Backbone Trail 68 Race Report
It is never a given that the roads we travel will be easy. The past few days have taught me so much about resilience, discipline, and the will to find a way through adverse conditions.
The journey began on Saturday, August 14th at 9:30am at Will Rogers State Park trailhead. I utilized the AllTrails Pro subscription to have access to the trail map offline with live GPS tracking. This was a critical component to navigating the many twists and turns of the route. I also had my Coros Vertix watch with 60 hours of battery life to document the miles along with a Garmin InReach so that others could track my progress through the adventure.
It is always a joy to have community support. Ron and Denise from 1736 Family Crisis Center were so encouraging, and I’m grateful for Phil and Gina, the videographers for this event, to be able to document the beginning of the adventure. Cozette Vergari, who is often the instigator and facilitator of so many of my events in collaboration with Rotary District 5280, made it to the start as is her habit. From the Rotary Club of Playa Venice, I had my good friend Hilton Brown who hiked the first 13 miles of the course with me. Hilton is one of the most enthusiastic and determined people I know, and his presence made the first section of the trail go by like it was a walk in the park. It was great to see my good friend Joerg Rose who brought his son Leopold out and Jerry who brought his wife Delia. Paige, my running partner when we lived in Los Angeles, brought her two sons and daughter and two boxes of donuts which is always a great idea at the beginning of a race. From my prayer group, Alex McKee was able to make it and kick us off with a prayer to set the tone for the path ahead. Five years ago, since the solo Race Across America in 2016 – my first major successful event – I have had this impression that I have a legion of angels guarding, protecting, encouraging, and supporting my crew and myself through these epic journeys.
At the first checkpoint, I met up with Manley and Mara to resupply on water and food before heading back on the trail. Manley took Hilton back to the trailhead at Will Rogers and I headed out with Mara who has just been getting into trail running the past year. She accompanied me on a pretty gnarly climb in the heat of the day. It was a joy to hear more of her story, including her weight loss journey and getting into trail running which I had listened to in depth on the Road Dog Podcast. The heat of the day and climb got her heart racing a bit more than she would like, so we messaged Manley to pick her up at a different location, and she sent me on my way trucking up the hill in the midday sun.
I reached Manley, quickly resupplied and he was off to pick up Mara and meet me at the next checkpoint near the first marathon mark. This section went pretty quickly, and I was at a fairly consistent fast pace, which if I was able to minimize breaks would put me wrapping up around 26 hours total for the hike.
At the marathon mark I took a bit longer rest, got some great food, including a hummus and vegetable sandwich, banana, coke, chocolate covered espresso beans, and Gatorade. It was getting dark by this point and the neighborhood fire watch patrol came up the road to check on us right as I was leaving. I was on the trail for about an hour when I received a text from Manley saying to call when I had cell service. I gave him a call, and he informed me that the car I borrowed had some sort of electrical short and the car wasn’t starting. They attempted to jump it and that got it moving but then the lights quickly started going out, which means likely an alternator issue or some other mechanical situation that couldn’t be solved on the spot.
The saving grace that gave our team some options was the legendary Mauricio Puerto was on his way to the next checkpoint where he was planning on running back to where I was and pacing me for a few sections of the trail. Mauricio is the most experienced person in the world on the Backbone Traill. By the end of this year, he will have completed twelve crossings in twelve months giving him the title for the most crossings of the Backbone Trail. Mauricio encouraged me that I had already crossed the toughest half of the course and had climbed over 8,000 vertical feet which left me only about 5,000 on the back half. We discussed our options, and the decision was made that Mauricio would meet me on the trail and hike with me to where his car was located then he restocked me with supplies and would then go help out Mara and Manley with what to do next.
I enjoyed the few miles of conversation with Mauricio who has given me advice many times on other courses including the Badwater 146 and “Are You Tough Enough” ultramarathon in the foothills of Santa Barbara. When we arrived at his vehicle, he stocked me up with a few food items, gave me an extra set of batteries for my headlight, refilled my two water bottles and gave me a third from his stash. He also grabbed a Red Bull which he had stashed on the side of the trail. He then walked me through where he had other supplies stashed on the trail over the next sections of the race so I could resupply multiple times before I would get to meet back up with Mara and Manley. Out of all the people in the world, Mauricio is likely the only one who has restocked items on the trail sufficient enough to get me through the night. I ended up using both of his stashes of water and Red Bull as I went through the next sections.
After leaving me, Mauricio ended up picking up Mara and Manley and driving them all the way to their house in Oxnard. That gave them a chance to pick up their trusty Prius and stock it full of supplies to head back out to meet me on the course. I met up with them at the 45- mile mark, and by this time I was still doing good but definitely excited to get some food. I had two grilled cheese and spam sandwiches, a grilled cheese and spam wrap, a banana, Gatorade, coke, a large cup of coffee, espresso beans and pretty much anything I could get down.
The next section was a nice climb which thankfully was in the early morning so I didn’t have to deal with the heat of the day. I hit the double marathon mark just as the sun climbed over the ridgeline and took my last little break at the support vehicle before heading out for the last 17 mile section where you’re not able to access support. The half an hour before meeting them was the only time I fought sleep. It was pretty intense for about 20 minutes, but thankfully I fought through it and didn’t have to take a nap, just a five minute sitdown in the passenger seat to rest my eyes while the peanut butter and banana wrap was being heated up on the grill.
The views on the Backbone Trail are just breathtaking. So many hills and rock formations and glimpses of the ocean in the background makes it a stunning experience. After leaving the crew I had a 1.5 mile climb up towards the last peak of the trail. It was still early in the morning so the heat hadn’t fully set in. After reaching the peak I could see the ocean views again and started the descent into the campground another six miles or so which had water where I could resupply. The next six miles were the toughest part of the course for me. I started heating up internally and I could feel the swelling of my feet and the few blisters forming on my toes and pads of my feet. I had passed my wedding ring to Mara on a previous stop because of the swelling of my fingers which now looks similar to sausages as they swelled with the long excursion of the hours my body had been out in the elements. The last few miles into the campground I started counting down the miles and would give myself a reward of a long drink of water about every three tenths of a mile. This went on for what seemed like hours and hours, but sure enough as time passed I eventually saw that welcome sight of the picnic tables, a restroom and the water pump.
I was completely relieved when I got the pump to release the water as I had realized I was completely screwed if it did not work and would have to troubleshoot another alternative. I stayed at the camp for about a half an hour and drank about a gallon of water while also dunking my head under the stream of liquid as it gushed out. I filled up my water bladder and bottles as I prepared to head out on the last section which held about 1.5 gallons all told. I then ate the rest of my bag of chocolate covered espresso beans which had melted into a big lump inside the ziplock bag.
The last 8-mile stretch consists of about a 2 mile climb up about 1,500 feet, then a few miles across a fire road with a slight climb and then you arrive at a stunning view of the coastline near Pt. Mugu. Thankfully the stop had given me almost a full recovery. Except for the blisters, which were giving me moderate distress, I really couldn’t complain about anything. The slow steady climb went great, but the fire road section seemed to take an eternity as I kept thinking I was about at the top only to see another section and another section. The occasional passing of mountain bikes was a welcome sight, and I enjoyed having other people on the course with me.
As I reached the top I could see the switchbacks before me and apparently there is a sign that says 3.7 miles. I began the back and forth across the hillside soaking in the fact that I was almost there, we had found a way through the obstacles of the night, and the end was in sight. The quickest way to get off the trail was the path before me and it was all downhill.
As I was reflecting on the journey and the joy of being able to collaborate with so many wonderful people, I saw Manley running uphill to join me for the descent. Next it was Ron from 1736 FCC as well as Phil and Gina to document the end of the journey. We made our way to the parking lot sharing a few stories along the way, and at just under 29 hours after the journey began it had come to a finish. The waves crashed in the distance, a few high fives and recaps to Phil and Gina were exchanged about the experience, and I was on my way with Manley and Mara to their house for a couple of giant burritos, a long shower and a very well deserved night sleep.