Race Report: Javalina Jundred

Marshall with Kate preparing gels in ziplocks

Outside of Fountain Hills, Arizona, is  McDowell Mountain Regional Park, the Sonoran Desert local for Javalina 100.  After Bulldog 50km in August I was in this zone of neutrality.  I had no interest in running races as I was perfectly content to run for the sake of running, but I also wanted to capitalize on the big trip in the Alps this past summer to jump into a big race because I still had an ill feeling in my stomach from San Diego 100.  That wasn't a race that I thought accurately portrayed the training and effort I had put in in the beginning of the year.  Without the proper nutrition plan building up to the race and more importantly during the race, miles 60-90 became a disaster.  What I did take away from it was my ability to get through the crappiest of hours and pull through.  It was a character building race but I still felt like I needed a good 100 race, so after many weeks of debating back and forth of what to do I entered Javalina.  Now my training had a purpose and so I strung together 3 weeks of 100 miles hoping it will keep me fit enough complete the run.  My main purpose and goal for this race was to learn how to manage it.  I had no time goals because that wasn't the main concern.  I would have other opportunities for that. What I needed was to understand how to run 100 miles and apply the proper nutrition.  About 2 months earlier I had started to make friends with members of the Coyotes running group who have a group run Thursday mornings at various locations in the Santa Monica mountains.  With that, I asked Marshall, a good friend I met on the Thursday morning runs, if he would be willing to pace me and without hesitation he was more than willing.  So Megan, Marshall, and I drove to Arizona in 'The Bisq', a term Megan affectionately calls her car (Seabisquit anyone?).  Megan's mom lives in Phoenix so we stopped there to have lunch with her and Megan's step-brother and his family.  It was a pleasant lunch and we were soon off to Javalina Jeadquarters in the regional park.  Several Coyotes were running, crewing, and pacing the race so Jimmy, crew-chief of the Coyotes (and founder), had a plush spot right in front of the start/finish of each loop; a perfect spot to grab what was needed for each 15 mile loop (6.5 total=101.4 miles).  After setting up camp and chowing on dinner Megan bid farewell and went to her moms for the night.

4am rolled around and I prepared all that was needed: bottles of water, backpack with gels and salts, pre-race restroom activity (good sign), and clothing for the 6am night start.  The shot (not really) went off and everyone was on their way to their 101.4 mile journey:

Feeling good after first loop and stuffing a gel down throat. I eventually ate 40 of them!

Lap 1: I was feeling good about the lead up to the event and I had a feeling that I was going to perform well.  In all my excitement I felt something was missing.  I looked down at my hands and realized I had no water bottle with me. All the good feelings I had suddenly turned into dread.  However, I realized that under the cool morning air I would probably be fine until I got back to my crew.  I tried to carry a paper cup with water in it so I could take my gels every 30 minutes as I had planned but that was completely scratched when the jostled water wouldn't cooperate.  So I took the gels early and a little late after bumming some water off another runner and all the while making sure I was staying around a 10 min/mile pace, which was very difficult to do as my fresh legs just wanted to speed ahead.  After a calm first loop I arrived at Javalina Jeadquarters seeing Megan flashing her big smile which was unexpected, since I was expecting her later.  I kissed her and fetched my gels and water bottle (woohoo!) for the second loop hoping for a similar split. 2hrs 34 min, 15 miles

Still feeling good after second loop: 31 miles

Lap 2: Leaving the way I came (washing machine loop course) there were runners coming to and from all still excited in the early part of the race.  I approached the loop in relatively the same way but now with water in hand.  The next 15.4 was uneventful except the beautiful sunrise over the desert mountains.  The temperatures were absolutely perfect.  It's typically quite warm and dry for this time of year but everyone was lucky enough to get cooler temps.  I arrived at the 31 mile mark in another good time of ~5hrs 8 min

Heading out on Loop 3

Lap 3: While Marshall gave me a full bottle of water, gels and salts, Jimmy asked me what my goal time was.  And after I bumbled 22hrs (which I was pulling out of my ass because I really didn't have a goal time) he proceeded to gently tell me to "Slow the fuck down."  Off I went and this time I was feeling a little discomfort in my legs but nothing bothersome.  I started to hit my first low point seven miles into the loop and lasted all the way to the Jeadquarters.  I understood that these moments happen and it certainly wasn't the first time I experienced them but when you feel that way it's very difficult to convince yourself that you're going to get out of it.  You just have to trust that it will.  I have never listened to music during a race believing that one is missing the natural sounds of the surrounding and I even questioned why people would use it in a past blog post.  However, at that moment I was willing to do anything to get out of this mental funk.  Grabbing more gels and salts I demanded for my ipod. 8hrs 4 min, 47 miles

Off with Marshall on the fourth loop: Miles 62-77

Lap 4: I placed the ear buds in and turned on tunes I knew I would get pumped to: Seis Cuerdas.  At first it didn't seem to make much difference but something happened.  I just started to get a high like nothing I've experienced during a run.  It was a runners high on speed.  I started to feel a lot better and got super pumped blaring the music, which now was Ozzy Osborne's "Mr. Crowley."  I was strumming and just so psyched out of my mind.  I gave eventual winner Hal Koerner a big high five as I knew he was crushing that race.  I was pumped the entire loop and arrived the aid station blasting Bon Jovi (that's right!), surprising some people, and shouting out for Marshall to be ready to roll. Katie helped put headlamps, arm skins, a wind breaker, and a Red Bull energy shot (just in case) in my pack and off we went into the sunset. 11:03 hrs, 62 miles 

Lap 5: I was so stoked to have Marshall join me and I was still pumped from the music.  We talked and laughed and I blared out the five words I knew from the Bon Jovi songs.  We were cruising until about half way through the loop where the effect of the music started to wear off and I started to experience my second low of the race, which I suspected was going to be longer than the first.  When we arrived at aid stations he would grab my bottle to fill it up while I went to the aid station food and devoured a few pieces of watermelon.  I told Marshall about a run/hike technique I had been employing in my crappy moments: 1 min run/ 30 sec hike, even on the gentle downhills.  We finally arrived at the Jeadquarters at mile 77 I devoured more watermelon and off we went. 14hrs 26 min 


Lap 6: We started off but I was still in a rut and we continued the run-hike strategy, mainly because continuous running was very unappealing to me.  At the first aid-station I needed to sit for a moment: the first of the day.  Marshall brought over chicken noodle soup and we soon moved on.  We arrived about half-way through the loop and I bummed one ibuprofen pill of another runner at an aid station.  I continued on and started to feel better so we started putting some good consistent running until we were back at the Jeadquarters.  92.4 miles, 18hrs 5 min

Final 9 miles:  After seeing that it would be possible to get under 20 hrs we hurried to get all our supplies together so we could go.  Maybe I should say Marshall hurried because at that point he was more enthusiastic than me to push the pace and get under 20 hrs.  After some more encouragement from Jimmy we went off with the goal of going under 20.  At this point in the race "pushing" the pace meant 9 minute miles and from the get-go it felt like 7:30.  Then the rain started.  At first it was a few sprinkles but then it started to pour like hell.  I was desperately looking for the turn-off to complete the final several miles back to the finish.  Finally arriving we started to head back for the final four miles soaked but ready to finish.  It looked like if we continued at our current pace we would finish under 20 hrs.  We finally saw the glow of the finish line and I came in howling so excited that this journey went the way it did.  I stopped Marshall about 50 meters short and gave him a big hug.  I continued on, high-fiving George, Kevin, Jimmy, and whoever else had their hand out there! I was on top of the world.  I had done it, a well managed 100 mile run where just about everything went as well as it could have. 101.4 miles in 19hrs 49 min,  14th overall 

Hells yes! 101.4 miles 19hrs 49 min...1:49am, 14th overall

Ecstatic with silver sub-24 belt buckle

Sitting here two days since the finish it all seems like a blur.  I'm trying to recapture every moment of the run because I'm frankly proud of this performance and what it holds for future 100 mile events.  It's quite amazing how nutrition can effect a race and maintaining that turned out to be a huge part of why I was successful.  I'm going to recover for the week and do some hiking, light jogging, and give back to the trail community by volunteering to help for a PCTR event at Pt. Magu.  Well, I'll get a free entry so maybe it's not entirely for selfless reasons.  Speaking of selfless, I was inspired and impressed on how selfless the Coyotes were for one another.  They came out crewed, paced, supported, donated their energy and time for all their runners, including myself. Simply, a good group of people.
I want to give special thanks to Marshall who took another shift off work, although I don't think he's upset about that, gave his time and his energy to pace me and made sure I had water, was eating and taking salts.  I'll be paying him the same favor next summer. And of course to my girl and love, Megan.  She devoted her time to drive to and from Arizona, gave me confidence with her support and love.  I was always excited to hit the aid station ready to hug and kiss her.
I also want to give a shout out to all the runners that toed the line, especially Erin Chavin, Adam Bowman, and Gabi Schenkel.  Congrats to all!
So what is next?  My plan is to start working on some speed, power, and climbing skills in the next few months in time to be ready for the Ray Miller 50 miler in February.  But for now, reflection and recovery.  Happy Trails.

Lap Numbers

Me & Marshall post-race

I must be tired.

My love 

Yeah, I'll be wearing that buckle for a week

Pre-Javelina 100

10/26-11/2: 100 miles
Gain: ~10,000 ft

Tour de Mont Blanc (TMB) 2009 (Italian side)

My final week of training concluded and even though I would have preferred one more month I think I'm as ready as I can be at the moment.  The rain the past week has cleared the air making running in the local mountains even clearer where views of the Santa Monica Bay and Catalina Island have been spectacular.  It was difficult to break the mode of running two times a day this past week because once I got into a rhythm it became a natural part of my day and a time-consuming one (in a good way).  Unlike my SD100 run back in June, I've typed out a list of the things I need for self-crewing (since it's a loop course) so I have all my essentials ready and organized.  My goals for the run are to: 1) stay on top of nutrition/water/salt 2) complete the race successfully 3) finish well 4) and remain injury free.  The 'finish well' remark is in reference to miles 60-90 of the SD100 where a complete disaster ensued. No food, water, or salt got me into a deep hole that I couldn't really get out of.  This was evidenced on a run this past weekend where my legs were feeling heavy, so when Megan forced me to take a gel within 5 minutes my legs felt lighter, my breathing less labored, and generally felt better.  I didn't realize how immediate it got into my system until that moment and now my number one priority is to stay on top of food and salt.  I think this is going to make a huge difference in how I perform throughout the race.
We're driving to Arizona early friday morning where I'll set up camp at Javelina Headquarters and then the fun begins 6 am the following day.  If you're interested in my real-time position during the race and (1 loop= 15 miles) you can go to this link this Saturday and early Sunday: http://www.aravaiparunning.com/avr/ultracast/
I also submitted an application to the Hardrock 100 people to be able to enter the lottery and even though I didn't run in any of their qualifying races my backpacking resume was enough to get me in, which I was ecstatic about.  That is an adventure I would absolutely love to experience and it's right up my alley: lots of hiking in the mountains at altitude.  I'll need some luck in the lottery and I'm crossing my fingers.  If I don't get into that, I'll enter the Ultra Tour de Mont Blanc (UTMB) in August, a tough but absolutely beautiful trail I backpacked in 2009.  However, that all depends on my success at JJ100 because that gives me the necessary points needed to enter.  Oh, and Western States 100 applications are due this Saturday. A lot is happening now with the lotteries coming up in December, and my twenty page research paper on the best current evidence for treating running injuries (good new stuff related to shod-less running) is due at the end of this month. Phew! 
Good luck to all 100 runners this weekend!

2 1/2 Weeks Away

10/19-10/25: 100.1 miles
Gain: ~10,000 ft.


Another week of training gone.  This is the second consecutive week of 100 miles and with Javalina Jundred 2.5 weeks away I'm closer to being prepared for the race.  I still haven't technically signed up yet as there is no real rush but I'm going to send a check via snail mail instead of forking the ridiculous $15 processing fee that Ultrasignup will charge me on top of the entry fee.

The week has been crammed with school and 2 runs/day with 44 of those miles on trail and the rest boardwalk.  As much as I prefer trails there are two reason why I have run road 56 of those miles: 1) It's a "flat" course.  JJ has 4800 ft. of gain which is basically negligible when you put it in context of the race distance. 2) Convenience: it's a great feeling stepping out your door and being able to run but more importantly it saves loads of time not having to drive to and from a trailhead; and I hate driving.  One day I'll have a place that's nestled against some trails but for now will have to make do.
For the past 4-5 days I've had a little cold and I can't determine whether running that much has suppressed my immune system and left me vulnerable or I just picked something up.  Anyway, it's finally starting to improve and I should be ready for November 11/12.
The next 2 weeks are going to be tricky in the sense that I don't think I'm going to taper until the last week to half-week.  The usual protocol is 3 weeks before but I think I run my best races with just about a week of taper and since I haven't raced since August and my recovery practices post-runs has greatly improved I think it'll be ok.
This coming up training week, starting Thursday, will include some night runs and get my headlamp combo (2 lights) dialed in so it doesn't become an experiment on race day, as it did in the San Diego 100.  Also having some practice in the 10 foot bubble of light is going to keep me better prepared mentally.  By the way, it's still 90 degrees in Arizona and on a course with full sun exposure I sure hope it drops in a couple of weeks!
Next week I'll talk about the race itself a little more, my strategy, and how I'm feeling physically, and more importantly mentally.

Training and Things...

            10/11-10/17: 100 miles
Gain: ~9000 ft.

Top of Ray Miller Trail and Pacific Coast

After those 2 days off last week where my right hip was bugging me a little I've come back better than ever.  I've hit my first 100 mile running week ever.  I've backpacked 140-190 miles/week plenty of times but never in a running setting so this was new territory.  What was surprising to me was that the mileage was not all that difficult to do; meaning I wasn't fatigued at the end of the week or anything, but the finding the time to run that much is substantial.  While trying to juggle full-time school and work it's sometimes difficult to find 2-3 hours/day to invest (weekend 4-5hrs/day) plus weight training.  So it's a given that two runs per day is going to be needed to take advantage of the small time increments in the early mornings and evenings.  Today is a recovery day and I have to catch up on school work and will soon have to make decisions on the major backpacking trip of summer '12.  We have narrowed it down to the Pyrenean Haute Route, GR11, and GR20 and I'll go into more detail on these treks (all in Europe) a bit later.
I'm one step closer to making a decision on whether to give Javalina Jundred a go on November 11 or 12 and after this good week of training I'm a little bit closer to making that commitment.   Ideally, I want to string together 3-4 100 mile weeks which I think will set me up perfectly for the run.  Although I'll be going into it without racing in my legs since August it might keep me more fresh than my San Diego 100 experience.
Kevin Chan and I course-marked a X-Terra trail run event in Point Magu State Park of the season and although wearing a large pack with stakes and a hammer isn't the most comfortable thing in the world it reminded me how fun La Jolla Canyon singletrack trails are.  The view from the top of Ray Miller Trail is priceless and running down that well graded singletrack with the view of the Pacific Coast with the  the Channel Islands as background made me feel like a kid playing in this giant playground and it was great to share that experience and feeling.  I started running with some members of the Coyotes theses past weeks and it makes running the long runs so much more fun when you're with people you like and respect.  I've always been the sort to do things on my own because of a need for that solitude, and that is still there,  but I'm starting to learn and appreciate the value of community.  A little company with the right people is a good thing.

Thoughts and Great Weather

Why I'm sitting indoors on this sunny Sunday afternoon is due to the fact that my right hip has been bugging me all week.  I'm not sure exactly what it is but I think it's inflammation of a fluid-filled sack, called a bursa, just outside my hip.  For the past couple of weeks I haven't been stretching after my workouts like a should (and preach) and I've paid the price. I thought I was out of this cycle of injury but I should have been cautious and doing all my preventative interventions.  Fortunately, I don't think it's that bad as I can still run (unlike my ITB injuries) with it but I don't want to make it any worse.  So I'll just have to feel awful while a glorious day passes.  Why don't you just go cross-train or something?  Simply, I like being on the trails (and off). That's what my passion is and I might act like a spoiled baby but I'm not going to cross train. I use the bike for commuting and swimming is to useful if a shark is after me.  So I'll stay indoors, recovering, stretching, doing some core work, listen to some running podcasts, and pout.  My training week is now cut short and I'll have to make it up as soon as this thing lets up (very soon I hope).
I read an interesting thing on Lauren Fleshman's blog last night and she basically states that an athlete (something I'm coming to terms with) should think of themselves as a bicycle wheel and the spokes that maintain the integrity of the wheel are: nutrition, physical training, mental training, balance, competition, mental training, and recovery techniques.  These spokes can change but if one goes haywire or there is too much emphasis on one spoke, the wheel will start to breakdown.  So I have to admit my recovery technique spoke is busted up and I need to start paying more attention to it.  There is nothing like your passion instantly getting ripped away from you and only then (at least me) do you realize how important it is in giving it TLC to maintain good health; because this not only effects one's physical well-being but one's mental health and that one seems to be really needy.
My interest in Javalina Jundred will be determined this week by how my body reacts. If all goes well and I'm able to get a couple longer runs this weekend, injury free, I'll sign up for that hundo. If not, I'll give myself even more time to recover and look at a 50km or 50 miler.  Come on body, pull through!

Bulldog 50km: Race Report

It's been 2 years since I've been running ultra marathons and the race that started it all was Bulldog 50KM in 2009.  It was my second long-distance race and first ultra.  It's been tradition that I have a go in this race after summer backpacking with little to no running.  After backpacking the Alps, where the trails are considerably steeper and more technical, I figured I at least had more strength in my legs that should have me finish it and hopefully better than last year.  

Start of the 50km

A major heat wave warning was given to residents of SoCal and it was expected that temperatures would crack the 100s.  The weather did not disappoint.  The heat cracked the 104F barrier during the race and everyone suffered.  That was evident by 3+ ambulance runs and a search and rescue operation for some of the participants on the course.  The course is completely exposed with absolutely no place for respite from the sun and it only got worse the longer one was out on the course, especially on the second 15.5 mile loop for the 50km runners.  

The first loop went relatively well with my calves still sore from a thursday run at the beginning of the bulldog climb so I had to adopt a run/power hike early on.  That turned out to be a blessing in disguise and it frankly made the 7000ft of climbing on the course much more manageable throughout the entire run.  I completed the first loop in around 2:15 and was feeling ok, knowing that the already difficult 2nd loop was going to be much harder with the hard sun and heat bearing down.  I had read some research on running in the heat recently on how keeping your carotid arteries cool (ie: with a wet bandana around neck) your perceived level of exertion decreases, but not so much your heart rate and blood pressure.  That means I could maybe push myself harder than under normal circumstances.  With that information I decided to try it out.

The second loop had me passing many 25km runners with several trying to find any nook and cranny of shade but my real motivation was to get to the cool Malibu Creek at mile 29.  My legs were surprisingly holding up better than they ever have but the stifling heat prevented a strong run from happening. I could hear my heart beat in my ears at times and going downhill was slower going because I didn't have the ab strength to keep my core stable for the 2nd loop while trying to gun it downhill.  I soaked my neck bandana and hat the few chances I had and if I didn't have ice in my one 20oz water bottle it would become hot water rather quickly.  I finally got to within .5 miles of the finish were I was desperately close to the 5hr mark.  Back in March I ran the reverse of this course in the Malibu Creek 50km and came in at 5hrs exactly, which was slightly disappointing.  I was determined to not come in that time this time so I pushed hard on the last section and was glad to finish in 4:58.59.  I collected my medal and sat down on one of park benches in the shade trying to hide myself from the suns rays.  

Megan ran in the 25km course and came 2nd for women after hitting a wall before prison hill.  She performed admirably considering she hasn't run since May because of a severely sprained left ankle that didn't recover fully until late July.  

I was soon surprised to hear my name being announced over the megaphone stating I came 2nd in my age group, 20-29 and 7th overall.  This certainly wasn't expected because the previous year I had been 28th overall. It shows you how much the heat took out of everyone and my improvement.

It was great to see the courage in people who braved the brutal conditions after a mild summer and complete the race.  They now know they can get through very difficult moments and personally I can't help but think that my backpacking experience played a huge role in the ability to handle the adverse conditions. 

What I'm thinking of next is the Twin Peaks 50 miler (13000 ft. of gain in the first 42 miles! eek!) in October and possibly the Chimera 100 miler in November.  My last semester of academia starts tomorrow!! Woohoo!

Face of agony when running hard the last 1/2 mile to get under 5hrs.  

2nd in age group plaque. 7th overall.

Grand Traverse of the Alps (via GR5 & GR52)

It's been a while since I last posted anything and that's mainly because I've been in France backpacking the 415 mile Grand Traverse of the Alps (GTA) with my girl, Megan.  The route starts at Lake Geneva and ends at the Mediterranean Sea but at which town depends on the route you take at the very end.  Ever since I introduced my girlfriend to long distance backpacking on the John Muir Trail last summer I've been thinking of the next trip.  After my 2009 backpacking adventure of the famous 168km Tour du Mont Blanc, otherwise known as TMB, in France, Italy, and Switzerland I wanted to do something bigger that would see more of the Alps.  Out of the several options given (GR10,11,7) we decided on the 400-420 mile GR5.  Given our limited time in the summer we needed something that was well-marked and that could be completed in around 3 weeks.  Fast-forward to the June 23 in Geneva, we were set to take a bus to Thonon-les-Bains at the edge of Lake Geneva to start the trip south.
The trail philosophy in Europe is quite different than here in the US.  For starters in France the trails tends to pass through villages and hamlets much more often, no matter how useless those places are to a hiker. A town in the US and in the Alps are completely different in the sense that we were very lucky if a hamlet provided anything for the thru-hiker; ie markets, sporting good shops, places to eat.  What you usually got was a taste of the culture and the sense of history surrounding these places.  So with different cultures comes different philosophies on the most basic of things such as when a restaurant or market is open.  In the US if you stopped in a town there would no doubt be several fast food chains, markets, and gas stations with marts that would be 18-24hrs/day.  However, if we were fortunate enough to happen upon an épicerie (small shop) they would be closed from 12pm-4pm because that's the way the French do things.  You're looking for something to eat? The kitchen doesn't open until 7pm. So if you arrive at 2pm, as we typically did in certain places, good luck finding the single shop open. Coming from the land of convenience it was frustrating at first.  However, as time went on and we adjusted it was a refreshing take on our whole approach to life.  There are also mountain huts, or réfuges, day hikes away from each other that provide dorm like rooms, dinner, and/or breakfast at a price 33-45 Euros.  Pretty expensive for a hike of our magnitude but reasonable for weekend hikers.  However, we did it 4 times and got to experience the uniqueness of each place while sharing a communal meal.
I'm not going to talk about each single day and just recount what happened but I will talk about the trip in general terms.  The first few days were very tough mentally and physically and that was because the weather had been poor and according to people that previous week had seen winter-like conditions.  What that resulted in was excessively muddy trails in combination with some the steepest trails I've hiked on; think 1500ft gain in less than 1 mile as commonplace.  Megan also was just recovering from a severely sprained ankle back in June so she had just been swimming for the past several weeks; obviously not the same as shlepping a pack up steep mountains.  On top of that we were jet-lagged since we hiked 10 miles stepping of the plane that afternoon.  However, after those first several days of adjustment to the trail and time-zone we started to get into the groove of things.  Day 6 saw our first real great weather day as we walked along the magnificent ridges of Crete des Gittes.  From that point on the weather was fairly good with only one real all-day deluge and some mild rains here and there.  What was a saving grace was that we knew the further south we went the better the weather was going to get.

After getting through the muddiest day of the GTA on that same day the trail began to have consistently descent footing.  We soon passed through the magnificent Parc National de Vanoise and quickly hiked through the corporation-deluged ski town of Tinges-le-Lac.  From there we took a variant route that stayed in the valley a bit more and thus save some time which would later allow us to finish on the longer GR52.  After camping behind a town's outdoor crucifix at Valfréjus and sending out postcards we hit the weird little village of Plampinet.  Megan claims to have heard Bojangles outside our tent during our bivouac that night but who really knows.  We then passed through the beautiful Pac Naturel Régional Du Queyras after surviving the biggest town on the trek, Briancon.  We were wandering the streets for a while before we got to the very cool town campground where we met the owner's older son Charles, a lumberjack that had worked at Grant's Pass in Oregon.  We exited the Parc Naturel on what I think is the best mountain view I've ever seen on top of the Col Girardin.  One could see this stretch of rugged mountains stretching back to Mont Blanc that was simply something I was in awe of.  Two days later a cyclone had made it's way to southern France where potential lightening was going to happen, and this was the day we had to cross over 4 cols, including Pas de la Cavale, a pass dividing two different french alp regions. Unfortunately, the great views from that col were non-existent.  Three days later we camped well away from a private farm refuge on the border of the Parc National du Mercantour where wolves were rapidly procreating after a re-introduction.  The dogs soon spent the night running around the surrounding forests  to keep the wolves away from the sheep.  However, in the middle of the middle of the night Megan's food-filled pack was being dragged away from the tent from a suspected wolf.  I yanked it back but couldn't see anything because of the lack of a headlamp.  When we reached St. Dalmas we parted ways with the GR5, which would continue boringly to the large city of Nice, and went on the longer and more rugged GR52 that would pass through the heart of the national park.  What wasn't expected were class III scrambles over talus surrounded passes that became the hardest days of the entire trip (think 25-27 mile days with 10,000+ ft. of gain).  However, that was rewarded with being able to not only witness great views but ancient petroglyphs from the Bronze Age (3200-600BCE).  This is when my shoes had finally deteriorated into useless cloth and now the sole of my foot became the cushioning.  Unfortunately over very rugged terrain they didn't last long.  The last day and a half felt like I was walking on needles and not only that when I would stand still the blood pooling in my feet would make it much worse.  We reached the Mediterranean soon and were we were very sad that it was over.  It provided us with an experience of a lifetime that I will never forget.  Here is a link to the photos. I hope you enjoy them.
Days: 21
Miles: 415
Elevation gain: 117,240 ft
*in comparison: Colorado Trail: 470 miles 65K ft.,
                          John Muir Trail (if doubled) 422 miles 92K ft.