The night before the race, Ian got a call from our dog sitter that Sycamore, our puppy, was at the vet with parvo. Parvo is prevalent in Northern Arizona and can result in death. Needless to say, we were both not in the frame of mind to race Sunday morning. At a couple points in the race, I saw Mom and broke down. About 9 miles to go, I shut down the race and decided I was jogging it in. That evening Ian got the call that Sycamore was in the clear...yay! It was a mild case and because Karen got her to the vet immediately and hospitalized her, they were able to give Sycamore the best chance of fighting off the virus. She should now be immune to the virus since her antibodies are built up.
The Negatives:
1) Didn't meet my goal of a win and a time of ~3:20.
2) Mentally wasn't in the moment, which cost me the race.
The Positives:
1) I was able to take in the most calories during a race, ever, and had minimal stomach issues. A first!
2) My energy levels during training and on race day held steady.
3) Recovery from training and post-race recovery has been great.
4) The past couple days have been the most pain-free my hip has been in over a year.
Last year, I was fighting variable energy levels, stomach issues and had to keep training volume very low. Ian challenged me again with higher weekly mileage starting in January, and so far I have been able to handle it. Energy has been much better with no fluctuations day to day and week to week. My daily nutrition and race nutrition is still a work in progress in terms of figuring of what I can and can't handle, but this race was a huge move in the right direction.
Going forward, Ian is going to take the challenges a step further for Eugene Marathon training. It's now time to see if I can get back to my previous high levels of training. I will also be challenging my strength work more than I've ever done in the past (thanks, AJ!), so I'm excited to see what the rest of this year brings.
Thanks to my Mom, Dad and Mema for coming to crew for us at Caumsett in even colder and snowier conditions than last year. And as always, Race Director Carl Grossbad offered us impeccable hospitality and put on a class act event. I know he spent a lot of time and effort ensuring the course was as clear as possible.
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| Ian was able to channel his energy into a 3:36 finish, faster than last year, and a win in the USATF 40-44 Championship division. Not bad for emotional stress and an icy out and back section! As always, I am impressed with his toughness and ability to get the job done no matter what. |
Congratulations to overall race winners Sarah Bard and Zachary Ornelas. Zachary also set a course record in tough conditions. Both ran impressive races!
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| My face pretty much sums up the day thus far. |
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| With the Race Director post-race. |
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| Sycamore healthy, happy and helping Ian with his work. |
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| Super Bee had a fabulous vacation playing in the snow with Karen and family. |
Another thank you to Karen London and her family for taking such great care of Sycamore and Bee while we were in Long Island. The care provided is second to none.
I'm looking forward to what the next couple months bring!
