Pistol Ultras 100 Mile Race Info

Date

3/16/2019

Location

Alcoa, TN (near Knoxville)

Avg Temps f.

62/39

Gain/Loss in ft

~2,000/2,000

ft/mile gain

Highest Elev.

~800 ft

Start

8:00am

Surface

Paved greenway

Time Limit

32 hours

Sunrise/set

7:46am/7:44pm

Furthest Aid

~4 miles

Summary: An urban ultra on the paved greenway trail in Alcoa, TN, runners will complete 10 laps of 10.35 miles, with about 200 feet of gain per lap. The path is lighted, paved, and passes through 2 main aid stations twice on each lap, with the ability to see crew every 10 miles, and the ability to have pacers right from the start. Other distance options include a 1 mile family friendly fun run/walk, a 10 miler, or the 50K, 50 miler, 100K, and/or 100 miler ultra distances. There is also a 2 or 3 person relay option for the 50K distance.

Lessons Learned from Race Reports

Many different races going on at once, with different courses. Don’t just follow who is in front of you – pay attention to course markings
Cupless event
With the two aid stations so close to each other at each end of the course, it’s easy to lose a lot of time if you stop at all 4 of them (2 each), so consider stopping at one per lap if that’s all you need.
Bring layers – lots of temperature swings in the past with morning, daytime, and nighttime, and the setup of the race allows for passing by your layer options often
While it’s minimal elevation gain, any little hills along the way will feel harder each lap, so be ready for more hills to appear on each ensuing lap
Music helps, especially at night, since you repeat the course so often. Also helpful to have a pacer at night, since it’s such a mental shift to run in the dark vs. daylight

Elevation

Total gain/loss: ~2,000/2,000

Ft/mile gain: 20

Course Map/Elevation profile

Aid stations

Total aid stations: 4 per lap

Furthest distance apart: ~4 miles

Locations: Miles 4.19 and 5.05 (same aid station), then miles 9.28 and 10.0 (same aid station, the start/finish at Alcoa High School)

What’s available: The usual ultra fare: gels (mostly Honey Stinger and GU), oranges, bananas, hot broth, salty/sweet foods, PB&Js, etc. Starting at night there will be heated items such as soups, grilled cheese sandwiches, burritos, etc. Specialty items can often be short-order cooked to your specifications while you complete the loop past the aid station. Then you can pick it up as you pass back by. There are 24/7 stores nearby (including Kroger and WalMart), if you or your crew need to purchase any special food items.