When the whistle finally went off, there was like 3000 people on the road. It was incredible. So many people that I couldn’t run. I could swear their feet were not moving. Ususally in races like that as soon as you cross the start line you are moving, however, the street was fairly narrow and I couldn’t get moving right away and I was getting frustrated. Then, I saw a fast runner running on the grass and I immediately followed her. For the first mile I was dodging runners and looking for holes. Surging, finding my pace, then surging again. Here comes the first obstacle, hay bails! Ok, no problem, follow the other runners and step up on it then jump down. Uh ohh, drill sargent on my right,”JUMP OVER IT!!!!” OHHHHH, now I know what to do. They just kept yelling, go faster!!
Next station, water. Huge fire hose pointed straight up in the air so we all got a good blast of water. No problem.
Here comes the big obstacles, I can see them. They are all in the dirt and it’s time to get a little nervous. I can see this is the hard core stuff and the first one is another good blast of water. I’m wet, but not soaked. Then come the hurdles. These are big wooden hurdles that are at least 4 feet high and the sign says over. Ok, well, I can use both my hands and get my mid section up, then I used my right leg to get over, then my left and then jump down. Honestly, I was glad to have pants on!! I would have been covered in splinters! Crap, there are at least 8 hurdles right in a row and then you go under some bridges, through the tunnels, more obstacles with bigger walls to get over. The walls kept getting higher. I could get up them ok, but then I had to jump down, like 5 feet. It was pretty high and hard on the ankles, but I did it. Two push up stations, drop and give me TEN. In the dirt. No problem, they weren’t noticing that I could only go half way down…Now, we go through trenches and down into fox holes, jump in then get out. No problem, my heart rate is really high!! Ok, I know I’ve got one mile to go but don’t know what lies ahead. Oh cool, one more wall of hail bails, up, up and then down as fast as you could. Lots of runners, got to move fast or they will slow you down.
The finish line is just up the road. I know where it is and I can start to feel the puke coming on. My heart rate has been at least 191 for the entire race. Here comes a sprinter trying to beat me. All I can hear is big blasts of air out of her in a rhythmic fashion. Ok, I am going to make you work for it. She sprints past me, then I surge and feel the puke in my throat, heart rate is at its max…she gets me on the line. I cross it and tell the volunteers, get back, I’m going to puke!! Well, the best I could do was dry heave in the shoot. No puke came up, thank god. I went all out! There was nothing left in me.
My time was 25:07 according to the event results. I had 25 flat on my stopwatch. Who knows. Got 12th in my age group of more than 100.
When I put a number on my chest, I turn into this super competitive person and go for BROKE. I love that feeling. When I got home my husband downloaded my race and my average heart rate was 190 and I hit 200 for the sprint!! Man, it was high!! I can’t wait to do it next year–
I will practice hurdling before the next race, though!!!