This race follows what is laughingly described as a trail from High Knob at Gambrill State Park up to Cunningham Falls State Park and back.  Historian Phil Hesser notes that "the Cacoctin Trail played an important role in saving Washington, D.C., from invasion by the Confederacy. As it happened, General Lew Wallace of the Union Army endeavored to slow down the advance of the army of General Jubal Early of the CSA by erasing the blue blazes of the trail at critical turning points."  The trail hasn't gotten much easier to follow since then.  Particularly in the southern section, it is mostly rocks, interspersed with jagged rocks and some big rocks.  The course record is 4:58:25.  To predict your finish time, double your best marathon time, then if you're feeling extra-tough, subtract 20 minutes.  Race registration is limited to 115; cost is only $15, which gets you well-stocked aid stations and a great post-race BBQ too.

Stewart knocked on my door at 4:15AM; Margie and Carl arrived a few minutes later, and we left Newark in Margie's van for Frederick, MD, home of Union patriot Barbara Frietchie ("Shoot, if you must, this old gray head / But spare your country's flag," she said through the enervating fog of 5th grade English class).  We got to High Knob in good time, were made to show the water we would carry before we were given our race numbers, then met Kevin Sayers, the race director.  We got some photos from the Tea Room deck, changed, greased and took some vitamin I, then talked with some veterans of our Dawgs FatAss 50K, and Carl and Margie met some other friends from the ultra circuit.  Kevin gave a 15-minute "orientation" about how the blazes would start out black, then be blue or invisible, most people would get lost, if you came back to the finish from any direction but the correct one you would be DQ'ed, and crying is allowed on course but not in the finish area.

The race went off at 8 with a loop around the parking area, down around the Tea Room, down a pretty long, steep rocky hill, then down a really long steep rocky hill, and people weren't talking much. They were concentrating on not falling down and getting maimed, and speculating on how fun it will be to run back up these hills after 30 miles and 6 or 8 hours in the heat.  I settled in for a while with Charlie Hogan and Harry Smith, who'd done our FatAss.  We went past a guy whose cell phone kept ringing; he didn't answer, said it was just his wife.  Eventually Charlie and I pulled ahead.

I was draining my 40-oz. water pack pretty fast, and was glad to see the first aid station at Hamburg Rd. about 6 miles out.  I got handfuls of: pretzels, chips, oatmeal cookies, some chocolate baked stuff and lots of coke.  The trail became more runnable, and Charlie and I passed a few more people.  After a while I picked up the pace a bit and pushed on ahead, grabbed more salty stuff at the second aid station at Delauter Rd., passed a few more people.  I saw some front-runners returning, paused at a great overlook above Frederick, reached the turn-around point at 2:55 in about 25th place and gobbled some more stuff there while a volunteer refilled my water pack for me.  Karen Shiley reached the turnaround point after me but got off again ahead of me.  About 15 minutes after the turnaround Carl and Margie passed by, then Stewart a few minutes later with encouraging shouts and high-fives.  I kept Karen in sight until the Delauter Rd. aid station.

For the last 10 miles or so I was pretty much alone, and the trail marks got sparse.  I was able to stay on trail until the final two miles by checking for marks facing the other way.  With the sun overhead, the more open sections of trail started to get hot.  At the Hamburg Rd. aid station I had a popsicle and a salt tablet to keep from cramping up.  I had been following people instead of studying trail in the early part of the race, so on the return the final miles looked unfamiliar.  I walked some sections I was unsure of but ran everything else I could, figuring I'd be walking enough on the final hills.  About two or three miles from the finish I found myself on a yellow-blaze trail, and spent about 10 minutes getting back to the point where I'd gone astray, then spent the next 20 minutes stumbling along trying to get some mental focus back.  The final big climbs were just as nasty as I had anticipated.  I picked up a couple of places when two lost guys returned to the blue trail right behind me a mile from the end, and I held on to finish 22nd in 6:46:59, no falls, bee stings or other mishaps..

Stewart met me at the finish, having blown his Gatorade at the turnaround point and taken the first DNF of his career as a Dawg.  The volunteer who drove him back was very accommodating, even pulling over on the highway to let him have a word with the guardrail.  He'd spent an hour horizontal back at High Knob, had a final Impressionist yawn and was feeling much improved when I saw him.  The temperature was about 90, so we moseyed into the Tea Room for some shade, rehydration, burgers, ice cream sandwiches, etc. and we chatted with other runners, most of whom had gone off-course at least once.  After a while we went out on the deck to enjoy the view and put our feet up, the breeze kept the sun bearable, and we yelled encouragement to runners struggling up the final 200 yards of the course below us.  We cheered for Vicki Kendall, Margie and Carl as they came by in order, 61st--63rd, and walked out to see them finish in 8:11:29 (Vicki) and 8:11:41 (Margie and Carl together).

Carl and Margie had managed not to get off course at all.  Carl had one pretty harmless fall, a couple of stings, and a good scare from a rattlesnake.  His comments:

"Killer, freaky, brutal, awesome, nasty, technical but run-able trail with some long tough climbs.  Warm but dry weather with a nice breeze here and there.  Tremendous overlooking views of the valley, and areas of mature, beautiful forest.  A nice wasp sting, a chilling close encounter with a rattle snake, and freaky razor rocks that you "just run it Carl".  Had to fall once, just to make sure it was a trail run, but no injuries.   Fruit smoothies and ice cream! at the aid stations.  A hamburger and beers at the finish.   Old friends, new friends, legends, and future legends ... studettes?  Catoctin is a great trail run that rocks!"

We all had a beer or four and rolled home.