Sunday, November 4

Surviving Shut-In

I've heard a lot about this race... there's the challenge of getting in (it sells out every year), the challenge of the weather (warm or cold? how many leaves will be on the trail, hiding the rocks?), and the challenge of the terrain (17.8 miles, 5000' of cumulative elevation gain). I've been warned the last 2 miles are unrunnable. Despite all of this, I was excited for my inaugural event.


First, a bit of history... the trail was initially developed by George Vanderbilt, as a way to get from the Biltmore to his hunting lodge on Mt. Pisgah in the 1890s. Now, a large section of the trail is part of the infamous Mountains to Sea Trail (yeah, the same one I have a love/hate relationship with, from the Overmountain Extreme AR).

Saturday morning, my friend Stephen and I shuttled cars, leaving mine at the finish and taking his to the start at the NC Arboretum (luckily the race didn't start till 10am, so we didn't have to get up too dreadfully early). The drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway was stunning. Fall colors were close to their peak; the sun filtered through the trees and intensified the yellows, oranges, rusts, crimsons, and greens. The temps were brisk to start - mid to upper 30s? - but were to warm up to near 60 midday. The first few miles followed a gravel road through the arboretum and spread out the crowd of nearly 200. It was a gradual incline which was not my favorite way to start, so I took it a bit easy in an attempt to find my pace. Once we hit the singletrack, the trail alternated between hard packed dirt and rocky sections, and between ups, downs and flats. It was quite ideal; a gorgeous course. The variety kept it interesting and challenging.



Racers were encouraged to have a support person meet them at aid stations, as only water was provided along the course. I'm sure it helps the top athletes move quicker, but independent me got long ok without. I used my Ultimate Direction dual water bottle holder that had a small zippered pouch for a few gels and clif bloks. I also attached a small pouch to the belt to hold my inhaler and endurolytes. Sure, I could lighten my load a little bit, but when I'm used to my adv racing pack, it wasn't that bad :)

When the course crossed the Parkway at the intersection of 151, the "fun" began. We had a pretty intense climb, but nothing that wasn't doable with a solid hike. Then we were up on the ridge and could run some more. But then there was more... even steeper. And then more. Wow, it just wouldn't stop. It was the kind of hike where you put your hands on your thighs in order to move, praying you wouldn't cramp up with the next step. Luckily I managed not to, but I passed a few folks immobilized along the way. My back was pretty tense from bending forward in order to move ahead. As I finally crested the hill we were on and began the final descent into the parking lot (and finish line), the tenseness spread throughout my midsection and I was all but doubled over. I kept looking at my watch, which was creeping quickly to 4 hrs (my initial goal of 3:30 now a distant memory). Finally I could hear cheers at the finish line and knew I was close. 3:58.43. phew! That was good enough to crack the top 20 female finishers (19th), with an overall place of 114 out of 170 finishers.


After an ice bath back at the cabin (yeah, it totally sucks but the few times I've done it the recovery time has been incredible - and now 24 hrs after the event, I'm feeling great!), I realized that driving 4 hrs home was just not going to happen, so I headed over to the Curwens for dinner and a great night's sleep. Breakfast the next morning was at the Over Easy Cafe - very yummy! I had the hotcake special: strawberries, goat cheese, & chocolate chips (just a few so not overly sweet) with maple syrup. Delish! Asheville really has the best breakfast spots :)

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1 Comments:

Blogger Dreama said...

Great job Cathi! Sounds like a fun event!

10:07 AM  

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