. This is a crew only area but the actual aid station is a mile away at a covered bridge, where crew is not allowed. Since I just refueled, I skipped this aid station and headed to last one on the loop, Hickory Ridge. This section from Covered Bridge has the biggest climb and some short, steep climbs in the first 2 miles. The consensus is that this is the most difficult section of the race. I really didn’t mind it until the last loop when my legs were starting to feel the previous 90 miles of hills. After those 2 miles, I was again able to pick up the pace to Hickory Ridge on the first loop. It’s more short hills back to start/finish, but there are some rock gardens toward the end which can kill your toes. I made it back to the start and again switched out my nearly empty vest with one loaded with nutrition.
I had now seen the course, so I was more familiar with the tougher sections but also where I could move faster. The field was spread out as I began the second loop, and I knew it would start heating up. Luckily, the trails are very shaded, so we didn’t have the sun blazing down on us. Other than a fall, the second loop was much like the first. The woods were active with critters. Several chimpmunks darted across the trails, and I encountered a snake and deer during the day. Eventually, I hit the 50 mile mark close to the time I had planned, but I knew those short, steep climbs would be challenging and hurt on the last loop.
I grabbed a couple of tangerines and headed out on the third, shorter loop. This was the hottest part of the day for me, and I was grabbing watermelon and pickle juice at the aid stations. I knew it would cool down some after sunset and then time for my favorite part of 100s, running in the dark. As my watch beeped to notify me I had hit 70 miles, it was getting difficult to see, so I switched my waist lamp on. 2 miles later I was at Hickory Ridge where I was welcomed with crispy bacon. It hit the spot, and I just had to reach the rock garden section. This helped mentally because I knew then I was close to start/finish and on to the last loop. I vividly remember kicking a tree root hard in this section with my right foot and then proceeded to cuss it. “Pick up your damn feet,” I yelled at myself in the dark woods. One more steep hill and a little downhill and I was back at start/finish.
This time, I opted for a couple of cookies and some caffeine as I headed in the direction of the final loop. Here, my husband informed me I was third female and second place was only ten minutes ahead of me. This gave me a resurgence, along with the sugar and caffeine I’m sure. I tried to pick up the pace on the flatter sections, and I was passing some males running the 100 as well as those doing the 50, but I was on the lookout for second female. Right before I hit Gorge, I came up behind a solo female runner whom was moving really well. As I pass her, I saw an orange bib in my light. That meant she was running the 100. I booked it as fast I could to the aid station and did a fuel swap out. She was able to catch me in the next section, and we proceeded to play leap frog for awhile but did chat at times. As I hit the Covered Bridge I was just ahead of her. I quickly grabbed a shot of Coke and chugged some Heed then ran down to the trail head. I observed she was a really strong climber, which was to her benefit in this next section with the toughest climbs. I cussed a couple of these hills but also knew I had less than 10 miles to go. She managed to catch me here and then took off. I kept trying to push, but I just couldn’t finish the those last handful of miles as fast as I would have liked. The sun started to come up as I was on the home stretch, and my legs were glad to be done. I hit the finish line 25:20, 3rd female and 17th overall out of 190.
25:20:30
Time
14,714 ft
Total Ascent (Garmin Enduro 2)
17th
Overall
3rd
Females
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