When I’m up I can’t get down

As you may recall, I recently  “trained” (and by trained I mean went on the first real trail run of my adult life) for an upcoming trail race.  A week ago I ran that race.   This report will be short because I could only type with one hand, the other one being too swollen, bruised and stiff to click keyboards.  I had hoped to finish top ten among women but narrowly missed my goal, which isn’t too bad given that around 9K my foot lodged beneath a root, sending me straight to my knees and a belly flop into the dirt, and then somehow, and I’m still not sure how, into a somersault over my right shoulder.  It was magnificent.  I call it my stop, drop, and roll.  My friend hilariously said his would be a drop, roll, and stop.   The wind was knocked out of me and I never really regained my momentum.  But I still loved every minute of it and I wear my swollen and bruised knees, shoulder, and wrist with pride.  And a whopping dose of Advil. 

The race was superbly organized (the next day the organizer emailed apologizing for a couple of small glitches that all only a few runners would have noticed and indicated that the problems would all be rectified for the next race – I didn’t notice any issues, but I think the email was first-class), the vibe collegial, I loved the branded hot-cold packs given with the race kit, the route markers were numerous and easy to follow, and the course marshals cheerful and helpful.  The post-race prizes were plentiful, alas, I failed to win any of them.  All in all an A+ event.  This explains why the races are all sell-outs.  We started in waves, which reduced the crowds but I’m still not used to running with a pack on technical terrain.  Also, I’m not used to running on technical terrain.  I surprised myself with my patience, although a few others could handle a dose or two, and if the leader of the pack decided to walk on single track I went Zen and embraced the break.  I’m not risking my fall marathon to bushwhack a few places higher.  Even with the rush of a race the runners looked out for each other and if an expletive was heard it was immediately followed by a round of “are you okays?” and a quiet pause awaiting the answer.  

Of the races in the series this one is billed as the most technical, which I like.  The challenge of the tricky sections works well with my personality.  I fair well with the fancy footwork although I’m a little too skittish on the downhills.  Surprisingly, my gymnastics move happened during one of the open (read: easy) sections of the course, which is good because I had a soft non-cuncussion landing.  I guess I got complacent for a moment.  I won’t make that mistake again.  Constant Vigilance!  My day after run was hilarious in that I moved, as Husband put it, like a robot.  I haven’t moved like a robot after a race in a long time.  Would I run this series again?  In a heartbeat …. I’m already registered for the August race.

Title Reference: Great Big Sea – When I’m Up (I Can’t Get Down). 1997.