IBEW 1245 member Karen Romagnoli Conquers 100-Mile Trail Run
IBEW 1245 member Karen Romagnoli spent nearly 31 hours climbing hills, running through the night, and covering 100 miles of rugged East Bay trails. At 63 years old, she became one of just 38 percent of runners to finish the inaugural Bay Area 100.
The PG&E Field Metering meter maintenance worker spends her workdays solving problems in the field. Off the clock, she looks for a different kind of challenge that tests her mentally and physically.
The Bay Area 100 is no ordinary race. The course winds through rugged East Bay trails and features more than 18,000 feet of elevation gain. The participants run through the night and into the following day before they reach the finish line. Of the more than 150 runners who started, only about 38 percent completed the course. Romagnoli crossed the finish line in 30 hours and 53 minutes.
Preparing for the race took nearly six months. “I started training right after the holidays,” she said. “A hundred miles was never really on my radar. Usually those races are up in Tahoe or require a lot of travel. But this one was basically in my backyard, so I thought, ‘Why not give it a try?'”
Karen has a few running groups she trains with, one being Lake Merritt Running Club, but you will often find her logging in training miles alone. Over the years, she has completed numerous trail races and ultramarathons, including the Quicksilver 100K in San Jose, the Dick Collins Firetrails 50 Mile, and the grueling Quad Dipsea, a 28-mile race between Mill Valley and Stinson Beach that packs more than 9,200 feet of climbing into its course.
Friends met Romagnoli at aid stations throughout the race, and another runner joined her as a pacer for the final 40 miles.
“Your brain is mush by then,” Romagnoli said. “She handled the navigation, and I just followed her.”
Aid stations also kept runners fueled, though eating wasn’t always easy. “Even when you don’t want to, you have to force yourself,” she said.
Asked if she ever thought about quitting, Romagnoli’s answer was immediate.
“I never thought about quitting,” she said. “I never got sick, I didn’t have blisters, and mentally I was okay.”
By the final 10 miles, running had given way to fast walking, but she never stopped moving forward.
Waiting at the finish line were her children, who had traveled to support her and spent the weekend helping her crew.
“Having my kids there meant a lot,” she said. “They’ve always thought I was a little crazy for doing these races. But after spending the weekend there, they saw what a community it is and understood why I do this.”
This summer, Romagnoli plans to take a rare break from racing while she travels. But she already has her eye on returning to the Quad Dipsea, a 28-mile trail race in the North Bay.
Congratulations, Karen, on an incredible accomplishment. Your IBEW Local 1245 family is proud of you and will be cheering you on wherever the trail leads next.