Tuesday, November 4, 2014

PNTF Cross Country Championships



              
(My Club Northwest Teammates)
                I’m in the midst of packing for a trip to my home state of Montana so I’m going to try and get this off quickly before I leave. I’m trying to pack light but when you have a toddler I don’t think there is such a thing!
                This past weekend was the Pacific Northwest Track and Field Association Cross Country Championships held in Seattle, WA at Woodland Park. I wasn’t originally planning on racing. My last race was the Railroad Days 10k in August and to be honest, I have not been training much since then. I have been going for easy runs, taking many days off a week, and could count the number of workouts on one hand, or a couple of fingers. So as you might gather I have been in a bit of a training funk. After Railroad Days I needed a little break from workouts and the break was nice, the problem was I really struggled getting back into doing workouts.
                Without doing workouts, I wasn’t signing up for races. Usually the two go hand in hand, you are doing workouts, feeling fit, so looking for upcoming races. But when you are just running to run because you enjoy it, checking the calendar for upcoming races is not on your radar, especially with a toddler who keeps your mind on everything else but races. So that’s the position I have been in. I don’t know if it was all the changes, new house, new work schedule for Levi, Doctor appointments to figure out some issues with my Achalasia, lack of sleep, the changing seasons, I could go on and on.  
                The weekend before PNTF, my brother and sister in law came down to our place to watch Lilyana so Levi and I could go out. They stayed the night and the next morning, my sister in law Jane, got up to do a workout. I got home very late and Lilyana woke after a couple hours of my sleeping so when it was time to get up I was not at all ready to do a workout. Both my brothers were going to run the workout with her. She asked if I wanted to come. It was going to be 3x2mile at LT/Tempo pace. I hadn’t eaten and felt like garbage. But not wanting to pass up the opportunity to actually run with people I wolfed down a PowerBar and told them I would attempt to do at least one repeat with them.
(The inspirational Jane)
                I made the first repeat fine, same with the second, and actually felt good on the third! The total mileage was 10, the longest I had run in quite some time but I felt good. Running next to Jane helped. It was fun to feel like we were a team. Having my brothers in front breaking the wind was great. I loved seeing the looks on people’s faces as our group, decked out in Brooks apparel, blew by them. We got many words of encouragement and awe.
                After this workout I felt that I wasn’t too far gone and I actually decided to look into upcoming races for my Cross Country season. Being able to run with Jane helped me regain some confidence and remember that I like racing oftentimes for the sheer camaraderie of being with people. Pretty much the only race I would be able to do with traveling to MT was the next weekend. On a whim I signed up. The course is a tough one, lots of hills and unstable footing, probably not the best one to do for your first out of shape race but what was there to lose? I had never raced at Woodland Park but had heard plenty of stories to make me a little nervous.
                Race day came up fast. The night before the race I was wondering what had gotten into me to make me want to sign up? I ate way too much Halloween candy while at a late night movie with Levi and was not feeling all that great but I wasn’t about to back down.
                Race morning I did my typical post-baby warm up routine of jog some, talk a lot, jog some more, play with Lily, pee a lot, do a few leg swings, then realize I have 5 minutes to get my shoes on and get to the start!
(Over half done)
                The gun went off and I tried to be conservative but the first kilometer is pretty much all downhill. I felt out of control and was going too fast. Downhill’s can be deceiving. They feel easy but if you aren’t careful about your form they really can zap your energy with the eccentric muscle loading. I was definitely heel striking to try and slow down and was using a lot of energy to keep myself from rolling an ankle. Having extra bones in my feet and unbelievable pronation does not help on a course like this. I was in good position and feeling great. I was a little worried about how fast I went out and tried to ease up a little but falsely reassured myself I would be fine. There’s no going back so you have to go with the flow. Lap two I still felt pretty good but by the end of it I was wishing it was only a 4k. I tried to stay strong on the 3rd and final lap but my legs were screaming and mentally I didn’t have the willpower to make it really hurt. I hate to admit this but it is the truth. There were 4 places within striking distance on the final lap but I think I became somewhat o.k. with my position and battled to make sure no one passed me. My goal coming in was to get top 5 on my team. With 400m to go I did try to pass a girl but did so on a 180 degree turn which was the dumbest place to try and go around. I shot way to the outside and it took a lot of energy to get back on course and she easily gapped me by a few feet with that bonehead move. I finished 8th overall, 4th on my team, in 22:21.
(Crossing the finish line)
                My body was spent when I crossed the finish line but my mind was reenergized. I was surrounded by my fun teammates, friends, and family. After the race we took Lilyana to John and Jane’s, set up her Pack n Play so she could nap, then headed out for a lunch date. It was the perfect way to end our day. I can’t remember the last time Levi and I have been able to go out to eat together so this was definitely a great weekend.
                I am now off to Montana for a vacation and some hunting. I know this will not be ideal for my training but I am going to try my best to get in some runs and maybe a workout so I don’t lose this new found excitement for racing that I have been missing.