This past week has been about resting and making sure everything is ready for Saturday's American River 50 mile Endurance run. Resting and checking is just what I have been doing. But there have been a few interesting speed bumps along the way.
Wednesday night I headed out and ran with the group, a nice and easy 4 miles/40 min or so. On my way out I was cruising along when out of nowhere a blackberry vine reached out and grabbed my left ankle. I felt the pain from the thorns, but there was nothing I could do to stop the thorns from digging into my leg. By the end of that run, my lower leg was swollen, it hurt, and I had blood everywhere. I just laughed it off and shrugged my shoulders, what else was I going to do. I couldn't worry about it, it was done.
Thursday I went out for a really easy run, nothing happened during this run. I was feeling really good, I was mentally focused and my body felt strong. All good things. After the run, since I was already dirty I mowed the lawn, one because it needed it and two, it was green waste on Friday. After mowing the yard I sat down and I looked at my running shorts and the seam of my liner on both legs had torn. One leg had a tear from the base to groin and the other leg just a bit smaller tear, but noticeable. Ohh S#%t, my shorts that I have run every long run and was comfortable in and the shorts that I was going to run on Saturday where ruined. This is not good.
I calmly took a shower which by the way I used the last of my shampoo and made my way to Fleet Feet and my own personal shopping assistant Captain Kirk. I told him what happened and he immediately began looking through the store for the exact same short. When he couldn't find it he called the Roseville store. I was staying calm, I knew that Captain Kirk would come up with a solution for me. I am very particular about what I run in ever since the SNER where I chaffed so bad I couldn't walk. I ended up trying on maybe 8 pairs of shorts and decided on the Nike's with a compression liner.
After thanking Captain Kirk and laughing about it I headed home and put the shorts on. I needed to make sure that the compression liner wouldn't ride up and that it also wasn't too tight around my quad. I was in the backyard playing with the dogs, doing high knees. Everything stayed where it needed to. Thank goodness. I don't know what I would have done without Captain Kirk.
Finding out that I have holes in my running shorts isn't that bad, but pretty comical. I managed to stay calm during all of these minor incident and just role with the punches. It wasn't worth getting worried about and all worked up, I knew that Captain Kirk would be able to help me, I can always buy more shampoo, my cuts on my leg isn't too bad and while I am running 50 miles tomorrow I can always look back on my week and laugh at what happened.
I do have to say that I am ready for tomorrow. My body feels strong, I am mentally ready and focused, I respect the distance and I know that I can do it. I also know that if things don't go according to plan it will all work out, I have plans and I have also learned a lot from my previous races. I am ready!!!! I am focused I have visualized the course I have visualized myself running the course and the Dam hill, I am ready!
Sooooooooooo excited for you and so happy Captain Kirk came to your rescue!!!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck tomorrow! I may be out near Beal's cheering for people so I mgith see you! You will rock it.
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