One year.
One year since I've attempted this Ultra trail running thing when I was so green that I nearly killed myself on a 14 plus mile training run on the first DRT training run. (Refer to : Stupid is as stupid does...blog)
One year since I ran with Tyler on the 2nd DRT training run where we laughed for the first 11 miles and joked that we were going to change our 30k race to the50k race.
One year since mile 12 out of 15... on the same training run that Tyler and I said, "Fuck that!, we are running the 30k"! We are over this training run and how much longer till we finish this run??
One year since I was told that I said, "I will never run another trail again..." upon my completion of the DRT 30k!
Last December, I completlely changed my training plan and decided that I was going to try and do everything I could to just finish the DRT 50k by next year.
Last Februrary, I was still nervous if I could even finish the DRT 50k.
Last April, I signed up for the DRT 50k in hopes to finish in the 10 hour time frame allotted.
A few weeks ago, I set a time goal of 8:55 hours.
Three days before the race: I am shaking in my boots that I can make it under 10 hours. I am determined to finish no matter what it takes. This race will be my hardest in terms of climb. Climbing is my weakness and this race is just over 10,000 feet of eleveation gain over 32 miles. I know I said this was a 50k, but trust me it's really 32 miles. Yes, that one extra mile really counts..lol
I'm determined to scratch, claw, walk and hopefully run my way through to the finish no matter what it takes. I am prepared to kindly tell the sweeper to back the fuck off if I happen to see him and/or her...LOL I will not be denied a finish on this race. I'm prepared for a very long day of running, and I know how hard this is going to be, but I'm also imagining what it's going to feel like when I finish. And, I'm not sure yet, that I can fully grasp what it's going to feel like when I do.
And, I already know that this race will be a decision maker or breaker on whether I sign up for The Georgia Death Race in March, 2013. I've been thinking about this race since I first heard of it last Spring when it was "in the works". I am really excited about the idea of this race but with 16,000 feet of elevation gain, 60 plus miles, and the last being 26 miles of forrest service road as well as unpredictable March weather. It's a lot to consider. I never want to sign up for a race that I can't complete. The one factor that makes me most excited about this race is the fact that it connects Vogel State Park and Amicalola Park. I mostly run these trails as they are close to home. It would be awesome to connect the two in a single race. But, is this enough motivation for me to justify running it? I will make a decision by the end of Novemember as this race is filling fast!
But, until then, I'm focused on DRT 50k.
