Ultra Runner Search and Rescue in the Pemi

[peakbagger]

https://patch.com/new-hampshire/concord-nh/nh-fish-game-locate-overdue-ultra-runner-trail-lincoln

I am surprised there are not more rescues of this type.

 

[NHChris]

https://patch.com/new-hampshire/concord-nh/nh-fish-game-locate-overdue-ultra-runner-trail-lincoln

I am surprised there are not more rescues of this type.

A very plucky 60 year old! Next time a backup light source.

 

[peakbagger]

My guess is the gear carried was a bit light for an unplanned overnight. I was out backpacking for a few days down in Connecticut and despite warm days, the temps dropped real quick once the sun went down.

 

[TCD]

"...had lost his light source..."

Boy that's awfully vague. Maybe deliberately vague? I'd like to know more details about this: Dropped his headlamp? Headlamp batteries ran out? Stupidly relying on a phone for light?

This is just about the most avoidable cause of rescues; more detail would be helpful.

 

[Yury]

I am surprised there are not more rescues of this type.

#fakenews
There was no rescue.
He was moving on his own (although slower than expected) and did not need to be rescued.
The word "rescue" was added by @peakbagger as an exaggeration.

 

[JoshandBaron]

The sun had been down for less than an hour before he was located on the East Side Trail, which is a literal road, and the rest of his route was on RR grade. He was never in danger of not being able to find his way. He probably stopped at the campground to drop the kids off at the pool.

 

[DayTrip]

Yes "rescue" seems like an exaggeration although SAR was contacted to mobilize and head out there, which would have probably been avoided if the runner still had a headlamp. That route must have been one wet, waterlogged mess! Kudos to a 60 year old banging out those miles.

 

[Ear Drum]

Two lights are one, and one is none.

I found myself with four headlamps on a hike last year. My main one; a backup; a cheap spare to give away if needed; and a fourth I'd had on at the car and forgot to take off.

 

[peakbagger]

#fakenews
There was no rescue.
He was moving on his own (although slower than expected) and did not need to be rescued.
The word "rescue" were added by @peakbagger as an exaggeration.

I disagree with your statement Yury, and adding rescue on my part is not an exaggeration. Just because FIsh and Game does not carry a body out of the woods, this would still be defined as a rescue, minor as it is in your opinion. Unless it is the very rare case of a F&G officer during routine patrol encountering an individual in the woods while on some other task, F&G would have either had a call handed off from 911 or in rare occasion 911 is skipped and the call is made through dispatch. In either case that is logged and reported as an incident. Once it goes into the system, the F&G officer, becomes the "incident commander" liable for deciding its resolution, they can either decide to retain control or call in more resources. They own the liability until the incident is resolved or handed off to someone else. In this case it appears they resolved it themselves. At a minimum, F&G starts logging their costs and overtime hours to be billed to the S&R budget. In this case it was a proactive rescue that precluded a much more intensive later rescue which to most S&R folks is the best case. Given the recent overnight temps, an individual with inadequate emergency gear would be hard pressed to survive the night and likely that the F&G officers supply of a flashlight staved off a much larger S&R for a lost hypothermic hiker.

From the limited information supplied, an ATV was dispatched presumably to the East Side trail. The East Side Trail is not a permitted national forest road (even outside the wilderness boundary) and in general ATVs are not permitted in the WMNF. Therefore, for F&G to get access they would have had to have permission from the WMNF for access as it is a locked gate and my guess be it oral or written that they had to have a FS employee meet them at the gate and open that lock for a good reason. My guess is that "good reason" was for carrying out rescue operations. To an outsider looking in, this seems to be seamless, but it is because the various agencies cooperate using authority and protocols already in place.

 

[Rhody Seth]

I am surprised there are not more rescues of this type.

Probably because in this day and age most people are carrying something that allows they to communicate with loved ones if they are running late. Either that or he did a poor job of conveying this timetable to them.

I always tell my wife something like, "I should be done around 3 PM. Don't freak out unless you don't hear from me by 7 PM."

 

[skiguy]

The sun had been down for less than an hour before he was located on the East Side Trail, which is a literal road, and the rest of his route was on RR grade. He was never in danger of not being able to find his way. He probably stopped at the campground to drop the kids off at the pool.

Probably because in this day and age most people are carrying something that allows they to communicate with loved ones if they are running late. Either that or he did a poor job of conveying this timetable to them.

I always tell my wife something like, "I should be done around 3 PM. Don't freak out unless you don't hear from me by 7 PM."

Way too hasty on a lot of folks part with this one.

 

[peakbagger]

I don't regard F&G as a concierge service making my trip more pleasant by smoothing out the rough spots, if I call F&G its a rescue. If his family calls F&G its assumed a rescue until proven otherwise.

 

[skiguy]

https://patch.com/new-hampshire/concord-nh/nh-fish-game-locate-overdue-ultra-runner-trail-lincoln

I am surprised there are not more rescues of this type.

I don't regard F&G as a concierge service making my trip more pleasant by smoothing out the rough spots, if I call F&G its a rescue. If his family calls F&G its assumed a rescue until proven otherwise.

I agree on all points you are making. The victim in this case is well experienced and has quite a resume in regard to athleticism according to his FB Page. Surprised he and his team did not manage the situation better. Would be interested on how many rescuers responded and the cost. If the victim did not have a Hike Safe Card he should be charged for the rescue efforts.

 

[sierra]

This case brings up a point I have made in the past. I understand most people leave a call for help after this time plan, the problem is that time is usually too early. You should at least try and get yourself out, before calling for help. If your plan is to be out at say 700pm, does your wife call 911 at 800pm? How about she call at 700am the next day? Things happen in the backcountry, doesn't mean you're going to die, be uncomfortable maybe, but nobody seems willing to suffer much anymore. I agree in this case the guy was in zero trouble, the East side trail is a road, not a trail. I don't really consider this case a "rescue" the guy was late for dinner and his wifey got worried.

 

[skiguy]

This case brings up a point I have made in the past. I understand most people leave a call for help after this time plan, the problem is that time is usually too early. You should at least try and get yourself out, before calling for help. If your plan is to be out at say 700pm, does your wife call 911 at 800pm? How about she call at 700am the next day? Things happen in the backcountry, doesn't mean you're going to die, be uncomfortable maybe, but nobody seems willing to suffer much anymore. I agree in this case the guy was in zero trouble, the East side trail is a road, not a trail. I don't really consider this case a "rescue" the guy was late for dinner and his wifey got worried.

Good points. Although maybe not a rescue per se but certainly a rescue response which could have been avoided. Possibly the Wife was thinking of being safe rather than sorry.

 

[jdhill08]

Running Shoal Pond Trail in spring conditions? There's no accounting for taste, I guess.

More seriously, I wonder if family had an itchy trigger finger on the rescue call because they knew the runner was going to be on remote trails that are very far from a trailhead, and that get very minimal traffic even in the busiest of times.

 

[peakbagger]

Having been the subject of a call to the state police one evening when my hiking partners wife called even though he had told her we would coming home very late mostly likely around midnight and my own call for to 911 two and half years ago I have had my brushes with the rescue system. In the first case the protocols were not well developed and somehow someone from RMC, Bill Arnold, got in the loop and called AMC who radioed Zealand Hut and asked if they had seen us come through on our way out. We were doing the Bonds (in winter) and had stayed at the Zealand the night before and stopped by to warm up a bit before heading to RT 302 that night. The AMC hut crew said yes they had seen us and that were going to get out late probably around midnight so and they called off the rescue. I did not learn about this call until the next day. My hiking partner was very careful and precise in the future on when to call.

In the recent case with a broken and dislocated ankle, I called 911 and eventually got to Glen Lucas of F&G, he was asking if he could drive up the ski slope at Wildcat when I suggested that he call the ski patrol folks working at the summit that I had passed who were working to get set up for ski season operations. He called them and I caught a ride with them on the ATV down to the ambulance. I never saw officer Lucas but no doubt I am in some F&G log. I had a hike safe card and expect I would not have been billed. It did not make the F&G website so my assumption was this was written off as public assistance during working hours. I expect the ultra runner rescue ate up a lot more resources after hours than my broken ankle.

I have had awareness training of the incident command system and have sat through a large FEMA drill with a participant. It is used in many places and expect the F&G S&R uses it. In any case there has to be an incident before the system engages. There will be protocols in place to establish what an incident is and there are only two boxes, yes or no. There are no maybe's, if in doubt its a yes. Something folks might recognize from numerous movies and TV shows is when someone in a plane in trouble calls out on the radio to air traffic control, air traffic control comes back "Do you wish to declare an emergency?". They will keep asking until they get a yes or a no. Once a yes is received then the Incident Command system gets activated and there are previously agreed upon protocols that are used until the case is resolved. In the case of the runner, whomever contacted F&G declared an emergency whether they knew it or not.

 

[Yury]

Just because FIsh and Game does not carry a body out of the woods, this would still be defined as a rescue, minor as it is in your opinion.

I am not talking about opinions.
I am talking about facts.
The word "rescue" has not been mentioned in the above article.
It has been added by @peakbagger.

 

[skiguy]

I am not talking about opinions.
I am talking about facts.
The word "rescue" has not been mentioned in the above article.
It has been added by @peakbagger

The victim was searched for and located. Then extricated with outside aid beyond his personal resources. Which qualifies as a rescue by most if not all SAR standards.

 

[peakbagger]

Let's make it official

https://nhfishgame.com/2024/04/29/overdue-runner-found-safe/

Looks like a rescue to me. To Keep Yuri happy I will edit the title of the thread to Search and Rescue.