Nurse On The Run

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Big Sur here I come

From website photos

I decided to go all out for my third marathon and run California’s Big Sur Marathon.  Actually I picked based on the fact that my now husband’s aunt lived in Santa Cruz California, and well the weather was way better than what it was in Omaha that time of year. But now I would face some challenges.  This was a spring marathon, meaning I would have to do the bulk of my training in Nebraska’s cold winter.  I now work night shift 7p.m. to 7a.m. and of course THE HILLS.  Big Sur is not any easy marathon.  Runner’s world made one of the 10 best marathons to run, but also one of the hardest marathons.  It is advertised as “running on the ragged edge of the western world.

From website photos

So training started and i was committed, i fit in hill workouts when I could I would run when I got off in the morning or I would wake up at 3p.m. to run if it was cold, that would usually be the warmest time of day.  I ran on tread mills a lot and sometimes did 2 workouts a day.  I also had a running partner for the long runs.  My friend Rafal decided to take a stab at running to loose weight and wanted to do the Lincoln Marathon, in Lincoln, Nebraska, so he really had to train in the cold, but his marathon was flat, very flat. My top mileage for one week was 55 miles and my longest run was 18 miles.  I decided to taper and nurse a sore groin instead of doing my last planned 20 miles.  My running log shows I was not very consistent with training and my average mileage was about 30 miles a week.  Hmm I did not keep a training log for the other marathons, I was sort of snobbish about it and well that technology was not there to make it easy for me.  Looking back its hard to know if I trained more mileage or just harder with better quality.  Or not any different at all.

But feeling confident and out to get a new PR I was heading to California, first stop Santa Cruz.  We stayed a few hour drive from Monterey, California.  But it proved to be rewarding.  We stayed in a beautiful home saw family and ate fish like you would not believe.  See being landlocked with no ocean, we were cray for fresh fish like people come to the heartland for corn fed beef.  Actually one restaurant we ate at bragged about having Omaha Steaks on their menu.  haha.

From website photos

So I had the best pre-race dinner with fresh salmon, a cheese plate, olive oil tossed noodles, salad fresh berries and an early bedtime.  My ride was to leave at 3 a.m. to make it to the bus to the start line.  Yikes way early.  Luckily I was not driving so I napped in the car and on the bus to the start.  So it was hard to tell what the weather would do, the news said sunny and 80’s but at 5a.m. start and running next to the ocean it was hard to tell.  I picked shorts, a tank, and arm warmers.  Well the start was in the woods and I was freezing until I got moving.

And got moving I did, we worked our way through forests of redwood trees winding around on Highway 1 toward the Pacific Ocean.  It was cloudy with overcast but warmer then in the trees.  And then starts the HILLS.  the view of the ocean was breath taking, packed with my ipod and great songs to accompany the scenic views, ocean crashing into the cliffs right below my feet.  the climbs were tough and we did them as groups.  We cheered each over over the peeks and through water stations.  Why well there were no spectators out here, just you, the ocean and other runners.  It was perfect.  Like I said I live landlocked so to see the ocean after 3 months of winter and to be in shorts mind you, I was in heaven.  If you don’t get it because you live in California then spend a winter with me.  The “high” I got from that was all I needed to drive me.  We hit hurricane point.  this was the hardest biggest hill of the marathon. And it was massive.  I decided a bathroom break was needed before I made the descend and then the huge trying climb up the “mountain”.  Well i did this at a relay exchange point, meaning a lot of runners and a lot of runners who were done.  after waiting in a line for 5 minutes I decided to  exclaim, “ok if you are done with your part of the race and can hold it, can I please cut because I still have a lot of running to do”  I recommend you do this at any race.  I get why lines exist but to what for a mere spectator to go while your clock is running, no way, I am sorry this should be an etiquette of racing in my opinion.

From website photos

So hurricane point, I conquered only to hear the Chariots of Fire song played on electric keyboard along the way which made me laugh.  The view was enough but the entertainment on the course was a bonus.  Even a giant grand piano playing music on a random cliff side, belly dancers, and natives banging on large drums.  It was insane.

The down hills were just as hard as the ups, tearing into your quads and hurting your knees with every pound.  But I take hills like I was trained to do in cross country and I have found very effective.  Maintain uphill and “take” the downhill.  In my cross country days I would pass numerous runners with this method, so I figured in a race against the clock, it would help.  The end was near and I felt great, but the wall was approaching as the sight of more little hills were around the bend.  Pushing through the wall and into the town, I knew the finish line was near, you could heat the crowds and the push was in me.  I decided to surge.  Finally the end, the end of running on the edge of the world.  I crossed the line in a chip time of 4:10:11, 63rd in my group and 1135 overall.  I had done it, the hardest race so far and I knocked 18 minutes off of my PR.  It was great.  The post race goody bag was great, fresh fruit from the area, beer and a very cool clay medal.  We made it back to Santa Cruz and enjoyed time on the Boardwalk, a fabulous dinner.

It was by far the best race I had ever done, scenic and rewarding.

From website photos

http://www.bsim.org/The_Twenty_Fifth_Presentation.htm