"Race report"
Wow. It’s been about 6 weeks of the “new normal,” and I can’t believe it has been that long. I guess time flies when you’re having fun, or in the midst of a global pandemic. I have been entertaining myself as much as possible and staying active, while close to home. Most notably this week that included a one-two punch with a “race” up a local mountain gravel road, followed by the 5/4/24 challenge by Yeti Runners (5 miles, every 4 hours for 24 hours). Given that I was supposed to be racing IM Texas this weekend, why not make the legs feel like they had endured an ironman?
I really enjoyed the solo effort, just me against the mountain on Jarman’s Gap (2.8 miles up with 1,500 ft of elevation gain). A local “favorite”, this hallowed training ground will make you tough. With the renewed focus on some local running, we have now improved the number of women in the sub-30 minute club from one to three - that tripling is pretty impressive BUT I can count several others who could join us and keep chipping away to get that time faster and faster! It was also fun to have a “race” that made me nervous on the calendar. I went through the motions of a pre-race evening and morning - complete with restless nerves while sleeping and dealing with a weather delay at the start! But honestly, since it could be a while before we are out on the official race courses again, I really think having the opportunity to make myself deal with that nervousness is great. Remembering how to race, and race hard, is not something I want to sacrifice to COVID19!
Now onto the Yeti Challenge. Since my legs were pretty tired after the Jarman’s escapade and a hike on Friday, I was’t going into the Yeti with the goal of being able to hold super fast times. Instead, I wanted to capitalize on 6 runs around my neighborhood….meaning 6 opportunities to capture some of the Strava segments out my doorstep, ha! Yes, I was shamelessly strava hunting on these runs and I loved it :) It was the perfect distance to warm up, hit a hard segment and then cool down each time. Definitely something I don’t do in my “normal” training life, so that was a fun competitive outlet for me in this time. It was also amazing because TeamHPB had 17 athletes and 3 coaches running this challenge! We coordinated most of our start times to be running “together” through the day and it was really, really fun to check in with each other. It was wild to see the different conditions people were facing with weather all over the US, and our different approaches to the challenge. We are already brainstorming for the next one!
And finally, a quick hit of things that are keeping me going right now -
I’m watching: Survivor Season 17 (started back at season 13 because On Demand has all the seasons after that. Endless entertainment!) I also watched "Wonder" on prime and enjoyed that movie.
I’m listening to:
I’m baking: Lemon Bars, surprisingly easy and minimal ingredients! The baking challenge I'm participating in now has a website. Join us!!
I’m cooking: this broccoli pesto which was scrum!
I’m drinking: - wine from Wisdom Oak Winery. My fave local winery, and they currently have free shipping! The North Garden Red and Viognier are my faves! Also: NUUN REST! Great for calming the nerves - because, pandemic - but also recovery from all the miles!