Mt. Evans Ascent:
June 20 & 21 kicked off IronPuppy 2009 (www.joeturcotte.com) It included the 14.5 mile run to the summit of Mt. Evans Colorado at 14,264 ft., followed the next day by the 5430 Sprint Triathlon. Why, you may ask am I combining two race reports into one. It’s easy. The Ascent was perfect, the 5430 was a disaster and lasted less than ten minutes before I realized my race was over.
Saturday, June 20, 2009 at 10,000 ft., conditions were cool but nice. However, the race director informed us that 8 miles up the road, it was 20 degrees, zero visibility and 30 mph winds. I expect that no one at the start considered calling it a day. HOWEVER, the park service stated that the race would end at 9 miles, at 13,000 ft. if conditions didn’t allow at least 50 ft. visibility. We were informed that at 6 miles a sign would tell us if the race ended at 9 miles or 14.5 miles at the summit.
Six miles arrived and the sign said “Finish at the Summit”……COOL! I hadn’t done this race since 2002 and set my personal record (PR) one year earlier with a time of 2:58:32 at 41 years old. Now as an ancient 50 year old, I had no illusions of breaking that PR. But, in my heart I thought “hmmmm, I may just be able to get under 3 hours”. Low and behold, I finished in 2:55:35. Conditions were miserable but training trumped age and I expect I’ll go under 2:45 at age 60 (unless I’m dead).
I had minor psychological issues with turning 50. Why wasn’t I rich (Hmmm, could it have been the 70’s….damn decade of decadence)? Why don’t I own any real estate (Hmmm, maybe I hate roof repair)? Why don’t I own a swanky car (Hmmm, maybe I love my 1998 Jeep). The bottom line is that I felt that at 41 years old, a 2:58:32 run up Mt. Evans, was something I’d never experience again. Yet, at age 50 I was munching muffins at 2:58:35 after the gun went off. Go figure.
June 20 & 21 kicked off IronPuppy 2009 (www.joeturcotte.com) It included the 14.5 mile run to the summit of Mt. Evans Colorado at 14,264 ft., followed the next day by the 5430 Sprint Triathlon. Why, you may ask am I combining two race reports into one. It’s easy. The Ascent was perfect, the 5430 was a disaster and lasted less than ten minutes before I realized my race was over.
Saturday, June 20, 2009 at 10,000 ft., conditions were cool but nice. However, the race director informed us that 8 miles up the road, it was 20 degrees, zero visibility and 30 mph winds. I expect that no one at the start considered calling it a day. HOWEVER, the park service stated that the race would end at 9 miles, at 13,000 ft. if conditions didn’t allow at least 50 ft. visibility. We were informed that at 6 miles a sign would tell us if the race ended at 9 miles or 14.5 miles at the summit.
Six miles arrived and the sign said “Finish at the Summit”……COOL! I hadn’t done this race since 2002 and set my personal record (PR) one year earlier with a time of 2:58:32 at 41 years old. Now as an ancient 50 year old, I had no illusions of breaking that PR. But, in my heart I thought “hmmmm, I may just be able to get under 3 hours”. Low and behold, I finished in 2:55:35. Conditions were miserable but training trumped age and I expect I’ll go under 2:45 at age 60 (unless I’m dead).
I had minor psychological issues with turning 50. Why wasn’t I rich (Hmmm, could it have been the 70’s….damn decade of decadence)? Why don’t I own any real estate (Hmmm, maybe I hate roof repair)? Why don’t I own a swanky car (Hmmm, maybe I love my 1998 Jeep). The bottom line is that I felt that at 41 years old, a 2:58:32 run up Mt. Evans, was something I’d never experience again. Yet, at age 50 I was munching muffins at 2:58:35 after the gun went off. Go figure.
5430 Sprint Triathlon:
Sunday morning I was still pretty adrenalized after the previous day’s PR on Mt. Evans. I felt fantastic and actually believed that I would beat my previous years sprint time. The National Anthem was sung, the gun went off and I started swimming. One hundred yards from shore my hamstrings cramped so bad, I grabbed a buoy and tried to massage and beat it out of my leg. By 400 yds, I had inhaled several gallons of lake water, a bit of boat fuel and a small trout. At that time I was 15 minutes into the swim and had expected to finish the full 880 yds. by then. After much deliberation, and much more fear and panic, I called over a boat. The boat dude asked if I needed to hang on for a rest. I replied that I needed a ride to the beach. My race was over.
Lessons learned:
- Don’t be a dope! I want so badly to raise funds for Canine Companions for Independence
(CCI) that I attempted a stunt that I was unprepared for.
- A DNF (Did Not Finish) is not the end of the world.
- Actually watching a race (and taking pictures) is pretty fun.
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