Redmond Watershed 12 Hour - 2012

I guess I could say I'm determined.  Or maybe stubborn.  Persistent?  Whatever we might call it, the fact is that when I set a goal for myself I have a really hard time letting go of it.  Once I decide I can do something, I intend to get it done.  All this is to say that I really wanted to rack up 40 miles yesterday at the Watershed and I did!  There were multiple points in the day where I reminded myself that I was going to quit when it wasn't fun anymore, but my next thought was always that as long as I was moving I might hit 40.  So I kept moving...

Just in case you don't remember my description from 2010, the Watershed has two loops: the big one is about 4.6 miles, the little one about .7 mile.  Combined they make a 5.3 mile loop that is the race course.  Everyone runs the combination until 5:00, at that point runners have to decide if they can make a complete combined loop before the 7:00 cutoff.  If a runner can't do it, then they begin running the little loop.  If one goes out on the big loop and doesn't make it back before the cut off then the miles don't count. 

I ran the first two loops on my own - the pack spread out quickly, and though I was always near someone, I was running solo. I was trying to run 4 minutes and walk 1 minute, and was holding that pacing pretty well.  I came in from loop two to find a new friend awaiting - Paige.  We had met at a race earlier in the year and have many mutual friends.  She offered to come out and run a few laps with me and I accepted.  It was great! 

Remember, I was not really trained for this race.  I ran a marathon in March, and though I maintain 25 miles a week, my longest run since then had been 10 miles.  And I didn't train for the marathon either.  With school I just don't have the time for long runs, though if I plan carefully, I can take a day out every now and then for some fun.  In order to do this particular race, I had to complete a big assignment first: reading, analyzing, and charting 20 scholarly articles.  That may not sound like much, but it was incredibly time consuming and difficult.  The chart was due today, so I had to have it done by Friday in order to run. I had it done by Tuesday - I really wanted to run this race! 

                                 Photo by Glenn Tachiyama

Paige and I

Anyway, I warned Paige I would not be fast and might bail out early.  Paige and I held my pace for one more lap.  By then I was toast.  Though we tried to hold a 1/1 pace, we pretty much walked the next two laps.  Somewhere in there I lost a lap - I thought I was at 20 miles but Paige corrected me - I was past the marathon and only needed one more lap to hit 50K.  I was thrilled! I knew Paige was heading home, but I thought I could easily walk one more lap.  By the way - Paige spoiled me rotten, filling my bottle at the aid station, grabbing me food, and checking my miles.  And we talked nonstop for 15 miles - it was great! I couldn't have made it through those middle miles without her support.  All this for someone she had met once.  Amazing - many, many thanks, Paige!

                               Photo by Glenn Tachiyama

I told Glenn that I didn't have any run left in me. He assured me I did.  This was my 50K loop.

                            

As I headed out for my sixth lap I thought maybe I could do a 30/30 (seconds).  It worked pretty well.  I came in from that lap - at 50K - and wanted to be done. I sat down with some soup and coke and really thought about quitting.  50K was respectable.  It was only 4:15, but I could just wait for Eric.  I told one of our friends who was volunteering that I really wanted Eric to come in, then he could tell me he was done and I could say "me too".  Sadly, that didn't happen.  I walked over to the timers to check my mileage (because at that point I couldn't do the math.  I knew it was a tad over 50K, but not how much).  I asked what my time was on the last loop - trying to figure out if I could do one more.  When they told me it was 1:36 and faster than my previous one, I was surprised.  Then Van Phan (ultra runner extraordinaire) told me to get back out there.  When Van tells me to do something, I do it.  So back out I went. 

And you know what? I felt great! My aches, pains, and fatigue fell away.  I kept to the 30/30 and felt like I was flying (it's all relative, right?).  I was alone on the trail for most of the loop (many runners had stopped and the rest of us were really spread out).  I decided to relax into the trail, to not think at all, to just be.  I told myself that my pace was eating up the miles. It worked - I was heading into the small loop before I knew it.  By that time we were into the small-loop phase and it was perfect.  Suddenly, the trail was filled with runners doing the small loop, including, best of all, Eric.  He wasn't feeling too hot and said it was his last loop.  We hit the aid station at the same time and he decided to go out for one more with me.  Once again, I had lost track of my miles, so the next time in I asked.  They told me I had three small loops and 35 minutes to hit 40 miles.  I shucked off my vest, threw down my water bottle and took off.  I had a blast! I pushed it and finished with minutes to spare (I thought I had four minutes but the official time says I had seven minutes left).  I cannot tell you how excited I was to get to 40 miles. 

                              Photo by Glenn Tachiyama

Feeling good!

 Even more exciting - I got second in my age group!  Eric got first in his age group with 57 miles.  He was bummed because he had hoped for way more, but he had an off day, feeling out of it and sick.  I think he did pretty good. 

All in all, it was a great day - sunshine, beautiful trails in deep forest, a new friend, many old friends, great volunteers, awesome race directors, and a whole lotta miles under my belt.  Best kind of day off I could ask for...

What's Going On?

Here I am again - a quick dip into the blogging world and then back to the books.

School: I am halfway through the last quarter!  My doctoral advisor has been assigned and we've had a great conversation.  I'll get rolling on my dissertation once this class is done.  First though, I have to get through the approval process - which I have not yet started.  Soon enough...

Family: Web is sailing up the Oregon coast, crewing on the Lady Washington.  The Lady is a tall ship and was used in The Pirates of the Caribbean as the British warship HMS Interceptor.  Web has been on the ship for a month or so, starting in San Francisco and will be in Washington in a few weeks.  Eric and I will be going out on a battle cruise with him in June.  Riley and Em will be here a week or so after Web gets here.  Riley has orders for the Naval Air Station on Whidbey Island - about an hour away.  There is a ferry from Mukilteo - about three miles from our home - to Whidbey, but with the wait and the drive across the island, it works out to about the same amount of time it would take to drive around to the other end of the island and take the bridge.  So, in the very near future, both our boys will be around and about!  That's exciting stuff for this Mom.

Running: Saturday I'm running in the Redmond Watershed 12 Hour.  Yes, I know it's nuts and I know I haven't trained for it, but.... well, you know.  Last time I ran it I got in 40 miles.  Probably won't happen this time.  I'm figuring to go run till it's not fun anymore, hopefully at least a 50K distance, but we'll see.  I'll be sure to get a quick report out next week.  Eric is up to his usual - just ran a 50 mile at Capital Peak (his 5th year in a row) and is planning to run at least a 100K at the 12 hour.  He's also signed up for the 50 mile at Tahoe Rim.  I take full responsibility for the fact that he's not doing the 100.  I thought it would be nice if we had a vacation where he wasn't worn out from running a 100 miles, so I asked him to do the 50 instead.  Mean, mean wife.  We've been volunteering at a few races lately too - the Chuckanut 50K (where Eric dressed as a leprechaun) and recently a local five mile trail race.  Next up is a shift at a new and local 100-150-or-200 mile race. It's at Lake Youngs where I ran my first 50K.  Should be fun!

That's it for now... I'll try to drop back in next week.

Heading Back In

My last class of the doctoral program starts on Monday. Though long anticipated, I'm feeling kind of shocked that it's actually arrived. I started this journey in September of 2010 - not all that long ago. I've taken two classes each quarter and while deep in the depths of study - papers and textbooks and articles and group projects and discussion boards piled high - I thought time had never moved so slow. Now, looking back, it seems like it passed in a blur.

It has been quite a journey, challenging, stressful, thoughtful, and amazing. There were days I didn't think I'd make it through, and even though I've come this far, I find myself with the same scared and fluttery feeling at the start of the new quarter that I've had each time. I'm giving myself little pep talks every day, reminding myself of my success thus far, telling myself that I will do just fine. Then I think about what is to follow - the big D - and I try not to think anymore. Only problem is, this is the last class of the research series, and all the research classes are about the big D. I have to think about it! There's no more hiding my head in the sand, I will be writing a doctoral project proposal, I will be submitting it and anxiously awaiting approval, I will be conducting a study, and I will be writing a dissertation. And then, I will be in Boston defending it.

It's been easy to ignore those facts, but not any longer. The time has arrived. I'm starting to think the classes have been the easy part. Hard, because someone else is setting the parameters and the deadlines, but easy, because it's all laid out in nice and tidy rubrics - all I have to do is meet the expectations. But after this class, it's up to me. My parameters, my time line, my responsibility. Many people fade out at this stage of the game - I don't want to do that. I want to finish what I started (does that sound familiar to any one who's run with me?)

So, here I go, heading back in. I've had a few days off to regroup and reflect, now it's back to the books. I'm hoping to come up for air on the weekends, maybe have some time to spend with friends and family, run a race or two, go on a couple trips...it's only one class, right? And then, I can set my own schedule, right? As long as I'm done in a year, it's all good!