May Running

[7rider]

Okay....I'll post this here, cuz it's too embarrassing to post in "race results".
I think I'll get more sympathy here.

This past Saturday, I did the Fort Richie Olympic Duathlon in Cascade Maryland. Cascade is a tiny town sitting on top of the Catoctin Mountains, not far from Camp David.

Here's the race report from my Tri Club's calendar - with some added commentary:
Racer: 7rider
Age Group: Female 45-49
Total Time: 3:19:24
Overall Place: 33 / 36 (pathetic, I know)
Age Group Place: 1 / 1 (but hey....I got a win!)
Comment: Taking the good with the bad, I guess

This was supposed to be a "training" race - preparation for Blackwater in June.

Just getting over an obscure running injury (peroneal fasciitis, probably spelled completely wrong), just started running again, and just started running on new custom orthotics.
Just.

So I head up bright and early, and low traffic volumes and the ICC meant I got there 20 minutes earlier than anticipated. Fortunately, Teammate Dave is another early bird and kept me company while we prepared transition and readied at a leisurely pace.

Run 1: 5k 31:37 (10:11 pace) About 20 paces after the gun on the first run, I turned and looked behind me. Already last. YES! Four of us ran more-or-less together for the bulk of that 5k - until 1 by 1, they dropped me. Fortunately, I wasn't the last into transition - and, ironically, I set a PR for that run, despite the hills. But my knee paid the price and it started talking to me before I hit the mat for the transition. Overall: 36 of 36. Yes, dead last. There was one sprinter behind me (they ran an olympic and a sprint race together), but i was The. Last. Olympic. Racer. Thanks.

Bike: 23.5 miles 1:29:15 (16.0 mph) Heading out of transition is a slow, spirit-sucking climb. It flattens out, only to take a sharp left and hit a short, steep riser. Ugh. Granny gear time. The guy in front of me dropped his chain there. But after that section is a screaming fast descent off the mountain to a nice, scenic rolling course through the valley below. Really, that valley portion suited me and I would have been happy to ride in that valley all day long. But, I had a race to get back to and there was more climbing back up the mountain to the Fort. Overall, I was pretty happy with the bike, although I was fairly conservative, anticipating that climb and trying to not aggravate my knee (although the horse had already left the barn on that one). Overall: 27 out of 36 - which meant that there were also a lot of fast cyclists in this race. Sheesh. Can't win for losing.

Run 2: 10k 1:16:29 (12:19 pace). Ugh. Pain. I was really doubting the wisdom of my decision to do an Oly this day when my weekly total for running for the past month had been 8 miles or less (and the month before that was zilch). I alternated walking with trotting with limping, going from shade to shade, trying to cut corners as tight as I could. I ran much of it alone. Two or three folks I passed on the bike ran by me. Typical. But...I held off 3 others and although my overall time for this run was 35 out of 36 (yes, only one other suffered worse than me on Run2), I managed to hold on for a whopping 33rd place out of 36.

So...I finished. But it hurt. A lot. Back to icing the knee pretty regularly now. I'm hoping it recovers more quickly than last time and that it likes flat runs (i.e., Blackwater) more than those blasted hills of Ft. Richie.

I really wish this Ft. Richie event - which is fun, challenging, friendly, and really low key - attracted more mortals to it. It seemed like everyone there other than me was a super-star.

It's lonely at the back of the pack.

And here I am wearing what we lovingly refer to as "the big blue meatball" looking like quite the big blue meatball.

[katluvr]

7-rider...really I don't think I would of done any better! I hate races that seem to to have more "elites" and "die-hards" than us regular folks. I think your times (and over all time) was pretty damn good!

I have been on beach vaca with sis and parents this past week. Lots of food and drinks. I took 3 running outfits with me and swore I would run 3 days (every other day) and guess what?....I did it. Only 3- 4 slow miles but I did run. Other days I did long walks. So I tried to stay active. Tomorrow (my last day off before work) is a scheduled 10 miles run...ugh, it's hot out!

K

[solobiker]

7Rider..I think you did great!! And from your pic I would not consider you a "big blue meatball".

Short 3 mile run for me. I guess I could call it a recovery run as I did a fairly long hike with a snow climb over the weekend so my legs are still pretty tired. Trying to get into better shape for longer alpine climbs Too bad the weekend is so far away until my next trip up to the mountains.

[solobiker]

This was part of the "climb" I did. Not too steep in this pic...but plenty of high steps and of course great views!!

[Blueberry]

This was part of the "climb" I did. Not too steep in this pic...but plenty of high steps and of course great views!!

Wow! Just wow! That's an amazing photo.

[OakLeaf]

Nice job 7rider, especially with the injury! Hope it settles back down quick. No way do you look like a meatball, you look great. You said it yourself, even for the elites, how you place is mostly about who shows up, so not to even worry about that part. You did great.


Solo, that's not the steep part? Beautiful.


I'm still trying to deal with this back and neck ... besides the neck issues that I've been having for weeks now, the injury apparently primed about four discs in my middle and lower back, so that the change in activity has got me going with paresthesias all up and down my right side. Sigh. At least there's no pain and not a lot of weakness, just the numbness, and it is getting gradually better with PT.

Still not a lot of running - getting stuff done in the garden, plus since my back has me spending all my computer time standing up, that takes some energy as well (which is a good thing, and one I plan to continue after my back heals). But I got out for about 4.5 yesterday. Got tired of waiting for the sun to come out and hit it in the clouds, and of course the sun started poking through as soon as I got home.

[7rider]

Wow! Just wow! That's an amazing photo.

What she said! Awesome photo. Cool hike!

And thanks, everyone, for the words of encouragement. I must be a little "off" to so enjoy such a hard race. But I know that one day I'll nail it, and then I will really feel like I've arrived.

[Crankin]

I feel like dropping out of the running club...

Went out to do 2.75-3 miles and even drove to the center of town, so it would be flat, as that seems to help me transition to longer runs. I just felt crappy. Not pain crappy, but just aching all over and dead. I tried to run through it by slowing, but after about 2 miles I stopped. I walked a bit and then run again for about 1/8 of a mile and that was it.

The only thing I can think of was yesterday I did a very hard boot camp class and my muscles are definitely tweaked from the lifting and sprints, etc. It's also humid out. These are just my excuses, but I think that after the 5K, I will forget about running until the cycling season runs down, like in November. The classes are actually more beneficial to me, in terms of health and weight management.
Or maybe I am just in a mood.