The 2021 NFL Week 4 Roundup | Run Away
Can You Hear Me Now?!?!
GRAUPEL is an unusual form of frozen precipitation that occurs when supercooled water droplets accrete and freeze on falling snowflakes. The resulting soft ice pellets can measure up to a quarter inch in diameter and are hallmarks of convective wintertime thunderstorms unspooling at alpine elevations to wondrous visual effect. Airborne sheets of graupel are oftentimes driven by Arctic-caliber unrelenting gale force winds and are known to transform rich mountain-ringed meadows into icy real life snow globes obscured by and suffocating in a miles-long blanket of pretty ice. Think a wintery thunderstorm foisted upon the side of a mountain.
To those familiar with and living in these climes, the only means of escape from such unforgiving meteorological phenomena is shelter from it. Such graupel-laden storms are typically as intense and forbidding as they are momentary and briskly paced, perhaps their most forgiving trait.
It’s quite the shame then that these warnings weren’t heeded when the 2021 Yellow Riverstone Forest Ultramarathon kicked on this past May 22nd set within the rugged majesty of northern China, a Nike Vaporfly sneaker’s throw from Mongolia. The ultramarathon set off in a foreboding footrace with a gathering storm 20 odd miles to the northwest; a contest that would soon unfurl to profoundly tragic consequences.
Ultramarathons have exploded in popularity in recent years, a direct result of event organizers looking to attract ever-frothier sponsorships, participant interest and buzzy notoriety surrounding boundary-busting course contours stretching to some 150 miles across deserts, forests, volcanoes and all geographies imaginable. Such ultramarathons make traditional 26.2 mile marathons quaint by any standard. China’s thirst to remain competitive and retain relevancy among elite long distance athletes set the stage for the inaugural Yellow Riverstone Forest ultramarathon in 2018. It was met with immediate success and runner fervor.
The ultramarathon itself was actually divided into three qualifying segments: 3.1 miles of running, a half-marathon, and the final 62 miles of trail running at elevation atop some of the most scenic vistas in the world. The late Spring date was chosen precisely for the conducive weather conditions making the grueling event as hospitable as possible for runners. And true to form, the 2018, 2019 and 2020 iterations of the ultramarathon baked under sizzling heat which had runners shedding equipment and layers of clothing at checkpoints throughout the race.
This year’s weather was different. As any mountaineer can tell you, conditions at base camp will differ dramatically from weather encountered at the summit of a mountain. Beyond this, fast-moving storms are known to menace the mountainous terrain (peaking at 10,896 feet) any time of the year and can swoop in with little more than 24 hours’ notice. These legendary rules of the climb coalesced to invite disaster.
The final leg of the 2021 Yellow Riverstone Forest ultramarathon carries with it a stomach-churning increase in elevation, spaced out over 62 miles of loose trail and 9 checkpoints. Only one runner would even make it to checkpoint 6 (about halfway through the gauntlet). The length between checkpoint 1 and 2 is roughly 15 miles and runs leisurely slightly downhill as it winds tightly against the picturesque Yellow River. Experienced ultramarathoners can close checkpoint 2 in well under 40 minutes. But the torture to checkpoint 3 is highlighted by a beastly five mile journey ascending 3000 feet UP from the 4400 foot base elevation of checkpoint 2. The trail is paved with ancient alluvial sandstone — unstable — posing grave ankle injury with every grunting step. More ominous is the fact that checkpoints are NOT vehicle-accessible and remain marooned, a 2 hour hike from the nearest road even in the best of weather. Worse still, the mountainous terrain made for perfect cell phone blindspots. Event organizer would come to regret these grave oversights when benign weather forecasts blared into outright weather warnings upon the eve of the race. The weather warnings were ignored.
And so, at 9am on May 22nd 172 runners eagerly set off on the final 62 mile leg of the ultramarathon under cool, cloudy 50 degree skies. Each carried a safety foil blanket and a race-issued GPS device. And little else. Organizers, predicting the boiling temperatures of years past, had thought they learned their lesson. They collected all the runners’ gear (including crucial layers and jackets) to be charitably reunited with their owners at checkpoint 6 (30 miles up the mountain). The runners we being sent into a murderous alpine tempest as if outfitted for the beach. As the lead runners traversed the steep terrain about a mile from checkpoint 3, the weather began to deteriorate. The clouds thickened and were momentarily illuminated by powerful lightning bolts striking with the unmistakable force of outright fear. The accompanying thunder had the lead pack slowing considerably to ponder the safety of pushing forward. There were NO event officials stationed between checkpoints 2 and 3. At this point the temperature began to plunge. About two and a half hours into the race at this point, ambient temperatures plummeted 22 degrees to only 23 degrees Fahrenheit. 23 degrees! This traumatic drop was ushered in by unforgiving 38mph winds with violent gusts to 55 mph. And with the frigid, slicing winds came the graupel. Waves upon waves of inexorable wind-driven graupel arrived in sheets and sent runners scurrying for safety in the rocky landscape. Left exposed on the 7700 foot treeless granite face of the mountain, runners we left for their deaths. The foil blankets proved of little protection from the windy sandpapery weather; weather that shredded the feeble material in seconds. The SOS messages send from their GPS devices would go unread for hours.
A heroic shepherd, Zhu Keming, tending to his flock of sheep (which insisted upon grazing in the cacophonous weather) happened upon the few surviving brave runners who were sent scattering from the trail by the venomous weather. Zhu found two runners freezing, shivering, soaking wet and crying. Instinctually he offered them refuge in his nearby cave where firey warmth, supplies, food and shelter from the hell outside saved their lives. Zhu ventured out further still upon hearing of their ordeal. He was ultimately successful in rescuing 4 more runners at the height of the storm. Her recounted with horror the countless runners he bypassed as they lay lifeless face down coated in graupel, powerless to help them. Minutes after returning to his cave, just was quickly as the weather swept in, it vanished. The beautiful sun reappeared. The wicked winds abated to a whisper. All that was left was a reflective 2 inch thick coating of accumulated graupel as far as the eye could see. But the sun was out and with it hope for the surviving few.
The unabated hospitality and human compassion Zhu offered that fateful late spring day contrasts jarringly with the ill-prepared, callous, cavalier, reckless and CRIMINAL behavior of event organizers. All told, 21 elite runners we sent speeding to their hypothermic deaths and into a menacing storm all because officials wouldn’t listen to the language of the mountain. Nor could they be bothered to heed the urgent warnings available to anyone with an iPhone and a weather app. Neither did they properly outline the course with first responders and officiating staff. Derelict was their insistence on a treacherous checkpoint 2 — checkpoint 3 journey taking place beneath skies bereft of any semblance of reliable cell signals and any credible plan to quickly address emergencies. GPS pings were faint and unreliable. SOS messages when they finally met their audience, went unanswered. And finally, disarming the runners of the only protectionary weaponry available to them paints a picture of a tragedy that needn’t have occurred. That is was so preventable is the heartbreaking gut punch inflicted to all of us who read of this news earlier this year.
AS fate would have it, the fastest of the 172 runners were the unlucky few to meet the gathering storm full face. 6 were plucked to safety by a God-sent shepherd while 145 others were sent in reverse down the mountainscape, battered and beaten back by the unforgiving weather. 21 runners met their fates. Event organizers first became aware of the disaster nearly two hours after the first SOS was sent atop the mountain. The Government was phoned an hour after that. The first firefighters arrived at checkpoint 3 SIX hours later. Talk about an ultramarathon. No amount of mourning or minute-by-minute retreads can return them from their Maker’s grasp. But in the wake of this ultramarathon scandal, 27 government officials where punished and the Chinese government banned all high-risk sporting events not subject to a governing body. The Yellow Riverstone Forest Ultramarathon will be no more. It will forever be remembered for the brave 172 athletes who fearlessly charged into the unknown with friendly camaraderie, bold purpose and — sadly — misplaced trust.
Turning now, however incongruously, to NFL at Week 4, clear patterns are beginning to emerge for the unlikeliest of Teams. Don’t look now but fans of America’s Team no longer grasp onto misplaced trust in their Cowboys. Far from it. An explosive DAL offense managed to neutralize Carolina’s traditional industrial strength defensive squad, resulting in a 36–28 victory. Dak put on a world-class show (14/22 188 yards 4 TDs) and perhaps put the sparkle back in talk of playoff contention, if not the Super Bowl. Maybe there is strategy in frustrating obfuscation as depicted on this past summer’s Hard Knocks. The plan is bleeding into the Season, this time to opposing Teams. The Cowboys are the Team to beat in the NFC East. Meanwhile at the bottom of the NFC Least, the lowly Giants surprisingly picked off the Saints, 27–21, in an OT win. NYG QB Daniel Jones picked an opportune time to come alive and along with RB Saquon Barkley, NY’s O sizzled. The same can’t be said of the NOLA who fizzled behind questionable gameplay. They turned what should have been a gimme into a NY slam dunk. The Saints marched in and whimper away — at home. Talk about mortifying.
On Sunday night, the second most watched SNF Football game EVER took place under rainy skies that saw Tom Brady visiting his old stomping grounds — and groundskeeper Belichick. It was a slow, fascinating game and not the exclamation point many expected. NE’s rookie QB Mac Jones tuned in an elevated performance and technically outplayed elder statesman Tom Brady, twice his age. But poor pass protection among other quibbles diluted any attempt at upset, despite a ragged PAT’s defense that seemed to have Tom’s number dialed in just so. A last second missed NE FG sealed their fate. Tom Brady played “good enough” to eek out a W in front of an unsurprisingly hostile Boston crowd. But the prom king passed Drew Brees to become the all time passing leader with 80,560 yards on Sunday as luck would have it. Naturally. All the glittery awards, sycophantic chatter, toothy-smiled photo ops with former coaches in the world can’t conceal the fact that any defending Super Bowl champion should never be termed good enough. Descriptors like that don’t bode well for the tough schedule ahead. Up in Minnesota, the visiting Brownies exhibited why their Defense is so dangerous. Vikings QB Kirk Cousins and his offensive team wilted and crumpled under the pressure, 7–14. At 1–3 on the Season, structural changes are in the offing. Journeyman Kirk Cousins will be affected. And over at SoFi in the NFC game of the day between two undefeated heavyweights, the Cards flew into town pounded the Rams, 37–20. ARI QB Kyler Rookie shows us why he’s a rookie no more. The Rams Defense didn’t know what to do with Kyler who is as gifted passing the ball as he is running it. Arizona remains the only 4–0 Team in the League! They hope to return to SoFi in February.
In our Round Robin, the two other NFC West heavyweights battled it out to a predictable outcome. The Seahawks beat down San Francisco in a game that once again surfaces questions revolving around Jimmy G. Injured yet again (calf), backup SF QB Trey Lance was put in and outplayed Jimmy by a wide margin. It wasn’t enough in the end to prevent Russell Wilson and Co. from snatching the W. Steel City at Green Bay resulted in yet another disappointing PIT loss and an alarming 3rd L in a row, 17–27. Nobody likes to witness the dimming of a megawatt superstar in real time but Pittsburgh fans are struck by the reality of the unwatchable. Aaron Rodgers, for his part, continues to prove why the naysayers are on the wrong side of their TV screen. The Packer roll to 3–1 after that weird Week 1 anomaly. Taylor Heinicke and WAS surprised the Falcons, 34–30, while their upstate Ravens crushed the Broncos (23–7) who couldn’t manage to get their offensive ducks in a row. The Bills unsurprisingly shutout the Texans (40–0), the Colts are prepping for their in-Season Hard Knocks debut next month by throwing a W up on the board, this time against the confusing Dolphins 27–17. KC at PHL once again proved the durability of the Mahomes-Tyreek Hill combo; we’ll just not notice the Team’s time honored defensive wobbles. And finally, the Jets WON surprising even the opposing Ryan Tannehill and his Titans proving that there might be a future to rookie QB Zach Wilson after all. And the Raiders finally lost. This time to the Chargers and second year QB sensation Justin Herbert. I toldja patterns were emerging. Some other patterns, well there’s just no rhyme or reason. That’s why we heart the NFL, warts and all.
