Highland Falls’ Brad Mott completed the challenge in March
The race is billed as a place to find “camaraderie with plenty of other crazy ultra runners”.
Let’s just say that the race that Highland Falls’ Brad Mott, age 50, ran the weekend of March 19 and 20 was not your typical 5 or 10K.
In fact, it was a 100-miler.
Yes, 100 miles.
Anyone who drives in the Highland Falls-Fort Montgomery-West Point area of the Hudson Valley has no doubt spotted Mott running. He’s not the fastest guy out there, and he’s not the one broadcasting his mileage. He’s the one who runs slow and steady on local streets and sidewalks and alongside area roads.
Mott, by profession, is a nurse. He works at West Point’s Cadet Health Clinic. He’s married to his wife Louise — who will let anyone who asks know that she’s not a runner, but is a great cheerleader. The couple has raised three sons in Highland Falls — Bradley, Brian, who is a runner, like his dad, and Ben, an O’Neill High Schooler.
Mott is also known as part of the dynamic duo (with Fort Montgomery’s Dean Jaeger) who coordinates the annual Firecracker 5K on the Fourth of July in Highland Falls.
Yes, running is his thing. But again, he doesn’t gloat about his accomplishments.
For instance, post-race last week, his sole social media post, accompanied by a photo of himself running, his award, and a picture of the type of socks he wore (because, he notes, they were essential in his success over the course of the 25+ hour race!), was this:
“I had a great time at the Pistol Ultra 100 mile race this weekend; managed to finish 23rd overall and 2nd in my geriatric age group and, no blisters. thanks to ArmaSkin socks!”
No mention of the fact that he finished 23rd out of 101 runners on the paved greenway trail in Alcoa, Tennessee (near Knoxville).
No mention of the fact that he was 17th out of 60 males.
No mention that he was second out of 14 50-59 year olds.
No mention that his finish time was exactly 25 hours, 23 minutes and 45.7 seconds.
No mention that his average pace was 15.14 minutes per mile.
Wow.
The race, the Pistol Ultra Run, consists of running multiple loops of a 10 mile lighted, paved linear Alcoa-Maryville Greenway Trail along Pistol Creek. He, and those other “crazy ultra runners” ran basically non-stop for the 100 miles, although they were encouraged to take breaks, eat meals, nap if needed, etc.
He says going in he’d hoped to finish in 24 hours, but he has no regret about the time he ended with.
Middle son Brian accompanied his dad, and, via Instagram, documented the journey, serving as his dad’s pace runner. He also helped his dad by having snacks and clothing changes ready when needed, and “talking to me when I needed it”.
It was addicting to watch over the course of the weekend. On the way home, the younger Mott also documented a stop at a highway rest stop as the two made their way home — in that video Mott was visibly moving very slow and gingerly. (“Riding in the car for 13 hours coming home was tough,” Mott noted wryly!)
It should be noted, however, that within about two days, his neighbors can attest, Mott was moving at his typical pace around his house.
So, how does one prepare for such a race? A winter of training.
“It’s eight miles from the West Point Ski Slope Parking lot to the top of Rt. 6,” he said this week. “I’d do that several times a weekend.”
He also ran often to and from the Bear Mountain Bridge — four miles each way.
“I knew that if I didn’t put in the work beforehand, I’d have trouble,” Mott says. During the race he never sat down once — saying while many people sat or laid down during their breaks, he was afraid to.
“I never stopped for more than a minute or two,” he said.
As of Sunday — a week after completing the race — he wasn’t yet running again, but was about to. He’s got to start his training for the Bear Mountain Trail marathon in May — “training for trails is very different than for a pavement run,” Mott said. To be honest, he said he prefers trail runs — “both provide different types of pain,” he laughed.
And the only question left for Mott to answer? Would you do it again?
He thought for about 10 seconds and replied: “Yes.”
