The G Running Diary

RCR (part 2) Finally: 3/31/03

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There was a photo op on the way down to the river. Two guys were catching up to me right at that point, but I was still in front for the picture. They noticed that the guy had a wide-angle lens. I asked, "So would that make me look fat?" which made them laugh, and comment, "Spoken like a true woman."

It's actually not just straight downhill to the river. There are some good uphills too. But it is definitely a lot more down than up, so the turnaround appeared in no time. If you could get back in that amount of time, it would be a really fast 50K. But coming back was slow for many people. The weather warmed up and the hills seemed longer than they did on the downhills.

Of course that didn't matter. I wanted to be out there most of the day, if I could. A runner passing me told me I had a female competitor coming up behind me. My reply: Oh, I'm not competing. The word competitor just wasn't on my mind. That is what I liked about long distance running in the first place. Finishing the race is such an accomplishment that you don't have to beat everyone to prove that you are good. Finishing a marathon gives you the bragging rights, even if it is a slow time. Time doesn't matter. When the distances are longer and on trails, time matters even less. In fact, time matters to me only in making good use of my time, and stopping to take time to enjoy the run.

We talked with Bev and Sue for a while, with Don out in front setting the pace. They were happy to tag along, asking questions about Badwater and exchanging stories about Western States and other runs. Eventually they dropped back a little bit, and I was in my own thoughts again. Don and I talked some, but not a whole lot. I liked the part coming down the trail to a stream crossing where I could hear frogs. It was all so green and peaceful.

We started to approach the finish. Part of me wanted to be done, because I was tired, but the other part was sad when we hit the road and didn't have far to go. Once we were on the main road it was uphill. But it was also the finish, so we had to run a little.

Norm Klein and Rob were at the finish. I like to think of Norm as being there for color commentary, although he didn't comment all that much. But what he did do was put my time down as a second ahead of Don, just so I would be listed first. He said even though Don's foot hit the finish line first, he must have cheated. Norm must have known somehow that every time Don and I finish together, (which is a lot of times recently), Don is listed first. I appreciate Norm. It's the little things that count. He's a familiar face that you can't help but be happy to see.

So then, we got the post race food. This was great. Inside the school, a buffet of warm dishes was set up. I went straight for the chili, since that is such a great thing to eat after long runs. There were plenty of sodas to drink and I noticed two large cakes that looked very appealing. It's quite alright to indulge sugar cravings after an ultra. In fact, it's a good thing. You need some sugar. Don and I just hung out for a while, eating and talking with people we knew. Mike Palmer told us about his training runs on Mt. Tam. We were glad to see Ann Grove and Wayne finish. Ann wasn't feeling so great on the trail, but she still joked about the number of times Wayne has seen her barf. During this run, and a little bit after, we started to spill the beans about our upcoming running project in August. We are going to need a little help for that one.