A Green WS100 Trip

Just thought a green way to do Western States 100 Miles in 2009 in case my family want to leave for the annual two month visit to Taiwan earlier and can not go with me. Then I have to leverage my pain tolerance level as an ultrarunner :-)

My Good Old Friend Amtrak

Nice Capitol Corridor Train

I can take Amtrak to Truckee on Friday and come back from Auburn on Sunday,

1. Home (7:00am) to Fremont Amtrak (7:09am) - $1.75, AC210
2. Fremont (7:09am) to Sacramento (9:45am)
   
3. Sacramento (10:00am) to Truckee (12:45pm)
4. Truckee (1:30pm) to Squaw Valley (1:54pm) - $1.5, TART

The Amtrak ticket costs $43. Without using drop bags, I should be more flexible on arriving time. I'll need to check the RD to confirm if I can check in late. Otherwise, I need to leave on Thursday noon, costing me half day of work.

On coming back,

1. Auburn (1:50pm) to Sacramento (3:20pm)
2. Sacramento (3:35pm) to Fremont (6:07pm)
3. Fremont (6:16pm) to Home (6:26pm) - $1.75, AC210

After running 100 miles, coming back on Amtrak is cheaper - $34 :-) The total cost for the trip, including the local buses, is $82.

After the awarding ceremony, I'll have to walk a few miles to the Amtrak station from the Placer high school. If I crawl and can not make the 1:50pm Amtrak bus, I think I need to hitch a ride to Sacramento, where there is 5:40pm train.

I don't know if this is cheaper than carpooling. Both are GREEN. This is just another way to do it in case I have any difficulty.

Friday Night

To save money, I can just sleep outdoors at the start for the night before the race like my favorite way at Wasatch Front 100 Miles. Then I'll have to find a way to deliver my stuff to the finish. I'll check if I can give it to the race personnel to bring it to the finish. Hey, I have done this at Wasatch for the past two years :-)

My Friday night at Wasatch Front 100 Miles

Otherwise, I'll have to haul my stuff all the way to the first aid station at mile 16 of Red Star Ridge that accepts drop bags. I'll have to add the weight training into my schedule so that I can carry sleeping bag, clean clothes, etc on the race day for 16 miles without feeling too tired.

Not too tired? According to the WS100 Course, this involves 4,353ft gain and 1,327ft loss in elevation - not very gentle for this 16 miles. Plus there is altitude :-( I'm not sure how much time I'll lose. Thinking positively, I should feel flying after dropping the stuff at the Red Star aid station.

Ha Ha Ha!