Orcas Island Fat Ass 50K 2008

Last year I started my Orcas Island post by saying that James Varner the RD for the race was a sick and twisted man. When you run a Varner course you expect a tough challenge. With a course change due to snow I anticipated an easier course, wrong! Two loops with about 7000 feet of climbing did a good job of kicking my tail! Steve, Bob (Steve's Dad), Michelle, and Margaret all car-pooled to the event. Steve and I ran the 50K and the others ran the 25K. Getting to Orcas Island involves an hour long ferry ride from Anacortes Washington. We stayed in a condo near the Rosario Resort which was just down the hill from the race start in Moran State Park.Here's a few of the pictures I took on the trip and during the run.

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

In Washington State we live for sunny clear days. This weekend was incredible! Steve and I finished in 6:54:40. The course consisted of two loops. We went along Cascade Lake and then made a climb up. We didn't have any problems with Mt. Goats because the slope was too steep for them. At the top of the 45min chin scraper we turned and burned down a quad burner steep section back down to Cascade Lake. I think about 90% of the course was climbing, or so it seemed. We were joined this year with the 25K runners at the start. Steve and I got caught up with the faster 25K runners for the first few miles and then things thinned out a bit. You may have noticed the picture of my bloody knee. I fell at about mile 9 on a flat wide section of the trail along Mountain Lake. I got a little too conversational while looking back at a runner and nearly landed on my face. I'll keep it short and sweet. If you have never run this race you need to have a look at it. It's a great event. James rents the entire Camp Moran with bunkhouses and a main log cabin for food and entertainment. We had a three piece bluegrass group playing in the cabin post race.