Considering I’m just waking up from a 5 hour post-race coma, I’m imagining if I’d trained, I might not have spent most of my Saturday asleep. Alas, training didn’t happen but I finished today right around 3 hours on one of the hilliest race courses I’ve ever run. It put Percy Warner Park to shame.
So, this trail race started at 9 with cool temps, right around 50°. For my Southern readers, in Colorado that’s cool but not cold since there’s no humidity to wick that cold to your bones. We started in sidewalks going through Highlands Ranch neighborhoods but after climbing the first mile on roads, we began climbing in horse trails. The trails themselves were well trodden but I felt that much of the first 5 miles or so was spent playing “dodge the land one.” Lots of horses had traversed those trails apparently and unlike dogs, people don’t pick up after them. I succeeded in not stomping through horse poop and shuffled along slowly. I was disheartened in the beginning when I kept having to walk up the hills, but I made up a lot of time in the second half of the race that was primarily downhill in the backcountry. However, being so slow allowed me to take some pictures along the way.
Those buildings in the distance are downtown Denver. We could look out and see far on the plains and watch rain coming in over the mountains.
These pictures barely do the scenery justice. This was quite the scenic race and if nothing else, would make a lovely hike. However, after climbing so high, it was time to go low.
In the backcountry, the trails were only slightly more technical with a number of sharp switchbacks. It wasn’t until the very end, right before climbing the penultimate hill, that a few people almost fell or hurt their ankles. I have generally avoided running trails because I tend to roll my ankles on them but I had no issues this time. I attribute that to my trusty Montrails.
See? All dusty and happily worn.
I had a few revelations thanks to my music along the way:
Running has always been church for me and yet, I’ve seriously neglected it for quite some time. It’s time to change that. It felt so good to be out there today, pushing myself along. Running was my savior before, when I faced my big transition from life in Florida and undergrad to my big move to Nashville and entering grad school. Much like meditation often gets pushed to the side, running has too of late, and I want that to change.
Sentiments that my music seemed to echo: “Pain is an illusion,” “pain is a testament,” “pain is sacred.” I think that says plenty. Especially as I’m laying in bed and my knees ache and my chest hurts with each breath but I ran today despite recovering from the flu with residual ear and sinus infections, plus after rather painfully vomiting up my entire dinner last night. I ran and I thrived, despite being slow.
So, now myfitnesspal is telling me I have another 800 calories to eat but I’m totally not hungry while nestled in my burros of blankets in my dark room. If I was in Nashville, I’d be headed out to 3 Crow Bar about now, but I’m not and these suburbs don’t really offer me a friendly neighborhood pub yet. So perhaps I’ll go back to sleep. Regardless, I’m worn and happy. That’s the best of running.