Green!

So busy lately I haven’t had much time to run.  I squeeze in trips to the gym here and there – but the trails are just a memory.  I wish that I could blog about my last run, which was last Saturday, but I don’t recall much (though my garmin says it was 11.13 miles).  I do vividly recall one thing.  There was so much green.  Finally, green is here! (I hope it’s still green by the time I finally hit the trails again )

Calico Trail Run 2015

I will  cut to the finish right away and end the suspense.  I completed my 7th consecutive Calico 30k trail race last Sunday.  I did worry about this one, that I might get pulled due to time requirements.  I tried not to think about that, but the fear lingered in the back of my mind.  At the rate I’d been going and due to the difficulty of this course, I figured I would be lucky if I “ran” this one in less than 6 hours.  I didn’t want to worry about this though – I’m not that kind of runner.  I have always been in it for the adventure. 

We arrived in Calico Ghost town the afternoon prior to the race.  By “we” I mean, my three sons, my husband, our nephew and middle son’s friend.  After taking in some sights – visited the old school house, rode the train, ate dinner – we headed back to the bunkhouse.  I was early to bed, and woke often, at least once an hour, maybe more.  I woke for good at 5:45 AM.

As I walked through the desert into Calico Ghost Town, I didn’t much feel like running.  Knowing that this course runs long, I was looking at close to 20 miles through the desert.  I’m talking uphill in sand, boulder hopping through canyons, kind of trails.  Tough stuff.  For a second, a milli-second, I considered walking back to the bunkhouse and skipping the race.  But then I faced the facts.  I would never be able to handle watching the runners come through the finish as we took in the town’s sights.  The self-bashing would be immense.  

At a complete disadvantage physical fitness-wise, I needed to come up with a plan – something to get me to the start line and through the next twentyish miles.  Pacing plans were out of the question – my pace was too slow for a “plan.” 

This is what I came up with:  BE PRESENT.  I had to be there on the trails, not inside my head, not ahead of myself, or looking back.  It was essential that I focus on my step – my current step.  I had to be there.  And there I was – in the present, running down an asphalt road out of Calico.  I saw Steve Harvey, and a few other friends, including followers of this blog that I was so fortunate to meet for the first time.  It was a lovely beginning with a nice pace to start (can’t beat a downhill asphalt start ).

I stayed so focused in the present trekking through that soft sand, that I didn’t turn on the music until mile 8.  MILE EIGHT.  I didn’t even notice the music’s absence.  Instead, I looked for hard spots in the sand, which were mainly off trail.  Believe me, if they were easily accessible, I was off trail to run the hard stuff often (And I was not the only runner doing this).  I chatted some with other runners, and I focused on covering 4 miles in the first hour.  I did that, plus some, coming in at 4.5 miles after the first hour. 

I ran into the first aid station thirty minutes shy of the cutoff.  Stopping briefly, I headed out with a pocket-full of Jelly-Bellies and a handful of Party Mix (Pretzels, Cheeze-Its, etc).  I hit mile 8 within two hours.  That’s when the trail grew more and more technical with slants, uphills, fist-sized rocks and boulders.   

I made the half-way point at 2:15.  A negative split was pretty much out of the question (as was an even split) with the trail gaining in difficulty.   So, I knew that a sub-five wasn’t going to happen.  That was a-okay – remember I was worried about a six hour finish. 

I lost my four-mile an hour goal at about mile 12.  This did not concern me.  I could actually see other runners, as opposed to being so far behind that I was out there in the desert by my lonesome.  Being out there by my lonesome wouldn’t have been that bad though.  I have run this course enough times that I know it by heart, and the trail’s rugged beauty is breathtaking.  Unfortunately though, the trail grew so difficult that I had to focus so hard on my step that I could not look up often and enjoy the beauty.  But I did catch glimpses. 

I love this spot – it comes right after a particularly technical portion, followed by a good climb.  At this point, the colorful views greet you just before a nice mile-long downhill: 

As I summited the last big hill of the race (there would be a couple little hills to come), I met up with and passed two runners I had been trailing the entire race.  They asked when the next aid was, and I gladly gave out that information as well as a whole lot more, especially about the two miles of extremely difficult trail that we would encounter soon.  (Though I passed these young ladies, they passed me after the last aid station, which I was glad to see – I know, weird – weird as in, who is happy about someone passing them?  I was happy for their success.  Funny.  One of these young ladies told me that they chose this race to train for the L.A. Marathon.  I thought to myself, having not ever run the LA Marathon, that the Calico Trail Run will make the LA race seem easy – he,he).

Onward into that last aid station, I still held firm in my attempt at four miles an hour, though I had lost it recently.  When I hiked, I hiked determined and quickly, moving at a 15 mile pace.  I told myself, “If you can’t hike a 15 minute mile, then run!”  Glancing at my Garmin more often than usual, I sped up when needed, but never told myself to slow down.  Fatigue was setting in.

I never felt stressed, panicked or scared during this race.  Yes, I grew irritated at times, and frustrated when some runners passed.  And yes, I was extremely tired.  Cramps were right at the edge – I kept them at bay by sipping my electrolyte water (3 Nuun tablets to my 70 oz).  And though I was not a particularly quick trotter, landmarks continued to come in much sooner than I expected.  If you run trails, or if you run at all, you know the sheer delight of coming upon a landmark all of a sudden when you didn’t expect it.  It’s a lovely thing!

Those last 4 miles of the Calico 30k are the toughest of the entire race.  The rocky trail slants one way, then the other.  You must zig-zag through the terrain, else eat dirt (or rather, rock).  At times, I braced myself against the canyon walls, but I never needed to stoop down and butt-scoot down a boulder.  I noticed a runner scoot down a boulder ahead early on, which was the sign that I needed to tell me that I could pass her.  Difficult terrain is my strength among the back-of-the-packers.  I passed her easily and ended up passing three runners total during this difficult canyon.  I was thrilled.  But the pressure was on to keep moving quickly.  Last thing I wanted is for runners that I passed at the end of the race, to over-take me toward the finish. 

This pink canyon was the final landmark I waited for – it meant the technical aspect was over – that I was entering the final stretch:

With about two miles remaining, I worked hard at leaving behind the three runners that I had recently passed.  And I passed another runner as I made my way back into Calico.  It was a difficult, final stretch, with a killer (though very quick) climb.  By the time I made it to the Calico parking lot, I felt that I could not run another step.  Two of my sons and my nephew met me at the base of the utility road back into town.  They marched up it with me, and kept a lookout for the “orange guy” (the last guy I passed).  I didn’t need him passing me so close to the end. 

My oldest son ran me through town to the finish line.  He urged me to sprint.  All I had in me was a trot.  I crossed the finish line at 5:15, with 12 runners (out of about 45) coming in behind me.  When I finished, I was spent.  I had no more gas in the tank.  But what did I need gas for?  The race was over, and hubby was going to drive us all home.

New Shoes, New Camera, New Bladder

I don’t try on my running shoes before I buy them, because local stores don’t stock my size (US women’s size twelve!).  I’m used to this.  Stores haven’t carried my shoe size since I was in high school (hence my first reason to love the internet – shoes!).  Sadly, in my youth, I continuously shoved my foot into shoes that were too small.  I wonder if this has anything to do with my continuous feet problems (that I am in continual denial over). 

Now, I purchase the same type of running shoe pretty much every time I get shoes online.  I always buy New Balance running shoes, always a neutral shoe with an 8mm (or less) heal-to-toe drop (that is my heal rests 8mm higher than my toe).   This formula (NB, neutral, 8mm) works pretty well.  So, I was surprised with this last purchase (New Balance Gore-Tex trail running shoe) when I experienced so much shin and calve pain on my last run which entailed 6 miles along Quail Hill Loop. 

Determined to get to the bottom of this, I decided on one last run before Calico.  First things first, because I have much to do in preparation for this family trip, I filled my truck with gas this morning and headed off to purchase a new camera.  Yes, I broke another camera.  Imagine that.  I set my heart on the Canon Elph.  I’m a nostalgic lady (reason for running Calico #7 even though it will kick my butt).  The Elph was the first camera that I ever smashed down onto the rocks, way back when, during my first Calico trail race in 2009.  Alas, Walmart didn’t have an Elph in stock.  So, I settled for a Nikon.  Then as I drove off to purchase a new replacement bladder for my hydration pack, I noticed that my newly purchased Nikon had only an internal memory and no slot for an SD card.  No, no, no!  I could not deal with that. 

To my dismay, the running store didn’t sell bladders.  I drove back to Walmart, stood in a long-ass line to return the camera I had just purchased.  Then I went back to Electronics and bought another camera (a Samsung).  Finally, at 11:30 AM, I was able to hit the trails in Wood Canyon to try out my new shoes once more.

My calves and shins felt fine.  Really fine.  I felt sluggish, but that’s pretty much because I am out of shape.  The shoes were also a little stiff (because they are waterproof – doh!  I didn’t realize that I had bought waterproof shoes).  Best of all though, these shoes have tremendous grip on the terrain.  To really test out the grip, I took them for a spin on Rock It trail.  If I were to slip, Rock It would be the place. 

Good news.  No slippage. 

After my 6+ mile run, I headed off to pick up my boys from school, ran off to the Laundromat (our washer AND dryer are broken).  While the clothes dried, I walked across the street to Big 5 and bought a new 70 ounce bladder just in time for Calico.  

Quail Hill Loop

Wednesday, I had some time after work to stop by Shady Canyon and run what is known as the Quail Hill Loop.  The nearly two mile loop is incredibly green this time of year.  With views of Saddleback Mountain, cool weather and new shoes, it all looked good for a nice run.  Problem was: my shins and calves were so tight they hurt.  The first two miles of my loop I needed to stop again and again to vigorously stretch.  Finally, about mile two, my calves and shins eased up (a tad!).  I can’t tell you that I didn’t worry that I bought the wrong pair of shoes. (yikes!!)  By mile six (the last mile), I felt okay.  Just okay.

A Little Help

Much of my life I have been the type of person who does not want help from anyone. In fact, I’ve been known to act quiet childish regarding it, by downright refusing help. This is not a good thing. One thing that trails has taught me, again and again, is that it’s good to take help from your friends. Monday, very early in the morning, I met my friend Kelly at the mouth of Trabuco Canyon. She hopped in my truck and we drove in to Holy Jim Canyon. Let me tell you – I felt like running like running to the top of the mountain like I felt like taking a swim across the ocean. I even more so didn’t feel like taking this run when I took those first steps and it felt like my legs weighed fifty pounds a piece. I could barely lift them!

Our Goal (as witness from about 3 miles up Holy Jim):

Left to my own devices on Monday, I would have turned around at the top of Holy Jim for a 10 mile out-and-back.  Yes, the mountains were green and beautiful and tranquil – but that wasn’t enough.  Every step was excruciating.  The Trek up The Main Divide adds three more uphill miles before reaching the peak, and it’s the pits.  But it isn’t so bad when you have a friend encouraging you, helping you to move on. 

I could not have been happier when we reached the peak.  It was far from my best time.  But heck, I made it, and that was a major feat in itself.  We trotted off to the ledge, took in the views, snapped some pictures and ate a snack.  We also chatted with a group of young cross country runners from Saddleback College who came up after us.  After that, it was all downhill – downhill for 8 miles!  All with a little help from a friend. 

Personal Running News

Next weekend, I run my first race of 2015 – as usual, I am undertrained.  But I am okay with that (of course) because I am the type of runner that finds triumph in merely finishing.  In about a week, I attempt my 8th Calico finish.  Secondly, I am registered for Nanny Goat 24 which takes place this spring, for which I aiming at not going into undertrained.  And thirdly, I have taken on volunteer coordinating for another Old Goat race.  The race is Old Goat 50, the same race that I was pulled at mile 41.  I believe that I have finally gotten over it, and am looking forward to working with Steve Harvey again.  He is so easy to work with.  He’s kind of a celebrity in the local ultra-running community, and I feel honored to be part of another Harvey race. 

Back to now, I have a much needed new pair of trail shoes en-route to my front porch as we speak.  So excited! Also now – that is lately, I am needing to run wherever I can which means more road running. This is a benefit in the long run because it will increase my speed.  To end this week’s training, I headed out the door for a 6.70 mile run down to the wharf, across to the harbor island which I ran in its entirety.  Crowds were out in abundance, runners, picnickers, walkers, sun-bathers, you name it – today was a day to get out under the sun!  After the island, I ran on through the marina, past the historical replica of The Pilgrim (Richard Henry Dana’s ship), and over to the marine institute where I snapped a picture of the Pacific Ocean, turned around and headed back home.