Black Canyon 20k

As it is with most races, I was dreading this race. I have been slacking since Imogene, and did not log nearly enough miles or eat enough healthy food. In other words, I’ve become a regular at the Sonic and Starbuck’s drive-thrus… sometimes on the same day.
I showed up at the starting line at 9:25.  And by starting line, I mean tiny parking area.  I was freezing, and trying to figure out a way to run the entire race in my Uggs.  On the flip side, the view was beautiful looking back to Crawford.  I settled on wearing tall socks (bright pink in color) to keep my legs warm. Mom came to the starting line to cheer me on. Side note: for some reason, I thought this race was 14 miles….to my delight…I discovered that 20k= 12.4. DUH.  Another side note: I thought there was very little elevation gain….to my dismay…almost 50% of the race was spent climbing.

Not my pink socks...but close to them

We took off to the sound of the race director saying, “ready, set, go!” The race was on dirt/gravel road, which is any runner’s delight.  Nice supple ground to run on= easy on the body parts.   My plan was to take it slow and steady and just enjoy the view.  Around mile two, someone was right on my tail… he asked me about my shoes (Nike Frees—bright blue), and how I liked the barefoot running experience.   It turns out this guy was a seasoned running veteran.  We spent the next three miles chatting about running and his experiences.  He paced me and filled me in on the ways of the world—well running world anyway.  We began climbing the first major hill around mile 4.5 and I was dying, so I sent him on his way. Meeting people is one of my favorite parts of running races.  Every time I have ran a race solo, I have ended up running with someone and learning from the experience.

The BadA$$ badboys

The rest of the race was spent trying to catch my breath (whew I felt out of shape!!)….and gawking at the most breathtaking, amazing views.  Seriously…have you been to the North rim of the Black Canyon?  Put it on the list!! It is beautiful.  My only complaint about the entire race is that you have to run past the finish line up a really mean and unnecessary hill and then back down before it is over. That was MEAN. Seriously.
I finished in less than two hours, hills and all. It was a great day.  Mom and I toured the park afterwards; she has all the pictures on her camera, otherwise I would share.
It turns out that prime rib, mashed potatoes and a glass of red wine serve as a pretty good pre-race dinner.  We went to a wedding the night before… so that was my dinner. I somehow refrained from the wedding cake (I must have been experiencing a brief moment of self-control)  …however this moment passed when Ty wanted to stop at Taco Bell on the way home. I had a bean burrito. At 11:00 pm. The night before the race. Go me!!
Finally….it should be noted that Nike’s compression capris do NOT in fact prevent chaffing. Just sayin.