Runs in the rain
Led, I found this about how the horned toad is considered lucky:
little-grandfather-brings-good-luck
Long distance runner, what you standin' there for?Get up, get out, get out of the door!
not bad for mile 25
Led - I vaguely remember freezing days like that when I lived in Illinois.
Admit it - you miss them!
Led, I found this about how the horned toad is considered lucky: little-grandfather-brings-good-luck
Wow, there's a lot more to the horned toad beliefs than I realized! Thanks for finding it! And don't steal a horned toad's corn!
Hey everyone Returned mid-afternoon from Oracle Rumble trail race.
RR: Oracle Rumble HM - Oracle AZ - AZT Endurance races - Jan 28, 2023
Friday: I ate two boiled eggs and a banana, took macha green tea for the drive down. DH drove me to Safeway to meet up with M. She offered her SUV to carpool 4 of us. The fifth one is already in Tucson (where she is from originally) helping her mom move to a smaller place. Isn't it always the norm that we forget to pack something for a trip?!? I had my food ready in the fridge but spaced it out. What the heck?!?
Anyway, glad I could at least get some items at Safeway. M and I picked up SM and SY. Tons of snow in their area of town too, and cold.
We are all looking forward to some 'warmer' temps and running on dry terrain.
We stopped in north PHX for lunch at 'Salad and Go' ....... it's now my fave when I go to PHX. It was SY's suggestion, she is type 1 diabetic and is very aware of what her body needs for fuei, has a monitor on her for daily checks.
We arrived in Oracle and checked into the casita. 5 single beds, one bathroom, no TV or phone. There are other casitas for singles/couples. The place is not new but the simple updates makes it charming. Its a dirt road from the main highway. We took a quick drive to the race location, the Oracle State Park (OSP) which is about 2.5 miles from the casita. YAY!! We unloaded our stuff and headed to Oro Valley to pick up our race packet at the Summit Hut (sports store, very similar to REI). Included bib, and a very nice soft cotton race shirt and 20% discount on any item in the store. I think each of us bought something and the discount came in handy. I bought more Tailwind. The fifth person, C, joined us there. We bought some food and snacks at Sprouts, two doors down. Then we headed to a Tacos and Beer eatery. Small place but very tasty. I had a fish taco and a chicken taco. No alcohol. We returned to the casita and just chilled with some hilarious stories from each of us ........well, mainly from SM. She travels the world with her DH and are serious cyclists. She just retired so they are already planning more world adventures.
https://runazt.org/oracle-rumble/oracle-rumble-race-info/
Saturday: I'm the only one running the HM which starts at 8 am. The rest are running the 12K (7.4 miles) and starts at 8:30 am. There is also a 50 miler and a 50k. I would have liked to run the 50k but I know I'm not ready for it now. I actually decided to mimick what I ate (pre-race) and wore at my Colossal Vail race last month. My niece and her roommate live/work in Tucson and are my cheering squad for the day. They picked me up at 7 am, and we parked at OSP. It's nice and chilly at the start, about 38 degrees, with the predicted high around 60 degrees.
The rest of the group met me at the race start. And off I go. There are 95 HM runners, about 20 didn't show up.
This is the course map:
https://runazt.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/OracleRumbleHalfMarathon_Map.pdf
The elevation map:
https://runazt.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/OracleRumbleHalfMarathon_Profile.pdf
The course is mostly on the AZT and mostly runnable, not very technical. The 12k joins the HM after mile 10. The first couple of miles included some scrambling over boulders and some fast hiking uphill that already included passing quite a few runners. It's a gorgeous day and incredible views once you're on top of a mountain/hill. Slight cool breeze and hazy sky. Perfect! I kept up a steady pace while keeping eye on runners ahead of me, catching one or two on the ascents. That was motivating for me to keep moving.
First aid station, just pass 5 miles, I took off my light windbreaker and filled my water bottle (which was empty from the start, on purpose), The other bottle was full of Tailwind. I trained my body to not drink till mile 6 so I was good. I had a small pebble irritating my right toe, just underneath it; took shoe, sock and insole off, shook them but it was stubborn.
The aid stations for HM and 12k only had gels and water. My body doesn't like gels. The 50m/50k had the buffet, LOL!! I was hoping for at least some pickles or chips. I forgot to pack those from home but I had some sport beans. The rolling hills is deceiving in that you don't realize you are descending to distance 7.5 mile. Then a LONG switchback UPHILL, WOW!! The view at the top was amazing!! I was glad I included inclines on my training runs. whew!! Then rolling hill after another rolling hill after another.
Around mile 10 is the second AS, I didn't stop. We share the last 3 miles with the 12k runners. This section is through a dry wash for almost a mile ......holy cow! It's very sandy but I kept going, very slowly, and passed 4 runners who were walking through the sand. But I've run through worse. Finally reached mile 11. It turned into a single track up a small hill ....... OMG...... I had a painful cramp on left inner thigh, really?!? It took me a couple of minutes to massage it out. If I tried to walk, it would start to come on again so I guess it was good that it forced me to keep running, haha!
Two runners passed me, darn it!! ok, just two miles left ........I kept up with them to the end but just couldn't pass them at the final short uphill near the finish. They knew how close I was to them, LOL!!
My niece saw me and took some pics of my finish. SY and SM and C finished their 12k but M was still on the course. She's returning to running after a partial knee surgery and other health issues. As we all waited for her, I ate a veggie burrito and down a regular coke and chips. I met 3 other runners from last month's race. They finished after I did.
Overall, I was very happy about this race because my goal was to finished under 3 hours. I was hoping to finish between 2:30-2:45 but I'm satisfied with my time. No tummy issues, yay!! Except for the 'almost' full blown cramping, my effort and finish is getting better after each race. Trying to get that darn pebble and cramping cost me a few minutes but it happens. I have a huge blister under my right toe. I'm feeling great, no soreness. Just hungry, LOL!!
Time: 2:50
OV: 55/95; Female: 22/47; AG 2/7
NEXT: The LIttle Colorado River HM trail race. February 11; Cameron, AZ. In less than two weeks!!
http://navajoyes.org/events/little-colorado-river-gorge-half-marathon/
Az - You did well in the race, despite the cramping. I'll comment in more detail and also on the other recents posts later on, feeling tired right now.
Yesterday was a rest day from running. I spent the whole day indoors, rare for me not to get outside for a least a walk! My right ankle was quite sore, guess I overdid it with the long runs and hills last week! I did work on finally taking down the Christmas tree and storing the tree and decorations in my attic. Now that I had more room I then cleaned and rearranged the porch area. I have more stuff to put away, I want to make space so I can set up the treadmill and perhaps clear off a desk area where I could do artwork. Ankle was starting to feel a bit better by the end of the day.
I got out after 2 pm today for a run. I decided to avoid the longer distances and big hills so I wouldn't strain my ankle. The ankle was slightly sore as I started running and I was prepared to cut the run short if need be, but the pain seemed to diminish after the first mile. It was 28 degrees and lightly snowing at first, but snowfall increased to moderate by the last miles of my run. It is now, at 7 pm, coming down in big, fluffy flakes. Anyway, I did 6.85 miles, a decent but easy enough distance. I will see how the ankle feels tomorrow. I would like to start doing some slow miles on the treadmill to supplement my outdoor runs and I think that doing some of my miles on the treadmill will be less stressful on my joints. A bit of everything in this photo; snow and lines of stubble in a field, colors of the group of trees, bushes and grasses to the right, a line of bare trees in the midground, a barn just beyond that and the faded hill in the back.
Cell tower and another red barn.
AZ - Congrats on the great race! Parts of it sound pretty challenging, to me at least. Your result was great, and I'm sure you had a good time with your compadres.
Altair - 6.85 miles is a really good distance considering you weren't sure you'd be doing any run.
Led - 3 degrees is very cold, even for a 1.6 mile run, but if you had done 4 miles you could be in the More Miles Than Degrees Club for this year! I may get my chance Friday as the temperature is to drop below zero. My running with a injury called for good judgement, some exercise might help healing, but trying to push through pain can result in further damage that could take you out of running for months. Glad I was able to finish the nearly 7 miles without difficulty.
Art - You're keeping busy with the walks, garage, yard and garden work! Nice the extra distance you walked on the canal path!
AZ - Great you were able to carpool and spend time with your friends! Looking at the elevation chart of the course I would have preferred the start to be at the low point at mile seven. Then like the first 6 1/4 miles would be a climb to the high point and the rest would basically be an easy down slope, although a decent can be difficult also if it is steep. I realize that there were many small hills that you had to transverse, perhaps they caused your cramping. Running in sand takes effort, bet you wished a little rain had firmed it up a bit. I often get a piece of gravel in my shoes, need an invention to keep the stones out! Good job with exceeding the under 3 hour goal and the 2nd in AG!
It was22 degrees and partly cloudy at 1 pm when I went for a run. I wanted to go just a bit over 7 miles and chose a nearly flat road to run on. It felt warm when the sun was out and I did 7.2 miles. This gives me 156 miles for January. On Runningahead my all time milage just passed nine thousand! My lifetime distance would be even greater since RA only has runs recorded since 2011 and it was 1993 when I ran my first race.The wispy cloud layer was below the more puffy clouds
Horses grazing through the snow cover