Day 4,540—Happy Birthday, Mabel! and Part II of the RRR—

 

       It is my niece Mabel’s birthday today, and I am glad I have it on my calendar because I have so many nieces and nephews; it is hard to keep up with all of them, especially when you’re not on social media, but I saw that this morning when I was getting up and checking my calendar. I am still sluggish in the morning and, in general, feel like going back to bed, but I have made it to Thursday, and each day I have gotten a slightly better run in; I am still not doing all the things I normally do, like stretching and push-ups. I am still not happy about this race, but with distance comes a more objective perspective.

Day 4,534-5—DNFed the Run Rabbit Run 100 Part II: The First Section

        I was just happy to be at the start line on time. It was a little bit before 1 p.m., and most of the runners weren’t behind the starting line yet. I got in the middle to back of the group and debated starting with my poles or keeping them in my vest. When we started, most runners went out fast, even though this section started with over 3,000 feet of elevation in only a 5.4-mile run. I knew this part was hard because I saw the video, but I was up for the challenge. I also knew I'd have to take it slow because going up hills wasn't my strength.

        We climbed up and up and up some more. Just when we reached a section that looked like the top, we kept climbing. I was already near the back of the group, but as we continued up. I let some more runners pass me. I was still ahead of what I thought was a few people, but I wasn’t worried. I knew this wasn’t my strength, but I also knew a lot of this run was flat, so I planned to catch up later in the race.

        At the first aid station, I filled up almost all my hydration stuff because the next section was 12.3 miles away. It took longer at the Mount Werner aid station than I wanted. There wasn’t much food except grapes, and it took a while for the aid workers to figure out how to fill my bottles. They were nice, but they didn’t seem to have much experience.

        I started on the next section, and I felt like I could finally run more, but I started tripping on some rocks and had to slow down. I also knew the elevation was affecting my oxygen level, and I could tell I was starting to get winded early, so I didn’t want to fall or get out of breath, so I kept a steady but slow pace. It was also so hot in his section, and I was going through a lot of water. Heading straight up to over 10,000 feet in elevation was tough for multiple reasons, but being so close to the sun made it much hotter than it would have been otherwise, and I went from worrying about the cold to sweating uncontrollably as I tried to keep drinking water and catch up on time.

Tomorrow: Part III Rain and Lightning