I'm not used to getting up early and it was tough to do so today. My state of tireness reminded me of the times when I used to work in an office. What an awful memory. On the way there I was half asleep and missed the 309 North exit. Luckily, I got off onto 309 South and turned around.
It took me awhile to get changed after a bathroom stop and I was lagging behind and almost missed the start. I'm definitely getting better at the beginning of this run. The steep early hill wasn't easy, but I was able to run up it again. I couldn't do that the first two times I was here this year. Heck, back in March or early April, I got winded just walking up it.Much like last month's run, I stayed kind of middle of the pack. I wasn't fast enough to hang with the speedy guys. Early on, I was surprised to see Kelley wasn't up near the front. Right as I'm thinking to myself that it would be nice to finish ahead of all the women, she comes speeding by.
The first couple miles felt comfortable, but the pace was pretty fast. When we went through the rocky section, I decided to run straight through the rocks. Mel was with us at this point and during the long climb shortly afterward. That section normally isn't too tough, but I was already starting to sweat a lot with the heat. It is completely exposed to the sun.
Kelley was strong and ran a bit ahead of us for awhile. She had to stop to fix her shoes and other items a couple times, but otherwise was up ahead. A little slower pace this early probably would've helped more in the end, but I was doing fine.
Aaron, who leads the group, usually waits for people at certain sections and then comes back and passes everyone. When he passed me one time, it was on the downhill. I commented to him that I consider myself a pretty good downhill runner and he just blew right past me. I knew he was strong uphill, but I was very impressed with his downhill ability too. We went around a turn and my momentum took me off the trail and into the grass a little. He just stayed right on the trail though.
I actually ended up walking a some before the two big climbs on the back side. I'm still learning to gauge which hills are worth running up and which are better to just walk up. The only problem is that walking up them is very challenging too with how steep they are. Plus, it takes longer that way.
For awhile I was on my own. The good thing was that Kelley wasn't too far ahead and I had her in my sights at times. That helped to pull me along. The big hill was so tough that I almost wanted to quit and not even walk it. The only good thing is that it is shaded there. Any time we were in the shade, it was a big help for me.
I got to the water crossing and made it through with ease. I was wondering if Kelley might have any trouble getting through there, but I guess not because she was long gone by the time I made it there. I was a little worried shortly after that because I came upon a hiker taking a different path. I didn't see Kelley up ahead in the long straight segment at first and thought she might've taken a different turn. She didn't though. I know I often miss turns if I happen to be passing people on the trail.
After getting through those two massive hills, things aren't too bad until the end. There are a lot of very runnable sections. The problem was that I was pretty beat at that point. Even brief uphills were a struggle. There is an open field section near the zoo. The incline isn't much, but it is long. I was just too exhausted and after awhile I had to walk it. What made this section tough, aside from the earlier hills taking so much out of me, was that it was right in the sun.After that hill, it flattened out quite a bit. I started making really good time and surprisingly I caught up to Kelley. She told me to go by, but I said there was no point as the hills were eating me up. This stretch was great and nice and shady. Once we go to another uphill, I ran for a little and began walking. Of course she was gone again.
I thought maybe Kelley was gone for good at that point, but I guess she had to stop to fix things. I was wondering how I caught up so quickly as she seemed way ahead. This was definitely the best section of the run for me. For half a mile to maybe a mile we ran together and chatted. It made things go so much faster.
We came to another long hill and Kelley finally dropped me for good. She was usually within my sights, but stayed a few minutes ahead. Coming out of the woods was tough. It was approaching an hour and a half into the run and the sun was baking everything. It is supposed to approach 100 degrees later in the day. This section is also a gradual uphill. The only good thing about it is that the road is stone.
When we got back onto the main trail, I was doing okay. I knew I was inside the last mile and that was a big help. It was still tough because everything was in the sun. There were some hills, but they were short. A few times I could see Kelley at the top and that helped pull me along. I knew the last big hill would kill me.
Crossing Old Packhouse Road was both great and frustrating. You can sort of see the finish, but it is way uphill. I actually thought about taking Orchard Road to the finish rather than the trail. I opted for the trail though. It wasn't initially as tough as I thought it would be. I walked some slight uphills here where I probably shouldn't have. Eventually, I walked up the steep section.
I knew that the trail leveled off after the aqua loop meets up with that. After that, it is a short, but of course steep climb to the finish. I kept trying to make it to the aqua loop. I walked up the hill for what seemed like forever and ever. It was a great relief when I finally found it. When the trail leveled off again, I began running to the finish. I flew uphill, relieved to be done. Even though I was beat pretty good by the heat, I was able to cut about five minutes off my time from a month ago. I'm not sure if I walked less or not, because I ran more in the first half this time, but probably walked more in the second half.
I love the challenge of this trail. I wonder if it will ever get easy or at least semi easy. I'm so grateful that Kelley was there today. I never saw any of the guys ahead of us because they were so far ahead. I kept looking back behind me too and never noticed anyone there either. During the last climb you can see the downhill part of the trail and I saw no one there. The others ended up finishing maybe five minutes behind me. If not for Kelley being there, I would've run most of it completely alone and that would've been tough in the heat.After the run, the group was talking about how the Quadzilla race course is easier, because the start is more gentle than running from the Environmental Center. It give your legs and body a chance to really warm up. I'm still not sure how I want to run the race. Do I push a bit through this easy section and make decent time or do I hold back? I'll likely try to hold back, but that is easier said than done in race conditions.
The first three miles were all around a 10 minute pace or under. After that, only my 8th mile was under 11 minutes. Looking at everything, I'm actually surprised I even had that kind of speed then. I guess that was the section was largely on the gravel road. It is hard not to run faster on a smoother section like that.
Before this run, I was sort of thinking I might try sticking with Kelley for a good chunk of the race. After the run, I'm not so sure. She could end up running me into the ground. She is definitely much stronger than me right now and will do very well in the race. The fun thing about running this course is trying to find the spots to pick up time. Which hills are better to run up and which are better to walk up and save your lungs and your legs? That is quite the challenge.
The one thing I might've done is walk a little too much today. Once you start doing some walking, it gets easier to walk again. It is also tougher to start back up. Obviously I can't run up the two big hills next week, but picking which ones to run up will be quite the fun challenge.
Some people are considering running there again on Monday morning. I'm not sure yet if I'll be there or not. If I do, I definitely won't be doing the whole loop. I'll cut through the zoo and do five or so miles. I'd mainly go to learn the course even more. I also might go there and just run some hill repeats. Monday was supposed to be a speedwork session anyway. We'll see.
Unfortunately, I forgot my camera today. I was hoping to get some group pictures as well as pictures of the people behind me finishing up. I thought it was in my bag, but apparently it wasn't.
8.5 miles - 1:36:34 (11:22 pace)
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