Mesquite Canyon: Final race of the winter series

Mesquite Canyon 50K

March 23^rd, 2013

I was excited for the last race of the Aravaipa series. Excited because it would be kind of like the grand finale to the season. And because it had warning notes on the website. This trail race is not for beginners. Very challenging. The map to the trail said that in sections it was closed to mountain bikers and equestrians. And for hikers to use caution.

So I was curious! How bad could it be? I like the idea of a gnarly challenging trail!

I signed up for the 30K course, but as it got closer I really had a hope in my head to upgrade to the 50K. I typically have a spring marathon on my calendar. Usually in April or May. This year I had not committed to a spring marathon. But I left the decision to the very end. I thought that if I got a long training run in then I would do it. At Elephant Mountain I got 22 miles, and 2 weeks after that I got a 24 mile Saturday run. So I felt prepared enough to jump up to the 50K.

It was tempting to stay with the 35K so I could ride to the White Tank Mountains with Michelle. It was the furthest trail of the series. An hour and 15 minute drive. But I knew that 18 miles would leave me wanting more.

So I set out on my own Saturday morning, leaving early so that I’d have time to upgrade my entry. Trail races are so accommodating and they let me pay the $15 dollar difference right there. I asked them to switch my bib color too. From yellow to red. It’s a good thing I did. I’m prone to getting lost and I need all the help I can get. At one point after an aid station I started off going one way and the aid workers yelled at me “hey you, the red bibs go that way” pointing a different direction…oh ya…

The whole race felt very technical. Very rocky. Jumping and using my whole body. And climbing up hill while maneuvering the tricky surface. I could feel very quickly that I would be plenty sore from this race! I started to worry because I knew that the very brutal technical section came toward the end of the race! If I didn’t know that, I’d have thought that I was already on the brutal technical section!

I was leap frogging with a girl for awhile. I’d pass her on the up hill, and she would pass me on the down hill. I felt some confidence that if there was enough up hill in the race that I would fare well. Up hill is hard for me, but is my strength more than down hill I think. But then we came to a long super technical down hill stretch. Everyone started passing me. On the scary down hill I feel like my knees are gonna buckle. I have to slow more than others. I felt like everyone I had been around got way ahead of me. I talked myself into just enjoying a day of beautiful outdoors and just found my all day pace.

By the time I hit half way, 15 miles, my legs felt shot and I didn’t see a fast finish in store for me. Several miles before the 2^nd to last aid station, I started fantasizing about Coke and Ice. I wanted ice in my water bottle and I wanted to put down some coke for the calories. Food didn’t sound any good. Just cola.  I knew there’d be a station at 22/23 miles. I just had to make it there. There is always cola. I made it there. No cola. No soda at all. No ice. I ate a slice of orange and a fig. The kind volunteers filled my bottle with water. And I was off. But I was kind of broken. I felt distracted and not ready for the next 5 mile stretch. I was running by Amy. I talked with her and we lamented on the coke. She had wanted it to. I caught up with Michelle who was out there for the 50 miler. We talked and then I started to get ahead of her but I was still distracted and low on calories. I missed a ribbon and got off course. I came to a dead end by a murky frog pond.  I turned around and back tracked but got back on course going the wrong direction. Back toward the aid station I had recently left. Lucky for me I ran into Amy and she turned me around. I gradually started getting ahead of her and then I came up on Michelle again. This is when I wondered if I had been off track longer than I thought!

I was glad to be with Michelle and Amy and another guy as we headed into the boulder stretch. These were big boulders and we had to climb over some, using our hands and looking for footing. While I was climbing a big boulder I got a major charly horse cramp in my leg that made me scream. Michelle came up behind me and put her hand on me for support, worrying that I would fall. I assured the others that I was okay and just had to work through this cramp. I convinced them to go on. But Amy left me with a salt pill. I used my last tiny bit of water in my bottle to swallow the salt tab. I was hoping to stay with them for company. This section had no visible trail. The Coury’s marked it well with orange ribbons to follow, but it made me nervous to be alone without a clear trail to follow. As soon as I could work out the cramp I tried to catch up. It was really hard to make any mileage on my watch because it was so slow climbing over these rocks.

After the charly horse incident I still had several miles to go and continued to experience painful leg cramping. Not in just one spot either.

At the next aid station I had to go up a hill to get there. I was dry heaving and feeling really awful. But they had coke! I sat in a chair and drank many cups full of coke. It was so wonderful. They assured me that I only had 2 miles to go. I finally left at a walk, hoping that the coke would give me some energy to run it home. I alternated walking and running those last couple of miles. Michelle caught back up to me and said she was feeling really awful and would probably drop after 50k. She didn’t feel like going out for another 30K. I didn’t blame her. I sure didn’t feel like it either!

I was so happy to see the finish line.

So what do I say about the race? I did love it. Yes, it hurt. Yes, I felt pretty bad for maybe the last 9 or 10 miles. But it was really beautiful scenery. And I felt good about tackling the challenge. And on these trail races I don’t feel like success is measured by finishing time. I don’t feel like success is because you “ran” the whole way. For me, I’m out there looking for an adventure. A day in the outdoors. If I’m able to continue moving toward the finish line, and enjoying the ride…that is success. And I did enjoy being out there. Sure, it’s always nice when I have speed and strength in my legs. But some days that isn’t gonna happen. And then I have to look for what else I can enjoy. There is plenty.

The rest of the night my body kept going into cramps. I’ve been working on my potassium! What do I need? I do like trying to figure these things out.

Food didn’t taste right at the end. I put a salty chip in my mouth and it just tasted like cardboard. I didn’t feel like eating much more than coke until about 8:00 that night. And then I enjoyed a burger and fries, maybe more than I ever have. Oh man….every fry and every bite of burger was heaven. I’m telling you, I enjoyed plenty about the race, but I would do it all again just to make my burger taste THAT good. There is something about running a whole bunch that makes food so good. And I already love food anyway. But man.

I was pretty sad about the no coke thing at that station, but I heard Nick saying that they had to carry stuff on their backs out to some of the remote aid stations. So I am greatful that we had support out there…I had water out there, and friendly volunteers and helpful co-racers. They (the Coury’s) give us the opportunity to get out there in remote areas and see things that I wouldn’t venture out to on my own. I always look forward to the adventure that they have in store for us. I am glad for all the work they go to so that we can have these experiences.

Yesterday is already a magical day in my memory. 

***So I journaled this the day after my race, but forgot to post it. Just this week I got a package in the mail. I won third place in the Ultra Series!!! I will include a picture of my trophy vase! There are 7 races in the winter series, and you need to have a score for 3 of them to get a chance at placing. Your score is out of a 1000 points for every race, and it is the percentage of what you got as compared to the first finisher. They add up the points of your 3 best races in the series to get your final score. 

Lindy's Winter Running Temperature Chart

In the winter I get sick of getting up and pondering what to wear every morning...It seems like every 5 degrees can make a difference. In the summer it is so easy. You get up and put a sleeveless shirt and shorts on. Every morning. That's it. 

So this winter I decided to document and record my clothing discoveries. So in the future I may not have to waste brain power at the wee hours of 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. My husband worked on this project with me. He is the artist. 

I will share my discoveries with you, although I know that your chart might differ quite a bit from mine. I know that we all have different temperature gauges. And sorry, Utah, I didn't get to find out about the negative temps. But for what it's worth....

Noah's Blog

Elephant Mountain 35K

February 23, 2013

I had the pleasure of participating in the inaugural running of the Elephant Mountain Trail Runs. I LOVED this race. It was super fun. I chose the 35K. I thought this would be a fun distance. About 22 miles…so just about the point in a marathon distance where you’d maybe “hit the wall”, I’d be done!

It started out up hill from the get go. This was kind of rough but I just found a manageable pace. My racing strategy is to start out conservative and enjoy a long warm-up and then when I’m half way done, I look for a faster gear. Sometimes I’ve got it, sometimes there is no faster gear. But today was one of those magical days when there was plenty in the tank at the half way.

I really loved the course. It was all very runnable. It had a “WOW” moment. Where I turned a corner around the side of a mountain and a stunning view opened up. I said “WOW” out loud. I love when a race makes me say wow out loud.

I was running behind a girl from Vegas area for quite awhile. We chatted a little bit. It was an out-and-back course. She lingered longer at the turn-around station. This is where I found my faster gear for the way back. I passed several people after the turn around.

Even though the course was very runnable, it was still plenty technical. I kept thinking I was going to fall. On the way back I was running behind a woman who took a nasty fall. Right in front of my eyes. You feel so helpless. I stopped to make sure she was okay. It looked like a full body fall- like every bit of her hit the ground. She fell to the side of the trail onto a rock. I could tell that she didn’t tuck her chin, and her neck hit the rock. When she stood up she was covering her neck with her hand and I was worried that when she moved her hand, blood would be spewing out. But when she moved her hand there was just a bruise forming. I made her talk. She seemed pretty shaken up, but I decided she was okay and I left. I told them at the next aid station to watch for her. Falling is the part of this sport that we just accept. Eventually it is gonna happen. It happens to everyone. One of the funnest things about trail running is to fly along the trail, jumping and weaving and soaring. But this does involve the risk of falling!

Along the course there was one section that was kind of foresty. We don’t get allot of forest in Arizona. At least not this part of Arizona. It wasn’t thick forest. It was almost cartoony forest. But it was fun. I had in my head the song from a Care Bear movie…”Forest of feelings and care-allot are the things that we all share…” This is what I get since the bulk of my television/movie viewing is with children. And mostly animated.

Everything was really green thanks to the recent rain and even SNOW storms in Phoenix. Yes snow. Not a common event for us.

At the half way turn around my average was 9:38. By the end my watch said my average was 9:22. I was happy with this negative split. True the course lended itself to a negative split by starting out up hill and ending down hill. But there was plenty of up and down for both ways.

A downhill finish is fun because it feels good to be able to cruise it in at the end.

I ended up 4th girl. 16th over all.

Such a beautiful course. Loved it.

I would seriously block out my calendar for this one.  I’m a sucker for the Elephant theme too. The shirts had an elephant on them and I had to buy one, even though I hadn’t prepaid for one. Our family has kind of a thing for elephants…Noah specifically…but it’s rubbed off on all of us!

Nick and Jamil always do a great job and this race was a keeper!!!

Ragnar Del Sol 2012 Video

My husband made this video after Ragnar last year, but I never ended up posting it.  Soooo, here's a little re-cap on the anniversary of Team Bling! 2012...

San Tan Scramble 27K

San Tan Scramble 27K
February 2nd, 2013

San Tan Scramble Trail Run yesterday marked the one year anniversary of my entrance into the Ultra Running World. I mean, I've only been dabbling my feet in ultrarunning, but it has been allot of fun. San Tan will always have a special place in my heart, because this is where I first tested the waters beyond 26.2. It feels beautiful and magical on this trail. Something I cant describe...its definitely one of my favorite trails. I don't make it there allot because its quite a drive for me. But when I do, it sure is worth it.

I enjoyed the race very much yesterday. I admit that I really wanted to slow down and just be out there for the longer haul. I would've loved to do the 50K distance yesterday. But Noah had a busy day and I didn't want to leave our girls to fend for themselves all day.

The intermediate distance is fun though because I get to push my speed and fly over the rollers. The 27K distance ended up being 16.4 miles for me. For this distance I can really go fast in the second half, if I discipline myself to start out conservatively.

Julie-Anne was out there doing her first official trail run yesterday. We ran together for a big chunk of the middle of the race. She was cruising the downhills.

This year was an easier course because Aravaipa incorporated the new Dynamite Trail. Last year you'd make the big, BIG climb over Goldmine and then turn around and go back up and over it again. Three times for the 50K, so 6 big climbs. For the 27K, it was 2 big climbs. But this year, just one BIG climb for the 27K, and 3 for the 50K.

And Dynamite is a great trail. Really fun.

I rode down with Mary yesterday, and as soon as we got back to the car the lactic acid was setting in. We stopped at the shop to check out her new running store. Cadence Running Company. Her and Dan Beaver have started up their own running store! Living the dream. And then home to suffer 10 minutes standing in my swim pool for recovery. Ooooowwwwweeeeee!!!!

Great Day!!! Finished the day out later sharing my reward food with my little girls. Crepes with nutella and vanilla bean icecream. Mmmmmmmm!!!! Worth playin' for. Definitely.

This year they had a dragon run! The dragon was made of 2 or 3 people!

January 20, 2013
PF Chang's Rock n Roll Half Marathon

Ran the Half Marathon Distance this year. It was my 5th consecutive Phoenix Rock n Roll. Sometimes the half, sometimes the whole. I really like this race and look forward to it. Cynthia and Karen ran too. We drove and hung out together. I don't know that I would've had much fun this year if they hadn't done it. It was fun to have an activity with girlfriends though.

At the end of the day I was questioning myself why I didn't have the same satisfaction this year as usual...am I tired of this race? What I decided though was that it was lack of a worthy goal.

I was not disappointed with my time this year. I felt proud of the 1:44 time I got. Not as fast as my last couple of half marathons, but not much slower considering the lack of speed training I've had for awhile now.  

Past worthy goals I have accomplished at Chang's were: Qualifying for Boston, Breaking 1:40 in the Half, Supporting Karen as she qualified for Boston, Running a controlled training run to prepare me for my first 50K.

All of these accomplishments left me feeling really good. This year...it wasn't the same.

Still glad I did it with my friends. The expo and race morning are always fun. But next year I will go back with a noble goal. I don't know yet what that will be, but it will be good.

McDowell Mountain Frenzy 50 Miler

Me, and Blue Shirt who I saw off and on throughout the day. He finished just ahead of me. 

Left Dixie Mine, heading up to Thompson Peak

Beautiful Views toward the top

Pictures cant portray how steep this was

See the Tower, that is where we were going

Beautiful View

More Beautiful

Fun to look down and see the trail winding all over the place below

Turning a corner on this steep climb

Spectacular!

I made it! Once you get to the top here, you admire the view and then start back down. Back down was no pic-nic either!!!

Picture of the tower to prove I was there!

My camera makes it look far away, but I could actually see the Fountain Hills fountain very well. Can you see the little while dot in front of the mountains? 

McDowell Mountain Frenzy 50 mile Trail Race

December 8^th, 2012

“At the start of races 50 miles or longer, most people have the spirit of We’re about to embark on an adventure. At the finish, regardless of how we place, we’re all equals because we have finished a grand adventure.”

-Kami Semick

This is the quote that solidified my commitment to try a 50 mile race. I’ve always been in awe over my Uncle Leland’s race portfolio. He runs a hundred miles. I tell people that all the time. But that sounded like way out of my league. It just sounded like something only a super kind of person could do. Someone with different genes than the rest of us. But when I heard this quote it got in my head. Fifty miles. Fifty miles is enough to make it an epic adventure. Fifty miles would be enough to take most of the day. Fifty miles would be enough that I could stop and chat with Aid Station workers and not be bothered by the clock ticking. Fifty miles would be enough that you’d look around at the people you are starting with and know that they might be your new best friend! Fifty miles would mean if I wanted to walk it wouldn’t be that I was done and just had to get to the finish line so I could pass out. If I wanted to walk, Id just be regrouping. Getting ready to run some more.

Cynthia signed up for the 10 mile distance at McDowell and kindly agreed to start her day an hour early so that she could drive me for my 7:00 start. (The 10 milers didn’t start til 8:15). Mary got a ride with us too and so the start of my day was calm and comfortable. I get so nervous for these races, but always feel TONS better when I have friends with me! Racing is so much funner with friends!

When we got there it seemed like we had plenty of time, and we did. But then right before the start, the 50 milers were called over for a meeting. I guess I didn’t realize the meeting would be so short and to the point cause suddenly he counted down and said Go! “Oh!” I hadn’t even put my phone out of my jacket pocket into my fanny pack….! So I started.

I had imagined that we would all take off together, pacing ourselves very slowly in the beginning. But a group of people in front went out very fast and were soon out of sight. There were 40 of us. Throughout the day I marveled that I was alone so much. I knew for sure that there were a bunch of people ahead of me. I figured that there were a bunch of people behind me. But I was often alone. There wasn’t very much passing or being passed. If someone was in front of me, and I could pass them, I just thought maybe Id be better off to slow down anyway. I think that people in back of me felt the same way. Change to the order would happen when we got to an aid station. I was slow at aid stations and people who had been with me would be off again before I was. I had decided to take my time at Aid Stations and make sure that I ate something, drank some coke, got everything I might want out of my drop bags. I wanted to fully utilize the Aid Stations.

There were three guys I was around for quite a bit of the race. White shirt, Blue shirt, and Fort Worth. We’d go long periods of time separated but then see each other again. Fort Worth was behind me for awhile and was very chatty. I enjoyed the company but worried that I was going too fast with him behind me. He said he didn’t want to pass me. When we got to Dixie Mine he went ahead and took off.

It was easy getting to Dixie Mine. I had pre memorized the Aid Stations and the distances between each one. So it was easy to think just a few more miles until…..(the next thing).

But after Dixie Mine I had to get up to Thompson Peak. At least this was no surprise. I knew this was coming. The Coury’s (Race Directors) had been bragging about it on facebook. About this Brutal climb they threw in for us. They weren’t kidding! Brutal was the right word! Leaving Dixie Mine I knew it was just 5 miles to get up and down from the peak. But it got steep real fast. The climb was not runnable. It had 3 paved sections. It was too steep for me to keep at a run. It was hard to even take walking steps. It was so so steep. I was going so slow that I pulled out my phone to answer a couple of text messages. I mean it wasn’t going to slow down my progress. That’s how slow I had to go here. Sometimes I walked backwards to switch up the stress on my muscles. I took a few pictures which I will include for you.

At the top there was a volunteer sitting up there by the Cell Towers just hanging out and having a good time, watching us get to the top. It must have been fun to watch. I wish I could’ve seen how the top 5 finishers tackled this hill. One guy was laying on the ground at the top. Taking a break. There were a couple of girls who made it to the top about the same time as me. The view was A-MAZE-INGJ Worth the climb. I mean if you’re gonna run all day you wanta see something cool, right?

As soon as you are done lookin around then you turn around and go down the hill. One of the other girls there, green shirt girl, she flew down so fast. I couldn’t believe it. She was zig-zagging and maybe I should have tried her method more. I didn’t want to pick up extra mileage with zig-zagging but she finished like an hour ahead of me, so I think she was doing it right! I was really slow coming down. My stomache couldn’t take the pressure of a hard down hill descent. If I tried to go fast at all my tummy yelled “NO!”

Right after I got back to Dixie Mine 2^nd time, that’s when it got hard. It just got hot and my stomache didn’t feel very good. I don’t do very well with heat. Having a visor helps allot, but hot is hot. My strategy for the race was to take a gel every 5 miles and eat something at every Aide Station and drink some coke at every Aide Station. I was able to eat a few bites at every one. I always tried something different. Peanut M&M’s, Peanut Butter Pretzels, bananas, oranges, Nutter Butters, figs….and for most of the race I was able to take my scheduled gels. My stomache was always on the edge, at least by mile 20. It was hard to tell how much of this was a result of distance racing and how much of it was a result of being kinda sick. I got sick Thursday, two days before the race. Just a yucky head cold. Congestion, Sinus pressure, cough…I think if you wish hard enough to NOT get sick or hurt before a race- You definitely WILL get sick! So for whatever reason I just didn’t feel like eating stuff but you can just tell that if you don’t do it then you’re gonna get in a bad place. So I just kept trying to get my nutrition down. It was fun to pull out gels. I have shorts with 3 pockets in back. I kept three gels back there and would restock out of my drop bags at aid stations. When Id reach back and pull out a gel then Id look to see what flavor and that would make me think of a person that was rooting for me. I mentioned on facebook a week or so before the race that I would love to get some gel contributions from people. Nobody gave me the same flavor so when I pulled out a gel Id know exactly who it was from. I would smile thinking of that person and feel a boost.

I knew the middle of the day and the heat would be hard but it really didn’t feel very long. It seemed to pass very timely. I just walked when I wanted to walk. My theme for the day was “outdoor adventure, enjoy every moment”, so if I didn’t feel good I would walk and look around and appreciate the day. And wait to feel good again. I would think about how lucky I was to have this opportunity. I would think back to my IT band injury that lasted all summer. Over the summer I kept hoping Id get to do this race, but not knowing if my injury would heal in time to let me do a proper amount of training.

For part of the race I could look over and see the Fountain Hills fountain going off. That was kind of fun. I felt like I was so far away but knew that town was right there…when I got back to Gate Aid then I knew it was 6 miles back to Start/Finish, and then another 5.4 mile loop. So I was headed the 6 miles back to S/F, not expecting anything imbetween and I came upon an abandoned Aid Station about mile 43. What???! This freaked me out big time. At this point I thought I was 2 or 3 miles from Start/Finish. But this unexpected table of food and drink made me worry that I was in the wrong place. I was seeing the orange with black polka dot ribbons that means you are on the right trail…but what if I somehow got turned around and was headed the OPPOSITE way on the correct trail? This is the type of thing that can happen to me. I don’t have an internal compass or anything. So I decided to just keep running and really hope that in 2 miles I would be at Start/Finish, and not 2 miles farther away from Start/Finish!!!!!!! I looked around and wished that Blue Shirt or White Shirt would show up. I think I was smack in the middle of them at this point.

So I’m running along a little freaked out at this point…and was SO SO SO happy when I heard voices and saw 2 bright colored shirts on 2 girls who looked familiar to me! I could see they were holding up a poster and I started to guess and hope that they were MARY and JULIE-ANNE! Yay. They were. They ran with me to S/F. I picked up my pace a little to run with them. It gave me a boost of energy to have friends here! Then JA asked if I wanted company for the last 5 mile loop. I did, but I was nervous that Id be too slow at this point and it would just be torture for her. So I was slow to answer. She said “I don’t want to take away anything, if you need to do this on your own…” Nooooo, that’s not it at all! I’m just worried that I will need to slow down, and also walk some! She said she’d do any pace I wanted at this point. Once I could tell she was really willing to do this, I was sooo happy to have the company!

My question at this point was whether I needed to get my headlamp out of my drop bag. I didn’t want to stop at my drop bag because I knew that if I stopped long at S/F then I wouldn’t want to leave again. I wanted to move through it. I also had a goal, given to me by Dan to be done before dark. I decided to take the risk and move through S/F without getting warmer clothes or a headlamp.

So we ran along, and walked any time it was up hill gradient, and she talked and let me not talk. It was perfect! I was feeling mostly good. But breathing pretty hard. We saw a table with water to fill up. In our excitement over this water station we missed a sign to turn a certain way. So we got headed a shortcut back to S/F. We started to get excited but thought ‘this is too soon, we can’t be done yet’. So JA ran back and flagged Mary and got some instruction and came back to me. We retraced our steps a little and figured out where we went wrong. Blue shirt appeared and ran the last couple of miles just in front of us. He asked me if I had been worried by that abandoned Aid Station back at mile 43 or whatever. Ummm, ya! Later Cynthia suggested that the abandoned Aid Station not on my course was leftover from one of the shorter distance races….yes that makes perfect sense.

JA kept reminding us we were close, on our home stretch, our Victory Lap. She was the perfect pacer not pushing me to go faster than I needed to at this point. Not being impatient. Not expecting return conversation. Just giving me the company that I really was ready for!

So I finished!!!!!

I was beyond words grateful to have Dan, Mary, and Julie-Anne there with me at the finish. My husband was planning to be there but was running late and as soon as I stopped running I think I went into a little shock or something. They were telling me to sit down and I wasn’t sure I wanted to. I was breathing really hard for a long time- almost but not quite hyperventilating. It took like an hour for my breathing to calm down. And I was shivering. But my friends brought me food and made me sit down and got my drop bags and pulled out a blanket for me and put a jacket around me. I just couldn’t seem to think what I wanted at this point…so they just took care of it. I need to remember this if I get a chance to be on that side- remember to just take over! I didn’t feel bad. Just….shocked I guess.

I was just so so happy though! So happy to have accomplished this thing that I wanted to do. How do people run 50 miles??? I wanted to know! I knew a small few people who had done this before- and it really inspired me! But I had to know for myself! And now I know!!!!!

I wouldn’t recommend an Ultra to someone who doesn’t want to do it. Its not something to do just to say that you can do it or you did do it…not to prove anything. Its something to definitely do if you WANT to do it. If you want to experience the high and the low of the day. If you want to run and then get tired, but then run some more. If you want to challenge your endurance. If you enjoy the flow of the trail. The feel of the outdoors and the rocks and jumping and twisting….if you want to be around other people that also feel the same way. If you like or can at least endure the lonely times when there isn’t another runner by you. I will admit to preferring the times when there was someone else around.

I was very happy with my first 50 miler. I know I will do it again. I never once during the day thought “if I can just finish I'm never doing this again!” – NO. I never felt that way. I was really glad to be there.

Thankyou to support from friends who gave me treats and gels and words of encouragement. Thankyou to friends who thought of me and sent texts and messages of good luck and inspiration. Thankyou to friends who tracked me from home or came to see me at the beginning or the end. Thankyou to friends and family who were supportive of my training. When you try to do something out of your comfort zone, a challenge, you realize how much strength you get from your family and friends. Even small gestures mean a big deal. It means allot just to know people believe in you. So thankyou, thankyou! And Big Thanks to Aravaipa and the Coury’s and the Volunteers. You ROCK!

I was happy with my time. It was surprisingly right on target with my expectations. I didn’t know what to guess but Dr Horton out of my “Relentless Forward Progress” book said that you could multiply your marathon times 3. To get an estimate. So I multiplied my fastest and slowest marathons by 3 and then used that as a range. I came in on the faster end of that rangeJ

***I’m going to include some stats and numbers here because I find the stats interesting. Skip them if you don’t.

My first watch of the day:

29.74 miles

5:52:35

11:51 avg pace

3390 calories

My second watch, I switched at Dixie Mine:

21.47 miles

4:43:43

13:13 avg pace

1660 calories