Ragnar LV 2010 Race Report

Okay, I do feel bad for two things. The first being that it has taken me so long to put up a race report. If others like reading these things as much as I do, it must have been a let down after Ragnar to have only one other Chasqui post about their experience. The second thing I feel bad about is that nobody else has posted race reports either. I guess we're all equally lame, except for Belinda.

So here's the thing. I think one of the main reasons I've put this report for so long is that I really didn't have much to write. While time in the van with the other Chasquis was an absolute blast, as it usually is, I really did not have a good time running any of my three legs. As I was wrapping up my training right before Ragnar, I think running was slowly getting less and less fun for me, and it culminated at Ragnar. More on this in a second, after my report.

Leg 10 - 3.2 miles - Easy
This leg was my best one. I started on Highway 147/Northshore Road just north of where it crosses LV Wash. Once I hit Lake Mead Pkwy, I hung a left where I would run to Las Vegas Bay Road, run down it and hand off to Denise.

The first half of this leg was a gradual climb, but I felt good nonetheless. It was beautiful as I approached Lake Mead Pkwy. and saw the lights of the back side of Lake Las Vegas to my right. It was a cool scene. After hanging a left, it was all downhill from there and I just put it on cruise control. My GPS wasn't working, so I have no clue what my pace was. I'm guessing right around 9:15.

Leg 22 - 5 miles - Moderate
This leg was no fun whatsoever. It wasn't even a suffer-fest. It was a piercing pain-fest. And it was freezing. Nick handed off to me a couple miles south of the M Resort on Las Vegas Blvd. I would continue down this road for 5.5 miles, running uphill, straight into a cold wind.

At about mile 2 my IT band started hobbling me big time, I was limping significantly, and it rarely let up. I'm blaming it on the cold weather, because it didn't bother me on either of my other legs. It was during this leg that I adapted the "run through the pain" solution and, well, it worked. Until it stopped working. At which point I would run through the pain again until it stopped. I repeated this about 5 times. Super rough.

I was strengthened, however, by the 5 or 6 kills I had on people that just weren't ready for a 5.5 mile climb and were walking. It was nice feeling like my training had paid off. Of course, there were 2 people that trained harder than me that passed me as well.

Pace 10:42/mile

Leg 34 - 4.6 miles - Moderate
I've ridden many miles on my bike on this section of the Charleston Loop, and I'm usually moving at between 25-30 mph at this point. Moving somewhere around 5 mph this time around wasn't quite as fun. While the IT band was not an issue at all, exhaustion was, as I think our van slept the least amount of time I think we've ever slept during any Ragnar. We were running on less than 2 hours of sleep total. It was definitely cool having both vans following me and cheering for me as I ran this leg, though. Other than that, I was slow and zapped, and it sucked.

Pace 10:19/mile

So, barring perhaps our first Ragnar, this has to have been my slowest yet. Ouch. I'm sure you can tell from the report, this wasn't my favorite time. It really got me thinking, though: I'm really, really disliking running right now, but it's not something that I just want to give up on and quit. These Ragnars are too fun and I have too much fun training with and talking running with the other Chasquis. There's got to be another way.

I mean, what's fun about training hard, not really getting any faster, and consistently getting hurt? Well, as I mentioned a few times during the race, I was going to go out and buy me a pair of Vibram 5-Fingers. I had heard something somewhere about these shoes helping to promote proper running technique and posture and therefore reducing injury. So, I went out and bought me some and have barely worn anything else on my feet since then. I have immersed myself in studying proper running technique and strengthening my feet and legs by running properly.

Little did I know that there is an entire psyche and culture of barefoot or "minimalist" ultra runners out there. While it is most definitely not my intention to become one of those wackjobs that run 50 miles a day in rubber sandals or barefoot on dirt trails, I have definitely become more "unplugged" as I run. No gps, no headphones, no pre-determined distance. I just go out and run, and it's fun again.