2015 Tuckerman Inferno - Race Report

MORNING LIGHT ON MT. WASHINGTON

A few pictures and a brief race report from the Tuckerman Inferno Pentathlon. The inferno is an 8 mile road run, 6 mile flat and class I whitewater kayak, 18 mile bike to Pinkham Notch, 3 mile hike up Tuckerman Ravine, followed by about a 2 mile ski downhill. My watch said the total elevation gain was 5,728' and 34.3 miles. It was a very windy day. Challenging course. I didn't train much. Ran roughly 5 days with one over 5 miles since November. Got in a kayak the day before the race. Before that it had been a few years. Don't think I have ever ridden a bike that far. Felt good about the hike and ski. I've been skiing all winter. Also uphill skinning about once a week. The run felt great. Wind effected the kayak. Water level in the Saco River was low. Dry areas and hard to navigate boulder fields. The sun was out for a little while and directly in our eyes. Still plenty of ice on the river. My foot rests were not adjusted properly. I think it contributed to the leg cramping I experienced the rest of the race. A few times during the bike ride I had to stop because of cramps. Fortunately it felt better going uphill. And that's pretty much all we did. 2k vertical feet on the bike ride up to Pinkham notch. 18+ miles. Started to snow. Wind was strong. Gusts up to 40 maybe. At one point I got pushed into the highway. Close call with a car from Massachusetts. Also felt nauseous most of the bike and hike. Used Tailwind for fuel. Usually doesn't make me feel bad. I think part of my cramping and nauseous came from generally eating a shitty diet lately. I felt ok on the hike up to Tuckerman. Managed to keep a steady pace and not stop. The wind did as well. Top gust for the day at the summit was 127mph. I felt most trained for the ski down. But by the time I got to the top my legs cramped up so much that I couldn't get my boots on. Needed help from two people. My quads were shot during the downhill. The conditions were awesome, but harder to enjoy, with my leg muscles alternating between cramping and burning. Used some pretty ugly technique to get down. Was still fun! 12th place in the Tuckerman division. 4:33:21. Can't thank Cecily enough for crewing and taking some pictures. Such a huge part of a race like this. Would have bailed on doing the race at all if it wasn't for her. Thanks to Friends of Tuckerman Ravine for putting on the inferno and for being great stewards of a very special part of the world. You can support them HERE.

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