Panoramic view from Loudon Heights at the end of the 2015 QSQB.
Keith Knipling
2023 Report
October 21, 2023 • Pen Mar, PA
14 starters, 13 finishers
Bi State Biped Buster
This run normally goes through four states going from the Mason Dixon line traveling the AT to the C&O Canal into Harpers Ferry and ends at a gas station.
This year unfortunately there was construction which was going to prevent the run accessing the normal route.
Runners had the option of stopping at Weverton (the meetup spot where we parked) or continuing to Harpers Ferry, turn around and head back to Weverton.
Because we couldn’t go to all 4 states this year, after a lot of thought, my girlfriend Denise Freeman and I chose to stop at Weverton. 36 miles on the AT is a great training run and we felt that would really help us prep for the JFK 50.
Leading Up To The Run
I had not been able to run many trails due to lack of time, mainly just quick and convenient road runs. I knew the AT was about to kick the shit out of me but I know I needed it, so I was excited to get out there. Also, this time of year on the Maryland AT is my favorite place to be. It’s gorgeous.
Denise and I got off work at 2pm Friday and headed over to Williamsport, MD and stayed with her family there. Denise’s Mom made us an amazing meal then I watched baseball with her stepdad and Denise and her Mom went shopping.
We had to be up early so Denise and I had to be lame and crash early because we had to be at the rendezvous point at 5:45 am. It’s a 45 min drive from Williamsport.
Run Day
Denise and I got up bright and early and got ready then hauled our stuff to the car. We stopped at Sheetz for coffee and off we go.
Meet Up Spot and Ride
We all brought our gear out and chatted then got in the volunteers cars to drive us to the start of the run.
I was really tired I honestly don’t remember much of the ride over, as I was half asleep.
When we got there we all walked over to the Mason Dixon line then took a picture and…
Go!!!
Early on I knew this was going to be a rough day. The weather was great and it was beautiful out but my body was feeling rough. There was no way I was stopping before Weverton but it was going to be a slow one.
Friends!
I met Ali and Lucas early on. I was not trying to push pace today on the AT and they were totally chill talking about movies and hilarious stuff early on, so I was like “I’m hanging with them”. Lucas said something hilarious. I guess he put it together I wrote a run report for this last year and was like, wait that’s you! I was like “yep, and you’re in it now man!”
Denise? Gone.
I lost Denise early on in this one, but I do not blame her; she was doing much better on the trails than I was, so she went on. Part of me thought maybe I could catch her, but I just didn’t have any speed on the trail. I settled in with my homeys and went on.
Heather! In.
I was so shocked to see Heather Dougherty out there. 99% of the time she’s like miles ahead of me but she joined our group!
Heather Dougherty here: I ran with Denise for the first few miles hearing about her Baltimore Marathon experience (BQ, baby!) and then she dropped me! I may have been stung by something and had to stop to remove the remnants from my leg.
Wolfsville Road Aid Station - 9.7 Miles
I’m pretty certain a lot of the runners missed this one. Denise did accidentally, so she was really far ahead now. I figured that unfortunately, the next time I’d see her was in Weverton.
Heather Dougherty here: I already ate a turkey sandwich, but still enjoyed the donuts and chips!
DNR Crew (Ali, Lucas, Heather, and John)
We were clowning around and having a good time talking about David Goggins, telling random hikers to “stay hard”, talking movie ideas like David Goggins in a Predator movie! It was amazing. We were all having fun. I honestly really didn’t care the trail was kicking my ass so badly!
Heather Dougherty here: This was my first ultra since Wasatch and I could tell. So. Many. Rocks! And we’re not even in the Massanuttens! Luckily, the DNR Crew was there for entertainment. STAY HARD! Who’s going to carry the boat? (Is that the right David Goggins reference?)
Tragedy
Headed into the next aid station, Heather rolled her ankle really bad coming down from Annapolis Rock.
Heather Dougherty here: Okay, okay, REALLY bad might be a stretch, but it was enough to where I told them to leave me on the trail, so I could assess. I hobbled down and all the hikers were asking if I was okay. I caught back up to the DNR Crew on the bridge and was debating whether to continue.
Route 70 / Route 40 Aid Station - 18.3 Miles
This spot got moved. It used to be by the pedestrian bridge but got moved further on. Heather was still having issues with the ankle, but decided to keep going because it was only like 5 miles until aid station 3. Heather Dougherty here: I HAD to go up the Washington Monument because last year, Jana Fridrichová and Nora Jodrey wanted to actually ‘race’ QSQB, so we skipped it.
Heather and I lost Ali and Lucas leaving the aid station, but they weren’t too far back. We pressed forward to the Washington Monument. We spent a lot of time here but it was fun, I like going there. The top was really windy! We took a pic and headed off.
We saw Ali and Lucas as we were leaving.
Bad Revelation
We were close to aid station 3 when Heather and I realized we weren’t going to make cutoff. I took off because Heather was thinking about dropping anyway because her ankle.
Route 40 Aid Station / The Search For Q - 23.3 miles
I got to the aid station in time and Heather made it also! Ali and Lucas also! The AS cutoff was 2 PM and I rolled in at 2:01 PM, so I was like, darn it! I missed the cutoff, I can’t go on! Oh shucks…
I thought Heather was going to drop here, but Bur said Q was just ahead of us, so we were all like, “let’s keep going and catch him!” Heather Dougherty here: Q went through a ‘wormhole’ from AS 2 to AS 3, which is how he got ahead of us.
Heather was in! Heather Dougherty here: John and Bur were very convincing to get me to leave the AS. Ali and Lucas were about five minutes behind getting to the AS. John and I were eating our PBJ and pretzels while we waited for them. The four of us headed out together and decided to just stumble the last 13 miles together. DNR4L!
Crampton Gap Water Stop - Mile 30.5
We were moving pretty well here I started falling back some I kept the DNR crew in sight. We got to an overlook and had fun talking to a bunch of hikers.
One of them said something that made me laugh: “You guys are going to Weverton??? That’s like 9 miles away!!” He sounded like a Harry Potter character and his voice had tones of major disapproval.
Heather Dougherty here: I kept asking people if they saw a man with a blue shirt (the mysterious Q) and half the people said they had and half hadn’t. I came to the conclusion that Bur was messing with us and Q was NOT ahead on the trail because there is no way we couldn’t catch him…was there?!
The Majestic Cliffs of Weverton
The last mile before Weverton took a long time. I swear we traveled 10 miles but when I looked at my watch, we went 0.1 miles.
We all were trying hard to be zany and wild to try to stay upbeat, but we were beat.
Heather Dougherty here: We really needed a wormhole here. Or fewer rocks.
When we made it to the cliffs, Heather wanted to go to the overlook and I was like whyyyyy??!!, Let’s finish! But everyone wanted to go, so I agreed, and I’m glad I did because it was beautiful! We took pictures and moved on to the finish.
Heather Dougherty here: If I ran the last 13 miles, I was stopping at the dang cliffs! We were so slow that we got to the cliffs during the Golden Hour and it was beautiful. After the cliffs, I shuffled a little faster than the others downhill, but waited at the bottom to make sure we all finished together. I was so tired of those dang rocks. I got a little lonely though in those 10 minutes.
Finish - Mile 37
I was so happy to be finished and I was really in bad shape. My body was fine, but I was just really tired.
It was great to see Denise, and those brat and tots from Chef Jeff Best were delicious!! It was nice to hang out with everyone talking and laughing, but I got cold and we needed to get back. Denise and I ended up just staying at her family’s house again. We were going to go home Saturday night but we were dead.
Thank you to all involved with this run. It’s very hard to pull off with all the logistics but it’s one of the best. I plan on volunteering next year. As much as I love this run, I want to help out and give back so others will to be able to enjoy this amazing event!
Heather Dougherty here: Q was at the finish and he finished about 50 minutes ahead of us! He GAINED time on us during the last 13 miles. Bur was NOT messing with us! Very impressive, Q. Jeff Best was the chef for the evening and the faster runners were joking that the brats were gone. In my head, I knew they were joking, in my heart, they were being honest and I was so sad I wasn’t getting a brat…of course, there were brats, Jeff wouldn’t leave us hanging! And they were delicious. VHTRC spoils me too much.
[Editor’s Notes: All of the starters of the 2023 Bi-State Biped Buster ended up running into the Weverton Park & Ride finish and the Best Furbutt Café for those brats and ribs and tots. Well, one finisher in a blue VHTRC shirt did find that infamous ‘wormhole’ so rather than 37 miles, Q logged roughly a 50k.
The final starter was Caleb Fowler and he was the first runner to the grub at the end. Denise Freeman was the first woman to get off the Cliffs and into the Furbutt Café. Congrats, but don’t look for results, either here or on the Ultrasignup …
The weather was really nice for a QSQB run across Maryland, breaking from a rude fall pattern of rainy weekends. The early miles were on wet rocks and leaves from very recent rain, and the wind howled all day. Morning clouds gave way to a very clear and dry afternoon, making those closing miles even more of a treat than per usual. Big Thanks to Bur and his dedicated volunteer crew for making this fun run happen.]
Photos
Last updated October 24, 2023