Time = 6:48:48

Place = 3/6*

Garmin Stats

What’s up everyone! Its finally time for another race report from yours truly. The pandemic put a stop to most races for most of 2020 and 2021 but 2022 has brought back all the runs. Believe it or not since December of 2021, I have done 13(!) races. Don’t worry though I will not subject you to a report from each one (your welcome) as most of the ones I’ve ran, I’ve done many times before, so I am mostly only going to do recaps on new events unless something crazy happens in one.

This report is from the Pasadena Trail Run Series 50k that was held at Hahamongna Watershed Park (also known as Oak Grove Park to us old timers) on Sunday June 12^th, 2022. This Park is located in northwest Pasadena above the rose bowl and right where JPL is. As someone who grew up in Altadena, which is on the east side of this park, I knew I could not pass up a chance to run an ultramarathon in a canyon I grew up playing in. In addition to the 50k, there was also a 50k relay where 5 of your friends each would do a 10k lap as well as a 10k fun run. The 50k would consist of 5 10k loops that go around the park and an out and back that went a mile or so up the Arroyo Seco.

Lake Hahamonga

The 50k solo option was added late to this event and as a result there were only 10 of us fools that showed up. The weather forecast was for hot weather in the upper 80’s and this course only had a little shade so the last couple of laps were going to suck but if there is anything ultramarathon runners can deal with, it is sucky situations. I pulled in to Hahamonga at around 6am to a very empty park as the other events did not start until an hour later and did the usual bib pickup thing and then walked to the start. This would be the smallest race that I have done to date, so it was weird to be at a start line with so few folks so of course we all became buddies immediately and cheered each other on during the race when we saw each other on the out and back section.

Away we go!

Did I mention that the day prior I ran the Valley Crest Half Marathon? Did I also mention that only 5 weeks ago I ran the Leona divide 50 mile Ultra? And finally, did I mention that only 3 weeks before this that I had Covid? Well, you add all of that up and you had one nervous runner who did not know if he would be able to complete this but I showed up and that is half the battle. Anyways on to the race!

feeling good early

At 6:30am sharp there was the quietest start to a race I have ever done and we were off, 4 guys took off with the mountain biker who would lead us for most of the first lap, I settled into my usual jog and away I went. The first mile went south to Devils gate dam and that is where the first weird thing happened. I noticed on the trail that there were dozens of baby frogs hopping all over the place, what was weird was that there was not water nearby and they were hopping away from the lake that was behind the dam. If I was a kid I would have stopped and captured a bunch of them! I had to be careful as to not step on them there were so many. After crossing the dam, we got to run on about a mile of single-track trail as we now headed north along the east side of the Arroyo. This was a trail I have never been on before so it that was a bonus. After the single track section we had to run in the section I named the desert section as it was in the middle of the wash with no shade at all, I would grow to hate this section on the later laps………..after hitting an aid station (since the 50k was an late add on, the aid stations were road run style with only water and electrolytes and no treats or coke ?) we climbed up the only hill of the loop which was only about 100 meters in length but very steep. Now we had a nice out and back up the arroyo seco where thankfully there was some shade. The stream is still flowing a little bit which was nice, I wanted to jump in, in the later loops but I had a job to do so I’ll have to come back later.

After coming out of the arroyo there was another stent in the desert section for a mile until we got back to the start where we got to do it all over again. The first 2 loops were uneventful, and I was able to run all of them except for the steep hill. There were a lot more runners out now that the other races started and as this place is very popular, there were throngs of hikers, mountain bikers, and horse riders enjoying a nice day. The 3^rd loop is where is started to get hot and about halfway though it I started to feel the effect yesterdays Half and my lack of buildup due to recovering from covid, so I started taking walk breaks. On the 4^th loop I passed one of the guys that started ahead of me and caught up with 2 more at the desert aid station. By now it was hot, and I was done with it so I had to resort to the tried and true late ultra-race strategy, I would pick out a bush, tree or sign and tell myself that once I reached it that I could take a walk break. Then I would pick another landmark to run to and so on…..By the last lap there were only 2 guys in front of me, one of them was way out in front which was crazy because he told me at the start line that he ran the San Diego Marathon the week prior(!) and this was his first ultra. Hardcore! I was close to 2 others and by the looks on our faces we were all on the struggle bus but we hi fived each other knowing we were going to survive and finish.

Finally, I made the last turn into the park and crossed the finish line! It took me just under 7 hours which I’ll take given my condition. This course is easily a 50k PR type if the weather was cooler and if it was a focused race. For me though, this was just the first real big run of my buildup to Septembers CDGP 100 miler so I will be doing a few more 50ks over the summer.

Done son!

A few days later I got the results and they had me as 2^nd place! I knew that was wrong as I knew for sure 2 folks were in front of me. Then they “fixed” it and I was in 4^th. Only problem was that the guy who they said placed 3^rd was behind me on the last lap as I gave him a hi five on the out and back section. So anyways I’m claiming 3^rd place for my first ever podium in any race that I have ever done (and I’ve done over 100)

Overall, this was a great little race that I’m glad I did. Having an Ultra being only 20 minutes from my house is a bonus as well as getting to run in one of my local canyons. The Pasadena Running Company who run this event also has a few other events all in the Arroyo Seco so look them up. I’ll be back next year to snag that 50k PR. Well, that’s my report, hope you enjoyed it!