Monday, April 27, 2015

Horsetooth Half

A year ago, I was in a state of abject misery (literally: Missouri) what with my stress fracture/tendon injury and the rest of my life falling apart.  I was in this frame of mind where I didn’t know if we’d ever make it to Colorado, and increasingly, if I’d ever be able to run again.  I think I was dimly aware of this thing called the Horsetooth Half Marathon that happened in Fort Collins every April, and that it could possibly be part of my future one day if I ever managed to get out of St. Louis, but it mainly just seemed another one of life’s opportunities passing me by.   

A year later, here I am.  A Coloradan.  With a somewhat dodgy tibialis posterior.  But a Coloradan, and that’s what keeps me going.

After a successful mileage push at the end of 2014, I was giddy with excitement and decided to commemorate the achievement by registering for the 2015 Horsetooth Half.  It would be a nice tune up for whatever ultra/s I decided to run in the spring.  Right?   At that point I had run the “hilly” part of the course exactly twice, and it was both terrifying and beautiful.  I couldn’t wait.

Elevation profile

 

I did the best I could to maintain mileage during the winter, and then I started training on the course a bit more seriously once the snow and ice melted and I felt like it was safe enough to run down an ~8% grade hill.

I ran the course 5 times (all except the flat bit at the end) over as many weeks and loved it more each time.  The hills are hard, yes, but there is just something so exquisitely raw and powerful about running them.  I didn’t worry about pace on the training runs, I was just out there to get a feel for the hills and enjoy the view.

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The day before the race, we loaded up a moving van (twice actually) to make the final move from the house we’ve been renting to our “forever home,” which we’ve been renovating for the past 6 weeks.

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Moving the day before a race is probably not the best thing to do, but it was only a half marathon, and we didn’t have much of a choice.  Besides, I did exactly zero of the heavy lifting myself—Rob and the movers he hired took care of that.  (My arms get sore after zesting a lemon.  I’m not good for much lifting).  But I did stay on my feet all day, covering approximately 10 miles of just wandering around the house, putting things away.  My legs were tired at the end of the day.

I took a small break late in the afternoon to go pick up my packet at New Belgium.  Then I came back home and made everybody pasta for dinner in my fully functional, completely organized kitchen (“Your grandmother would be proud,” my mom told me).

FullSizeRenderRace t-shirt.  The women’s sizes came in neon pink.  How original.  This is unwearable.

Even with a fairly decent night’s sleep, I was thankful that the race didn’t start until 8:30 the next morning.  I gathered my things and headed out the door around 7:30 to run to the start line (about 2 miles away).  The mountains were so pretty as I ran west—blue and green and still white with the snow we’d gotten earlier in the week.

I’d decided to run with as little as possible during the race—no phone, no hydration pack. I generally always run with my own water even in shorter races because I dislike contributing to the waste generated from taking paper cups at aid stations along the course.  But I also knew that I would not be able to run this course at a decent “half marathon pace” if I had anything with me.  

We set out up the hill to the start line, and we were off.  I loved that the race started up a 6.4% grade hill.  I zoomed around slower people who’d lined up ahead of me, feeling like this was my turf.  These hills are my happy place.

After a brief descent, there was another 9.2% climb.  Piece of cake.  I saw the dad of one of Will’s school friends, who had come out to cheer people on.  That gave me a boost to the top of the hill and then there was the weightless flight down.  Down, down and down.  I’d expected I might pass people on the uphills, but downhill is not at all my strength.  I’d thought it likely that everyone I passed on the way up would zoom past me again on the way down.  Not exactly the case.  Some of them definitely did, but I was still running past plenty of people even on the downs.  I was going so fast and using so much concentration to avoid face planting on the ground that I was barely breathing.  There was sharp pain in my shoulders and my stomach began to cramp.  This happens to me often when I’m running a hilly, short distance race, but never on long slow runs.  I know from much experience that I just need to take in as much oxygen as possible to fix this—deep breaths instead of shallow—and it will eventually go away.

By mile 3, I decided that I did not like hills anymore.  That was just in time for the Dam Hill (5.1%) and then the long, lightening descent at a 7.9% grade.

This whole time, we’d been running north, into an approximately 20mph headwind.  It was getting hard, even as the hills leveled off a bit.  I eagerly anticipated our turn to the east around 6 or 7 miles in, and I knew we’d have the wind to our backs or at least sides for the rest of the race.  

There were another couple of hills after we turned onto Bingham Hill Road, but those never seem as all-consuming as Monster Mountain or Dam Hill.

By about mile 9, I was in uncharted territory—the flat part of the course that I’d never run before.  Much of it was along the Poudre Trail (a bike path), and I’d been dreading that because mentally, it is sometimes hard for me to run on flats after hills, and also: concrete.  

Horsetooth (Photo by Rob’s friend Terry)

 

I did fall off the pace a little by that point, but the Poudre Trail was beautiful, and the concrete did not hurt nearly as badly as I’d thought it might.  I was in a rough patch around Mile 10 and resorted to music from the tiny iPod Rob had loaned me for the race.  That helped, but what helped even more was seeing Rob and Will along the course—I hadn’t been expecting them.  I couldn’t react when I saw them—I didn’t say anything or even wave.  I can’t believe the picture Rob took shows me smiling, I was working so hard I have no recollection of being able to do that.

Mile 10 of the Horsetooth Half.

I was completely out of energy and just trying to maintain close to 8-minute pace on bombed out legs.  I’d brought a couple of gels with me, but there was no way I could eat them at that pace.  Nausea took hold.  It didn’t seem like I was going to want any finish line beer when this thing was finally over.

A woman in a green shirt, who I’d been leap frogging with the entire race, overtook me a final time about a mile from the end.  I knew I couldn’t stay with her anymore.  I looked at my watch for the first time and saw I’d be able to finish in about 1:47ish if I dug in.  That was a surprise, and I was happy about it—I hadn’t thought there was any way I could finish in under 1:50, and that 2 hours was probably a more realistic goal what with those hills.

Finishing strong at the Horsetooth Half.

One last cheer from Rob and Will, then around a corner and across the finish line.  Horsetooth Half in the books.  I went straight to the water jug and drank and drank and drank.  I’d managed to intake only about 8 ounces of water the entire race, and I was suddenly feeling that.  It would have been a different story if the day had been hot instead of cool.

Rob and Will met me in the finish area a few minutes later, and we stood around talking to some of Rob’s friends who are basically elites and had finished the race hours ahead of me.  I felt like such a mere mortal.

After about 30 ounces of water, I noticed I wasn’t nauseated anymore, and I could at least talk again.  I headed over to the beer tent, where the good people of New Belgium greeted me with warmth and enthusiasm.  Although I love beer, I haven’t drank any for about 6 weeks.  I’d really been looking forward to this.  I bypassed all the lighter selections and took a 1554.  Perfection.

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A couple of sips into my 1554, I suddenly realized how cold I was and what a long ride it would be back home (Rob and Will brought the cargo bike to pick me up).  I managed to finish about half the beer, then Will and I climbed onto the back of the bike and Rob set off to give us a ride home.

The thing I love about Fort Collins is that the sight of a grown man transporting his entire family on the back of a cargo bike isn’t even noteworthy enough to turn a head.

We made it home, where I welcomed a warm shower and some food.

A day or two later, I saw that the results had been posted, and I thought *bam*… nailed it.  I’d totally been gunning for 184th place.

  1. 9:34 (Monster Mountain!)
  2. 7:56
  3. 7:40
  4. 8:12 (Dam Hill!)
  5. 7:27
  6. 7:48
  7. 8:22 (Bingham Hill)
  8. 7:54
  9. 8:06
  10. 8:26 (Uh oh, feeling bad)
  11. 8:09 (Tuck in and gut it out)
  12. 8:06
  13. 8:13
Total: 1:47:44 (1:47:22 chip time)
Average: 8:12 
 

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Dear William (68 months)

Dear William,

Today you are 68 months old!

In case you ever think I didn’t do enough for you, I’d like to remind you that this month, I crawled through the grocery store on my hands and knees to find the tiny light saber that fell out of Luke Skywalker’s hand while we were shopping.

I found it.

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Also, I helped you with your homework.

Homework

 

The school says you read “at grade level,” but in truth, you are smarter than them all. 

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You had spring break.  All the other parents were going stir crazy with their kids at home and couldn’t wait for school to start back up again.  I completely can’t relate to them, not even a little bit.  I love every single moment I get to spend with you.

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We hiked the Horsetooth Falls trail on a cloudy day.  We only made it halfway (if that even) because all I had brought for you to snack on was 3 granola bars, which you had devoured by that time.

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You did some “trail running” with Daddy at Bobcat Ridge.

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You liked it so much that you insisted we go back as a family the following weekend.

Family hike

 

We followed a trail that led to an historic cabin.  It wasn’t really all that much to look at, but for whatever reason, the cabin really impressed you.  Except you couldn’t remember its name.  Afterwards, you kept asking, “What was that thing I hiked to called again?  A cabinet?"

Jedi cabin

 

We’re still in the process of moving to our “new” house, but we took some walks in the old neighborhood.  I will miss the dirt trails that led practically from our front door to to the mountains.  But I guess we won’t be too far away, and besides, there are other dirt trails in our new neighborhood.  That’s the thing about Fort Collins, I guess.

IMG 4968 Walking through the “old” neighborhood.  

 

We had April Fool’s Day, and you fooled your dad.  Although I suppose the old “there’s a moose in the back yard” joke isn’t quite as far fetched now that we are Coloradans.

Moose in the back yard

 

You tried some new things this month, such as roller skating (sort of).

 Attempting roller skating

 

But the biggest thing of all, the thing I was beginning to think would never happen, was that you learned to ride your bike!!

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I am so proud of you, William.  You are the bravest kid I know.  I had all but given up hoping that you would ever ride a bike.  We had been trying, unsuccessfully, for about 2 years to warm you up to the idea of a bicycle, but you wanted no part of it.  I should have known.  You do things on your own time.  You didn’t walk until you were almost 16 months old.  You’ve never done things when the books or the internet or the “experts" say you should.  It has never bothered you if the other kids your age are doing something and you still don’t want to.  You do it when you are ready.  And this month, you decided to ride your bike. 

 

William's first bike ride from Melissa Raguet-Schofield on Vimeo.

 

You finished out the month with your first ever trip to the doctor for an illness (you’ve only ever been for check ups before), which turned out to be your first ever ear infection, for which they prescribed you your first ever round of antibiotics.  I’m wary of antibiotics for things that might be viral rather than bacterial, especially if these things will resolve themselves so long as you rest and drink lots of fluids, but you’d been battling bravely for 4 days with no relief.  By the evening after you’d taken your first ever dose of amoxycillin, you were back to your usual happy self.  

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William, it has been quite a month.  I am so proud of you for all you are.

Love always,

Mama

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Dear William (68 months)

Dear William,

Today you are 68 months old!

In case you ever think I didn’t do enough for you, I’d like to remind you that this month, I crawled through the grocery store on my hands and knees to find the tiny light saber that fell out of Luke Skywalker’s hand while we were shopping.

I found it.

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Also, I helped you with your homework.

Homework

 

The school says you read “at grade level,” but in truth, you are smarter than them all. 

IMG 4909

 

You had spring break.  All the other parents were going stir crazy with their kids at home and couldn’t wait for school to start back up again.  I completely can’t relate to them, not even a little bit.  I love every single moment I get to spend with you.

IMG 4857

We hiked the Horsetooth Falls trail on a cloudy day.  We only made it halfway (if that even) because all I had brought for you to snack on was 3 granola bars, which you had devoured by that time.

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You did some “trail running” with Daddy at Bobcat Ridge.

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You liked it so much that you insisted we go back as a family the following weekend.

Family hike

 

We followed a trail that led to an historic cabin.  It wasn’t really all that much to look at, but for whatever reason, the cabin really impressed you.  Except you couldn’t remember its name.  Afterwards, you kept asking, “What was that thing I hiked to called again?  A cabinet?"

Jedi cabin

 

We’re still in the process of moving to our “new” house, but we took some walks in the old neighborhood.  I will miss the dirt trails that led practically from our front door to to the mountains.  But I guess we won’t be too far away, and besides, there are other dirt trails in our new neighborhood.  That’s the thing about Fort Collins, I guess.

IMG 4968 Walking through the “old” neighborhood.  

 

We had April Fool’s Day, and you fooled your dad.  Although I suppose the old “there’s a moose in the back yard” joke isn’t quite as far fetched now that we are Coloradans.

Moose in the back yard

 

You tried some new things this month, such as roller skating (sort of).

 Attempting roller skating

 

But the biggest thing of all, the thing I was beginning to think would never happen, was that you learned to ride your bike!!

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I am so proud of you, William.  You are the bravest kid I know.  I had all but given up hoping that you would ever ride a bike.  We had been trying, unsuccessfully, for about 2 years to warm you up to the idea of a bicycle, but you wanted no part of it.  I should have known.  You do things on your own time.  You didn’t walk until you were almost 16 months old.  You’ve never done things when the books or the internet or the “experts" say you should.  It has never bothered you if the other kids your age are doing something and you still don’t want to.  You do it when you are ready.  And this month, you decided to ride your bike. 

 

 

A video posted by @melissa.raguet onMar 31, 2015 at 6:06pm PDT

 

You finished out the month with your first ever trip to the doctor for an illness (you’ve only ever been for check ups before), which turned out to be your first ever ear infection, for which they prescribed you your first ever round of antibiotics.  I’m wary of antibiotics for things that might be viral rather than bacterial, especially if these things will resolve themselves so long as you rest and drink lots of fluids, but you’d been battling bravely for 4 days with no relief.  By the evening after you’d taken your first ever dose of amoxycillin, you were back to your usual happy self.  

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William, it has been quite a month.  I am so proud of you for all you are.

Love always,

Mama

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Wednesday, April 1, 2015

March 2015 Mileage: Exactly what I needed.

March.  Finally, a good month, running-wise.

The snow started to melt (although everyone tells me we will still get a few more snow storms).

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The muddy Pineridge Trails dried up enough so that they could be reopened, and I saw some deer again.

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One morning just as the sun was rising, I heard a rush of hooves behind me, and all of a sudden there were 9 deer that seemed to be all around me.  They leapt up onto the rocky ridge and kept running, although every so often they would stop to look back at me, as if to wait for me to catch up and make sure I was still there.  This went on for several minutes before we turned our separate ways.  One of the coolest things ever. 

Most of the various injuries that had been nagging me throughout January and February felt a little bit better.  I decided to attempt a preview of the Horsetooth Half Marathon course (which I am running in April), even though I wasn’t sure my dodgy knee could take all the hills.

IMG 4831Horsetooth half marathon map

OMG, I loved it.  Loved it.  I’ve run up Centennial Drive before, but never beyond the second dam.  The course was, as the website contends, spectacular.

The following weekend, the running club was doing a group run up Redstone Canyon Road, and Rob suggested that this might be something I would like.  He said it was a dirt road, mostly uphill, (those are the two things I love) and that was all I needed to hear.  I’d never done a run with this group before, and in general, I have a great fear of running with other people since we moved to Colorado because I am so slow that, no joke, octogenarians have passed me on the trail.  But Rob encouraged me to try this, so I did.

It was pretty chill hanging out and meeting the other runners before we got started, and then a world-famous ultra runner pulled up.  I thought, I am waaaaaay out of my league.  I didn’t expect to be able to stay with the group as we ran up the canyon, but I was okay with that because I knew we were just running straight up the road and straight back down, so there was no way to get lost.  

We took off, and to my surprise, the run felt comfortable and everybody stayed together.  I had no trouble keeping up.  The aforementioned world-famous ultra runner had done a 38 mile training run the day before, so this was a taking-it-easy day for him.  Everybody chatted the whole time, and it was great.  It’s been so long since I’ve had a group to run with that I’d forgotten how much I love it.  I never felt like I was pushing it too hard on the run, but looking at my splits afterwards, I ran a lot faster than I would have on my own.  

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After putting in another decent week of mileage, I wanted to run the Horsetooth Half course again.  No better way to prepare myself for those monstrous hills than practice them, right?  

I took a few pictures this time:

FullSizeRender Horsetooth in the distance, and the reservoir

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FullSizeRender After the 3rd dam on Centennial Drive, the course is mainly a descent to Bingham Road, and it is heart-achingly beautiful.

 

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I had gotten a late start to my run that day because Rob took the morning shift for a group trail run somewhere in the mountains.  When I left, I hadn’t realized how hot it was, or how cloudless.  I had thankfully thought to put sunscreen on my tattoo, but nowhere else, and I could tell that I was starting to burn.  I knew I would pay for it later, but at the moment it just felt so good to be running in the heat again after my first Colorado winter.

Maybe it was because I was so hot, or the fact that I had not eaten properly before the run, or my general state of exhaustion, but it was around this time that I had the overwhelming sensation I was running near the isthmus on Ometepe.  I looked over my shoulder expecting to see Volcan Conception, but instead I saw this:

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IMG 4922 Reposting this exquisite elevation profile. Love it.


March has shaped up to be a decent month, and I’ve finally started thinking about the future.  Very high on my radar is the Rocky Mountain Ultra, a 50K near Laramie on Memorial Day Weekend.  The website is kind of sketchy, but I know someone who’s run the event, so it’s real.  

It also occurred to me that I would like to run a marathon sometime this summer, as a training run for the Bear Chase 50M, which I hope to do again in September.  My top marathon choice would be Steamboat, but it is only 2 weeks after the Rocky Mountain Ultra, which isn't ideal.  Then I discovered the Bear Lake Endurance Challenge.  Three marathons, three days, three states (Idaho, Utah, Wyoming).  It falls at a good time for me (June 19-21) and doesn’t conflict with anything in Rob’s race schedule.  I thought maybe I could run the Idaho race (80% dirt road), and then we could continue on to the Tetons and Yellowstone for a little family camping trip.

But then I was thinking, what if I ran two of the races instead of just one.  What if I ran Utah the day after Idaho?  I’ve never done something like that before. The idea is becoming more and more intriguing.  I think the safe thing to do would be just run the one race in Idaho, but we’ll see.  I increased my mileage significantly in March and managed to keep the injuries at bay.  If I can continue to run like this in April and May, it might be possible.  At least, it’s something to consider.

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151.19 miles in March. 342.24 YTD.  I’m about 85 miles up from the awful place where I was at this time in 2014, and millions of light years away.

Thanks for reading.