Angeles Crest 100 Gallery: 2011 – 2013

Maggie Beach, Chantry, 11pm, 2011

Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run

This gallery follows three races: Maggie Beach’s 2011 race, which I helped crew, my 2012 finish, and my 2013 DNF. Most of the shots are at aid stations, a few are on the course. The 2011 shots were taken by me. 2012 and 2013 shots were taken by me, on the course, or by my crew.

In my view, AC100 breaks down into 4 more or less equal sections.

The first is the mountain section, to Islip Saddle. There are two long climbs – Acorn Trail and Baden Powell. There’s about 8,000 feet of elevation, and much of this section is at elevation. It’s beautiful, scenic, and a good hard warmup.

The next section is the heat section, from Islip to Chilao. It begins with a short, steep, exposed climb up Mt. Williamson, heads through some pretty parched stuff, descends down into Cooper Canyon and heat, and there’s only about a mile and a half that has any shade. It will hurt.

The third section, for me, is the dark section, both literally and figuratively, and it’s the figurative darkness that’s tough to deal with.

The last section, from Chantry to the finish, is the grind. It opens with the longest, hardest climb of the race, and there’s almost 8,000 feet of elevation gain once again. If you are going to finish in over 24 hours, which most everyone is, you’ll catch a second wind with daylight. If you’re in the middle of the pack and finishing closer to 30 hours, that second wind will be sucked right back out by the heat and the exposure, especially on the climb to Sam Merrill.

It’s one of the toughest 100 milers out there. It’s also often stunningly beautiful, in a harsh way. I hope these photos depict both.

You can click to read the 2011, 2012, & 2013 race reports.