This run was held at Lord Hill Regional Park, Snohomish, Washington on February
1, 2003. It started at 7:40 a.m. under mostly cloudy skies, which remained most of the day with scattered sun breaks,
winds were calm and
temperatures started in the mid 40s and peaked near 50 for the day. Lord Hill is a basalt outcropping
covering about 1400 acres in the Snohomish Valley. It is bordered on the south and east by the Snohomish River with
the highest point within the park at about 700 feet, thought the highest point on the actual course is at about 640 feet.
The course runs on gravel/rocky roads and single-track trail through hilly surroundings wooded with Douglas Fir, Western
Hemlock, cedars, alders, and maples. Several beaver lakes are scattered around as well as other wetlands to support
plentiful wildlife. The loop, with a couple of out-and-back spurs, measured out at 10.7 miles and 1800 feet of gain
per loop. Runners were able to complete one, two, or three loops. Three loops made up the 50 km version.
Given the few days leading up to the run where the area received, on average, about 2 inches
of rain, the course was in remarkable shape. Most areas drained of standing water quite well, and left enough mud
to make most happy. The River Trail, leading from the main course in the park down to the Snohomish River, had plenty
of mud but given the amount of horse traffic that trail can see, it was actually in decent shape. No shoes were lost
this time through. Course marking was done the day before with 100 surveying flags and over 70 flagging ribbons.
Remaining blowdowns were cleared and the route made ready.
On race morning, there was still about 1.3 miles of marking left, so with
LED light in hand I completed this portion. Sean Harrasser, up from Portland, was apparently sleeping comfortably
in his Saturn wagon after his 1:30 a.m. arrival. Upon my return from marking at 6:40, the throng of runners had
begun to arrive. Giving allowances for folks to find suitable parking and chat for a while, the briefing started at
7:15 and included my chagrin at my ability to stick flags in the ground when three to four inches under the dirt surface was
solid rock. At 7:40 the start was announced and I was left to sit up at the parking/start-finish/aid area with nothing
to do but wait and look at the table holding items such as soup, chili, brownies, fruit, soda, cookies, banana bread, and
many other goodies. Who really had it hard?
Thirty-seven folks and two ultra dogs showed up. Ten came and went
one time through and expressed their pleasure at the new course and being able to get in a good trail training run.
Twelve came and went, and went, and went again, completing the 50 km (actually 32.1 mile) three loop option. Another
15 opted for twice through. No one was lost, for long. The only injuries were some cuts and abrasions sustained
on, Cheri Gillis' stated, "Omak stampede" style hills. Muddy legs and smiles abound and I received a lot of positive
feedback regarding the course, marking, and other aspects of the run. This is certainly not the toughest course these
folks will run, but it has a nice blend of terrain, views, and surfaces to make it challenging. Unfortunately the cloud
deck was to low to provide the views of Mt. Rainier from the Pipeline Trail, and the North Cascades and Olympics from the
West View turnaround. Nearly everyone stayed for a period of time after their completed rounds, waiting for others,
talking, and getting replenished. The final 50 km runner completed his trek at 3:18 p.m., found his appetite and polished
off several cups of soup and other goodies and made his way out completing the 2003 version of this "event".
I expect to head this up again in 2004, looking at a tentative February
7 date, depending on other local events. I sincerely appreciate those that were able to find the time in their schedules
to make it out there, otherwise I would have been quite lonely. I know some had been down to Olympia the weekend prior
for their well-run event, and a couple had even done a Your's Truly 50 km that same weekend. Thanks to all for contributions/donations
for the aid setup I had. The supplies were ample and no one went away hungry or thirsty. I will do a couple of
things a little differently next year, including having a veggie soup.
This leads me to my next request for those participating. I would
greatly appreciate any cirticisms or concerns that you may have so that I can incorporate them for next year's version.
It was a bit of work and certainly worth doing right. This was fun for me to do and I look forward to being your humble
host in 2004. Thank you all.
Alphabetical results follow, will be posted to the run's website at
http://hometown.aol.com/cumulus84/LordHillFunRun.html, and those logging in on run day will receive an email version; I apologize in advance if there
are any discrepancies or misspellings. Please notify me if you see any.
Three loops (32.1 miles)
Bill Ball
Mt. Vernon, WA 7:38
Charlie Crissman
WA 7:13
Dave Dutton
Mt. Vernon, WA 5:33
Cheri Gillis
Woodinville, WA 7:13
Mark Hartinger
Shoreline, WA 5:02
Mark Joseph
WA 7:14
James Kerby
Carnation, WA 4:36
Mark Konodi
Seattle, WA 6:28
Kendall Kreft
Lk. Stevens, WA 5:17
Scott Krell
Snohomish, WA 6:38
Mel Preedy
Ravensdale, WA 7:12
Lynne Werner Seattle,
WA 6:47
Two loops (21.4 miles)
Mike Britt
Kirkland, WA 4:17
Bill Cusworth
Seattle, WA 4:01
Janine Duplessis
WA 4:18
Sean Harrasser
Portland, OR 4:48
Karen King
WA 3:36
Juan Martinez
Salem, OR 2:35
Bob Maxwell
Lk. Stevens, WA 3:50
Jeff Mikesell
Kent, WA 4:11
Steve Moe
WA 4:50
Curt Mueller
Seattle, WA 4:16
Bob O'connor
Lk. Stevens, WA 3:57
John Wagner
WA 4:18
Rebecca Wallick
Shoreline, WA
+ ultra dogs
Maia & Meadow
4:17
Mark Warner
WA 3:36
Lynn Yarnall
Edmonds, WA 4:29
One-and-a-half loops (15 miles)
Sam Filetti
Bothell, WA 2:27
Steve Hamilton
WA
2:27
One loop (10.7 miles)
Heidi Bohn
Clinton, WA 2:04
Jennifer Bolibol
Everett, WA 1:48
Tom Dorman WA 1:33
Linda Ellingson
WA not recorded
Andy Goeble
WA 1:29
John Hoof
Everett, WA 1:40
Alan Husby
Everett, WA 1:57
Kristen Smutz
Snohomish, WA 1:48
Dean Taylor
Clear Lake, WA 1:29 |
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