Three weeks ago I was feeling really good about my running and starting to push the distance and pace. I overdid and strained my right calf. I backed off the running, iced and stretched, and finally bought calf sleeves on Monday. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to run Hobble Creek today, but after a 6 miles test run in the calf sleeves on Tuesday I was confident. I rode over to the race with Larry, Jolene, and Stacia. We left about 4:30am. Larry was volunteering and Jolene and Stacia were running. Cheryl asked me if I could help load the busses. It was kind of fun talking to so many runners. There were about 10 of us that rode on the last bus, including Rich Lamoreaux. I enjoyed talked with him on the bus and walking to the starting line. I saw so many people I knew before, during, and after the race. I haven't run many races the past few years. It was like old times. By the time I got to the start the portapotty lines were all long. I decided to not sweat it and just start after everyone else had started. I unhurriedly did all I needed to do and crossed the starting line a couple of minutes after the race started. I passed a lot of slower runners in the first couple of miles. I had to zig zag and do a little off roading but it was kind of fun. I eventually caught up with Nate and Mary Jane (MJ) Henshaw and ran with them for a couple of miles until caught up to Jolene. It was fun catching up on their lives, but I was pushing harder than I wanted to so I dropped off and ran with Jolene for a mile or two. She was struggling a little with "some problems you've never had" and not feeling well. She said she would be fine and told me to go on ahead so after a while I pulled ahead slowly. Even with a couple of bathroom stops she took she didn't finish too far behind me. She really toughed it out. A little after I left Jolene I caught up with Nate again. MJ had gone ahead. She ended up beating me by about 10 minutes I think. I ran with Nate for bit on the trail after the golf course. I had started feeling some heat stroke symptoms as the weather warmed up so I started walked the steaper hills, and some of the lesser hills for a bit if they had shade. Again I was pushing harder than I wanted to stay with Nate so I backed off just before a hill I was going to walk and he went ahead. I told him, 'I'm going to catch you again. When you hear footsteps near the finish line it will be me." I pressed on. I think it was shortly this I started doing the math and figured if I could average 10 minute pace the last 3 or 4 miles maybe I could break 2 hours. I had been slowing in the heat and was running about 10:04 or 10:08. I knew I was going to have to draw on my race experience and focus through the end. I hadn't lost contact with Nate and could see him up ahead and just focused on closing the gap. I caught him with 2-3 miles to go. Rather than pulling up alongside him as before, this time I had some momentum so I just said hi as I went by, and told him he would catch me again. It only took him a few seconds. We ran together for a while up the last long straight away. With about a mile or so to go I surged a little and he didn't come with me, but he didn't finish far behind. I really enjoyed my off and on running with Nate throughout the run. There was a lady (pink top, black shorts) that was walking hills like I was. I first noticed her going up the big hill just before the golf course. She started walking just before I did and I told her it was a good strategy. We passed each other many times over the rest of the course. As with Nate, I must have pulled away late in the race, at least that's what she told me when I bumped into her after the race. I'm really glad I was able to participate today. I really enjoyed it. I soaked my legs in the ice bath after the race, took a shower and a nap when I got home, then went up to Aspen Grove about 4pm to start hiking up to meet the YoungWomen from our ward that were hiking down. My daughter Emily was with them, and I had agreed to drive some of them home. It was raining pretty heavily when I started out so I didn't read the signs carefully enough. I ended up taking the wrong trail and hike to Stewart Falls instead. By the time I got back to the trail head, I only got up the trail 0.2 miles before we bumped into Emily's group. Hiking Mt. Timpanogos is a great feat in the best of conditions. It took them over 12 hours, and they got rained on really hard for much of the hike down. An "old guy" had stumbled and fell on one of them and her back hurt pretty bad for many miles. They were tired and cold and dirty and limping or trudging along like they were on a death march. I drove 5 of them home and told them what a great thing they had achieved. They had done a very hard thing in adverse conditions. I equated it with running a marathon, or even harder. Emily's now had a warm bath and is feeling better. I hope they all are, and are looking back with great satisfaction on what they endured and achieved. I've learned that the hard days are often the best...if sometimes only in hindsight. Today was a good day. | 