Timp Trail 1/2 Marathon!

Yesterday was the Timp Trail 1/2 Marathon & Marathon. I had been looking forward to racing it pretty much since one year ago when I raced it. I loved the course, it has tons of climbing. In 9 miles you climb 4,300 feet. I also loved training for it...last year that is. This year has been a very strange year for me. I just haven't been able to figure out exactly where I want to focus my racing. Working at a triathlon shop you get asked 10 times a day what races you're planning on doing. It's not that I don't want to talk about my race plans, it's that I don't HAVE any plans. There's one race that I know I'm doing, the Park City Point to Point mt bike race in September. It's about 80 miles of single track, tons of climbing and it's supposed to be one of the hardest races around. So I for sure know one race that I'm doing. Great. So in order to sound like I've got some sort of plan I just tell everyone that I'm just going to be doing mt bike races. This is somewhat true. There's also some running races that I want to do and after point to point I may want to do a marathon and a half ironman. We'll see. So not having a clear cut plan is really hard on training. I've stopped swimming altogether. I ride twice a week and run once a week about six miles. Lame. I'm out of shape and up eight pounds from my race weight.
So as of a month ago, I didn't really know if I was going to do the Timp Trail race and I sure as heck wasn't putting in the mileage for it. 6 miles a week doesn't really cut it for a 1/2 marathon trail race. So Thursday I thought 'what the heck. I'll race it.' Only problem is I know me and I like to win. :) Especially since I won the race last year and conditions were horrible. This is hard to jump into a race with no training and the mentality that you're going to win. But that's me and I accept me.
The morning of the race I had no appetite. I had been feeling under the weather all week, I wasn't sick but just feeling head-achy and nassiated all week. So I had a couple pieces of toast that I had to force down. That almost made me gag. I didn't warm up, I just ran from the car to the start line. The race started and I went slow and tucked in behind a guy for about 2 miles. I was in 3rd overall, as in there were 2 guys in front of me and all the girls were behind me. We started up the first hill and I was feeling breakfast try and come up. I was just waiting for the girls to come catch me. They didn't. Up that section of hill which is about 3/4 mile I stayed in 3 overall. The road flattens out and I had a guy pass me. Not bad I thought to myself, for no training. That flat section is about 3 miles and I kept my position the whole time. I kept looking behind me blown away that I was the lead woman. When I'd have a good view of who was behind me I couldn't see any female any where close to me. So I just kept a steady pace. When I got to the first feed station a few friends were there cheering for me and told me how I was doing. Even tho I knew my position in the race it was still fun to hear them yell it to me enthusiastically, "You're the first woman!" This was mile seven.
The race starts to go uphill and climbs for a while, my stomach started cramping and I thought there's no way I'm going to eat that GU I brought, I will throw up!
So I get to the base of Dry Canyon and it starts out with SUPER steep steps, I walk because the two guys in front of me are walking. As soon as it became less steep I would try and run but couldn't. I was dying. I definitely was feeling the effect of not training. I hiked all the way up Dry Canyon. Side Note: Last year I didn't walk any of this section. I saw a race photographer and started running just so my picture wouldn't be of me with my head down and walking. I stopped at the aid station that was half way up Dry Canyon and saw a girl behind me. I said a bad word out loud :D This made me kick it in gear and start running. She decided to run past the aid station and caught up to me quite quickly. I ran in front to the very top of the canyon. So I had just ran 9 miles, climbed 4,000 feet and lead the whole way and here she is to pass me on the easy part of the race, the downhill. That's great. I couldn't do anything about it. I couldn't eat, even though I needed energy because my stomach was cramped and I couldn't run fast because every joint ached...a result of not enough run training. So I followed her down the hill.
I came in second place female, 2 minutes behind first. My time was 7 minutes slower than last year and that's with last year being a muddy swamp for most of the run. I'm really bummed I didn't win. I am glad my record from last year wasn't close to being touched, it's still five minutes faster from the winner this year. Bobby keeps telling me there's always next year.
Bobby did amazing! He told me he was only going to be able to do 6 miles. When I came in to the finish line and he wasn't there I knew he had decided to do the whole thing. He came in fresh as a daisy. It is the furthest he's ever run. He's amazing!