More AC 100
In yesterday’s report of the AC100 trailwork, I meant to go into a little more detail about the chances that the race is actually going to happen this year and why it might not.
In case you don’t know, the race was cancelled last year after wild fires absolutely ravaged the Angeles National Forest in the weeks immediately before the race. The trails were wrecked and the access roads were all closed. In fact, the fire was still roaring in some parts of the forest on race weekend. You can see the aftermath of the forest in this dizzingy video if you can watch without getting too nauseous:
The full article from September 16, 2009 is here.
The Angeles Crest Highway, which goes from Wrightwood (start of race) to La Canada Flintridge (end of race) and is the main (only feasible) way for emergency vehicles, support and crew to get to runners was also closed after the fire. And if the fires weren’t enough, heavy rains in January caused flooding and mudslides.
The fires are obviously out by now and we’re getting to the end of the rainy season. A lot of the barren landscape has seen regrowth, but the park and access roads remain closed. Sections of the Angeles Crest Highway are also still closed.
Obviously, there are a lot of things that need to happen before we can race: First, the rain needs to stop (that should happen soon, but we are scheduled to get more this week). Then the rest of the roads and access roads need to be repaired and opened (CA’s budget issues aren’t gonna help that effort) and finally, the trails need to be repaired and certified as safe by the US Forest Service. Unfortunately, there’s no real timetable for any of that.
When we met for the trail work on Saturday, Hal, one of the race directors, addressed the issue. He is optimistic, but cautiously so. After all the work he’s put into the race over the years, he wants the race to happen. They’ve got all the volunteers in place and have arranged for aid station support and goodies. It’s really just a matter of waiting. Fortunately, I’m prepared to wait. I’ve got a lot of training to do!