This 12.4 mile run starts at 6,440 ft in Lee Vining in the Eastern Sierra, and runs up Hwy 120 to Tioga Pass at 9,946 ft. The tag line is "There's only 1 hill". I had this in my plans all year and was glad to be healthy enough to commit to it the week before the race. It came at the tail end of my big Astronomy/Mountain Running weekend which started with the IOTA Annual Conference in Carson City, then the Ninina asteroid occultation video timing, then the Tioga run. I do love combining astronomy and running in the mountains! Have had some memorable weekends in Carrizo Plain and look forward to more.
Finishing up and packing up gear in Silver Springs, NV after the Ninina occultation, I realized I'd not be able to meet with Ted Swift to discuss results and still be able to get to a camp spot close to Lee Vining (a 2.2 hr drive from Silver Springs), and so just hit the road, eating the last half of my Subway egg/cheese sub as dinner, listened to more of my downloaded YouTube mp3's on science, on climate, on AI, and on philosophy as I raced across the desert. I figured I'd drive up Virginia Lakes Rd when I got to the pass above Mono Lake, as it would be higher in elevation and cooler. I sleep better in cold weather. Yes, it was cool when I got to 9,000 ft up a turnout in the national forest off Virginia Lakes rd. To save time in the early morning, I left the tent in the car and just threw out my pads and down sleeping bag, and slept well. Pre-dawn light awoke me, and I enjoyed seeing Venus rising, and Regulus and Mars in conjunction beneath Venus. Breakfast was granola and sliced up apple with cold spring water. Then, drove to Lee Vining, doing a quick stop at the overlook of Mono Lake where Dave Wymans likes to bring his photographers before dawn, snapped a few pictures, a few more at the Mono Lake Visitor's center overlook, and then parked right in front of the museum in Lee Vining where the very low-key sign in / packet pick up was for the race.
Here's the results page. I was 89th out of 130, but only 12th in my age group. Some tough, TOUGH old birds live in the Eastern Sierra. At the awards, Alana told us of one fellow who'd spent the past 12 days hiking the John Muir trail, hiked down into town late last night, did the race, almost won it, and even before the awards, had already hoisted his backpack and was back in the wilderness.