For so much more! Yesterday I must’ve repeated that song ten thousand times (figuratively) on my I-pod. 31 miles, mostly alone in the woods and only the rare and occasional aid station stop leaves much to the imagination.
Bob, Richard and I loaded up in Bob’s F-150 Saturday afternoon. I had gotten back from the parade in Marshfield (still writing an editorial for that one) and bought a new pair of trail shoes, not knowing what to expect and having wanted the new 874 models anyhow. We settled in for the drive to Overland Park, where we had made reservations. We checked in, unpacked our gear and decided it was high time for a pasta dinner! I was so ready and ate with fortuitous gratitude. The meal was of the highest degree (Jonhnny Carrino’s at the Legends Plaza).
We then decided there should be some other form of entertainment. I guess it’s tradition for the two of them, having both run the 50 states together, but we did go see “The Love Guru” with Mike Myers. The humor was every bit what I expected it to be, with elements of sarcasm and too many anagrams to count (Intimacy= into me I see) (TM) It cracked us up!
The greatest part of Saturday was that, as soon as we left the theater (This was the 4th of July, remember), we got a world-class fireworks show at the Kansas Speedway! That, plus John Philip Sousa and a veteran Marine in tow, made it so rich!
So, off to bed, but Saturday morning we were wide awake, at about a 1200 calorie breakfast apiece, downed some electrolytes and were off to the race! We got to the Wyandotte County Lake about 7:20 and checked it, snagged some cool technical shirts, awesome shwag, and had a meet-and-greet with the runners. My photo album, which will have more pics added in a week or two, is on my Facebook, if you have an interest. (or www.seeKCrun.com) I have to figure out how to post them on the blog!
After the meet and greet. we were standing in the crowd and as they started off, decided we all needed bug spray. So, we got the start a bit late, but caught up quickly. Silly me, thinking that it was the same as a marathon, was keeping about a regular 8:00 pace. Most of the finishers kept a 10:00 to 12:00 minute per mile pace, so I was passing them left and right. The first loop was a little over 15 miles, and not bad, except the half mile of mud at the beginning that suckered our shoes into it and the nearly two miles of horse-shoe heavy mud at the end. Those became dreaded on the second loop.
The first four miles were pretty packed with athletes, and these people were hard core athletes, not just weekend warriors. They were men and women, some this being their mecca event for the year, others using it as a trainer for a 100-miler. Forget Dean Karnazes….he has NOTHING on these people!
About ten miles, I hit an aid station and took a SiCap (electrolyte cap) and had no idea how much I needed it. I sure do today, thinking slower and moving around like molasses in January in Alaska! But there were great encouragers and professional Ultra-Marathoners manning the stations. God Bless them, they are great individuals, very strong and lending of heart and motivation,
Two hours and maybe ten minutes later, I rounded the first loop of 15 miles, in spite of the mud. Someone told me I was winning the Women’s division, so I grabbed a PB and J sandwich, banana, pickle and a drink of Coca Cola and hit the road, with one ibuprofen that I nearly choked on at the 16th mile. The first four miles of loop two were great, and I made it to the first aid station before having to walk. How embarrassing that was! I remembered what Jim told me then at one of the adventure races: you can slow down, but just don’t stop! I guess, the law of nature, the law of momentum and the law of mass action contribute largely to that, because it takes stopping to realize how much steam was built up. The lactic acid fell heavy on my legs and I suddenly wanted to throw up. This was unusual, but I saw that my watch read “3:42″ and thought, OUCH! WAY TOO FAST! 12 miles left to go left a few daunting thoughts in mind. So I clicked on the Bebo Norman song, fell on my knees and started to pray. Hey, if you’re going to be stupid, you have to be tough! But God lifted me up, and for a few miles I felt strong again. Faith required that I keep praying, so I had to select the genre of music (bet they didn’t have THAT fifty years ago!) ad keep pushing. I got sick, threw up a few times, felt like I had been purged of everything vain and gluttonous, with the exception of ultra-running, and kept on singing praises. I felt good about the time it was that part of the course that the equestrians patronized heavily. This section had foot-deep and sometimes knee-deep mud~!
Part of me wanted to plop down in it like an elephant because it looked cool, but I notice the greenish-yellow hue, rethought that one and strattled it as much as possible. The mud only made me angry, as did it many other runners. But nonetheless, it was a race built on perseverance. I am making an honest effort to test the human resolve and the boundaries of faith this year. With several biggies now off my bucket list, it’s time to add more!
At the end, I met a software guru Nick, who invited me to run the Leadville marathon next year. Sure, why not?! And Richard and I had a good long talk about the difference between parties in the candidacy this year, the state of American government, the difference between Ultra Trail Runners and Road runners. It’d be hard to call him Dr. Johnson and I think so highly of him and his family….especially his wife Debbie. What an angel!
When Bob rounded the finish line, he honestly looked strong, and I hope they both don’t hate me for dragging them to and through a muddy race! But we also made an agreement to run the Whiterock marathon in place of Vegas this year, simply because it’s drivable and more economical.
Before finishing some thoughts that are rather scattered, I have to give a shout out to Bridget and to Adam, two people I met yesterday. Bridget ran her first 5k and is becoming a tri-athlete. (I still have a long way to go, but wanted to offer advice as much as possible) Adam was a former Marine, quite good-looking and knows me as the “Tri-Queen”. I don’t think he has a clue how much grit I have….and how much the training regimen has to change!
Yesterday was full of digging, today is a day of Rest (and I will post the sermon, which was again, very impactful) tomorrow or later tonight, but I’ll end by saying that God and I dug trenches yesterday. It was my pleasure to be that close to the dirt that I got to experience God lifting me out of it and on to the finish of my very first Uitra-Marathon.
photos: www.seeKCrun.com
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