Marathon Massacre - Check.

It is 5 pm on Sunday, exactly three and a half hours after the Supergeezer's completion of the Valentine's Day Marathon Massacre.  I have been in my pajamas, lying on the couch for the last 2 hours. I yelped about 30 minutes ago as a massive cramp seized the back of my right leg and I was left flopping on the couch for 20 seconds like a fish flung out of water. But the cramp has passed and all is again right with the world.

Let me say this: I severely underestimated how hard this event would be. Each member of our 4-person Supergeezer team (combined age over 200) had to run 4 laps. The course was 1.6 miles. Hilly, yes. But still, I can run 1.6 miles in my sleep.

Or so I thought.

The kicker was that you had to run each lap fast. Which I knew. And still underestimated. My thought process was that, sure, I'd be winded at the end of each lap but tra-la-la... I would just suck it up and do it.

Compare this with my thought process during each lap which went something like this: "AAAAUUUGH! Kill me! KILL ME. Why do I sign up for these things? It's only been .2 miles and I'm heaving. I'm going to have to stop and walk. I'll just tell my team I cramped--that way they won't know I wimped out. Yes, I will tell them I cramped OR maybe I'll fling myself on the pavement and get a skinned knee and play the injury up for more than it really is. I can do it--they'll never know..."

Luckily, by the time I finished mentally moaning, I had cleared the biggest hill and could convince myself to do the rest.

I am VERY proud of our team. We came in at a 3 hour and 28 minute marathon, averaging a 7:58 pace. (My marathon time solo was a 9:48 pace.) I'm also very proud of me. My splits (average pace per mile) were a 7:22, 7:26, 7:21, and 7:33. I'm thrilled with my times. Last summer on the track, my "fast" pace was about an 8 minute mile. Now I'm under a 7:30 pace and that's running more than a mile on a semi-hilly course.  I remember thinking early last year that I'd be so happy if I could ever just run a steady 9 minute pace. It is actually exciting to see how the body improves over time and what was once unthinkable is now doable.

Still, I'm pooped. And amazed and inspired at the perseverance and skill of other runners. There were 20 people on the course who ran it solo. That's 18 LAPS of hills, all by your lonesome. The winning guy came in at 3 hours and one minute--smoked us, all on his own.

There were also a number of 2-member teams, who were just cranking. And a lot of high school kids that we could sort of get a glimpse of as they roared by us at lightspeed. Usually you just felt a light breeze go by and knew to applaud. They were incredible.

I also got to spend time with Amy & Mo, running buddies from last summer's training group. If anyone needs incentive to run as a means to lose weight, talk to these two ladies. Amy's lost over 45 pounds and I think Mo over 50. They look incredible.  Which makes them less likeable. Why the hell haven't I lost 50 pounds?!? <grin>

So it was a grueling day (waiting almost 40 minutes between laps) but also a fun day. And I can't begin to tell you how glad I am that it's over. I think I'm clear of races until the end of April.  That's my first trail 1/2 marathon. Let the training begin!

P.S. Kudos to Off N' Running for another great race. And the hooded sweatshirts are great! They've got the title of the race dripping down as if in blood lettering. Classy!

Uwharrie Mountain Run 2008

 

Today my friend Keith and I ran the Uwharrie Mountain Run in Uwharrie Mountain National Forest. Three races are run in one day - a 40 miler, a 20 miler, and an 8-miler. I was a single-digit racing gal.

In a word, the course was intense. There were quite a few times I was heaving heavier than I ever came close to on my marathon. LOTS of hills. Lots of mud. Lots of leaves, rocks, fallen trees, stumps, roots, and hidden dangers. But it was FUN. I let go on some of the downhills and really got up some speed (for me). I tried to be smart and walk most of the uphills. That's a trick taught me by ultra-marathoners. You typically expend more energy running the uphills than you gain in time, so it's better to walk them.

I fell once, but it was minor. I was walking over a log and put my foot down in muddy leaves and lost my footing. Caught myself on my hands before I went all the way down. Also got my left foot wet in the creek, but it dried almost instantly.

I was pooped by mile 5. Just wished it was over. What saved me is that I attached myself to two women running in front of me. I think one woman was a trainer for the other. She kept calling back advice like, "Okay, use your arms here and keep your core steady." Or, "We're going to run 50 paces up and then walk." It was like having my own trainer on the trail. They got me through most of the last 2 miles. (They stopped for water and I passed them in the end. Feel kind of bad about that as I wouldn't have gone as fast if not for them. But c'mon... you're less than a half mile from the finish. Water can wait.)

By my watch, I finished the course in 1: 37:55, almost 10 minutes faster than our trial run a few weeks ago. Keith and I agreed that it felt like we were running much faster than on our practice run. However, the first two miles were clogged with runners and and had to be walked single file. I think it took 28 minutes just to clear those two miles. After that, the group spread out and the running began.

Would I do it again? Probably. Although, I found myself thinking at a couple of points on the trail that I wasn't enjoying it. Not because I was tired, but because the trail is so technical and I just stayed nervous about falling.  Maybe I don't have trail running blood...

I'm sore tonight. Much more so than after my 15-mile run of last weekend. My body feels pounded. You can't beat trail running for a total body workout. It's more than running--you're jumping, leaping, balancing, stretching...  They also say it's easier on the joints. Maybe. All I know is, I am going to go become one with a bottle of Ibuprofen.

Happy trails!

Mangum Shirt Run - Photos

I found a site that has pictures of the 15 mile point-to-point run I did on Saturday. The Mangum Track Club (MTC) is a running club with no dues, no meetings, and no ambitions to be anything more than a bunch of people who get together to run. It's a great group. Click through the many pages on this site... a lot are of people but there are also a couple of great shots of the road we ran from Mangum to Ellerbe, NC. Pretty much out in the middle of nowhere. I'm in the newbie photo and the everyone photo but I left soon after the Shirt Run was finished (but did manage to eat a glazed donut and 2 pieces of pizza) and so missed being in the "newbies in their Mangum Club t-shirt" photo.

Click HERE for photos.

And I have to give a shout-out to my friend Dave, long time member of MTC who ran the 15 with me and coached me on the hills. "Pick an object and run to it." Got it, Dave!

Runners Don't Get Sick

Bragging will always bring you down. I did the Mangum Shirt Run this weekend and was boasting to another runner how I haven't been sick since I started running. Actually, we were boasting to one another. D--- said he hasn't been sick with so much as a cold in twenty years.  I can't claim anything close to that, but I usually come down sick hard about once a year and I haven't had more than a light sniffle for going on almost two years now.

That record may soon be broken. I woke up about 3:30 last night with a headache and by this morning it had moved to headache and upset stomach. I'm not quite convinced yet that I'm sick though. I'm wondering if it might not just be too much dry heat. Staying indoors too much with the heat cranked can sometimes make me feel less than good. So I'm taking it easy today (which given the low-pressure life I lead these days, borders on comatose) and am just waiting to see.

It's a good excuse to drink hot tea and eat peanut butter crackers in bed though, don't you think?  It's almost what Mondays were made for...