RD Report: 2007 is when the running world caught up to the Plain 100. Plain’s finishing percentages have been in the single digits every year since the beginning. Some years no one finished and the average year would see two finishers. The first seven years The Plain had a grand total of four finishers. The next three years showed a big jump to a total of fourteen finishers during that three-year span. 2007 there were fourteen finishers out of the twenty-nine starters for a finishing percentage of 48%.

Why the big jump is the question that everyone is asking. I believe there are several factors that have added to the increased finishing rate in the last four years and the biggest increase this year. Weather can have a big impact on the finishing rate in any hard 100 milers and Plain is no different. The race has had much cooler weather three of the last four years so that factor has helped in increasing the finishing rate. Talent of the runners in the race can also greatly determine who will or will not finish a race like Plain, however Plain has always attracted some of the best runners in the country without a lot of success, the years field was the deepest field that Plain has had. Course knowledge is another key ingredient in what the finishing rate for any 100 will be.

With all those factors in mind what is it that has accounted for the big increase in the finishing rate at Plain. The answer is all these factors. The format of Plain is a lot different then most 100 mile races and it has taken the runners some time to understand on how best to complete this course, add to that amount of pre race training being done on the Plain trails, along with the milder temperatures and there you have it. The runners have just learned how to run Plain and it shows up in the finishing numbers.

Any runner who has been waiting to do Plain now is the time to come and get your rock.
Tom Ripley RD

The Plain 100(ish) Unleashed by Tim Englund: So, just how much of an advantage is it to know the course when running the Plain 100? Well, I think we know the answer to that now. It’s a huge advantage. Huge. Here’s my story.

The Plain 100 had been singing her siren song to me since I started running eight years ago. A self-supported 100+ miler with no trail markings and only one crew access point seemed like a great adventure. It’s a race that not only the swift can win and it’s just the kind of thing that attracted me to ultras in the first place. On a rainy night last November while reading Tim Stroh’s 2006 race account in Ultrarunning, I finally committed. The very next day I bought the map and started researching running packs. I dug up every old race report I could find. I talked to hikers and climbers about calorically dense foods. When the snow cleared, I drove up to the course and started exploring. By race day, I had been on each section of the course at least twice and was able to run without consulting the map or the directions. And I had a plan: I was going to try to win. Only a couple people knew.

Well, so, okay the day before the race didn’t quite go according to The Plan. First, we arrived 30 minutes late for the pre-race briefing. The runners were in the lodge were listening intently to co-race director Tom Ripley. I slid quietly into a chair near fellow Washingtonians Ray Gruenewald and Tim Stroh trying to be inconspicuous. Then one of my dogs, Missy, busted into the lodge and went straight to the front of the room. Dogs are not allowed in the building, so I carried her out. She came back in again. I carried her out again and tied her to a post. Then Missy, my other dog ZuZu, and my crew’s dog Steely start barking and whining. By now, people were looking. Some were laughing. I felt like a doofus and happily left the mess to my friend and lone crew person, Lisa Bliss, to figure out. We tried not to cause any more trouble. After the briefing Lisa, the dogs and I went into Leavenworth for dinner. During a moment of distraction in the evening, I asked Lisa “Why are we here again?” “To win a race,” she replied. It was a comment I replayed a thousand times the next day .

When I woke, I noticed that I’d never felt so relaxed before a race. Bob Marley’s “don’t worry ‘bout a thing, ‘cause every little thing is gonna be alright” was about the only thought in my head. Thirty seconds before the start I remembered to put on my headlamp. Then somebody said “Go!” and my pre-race favorite, James Varner, was off like a shot. I was glad to see him take most of the strong runners with him. The first 7.5 miles of the course are a grinding uphill that I was going to treat like foreplay, knowing there would be plenty of time to exhaust myself on the good stuff later. My plan was to run easily the first several miles and then walk the rest of the way up to Maverick Saddle; running the same way at mile 5 that I hoped to be at mile 75. As the runners disappeared into the darkness, I was left alone, halfway between the lead and middle packs. That’s where I would stay for most of Loop 1.

Coming into the turn for the North Tommy Trail, I was surprised to meet Todd Holmes coming up the wrong trail. It seems he had missed the turn the first time by and had continued a mile or so on the wrong trail, nearly connecting with Loop 2. We ran together for a bit, but when I stopped to grab a sandwich for the climb up to Klone Peak, he went ahead. As I was climbing up to the peak, I met several runners coming down this short out-and-back section – not Alan & Beverly Abbs or David Goggins however. They were far ahead, it seemed. On my way down, I saw no one. I really was at the back of the lead pack.

The section from Klone Peak to the Entiat River is mostly downhill and contains my favorite part of the course. Just as one is starting to come down towards the horrible pavement section, they enter a large burned out section of forest. There must have been a ranger station there once as a foundation and floor still remain. On my training runs I had always stopped here to have lunch. There are chairs on the hill behind the station from which you can see forever. It’s like being in a ghost forest. The trees are burned and their blackened bark is falling off, exposing the white wood underneath. It’s still very dead and very quiet. I didn’t stop to eat this time, but I did look around before heading downhill towards the river.

The climb to Signal Peak is where the race started to break open for me. It’s 6 miles long and rises nearly 5000 ft. Once one gets to the “top,” there’s a short downhill, a trail junction, and then another couple miles of a mostly uphill traverse until one is actually just below Signal Peak, the high point of the course. I’m surprised that the RD’s haven’t figured out a way to get us to go to the top yet. The climb is also the beginning of a 14 mile stretch without any water. I started up around noon and so needed to load up on a good bit of water at the base. I had been worried at the start of the race that I was carrying too much weight. My pack was certainly one of the biggest and it was stuffed with food. I had sandwiches, boiled potatoes, 3 kinds of power bars, candy, gels, drink mix, a 5-lb block of cheese, and a whole turkey (okay, not the last two - but I had a whole lot of food!). Add 120 ounces of water to the mix and I felt like I was toting a baby elephant up the hill. About half way up I was certain that any hope I had had of finishing well was gone. My stomach was starting to turn and my energy was flagging. The potatoes that had tasted so good in training just weren’t doing to trick this time. I hope the deer liked them as they ended up on the side of the trail. Near the top, however, I started to pass people for the first time all day. I felt like hell, but (and please forgive me if this was you) they looked worse. Near the end of the climb I met a runner who was staggering so badly I wasn’t sure how he could stay on the trail. Above him, I saw course record holder Tim Stroh in the distance. I began to think that maybe things weren’t so bad.

At Cougar Creek I met James Varner who had run out of water on the ridge and was regrouping. James, despite feeling miserable, had a huge smile as we spoke and I expected to see him blowing by me at any moment for the rest of the day. He said that Stroh had just left minutes earlier.

The stretch along the Mad River into Maverick Saddle is my least favorite on the course. I always can’t wait for it to be over and expect to see the end around every corner. On my first training run it was choked with blow-down and I was a scratched and bloody mess when I finished. On the second training run, however, I met 3 guys clearing the trail. They had chainsaws, motorcycles, and beer. What could have gone wrong? In any case, they said that they would have the entire stretch clear within a couple days. I asked them to leave a few trees in the trail for the Californians on race day. They didn’t.

Coming down from Maverick Saddle, I met up with Tim Stroh. We ran together for a while and wondered how far ahead the next runners were. A ways ahead, we figured. After a while, Tim wanted to walk for a bit, so I ran on wanting to get into crew access point at Deep Creek as close to 13 hours as possible.

On the way to Deep Creek, I rounded to corner at Deer Camp (yes, it is hard to keep these names straight) and was shocked to see Alan & Beverly Abbs ahead. Literally, every hair on my body stood on end. “WTF?!” I asked myself. Then I asked it again and, probably, again. They’re supposed to be way ahead. When I caught up, they told me that David Goggins was only just ahead. A mile or so later, I caught up with Goggins. I asked who was ahead of us. “Nobody,” he says. I’d never led a race before. It felt great! We talked some and I discovered that he’s not especially fond of bears. In fact, he was actually running with bear spray in his pack. Well, not wanting to miss this opportunity I told him about the mountain biker who was attacked by a black bear here in Washington just the week before and about the two bears my dogs and I had seen on the course just 3 weeks earlier. Should I feel bad about that? I don’t know. Maybe….

In any case, into Deep Creek we came running. Now, this is the time when I get to express my deepest deepest gratitude to my amazing one-woman, three-dog crew – Lisa Bliss, her dog Steely, and my dogs ZuZu and Missy. They were great. Many many times during the race I thought of them and felt joy. Joy. They were the beacon that drew me home. The perfect crew. Perfect. I arrived to warm soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, a selection of refreshing beverages, and many many dog kisses. “WTF?!” I asked again to anybody who was listening. This is the way I had wanted, but didn’t dare expect, it to be. Being the only chance to really sit, I decided to spend some quality time there. I loaded my pack with more trail food (yes, more food), washed my feet, changed socks & shoes, got a stocking cap and put on a warmer shirt. It was going to get cold that night. It was fun being there, but it was time to go, so off I went. Stroh and Goggins left right behind me. My dog Missy decided that they had a good idea and came along too. “You have a problem,” Tim said as Missy came up on us. We stopped until Shawn Lawson (thanks, Shawn!) could run a good 100 yards up the trail and grab the leash. That was good enough for me and I continued, but I found out later that Missy wasn’t having any part of it. She wanted to go forward and wasn’t budging. Eventually Lisa had to carry her back down to the aid station. I love that dog.

Well, so here’s a lesson I learned. After running 55 (± 6, nobody’s really certain) miles, it’s not the best idea to eat a whole can of soup and a big grilled cheese sandwich in one quick sitting and then expect to run again soon. The food sat like a giant ball of lard in my stomach for close to four hours. It sure tasted good though. Mmmmm…..

Just out of Deep Creek we met a couple motorcyclists. The motorcycle lobby keeps a lot of trails in Washington open, so I try not to complain about them too much, but they sure do raise a cloud of dust. Anyhow, five minutes after passing the motorcycles, there were bear prints on top of the tire prints. I picked up a big stick and started to sing. Now, anybody who has ever heard me sing knows that that bear was probably in the next county shortly thereafter and so I felt safe. But before I put the stick down I took the opportunity to alert the runners behind me of the bear by circling a few of the larger prints. Should I feel bad about that? I don’t know. Maybe…. In any case, I was glad that the bear was in front – I wouldn’t want to run with a bear behind! (Say that aloud.)

I had left Deep Creek around 6:30 pm and was able to run in the daylight until I got to the intersection of the Lower Chiwawa Trail and the Alder Ridge Trail where the loopy part of Loop 2 starts. It was nice and I was making good time, but I love running on trails at night and was looking forward to having to turn on my lights. Being in the woods at night is like being in a whole different reality. My mind turns inward while my body goes on auto-pilot. My watch reminded me to eat and the many stream crossings reminded me to drink. The entire race I dipped water from the streams. It was ice-cold and delicious. As the stars came out, I wished on the first one that I could hold it together.

Because there were no aid stations and nobody (else) to talk to, I didn’t know where Tim, David, or James were. I had to believe that they were right behind me, breathing down my neck. Many times I repeated this same conversation with myself: Why are you walking? Because I’m tired. Don’t you want to win? Yes, I do want to win. Well, start running then. Okay, but you’re a jerk (this word changed often). No, you’re a jerk….

Sometime around 3 a.m. I came to a high wide-open vista looking out towards the finish. The sliver of a moon wouldn’t be rising for some time. The billions of stars were beautiful and the world was dark and quiet. I turned off my lights and stood there for a while just looking. Maybe it was only for a minute, but it was enough. I was recharged. Thankful. And I knew I would hold on.

The closer I got to the finish, the faster I ran. By the time I came out of the trail onto the gravel road at Deep Creek I was running downhill at a full out sprint – ten minute miles, at least! I had only 1.5 miles to go. The hardest part was to not break down crying I was so happy. So very happy. When I saw people standing near the end to cheer me in, I lost it. Tears were streaming, but hopefully I pulled it together before anybody noticed. Lisa had worked all the dogs into a fit. They ran out to meet me and bring me home. I had a five dog escort to the finish! What other race can boast that? In any case, I was done. The way I felt at the finish line is indescribable, so I won’t even try. Suffice it to say that I was pretty happy.

This has been a difficult summer for me personally. For 25 hours, 44 minutes and 43 seconds, however, I was unleashed.

Chris Ralph and Tom Ripley do a fabulous job with this race. The relaxed and friendly, indeed family-like, atmosphere surrounding this race is a direct result of their personalities. In addition, the Snohomish County Search and Rescue support was without equal. Having been part of my local Search and Rescue I thought their organization and professionalism was very impressive. I never doubted that if I were to get in trouble that they would find me, and I never worried that my position wasn’t being accurately transmitted back to my crew.

Lastly I want to congratulate the other runners. It was a great adventure, wasn’t it?

Dimitri's story: To start with, I have sworn to myself that I will NEVER race again a 100 miler the weekend after having attended Burning Man where I definitely was quite sleep deprived for multiple days, after days and nights of dancing and partying with Ilima.
I tried to catch up on my sleep the last few nights before the race (Ilima even kindly drove me to the start to allow me to have a few more hrs of sleep in the car !) but it was obvious that BM had been quite taxing on my body and couldn’t handle the Plain 100 miler experience quite yet ( as I would realized a few hrs into the race)… .
Soooo, as long as I am going to go to spend the week preceding Labor Day at Burning Man in the Nevada desert, I won’t allow myself  to return to Plain and attempt to finish the course.

I started well with the first climb and was passed by Glenn and Roger after about 1.5 hrs on road 6101. Michelle caught up with me after about 2 hrs of racing on Trail 1409.
Despite Michelle’s company, I already started getting slower and sleepy at 9:30am, only 4.5 hrs after the start of the race… I start telling Michelle multiple times that she should go on and have a good race. This is not a race where you want to waste too much time waiting for another runner…
Around noon, definitely battling with fatigue after only 7 hrs of racing, I tried to listen to my little mp3 player but it refuses to work.
So, I decided to pop in my first caffeine “No Doze” pill to keep me awake. Not good news, so early in a race…
Around 2:30pm on the climb towards Signal Peak, and a few minutes after having seen at a check point Chris and Tom, I started getting VERY very sleepy and took the drastically time consuming  “power nap” approach, stopping from time to time for a 2-3 minutes nap on the trail.
I was very concerned that I will at some point not wake up after 2-3 minutes but after 6-7 hrs!
I don’t know at all how much time I lost with these naps but it was definitely not negligible.  

About 2 miles before reaching Maverick Saddle, I was actually woken up by another racer Kathie Lang as she was coming towards me while running on the trail.
I jumped out like a Springbok and started running, feeling all jittered. Soon, she fell on some gnarly roots, I stopped and asked her if she needed anything and went on. Thereafter, I ran and walked non-stop til I reached the only Aid station at Deep Creek (55 miles or so into the course).
At the aid station, I refilled my stomach with soup and cucumbers as well as pepto bismo pills trying to wash down the no-doze pills I had been taking during the day and took off after about 35 minutes of rest and nourishment.

My body was feeling good, except for a rash on the lower part of my back created by a featured water releasing hole on the lower part of my Gregory backpack. Need to email them some pictures so that they can improve the backpack.

For the second part of the race, I was now in possession of my working IPOD with the thousands of tunes I love to listen to while trekking in Russia.
I left the aid station at 1:25 am, 25 minutes ahead of the cut-off time and determined to try as hard as I could to make up time so that I could finish the race.

At about mileage 60, I ran into Tom Jackson as he was coming out of a perfect 2 miles loop behind Goose Creek campground, which is a very confusing part of the course,  when  ran at night and with its many intercrossing trails and roads.
I took him back on the course and motivate him to keep going despite the delay he had incurred. I found out that later that he turned back and went back to Deep Creek to drop out.

I arrived at Mileage 82 checkpoint, all pumped up with 10 minutes to spare,(9:50am). Climbing over towards Mad Lake, I started to be more and more confident that I could finish the course despite my earlier delays.
I knew I would be close to the cut off (36 hrs allowed) but I wanted to try my hardest.
When I got onto the 6000 plateau (pond meadow and marble meadow), I suddenly became surrounded by about 12 motor bikers- 3 groups of 4 whom kept on passing me back and forth from all different angles.  They were riding on the same trails as the racers and therefore were wiping out any footprints I could follow, in case of confusion.
Here is when the unthinkable happened: Getting off track !
At about mileage 85, I was no longer comparing the text written on the recently installed trail signs with the race director printed directions because they were no longer matching.
Having trained on the course a few weeks before with the race directors and Michelle, I became over confident and did not look at my map at ONE intersection where I blew right trough it, hoping to finish the course on time and KABOOM, I made the wrong BLUDDY turn.

Took off and ran 2 extra miles towards Blue Creek where I realized my mistake and turned back. I realized then that considering the fact that I was already close to the time limit allowed for the race, and taking into account the 4 extra miles I had ran, I was not going to be able to finish the course.
My mind and body suddenly went from a pumping supper high energy mood to a “mini shut down” where it became harder to run or walk.
The problem though that even though I realized I needed to drop out of the race asap to avoid taking time from the race search and rescue team, I needed to get myself off this mountain by my own means since there was no easy access roads to for anyone to quickly come and check on me.
It took me a few hrs of walking (instead of running, which my body was no longer willing to do) to come down the mountain to the aid station at mileage 92 where I reassured everyone that was OK and had Tom Ripley contacted to inform him that it was no longer needed to look for me on trail.
Met my girlfriend Ilima who was patiently waiting for me, took a shower and humbled by the experience, was ready to go home…

Later…
Dimitri

Plain BIG 100 by Jim Updegrove

Plain is a race that's growing each year

A look at the obstacles increases one's fear.

There's lots rocks and dust that is spinning

Motorcycle ruts and downed trees affect winning.

River crossings and unending up-hills

Sun and heat and ice that brings chills.

With no trail markings, a map in the hand

Runners hope in Canada they don't land.

Obstacles galore, who said Plain would be easy

It's not for the weak or those who get queasy.

It'll test your sanity, mess with your mind

There's one thing sure, this trail won't be kind.

At a pre-race meeting Tom outlined in detail

The junctions and water and where one might fail.

The favorites had come, some famous worldwide

Unknowns would be trying to take it in stride.

Breakfast, then checking on every little thing

Everyone wondered what this day would bring.

Nervousness set in with ten seconds to go

The weather was perfect, times would not be slow.

To Maverick Saddle, Varner led the flight

With energy fading, waning like the night.

Simms, Holmes and others, up Hi-Yu to the sky

Sun began a twinklin' on to Lost Lake they would fly.

Two Little Lakes, sparkling clear and green

Somewhere in here Simms lost his sheen.

With dust and ruts and moguls to run

No time for looking at the rising sun.

Holmes led in the meadow, kicking frost aside

'Till he came to five junctions, there the trail did hide.

Holmes was a leading to the Tommy Creek trail

Two miles out of his way took the wind out of his sail.

To Klone Peak they raced, no time for them to see

With this competition, no time to even pee.

Davy Crockett out to tame the trail

Missed a step and began to sail.

In the blackest dust his face did reside

With this new mask, all day he would hide.

Bev, Alan and Simms at Tommy Creek set the pace

Just a minute back, Goggins still in this race.

Three miles of pavement, deep dust to the river

The Entiat climb makes the best runner quiver.

Taking on water, an energy bar

Signal Peak is very far.

Twenty four minutes behind, Englund was a disgrace

For anyone wanting to win the Plain race.

He ran 8 miles up, a' looking for the top

His confidence told him he wouldn't plop.

His sights were set to do the Abbses battle

He passed them before Deep Creek, and he didn't prattle.

Stroh tried to challenge to Chickamin-Ti

But in the chase, he thought he would die.

His guts came a heavin', he fell down on the road

Tim decided to quit, he felt like a load.

Luis and his buddies, a climbin' the big hill

Early in the morning, he took a big chill.

He wanted to sleep, just a little while

So cold and tired lay down with a smile.

When he awakened, bear poop all around

The bear sent him packin', he didn't touch the ground.

Joe Lee ran strongly with few hallucinations

Climb, drink, eat, pee, refill were his incantations.

Englund blazed on like a rocket with fission

The others had been run into quiet submission.

His dream came to life as he raced to the finish.

From this magic moment none could diminish.

Goggins worked his way to a solid second place

And the Abbses were next, that was no disgrace.

Bev set a new record for women to break

Now that she knows the course, she'll be hard to shake.

Dust is the enemy that can change your step

Dust alters your attitude, saps your pep.

Dust in the feet, dust in the toes

Dust in the air that gets into your nose.

Light won't hit the trail, it's the dust in the air

Dust waits to attack you, it's everywhere.

This race is a challenge once you get it in your blood

And then when you finish, you'll feel like a stud.

Dimitri was lost, on a wrong trail he did falter

The search crew was relieved when he showed up at Alder.

The race has now ended, the laurels awarded

This chapter's complete, new records recorded.

New stories will be carried far and wide

About Plain and the mystique it won't hide.