Coldwater Rumble 20 Mile Race Report
January 20 - the day before the Coldwater Rumble was pouring rain. Coming from Oregon, you'd think running in the rain would be no big deal, and a year ago, I would have agreed. But I am a Phoenician now and the thought of running 20 miles in a cold rain was not helping me get excited for my race. As I looked at the weather forecast, I could see that although I may get lucky with no rain and sunny skies, I was in for a windy day at a minimum. I am also having my normal pre-race jitters. Even though this is supposed to be a training run for Whiskey Basin 57K, I still want to run well and am afraid that I won't be able to meet my own expectations.
January 21 - 5:00 am wake up, oatmeal, blackberry, and avocado breakfast, don my gear and out the door. The girls and I get to the race about 1.5 hours early giving us plenty of time to get our race bids and do the pre-race potty routine - pee, wipe, repeat. Aravaipa Running always puts on a great event. This race was no different. We arrived just in time to cheer for the 100 mile racers as they started. The excitement at the start line was palpable.
8:30 am and my race started. The first mile was a climb. Not big but steady. I ran slowly, taking short quick steps. From the beginning my lungs burned. 2 miles in and this was going to be a long day I could tell. The course is relatively flat, the elevation gain and loss is mostly from going down into desert washes and back up again. For those not familiar with the desert, these are like small dry streams. Down and up, up and down.
The course is in the foothills of the Estrella Mountains. These mountains are said to be sacred to the Gila River Indian Community. As I ran along the base of these, I could feel the spirituality rise up and give a voice to the mountains. Awe-inspiring and beautiful. I hoped this would give me the strength to finish the race with joy and ease.
Mile 9 and I hit a stretch where the course goes down the middle of a wash. About 3 miles of sand. In normal years, this could be torture, but with the rains the night before, they were more hard-packed and ended up being pretty easy running. My stride lengthened. My pace picked up. I was finally feeling good.
And then mile 12 hit. My back seized up and I went from a comfortable rolling pace to almost a stand still. I couldn't hardly run. I slowed tremendously. The tears started to come. I could see my goals for a 4 hour finish leaving quickly. And then 4:15 ticked away, and 4:30. My high expectations would not be met today and this is a crushing blow to my self-esteem. I'm not sure what was worse - my self berating or the pain in my back.
I finally finished in 4:51:57. Almost an hour slower than my goal. Did I set my expectations to high to reach? I'm not sure. I don't think so. But I did learn some lessons from this race - continue even when I will fall short, because falling short is better than giving up.
And at the end, dear friends greeted me, stretched out my back, got me a beer and helped me remember that even a lackluster race is worth its weight in gold.
January 21 - 5:00 am wake up, oatmeal, blackberry, and avocado breakfast, don my gear and out the door. The girls and I get to the race about 1.5 hours early giving us plenty of time to get our race bids and do the pre-race potty routine - pee, wipe, repeat. Aravaipa Running always puts on a great event. This race was no different. We arrived just in time to cheer for the 100 mile racers as they started. The excitement at the start line was palpable.
8:30 am and my race started. The first mile was a climb. Not big but steady. I ran slowly, taking short quick steps. From the beginning my lungs burned. 2 miles in and this was going to be a long day I could tell. The course is relatively flat, the elevation gain and loss is mostly from going down into desert washes and back up again. For those not familiar with the desert, these are like small dry streams. Down and up, up and down.
The course is in the foothills of the Estrella Mountains. These mountains are said to be sacred to the Gila River Indian Community. As I ran along the base of these, I could feel the spirituality rise up and give a voice to the mountains. Awe-inspiring and beautiful. I hoped this would give me the strength to finish the race with joy and ease.
Mile 9 and I hit a stretch where the course goes down the middle of a wash. About 3 miles of sand. In normal years, this could be torture, but with the rains the night before, they were more hard-packed and ended up being pretty easy running. My stride lengthened. My pace picked up. I was finally feeling good.
And then mile 12 hit. My back seized up and I went from a comfortable rolling pace to almost a stand still. I couldn't hardly run. I slowed tremendously. The tears started to come. I could see my goals for a 4 hour finish leaving quickly. And then 4:15 ticked away, and 4:30. My high expectations would not be met today and this is a crushing blow to my self-esteem. I'm not sure what was worse - my self berating or the pain in my back.
I finally finished in 4:51:57. Almost an hour slower than my goal. Did I set my expectations to high to reach? I'm not sure. I don't think so. But I did learn some lessons from this race - continue even when I will fall short, because falling short is better than giving up.
And at the end, dear friends greeted me, stretched out my back, got me a beer and helped me remember that even a lackluster race is worth its weight in gold.
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