Running Highs and the Half-Iron

Well - faithful readers (should any of you be remaining!) - I assure you, I have been running and following my schedule, I've just not had time to blog. I'll try to recap the past two weeks without boring you too much. A lot has happened, though, so we'll see how lengthy this post becomes!



When you last heard from me in the blogosphere, I was preparing for a busy week of running, wherein I had to work around a trip to one of Oregon's high desert resort communities: Sunriver. We were leaving on Thursday, so I needed to run three times beforehand - meaning Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning, and then TRY to do ten miles when I returned on Sunday. I knew (based upon my experience with running in Denver the previous week ) that I would not be running in Sunriver's high elevation.



So - I dutifully logged my miles. On Tuesday, June 24 I ran 4 before work in the morning. On Wednesday, I attempted to do 3 after work with Greg and Emelyn, but as I brought to the light fact that it was a miracle I could run without Ibuprofen in my system, I began to have leg pains and we ended up running only about 2 miles.

On Thursday, I ran 6 before we left for Sunriver. I was able to run through Campus and see the set-up for the Olympic Trials at Hayward Field. It was pretty inspiring, to say the least, to know that in a short 24 hours, thousands of people would be watching the nation's premier Track and Field Athletes break records and make history. Of course I'd be rooting for the home team - the countless Oregon Track Club athletes competing, as well as the UO's young stars.

So all was good. Each run (except for the one with Greg and Emelyn) felt great and I do see loads of progress. I'm averaging ten minute miles, which includes small stretching breaks and waiting at stop lights. I've become very fond of my running routes. I've not waivered too much from them either. I have courses for three, four, five, six, and seven miles. Any more than that, I design a new route. There really is something to that "home field advantage". If I know what to expect, I'm mentally prepared for what's coming and it doesn't seem as daunting.



Now while in Sunriver - let me just tell you - we were in a sea of super fit folks. We were there for the Pacific Crest Sports Weekend, wherein there are many many different types of races throughout the weekend, ranging from the Half Iron-Man to a 5k run. Greg and his friend Tommy Brooks participated in the event last year by completing the Olympic Triathlon. This year, they went for the Half Iron-Man, which let me just tell you - isn't exactly child's play.



I've decided to devote some of my running blog to the Half Iron to pay homage to their efforts. So here's the race in a nutshell: 1.2 mile swim, 58 mile bike ride, and a 13.1 mile run. Now - sounds difficult but doable with plenty of training, sure - but - when you factor in the following, it ups the anty quite a bit. The first obvious obstacle: The altitude. Altitude ranges from 4000 - to about 6500-7000 feet, depending on which leg of the race. The Race began at 9 am where they were dropped into a glacial lake somewhere outside of Sunriver. Choppy fridged water and 1000 of your closest friends elbowing and clawing to get ahead of you. Following this mile + swim, racers jumped on their bikes for a 58 mile ride UP Mt. Bachelor. As the cyclists climbed higher and higher, they were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery, sure, but gained altitude and dropped temperature - there was 2 feet of snow on either side of them as they continued to climb. Once the bike portion was complete, they were back down to 4000 feet in 90+ degree temperatures to begin the half-marathon run. Hot sun shining down on them, they ran through the SunRiver playground resort's network of trails and bike paths. Kelly and I were very fortunate to be renting a house that sat on the 6.5 mile marker of the run, so we cheered to runners as they ran by to remind them that "you're looking great" and "You're almost finished" and of course the favorite spectator cheer or all "good job!" and "keep it up!". They probably wanted to punch us in the face, but hey - we did our best. Kelly sat for a while with her feet up but became increasingly more guilty about it so she put both feet on the ground. I sipped a pina colada and sure - felt guilty - but it was nice so I kept it.



Greg and Tommy both completed the race and did pretty well. It is not something either of them would like to repeat any time in the near future, however. It really takes a toll on you with all of those factors into place.



So - When we returned from Sunriver, I did not do ten miles. I did only 4. Which really - considering the almost 3 hour car ride was a mirable in itself. I therefore needed to revise my schedule for the following week a little.

I'll do a separate post to capture my week of 6/30 through 4th of July weekend in the next day or so - I promise!!