Friday, January 31, 2020
Outcropping Trail and Flat Rock Trail at Tishomingo State Park
Tishomingo State Park, less than 20-minutes south of Iuka, Mississippi, offers hiking, rock climbing, camping, swimming, canoeing, fishing, and exploring. When the weather is hot and humid, in addition to a lake there is a swimming pool in the park for cooling down. The park has cabins for rent along with RV hookups and tent camping sites. There is an entry fee of $4 into the park, payable at the entrance gatehouse.
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| Pioneer Cabin |
Like many parks, this one was built by CCC workers during the depression and features many structures for the 1930’s. There is even an old pioneer cabin built in the early 1800’s that is open for touring. Tishomingo SP is probably best known for its swinging bridge.
From the entrance, the park road winds through thick hardwood forest and rock formations. At the far end of the road you will find the Swinging Bridge on the right and a dirt parking area, and just a matter of yards farther the park swimming pool hard surface parking lot. This also serves as the trailhead for Outcropping Trail.
The first thing I noticed was the long anchoring cables and large sandstone façade of the suspension towers connected into a semicircular arch. Hikers must pass through this arch to access the bridge that spans Bear Creek and the Outcropping Trail trailhead on the opposite side.
Outcroppings Trail is an easy loop hike a little over two-miles in length starting and ending at the swinging bridge. The hiker is greeted with moss covered rocks and stream beds, brooks, spill wells, caves, outcroppings, boulders and cliffs, and a nice stretch of path paralleling Bear Creek. I’d recommend hiking the trail counterclockwise (keeping the river on your right) to get the full effect of the large stone outcroppings. There is a shorter one-mile version of the hike if you take the trail that bisects the loop (if hiked clockwise) at a very large outcropping the leads down to Bear Creek and back to the bridge.
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| Jean's Overhang |
The centerpiece of the trail is the rock outcroppings, water run-offs, and brooks located on the
upper portion of the loop. Jean’s Overhang, a sandstone outcropping about halfway through the hike, offers a great place to stop and enjoy the surroundings; in the winter you can see Bear Creek down to the south. Jean’s Overhang is also an area favored for rock climbing; this overhand has a crack route rated 5.11a (YDS) and has other opportunities of bouldering.
There were a couple of water features flowing the late January day I hiked the trail. It is my understanding that after a big rain you can see a good curtain of water running over the lips that form the water features. There is also a natural spring that has been encased in stones to make a crude fountain. I am told the water flowing from it is suitable for drinking.
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| Encased natural spring |
It was my first trip to Tishomingo SP and the Outcropping trail so I spent a lot of time stopping and exploring; the hike took me an hour-forty five minutes, but I think you could complete the loop in an hour without much difficulty.
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| Water crossing |
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| Path beside Bear Creek |
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| Water trickling over ledge |
**********
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| Stream at trailhead |
Flat Rock Trail is tougher than Outcroppings Trail, I would rate Flat Rock as moderate; many large stones embedded in the trail and switchbacks on the path add to the difficulty on the first half of the route. This trail offers several different terrain features – large rocks, open paths through hardwood trees, and lakes side trails with views of Haynes Lake.
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| Channel formed by rock walls |
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| Path through hardwood forest |
Wednesday, January 22, 2020
Fern Creek Falls on Porters Creek Trail GSMNP
If you are looking for a leisurely hike near Gatlinburg that is suitable for all ages, consider Porters Creek Trail. On this hike you will have beautiful views of Porters Creek --- a fast moving creek dotted with large boulders and ample rapids, remains of by-gone days in the form of an old homestead and many stonewalls lining the trail, log bridges, a nice little waterfall, and an abundance of flowers and trees.
Porters Creek Trail is located just north of Gatlinburg off Hwy 321. Turn east off Hwy 321 onto Greenbrier Road (into the GSMNP) and follow the road until it dead-ends, there you will find the trailhead to Porters Creek Trail.
The trail starts at the barricade at the end of Greenbrier Road and starts as a continuation of the gravel road paralleling Porters Creek. Don't neglect the chance to stop and view the water as you begin the hike. Eventually you will start seeing stonewalls which are remnants of an old farmstead. A mile or so into the hike there is a side trail on the right that takes you to an old farm built in 1875. If you continue on the original trail it turns into a dirt path and becomes a more traditional hiking trail with rocks and tree roots to navigate. We were there in the winter and the Rhododendron plants are what caught our eye.
At about the 1-1/2 mile mark you cross the creek on a rather large log bridge with a distinctive dogleg. The views from the middle of the footbridge back over the creek and the rapids are grand. From this footbridge the trail gets steeper and in about another half mile you reach Fern Branch Falls to the left of the path. The falls are tiered and listed as 60-ft high. The water flows over the trail and down the side of the mountain eventually connecting to Porters Creek.
After Fern Creek Falls the trail leveled out and I walked about another half-mile to where the footpath linked back up with Porters Creek then headed back. The trail continues on to a backcountry campsite just under 2-miles further on.
We were on the trail late in the day and saw only a couple of hikers but I understand that it is a popular hiking spot year around.
Porters Creek Trail to Fern Creek Falls is rated easy/moderate and I would consider it a hike suitable for anyone of any age. It is a 4.2 miles out and back hike with an elevation gain of 700-ft. Give yourself three hours so that you have time to explore the old farmstead and enjoy the scenery.
Tuesday, January 21, 2020
Hen Wallow Falls Trail GSMNP
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| Great Smoky Mtns |
Great Smokey Mountain National Park straddles the Tennessee - North Carolina state line and is the most visited national park in the USA. On a long weekend in mid-January we travelled the length of the state of Tennessee, from the flat lands of western Tennessee to the mountains of eastern Tennessee, to visit Gatlinburg and do a little hiking in the GSMNP.
We stayed at Buckhorn Inn, a Bead & Breakfast just east of the town of Gatlinburg, which gave us convenient access to Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and the national park.
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| Buckhorn Inn |
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| Rhododendron along trail |
At the 2.1-mile marker there is a wooden sign directing you to a descending trail on the right to Hen Wallow Falls. This is the steepest part of the hike down to the base of the falls. As usual, you hear the falls well before you see them, but eventually you round a corner on the path and there is the waterfall. Hen Wallow Falls are listed as 90-ft high. It said to be 2-ft wide at the top where Hen Wallow Creek becomes the falls and fans out to about 20-ft at the base of the falls.
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| Hen Wallow Falls |
With the exception of the hike up from Hen Wallow Falls to the trail junction the return trip is all downhill. We made the trip back about 20-min faster the the hike up, completing the hike in exactly 3-hours.
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| Path at trailhead |
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| Path leading up from falls |
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
Hiking Fall Creek Falls State Park in the Fall
Mid-November provided perfect weather for hiking at Fall Creek Falls State Park, situated on the western edge of the Cumberland Plateau in middle Tennessee. Sunny skies and a crisp temperature of 44-degrees greeted me when I arrived at the park. I entered through the north entrance (Hwy 30) and parked at the Cascades Nature Center where the trailhead for the Woodland Trail and Gorge Overlook Trail is located.
There was a demonstration going on when I entered the nature center to get a trail map. A park ranger was explaining how they rehabilitate rescued raptors. The ranger was holding a leather strap that was attached to a hawk’s leg as the hawk sat on her heavy falconry glove called a gauntlet. She explained the types of raptors native to the area and how they work with injured birds. The nature center presents the geology, ecology and history of the park with static displays, demonstrations and movies, and also houses a nice gift shop.
The trailhead is just below the nature center and starts on a long swinging bridge that traverses the Cane Creek Cascades, which was the first set of falls I encountered. A short climb takes you to the top of the ridge where the trail splits into the Woodland and the Gorge Overlook Trails (both trails link back together before reaching Fall Creek). The Gorge Overlook Trail is slightly longer by about a quarter-mile and offers several side trails with views of the Cane Creek Gorge. I took the Overlook Trail and quickly came to the first overlook. It provided an excellent view of the Cane Creek Fall (85-ft) and the Cane Creek Cascades (45-ft). Other overlooks on the trail were less impressive as the views of the gorge were obscured by heavy foliage.
Linking back up with the Woodland Trail after a little more than a mile, the leaf covered path started a gradual decent to a plank bridge over Fall Creek, then back up to the top of the parks signature falls, Fall Creek Falls. The path continues to a nice wooden-fenced overlook directly opposite the falls where you can really enjoy the vista.
From here, I traveled a half-mile trail to the base of the falls. This was the part of the hike I enjoyed the best. The trail is labeled “moderate” but even with some large boulders and scree to traverse, it is not difficult, and part of the way down is via a staircase.
Don’t forget to look up while on the trail to observe the rock outcroppings and trees growing out of the rock faces. At the base of the falls you get a better perspective of the magnitude of the falls. Listed at 256 feet, the plunging Fall Creek Falls is noted as the highest free-fall waterfall east of the Mississippi River. Just a small amount of ice was visible at the top of the small fall and ice and slush were starting to form at the base, but the larger fall showed no signs of freezing.
In the winter the falls become ice curtains and are beautiful. If you enjoy winter weather, January or February would be a good time to view the falls.
Returning from the bottom of the Falls via the trail, I revisited the overlook then backtracked to the two trails junction and returned by way of the Woodland Trail. Please note that neither trail is blazed, but there are periodic wooden signs with identifiers. After a short hike I ended back where I started at the swinging bridge. I crossed to the far side of the nature center to a second overlook of the Cane Creek Cascades to enjoy one last look.
My hike route took about 3-hours and covered 4-miles and would rate this hike as “easy” and doable by anyone of any age. There was a lot of time spent stopping to take photos and enjoy the surroundings. If you were hiking for fitness and not enjoyment you could cover the distance in less than 1-1/2 hours.
I did not realize that just a short distance up the road was the Cable Trail. This trail leads to the base of Cane Creek Falls so I missed out on this experience. Reading after the fact, the trail is listed as “moderate/difficult” and requires some scrambling over rocks. There is a cable to assist you in climbing down and back out. The distance is listed as 6/10-mile each way.
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Seven Hollows Trail at Petit Jean SP Arkansas
Seven Hollows, the trail the marked the beginning of Petit Jean State Park's existence in 1923, takes you through a multitude of different ecosystems, hardwood, pine, brush grass and rock, massive rocks. Follow the white trimmed blue diamond blazes on this 5-mile loop trail (officially 4.5-miles plus 0.5-mile to the Grotto. Principle features are a natural stone arch, a grotto with waterfall, and turtle rocks.
Hiking clockwise, the well marked trail starts deceivingly as a flat sandy path but soon turns to an extremely rocky and root infested zig-zag
The first noticeable feature, a natural stone arch, is just before the 1.5 mile-marker, on the left side of the trail. Take time to walk through the arch and explore the rear side of the structure.
Though the hike has limited elevation change (a little over 500-ft), the hike's difficulty stems from the root and rock strewn terrain.
At the apex of the loop trail there is a side spur of approximately a quarter-mile requiring a little scramble over rocks and logs to a nice grotto fed by a nice little waterfall during spring and rainy weather.
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| Right-side of Grotto |
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| Dry fall at left-side of grotto. |
Much of the last half of the hike is over solid rock surfaces with the blue blaze arrows painted directly onto the rock. Large cliffs on both sides of the trail form a canyon with 100-ft ledges of either side. At some points on the trail you are in the canyon and the next minute you are on the top of the cliff.
There is much to see and explore on the hike. I would recommend you allocate about 4-hours to give you time to explore. The trail is hard on the feet; be sure to wear good boots, not sneakers.
There is much to see and explore on the hike. I would recommend you allocate about 4-hours to give you time to explore. The trail is hard on the feet; be sure to wear good boots, not sneakers.
Monday, July 23, 2018
DuPont State Forest - a little off the beaten path but a great destination.
DuPont is situated less than 20-miles from
Hendersonville, NC which is due south of Asheville. From Asheville give yourself 75-minutes to
get there. Most of the drive is on two-lane roads.
From the ranger station there is a well maintained, well marked, 3-mile
trail that takes you to two beautiful waterfalls and a nice covered bridge. The trail is relatively clear of roots and
rocks allowing you to actually enjoy the surroundings and not constantly
looking at your foot placement.
High Falls, at 125-ft is the first waterfall you will encounter by taking the trail counter-clockwise. Go past the fall’s view point on the main trail about 50-yds to take a path down to the bottom of the fall. To get your best view you may need to get your feet wet or bushwhack through some muddy shrubs.
A little over a mile further up the trail is Triple Falls. There is a nice stair case with several landings taking you down to the ledge of the lowest tier of the falls. The ledge is roped off denying actual access to the water, but you are close enough to get the spray. The climb out is 122-stairs. Take the spur trail toward Hooker Falls and you can take a path to the water for wading.
There are covered picnic areas situated throughout the park and we saw a couple people fishing and others swimming down stream from the falls. The loop trail from Triple Falls takes you back to the ranger station through the woods.
This is a great hike for families. The park is dog friendly. I understand that in winter when the falls freeze it is gorgeous.
Cummins Falls State Park
One of the newer state parks in Tennessee, Cummins Falls
State Park opened in 2012. Just north of
Cookeville, the park is centered around the 75-ft high Cummins Falls and the plunge
pool at its base.
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| Blue line signifies short-cut route to river. Click to enlarge. |
A little over an hour east of Nashville off I-40 exit 280,
the park is an easy day-trip. From the
I-40 exit, the park is less than 13-miles.
The parking area at the park has restrooms and a small ranger cabin. The day we were there a large fly tent was
set up with a vendor selling barbeque and there was a general store just
outside the park entrance if you needed refreshments on your way out.
The trailhead was well marked giving you an option for a
short-cut to the river in lieu of the main trail that takes you first to an
overlook. We
hiked to the falls via the overlook which added some distance to the trip to
the base of the falls. After we descended a couple 100-ft to the water we
followed the a trail that paralleled the creek for a while before having to
wade about a half-mile upstream to the falls. You cannot get to the falls without getting
your feet wet, so if that is a concern this would not be the hike for you. The trail crosses the river twice, but I ended
up wading most of the river portion of the trail because it was easier than the
narrow rocky trail that paralleled the stream.
This was a great experience and we loved fantastic plunge pool at base of falls. Park Service has plenty of life jackets for kids or those incline to use one. We, along with many others took full advantage and cooled off in the pool, climbing the tiered falls.
I’m in my 60’s, my son is in his 30’s and we had a great time. I would recommend this to anyone of any age. Just be aware that you have to wade in some knee deep water (I wore boats & changed into water shoes, others wore trail sandals; flip-flops are not recommended).
On the return route we took the short route back to the trail head cutting off maybe 1/2-mile.
Friday, February 03, 2017
Ironman Chattanooga 2016
Corey Nelson --
“Why
would anyone do this to themselves?” That's a good question. A question I've
heard many times. A question that I heard several times on race day. One I
asked myself during the first miles of the run. One I heard from the medical
volunteers while I was laying in their medical tent getting multiple IV bags
drained into my arm, along with literally hundreds of other athletes throughout
the day. Why would anyone do this to themselves? I finished Ironman Louisville back
in 2014, when the high temperature on race day was 97 degrees. It was
miserable. I crossed the finish line that day and became an Ironman. So why do
it again? Why put myself through the months of training, the 4am bike rides,
the late night long runs, swimming lap after lap after lap when I didn't really
want to be there. Why do all that work just to be exhausted, in pain, sick,
hot, and miserable for 13+ hours?
“Why
would anyone do this to themselves?” That's a good question. A question I've
heard many times. A question that I heard several times on race day. One I
asked myself during the first miles of the run. One I heard from the medical
volunteers while I was laying in their medical tent getting multiple IV bags
drained into my arm, along with literally hundreds of other athletes throughout
the day. Why would anyone do this to themselves? I finished Ironman Louisville back
in 2014, when the high temperature on race day was 97 degrees. It was
miserable. I crossed the finish line that day and became an Ironman. So why do
it again? Why put myself through the months of training, the 4am bike rides,
the late night long runs, swimming lap after lap after lap when I didn't really
want to be there. Why do all that work just to be exhausted, in pain, sick,
hot, and miserable for 13+ hours?
When I completed
Ironman Louisville, it was one of the best experiences of my life. It was hard,
and tiring, and
painful, but at the same time, it was amazing. I was almost
immediately ready to sign up to do it again. It took a year, but I signed up
for Ironman Chattanooga 2016 the day after the 2015 race. I spent the next 12
months preparing for it. In the process, I changed jobs and my training
availability changed as well. My weekday workouts were now starting at 4 am, and
after 9 pm, and weekend long workouts were starting as early as 3 am in an
attempt to relieve stress on family time. I had a good friend, Imran Mahmood,
who signed up to do his 1st Ironman, but due to his work schedule,
we were only able to train together maybe a dozen times. We both followed the
same training plan that I used for IM Louisville, which is a free generic
training plan from Trifuel.com. The plan is a 36 week, 3 stage plan that has a
12 week “build” stage, a 20 week “competitive” stage, and a 4 week “taper”.
Both times I’ve hit a point at about 12 weeks out where I just didn’t want to
do anything. I just got burned out. I decided to follow this plan again because
I felt it would give me long enough to get ready and build up distance without
getting injured. I was successful until 4 weeks out during my last “long” run, when
I developed a severe pain on the top outer part of my right foot. I cut it
short at mile 11 hoping to not cause further injury. Unfortunately, the damage
was done and by the time I got home, the top of my foot had a 2” diameter
bruise and hurt to walk. I was hoping I hadn’t just ended my chances of racing.
I made a visit to Rehab Etc., where my mom works in the office, and saw the
head therapist Jim. He suggested a visit to an orthopedic to make sure there
was no further damage to the tendons or ligaments. Fortunately, there wasn’t, it
was just tendonitis, but I was restricted to wearing a boot for 10-14 days with
no running. I made it with the boot for 8 days. Over the next 3 weeks, I was
able to get on the AlterG anti-gravity treadmill to try and keep some running
fitness without risking further injury.
I made it to
race week and Imran and I arrived in Chattanooga a couple of days out. I got
checked in to the race and settled at the hotel Friday morning and KT, the
kids, and my parents arrived that night. It was already hot, and the forecast
for race day didn’t look very pleasant. The forecast called for sunny, with a
high of 93. The weekend before was 81 (the weekend after ended up being 83).
There wasn’t anything we could do except adjust to the temperature, meaning
more fluids, slower pace, etc. Race morning came and we made our way to
transition to add fuel to our bikes and air up our tires. With one IM worth of experience,
I made it thru my pre-planned checklist fairly quickly with no problems. Imran
on the other hand, had a problem with one of his valve extenders that kept him
from being able to air up his tires. He had to get the on-site bike tech to
replace it before we could hop on the bus to head to the swim start. Luckily,
he was able to get it fixed and off we were, on our way to line up for the
start of our long day. We lined up in the start line about 6:30 (for the 7:30
start) and were pretty far back in line. This IM race is similar to IM
Louisville in that the swim start is a time trial format, or single file line
one person starts at a time. With approximately 2700 athletes, they anticipated
having everyone in the water by 8:00am. As 7:30 approached, I wondered where
Katie and all of our families were. They were supposed to come meet us in line
before the race started. About that time Frank, Katie’s dad, showed up. He
asked where everybody was, and said they had all gone off and left him. It
turned out that they had forgotten about the shuttles carrying people to the
start line, so they ran 2+ miles to get to the start. Frank simply got on the
shuttle and beat them all there. Either way, they all made it to the starting
area in time and we were able to see them before we started.
As we walked
slowly towards the dock that we would jump off to start the race, I was trying
to stay relaxed. I had decided before that I would try not to let the music,
announcer, and crowd get me too excited. So I talked to Imran and tried my best
to ignore the excitement while still taking in the experience. I walked the
whole way and just let people pass me who were really excited and wanted to run
to the dock. We made it to the dock and I could finally see down the river
where we’d be swimming. At that moment, I felt a rush of nervousness over my
body. I gave Imran a high five, started my watch, and jumped in the river.
This swim course
is a 2.4 mile, point to point, 100% downstream swim. I had purposefully spent
less time swimming during my training, and more time running and riding,
because I knew I would have the current helping me the entire time. I tried to
stay relaxed and just swim easy the entire time. During training and IM
Louisville, I had problems feeling nauseous/dizzy and had cramping in my feet
while swimming longer distance non-stop, so I was worried about that coming
into this swim. Luckily I didn’t have any of those problems and I was able to
swim the entire distance without ever breaking stride. I came to the swim exit
and was happy to be out of the water.
Swim: 2.4 miles - 1:04:20 – 1:39/100m
T1: 6:16
As I exited the
water, I didn’t feel dizzy as I normally do, so I decided to run easy from the
swim exit to transition, all the while scanning the crowd for Katie and the
kids. As I entered transition, I heard everyone scream my name and I was able
to see everyone and give them a wave. I found my T1 bag with no problem and
made my way to the changing tent. One of the areas that I felt I could improve
on from IM Louisville was my transition times. In Louisville, I spent nearly 30
minutes total in transition. I knew I could cut some time there. My T1 (swim to
bike transition) was 6 minutes 16 seconds, which was almost 7 minutes faster
than Louisville. I got out and on the bike with no problems. Heading out on the
bike, it was still before 9:00 am, so still fairly cool and not much wind. I
rode along trying not to push too hard even though I felt pretty good. I tried
to eat on schedule and drink all I could to prepare for the heat that would be
coming. The first loop was crowded, cool, and not much wind, which led me to
push a little harder than I had wanted. By the time I started the second loop,
the temperature was quickly rising and the wind had picked up quite a bit. At
this point, I was about 70 miles into the ride and I was feeling the effects of
the heat. I began to slow down and didn’t have much pop in my legs. The hills
felt longer and steeper, and I felt like I had a head wind in every direction.
I did the only thing I knew to do, I slowed down, drank what I could and tried
to prepare for the run. As I approached T2, I started to feel a little better
and felt like I had recovered a little, but I knew what was to come. Running a
marathon by itself isn’t easy and is never much “fun”, but at that moment,
after 7+ hours of racing and finishing a 116 mile bike, the thought of running
even 1 mile sounded absolutely terrible. As I came into T2 and approached the
bike dismount line, I actually wondered if I was going to be able to stand up
without falling off my bike. I stopped and got both feet down and a volunteer
was there to stabilize my bike while I got my legs under me. I had completed
the 116 mile bike (4 miles longer than other Ironman distance bike courses) in
6 hours and 17 minutes.
T2: 12:37
I decided (and
by decided I mean I didn’t have a choice physically) to walk through T2 and let
my legs recover. I took my time, got my bag and headed into the changing tent.
It was extremely hot and humid inside the tent. I sat and drank water, but the
longer I sat, the worse I felt. I tried to get up and head out but felt
nauseous so I sat back down. I was finally able to get out of the tent where
there was a breeze. Unfortunately there was also no shade from the sun.
Starting out, I tried to do a 2:1 run/walk (run 2 minutes followed by 1 minute
of walking). That quickly turned into a 1:1 run/walk. The heat at this point
was awful, and there was no shade for the first 5 miles of the run. I continued
the run/walk intervals and continued to drink as much as my stomach would allow.
As I came to the bridge to cross over to the north side of the river at about
mile 8, I came up on Imran. He was walking and struggling with cramping. I
tried to encourage him to run/walk, but he was hurting. I gave him my Base salt
tablets and water and I continued on hoping he would make it. The next 5 miles
on the north side of the river are brutal. Hills. BIG hills. I walked up and
ran down and tried to conserve energy and leg strength. I would need it as I
would see those hills again after another 8 miles, on the second loop of this 2
loop course. As I came back to the bridge to head back south to start the
second loop, I saw Mike. He was on his bike and had been riding the course. We
talked as I walked out some foot cramps and he told me the crew was waiting on
the bridge. As I ran onto the bridge, Katie and Imran’s wife were waiting for
us. Katie ran about halfway across the bridge with me and said “I hate to say
this, but I’m tired”. So I got a kiss and continued on to the second loop. The
kids and the rest of the family were waiting at the other side of the bridge so
I was able to see them too for the last time before the finish. Lap 2 is where
things really fell apart. At about mile 15, I started feeling sick and noticed
that I was no longer sweating. I also realized that I hadn’t peed since about
halfway through the bike (about 5 hours prior by this point). That was a bad
sign and I knew it. I tried to drink as much as I could but the nausea was
getting worse and I felt myself zoning out. I knew if I vomited I was probably
done, so I did everything I could not to. I even got to a point about mile 19
where I was lying on a bench pouring ice water over my face and seriously
considering the dreaded DNF (did not finish). I was able to get myself to the
next aid station where they had started handing out warm chicken broth. I know
it sounds disgusting given the situation, but it was the best stuff I could
have had at the time. I was able to sip on it while I walked and slowly began
to feel better and better. By now, I knew I would finish, I just didn’t know
how long it would take. About mile 21, as I crossed over the bridge to head
back to the north side of the river, I noticed I was sweating again and was
able to run for short periods. I again walked the uphills and ran the downhills
and was feeling pretty good. As I crested the Barton Ave hill to head back to
the bridge, I could just see the lights of the finish line across the river.
That was a major confidence booster. I was able to run the remaining ~2.5 miles
into the finish and actually ran a sub 9 minute final mile. As I came to the
finishing chute, I was so excited that I didn’t even slow down to enjoy it. I
remember seeing the family and yelling and then crossing the finish. I did it!
Ironman #2 was complete, and I had actually bettered my IM Louisville time by
about 14 minutes (although my run time was about 3 minutes slower).
Run: 26.2 miles – 5:42:15 – 13:03 min/mile
Overall: 13:23:24
As soon as I
crossed the finish line, I was so exhausted that I nearly collapsed. The
volunteers helped me to a chair where I was able to sit and get some fluids for
about 15 minutes until I was able to walk out on my own. Once I got up and
moving I felt fine. I saw Katie and the kids and was able to see everyone who
had come to cheer us on. We were still waiting on Imran to finish. We knew he
wasn’t feeling well, but he was going to make it. As we were standing there
waiting, I began to feel sick again and had to sit down. I began to cramp and
feel nauseous. The next thing I remember is laying on my back with Frank and a
medic standing over me. They carried me to the medical tent where I was given 2
bags of IV over the next hour and a half. Katie said the kids were upset so she
took them back to the hotel with her dad while my parents waited for me. When I
was finally able to get up and move again, I was walking through the medical tent
and there was Imran, laying there getting an IV himself. He had finished and
ended up in the medical tent as well. The walk/trolly ride back to the hotel
was slow. Once I made it back, I was finally hydrated enough that I was able to
use the bathroom again. It had been nearly 11 hours since I had last urinated,
despite drinking multiple gallons of fluid throughout the day. Mom and Dad went
across the street to the little diner and got me a club sandwich and sweet
potato fries, but I was only able to eat a few bites before feeling sick again.
I fell asleep easily and slept through the night.
IM Chattanooga
was the hardest physical challenge I’ve ever been through. But it wasn’t just
physical. Finishing that race was as much mental as it was physical. At mile 19
when I was lying on the bench contemplating a DNF, I could have easily given up
and gotten a ride back to the finish line. It would have been much more
pleasant. I wouldn’t have felt sick. I wouldn’t have had any more foot cramps.
I could have sat down and stayed there until I was ready to get up. I wouldn’t
have had to run another 7+ miles to the finish… but I didn’t give up. I did
what I needed to finish. I was able to fight past the desire to quit, and push
through the pain. I had put in the work leading up to that day and I wasn’t
going to quit. Not that close to the finish. Not with all of my family there.
Not that they would have cared, but I would have and it would have eaten at me
forever. So to answer the question “Why?”, I would say, because you learn
something about yourself when you face those types of challenges. It wasn’t
life or death, or anything that would affect my family or career, but fighting
through and finishing that race gave me a self confidence that is hard to
replicate. It’s hard to describe. All I can say is, do it yourself, and you’ll
know “Why?”.
