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November 27, 2004
Thawing Out
Ok, so my fingers have thawed out enough to type and report on my cross country adventures.
My cookie adventure did not turn out as planned last night. I followed the recipe for the cookie dough (following directions when it comes to cooking is not a strong point of mine, I like to experiment). The bowl sat covered in the fridge for 3-4 hours just like the directions said. When I went to roll out the dough, there was no way to roll it out, the dough was still like a cake batter. I added some more flour and let it chill a bit more, but I was tired and decided to go to bed instead. I guess that I'll try to roll out the cookies and bake them later on today.
This morning I woke up early enough for the race. Since it didn't start until 10:35 there was the pleasure of being able to wake up at a normal hour. I took care of business, packed up lots of warm clothes, and got dressed. I've run this race enough times to know that it is always 10 degrees colder and windier at the park than it is anywhere else. I'd rather have extra warm clothes in the car than not have enough. Standing around during the awards seems to be the coldest part of this day.
I picked up my number and then decided to sit in my car with the heat on until I needed to warm up for the race. While I was warming up I was actually pretty warm, but I was well-dressed. Obviously I had my uniform on, long pants, a long sleeve shirt, a Gore-Tex pullover, and a hat and gloves. I warmed up about the first mile and a half of the course to see how bad the course conditions were. The second half of the course is pretty much on grassy hills while the first half is in the woods on trail. I knew the second half would be OK, but the first portion could be pretty bad. My hunch was right that there were some deep mud portions and slick parts. I got back to my car, put on my number and changed into spikes. I have not worn spikes since this race last year. Needless to say, my feet are pretty sore now!
I won this race last year, but it really was a fluke. The race draws people out of the woodwork because it gives cash prizes and is the Saturday after Thanksgiving so people who are visiting tend to run. One of the guys in my club kept telling me that I had to defend my title and I kept telling him there was no way on earth that would happen based on who I saw there. Two of the women are former DI All-Americans, one of whom ran in the world XC junior race while she was in college. A few of the other women are pretty good trail runners who I can beat on the roads, but they do this stuff all of the time. I kept telling them I would be happy just to finish in the top seven.
I headed down to the start. I must say that this year had the biggest field I've seen in this race. I don't know if it was because the weather was a bit better than it has been or if because it was the 20th anniversary of the race. Either way, I was amazed at how many women were in the race. There are multiple races held with separate starts: two kids' races, open/masters women, masters men, and open men. J is the race organizer and he kept telling me I'd be fine and I kept telling him who was who in the race and that he had a bunch of studs. I gave him my clothes to take up to the finish line for me. Then we were off.
The high school girls ran with the open and master's women. I was kind of blocked out at the start. This course has a fast first mile. If you aren't used to it, it is very easy to go out way too fast. Even knowing the course and holding back, the first mile is quick. I think that I was in about 10th when we hit the mile. The first 3/4 of the mile had the worst footing of the entire course. Wearing spikes did not help too much. I hit the mile around 6:15 or a little bit slower. The second mile starts the climbing. The first portion is a long, gradual, rocky uphill through the woods. Then the course comes out of the woods and goes up a pretty nasty hill that marks the halfway point. At the top of this hill I had moved into the position that I would maintain for the rest of the race. Just after two miles, the course goes up a kind of short, steep hill. This hill has always killed me. The backstretch can be kind of lonely. It is on a long grass straightaway and is next to a road. After what seems like an eternity, the course makes two quick turns and you're on your way home. There is about a 500 meter slight downhill and then the final quarter mile or so is up hill. Of course, it finishes on an uphill. I managed sixth place in 21:00. When I won last year, I ran 20:28, so I was pretty happy with my time today. Considering I was petrified to run on the grass and rocks since I have not done that since I fell in September and my racing has not been going nearly as well this year as it was last year.
I found my long sleeves and pants and changed into my trainers and started my warm down. I ran on the course backwards so I could cheer for the men as they ran. When I got back, all of the clothes I raced in were taken off and dry items were put on. I pants, two long sleeve shirts, a short sleeve shirt, my Gore-Tex pullover, hat, and gloves on. By the time the awards were starting, I was freezing, so I went to the car and got my extra gloves and parka. I didn't want to put on the parka until later so that I wouldn't get any colder. Eventually the parka had to go on, but I was still shivering so badly.
I won $25 for my efforts. The race also gave hats to the first 100 registrants, so I got that in addition to my long sleeve tee shirt. This race has awesome random prizes. In fact, the prizes in the drawing are even better than the cash. There are lots of dinners, running shoes, Gore Tex wear, dress watches, hair cuts, manicures, pedicures, etc... I always make sure to stay for the drawing becuase almost everyone gets something. Sure enough, my name was drawn during the prizes. There were a bunch of L and XL Gore-Tex Windstopper tops when my name was called. There was also a long sleeve women's M UnderArmour shirt on the table, so I took that. The price sticker on it was for $60. It may be a little on the big side, but it can be used as a part of layering.
By the time I was in the car coming home, I could barely feel my fingers and toes. I got home and all I wanted to do was take a long hot shower to thaw out. Even after the shower, I was still freezing and could not really feel my toes yet. Right now I'm getting warm, but I have on slippers, PolarTec socks, fleece lined tights, a long sleeve tee shirt, PolarTec shirt, a one-piece fleece jumpsuit thing and a hat. I also ate hot soup and had some hot tea to warm up. By the time the party I'm going to tonight rolls around the icicles should have melted!
Posted by Blondie at November 27, 2004 03:13 PM
Comments
Congratulations on your many races this week! I hope you finish thawing out soon, and good luck with the cookies. Where did you find running-related cookie cutters?
Posted by: Jessie at November 27, 2004 04:05 PM
Congratulations on a great race and the cool prizes. It sounds like a tough course.
Posted by: Leilani at November 28, 2004 04:58 PM
Great job !!!! The course sounds great to me!
Posted by: liz at November 29, 2004 12:06 AM
Great job Blondie :)
Posted by: barb at November 29, 2004 01:46 AM