I don't think I told you all about the Bald Peak Half that Sam and I did June 21. I had read reviews on the RunOregon.com blog about the course from last year and it sounded grueling. I told Sam about it, he simply said, "great". I read the first 1.8 miles was uphill and a majority of the course was rather hilly. I knew what I was in for, theoretically, but you can never really prepare yourself for the reality of a hilly course until you see the actual hill with your own eyes and your legs and feet feel it. And boy did I feel it. I thought I would do okay, since in the past I have tended to do very well on hills, it seems to be where I pass a lot of other people. But when you can't see the crest of the hill, that's a problem. I decided these weren't hills, these were mountains and we weren't running, we were hiking and the flattened portions is where we could intersperse our hiking with running. Whatevs. My lungs were burning, but it was still a good run. At one point my phone decided to butt-dial a friend and I heard his voice mail pick up. At that point, I decided I would no longer use my music, not that I turned it off, rather I just took out my headphones and listened to the sounds around me, not something I normally do (I never considered myself an internally motivated runner). Strangely, it was actually quite nice without the music. I was able to hear what people said to me when I passed them and when they passed me, and I was able to respond accordingly rather than giving them the obligatory half-smile as I slog up yet another hill. On those relatively flat stretches, I was cruising. Roadkills left and right, I felt great. I got myself some electrolyte replacement and was on a roll. The cool breeze on my skin felt amazing, then another hill, curses. I tried to manage as long as possible, running up the hill that is, then the incline would get the better of me and I was walking. So much for forward momentum. But, in the end, I ran admirably across the finish line and felt great. No PR at that run, but it was a small race and it was very scenic and I finished what I started and it was challenging and I love a challenge. So, although it was brutal, I would do it again, for sure. How many races do you enter will you pass an alpaca farm? So, that alone is worth doing it again, maybe next time I'll take my phone out and snap photos.
Here we are pre-race, looking fresh as daisies:
.JPG)
Next, we went on vacation. Well, we went on a trip. A vacation is a place you go without your kids and someone waits on you hand and foot. This was a trip. The kids were there, we visited family and the location was not a typical vacation destination location: Alabama. We went for a family reunion on my dad's side of the family and had a mini-family reunion in Montgomery, Alabama for my mom's side of the family.
I ran on the hotel treadmill one day, 30 minutes in a canned environment and I was sweating like a __________ (fill in any appropriate southern euphemism, really, it could go many directions here). Man do I dislike running on a treadmill. I am so happy to live in the northwest that I can run at virtually any time of year outside. Sure, I can run in Alabama too, and I did go running outside once, with my cousin Thelma. I had to get up at 4:45 a.m. to do it though: OUCH!! It was nice outside, the sun was coming up and the temperature was perfect. But, geez, it was early.
My cousin Thelma has been a runner for years. I remember when I was little and she was always running and I was a chubby little girl who simply admired my lithe, fast, running cousin. She was so cool. Now, she and I were going running together...at the crack of dawn. Thelma was telling me about how in the 60's she was a Black girl running. Although there is a running group, Black Girls Run, which she is a member when she went to that group and was asked to introduce herself she said she has always been a runner because she loves running and back in the 60's she was a singular Black girl running and that it's great that now there's a group called Black Girls Run, but I remember way back when. And after telling her story, it was as if she offended someone because they all got silent. Really, my cousin is the original Black Girl Run, and remains. I told her about being a Running Unicorn and she acknowledged the same thing happens in Alabama. People don't seem to expect her to be running and when she has won medals they look at her funny, not expecting a Black woman to be walking up to the podium to collect her prize.
It's still crazy. Alabama is nuts, the race relations there are very odd. But, that is a completely separate entry, I couldn't quite wrap my head around it, but it was very, very odd. Confederate flags fly there and the Sons of the Confederate Veterans sign displayed clearly from the highway, obviously, that organization is proud of their heritage, granted that doesn't mean the whole state is, but so odd. We were well ensconced in the bible belt which would explain why we drove past the sign that declared, "Go to church or the devil will get you" with a red devil carrying a pitchfork on the side of the highway. Hmmm.
Okay, moving right along. I had a great run with my cousin near Samford College. The girls hung out with lots of teens and tween cousins. They were entertained and entertaining. It was overall a very nice trip, I'm glad we went and I'm glad I'm home. Now, I need to get it back into gear and do some real work. For real. Tomorrow.
But, we came back to 90 degree temperatures. What the? Now I am going to have to get up early and go running in the morning. Oy vey! Well, at least it's not humid.
No comments:
Post a Comment