1. Richard Smith / OKC
2. Stan Carrier / OKC
3. Dan Threlkeld / Tulsa
4. Ken Childress / Tulsa
5. John Nelson / OKC
6. Bill Richardson / OKC
7. Allen Schmoyer / Edmond
8. Doug Ryan / Grapevine, TX
9. Steve Huhn / Bixby
10. Brian Hoover / Tulsa
11. Jason Thomas / Siloam Springs, Ark.
12. Martin Pascual / Dallas
13. Thomas Hill / OKC
14. John Hargrove / Arcadia
15. Mike Ketcherside /
16. Alex Eaton / Tulsa
17. Bret R. Sholar /
18. Michael Talbert /
Who did I miss? I know there were others.
We began in downtown Arcadia at
the historic Round Barn at 4am and ran to Stroud.
I was suprised at the huge
turnout that all seemed to appear out of nowhere at 3:55am
and all seemed anxious to
get started. Brian Hoover, who must sleep with his camera,
had it ready for a
quick shot of the group. My wife held up a spotlight I had in my truck
and we
took
this shot minutes before we headed out on the Mother Road.
|
The weather was great at 4am our skies had cleared and we dropped to 72-degrees.
My hope was the clouds would move in later that
day and hold down the temperatures.
Sadly that never happened. It warmed to 97 by afternoon, but there was a breeze.
Ultra runners are a very diverse and interesting lot and I had a chance early
to visit with
many of them. The Mother Road 100 race director, Thomas Hill, was there and
we had
a chat about the race and how he cooked up the idea for this one time event.
He's smart,
motivated, and a heck of a runner. He ran with the lead dogs the entire day.
He did
promise all who enter the race will get some swell stuff in the pick up bag.
The faster runners seperated after a couple of miles. Best I could tell, most
of the day we
had 4 groups going. My wife said there were about 2 miles between each of the
groups.
I was in the third group with John Hargrove and John Nelson. I learned
a lot from visiting
with Hargrove. He's done it all really, Badwater, Western
States, Leadville,
Pikes Peak,
Traveller, name a race and he's probably run it. I was suprised
to see he
was doing this
run in racing flats! John doesn't spend much time at the aid stations. Probably
20-30
seconds tops. We would look up and John would be 100 yards down the road.
Lesson learned, tell your war stories later, keep moving. Good tip John.
I love talking to other ultra runners. We can learn so much. Experienced runners
can keep
you from making a lot of mistakes. Ask a lot of questions, I've never met
an experienced
ultra runner who would not share some wisdom. The stories of the early day
of the
ultra sport fascinate me.
Overall I think the time and miles passed pretty fast, we had more traffic
than I expected, but most
cars/trucks moved over when they saw you coming. The first half of the race
is a bit more hilly
than the 2nd half. I also believe there are more shoulders on the roads the
2nd half.
While we were running I tried to think about what the race was going to be
like. Seeing
100+ runners at the start will be amazing. Based on what I saw, the rabbits
will soon seperate
from the rest of us. While I don't like the idea of starting the MR100 by running
back to the
west for 5 miles and then turning around so that the starting line will also
be mile 10, it may be
our
only chance to watch the speed demons zip by.
My buddy Stan had only planned on doing 10 so he could get home to his boys,
so we didn't
have much of a chance to tell old stories, but it was good swapping lies for
a few miles before he
bailed.
Others, had no thoughts of doing the entire run, some wanted to get in 20 or
25 slow miles to see
what the Mother Road experience was like. Don't kid yourself, it's going to
be dangerous out there.
Expect most drivers to give you a little road as they pass, but others
will not. Be ready to run some
in the weeds when
they fly by. Hargrove said to expect "goat head" stickers in November
and told
me to wear taller
socks. Who am I to argue with John?
We could not have done this run without our crews. Most of the day we had four
crews
chasing down the various groups with food and fuel. They provided rides, sympothy,
and
encouragement. They saved us.A running tip though: Don't try "broasted
chicken" while running.
My wife said, "even those faster runners were nice." I kept asking
"just how far ahead of us are they?"
She said, "Oh, they are miles and miles ahead of you." Sometimes you don't
want honesty when
you are running.
 |
John Hargrove ran to Chandler then caught a ride home. Alex Eaton
joined John Nelson and I. The younger and much stronger Alex picked up
the
pace
and Nelson slowed a bit, so Alex and I ran together. A newspaper reporter
from the Bristow newspaper stopped and asked us some questions about
what
we were doing and about the race in November. He took our picture
and we were off. Ken Childress had gotten a bad headache and wisely
rode with
his wife Dana for a few miles. In the final miles Ken
rejoined us
and
he did great.
Ken is a smart runner who races much more than I and has
a wonderful wife, Dana,
who is also into running. You are a lucky man Ken.
In the final couple of miles I could feel the heat. My legs were fine, my feet
hadn't
blistered, but I could feel my core temp. rising. Pouring
ice water over my head
seemed to refresh me, and I did that a couple of times during the last 10 miles.
I was ready
to finish and get
into
the air conditioner. My pace was faster than I
will do the race, but I know it won't be 97 degrees in November. I pray it
will
be cooler.
Not sure if we will do another big organized training run before Nov. 11th.
But what a rush! My thanks to everyone who showed up, to our support crews,
and to every Route 66 driver who give me the extra couple of inches of road
when
they passed. It's always good to finish a training run without dying.
Can't wait for November !
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Picture from our 1st Mother Road Training Run held July 8th
 |
 Arcadia, Oklahoma Mile 0, Mile 10 The Historic Round Barn 35.666 N 97.326 W Elevation: 968 feet Population: 279 Arcadia is very small town about 20 miles N.E. of Oklahoma City. Mile 0. According to the updated Mother Road 100 web site, we will begin here and run 5 miles west (towards I-35) then turn around and run back to Arcadia. That means this is the start and the first aid station at 10 miles. |
 Arcadia, Oklahoma There is funky little hotel about 50 yards from the start. They are called "Hillbillees", sort of a country version of the Bate's Motel. Seriously, it may be a great little place to visit or stay. I don't really know. |
 Mile 14.5 About 4.5 miles N.E. of Arcadia. No shoulders. Get use to it. There are few shoulders to run on the first 40 miles. But lots of cattle to view for you city slickers. |
 Mile 17.6 I saw this Conoco Gas Station/Convenience Store called "Joe's Place". Joe wasn't there that day, but they have rest rooms and cold drinks. The lady behind the counter said they are open on Saturdays from 6am to 10pm. |
| Luther, Oklahoma Mile 17.7 35.7 N 97.2 W Elevation: 968 feet Population: 920 About 17.7 miles in you will see the "Luther City Limits" sign. The small town of Luther sits off the road. There are shoulders on the road here that last for about a half a mile.  Mile 18.3 from the start you'll see this sign. There are some nice hills from 18.5 miles to about 20.5 miles. Not Pikes Peak, but just some rolling hills. |
 Taken 20.1 miles from the start. Can't see it well but this is a long downhill followed by a long uphill. There are some big shade trees close to the road. Plenty of areas for a pit stop. The Mother Road race website says we will run facing traffic. |
 Taken 22.8 miles from the start. Curved roadway and another rolling section of the course. I do think there are many more hills the first half of the route. |
 Taken 24 miles from the start. Okay folks, here is the deal: I don't know what the official course will be. The race director says some of this will be off the main highway and run on the original Route 66. So please don't get too caught up on the mileage listed here. For this trip, I did not take 66B but continued straight on the main Route 66 highway. |
 Wellston, Oklahoma Mile 26.3 35.69 N 97.06 W Elevation: 890 feet Population: 825 "Bev's Travel Center" This is 26.3 miles from the start. This is a very nice and newish convenience store with at Subway resturant inside. But Bev was not there. They have inside tables, big clean rest rooms, and lots of food. It might be a good place for family/friends to gather. Also, from here you can get onto I-44 (Turner Turnpike). |
 You'll find lots of road kill on Route 66. I don't thing this skunk made it. |
 Taken 28.6 miles from the start. |
 Taken 29.6 miles from the start. This is Seaba Station. Though I doubt we will be doing much shopping. There are a few funky old antique shops along Route 66 for family/friends to check out . I did not go inside to see if Seaba was working. |
 Taken 32.4 miles from the start. This is Turk's Country Store. The clerk inside said they were open on Saturday's from 6am to 8pm. They have gas, food, and a small rest room. |
 Taken 32.8 miles from the start. I tried to photograph the rolling hills. Nothing too steep really, just one small hill after another. |
 Chandler, Oklahoma Mile 36.4 35.42 N 96.53 W Elevation: 984 feet Population: 2,842 |
 Saw this Jiffy Trip convient store. |
 Right after a sharp 90-degree left turn heading towards "downtown" Chandler you will see this huge mural on the left. |
 37.3 miles from the start. Downtown Chandler. This should be fun running through this town. Probably a good place for family/friends to wait for you to run through. There are some neat little store/shops to kill some time. |
 37.4 miles from the start. The local park with a big metal buffalo. That's me with my hands on my hips doing deep knee bends. At 38.7 miles I saw a Ken's Pizza and a Wal-Mart that has a McDonalds inside. |
 Taken 39.6 miles from the start. The shoulders resume for about a mile then end again. Just expect to be running on the road a lot. |
 Davenport, Oklahoma Mile 44.2 35.7 N 96.8 W Elevation: 840 feet Population: 417 Taken 44.2 miles from the start. There is a Citgo convient store in the background. I didn't go in. |
 Route 66 is not all rolling hills. Some of it is straight and flat and will be pretty dark at night outside of the cities. I'm hoping there will be no wind that day/night, because out here there is nothing to slow it down. |
 Take 50.4 miles from the start. The Stroud Winery. No seriously. I didn't have the courage to go inside. It might be worth checking out. Hey you never know, could be good stuff. |
 There are areas like this, where I have my truck parked, where you must run on the road. The shoulders are sloped at a steep angle. This was taken near the winery. I expect to be whining pretty good by this point. |
 This is Route 66, so you are going to see some odd things. This space ship was take 51.3 miles from the start.. It sits about 50 yards off the highway on your left just before you get into Stroud. |
 My son, who plans on doing some pacing for me. He was kind enough to spend a Saturday morning with his old Dad, driving for me, so I could jump out and take these pictures. Can you tell he is sleepy and ready to go home? You are great son. Thanks Brian ! |
| My photo tour of the rest of the Mother Road 100 continues.
The following photos were taken about a month before. |
 Stroud, Oklahoma Mile 51.5 35.47 N 96.39 W Elevation: 880 feet Population: 2,758 I am standing on Rt. 66 where it intersects State Hwy 99. From here it's about 10 miles to the next convenience store in Depew. Topo Map of the the area. |
 Picture take 6.6 miles N.E. of Stroud on Route 66. Smooth shoulders but sloped steep in spots. Gentle rolling hills. Travelling N.E. toward Depew. |
 A Citgo convenience store near Depew. The hours of the store are 5am to Midnight. They do have a rest room and cold drinks. Here you can turn right and make a short loop through the "downtown" of Depew, or just stay on "new" Route 66. I turned right and went through downtown Depew. |
 Depew, Oklahoma Mile 62.0 35.8 N 96.5 W Elevation: 915 feet Population: 564 I took the small loop through town. Topo Map of the area |
 Outside of Depew there are NO shoulders for about 5 miles. The road is a narrow two lane. Lots of rural homes with big ugly dogs. Pepper spray may be needed here. |
 Bristow, Oklahoma Mile 69.2 35.50 N 96.24W Elevation: 840 feet Population: 4325 This was taken 17.7 miles from Stroud. Shoulders resume just outside Bristow. Just outside Bristow you cross under Turner Turnpike. You are about 20 miles from Sapulpa. Topo Map of the area |
 Kellyville, Oklahoma Mile 84.8 35.56 N 96.13 W Elevation: 784 feet Population: 906 feet There's another Citgo on the left. 33.3 miles N.E. of Stroud. Here a sign read: Sapulpa 8 miles. Topo Map of the area |
 Sapulpa, Oklahoma Mile 92.8 36.13 N 96.6 W Elevation: 740 feet Population: 19,166 Topo Map of the area |
 Our final destiniation: Frankoma Pottery in Sapulpa! My car shows about 42 miles from Stroud to Sapulpa. My total mileage (if my math is correct) is about 95 miles, so obviously there will be a few short excursions off the highway to make up the extra 5 miles to bring the distance up to 100. I hope this has been helpful to you. I enjoyed driving the course and look forward to running it with you in November. Dan |