Guest Q&A: Matt King Read Time: 6 mins Matt King is a seasoned vet when it comes to endurance efforts ... he has multiple 100 mile finishes under his belt, countless day-long shifts owning/operating his multiple restaurants, and has the tall task of chasing around his 5 kids on a daily basis! His latest endeavor, however, was paying a visit to an old friend ... the Hell Hole Hundred in the low country of South Carolina and put on by Palmetto Ultras. This old friend graciously delivered a DNF (Did Not Finish) in 2023. With many lessons learned from the previous year and a reinvigorated supporting case of goons, Matt arose from the fiery ashes of hell to crush his latest challenge. It's been exactly 1 month from this 100 mile finish, and we tossed a few questions to get his perspective, revisit the experience, and see what's next on this man's never ending quest for finding out what's around life's next bend. Question: Let's start by giving some background info ... name, age, and the best 3 words to describe yourself? Answer: Matt King .... 53 years old. Man, it’s way too hard for a few words, how about a few phrases.
Q: Aside from hosting various HPM and community events at your Jersey-style diner (MATTIE'S DINER) and the brand new breakfast joint (THE WAFFLERY), what is your relationship with human powered efforts? A: I grew up playing baseball and mainly ice hockey before playing collegiate hockey at Rutgers University. Truthfully I stopped moving and got pretty unhealthy about 10 years ago and started obstacle course racing about 8 years ago as a way to get my physical and mental health back. I had a couple injuries from the OCR (Obstacle Course Racing) stuff but I found and fell in love with trail and ultra running because of that. Currently I strength train 4 or 5 days a week. I’m not getting any younger and I want to be able to continue to be active and do the things I love and more importantly, enjoy them, and the suffering, as I get older. Being prepared and maintaining a consistent "base" is key. Workouts in the gym look way different now than they did even 5 years ago with longevity and endurance taking center stage. I trail race, play ice hockey, and try to log some training miles and keep up with my kids. My wife and I have 5 kids in a blended family ranging from 8-26. I’ve realized the best way to combat screen time is to get outside and keep moving, as a family. Q: True or False: Mattie's Diner just kicked off a bad-ass Run Club for the community? A: Yessss!!!!! My friends Jesus, John and Jessica have organized a killer Run Club at the Diner on Tuesday nights at 6:30. They are crushing it!! Turnouts have been stellar and most importantly they are building this great community, which is why I fell in love with trail running. It’s 100% the community. What I love about this run club is we are bringing together road and trail runners through the weekly runs starting on the Plaza at the Diner as well as the special events like the trail runs at various trails around the Charlotte area. It’s exciting to watch how extremely passionate these guys are about growing this club and this community. Q: Before we get into the good stuff, what is your Spirit Animal? A: Great question. The Honey Badger is definitely my spirit animal. Ha. Not the smartest, strongest, nor the cutest but will fight for days on end and not quit until the job is done. Q: What is the Hell Hole Hundred and why the hell did you choose that race? A: The Hell Hole Hundred is a race put on by a fantastic race director, Kayla Fitzgerald in SC. It takes place in the swamps and horse trails of the Francis Marion National Forest. It gets it's name honestly due to the sweltering heat and humidity as well as the snakes, gators, wild boar and bobcats that make their cozy homes there. It’s where Francis Marion and his forces hid out and developed guerrilla style warfare against the British during the revolutionary war earning him the badass moniker "The Swamp Fox". Honestly I was searching for a race over 100 miles that was relatively close and wasn’t a mountain race. I've completed a few hundred milers at Unico 100 and Halloween Hobble and want to increase my distance to eventually finish a 200 Miler. I found the Hell Hole 142. I DNF'd that race last year at mile 85. I learned that flat does not mean smooth. It’s a deceiving course. I went back for revenge this year but really the key draw was the sweet buckle. That’s really why we put ourselves through these experiences ... to get that BUCKLE!!!! Q: Let's also give a shout out for your crew and pacers ... who you got? A: I had the best crew ever!!! Again one of the main reasons I run ultras is to get together with this special group of people. Jeff “Gigantor “ Longo, Jeremy Grimm, Kyle Scharkopf, Ana Cunningham, Tom Shankapotamus and Ruben Cosme who documented the experience with his amazing photography. I ran with my buddy Little Joe Santangelo. These guys were like a NASCAR Pitcrew. I’m not sure how much non ultra runners/readers know about the importance of a good crew during these adventures but it is critical! They support you in every single way imaginable ... restocking your running vest with supplies, checking batteries, cooking rib eyes, changing socks, yanking off worn out shoes and toenails, patching blisters, and countless other things that pop up throughout the journey. Then, they jump in to pace you for 30 miles and pull you out of darkness into the daylight and make sure you stay eating and hydrated when you're too tired to remember to eat or drink after 30 hours of running. They really are amazing and essential for a successful race. Love my crew! Q: True or False: You rotated HPM hats at the turn of each 18ish mile loop? A: Haha, I absolutely rotated between two different HPM hats every lap. I tried to get HPM on the crew but you all had your own event going. The HPM community is special to me and I wanted to pay tribute to and channel the HPM mojo somehow. Hat #1 HERE ... Hat #2 HERE Q: Highest and lowest point of the race? A: Since I’ve been eating a mainly carnivore diet and becoming a fat adapted athlete since January the high of the race was the 11pm Ribeye and coffee Jeremy and the crew cooked up during one of the pit stops after loop 3. Any source of quick morale boost, a good steak, like a well timed good joke, is highly welcomed. The low was on loop 4 about 10 miles into the loop about 60 plus miles into the race. It was probably around 3AM. That’s where your mind starts questioning everything and your body is like “I guess we’re really gonna do this. Why are you here? Wouldn’t you like to take your socks and shoes off and put your battered and blistered feet up"? Comfort is a lie and it calls your name, and calls it loudly. "Wouldn’t you rather be sleeping right now?" You’ve been up for 22 hours and your patience is really tested. You know what is referred to as the pain cave (physical or mental or both) is coming and it’s just a matter of when. I hope it doesn’t come in the dark of night, but it usually does for me, somewhere after mile 50. I knew we were in trouble when I could hear Little Joe’s voice and he started asking me if that "orange and blue raccoon from UNICO was blowing up my phone". Hallucinations had officially kicked in. The last 5 miles of that loop felt like 500 miles. For some reason they were never ending! Slow and torturous. Our headlamps kept going on and off to make matters worse. But we worked through it and picked up a pacer, Jeremy, to pull us into the daylight on the next loop. We had to survive the low because deep down, we knew the sunrise was coming and we would feel the rebirth of a new day! Q: We've heard in graphic detail some of your best hallucinations, but can you share your semi-family friendly versions with the readers? A: Let's quickly revisit last's year mental trip to give context ... Last year I was awake for an unexpected 18 hours prior to the start of the race so I was already sleep deprived. I was sleep walking with my pacers and miserable. That’s when the hallucinations kicked in, awake for 34+ hours and at mile 70 while Jeremy was pacing me. I saw this old lady dangerously holding her grand kid over the swamp fishing for minnows. I asked Jeremy, what the hell this lady was doing? Then you realize it’s just a tree. 3 minutes later I look to my left and see Elvis’ pink Cadillac half submerged in the swamp. 5 minutes after clearing that one up I could hear Zydeco Music playing in the distance. As we ran closer to the sound I could see clear as day this Cajun painting I had hanging in my house playing out in “real” life. An old black man dressed super sharp sitting on a shopping cart playing music while a skinny lady in a red dress and red beret and big white pearls danced and twirled next to him. The site and sounds were clear as day. That’s when Jeremy made me lay down and take a 10 minute power nap. Again, thank God for a great crew. This year I only had one mild hallucination towards the end of the race. I saw the real Jeremy petting a couple of chocolate labs that weren’t really there. As I yelled to him he really embellished it, with extra animation just to mess with me. It’s weird because, deep down, you know it’s not real but you can’t help seeing it in your current state of mind. Q: We got a text that said "Broken!" after the race ... now that you've had a few weeks to reminisce, what does that text mean to you now? A: I sent that text, one word, “broken” with a video clip of me crossing the finish line. It described me physically because my left side hip and core had collapsed and I was bent over at 30 degree angle to the left and couldn’t keep my torso upright. I was completely hunched over for the last 20 miles. I had my hiking sticks working to keep me from falling over left. Gigantor used a 3 foot stick to push my hips forward from behind to help me get upright. And my feet were tore up from some poor sock choices. But more than that looking back on it, it described the feeling I had about the race in that moment. I was completely embarrassed to cross the line struggling like that. I never had before and I was just imagining what a broken weak person I must look like hobbling across the finish line into the arms of my crew. Now I rationalize it with help from the crew and friends. Not a ton of people do these distances and I fought like hell to get this buckle. Like the Honey Badger spirit animal discussed previously, I didn’t quit and regardless of what it looked like and how embarrassed I felt, I succeeded. With help from my friends I gained another experience I will never forget and in ”Buckled Up” after 32 hours and 10 minutes of running in the sweltering swamp. Q: What is the biggest difference in this year's finish and last year's DNF? A: The biggest differences between last year's DNF and this year's buckle came down to sleep and nutrition. Last year I was sleep deprived going into the race, this year I was well rested. Last year I couldn’t eat after mile 70 and was puking whenever I tried to eat or drink. It was a combination of the heat and my body rejecting the carbs. This year I became fat adapted and ate only unsweet peanut butter with coconut oil and salt, ribeye steak, bacon from my buddy Troy at Motown Spice, chomps beef sticks, and LMNT electrolytes. No carbs no sugars. I felt fantastic. I never felt bloated or nauseous or full. I felt even and balanced and energetic the whole way. No peaks and valleys of energy. Also last year the course was wet and the last 4 miles of each loop was in shin deep water and mud. This year it was pretty dry the whole way which made a world of difference. Q: Be honest, when were you back on the flat top cooking up some of the best grub in Charlotte (for many that will read this!) A: Race finished on Sunday. I was back in the kitchen on Tuesday for the start of the Mattie’s Diner run club that night!! Limping a little because of the banged up feet but feeling great!!! Again I think strength training was the key. Proverbial Question: What's Next? A: Just around the corner in Sept is my favorite HPM event, Psychoactive. After that, I'm pushing towards achieving a 200 miler. The next step is the Sedona Canyons 125 next May with the crew and a couple more HPM supporters Will Stewart and Drew Coombes running as well. Proverbial Follow Up Question: Why? A: I just think that we are meant to do hard things and to not grow old gracefully. I think the more I challenge myself mentally and physically through HPM activities the better I'm equipped to take on challenges at the restaurants and in life with my family and friends, without whom none of this is possible. God gave me this body and with His help I'm going to see what I can accomplish with it. Swing by either of Matt's restaurants for some of the best grub and community vibes in Charlotte. Order a home cooked meal and ask him a few questions about his experience ... a side of inspiration is on the house. Journal - Running 100 Miles Through HellComments are closed.
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Human Powered JournalWritings and musings of an active lifestyle
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