Sunday, November 1st, 2009
MERCURY RISING
PHOTOGRAPHS BY SHANE LUITJENS
Badwater
takes place in a basin of the same name that is at the continent’s lowest point (282 feet below sea level in the aptly named Death Valley), as well as its hottest and driest (it clocked in at 134 degrees in 1913). In July, life in the basin appears to have completely evacuated the oppressive baking heat and left the magnificent piles of striated rock and awe-inspiring vistas in complete silence. Even the rattlesnakes, tarantula and scorpions have escaped underground. Needless to say, the environment tests nearly every cell in the human body.
Every year, nearly a hundred athletes ranging from ages 19 to 62 take on these conditions in the Badwater Ultramarathon. Each runner starts at the Badwater basin and runs for 135 grueling miles along a highway (the surface temperature of which can top 200 degrees), making uphill climbs over three mountain ranges reaching a staggering 8,360 feet, and ending at Mt. Whitney.
An idea that was hatched in 1977 when ultrarunning pioneer Al Arnold did the trek by himself, the Badwater Ultramarathon has been an official competition since 1988. The race attracts global participants who set records year after year. For men, the record was set in 2007 by Brazilian Valmir Nunes (22:51:29) and Jamie Donaldson of Littleton, Colo., set the women’s in 2008 (26:51:33). Most competitors finish the course in 30 to 50 hours, walking and running on the white highway lines to keep the pavement from melting the rubber in their shoes.
Many run for charity (the event itself raises money for the Challenged Athletes Foundation), but all do it for the experience of being put to one of the world’s hardest physical tests. Here’s what they had to say about it.
SHANNON FARRAR-GRIEFER, 48
HIDDEN HILLS, CALIF.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 4
I run because I love to run! I enjoy taking my mind and body to places that may seem crazy, but I believe anything is possible if you just put your mind to it, and running has proved this to me!
I will keep cool by having my team keep my body temperature down by covering me in Moeben UV wear and keeping ice on my body and wrapped around my neck at all times.
I am most afraid of the heat, the distance, the distance on the pavement and coming into the Badwater race with my blistered feet from the Western States 100 mile race 2 weeks prior, where I was pulled at mile 62, due to an 11-pound weight gain and kidney stress. This concerns me!
The strangest thing that’s happened to me during a race was that every time I’ve run the Badwater race, the hallucinations are pretty strange. I’ve seen cowboys, UFOs and even pouring hot lava that I would step over, but nothing was there. At mile 220 during my Badwater Double [Doing the race start to finish and then back to start, completing 292 miles], I saw all the bushes as people that were chasing me. That was scary!
I am dedicating this year’s race to all the children who are hospitalized at LA Children’s Hospital and the Chase Foundation.
DARREN FORTNEY, 48
MIDDLETON, WIS.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 1
I am most afraid of a DNF (did not finish). I have trained so hard for this event. Many people around me have sacrificed time and energy for me. I will do everything I can to ensure that I finish [the] race.
I am dedicating this year’s race to all those that have been affected by cancer. I am most excited to have also incorporated an awesome fund-raiser with Gilda’s Club Madison.
When it’s over, the first thing I will do is reflect and be thankful for the opportunity to complete such an event. I will never take my health and my abilities for granted. After some sleep, I may enjoy a beer and dinner with my crew.
CHERYL ZWARKOWSKI, 51
SPRING VALLEY LAKE, CALIF.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 2
I am different from the other runners because … I’m not really so different! I have good days and not so good days. I train, I get injured, I still get nervous before every race, I lament, I fall—but (so far) I get up and keep going, one foot in front of the other. Running has afforded me the chance to test my limits, both physically and mentally. It has taught me that anything is possible.
The best part of the course is quite literally the beginning, the middle and the end. Interestingly enough, it is also the worst part of the course. As with most things in life, it’s a double-edged sword!
MORGAN MURRI, 44
PAGOSA SPRINGS, COLO.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 1
When I am not preparing for and running 135 miles through the desert, I am promoting our charity Gecko (Giving Every Child Knowledge of the Outdoors).
The most important preparation I made was the personal and mental commitment of knowing that when I step on the starting line I will finish.
I will keep cool by drinking lots of water, eating epic amounts of salt and stuffing my hat full of ice cubes.
ART WEBB, 67
SANTA ROSA, CALIF.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 11
I run because it keeps me extremely fit and I can eat anything I want. I run Badwater because it is my attempt, at the most basic human level, to endure the overwhelming challenges of a hostile environment, under the most extreme conditions on earth. Although Badwater is humbling and intimidating, competing in it honors the human spirit.
I am most afraid of the suffocating heat. It presses against every cell and is even extremely difficult to breathe. It’s an enormous task to survive the 42 miles across the oven-like temperatures to Stovepipe Wells, but this major challenge is probably why I am here every year.
The best part of the course is the switchbacks at mile 131. After two days of heat, suffering and lots of misery, the body and mind realize that the end is near and starts shutting down, but the emotions kick in and the struggle to the finish is filled with an incredible endorphin rush and crying spree. Crossing the finish line at Badwater is as good as it gets!
I am dedicating this year’s race to the youngsters at the Valley of the Moon Childrens Foundation, a crisis center in Santa Rosa California for abused and abandoned kids. My goal is to help inspire and motivate these extremely needy kids.
JONATHAN GUNDERSON, 31
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 4
When I am not preparing for and running 135 miles through the desert, I am trying to be the best husband, the best son, the best friend, the best biotech engineer, the best missionary and the best person I can be. This race is an extension of who I am and can only derive meaning from other more important pursuits. As much as I love the challenge, I always make sure that my focus is on how the journey complements my other passions in life.
I am different from the other runners because I have chosen to apply myself to this type of race. While there is nothing less impressive about those runners who have chosen to hone their craft from the 100 meters through the marathon, the uniqueness about Badwater and similar races is the amount of time one has to physically, mentally and spiritually struggle.
The best part of the course is Furnace Creek to Stovepipe Wells. This is what I consider to be the first major challenge of the race. There is nothing like winding through quiet salt flats, sandscapes and rock formations while being ever aware of the stifling heat and wind of the Valley floor. The heat creeps up on you silently, and those who drop out often do so because of this section. The paradox of quiet peacefulness and deadly heat is intriguing to me.
I am dedicating this years race to my maternal grandmother and the former pastor of my church, who both battled and died from cancer in 2001. The spirit they fought with and lived continues to inspire me. I am also raising money to build water wells in Uganda, a place I’ve done work in before. I work with World Harvest Mission.
NICKADEMUS HOLLON, 19
SAN DIEGO, CALIF.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 1
I am different from other runners because I’m 19 years old. I can look around the starting line of Badwater and see men, left and right, with facial hair or some form of 5 o’clock shadow. I can’t even grow a beard! A lot of people believe that ultrarunning is something you get into once you’ve been around for 30-40 years and plain old marathons just don’t do it for you anymore. I got sick of marathons by age 17, so I may be a couple of decades ahead of my fellow competitors.
I will keep cool by wearing one of those funky space suit things, that makes us runners look even crazier. But primarily, I have a fantastic six-person crew dedicated to getting my butt to the finish line, and they are equipped with a mister, cold sponges, ice bandanas, ice water and more.
When its over, the first thing I will do is use my Whitney permit and summit that 14,000-foot beast of a mountain. Then I’ll probably head back to the hotel and begin my post-Badwater diet that consists strictly of vanilla coke and chocolate ice cream.
JAMIE DONALDSON, 34
LITTLETON, COLO.
BADWATER COMPLETIONS: 3 (2009 FINISH TIME: 27:20:18)
When I am not preparing for and running 135 miles through the desert I am teaching middle schoolers, hiking the mountains of Colorado with my husband and playing with our Newfoundland.
I run because it keeps me disciplined and focused in my day-to-day life, introduces me to great people and takes me to many amazing places.
The most important preparation I made was spending countless hours in the sauna trying to convince my body that 130 degrees is normal.
When its over, the first thing I will do is hug my crew and head off to climb the last 11 miles to the top of Mt. Whitney (all while eating a big bag of M&M’s).
