Beautiful Trail Run/Walk
with Friends and Nature
My goal this year was one, to get faster and also to enjoy every moment I happen to have out running both solo and on this particular run with friends who in the end don't know how much their companionship meant to me.
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| Beautiful Primrose on the trail...couldn't help but to stop and 'smell' the flowers |
Bryce started at 6am and I was happy I did not have to get up super early. My awesome husband also got up and made me coffee pre-race!!! LOVE him! Also, due to glamping accommodations (showers, pool, hot tub, store) at Ruby Inn was able to utilize real bathrooms before the shuttle to the start of the run.
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Trees always amaze me with their age and beauty, this one was huge, old and beautiful.
Start of the race was amazing chatting with Debi Farka and enjoying feeling good and ready for a day on the trails.
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| Old water tank that I thought was really cool....was wishing it actually had water in it to get into at this point it was getting warm and I was dehydrated. |
I was stunned by the beauty of the red rock and the sunrise of the morning....was hard to focus on running because I just wanted to look around. Lucky for me and those in front of me I did not tumble to my death...lol It was really fun to run a bit of this section behind Aric Manning who is always fun to be with on the trail.
I felt great the first 18 miles of the race, just cruising and being happy to have the opportunity to run. Knew I was a bit dehydrated by mile 18...okay a lot but it was still early and I could try and catch up. Was eating well and so figured I would be fine. Thanks to a great HUMR crew I had everything I needed and encouragement to DRINK more...and after half of a deliciously cold PBR I was back to the trail.
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| Later in the race where you catch your breath because of how beautiful the Bryce area is. This point in the race is where things started to fall apart for me and also where I found Breein, then Forrest, then Misty and we all hung together until just before mile 40... and the anticipated HUMR aid station. I was having a serious knee issue and was having a really hard time running ANY downhill with efficiency but thanks to these 3 trail friends they kept me moving forward and kept me from feeling sorry for myself because we were all having issues at one time or another out there. Lesson for the future that helped immensely...fix what you can fix and just deal with what can't be fixed...i.e. nausea ....focused on fixing...meds....food....salt.....more water. Knee....couldn't be fixed so I just taped it and tried to endure the slow downhill. That was typically difficult for me because I LOVE the downhill and had such high expectations for myself at this particular run. So I focused on spending miles on the trail with friends and had fun talking about kids, running, adventures and also enjoyed the silence and scenery that was shared between the 4 of us HUMRS. THANK YOU Forrest, Breein and Misty so much for keeping me out of a 20 mile pity party and making my day so enjoyable. I had to fall back in the last 14 ish' miles and pushed on with the Plain City Power Walk in my head....inside joke between Ryan and I but very effective when you can't run. Last 5 miles were spent with Mark from Boston on my heels and we helped each other push through the beauty to the finish, even hobble/running a little when the home stretch kicked in. It always amazes me out on the trails the people you meet and how silently you motivate one another to keep moving forward. Finished in 14 hours 17 minutes....not the time I was hoping for, BUT my best 50 mile time to date! I am not a fast runner EVER but I realized that it is the people, the journey and the destination that make it worth the effort. |
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| Random trail photo where I met two runners that both happened to be from Argentina and did not know each other. Thanks for snapping this shot to prove I was out there. |
And this guy, couldn't do it without my #1 crew man, getting me to Bryce, hanging out and glamping at Ruby Inn and exploring/fishing before race day, visiting Bryce after and being my best friend.
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| Ryan McFarland doing what he does.... |
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| The Finish Line of Bryce 50 Miler...this is a very fake smile..I was sooooo happy to see Ryan and all the HUMRS as this was a really challenging day for me and many others out on the trails. RATINGS: Beauty = 10 Toughness = 8 Shwag = 8 (loved the choices and my arm warmers are cool) Me Post Race = 5 |
