2025 Virginia Trail Fest 100 (Jim Martin)

“Not all Angels wear wings. Some wear 800-lumen headlamps and a funny hat.”

Virginia Trail Fest 100 miler, put on by Run Bum Races. It was their first time putting on this race; last year, it got canceled because of the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene. It was redemption time from my experience at Hell Hole 100, back in June.

This race took place on Oct. 11th-12th at the New River Trail in Max Meadows, Virginia, about a 2.5-hour drive from my home in Morrisville, NC. I took the day off work on Friday, left super early, and stopped for a round of golf at a course at Virginia Tech University, which is also situated on the New River. I managed to have a good dinner and got a good night’s sleep. I was familiar with the New River Trail, having run a 100k at the same location back in April. It is a beautiful trail, very flat, super runnable with a soft gravel bed. Being an old railroad line, it offers spectacular views of the river with (at times) large bridge crossings and even a few tunnels.

I got to the starting line at about 5:15 am for the 6:00 am start time. I met up with Sarah Luginbuhl, a fellow TUFF Run Club runner who was also running the 100-mile distance. Along with her crew, Rebecca Greene and Stephanie Rutkowske, who both would turn into my guardian angels and lifeline as this race wore on. It was also good to see Kevin Hodak at the start, who was there cheering on a friend.

After a quick group photo and a great rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner”, it was go time. The gun sounded, and we were off. It was up a hill from the parking lot to the trail. I had my Gym Boss timer set at 5 min / 1 min…. 5 min running, 1 minute walking. We started out wearing headlamps, or in my case, a waist lamp. The trail is easy to navigate, even at night. There are no roots or rocks, just the occasional large walnut shells that we were warned about beforehand.

I settled into the race nicely. As dawn was breaking, we came to the first aid station, which was about 8 miles in. They had the typical ultra fare for nutrition, plus Gatorade and water. The next full aid station wouldn’t be until mile 21. In between, there would be a water-only stop. I was feeling really good and was keeping up a good pace with my intervals.

As I approached the aid station at mile 20, I could start to feel that uneasy feeling in my stomach again. I got to the aid station and grabbed a few bites of food. I was met by Rebecca and Stephanie, who were waiting for Sarah. They rushed over to see if I needed anything. I felt bad freeloading off of them, but they wouldn’t have had it any other way. They gave me some Imodium tabs for my stomach, in case it got worse. They informed me that the next full aid was over 10 miles away. They gave me a few packs of peanut butter crackers, and I was on my way. I passed Sarah a few miles down the road; she was looking strong.

At about mile 30, I could feel my legs getting a little fatigued. I switched my intervals to 4/2. Longer walking, shorter running. I was feeling okay until about mile 40, when finally my stomach rebelled. This time it wasn’t nausea. It was coming out the other end. I tried my best to get to a porta-potty, but I wasn’t going to make it. So, with cheeks clenched, I waddled into the woods. I won’t get into the details; I’ll just say thank God I had tissues with me. Stumbling out of the woods, I saw another runner who jumped back because he thought I was a bear… You can’t make this S*** up. We ran a few miles together and shared a few laughs. I had not had anything to eat for quite some time, and it was taking its toll on me. I made it to the start/finish line, which was actually at mile 53. I was more than halfway done. Time - 12 hrs 5 min.

I stopped at my truck to check my feet, and all was good. I sat for a few minutes, ate half an apple, drank a Gatorade, and it was time to get dressed for the nighttime portion of the race. They were expecting temps in the low 40s, maybe high 30s. Hoodie (check). Gloves (check). Wool hat (check). Back out I go.

I decided to switch my intervals again to something I had been experimenting with: 1/1… 1 min run, 1 min walk. That strategy was really working for me. My legs felt stronger, but my stomach was rebellious, once again. It was hard even to take in water. But I kept making sure I drank liquids. The last thing I wanted was to start cramping. I had taken some salt tabs and Pepto that the girls provided for me at the midway point. But honestly, nothing was working. I just kept moving forward - run, walk, run, walk, run, walk. As monotonous as it sounds, it’s all I could do. And honestly, I was getting annoyed at how far apart these aid stations were getting. It seemed like hours to get to them. (I have to bitch about something lol).

Around mile 72, I could feel that all my energy was gone. The lack of nutrition and calories was becoming a huge problem, and I could no longer run. It was full-on hike mode. Finally, an Aid Station. *Please have hot food, I’m begging you, something warm. NOPE. Here are some cheese quesadillas that have been sitting for three hours, or some boiled potatoes that are now ice cubes. They did manage to get me a cup of broth, though, as lukewarm as it was, it was better than nothing, and I was starving. But all the volunteers there were top-notch and very accommodating to runners’ needs. I asked if I could sit for a minute in one of the chairs, and they obliged. They could see me starting to doze off. Finally, one guy said, ‘Buddy, I’m giving you 5 minutes and you've got to go, you have a race to finish. ’ And he was right. Maybe….. I bummed some chafing cream off of him, and in a moment of panic, I asked him if I was ahead of the cutoffs. He just laughed and said, “My friend, cutoffs don’t start for another 4 hrs. You have 27 miles to go, you could crawl to the finish”. I just smiled and said, “The way I’m feeling, that’s probably how I’m crossing the finish line.”

27 miles to go and off I went. I felt a kind of rejuvenation and started running again. But it didn’t last long. Up came the broth, the quesadilla popsicle not far behind. I was toast. Walking was a chore. I had noticed there were benches spaced every mile apart. My thought was just get to the next bench, sit for 2 min, and onto the next. The miles and benches were ticking away painfully slow at this point. The water drop was a war zone. Unmanned, the little snack supplied was picked over, nothing left but half-bitten Oreos.

I was starving but couldn’t eat. I was sweating but shivering. I was walking sideways mostly. Passed the barren water drop, I had 15 miles to go. It was then that I found a bench and I sat for a few. At one point, the last thing I remember saying was “I need to stretch my back”, so I lay down on my side. Huge mistake. Not all Angels wear wings. Some wear 800-lumen headlamps and a funny hat. I had fallen asleep. How long? I dunno. But I do know that an angel woke me up. She told me, “Man, you’re ice cold and turning white, you better start running.” I just remember saying thanks and running away from her voice. Was she real? Or another one of the many hallucinations I was having out there. Plants looked like mountain lions at one point. The river was laughing at me. So many bizarre dreams. It was a weird setup to end the race.

Once you got back to the start/finish, you had to go back down the trail another 4 miles, then back 4 miles to finish. 8 miles to go. With about 3 miles to go, again out of sheer exhaustion, I found my ass sitting on a bench. I then heard a voice. “There he is. I was worried about you.” I looked up, and it was a woman in a funny hat. She was real. I just smiled, jumped to my feet, walked with her a bit, and thanked the hell out of her for helping me. Never got her name. But she will stay in my heart and memories until I die. 1 mile to go. Dawn had broken hours ago, but at that point, I saw the brightest light ever. Sarah. Coming the other way with Rebecca and Stephanie pacing her. I just threw up my hands and yelled, “Out and back, Sarah! 7 miles, then you did it!” And as we passed each other, we took a quick pic, gave a few fist bumps, and it was off to finish what we both came here for.

See, I wasn’t the only one seeking redemption. Sarah had DNF’d at Umstead, and now it was her time to finish. I sprinted the last hundred yards to the finish and collected my buckle. 27 hrs 15 min. This sucked. But I’ll do it again lol. I changed clothes, brushed my teeth, and took a nap in my car. I woke up and rushed back to the finish. Damn, I missed Sarah finishing by a minute, but I ran over and greeted her and told her how much of an honor it was to run with her. A quick goodbye to her crew, and it was time for me to go home.

This was really tough on me, but in true Ultra Fashion, I signed up for another race the next day… the Myrtle Beach 24 Hour in January…. Then it’s off to Georgia in March to attempt my first 200 miler - Canebrake 200… Hope my stomach holds up.

All photos courtesy of Nick Morgan Photography.