Beacon Rock Recap

I was nervous going in to this race. The elevation profile was just scary. I had hiked the Hamilton Mountain trail enough to know just how steep that section of the course was going to be. 7500 feet of climbing and descending in 31 miles, running up and over two "mountains" along the way. Was I really up for the challenge?

The weekend before Adam joined me for some hill training in Forest Park. We started at Germantown Road and instead of sticking to the main Wildwood trail, we took every side/hilly trail that we could. We climbed up Firelane 10, went up Saltzman, then up and down Trillium, up and down the full length of Ridge Trail, and up Hardesty. It amounted to 3400 feet of climbing in 15.5 miles. I was whipped at the end. I didn't know how I was going to run another 4100 feet of elevation and double the miles the following week.

Climbing up one of the steeper portions of the trail.

Sunday dawned sunny and bright. The alarm was set for 5:10, but I woke a few minutes before it went off. The nice thing about waking up at 5 am for a run in the summer is that it is already light out. Makes it much easier to actually get yourself out of bed. I did the usual pre-race routine, and before long I was heading out the door. Left the house at 5:50 and arrived at the race site at 6:45 - which gave me a solid hour and fifteen minutes before the race.

I met up with a fellow Portland "Running Chick" and we chatted for a bit. We got to watch the early starters head out (you could take an hour early start if you didn't think you could complete the course in the 9 hour time limit). I had previewed the entrant list the night before and had counted 14 women registered for the 50k race. I scanned the early starters - there were probably 15 or so and 10 of them were women. Uh-oh. This concerned me. Should I be taking the early start? I was really thinking worse case scenario would be an 8 to 8 1/2 hour finish. The race director's really don't want you to take the early start unless you actually need it (i.e. they don't want you starting early so you can finish earlier). I had a few moments of panic about there only being 4 women starting the 50k at the regular start time. Would I be last?

I picked up my bib and readied my drop bag. The 50k runners were doing 2 loops, so we would return to the starting location at the halfway point. We could have a drop bag here, and at the aid station that was out on the course. I was trying to be as self-sufficient as possible, so I just had the one drop bag at the start. I was going to try out my hydration pack for this run. Instead of using one 2-liter bladder in it I instead loaded it up with 2, 1 liter bladders - filling one with grape drinking vinegar and the other with Gatorade. I had 3 gu's and two packets of Margarita shot blocks in my front pack pockets, along with my inhaler. I was hoping the pack would prove to be comfortable for 31 miles. Just in case it was bothering me at the halfway point I put my amphipod belt in my drop bag.

I met up with TrailMike from Daily Mile before the race. This was his second 50k and he was also daunted by the hill climbing we were going to face. He had decided to go light for the race and was going to carry just one handheld bottle. We would hit aid stations at 5.5, 11.8, 15.5, 21, and 27.3 so it isn't as though we had too much time between any one station.

Soon enough race director, James Varner, was giving the race instructions. In his words there were several "confusing intersections." Having gotten lost during a marathon two weeks ago I paid close attention. He had put arrows attached to garden stakes at all intersections, but at those two particular intersections he had also included written notes - first time through go left, second time through go straight - as we would be hitting those intersections twice during each lap. Seemed straightforward enough. He also assured us that there was flagging tape or an arrow appx every 1/4 mile. And without much further ado we were off!

We crossed the starting line and ran down the gravel road the group campsite was located on for 1/10 of a mile, then made a hard right turn onto pavement, went down 150 feet in .3 miles (damn that was going to hurt having to come back up that!) then a hard left onto gravel. From there it was trail or dirt road the rest of the way. The climbing began with a relatively gentle grade for the next mile 1.8 miles as were still on a "road." I ran this section knowing that we had much worse climbing to come. At the 2.2 mile mark we hung a left and had a bit more gentle climbing before hanging a right onto a STEEP trail. This is where everyone started to walk. It was up, up, up for at least a mile and a half before we topped out at 2500 feet on Hardy Ridge. Then it was down, down, down on steep, rocky, technical trail for another mile and a half to the aid station. I got passed by more than a few runners on this downhill as I am not a good descender. TrailMike caught up to me, then blew by me on his way to the aid station.

I passed up the first aid station feeling as though I was pretty well stocked. The next mile was more downhill, and then we hit the first of the confusing intersections. It was very well marked and there was even a volunteer pointing people in the right direction! TrailMike caught up to me again and we ran together for a bit before he passed on by me. This next part of the course was my favorite with a little bit of rolling terrain and several pretty bridges. But before long the joy ended as we made the turn up to Hamilton Mountain. We were probably at about 900 feet and had to climb up to 2350. I "ran" for the first 1/4 mile or so, passing TrailMike on the way, then started power walking. I figured I was wasting more energy in attempting to run than to just walk it. I passed a few people on the uphill.

Having done this trail numerous times I knew when I was closing in on the top. As soon as I hit the saddle I took off running. This section was still pretty technical but relatively runnable. Some steep downhill, some gentle downhill, a beautiful crossing of a wide open saddle to a dirt road - one of my favorite stretches on the course. Then on to a cutoff trail that had a few obstacles in the way - downed logs to hop - along with lots of rocks and roots. TrailMike caught back up to me and we chatted for a few minutes before he continued on. There was a pretty new bridge had been put in and there was some work going on along the trail.

The trail husky - happy as can be!

Then I was back at the aid station - mile 11.8. There were several people running the race with their dogs. There was a husky with his owner at the aid station and she was just having the time of her life. He fed her a peanut butter sandwich and she was just all wiggly and full of energy. I had 1/2 a peanut butter and jelly sandwich along with several cups of water and continued on. I wanted to make it back to the 15.5 miles before the 3 1/2 hour mark if I possibly could. It wasn't long before the pup and her owner passed me. The next stretch of the course was a bit of a steep hill on the road before returning to the confusing intersection. This time we went straight and the volunteer was still there to direct us. This part felt a bit like a cross country course - lots of running over grass that had taken over the old road. The temperature was starting to climb and it felt a bit steamy. This stretch ended at another intersection that I hadn't even noticed on the way up. We were at mile 13.7 and it was down the gravel/dirt road we had climbed up at the beginning of the race. I started to see runners who were heading back up the road on their second lap for the 50k. I cheered them on as they passed me - impressed with their ability. It didn't take too long before I was back to the pavement and got to climb that 150 feet back up to the start.

Trail puppy! Doesn't she look like she is having fun?

The air felt hot and my temperature was rising a bit. I pulled in to the aid station at the halfway mark at 3:17:05, hitting the time goal I had set for myself. I greedily sucked down two watermelon pieces. It was cold, wet, and delicious! Had another 1/4 of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as well. TrailMike had pulled into the aid station just before me, so we set out together for lap 2. I have to admit there was a part of me that really just wanted to call it a day. It was getting warm, and the runners who had completed the 25k were lounging on the lawn enjoying cold beer and hamburgers and hot dogs. Looked like a nice way to relax. But I had signed up for the 50k so I wasn't going to quit now.

TrailMike and I stayed together for the first mile and then I continued running up the hill while he decided to walk. This second lap was much lonelier. I was on my own for the majority of this trip. I passed 4 or 5 people on my way up to Hardy Ridge. Knowing what I was facing made the second trip up Hardy Ridge a bit easier. A guy caught up to me on the descent from Hardy and we ran into the aid station together. Another 1/4 of a peanut butter sandwhich and more water. The air was warm and the sun was beating down. My clothing was soaked and I could feel the salt on my skin. I wanted to make sure I kept getting enough fluid and salt in to prevent cramping. I was about 3/4 finished with my Gatorade and was probably 1/2 way through my grape vinegar at this point. I had been take a margarita shot block just about every 3 miles since the beginning of the race as well.

I let my legs loose out of the aid station and went through the next section pretty quickly as the terrain was the easiest of the entire course. Not much time later I found myself back at the climb up to Hamilton Mountain. This time the climb felt harder and I walked all but a very short rising traverse section in the middle. I got to the top and set out to run again. Then a quiver, a spasm, and I stopped. What was that? Something felt very strange in my upper thigh/groin area. It was definitely the beginning of a cramp. I sucked down some fluid, at another block, and tried to massage it out. I was a bit scared at this point. I was a good 3.5 miles in either direction from the aid station and I had no other runners around me. I really wasn't sure if I could handle the cramps completely on my own.

After massaging it out for a couple of minutes my leg seemed to want to work again. I took the descent gingerly, being careful not to make any sudden or awkward movements over rocks or logs. I ran over the rocky saddle, hit the dirt road, then back to the cutoff trail. Every minute I pulled closer to the aid station I was happier as I knew they might have something to help me if the cramps started. I was feeling ok, and started down the next technical descent. There was a log in my path and I had to get over it. I stopped to a walk and cautiously picked up my right leg. BAM - thigh seized with a vengeance. I screamed an obscenity at the top of my lungs it hurt so bad (not that anyone was around to hear it). It was a bad cramp, the kind that leads to my whole body cramping and I was terrified that was what was going to happen. The two times that has happened I have had someone there with me. They have helped me to work it out and get me functional again. No such luck this time. I tried to relax knowing that tensing wasn't going to help anything. I worked on rubbing it out hearing Janet's voice in my head telling me to rub away from my heart. After 4 or 5 minutes it started to release a bit. I slowly started to walk again, being extremely careful this time not to make any sudden movements. The slow walk eventually turned in to a very slow jog to the aid station.

I walked up and said I was having trouble with cramps. They pointed me to S caps and told me to take two. I was willing to try anything, so I downed two with three cups of water. I grabbed a handful of M&M's as I was getting really hungry. I ran the downhill stretch much slower this time, uncertain of when or if the cramps would return. It was on this stretch that my watch died. I had turned of the auto-lap feature in hopes of getting more life out of it, but apparently 6 hours and 40 minutes is the maximum battery life of my watch. I was a bit disappointed not to have the watch as a guide for the last few miles. I had a slim hope of making it in just under 7 hours and it was going to be hard without the watch. Bummer.

I made it through the cross-country section of the course and was at the final turn onto the gravel road. I cruised down this the best I could, trying to pick up the pace a bit. I hit the parking lot, .8 from the start, ran down the final gravel stretch and then made the turn onto the .3 mile uphill stretch to the finish. I pushed up the hill the best I could and tried to bring it in strong. Just as I was closing in on the finish line I caught sight of the race clock - it was just turning over from 6:59:59 to 7:00:00. I was disappointed but still tried to finish strong - crossed the finish line in 7:00:12.

Overall a good run. I was pretty happy with my effort. I didn't have any negative thoughts during the day. I knew I wasn't going to do overly well in the standings, but I felt happy to finish 7500 feet of climbing in 31 miles of running in a single day. If I could figure out how to keep the cramps away from good I know I can do better. I did end up coming in one minute and twelve second faster than in the Gorge 50 and this was a harder course - so I feel as though I am making progress.

Stats (Updated 6/16/11 - They updated the results and I moved up a spot)
Finish time: 7:00:12
38 out of 71 overall
9 out of 21 women

Ridgeline Ramble Trail Marathon

A month or so ago our friend Janet sent out a link to the Ridgeline Ramble in Eugene over Memorial Day Weekend. This race had something to offer everyone - a 10k, 20k, 20k relay, and a marathon. Adam and I no longer make climbing plans for Memorial Day so we decided we would give it a try. He registered for the 20k and I registered for the marathon. Alice also decided to join in on the fun, registering for the 20k. Jay & Janet were doing the 20k relay.

In typical Sarah fashion, I didn't do the best job of understanding the logistics when I registered. For some reason I was thinking the race as in Salem instead of Eugene. Salem is a 45 minute drive, while Eugene is a 2 hour drive. The marathon start time was 7 am. Since I wanted to make sure to build in a little time for getting lost and using the bathrooms upon arrival at the starting line it was going to be quite an early morning.

I got my stuff prepped on Thursday night in order to make Friday night a little bit easier. Friday night came, we had an early dinner, and were in bed around 10. The alarm came early Saturday morning - 3:30 am. I put on some coffee for Adam and hopped in the shower to loosen up my muscles a bit. We were dressed and ready to go by 4:20.

Pre-race

The forecast was for 70% chance of rain, and it had been raining for the previous two days leading up to this run. Since this was a trail run we knew that meant we were going to encounter a good bit of mud during the run. As we made our way down to Eugene we hit patches of torrential rain intermixed with long dry stretches. We had been in one of those nice long dry stretches until about 2 miles before our exit when the torrential rain hit again, and continued all the way to the race start location.

We were first to arrived, followed quickly by Jay & Janet and Alice. It wasn't raining too hard at this point. We were able to grab our race numbers and timing chips, although it made sense to crawl back into the car to put all the stuff on. We had arrived at 6:20, giving me 40 minutes to get myself settled before the gun went off. There were only 26 people running the marathon - by far the smallest marathon I have done - and I was quite intimidated by looking at some of them. They looked like marathoners - ridiculously strong legs, super thin, etc... - I was worried I was going to be dead last. They gathered us all together and gave us some course instructions. There were white flour arrows on the ground indicating which direction to go. The marathon was running the 20k course backwards, and then running back and tacking on a short 2k loop to make it a full marathon. We were to follow the flour arrows backwards to the 20k start and then follow them forwards. Seemed simple enough.

And we're off!

And then we were off. We had to run across the grass to start, and then we were on pavement for the first three miles. Within a mile we ran down a pretty good hills (would need to run back up it on the way back) and then hit an insanely steep uphill. I could pretty much see the entire field at this point, and it looked to me as though I had about 11 people in front of me. There were two people that took the early start (out of 26), so I figured I must have 12 people behind me. I felt pretty good being in the middle of the pack. If I could finish mid-pack I would be happy.

There were three aid stations in the first 10k. We hit the trails around mile 3, and started to do a decent amount of climbing. Topped out on a beautiful ridge, and enjoyed a bit of ridge running for about 1/2 a mile. Then a steep and super muddy descent. My shoes sunk into the thick mud and after 1/4 mile of running with what felt like lead weights on my feet I had to stop and scrape them off. The 10k aid station appeared as we came down the trail, and I followed a white arrow and took a right (going straight would have led us through a parking lot). We went down, down, down for what felt like a long ways. Then I found myself at a junction - there were three trails, one to the right (no arrows), one somewhat straight ahead (backward arrow), and one to the left (forward arrow). Knowing we were supposed to follow the arrows backwards I took the straight ahead path. In short order I found myself on a road. I was confused here. I could see an arrow across the street but I had a feeling that might be pointing me towards the additional loop I needed to do on my return trip. I hemmed and hawed here for a bit, I stood around confused. Finally this truck came barreling up the street, a woman leaned out the window, and told me to run down the street. I thanked her and kept moving.

Right at the end of the street was another aid station. We then looped back into the trees. There was a short stream crossing and lots more mud. Then I was back at the trail junction. I was totally confused here. I knew if I followed the forward arrow I would end up back at the 10k aid station. But if I followed the backward arrow I would just repeat the loop I had already done. Even though I had scrutinized the map before hand I did not understand that there was an out and back section of the course. If I had understood that, the arrow would have made sense. But thinking I would never be retracing my steps I was just flummoxed. Thankfully, in 2 - 3 minutes a guy I had met at the Gorge 50k came up the trail. He thought the right direction was to go back up the hill. We both continued that way. Then about half way up he doubted this as well and he pulled out his phone which had a GPS map of the course on it. We confirmed that there was an out and back and continued up. All in all, I think I lost about 5 minutes on this section of the course due to confusion.

About 1/2 way up the hill I passed this girl wearing with long blond hair. I said three times "passing on the left" and she refused to move over. Her music was blaring so loud on her iPod that she couldn't anything around her. Finally when I was practically on her shoulder she realized I was there and moved over. For some reason this annoyed me and I made it a point to work hard to stay ahead of her.

Just as we were getting close to the top of the hill two guys pass us going downhill - they were flying! We were now going to be encountering the 20k runner's for the next few miles (they had started at 8, while we had started at 7). Once at the top of the hill and back at the 10k aid station, we crossed through the parking lot, across a road, and back on to trails. Some of the 20k'ers were just hauling. One woman yelled at me "good job 6th woman!" And that's when I fell apart. How was I 6th? I hadn't been passed by any women. When I had been able to see the full field up ahead of me at the beginning I had counted 5 women, and I had passed one. That should make me 4th - how did 2 get ahead of me? I got myself into a horrible internal dialogue at this point, going straight for my typical neuroses. "You aren't a runner, you are too fat to be a runner. You are slow. Slow and fat. Slow, fat, and ugly. Slow, fat, ugly and stupid." It just kept getting worse and worse.

I had figured would meet up with Adam and Alice somewhere along this stretch, and wasn't surprised when in another 10 minutes I spotted them. I was super crabby at this point b/c of dropping time getting lost and finding out how far back I was in the crowd. They looked like they were feeling strong, and they were right in the thick of a big group of runners.

After a mile or two I wasn't passing the 20k'ers any more and it started to feel a little desolate. I tried to keep the guy who had helped me with the GPS map in sight. Every time I caught site of his yellow shirt I felt a little comforted that I was either still on the right track, or I was lost with someone I knew. I figured I was at about the 10 mile mark when I saw the frontrunners (2 men) coming back my way. I asked them how many miles to the turnaround and they told me "a couple." Another 10 minutes went by and I started to see a lot more people. I counted 15 people coming back my way. Back to my original point, I hadn't been passed by anyone, how had so many people gotten ahead of me?

I popped out of the trail into another parking lot at an aid station, grabbed a cup of Gatorade, and asked the volunteer which mile we were at. His response, "I think we are at 3.2." He was figuring from the 20k point of view, which would have put us at mile 9.4 - I knew this was wrong and just continued on. I was trying to shake all my negative thoughts. I was out here for fun, not because I was trying to win. Granted, I wanted to do the best I could, but I was doing that. My pace was pretty decent, my legs were feeling good, etc...

It didn't take too much longer to get to the 20k turnaround - probably a mile and a half. The volunteer wrote down my number next to a number indicating what place I was in. I was 18th. Ugh... Still couldn't figure out how I had gotten so far back. However, this is where I finally seemed to shake the negative thoughts. I told myself that if I couldn't get out of the negative space in my head then I needed to stop racing b/c this wasn't worth it. I'm never going to be the fastest; never going to win. I'm out there to push myself and enjoy myself. So I just let it all go and decided to work hard and enjoy the next 13.8 miles.

I grabbed another cup of Gatorade and I continued back. As I was heading back from the aid station, blond ponytail girl was running opposite and one her way to the turnaround - probably 2 minutes behind. Now I was on known ground which is much easier. You can plan accordingly which helps and psychologically you know exactly what you are facing. I passed one guy not far after the turn around. It didn't seem to be too long before I found myself back at the 10k aid station and heading back down the long hill. On my way down I passed by a lot of the front runners coming up, sure enough I was 6th woman. I worked hard not to get down about that and pressed on. Back to the funky intersection. I ran it the same way I had the first time (which was backwards this time), then followed the arrow across the street (where I had turned left last time) to do the additional 2k loop. When I completed that I talked to the guy at the aid station who recorded my number. He told me I was supposed to run it the other way, but as long as I had completed the loop it didn't really matter.

At one of the trail junctions

Then it was back up the hill. As I was climbing my way up I was surprised to see 4 or 5 people coming down that I had passed on my way down the hill (they had been on their way up). I asked one of them why she was coming back down - she told me that she had missed this section the first time around. Suddenly things started to make sense. A bunch of folks had hit the 10k aid station the first time and gone straight across the parking lot instead of down the hill, cutting appx. 3 miles of course. That's how so many people had gotten ahead of me.

Stupid as it may sound this actually perked me up a bit and I continued up the hill and passed another guy. Ran straight through the 10k aid station and got back on course. This is typically the spot in a marathon where I seem to get an extra infusion of adrenaline. It's a nice little perk and makes the last 10k go by a lot faster. I knew I would also hit that ridge run again, which even though it was a steep climb up it was super pretty. Those 3 miles went by pretty fast and I was at the last aid station. A great aid station with oranges, pretzels, gummy bears and more. I asked them how far to go - only a 5k left!

Now we were back to road running. I was hoping to increase my pace for this last stretch. My next mile was 8:09 and it felt pretty good. Then all of a sudden I saw blond ponytail girl ahead of me?!? How had she gotten ahead of me? She never passed me. I was never off course. It didn't make sense and it got me upset. She had to have cut some section of the course (intentionally or unintentionally) to get ahead. I figured I had two choices, talk to her at the end and see if we could identify where she skipped a section of the course or just pass her outright and not worry about it. So I kicked it into high gear and passed her. My last two miles were 8:06 and 7:52. It felt hard but good. I passed one more guy right at the end. One of my goals has been working on strong finishes and pushing hard at the end, so it felt good to find a different gear and really be able to finish with some speed.

I saw and heard Adam cheering me in to the finish. I crossed the finish line in 4:26:41 - a 10:09 pace.

Stats:
7th out of 20 overall
4th out of 11 women
1st out of 3 in my division

Adam, me, Alice, Janet, Jay post-race

Apparently there was a lot of confusion out on the course. The first two guys that finished missed a section and so they weren't counted in the final results. Then there were a bunch of people that had to do the out and back section twice on the way back because they missed it. In the end I'm pretty sure blond ponytail girl wasn't trying to cheat, I just think she somehow missed a turn and unintentionally cut off a section of the course.

Overall, I feel pretty good about that performance. I'm thankful I was able to stop the negative thoughts and enjoy the second half of the run. I wish I hadn't gotten into that space to begin with, and definitely have some work to do mentally for future races. In the end it was a great day. Adam and Alice did really well in the 20k and had a lot of fun as did Jay & Janet in the relay.

We finished off the day by going to Janet & Jay's in Newberg, having some excellent grilled food, and lounging in the hot tub. A wonderful day filled with running and friends. Couldn't ask for anything better.

A Day Off to Run

Had you asked me a year ago if I would consider taking a day off to run I would have told you you were crazy. I mean, day's off are supposed to be for tromping around in the gorge, the mountains, or lazily hanging out home. Last Thursday came with the promise of a beautiful Friday forecast - sunny, warm, dry - it was going to be a perfect day. I couldn't conceive of spending such a perfect day sitting in the office so Adam and I decided to take the day off.

Arriving home on Thursday night we talked over whether we should climb Hood. It would be a pretty day in the mountains so it would be a great day to do it. However, it was already 7 pm. By the time we packed it would be 8. Then we would lay down for 2 1/2 hours to "sleep," getting up at 10:30 to prep and drive to the mountain so we could start slogging up the Palmer around midnight. We knew there would be a bazillion other people on the mountain with the forecast, and, quite frankly, neither of us wanted to do it.

I came up with Plan II. I wanted to get in a long run and Adam was game for a long run for him as well. I put together a nice route that would give me 32 miles and him 16. We left the house at 8 am on Friday (perfect for hitting rush hour traffic) to drop a car on Germantown Road where Forest Park's Wildwood trail crosses over. This trailhead is mile post 24.62 on the Wildwood Trail which is a total of 30.2 miles long, beginning at the Oregon Zoo and ending at Newberry Road.

Adam then drove me to a drop off spot on Broadway Drive just on the south edge of downtown, right off of 405. Sadly I had realized on our drive that I had forgotten my GPS watch. I didn't want to lose the time of driving home and then back to the drop off spot so I decided to forego the watch and run "naked" for a change. My drop off spot was about .5 miles from the base of Terwilliger Hill. I started at appx 100 feet of elevation. I had about 2 miles of road running to do before hitting, and staying on, trails for the rest of the day.

I started running at 8:55 a.m. (according to my phone which I was carrying with me). I was wearing a running skirt, tank top, long sleeve shirt, arm warmers, gloves and my amphipod belt. My belt was loaded with two 8 oz bottles of grape drinking vinegar, one 8 oz bottle of Gatorade, one 8 oz bottle of chia seed coconut water, 2 packages of clif shot blocks (400 calories), and 2 gu's. The first 2 miles seemed to go by pretty quick. Unfortunately I realized in the first 1/2 mile that I was overdressed. I took off the long sleeve shirt and tied it around my waist, stuffed my gloves in my skirt pocket, and pushed down my arm warmers. The climbing wasn't too hard and I was listening to my iPod for this stretch. Thankfully there was a bathroom about 1.5 miles into the run and I was very happy to be able to take advantage of it. In short order I saw the sign for the Marquam trail and headed into the woods. The turnoff is around 240 feet of elevation. I turned off my iPod at this point - it distracts me too much to listen to music while running trails. The trails through here are pretty narrow and the signs are just odd. It is super easy to get lost. I'm pretty sure I took a wrong turn somewhere but post-run even looking at the map I couldn't figure out what I had done.

The trail goes up, up, up and I was feeling it in my legs and chest. I made it up to a road crossing in about 2 miles, and was at 780 feet of elevation. I was very confused by this intersection and stopped and asked a few people for directions - they were of no help, so I just continued on hoping I was making the right decisions. Then had to drop down 260 feet, just to climb up another 520 to top out at Council Crest (1073 feet - the highest point in Portland). I took quick notice of the mountains, drank from the water fountain, and then found the path that would take me down to the zoo. This path was relatively well marked, and in another 2 miles I was at the zoo. I figured I was around 6.5 - 7 miles in at this point. I sent off a quick text to Adam to alert him to my whereabouts. Without my watch it was hard to figure out how fast I was traveling. When I had left Adam that morning I had expected to hit our meeting spot around 2:45 - 3 hours.

I made another wrong turn going through the Zoo area. There are so many side trails through here that it is challenging to stay on the main trail. But soon enough I found myself back on Wildwood and leaving behind the mayhem of the zoo on a sunny day. It was 4 miles from here to Pittock Mansion. You have to climb up about 200 feet from the zoo, then drop down 200 feet to the arboretum, and another 300 feet to cross Burnside street. From Burnside you gain about 400 feet in 3/4 a mile to arrive at Pittock Mansion. I was already starting to feel the heat.

I stopped for another bathroom break and ate a Gu. I was about 11 miles in at this point and had already drank 3 of my 8 oz bottles, along with drinking water at three water fountains along the way. I called Adam to let him know I was at Pittock. From here it was 5.5 miles to our meeting spot. I figured I would be about 55 minutes to an hour. Our phone call ended at 11:03 and I started off again.

These miles rolled by pretty quickly. There was quite a big downhill to start this leg, and then a gradually climb for several miles before settling into some rolling hills/descents. I drank the last of my liquid around mile 14 and was getting excited to see Adam and get some more fluid. I arrived at our meeting spot at 12:01 (Leg 1 of 16.25 miles had taken appx 2:55 of running time - appx 10 minutes in bathroom breaks/phone breaks). No Adam. I figured he had probably gotten stuck in Friday traffic and sat down to wait. 10 minutes, then 15 minutes passed. I started to get worried. I didn't have a contingency plan for him not showing up. It would have been very hard running back to civilization without having any more fluid on me. Thankfully he pulled up around 12:20 - he had gotten snarled in bad traffic.

I drank some water, ate a bar, resupplied all the liquid on my belt, dropped my long sleeve shirt, arm warmers, and gloves. Adam was carrying 20 oz of Gatorade in a handheld bottle along with several packets of Gu. We left the car at 12:35. We were at mile post 9.2 on Wildwood and were headed for the car at mile post 24.75.

We settled into a good rhythm pretty quickly. Even though we don't talk a whole lot while running it was very nice to have company. I also find it really nice to run with someone that I don't need to keep up a steady string of conversation with. Sometimes I find that pressure to be stressful, and since I run to relieve stress, it isn't a good thing for me.

About 10 miles in we ran into a couple that had their one year old beagle of leash for the first time. They were walking the opposite direction of us. The pup saw us and got scared and started running in the direction we were going, not the direction his parents were going. So we had to stop and they had to go try and catch the beagle. It was pretty entertaining. She was a cute little pup - clearly quite terrified of the scary runners.

The heat was starting to get to both of us about 12 - 13 miles in. There is a good long climb from mile 21 - 23. We were both low on fluids. I had started the run that morning at 58 degrees and it was up to 75 by the time we got home. Having had such a cool spring so far we just aren't used to the heat yet. We picked up the pace for the last couple of miles, drinking our last fluids about a mile from the car. That leg of 15.75 (we tacked on a bit extra at the end) had taken 2:53:13. Total distance 32 miles, total running time - appx 5:48, elevation gain - appx 4500 ft.

Overall a great day. I think if I had had enough fluids for a resupply and if Adam could have gone farther (we are taking it slow ramping up his miles b/c of a knee issue) I could have done another 8 - 10. It wouldn't have been easy, but I think I could have done it. Since I have my sights set on a 50 miler at some point that was a good sign.

Avenue of the Giants Marathon

Coming in to the finish line of the race.

Running the Avenue of the Giants Marathon was the brain child of my friend Alice. She wanted another shot at qualifying for Boston and she thought it would be awesome to run through the Redwoods. It just so happened that her friend Ingrid lives in Trinidad which is only about 70 miles from the start of the race. This allowed us to have one night of free lodging, and for us all to get to spend time in beautiful Trinidad and with Ingrid and Sweet Pea (Ingrid's adorable pup).

Lee, Alice and I all signed up for the race in late December to get in on the early registration fee. Celeste, Lee's girlfriend, wasn't going to run but wanted to join us on the trip. We planned to take two cars, Lee & Celeste would drive one and Alice, Charlotte (Alice's 14-year old daughter), Rudy (Alice's 12 year old pup) and I would head down in the other. Alice made us a hotel reservation in Eureka for the night before the race.

We left town around 11:30 a.m. on Friday April 29. To get to Trinidad involves driving a couple of hundred miles south on I-5 to Grant's Pass at which point you turn off on 199 which leads you to the coastal highway, 101. There are truly beautiful sections to this drive. We hit lots of heavy rain on the way down, but overall made pretty good time, arriving in Trinidad at 6:30. Ingrid's place is adorable with a great view of the ocean from the front window. She was a goddess being willing to put up 5 people in a dog in a two bedroom house. She made us a great dinner and we all got to enjoy hanging out for the night.

The next day I was up at 6:30. Lee, Alice, Celeste and I went for a pre-race short run along Scenic Drive which gives you an amazing view of the beach below Trinidad. Ingrid's friend Amy was also running the race - this would be her first marathon - so she offered to pick up our race packets. The remainder of our day involved a trip into Arcata for a native plant sale that Ingrid was keen on going to, a visit to the Arcata farmer's market, a hike up and around Trinidad head, and a pasta dinner in Arcata.

We got ourselves tucked into bed by 10 pm and the hotel was thankfully quiet enough that I didn't need to sleep with headphones on. I slept soundly for the majority of the night and woke 2 minutes before my alarm on Sunday morning. I was in the shower by 5 am getting my muscles warmed up with the warm water. Many other racers were staying at the hotel and we saw lots of different running attire as we started packing up the car at 6 am. We all packed in to one car for the drive to the race. The start was just about 40 miles from Eureka and the race website warned racers to get there by 7 am to avoid a traffic jam. We were turning off into the race site at 6:55. We still hit a bit of traffic, but the parking monitors were doing a great job and it only took us about 10 minutes to get us parked.

Once parked, we scrambled a bit to figure out what exactly we needed to bring with us up to the start. It was a very cold morning, made that much colder by being surrounded by huge trees and close to water, but we knew it was supposed to warm up to 70 at some point during the day. Celeste was willing to take a bag for us back down to the car so we got to wear our warm layers up to the start and shed them just before the gun. Celeste had decided to sign up for the 10k that morning. It didn't start until 9 am (the marathon start was 8 am) so it gave her time to get ready for her own race once seeing us off.

So began the usual wait for the porta-potties and then hanging around and freezing until the gun went off. Against my better judgment I decided to keep on my long sleeve top. My teeth were chattering so violently at the start that I couldn't imagine taking it off. We said goodbye to Celeste and got ourselves lined up. Soon enough the gun went off and we were on our way.

This is the smallest marathon I have done. There were 566 participants. Unlike the bigger races where it can take a long time to cross the starting line, in this race we were across 11 seconds post-gun. This is a double out and back race. You run out 6.5 miles to a turnaround and come back hitting the start again right at the halfway mark, then you turn down a different road and do another out and back. The goal for the race was to pace Alice to her BQ time. Originally she wanted me to pace her right to the 4 hour mark. Then she decided she wanted a bit of cushion so we were going for a 3:55. Then she altered that down to 3:50 and by race day the goal was a 3:45. That meant running right around 8:35's.

The road on the first out and back is twisty. Lots of turns as well as the road surface was pretty poor. I found that I had to keep a pretty close eye on my feet for this stretch or else I would most likely go head over heels. I talked to Alice about trying to run the tangents as much as possible. On a course this twisty I figured you could probably save quite a bit of energy by hitting the tangents instead of following the road. I was hot less than a mile in and stripped off my long sleeve shirt and tied it around my waist.

Alice went out a little fast and I kept working to reign her in. By the midpoint I stopped trying and just let her run her pace. I knew it meant it was going to be a rough second half, but after repeated attempts to slow her down I figured we would just see how this strategy worked for her. We were doing a pretty good job of walking the aid stations to conserve a bit of energy and get fluids down. Alice's big problem tends to be not eating or drinking enough electrolytes during a race causing her to bonk. Today she was working hard to stay on top of it. The biggest problem with the pace in my opinion was that it was erratic. We would drop to a 7:50 pace and then go up to a 9:30. We were staying right on target with our splits, but I felt there was going to be some burnout from doing bursts of speed and then slowing down as opposed to trying to hit a steady pace.

We lost Lee around mile 9. He needed to stop to stretch out his knee a bit. He had been struggling with a knee issue for a couple of months and it had caused him to drop out of Vernonia a the half-way point three weeks earlier. We hit the half way point pretty much right on target at 1:52.We saw Ingrid, Charlotte and the puppies and they were doing a great job of cheering us and everyone else on. I handed of my long sleeve shirt and arm warmers to Charlotte but decided to keep my gloves as it was still kind of chilly.

This was a great section of the course b/c there were so many spectators. Since we were back at the start it was easy for folks to get here and they were lining the road and the bridge that we crossed. Now we started on the second out and back section. The second out and back was the part of the course that was used for both the 10k and half-marathon so all of a sudden we started seeing a lot of people. Team in Training had a huge presence at this event and they all had great energy and were heartily cheering each other on.

Right around mile 14 we went down a steep incline that we knew we would have to come up at mile 25.5 on the return. This section of the course was interesting. We kept feeling like we were going downhill. It was gradual, but if felt and looked to be downhill. Alice was getting herself into a bit of a negative spiral here. She was tired, not feeling so good, and stressing about having to go uphill the whole way back. I did my best to motivate, encourage, cajole, and basically keep her moving. I knew the stretch from 13 - 20 would be where she needed me to keep on pace. I always find this to be the no-man's land of marathon running. You are done with the first half, but not yet in the final stretch. You kind of just try to keep yourself moving through these miles.

The scenery helped to keep us going as did the energy of the other participants. I think this course would be very challenging if you were one of the front runners as the return side of the course was filled with the slower half-marathoners. The lead marathon runners had to work to fight their way through the crowd. A couple of the top runners just ran right back through the out section of the course b/c there was less traffic on that side than the return side.

We kept ourselves moving. Our pace was slowing a bit, down into the 9's and I tried to keep up the string of positive energy. I'm starting to feel like I am not such a good motivator b/c I think I was just annoying Alice at this point :)  I kept her on track of eating and drinking and I think that helped a bit. We hit the turnaround at 19.6 and I thought this might perk Alice up - knowing that we were now just heading for home. The next couple of miles were rough. I continued being positive and upbeat but this wasn't working. So tried tough love. That also failed. Then I tried quiet.We saw Lee at this point on the out-and back. He wasn't too far behind and was looking strong.

We got to 22 and Alice told me she wanted to slow down and she wanted me to go ahead because she didn't want to hold me back. We had talked about this ahead of time - how to know if I the other one was serious about wanting to be left alone or if we should ignore their request and stick with them. We had done San Francisco together two years earlier and I had started cramping at mile 12. She wanted to stick with me but I had told her to go, telling her that it was going to be mentally easier for me to suffer on my own than with her. So I told her that my goal for this race was to help her get her BQ and I didn't care about my own time, but if she really wanted me to go I would. She told me that this was like San Francisco for her and she would be best on her own.

It was hard to go b/c I  was feeling like I had let her down. That if I was a better motivator, coach, friend that she would have wanted me to stick with her. But, I tried to push that out of my mind and just run for the last 4 miles. My legs were feeling good, I had gotten a surge of adrenaline at 20 and I just wanted to run all out. So I got to let my legs loose and go. The hills we had gone "down" on the way out never seemed to materialize as uphills. I am not sure how it is possible but the second out-and-back felt like it was downhill both ways. Impossible I know and yet that is how it felt.

I passed a bunch of people on this final stretch and got lots of "good jobs" and "keep it up" from the the other racers. This is what I like about small races is that you tend to be close to the same people for the majority of the race. This was the first marathon that I had not worn my headphones and I really like the experience. Even though the last two marathons I ran I had worn the headphones but had never turned on the music, I had still isolated myself from the other runners b/c they thought I was listening to music - thus we didn't interact. For this race the organizers had actually stated no headphones and the majority of the racers had complied.

When I hit mile 25 I turned on the speed. I was realizing that the cramps might actually not materialize this race and I might truly be able to sprint the finish. I kept picking it up through that final mile and was truly running on adrenaline at this point. I passed over the bridge and heard Celeste yell good job, and then heard Ingrid and Charlotte cheering. I had a singular focus of the finish line and just brought it in as fast as I could.

I looked down at my watch - 3:43:45 - 2 seconds off my PR! I have since looked at the official race results and they put my finish time at 3:43:43 (I wasn't sure which mat was the starting one at the beginning and I think I started my watch 2 seconds early). So I officially TIED my PR and got my second BQ time. I am not sure what the odds are of getting the exact same finish time on two marathons in a row is but my guess is it isn't high.

I was feeling good at the finish. I grabbed a water and my medal and walked over to where Charlotte and Ingrid were. I knew that Alice had the ability to finish strong and I wasn't surprised to see her coming through the finishing chute a few short minutes later. Finish time was 3:49:42! A PR by 11 minutes and she was smiling when she came through! I walked over to the finish and gave her a big hug. Her grin was ear-to-ear as she realized she had made it with plenty of time to spare. She grabbed some water and her medal and then we rejoined Ingrid and Charlotte and waited for Lee. He wasn't too far behind - coming through in 3:56:10 and looking happy as well. This was a PR for him by 6 minutes and he did it on a bum knee - no small feat.

We hung out for awhile longer - enjoying the bright sunshine and warm weather and waiting to see Ingrid & Alice's friend Amy finish her first marathon. Once she came through we packed it in and headed for the cars. It was a bit of gridlock trying to get out but soon enough we were back on the road. We stopped at the hotel in Eureka to drop of Lee and Celeste at their car. Celeste had gotten an extension on the room checkout so she and Lee could shower post-race. Alice and I then headed for Ingrid's so we could also get in a shower.

We quickly got cleaned up and went for a quick lunch at the Beachcomber in Trinidad before hitting the road. Left Trinidad at 3:30 and pulled up in front of my house at 10:15. It was a long day. Knowing what I know now I would have scheduled an extra day. It would have been lovely to spend the rest of Sunday hanging out on the beach in Trinidad and just relaxing.

Overall it was just a great weekend with great friends. Happy to have done it.

Stats: 
Overall - 101/566
Gender - 24/253
Division - 4/41

Race for the Roses Half Marathon

This is one of my favorite half-marathons. Held on the first Sunday in April every year it benefits a great organization, Albertina Kerr, that works with children and adults with developmental disabilities. A couple of the things that make this race really great.

• Indoor location pre- and post-race. Most races have you shivering outside in the street somewhere, relying on porta-potties, etc... This race starts and ends just outside the Oregon Convention Center. They rent out one of the large exhibit halls for the race so everything pre-race is indoors - baggage check, regular bathrooms, AND there is even a large stretching area. It is great to just be able to hang out in the warmth pre-race.
• Good organization from beginning to end.
• A decent size - not too big and not too small (about 1800 in the half-marathon). You definitely get the feel that you are racing but you aren't surrounded by so many people that you are just people dodging for miles.
• A good course. The first 4 miles involve a steady uphill that makes the first half of the race slower than the second. Definitely a race you can negative split (running faster as you get farther along in the race than when you start). After those first 4 miles you get a nice gradual downhill for about 2 miles that really allows you to pick up some speed. Then you are on to the flats for almost the rest of the race. The one caveat to that is you hit a nice 80 foot ramp that you need to climb at 12.4. This is hard because you are trying to "kick" and finish strong but that hills does take its toll.

My goal this year was to beat my time from last year which was my current PR (personal record) of 1:46:57, and to hopefully finish in 1:42. I knew that I couldn't start off to conservatively and still beat that time, so I planned to go out around 8:10 - 8:20 and then try to drop to 7:45 ish. 

I rode my bike to the Convention Center, leaving the house around 5:40 AM. It was dry for a change and not overly cold (around 39 degrees). The streets were very quiet and it was an enjoyable ride. Was at the convention center by 6:05. Headed to the exhibit hall and sat down in the stretching area to sort my stuff and stretch out a bit. My friend Linda joined me there, and then Alice showed up, and her friend Will. We chatted for a bit, got organized, used the indoor bathrooms. Then it was time to check my bag and head for the start line. We left the cozy warmth of the convention center at 6:53 for the 7 AM start.

Didn't have too wait too long before the gun went off. I lined up with Alice and Will, but pretty much just headed out on my own once we crossed the starting line. I was out to race, and it is hard for me to race with friends. I don't like the pressure of feeling like I need to talk and carry on a conversation because I really just want to focus on pace, splits, hydration, nutrition, etc...

I once again opted to go without my race belt - feeling like I really didn't need to carry my own hydration for this distance. I had done the same thing last year, however I had used some of the on course electrolyte drink, Heed, which my body wasn't used to. I made it through the race and home ok, but post-race couldn't leave the house for a bit due to digestive system rebelling against the Heed (thankfully it wasn't a marathon b/c if it had been I would have been in trouble). I felt as though I didn't really need electrolytes for this distance and opted to go with water instead at the aid stations. There were aid stations just about every 2 miles. I was carrying 2 gu's and 3 shot blocks in my skirt pockets. I had pre-planned a gu at the 4.5 and 8.5 aid station, and figured I would use the shot blocks if I got hungry.

The start was a little slow as all the racers made it across the starting line. Then it was a bit of an uphill climb to the Broadway Bridge. We ran into a constriction here due to construction that slowed me down a bit more than I would have liked. Then it was down the ramp and things started to ease up a bit. I felt like I could now work to find my comfortable place. There was an aid station at mile 2, I grabbed a cup of water, drank a few sips and kept moving. This where the long uphill begins. It is only a climb of 250 and it is gradual - you gain those 250 feet over 2 miles - but you definitely feel the hill. As I approached mile 4 I grabbed my gu to warm it a bit, knowing the aid station was coming up. I downed the gu about 100 yards before the water stop, then grabbed a cup of water, got a few sips down and kept moving.

This is where the nice downhill begins and I wanted to make up some time. Right around the 5 mile mark I noticed that I was consistently running next to a guy in a blue shirt and had been since just about the beginning of the race - we seemed to be running right around the same pace. I would go ahead of him, he would go ahead of me, but we never seemed to be very far a part.

The downhill came and went quickly. I was keeping an eye on my splits and hoping that I would make my goal time. I got a bit frustrated as we hit the halfway point because I didn't think I was moving fast enough to hit it, but decided to just keep moving and hoping I could shave some time.

Took my next gu at mile 8.5. This one had caffeine in it that I hoped might give me a bit of a boost that would kick in for the last 3 miles. There is an out and back section of about 3/4 a mile at this point. I made the turnaround at mile 9.2. Unfortunately we now had a light headwind that we would be facing for the next 3 miles until we did another turn around just after mile 12. Not long after I made the turnaround I saw Will, and then a little bit later saw Alice. They were both looking good and strong!

Around mile 8 I had tucked in right next to the guy in blue that I had been traveling with the majority of the race. We were running shoulder to shoulder for about 2 miles. I figured if it annoyed him he would tell me or move over. It was kind of funny b/c we had a whole stretch of road we could be using. But being that close to somebody and moving together seemed to really work for me and keep me on pace. At one point I actually thought about talking to him and asking him if he wanted to work together on pacing, but he had his headphones on and I'm not good at talking to new people so I didn't.

Another brief water stop at 10. At this point I went ahead of my guy in blue and picked up another guy in white. Did the same shoulder to shoulder technique for just about 2 miles. At the 12 mile mark I worked to kick it into high gear for the finish. I had been worrying about my calves cramping from around mile 8 (I had started being aware of my calf muscles at that point) so had been a bit more conservative than I had wanted to be for the second half of the race.

The last push up to the Steel Bridge was rough. Once I topped out I could really feel the lactic acid building up in my legs - they were feeling very heavy - but I was almost done at this point. Put on a burst of speed and crossed the finish line in 1:41:05. Grabbed a cup of water and waited for Will to cross the line. He came through about 40 seconds after me. We were standing there waiting for Alice and the guy in blue came up to me and thanked me for helping him through the race. He said running with me really helped to keep him on pace. That was really fun. Then a minute or so later the guy in white came up and said the same thing. He said he tried to stay with me at the end but couldn't quite keep up. I told them both that it helped me running with them as well. It's nice when you can work together with fellow racers - not with conversation or anything but just by trying to pace each other. It added a fun element to the race.

Alice crossed the line in 1:45:30 (an 8:07 pace). Prior to the race she had said "I think I can go sub-9's." I kind of looked at her dumbly and said "yeah, you can go sub-9's" knowing full well she could do much better than that with all the training she has been doing.

Overall I am pretty happy with the race. A little frustrated because I could have worked harder the last 5 miles but I was tentative because of my calves. One of these times I am just going to have to push it hard and just see what they do.

Stats: 201/1885 overall; 10/184 division; 44/1249 women
Splits:

• Mile 1 - 7:58
• Mile 2 - 7:43
• Mile 3 - 7:41
• Mile 4 - 8:19
• Mile 5 - 8:08
• Mile 6 - 7:59
• Mile 7 - 7:43
• Mile 8 - 7:42
• Mile 9 - 7:39
• Mile 10 - 7:32
• Mile 11 - 7:33
• Mile 12 - 7:30
• Mile 13 - 7:18
• Total: 1:41:05 - Pace: 7:45

Shamrock Run 15K - March 13, 2011

Prior to going to bed on Saturday night I had tried grape drinking vinegar. Another ultra runner swore by the stuff – it’s supposed to ease muscle soreness. I drank a 16 oz bottle figuring it couldn’t hurt to try it. I was surprised that it didn’t taste bad – pretty much tasted like grape juice with a hint of tanginess to it.

The alarm went off early on Sunday. Adam was running the Shamrock Run 15k with me, and we decided to get up at 6 AM to get ready. The race wasn’t until 8:30, but we were going to meet some other folks downtown at 7:40 before the start of the race. Unfortunately the day dawned good and rainy. Last year’s Shamrock Run had been delightfully sunny, while the year prior to that had been a soaker. Apparently they are on an every other year good weather cycle.

I crawled out of bed and stood up to test my legs. Tried a few steps and was surprised that I didn’t feel that sore. I again took a warm shower to warm up my muscles and did some light stretching. I had decided to go with an all black outfit: tights, compression socks, tank top, and arm warmers, so that I could really set off the colorful tutu. To complete the outfit I wore my purple, sparkly, Mary Jane Crocs. Sadly we didn’t get any pictures as I assumed there would be on course photos – but they didn’t have a photographer this year.

This was going to be Adam’s first race in years. I was excited for him as I watched him get dressed and pin his bib to his shirt and attach the timing anklet. He seemed somewhat enthused for the experience and I was really hoping that he would have a good time.

We left the house and headed over the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge where we would park, trying to stay out of the mayhem of downtown traffic. We met up with 6 friends on the bridge and then walked over to the start. Since we still had some time we actually hung out under the Morrison Bridge to stay dry for a little while. Adam and I had warm clothes to drop off at bag check for after the race.

This is a huge race and the Waterfront was mighty crowded. Despite the rain I think the majority of the people that signed up for the race actually did show up. There were multiple races going on. The first to start was the 8k at 8:05. Then there was a 30 minute break before the start of the 15k (the race we were doing). Then another 30 minutes and they would start the 5K run, then the 5k walk, and then the Leprechaun Lap 1k for the kids.

Pretty soon it was time for us to line up. We got into the area for the 8 – 9 minute pace. There were 6 of us who lined up together, Adam and I, Alice, Lee, Will, and Sue. We weren’t planning on running together, the idea was for everyone just to go the pace that worked for them. The gun went off for the race, but they were starting us in stages to alleviate crowding so we didn’t get started for another 5 minutes. Then finally we crossed the starting line. There wasn’t much running in the first .25 miles as people tried to get spread out.

I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to run in the tutu – it didn’t really seem to bother me at all. Adam and I stayed together for the first 5 miles. My hips were a bit sore from the day before and my legs were feeling a bit tight, but overall I wasn’t feeling too bad. The race was flat for the first .75 and then it was uphill for the next 5 miles, climbing pretty steeply once we got the Terwilliger. I train regularly on Terwilliger so I knew what we were in for. The course was still quite crowded so it was mostly an exercise in people dodging. It was kind of hard to find and sustain a pace. As we hit the 5.75 mile mark I told Adam to feel free to go ahead. My legs were fading a bit and I knew he would be able to stretch his legs out on the downhill and the flats.

Initially my goal when I signed up for this race back in November was to run in 1:15:00. I knew it would be a challenge, but thought I could do it if I really put my mind to it. However, that was before I signed up for the 50k the day before. Now I was just hoping to run in less than 9 minute miles.

The downhill and the flats ticked off pretty quickly. I was definitely starting to hurt in the final mile and was ready to have it over with. I picked up the pace when I saw the finish line and crossed in 1:17:02. It was a PR (personal record) for me by 2:30 from last year. I was very pleasantly surprised with the performance.

Adam crossed a good 40 seconds ahead of me, and Alice was 10 seconds behind him. Will sprinted across the line about 10 seconds ahead of me. It was pretty fun that the 4 of us finished within 40 seconds of each other even though we didn’t actually run together.

Overall a pretty decent day. It’s a big race and not one I think I will do again. I have taken to the smaller races – less hoopla and more running is better for me. I was glad to have hit a PR though, especially after the long run the day before. It was a good weekend of running.

Columbia Gorge 50k - March 12, 2011

After running the Hagg Lake 50k in February I kind of got the ultra bug. I liked how small the race was, how I was able to chat with other runners while running, and just the general sense of camaraderie I hadn’t really felt in a marathon. Adding in that ultras are mostly on trails and the aid station food is awesome I was on a quest to find my next ultra.

I had been lucky enough to “meet” several local women on facebook who added me to a great facebook group for local women runners. Through one of their posts I found out about the Gorge Waterfalls 50k on March 12. It was local, actually a shorter drive than Hagg Lake, and would be an excellent opportunity to run through the gorge. Since I normally spend a lot of time hiking through the gorge with a heavy pack, the idea of running, unencumbered, on the trails was very appealing.

The race had a generous refund policy (full refund if you canceled by March 7th, and even after that the race director said he could roll your registration fee into another event) so I signed up the day after Hagg to secure my spot and then decided to think about whether I would actually run it for the next few weeks. I was kind of afraid to tell Adam I was thinking about running another ultra. There are times when I think he already thinks I am a bit crazy. So I waited until a week before the race to broach the subject. He was encouraging as usual and told me I should feel free to do it if that was what I wanted.

The Saturday before the race I headed out to the gorge to run the tough beginning section of the course. The course started at the Wahkeenah Falls trailhead – which is a trail I know well as I have hiked it numerous times. It isn’t overly steep for a hike, but for a run it is super steep. Within a mile and a half you gain 1600 feet. The word brutal comes to mind. I geared up with my hydration belt and set out. I got more than a few funny looks from hikers in that first mile. The climbing was hard, but not quite as hard as I had expected. It was slow going though. The first mile ticked off in 16:54, and the second in 16:52. Right around 1.75 I hit a nice snow/ice combo that continued on and off for a mile and a half. At times I had to walk because it was too dangerous to run. Once down at Multnomah Falls, I turned around and headed back just to get the extra hill workout.

I had done the pre-race training run to quell my nerves about the hill climbing but instead just added to them. I got even more nervous when the race director sent out a note warning about snow & ice and advising participants to wear/carry yak trax or screw shoes. I can’t easily carry yak trax on my hydration belt and really didn’t want to have something with me that I didn’t need. I checked the forecast which called for rain, lows in the upper 30’s and highs in the low 50’s. I was 90% convinced that the snow I had encountered would be gone in a week but was worried about taking my chances. Thankfully the race crew ran the course in stages on Thursday & Friday to flag it and in so doing realized there was little to no snow to worry about and the Yak Trax got to stay at home.

Two days before the race I packed up my drop bags. There were going to be two main aid stations on the course, mile 11 and 21. You could pack up a bag that would be waiting for you at the aid station with warm clothes, food, or anything else you might want. Each of mine contained and extra pair of gloves, and extra long sleeve shirt, 2 8 oz Gatorade bottles for my hydration belt, a Mojo bar, extra Gu, Icy Hot and Ben Gay patches. In the second drop bag I even put in a change of socks and shoes just in case.

The night before the race I crawled into bed early and was asleep around 10 PM. My alarm went off at 4 AM and I started my pre-race ritual of a hot shower to stretch and warm up my muscles, and downing 16 oz of water. I left the house at 5 AM for the drive to the gorge, figuring it would take me about an hour to get out there. I arrived plenty early 6 AM, and got checked in. After grabbing my number I walked back to my car and the guy parked next to me said “you were at Hagg Lake, weren’t you?” We had run together for about a 2 mile stretch in the middle and had commiserated over the mud. I asked how he had done and he told me that he came in a little over 6 hours, and had seen that I had made my goal of breaking 6. We chatted about how this course couldn’t possibly be as hard as Hagg since it wouldn’t have all the mud. Famous last words…

Around 6:30 I met up some of the women from the facebook women’s runners group, got to chat with them, and we boarded the bus together to ride to the start. Teri was embarking on her first ever ultra, while Jodi & Deb had more than a few ultras under their belts. The bus ride didn’t take too long, even though we would be running 31 miles, the actual drive was only 20. We arrived at the starting line with 40 minutes to spare. Took our turn at the porta-potties, and then waited until the last 10 minutes to shed our warm clothes. Just before starting we met up with another woman, Julie, from the runners group.

The forecast for the gorge for the run was 100% chance of rain, lows in the upper 30’s and a high of 48. Not overly cold, but not overly warm either. Thankfully it wasn’t raining as we stood around waiting to get started. Just before 8 the race director grouped us all up, making us walk slight downhill from the TH for the start. He shouted a few instructions that I was unable to hear and then we were off.

I lined up somewhere in the back 2/3 of the group. I knew I wasn’t going to be fast, especially up the hill, and I didn’t want to get trampled at the start. 138 people started the race out of the 150 that had signed up. Even with such a small group of people it was still shoulder to shoulder for quite awhile. The trail isn’t that wide and it took close to 2 miles to really shake loose of the crowd.

I had a rough start to the day. I really wanted to jog the beginning. Even though it was uphill, I felt that would get me warmed up and ready for the day. But because there were so many people I couldn’t really get moving. Right around mile 1.75 at a particularly narrow stretch of trail I had two people push by me – they didn’t say anything, no “passing on your left,” etc… just shoved by me, actually shoving me into the rock on the side of the trail. It really pissed me off. Not 5 minutes later I had two more people barrel past me. I got into a cloudy mood that I just couldn’t shake. Rudeness really bothers me and this was just plain rude. Trail and running etiquette is typically to say something to the runner you are passing – “passing on your left or right” or just “mind if a squeeze by?” I could care less if someone passes me, but the feeling of them charging past you and running you off a narrow trail made me angry. The fact that they shoved by me so violently made me feel like I was really slow. I started worrying about whether or not I would make the Aid Station cutoff times (3 hours for the first one at mile 10 and 6 hours for the second one at mile 20). I got myself into a negative feedback cycle – totally filling myself with self-doubt. I thought I might quit at the first aid station.

The snow from the previous weekend was gone. That was positive. I continued on trying to shake my bad mood. I wasn’t successful. The climbing was challenging. Even when the climbing was over the terrain was challenging – lots of rocks and roots to trip you up. I haven’t spent that much time running on technical trail, and it was looking like I was going to have 31 miles of technical trail today.

At this point we had topped out at Multnomah Falls and started the descent, on pavement, to trail 400 where we would spend the majority of our day. At the top of Multnomah Falls you are at switchback 11 of 11 (they mark the switchbacks with posts) and you need to make it down to 3 of 11 before you cutoff onto trail 400. I haven’t hiked much of trail 400 and that is one of the main reasons I signed up for the race. I wanted to see what it was like.

The trail was immediately very rocky. So rocky it was hard for me to run – it was more of a quick walk. I didn’t want to twist an ankle so early in the race. After a few minutes of running I found myself in a somewhat open area with a large rock/boulder/scree field to my left. I knew this must be the area I have heard about in the Mazamas where the infamous “Elevator Shaft” hike starts. You go up, up, up through the boulder and scree field. Supposed to be a pretty fun hike, but it isn’t one I have yet done.

I continued on and set my sites on the first aid station. A nice way for me to break up the day is by thinking of the trail in 5 sections from aid station to aid station. The first “water-only” aid station was supposed to be at mile 5.5. On my hydration belt I was carrying 2 8oz bottles of Gatorade, thinking I could supplement with on course water at the aid stations. I had 2 more 8 oz bottles of Gatorade in each drop bag. I hit the first water only aid station. The website had failed to mention that it was self-serve water. There was a stack of water jugs that you could use to fill up a bottle. I had finished one 8 oz bottle already so I filled up and set off.

I was now at another steady climb. This was another section of the trail I had hiked before so I knew what to expect - a mile or so of climbing, followed by a couple of steep switchbacks down to a bridge crossing Oneonta Gorge. After crossing the bridge, there were another couple of steep switchbacks to climb up before the trail leveled out for a bit. Not long after that you get to run behind Ponytail Falls – definitely one of the highlights of the run. It is a beautiful waterfall, made all the more spectacular since the trail goes behind the falls.

Not long after the falls you descend to road level and spend 2 miles running on the road. When my feet hit pavement I was overjoyed! This was the first, and only, section of actual running I did the entire day. I had an 8:53 and an 8:55 mile. It felt really good to stretch my legs. But by now the rain had started coming down in earnest. I was getting wet. I had taken my long sleeve top off around mile 2 and was wearing a tank top and arm warmers. I now untied the long sleeve shirt from my waist and put it back on. I passed a few people on the road. I talked to one woman, Melissa, who was also struggling. She had started dealing with cramps at mile 7! She knew she was in for a long day but was surprisingly cheerful about it. My fingers were starting to get cold. My gloves were getting pretty wet, and with the cold rain I was quickly losing feeling in them. The aid station finally came in to sight…

I very happy to stop for a minute and talk with some other folks at the aid station. Most of us were in agreement that the course was tough. I was hungry for some real food. I scanned the table hoping for some pretzels or PB&J but all I saw were chips, potatoes, gu, and M&M’s. I grabbed some M&M’s. I fumbled for my drop bag, needing to get my two new bottles of Gatorade and also wanting to put on my long sleeve wool top. I knew it would keep me warmer in the wet conditions than the synthetic long sleeve. My fingers weren’t really working by this point. It took me 2 minutes just to attach the new bottles to my belt. Then I had to use the bathroom. If loading my bottles onto my belt was difficult, untying and retying the string on my tights was damn near impossible with my now frozen fingers. Finally I had taken care of everything and was ready to set off again. Just before leaving I asked the aid station volunteer what mile we were at (knowing that my Garmin tends to drop miles on trails, usually .1 mile for every mile). He replied that we were right at mile 10. My Garmin said 11.25 – I had been running for 2 hours and 25 minutes and I had only made it 10 miles?!? My mood plummeted. I wanted to quit.

But I remember the reason I signed up for this race. I had wanted a challenge – and boy was I getting one. So I set out again – my stop had taken a full 10 minutes. There was a short climb before a somewhat steep descent to Elowah Falls. Elowah is a gorgeous waterfall – a nice long drop into a spectacular pool. The trail takes you right up close to a bridge that crosses over the creek leading from the falls. You get so close you can feel the wind and the spray coming off the falls. This is great on a warm summer day, it’s not so awesome when you are freezing. I have to admit, I got mad at the waterfall at this point when it drenched me with its spray as I ran across the bridge.
I soon caught up to Melissa (the woman with the cramps). She and I were running a similar pace and we stuck together for the next couple of miles. It was really nice to have someone to talk to for a change. My mood finally started to improve.

I had looked at the course map carefully online prior to race day and according to the topo the next water only aid stop was at mile 15.4, Bonneville Dam. We were once again on a stretch of trail I was familiar with. One of our typical BCEP hikes starts at Bonneville Dam and hikes west on trail 400 approximately 1.5 miles to an unmaintained trail up to Munra Point. We were now heading eastward and I noticed the turn off to Munra and I knew what was coming. A short stretch of old waterlogged road/trail that is filled with nasty vines that try to reach out and trip you. Lots of mud in this stretch of the course. Once we finished with the old road it was back on trail and a steep descent to Bonneville. There was one short stretch of trail here that was really close to washing out. It was about a foot wide and a nice drop off to your right if you were to slip. As I place my foot on this very narrow stretch I watched some earth give way beneath the pressure. I hoped for the rest of the racers coming behind me that the trail held up for the duration of the race.

We arrived at Bonneville. No aid station. My mood once again plummeted. My garmin said 15.75. The water was supposed to be at 15.4 and I knew it was supposed to be at Bonneville. I was confused.

Continued on. A good amount of climbing, some decent trail, lots of rocks, and a descent down to Eagle Creek. Here was the water stop. But my Garmin now said 17.75. Which notation on the course map had been wrong – the location of the aid station or the mileage? Or both? Was I really only at 15.4? Was the full aid station going to be another 5 miles away? I filled up my empty bottle with water, took a Gu and continued running.

This was another rough stretch. I wasn’t sure about the mileage. I was worried that the course was going to be long. There were a lot of rocks and trees to hop over. I was behind a guy for awhile who was going slower than me. I asked him if I could pass on his left. He sped up and zig zagged across the trail so that I couldn’t pass. What the heck? This went on for about a mile until we got to a wide enough stretch that I could go around him. I caught up to another guy who was struggling. I asked him how things were going and he replied that it was rough because he had run out of food. I asked if he wanted a Gu. He seemed delighted that I might have extra. I had to convince him it really was an extra before he would take it from me.

I passed of the Gu and moved ahead. I got into my head a bit at this point. Continued to worry about my time, and wondered if my legs would hold up. Was very concerned about cramping. About 20 minutes later the aid station seemed to appear out of nowhere. I had made it to mile 20. There were very friendly volunteers staffing the aid station. One asked for my bib number so she could go get my drop bag for me. I was still having a bit of trouble with my hands but they weren’t anywhere near as cold as they were at the 10 mile aid station. This aid station had PB&J and I quickly devoured ½ a sandwich – it tasted wonderful! Resupplied my Gatorade, grabbed a gu to replenish my stores and set out again.

The next 5.5 miles were completely uncharted territory for me. I was starting to feel like I might actually finish this race. My mood was significantly improved from what it was 5 miles ago. There was more climbing, more rocks, a lot more trees to climb over. The terrain was beautiful! We were finally away from the road noise and I was finally really enjoying the scenery. The next water only stop was supposed to be at mile 25.5 and right around a trail interchange that I was very familiar with. There was a short out and back section that you had to complete around mile 22. There was a sign along the trail pointing you to go right and get a rubber band. You had to run ½ mile up a trail, cross an old bridge, grab a rubber band, and run back. This led us to a waterfall I had never been to before – it was one worth visiting. Around mile 23.5 there was a another spectacular waterfall that I had never seen before. I made a mental note to tell Fitz about this place so he could come back and get a picture with his new large format camera. My Garmin was reading 25 and I knew we were about to start climbing again. ¾ of the way up the hill to the trail interchange there was another cache of water. I took the opportunity to fill up and grab a Gu. My hands were not working well at all at this point and it was quite a challenge for me to get the top of my bottle off so that I could refill it. I had to resort to opening the Gu with my teeth because I didn’t have the grip strength (b/c of the frozen fingers) to tear it open.

When we got to the trail interchange the race sign pointed right?!? When I had looked at the map for some reason I had thought we would go left at this point. I was one again disheartened. We were now on a trail I have hiked a bunch of times and I knew it was just up, up, up for at least ¾ of a mile. I put my head down and walk/ran to the top. Thankfully, once you crested this hill it was going to be mostly downhill.

I was now in to the home stretch and again on completely uncharted territory. Should be right around 26 miles and only 5 to go. The downhill felt really good. The next two miles was a particularly pretty stretch of trail. Around mile 28 I caught up with another runner. He and I got to talking and stayed together for the rest of the race. My Garmin died at 6 hours and 40 minutes and was reading 30 miles just before it died. We were running and chatting and I was having the best time I had had all day. My body actually was feeling good at this point – and it felt good to actually stretch my legs and feel like I was running a bit. We saw a hiker ahead, he said “good job you are almost there!” We both responded, “really?” He said that the finish was no more than 100 yards ahead. I couldn’t quite believe we were done – the last few miles had gone so fast with someone to talk to. We “sprinted the finish” and my partner graciously told me to go in front of him across the line.

My finish time 7:01:20 – 1 hour and 10 minutes longer than my Hagg Lake time. So much for this being an easier course.

The finish line BBQ was in full swing, but I just wanted to get home. My phone had rung in the last 5 minutes of the run and I knew it must be Adam getting worried about me. We had talked about my projections for finish time, and I had assumed 6 ½ to 7 hours at the longest. I picked up my drop bags and headed to my car. My Hagg Lake buddy Eric had finished about 5 minutes after me. We chatted about the difficulties of the course. He told me that now that I had beaten him twice he had a new goal of beating me in the next race we ran together.

I had asked Adam to run a cold bath for me when I got home. He made me some hot chocolate and I slowly lowered myself into the freezing cold water. It is supposed to help with muscle soreness to sit in an ice bath for 10 minutes post-long run (or race). I couldn’t do ice. The cold water was hard enough. I was shivering violently. The hot chocolate seemed to help a bit. I was very happy when the 10 minutes were up and I could switch to a hot shower.

Had you asked me after the race if I would ever run this ultra again I would have said no. But after a couple of days to reflect on it I probably would give it another go. I think it was a rough race for me because I had very high expectations of myself. I thought I could go in and better my Hagg Lake time. When I realized that not only was that not going to happen, but my time was going to be much slower, I let that affect me way more than I should have. What I should have done was shaken it off and just taken in the course for what it was; accepted the challenging conditions and worked with them instead of getting angry with myself and nature. The technical nature of the course was interesting for me as well and definitely unexpected. The anger certainly didn’t serve any purpose. I do enjoy the challenge of ultras and look forward to many more in my future.

Had to get to bed early. Had a 15k to attend to on Sunday…

Hagg Lake 50K

My first ever 50k. I had heard about this race a couple of times over the last two years. Last year I was going to sign up for the 25k but it sold out before I could register. This year I decided to go all in and sign up for the 50 and see what happened.

The race was due to start at 8. Wanted to be at the start by 7:15, so got up super early - 4:45 to have time to get everything done at home before needing to leave. Alice picked me up at 6 and we headed out. The roads were really icy. We saw 3 wrecks on the way out there. We picked up another friend in Beaverton and made out way, very slowly, out to the start.

We got there and parked, and by the time we were out of the car it was a little after 7:30. I packed some stuff into my drop bag (we would come back by the start at mile 17 so you could pick up or drop off anything you needed in your bag as you passed by). Had time to use the facilities and then we were off.

The first .25 miles was on the road. An icy road. I was doing more sliding of my feet than running to ward against falling down. At the .25 mile mark you transition on to gravel road, and thankfully you had purchase on the gravel where you didn't on the pavement. This short 1.5 mile out and back had a big hill at the end - about 450 feet straight up. You turned around at the top, zoomed down, back onto the pavement, and then right back by the start. I dropped off my hat at this point as I was already warming up. The temp was about 30 degrees at the start. I was wearing tights, tank top, arm warmers, and a long sleeve shirt. The long sleeve shirt was quickly tied around my waist.

Once we looped back by the starting point we hit the trails. It was muddy. In fact, muddy is somewhat of an understatement. There was mud that was super wet, there was sticky mud, there was mud that stuck to your shoes and made them feel like they weighed about 3 lbs each. At about the 5.5 mile mark you hit a sign that says "detour - bridge out." Needless to say our track did not follow the detour, rather we got to ford the creek. This required one to jump down about 1.5 feet into sucking mud. Wade through the mud, then through the creek, hope up onto several logs, and then back onto trail. So from this point on, my feet were wet.

We hit the first aid station at mile 7.6. Aid stations on ultras are awesome! There was gu, gu chomps, bananas, oranges, trail mix, m&m's, potato chips, fritos, pretzels, fig newtons, peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, potatoes and salt, gummy bears, water, electrolyte drink, sprite, and coke. Couldn't quite get over how much food there was. I grabbed a few squares of PB&J and a cup of water and was back on the trails. More slipping and sliding, some veggie belays to get up hills (I was very happy about my hiking skills at this point), etc... Next aid was was 12.7. Refueled and back onto trail. This was where we got to the caking mud. There was about 1/2 mile stretch where you were carrying so much mud on your shoes that it was just incredible. My feet felt so heavy!

We got a break for a bit with about a 1/2 mile stretch on the road, then another few miles of mud and we were at the drop bag site/aid station. This as mile 17. The first half I could not envision how I was going to get back out there and go for another round. I tried to make my stop very quick, loaded up 2 more bottles of gatorade on my fuel belt, grabbed a few pretzels and gummy bears and set back out. I didn't want to give myself any time to think about calling it a day here.

Round 2 was actually slightly easier than round 1. I learned that you aren't really supposed to run the slippery hills, that you are better off walking them and saving energy. Got a horrendous thigh cramp at mile 18 and had to have a long talk with my thigh about how it was way too early to start cramping. I chugged some Gatorade and some salty shot blocks to try to keep the cramps at bay. Hit the aid station at 21.6 and asked them about how to stave off the cramps. They suggested some different foods and I gave those a try.

Between the aid at mile 21.6 and the aid at mile 26.7 I ran with a guy who was struggling. He started to use me as a pacer and said I was helping to give him a second wind. It was nice to feel like I was helpful to someone.

More sodium at the aid station at 26.7 along with some PB&J and I was ready to finish it off. The last 1.5 miles seemed to take forever (even though time wise they really didn't).

Finish time: 5:50:53. 92 out of 211 finishers, 12th out of 49 women, and 7th out of 21 in my age group. I feel pretty good about those results in my first ultra. I can honestly say the course was really, really challenging. People who have run it before have said it was exceptionally muddy this year.

Glad to have done it. Would have to think long and hard about whether or not I would want to do that course again though. I find the two loop thing to be really challenging. Knowing that you are going to come right back by the starting line and that it would be very easy to bail was a mental challenge for me.

Running 2010

Running
I have set a goal of running 1500 miles this year. I plan for those to all be outdoor miles, not treadmill miles. That would be 400 more miles than last year, so it will be a significant increase, but I think I can do it if I stay focused.

I would like to run 5 marathons this year, and close in on the 4 hour marathon mark. I have signed up for two relatively flat courses early in the year, Eugene in May and Newport in June, and think I might have a shot of coming close if I up my speedwork through the spring and can keep my cramps under control.

My plan had been to run the Hagg Lake 25K in February. Unfortunately it filled up before I could register. Instead Alice and I are going to head to Forest Park and go for a 20-miler. We still need to work out a route.

In March comes the Shamrock Run 15K. My only goal with that one is to be my time from last year. I think I can do that if I really put my mind to it. I would love to finish in under 1:20, but that might be a bit of a lofty goal.

April will be a return to Race for the Roses. It's a Half-Marathon, and will be good training for the Eugene Marathon as it comes three weeks before that date. My last year's time was pretty good, and I would love to match or beat it.

May will be the Eugene Marathon, and June will bring the Newport Marathon. At the end of July I'll be participating in the Cascade Lakes Relay for the first time. It looks to be a fun experience; the same concept as Hood to Coast with less people and better scenery.

No plans for August or September (yet!). Might head to New York to run the Rochester Marathon with my sister. October brings Portland, and November will be what is becoming my Thanksgiving tradition - the Seattle Marathon.

So all in all, lots of races and running goals for the new year. Here's to hoping my legs will hold up!