This is a recap of my Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim (R2R2R)
run on April 28th 2017. If you are not familiar with R2R2R, it is
traversing from one rim of the canyon over to the other side and back, and in
my case I would be doing this in one day. In total it is 40+ plus miles and gains
11,000 ft in vertical distance. There are a few different route choices, but mine
was to start at the South Rim on the South Kaibab trail, to the North Rim on
the North Kaibab and back up the South Kaibab (SK-NK-SK). This was the shorter
of the route choices at 42 miles, but was steeper than going back up Bright
Angel, which would have added 2.5 additional miles. There is also no water on
the SK, which I will explain later.
Preparing for this run was no easy task and it was something
I did not take lightly. This would be my longest pure run that did not involve
a checkpoint. Prior to this, my longest run was only 20 miles, and I was
looking to more than double that with a significant amount of vertical gain.
The one thing I had on my side was my experience with long endurance events. I
have done many multi-day adventure races and ROGAINE style orienteering events.
However, despite that, I was still a little apprehensive on how well I would be
able to handle this run. Mentally I knew I could do it, but I was more
concerned about my physical ability. I did not want to be that guy being
evacuated by helicopter, because in the canyon there are not a lot of options should
something go wrong.
A great resource that I utilized for preparation was the
‘Grand Canyon R2R2R Run!’ group on FB. There was plenty of information from
other people sharing their experiences. You can also find out about trail
conditions, water availability, etc. I checked this page frequently, because
there were trail closures on the North Kaibab due to a rock slide that occurred
earlier in year. Trail repairs were being done which meant that the trail was
closed from 8AM to 4:30PM daily. This posed quite the dilemma on a start time,
in order to avoid being turnaround by the trail closure. Option B was to start
at midnight to make it past the construction. This would mean running half of
the run in darkness, which was not very appealing. Part of the experience of
the R2R2R is the amazing scenery. But as luck would have it, the construction
band was lifted just 2 days prior to the run. This meant sticking with plan A -
a 4:30AM start time.
Sara and I arrived at the Grand Canyon on Thursday and
completed all preparations for an early morning start. I laid out all of my
gear and made some final decisions on whether or not the items were really
necessary to carry. I wore a Salomon AdvSkin5 running vest, so space was at a
premium. I counted up my calories to ensure I had enough for the run. I carried
3,200 calories in food. The remaining 1,000 calories would come from my Hammer
Perpetuem. My vest holds a maximum of 2.5L of fluid. I opted to only fill the main
1.5L reservoir and only one of my .5L soft flasks in order to save some weight
for my decent into the canyon, with plans to fill up the other .5L soft flask later
in the run. I alternated between Hammer Heed and Fizz in order to change up my
electrolyte intake. After packing up the vest and laying out my clothes, the
only thing left to do was get some sleep.
The alarm went off at 3:00AM, leaving time to eat a decent
sized breakfast and drive over to the nearest picnic area to the trail head. The
picnic area was a ½ mile away, so it was a good warm-up for the legs before the
leg-hammerfest began. We arrived at the trail head at about 4:30AM as planned.
However, after a bathroom stop and few photo opportunities, the official start
time was 4:42AM. This is coincidentally the same time I was born, but was
completely unrelated.
The conditions could not have been any more perfect. It was
never too cold nor too hot, and it never rained. The temperature at the rim was
in the low 40’s at the start, so I wore a thin jacket, but it quickly came off
just a few miles in. I never wore it again. The temperatures continued to
remain cool for most of the ascent up the North Kaibab. It only ever really got
warm on the way back when I was in the lower part of the canyon, but even still
there was a nice breeze that kept me cool.
My approach was to break up the run into 7 mile segments.
This is basically the distance between available water stops - Phantom Ranch
and Cottonwood Campground. The first 7 miles is pretty much all downhill until
you reach Phantom Ranch and then it is an uphill for the remaining 14 miles
until you top out at the North Rim. Granted the climb between Phantom Ranch and
Cottonwood is gradual, but it gets much steeper after Cottonwood.
By the time we reached Phantom Ranch, I had not had much to
drink. I checked my bladder and knew I had enough to make it to Cottonwood. I
snapped a couple pics and we ran on. This is when Sara took off. This was
always expected as she is the stronger runner. We were together but on our own
journeys. When I made it Cottonwood I was just about out of water. I refilled
my bladder and soft flask and kept moving. There would be one more water stop
before the North Rim at Manzanita. The water at the North Rim was still off for
the season, so this meant I would have to make it up to the North Rim and back
to Manzanita before I could get more water (10.8 miles). Topping off was
imperative as the steepest climb was yet to come. I did opt not to fill my
second soft flask, which turnout to be ok.
One of the amazing things about the GC is that there is no
shortage of awesome scenery. It really keeps your mind occupied and makes the
suffering a little more enjoyable. The ascent up the North Kaibab is no
exception. Once past Manzanita you get a view to Roaring Springs, a gorgeous,
raging waterfall. There are also some towering rock formations that seem as
tall as skyscrapers. Running on a Friday in early spring, trail traffic was
light, so I got to enjoy most of these views alone. Personally I take more
pleasure in viewing nature alone rather than with groups of people.
It took me 2 hours to get from Manzanita (Pump House
Residence) to reach the North Rim. I arrived in just over 6 hours. I was
stunned that I had made it there as fast as I did. It was such a confidence
boost and my energy level shot up. I thought to myself that I might be able to
actually do this in 12 hours, which is a lot shorter than I had originally
planned. However, in order to do it, I knew I had to hustle. Sparing little
time, I turned around and started to head back. The upside was it was going to
be downhill for the next 14 miles. Going uphill and downhill uses totally
different muscles, so it was a nice reprieve to be going downhill again after a
long uphill.
I started thinking about the upcoming milestones. By the
time I would make it back to Manzanita I would have my first marathon, and
midway between Cottonwood and Phantom Ranch I would have my first 50K. This
only brought me more energy, so I just kept running. I stopped at Manzanita to
fill up on some water, ate some food and I was back on the trail. I sailed
right thru Cottonwood since I did not need any water. My next and last stop
would be Phantom Ranch before my final ascent. The 7 miles between Cottonwood
and Phantom felt long. I attribute this to the time crunch I put myself on. I
wanted to give myself as much time to ascend back up South Kaibab as I could.
At Phantom Ranch I topped off my reservoir and both soft
flasks. I saw a bathroom and went inside leaving the door open. This provided
me with some shade as I situated my vest. Shortly after a woman arrived and
waited in the doorway. I went about my business repacking my vest and chatted
briefly with her not realizing I was in the women’s bathroom the whole time.
Oops! I thought it was a little strange she was just standing there, but I
thought she was just curious about what I was doing. This would be the first
time carrying a full load of water, but I knew there was no more water stops
until I reached the South Rim, and I knew it was going to be a long grind to
the finish and the temperature was rising. It was a good thing that I did,
because I did not have much left when I finished.
The start of my ascent up South Kaibab was strong. I was
tired but felt good knowing I was close to finishing. However, the more I
ascended, the more tired I became. I started eating and drinking just to keep
my energy level up. I was starting to feel a little nauseous but I kept moving
forward. I started sucking on a Gin-Gin (ginger candy). It seemed to help
settle things. I was moving slow, but was making progress forward. I knew I
could not stop if I wanted to have a chance to finish in 12 hours, and I never
did stop. But I was just not moving fast enough to make it. I watched the time
tick away on my watch as the 12 hour mark came and went. I knew I was close. I
just had to keep going. I was a couple switchbacks away when I saw the top. At
that point my adrenaline took over and literally sprinted up the remainder of
the trail. I’m sure it wasn’t much of a sprint but it felt a lot faster than I
was moving prior to that. I reached the South Rim in 12hr and 12mins. Although
I missed the 12 hour mark, I was elated to be done and to have completed the
run.
Overall, the R2R2R was an unforgettable experience. I was
super pleased with how the day went. My body held up just fine. My Salomon
Ultras and Hammer Swiftwick compression socks were a great combination. They
kept my feet happy the whole time. I end up eating only half of my food for a
total caloric intake of about 2,500 calories. It was tough but doable run. I
thought the R2R2R might be a one-and-done type run, but I have a pretty good
feeling I will be back for more.
