Notes
race was Saturday, it's now Wednesday AM, and i am completely 100% bummed to be back in florida - Leadville (and CO in general) could not have been more beautiful
Thursday AM flight from OIA was perfect, rental car pickup was a nightmare that took over an hour and i still need to get back the extra $450+ from thrifty, those fuckers; but omg, the 2+ hr drive from Denver to Leadville... bluest skies, brightest white clouds, looming mountains, hairpin turns (lots of drivers as dipshitty as in orlando, surprisingly)
hotel looked super ratty from the outside, but was very clean inside and staff was super nice, and it was nice to have a fridge and microwave - also fantastic that it was probably not even a 1/4 mile from the race start
Kelly and Dale picked me up and we had dinner at High Mountain Pies, probably the best pizza ever, got to eat outside in zero humidity in the midst of all sorts of wildflowers and listen to a local band play
didn't get much sleep Thurs PM, had a couple of mini cinnamon rolls and coffee at the hotel Friday AM before picking up Kelly to go to Independence Pass, per Brian's instructions... another GORGEOUS drive and it was incredibly beautiful up there; we did a short walk and stopped in Twin Lakes on the drive back down to pick up some souvenirs; went back to their RV, took Molly for a short walk, and then Dale drove us into Leadville for a late lunch at Tennessee Pass, which was delicious - grilled cheese on texas toast with tomato soup, we walked around downtown a little bit, then went back to their place so i could get my car and head over for packet pickup - after that, i chilled in my room, reading and munching - probably not the best/most nutritious stuff, but tasty all the same - pb sandwich, pringles, goldfish, mini powdered sugar doughnuts, M&Ms, too excited to sleep much
woke up at 330 on Saturday AM, had 2 pcs PB bread, unfortunately no coffee, as the hotel BF isn't set up til 630 - drank a maurten 320, had planned to eat a packet of sport beans for the caffeine before the start but totally forgot, also forgot to bring my gloves to the start but that turned out fine, as it was 46, not the 39 predicted the night before
met Brian a few minutes before the start! he and Kelly & Dale have lots of mutual friends, so they all had lots to talk about
had been totally freaked out about the ski hill start when i saw it the day before, but it wasn't all that bad, just scrambled up it as safely as possible; the start and first 6ish miles were super crowded but the footing was good and it went by fairly quickly, took off my jacket at the first aid station (~7.8?)
would be nice to be one of those people who are able to document mile by mile what they were feeling, but i'm not; i know i was feeling lucky and happy and fit for the first 32 miles and then the downhills on the rocky footing started bashing my toes and tripping me up to the point where i was scared i might actually faceplant (and nearly did on one slippery long stretch with running water); so it was a mix of mostly walking to avoid the boulders and roots with some jogging where possible, which was totally demoralizing, because people I'd passed easily on the uphills were now passing me, moving like mountain goats without a care in the world - one guy with dreadlocks actually SKIPPED past me as i was trying to stay upright amongst a bunch of loose rocks, jhc
will never be able to repay Kelly and Dale for how awesome it was to see them at several points along the course - they gave me hugs and encouragement; it was just so great to be at a race and have support; i am always alone
my goal had been to finish within the 14 hour cutoff and i beat that by almost 3 hours but definitely feel like a dumbass loser for letting my feet and brain keep me from moving faster
the altitude didn't seem to be a factor, amazingly, and the climbing really didn't feel difficult either - it was the flipping DOWNHILLS that crushed me; maybe also the fact that i stopped eating at 32 miles - and had only a handful of newtons, 2 gels, and 3 packets of sport beans up to that point ... i'd packed my caffeine chews but couldn't find them in my vest til AFTER the race - wtf? :( i did keep up with hydration the whole time tho, the orange LMNT tasted so good
up til now, had never finished a race sore, but definitely had I(mmediate)OMS at this one
had been v hopeful that i'd get a coin for next year's 100 in the post-race lottery but did not (did get an email on Sunday that I got into Ancient Oaks 100 in december tho, so that's something to look forward to!)
despite taking 3 PMs on sat night, still couldn't fall asleep (every movement hurt) and slept like crap and was up at 4 on Sunday AM
went to the Golden Burro for breakfast with Kelly and Dale - vegan biscuits and gravy w/ hashbrowns, yum! then Kelly and I took Molly for a walk at Turquoise Lake (beautiful), had frozen waffles for lunch in their RV, chatted about next year (burro race???) and mental training, and then it was time to leave for the airport. traffic was horrendous, it took over 3 hrs so i was glad i left early, until i got to the airport and they announced our flight was delayed by 54 minutes :( so we didn't leave til almost midnight, flight was fine, tho i got no sleep, which would've been nice
landing in orlando and driving home on 436 was like a kick in the face - jhc, it is SO ugly here, i miss the openness, the clouds, the mountains, the blue, the zero humidity of CO
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Y9WWfpP91jtn3B2g6 (mix of my pics, plus stuff from Kelly, Dale, and Brian, plus pro finish line shots that were super cheap to buy)
to work on:
eating more
not getting discouraged at having to go slow for a bit for whatever reason
running downhill
running over roots and rocks