This was the first week - in a long while - that I did not feel sickly or bleh during this training block.
I was exceptional and getting in all my paces, squats, lunges, rows, etc. I had an amazing week that concluded with quite the half marathon story.
Settle in kids...
On Sunday, March 3rd I ran and completed a half marathon in south Denver called 'That Dam Run'. When I had registered for the event late last year I did so because I saw that this half marathon was happening in March (a month before London) and it'd be the great opportunity for me to practice my fueling and hydration in a race setting.
I did not think to look at any of the logistics leading into said half marathon. In my mind, a half marathon is 13.1 miles, that's all I need to know. WRONG!
Race day was perfect. The sun was shining and the temps at the start were in the mid 30s, which would rise another 15 degrees by the end - great! The day prior I had picked up my race bib with a long sleeve race shirt that had the following text across the chest "Challenge Accepted #IYKYK". I did not know (obviously) and I didn't think to ask.
Back to race day.
I settled in toward the back of the pack at the start line and readied my watch with my preset goal paces for the distance. All I knew about this course was that it was a down-and-back, meaning we'd run from the start to a set point and run that same course back to the finish.
I knew the course would be going around the Cherry Creek Reservoir and the views would be lovely from that altitude; 360 views of the city, water, and mountains.
The race announcer counted us down and we were off. I settled into my easy pace at the start and enjoyed the views. At around mile 2.5 it became apparent to me that we couldn't run around the entire reservoir and given that we were perched up high on the trail, I realized that I could not see where the front-of-the-pack runners were; they seemed to disappear.
I continued with my group of people and that's when it hit me...we were going downhill. The downhill was not gradual by any means. It was right in your face! I eased up some on my pace and let the hill pull me downward with the group. As I looked ahead I noticed that down was going to be the trend for quite a while. My mind immediately started spinning - "Crap. The only way back is up." *facepalm
There were segments of the race where the trail leveled out, but that relief was very brief before the trail moved downward yet again and again. A lady named Karen ran up beside me. She asked, "have you done this race before?" *huff puff* "No," I replied.
"Shouldn't we be turning around soon?!"
"I hope so."
We finally breached the turn around point and the on course race volunteers were quick to offer their words of encouragement and refreshments - "Keep going! You're halfway there." Uhh...yeah, I realize that.
Karen and I stayed with one another. We cursed, breathed heavy, and laughed at the race swag we got (#IYKYK) - now we knew.
The last 3 miles were a challenge as mile 11 was a steep uphill battle to get back to the top of the reservoir.
Ultimately, I finished the race. It was not at all what I expected (course-wise) and I severely missed my paces; but that does not phase me.
I felt so good at the end when my mind and body were screaming at me to stop, quit, and DNF. Heck no! I fought to the end and had a blast beating my body up for a nice medal.
I talk about this more in my weekly training video on YouTube here.
I hope you enjoyed my narrative on That Dam Run - that damn run indeed.
Have a great week! Less than 50 days to go!
-Chels