(cont from Friday)
The alarm went off at 5:40. I got up and went to the bathroom and I could hardly focus my eyes and walk straight. The 6AM start for the stair climb seemed like Mt Everest. I wanted to do the full 6 hours to see if I could match/beat my record from last year. If I didn't go at 6:00 I'd be forfeiting top female and a push for any record I could match/break again. I was just too tired. 90 minutes of sleep just wasn't enough. I'm not that big of an ultra junkie yet. I need sleep.
So, after a HUGE back and forth conversation and a lot of rationalizing and contemplating in my head I set the alarm for 6:40 and went back to bed. Five hours of climbing would have to suffice.
I felt a lot better after that "extra" hour of sleep. I brushed my teeth, packed up my junk, said good-bye to Craig and headed over to Wells Fargo. It took me until about 7:20-7:30 to get all my stuff situated and to start climbing. The first trip up I got to floor 8 and wondered if I should've slept until 11:00 :) I was tired, exhausted and the volunteers were so perky and positive...and this was only my first ascent of the 24 floors. Time to settle in for the long haul.
Around 9AM I got tired and bored. We need a stair well with windows or something! Staring at the concrete white walls and grey never ending stairs is enough to drive one crazy!!! So, I took my phone out and started texting and catching up on FB. Your feet really get into a consistent patern climbing and turning (oh the left turns...endless left turns!), so I didn't have to pay attention to them. I'd put the phone away to drink and refuel on the elevator ride down to start over again. I did have one gu and my bottle of coke a swallow at a time to keep the caffeine flowing, but other than that I'd just grab a water or gatorade that they had out. I then discovered the rye bagels. They really just hit the spot! I couldn't eat the half in an elevator ride down, so I had them cut the half in 4 pieces and I'd grab one every other time up. It was perfect! Didn't upset my stomach and just enough to keep me going.
I did the same thing I did last year...just kept going. I don't go fast, but slow and steady wins the race, right? I climbed through awards ceremony and the raffle. I was kind of ticked off about that. Wondering if I had won something good, but not getting it because I was in the stair well :/ but, I was there to climb and not linger.
Around 11:30 a volunteer came up to me and handed me an envelope as top female climber. I told her "oh no. I started late. I'm not the top climber!" She responded "you're RAD, right?" "yes" "well, you currently are 2 ascents above the closest lady and she is done and has gone home." I was in shock! I didn't think for a minute I'd be top female again starting so late and being tired legs from the 20 the night before. So, that helped fuel me to get those last few climbs in!
They had posters in the stair well that told you the vertical equivalency of the number of ascents. Basically, when you reached the top of the empire state building, the Grand Canyon, Mount Hood, Mount Kilimanjaro etc. I'd passed the Grand Canyon which was around 8 (I think, I don't remember) and I had Mt Hood in my sights, it was 28.99 ascents. I could do that! Plus, if I got to 29 I'd have to round out to 30...so I started to push. With about 10 minutes left I knew it would be a good push to get UP the stairs and down the elevators and start my last ascent before they closed the stair well at noon, but I was determined! I went as fast as my legs would carry me and I ran from the top of the stairs to the elevator. I told all the volunteers I passed from the bottom to the top that I was going for ONE more! When I got to the entrance of the stair well they had deflated the arch, but I yelled "I'm coming, let me in!" as I ran toward them (the door is on the exterior of the building so you have to go out the lobby to the street then enter again). They said "we've got it for you!" and flattened the arch near the door so I could step over it and head up my last time. It was amazing. I'd made 30 in an hour and a half-ish less than last year.
I really think I could've contended to break my record this year had I gotten a full nights sleep and started on time, but I made that decision and had to live with it. I still got top female though :) Which means no one came near breaking my record. We need to get more female climbers willing to push through this 6 hour ordeal and challenge my record!
It was a great day and when I picked up the kids from grandparents and got home I crashed hard. I slept until around 7:30 which I was grateful for my 13 year old picking up the pieces for me all day! I treated the kids to Smashburger for dinner and then went back to bed...we were all tired and ornery, but I certainly felt accomplished!
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