Jane Herzog – Yea. Jane, Cyndie and Anita all finished! Loved the earlier start – heat wasn’t a killer until much later in the day. However, the big hill away from the river still sucks!
Cindy Kosmicki– Day 1 is complete! Hot hot hot and some good climbs. Tomorrow I will def need to use more sunscreen through day. Lots of amazing people out here. This is no joke.:) 20 down and 128 miles left to go!:) On to Day 2 in the morning.
Sheri Shaw-1st day, 20 miles, easy peasy! Not really but Im forever the optomist!
Rebecca – a few bonus miles, because I’m an overachiever 😀
Traci – So today was similar to a science experiment, which is ok with me because we all know that is my fav subject! Desert heat is way different than Florida heat…maybe because of the difference in atmosphere (kidding) but really, the altitude and absence of humidity did factor into my day. Anyway, saw a jackrabbit, lizards and picked up some pretty cool rocks and a mini skull. Didn’t see any snakes, scorpions, whales, squirrels or lions, but there was a trail called “Lion Loop” which made my day! Off to bed to prep for tomorrow’s 30(ish) miles! 🙂
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Gene – The Gaia GPS App on my iPhone saved my bacon several times today! Stopped for photo ops every minute or so during the first half of the “race”. Looking forward to sharing them whenI get back.
Jim: We learn the most about our selves when this go wrong. And I think it’s safe to say things haven’t gone as planned and I’ve had some important lessons. My luggage still hasn’t arrived, it seems the airline had some issues. I’ve been sponging off of the kindness of strangers. Thank you beautiful strangers. I took a wrong turn today, ran a LOT of extra km’s and missed the cut off time. I will be posting the first DNF of my life. I’m a little bothered by that, mostly because I feel like I let people down. On the plus side, I didn’t get bitten by a rattle snake. I didn’t fall off a cliff. Or, caught in a freak desert lighting storm. On that scale, not finishing a running race, isn’t that big a deal. Look for the good.
Tara– I have to admit, after the scare talk at the pre-race meeting last night I was a bit petrified, imagining the 26 miles of deep sand I endured at Antalope Canyon 100 in February, I was plesently surpised today, there were some technical sections, but doable. The climb up to the last aid station in the heat, was the only part that was discouraging today. Mostly because I had run out of water right as the climb started and only had my Normalyte mix, the super-high sodium content without water to even it out made me lose a bit of time climbing the hill, and about 10 minutes after getting to the aid station drinking a lot of plain water, and I felt way better after that. After a 5 year struggle of getting my speed back, and figuring out how to handle the heat with the disavantaged of having POTS (Postural Orthostatic tachycarida syndrome), I was thrilled today. No heart-rate issues, no hyponautremia, I think I have figured out the formula for heat and endurance with my POTS symptoms. The Normalyte seems to absorb better into my system, and I need less water so I am not retaining water, I am feeling better, I am not constantly being slowed down by having do empty my bladder from having to overhydtrate. I kept up with the front part of the pack today, I felt energized when I finished, my legs feel fresh. I’m grateful for the months of tire-pulling, and carrying heavy packs on my long mountain training runs in the past few months. I didn’t even have this race on my radar 2 weeks, ago, but I can tell the training, and figuring out the formula for POTS running is paying off big time. I swear by Normalyte for individuals who have high eletrolyte needs than average. It got me through Squaw Peak, and seems to be working today. I didn’t suffer in the heat like I have in the past. I’m thrilled at how well I feel. I was unsure of how I would do in the heat, and resolved that I would do my best even if I didn’t make the cut-offs, and had to finish unofficially. So I was kind of blown away when I came in at 5:45, that was not really even pushing my pace, because I didn’t want to burn out the first day, and that was 1:15 ahead of the cut-off without having to kill myself to get there. For those who know my history and struggle to get back into the game after wondering if I would ever be able to run and finish ultras again in 2010, this is a huge success, and I am way beyond where my abilities were even 6 months ago thanks to a lot of support and good coaching. I was feeling pretty emotional in a good way about what I did today. I’m excited to see what I am made of tomorrow.
