C4P 2002

• Report by Chris Scott
• Results
• Photos

C4P Report from Chris Scott

March 2002

Coyote's Fifth

What started as a two day event in '98 has grown into almost double that over the years. The old Mugu 50-50 transformed into the Coyote Four Play, this year divided into a two day "scrub run" of the Backbone Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains (about 65 miles), followed by three official days of 13, 50 and 30 miles in the mountains of Ventura County.

Part of what makes the Coyote such an indelible experience is the physical environment. The mountains surrounding Ventura offer some of the most challengingly runnable and visually spectacular trails to be found in California's coastal winter. Want to finish a 50 miler with an 8 mile downhill? Want to finish a 50K on a gorgeous downhill with the ocean as backdrop? Need a few killer uphills to torture your hams and calves? Just a hint of what Coyote offers. For a broader perspective on the Coyote, visit the website, at http://www.vhtrc.org/fourplay, to read accounts and view pictures.

Our numbers are historically low, both because multi-days aren't that popular yet, and it's easier to stage the event with manageable numbers. The numbers don't define the event, the actual participants do. To a person, each comes expecting the event to help kick-start his or her training season, regardless of those season objectives. Dan Barger's record setting year on the Grand Slam included the Coyote; the tough Dixie Madsen suffered our miles; Ian Torrence loped along in our early years; Deborah Askew has crunched our uphills; and Scott Jurek cranked some significant mileage this year. While those may be notable names, the challenging miles of Coyote spread equally among all entrants. Not all run the full complement of miles, but everyone grabs some valuable, early season training.

And that's the tenor of the weekend: come train, and enjoy your comrades both on and off the courses. As a multi-day, we offer full meals each evening (and some unusual aid station fare), and dispense gag and coyote-theme awards to match the weekend's playful mood. Competition is primarily resident in each person's goals for the weekend – how much work he or she can sustain day to day – and not who gets to the finish line and goes home first. All runners party together after each day. It's a special kind of community building. Watch for C4P'ers chatting each other up at other events, wearing their Patagonia gear as sign of their subtle pride and fond memories of C4P.

It wouldn't be fair to file this report without giving due credit to those who worked hard on the event. The original JABOY's (just a bunch of yahoo's Mike Turon, Sook Gumpel and Maria Calvert) have grown to include Bill Kee and Howard Cohen, with a handful of their friends selflessly logging miles, schlepping aid station goodies, and helping with evening hospitality. Craig Holloway of Patagonia persists in supporting this craziness, both with apparel and working aid stations. We keep the operations small (which is why the support effort is so consuming), to keep the experience intimate for both runners and event supporters. Without such dedication, the Coyote couldn't exist.

The following results may suggest that those with few miles didn't get as good a workout. Then again, how often can you string together consecutive double digit workouts, get aid for each day, and party each night? ALL who played this year kick-started their season. Most will be repeats at the next C4P. Can you guess why?