At one of the 7th station huts, a young woman was yelling my
first name. I guess
she picked me out as a "gaijin" (foreigner) and found my number in the
race booklet. At least it got me running across the stone patio of that
particular hut. Interestingly, I was listed as "L. Randy" which is in
keeping with Incline Club tradition. Most gaijin got the same reverse treatment
for their names, since Japanese typically write the family name first.
By the 8th station, I was in about 600th place, having gained another 75
places. I was starting to be concerned about the cutoff time, a new experience
for me. I had 45 minutes to climb the last 1,200 feet, and it was looking like a
long way up there -- I still couldn't make out the top. It had been rock
scrambling since the 7th station, and I was having to use my hands to prevent
balance errors. But around the 9th station, the rock turned back into gravel and
the gradient eased slightly (to 18%). Finally I could see the top and my
confidence increased.