Ultra Kraut Running

Traditional pre-race photo of my training group (Paul missing).

I've had a great year since I was able to come back to running and ultrarunning exactly one year ago, when I toed the line of the 2014 Mountain Mist 50K. This time around, I've had a full year of training under my belt, ready actually race this thing. In previous years, I'd either been injured, training for another race or undertrained. This time, I was feeling pretty good about my training. In fact, I even decided to "taper". Actually, I didn't really taper, I just decided to rest my legs for a full three days prior to the race. Longest break I had from running in 12 months:-)

#3 finisher (on right) and me (on left) running "side by side" early on.

The Pistol Ultra offers distances of 50K solo/relay, 100K and 100M. It is the epitome of an urban ultra. The race takes place on the paved Alcoa-Maryville Greenway near Knoxville airport, a linear path that runs along Pistol Creek. Runners basically run a 5.5 mile out & back section with lollipop loops at each end of the course, totaling approx. 11 miles per loop. That means runners run anywhere from 1 loop (50K relay) to 9 loops (100 miler). The race is perfect for first timers  as the RD provides very generous cutoff times for all distances. The entire course is paved with tiny sections of concrete as well as a 10ft dirt section and the elevation gain added up to just 1500ft for the 50K distance and even that seems a bit generous. It is most definitely a fast course, which also makes it a perfect race for those of us looking to get a 50K, 100K or 100M PR. A 100 mile runner might even get away without a headlamp as the majority of the path is well lit 24 hours a day. There were a total of 3 well stocked aid stations including the start/finish area that runners pass by at least 5 times per loop and warming areas and tents were provided for runners as well.