food, FAMILY & fun – but first…another marathon 🙂
Early 5am flight to Dallas, morning arrival in Arkansas. First stop: Family. Kid brother owns a trucking company AND just opened a gym. We all work somewhere – but the gym…that was mighty impressive. Pre-kid days, Bro was a power lifter (obviously not my twin). Daughter now off to college, LOVE LOVE he’s following his passion.
Next up: lunch at Williamsburg Kitchen. That’s where one finds Mom weekdays (owner/creator/innovator of this lunch-only spot 30 years+). LOVE this place, LOVE her Reuben, LOVE the family ‘eats for FREE’ discount. FAAAANNNNTASTIC!
3 ½ hour drive on rural Arkansas roads, day’s destination: Cotter AR.
Population: 948. Five miles past Flippin, 20.2 miles from the Missouri border. Middle of nowhere. People in Arkansas haven’t heard of this town.
Fun story. Sun goes down maybe 10 miles from Cotter. I’m not a great driver – even worse when it’s dark. 900ft from Cotter High School (bib pick-up), Google Maps says to turn left. Dirt road…no judgments, we have those in Colorado. Rental car lists dramatically to the left, something is wrong – I now see the sign: Railroad Crossing. Yep, been driving on the tracks themselves. Pitch black, no stars here. Yikes! Good laugh AFTER I eased off the tracks & wasn’t killed. LOL>
Pasta charity dinner. Sleeps 10 miles away in Mountain Home. Daybreak marathon start.
AWESOME turn-out. Field was limited to 750 participants AND it sold out, 4th year in a row. Today’s experience would be all about weather. Warm start. Never peeled my first layer so humidity-dripped in Razorback winter. Sweated it out with a trio of runners kicking the Half. Chatty upbeat folks. Group slowed at mile 12. Goodbyes, maintained pace, exited to the left – second lap.
Cloud-cover cooled conditions. Wind gusted, no bugs 2nd Half. No elevation gain either – ‘bout as flat a course you’ll find. Hit the wall early, more mental than anything. Notta lotta runners & I had no tunes. [note: iPods don’t last forever.] Light rain, extra out-n-back at mile 18-ish (special from the first lap). 30mph headwind at the turn, 7 miles to go. Walked much of mile 20.
Run-Walk-Ran last 5 miles with Sarasota runner, Buzz Scott. Half-mile to Finish, pep talk from Buzz. Marathon finish #103.
Heat/humidity, gusty wind, light rain & some folks say sleet. Another sub-par effort. 17 pounds UP since June’s REVEL run – lotta gain for a guy my size. Not a dieter. Who gains weight over the summer?! …but first (28 miles away), 2 slices of the best gas-station pizza ever. Four other runners also crowded in – no mistaking us: race shirt & shoes, we all look alike. HA!
Family nite in Fort Smith. Dinner out, cards at Mom’s, Sunday morning church. Good to be HOME ❤
Agee Race Timing, LLC
K R HAGA
2017 White River Marathon
Overall: 102 out of 188
Time: 05:13:55.56
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- C Ray Baker R.I.P.
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- Good to be HOME ❤
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- 2 laps out-n-back
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- FAMILY nite
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- no place I’d rather be
5 days ago I was in Ireland. This Friday, travelling I-70 West ‘cross the Americas Continental Divide.
Half-day work day, destination: Fruita. 5-hour drive from Boulder, 17 miles from the Utah border. Arrived 20 minutes before bib pick-up/Expo shut down. I’ve cut it closer. My PW (personal worst)? Illinois Marathon, April 2016: 2 minutes. Yikes!
Tomorrow’s run, Colorado’s only November marathon. Chose Rim Rock to keep the streak alive (cost choice, Dublin was weighty on the pocketbook). Ironically, now visiting my Mom in 2 weeks (& of course marathon-registered nearby, addictive habit ❤). Sleeps at the Balanced Rock Inn, half-mile from Fruita’s Community Center – shuttle meet-up location AND (26 miles later) tomorrow’s marathon finish.
Pitch dark early a.m. start. Double-shirted but stuck with shorts. Hard to ‘best guess’ race attire in Fall. Inside the Park, sheltered 45 minutes behind a porta-potty [windbreak] ‘til the day’s 7am Start. 2nd marathon experience inside a National Park 🙂
Colorado National Monument. Landscape more Utah than Colorado. Warned/awaited a gun start, small athletic field (mostly college runners: Colorado Mesa University & CU-Boulder). Gun jamm’d, CMU coach casually said ‘ok go’ – & we were on our way.
8 miles UP. First 4 miles: 2500ft UP. More hike than run. Even the parts that LOOKED flat, a steady clip UP.
Stopped, snapped pics, took in the panorama/Park’s amazing beauty.
Cold Shivers Point – cold winds blew. 3 miles of down, mile-half of rolling, series of incredible Park overlooks. Red Canyon, Ute Canyon, Fallen Rock, Artists Point, Monument Canyon & Grand View. National Park eye-candy, a scenic wonder.
Unfortunately, just not feelin’ it today. Those first 4 miles of UP sucked the life outta my legs. Dublin Sunday, Fruita 6 days later – head demons rattled loud/mentally spent. DNF, DNF. I’ve got nothing to prove, I’ve finished 100. Lick my wounds, run another day.
Except…
No vehicle available at the Half Marathon mark (Aid Station 6). Volunteers asked I go on to mile 17 (next Aid Station). Seriously? Begrudgingly, restarted my jog/slog pace. Sooner I get to [mile] 17, sooner I could warm up & go home.
Except…
Assigned Volunteer asked a bystander to watch Aid Station 7. Guy had a truck but no idea how to get to the Finish (Rim Rock Road was closed to the Public today). He tried to explain. Seriously? Wasn’t listening, wouldn’t even refill my hydration bottles. Head demons too strong this day – next 3 miles without water, not gonna help matters. Ugly unfriendly headspace.
Refueled at 20. No one quits a race at mile 20. Runner in orange, young gal in sweats. Back-n-forth, we 3 swapped places. Mile 23, I reached the Aid Station last. Worst-to-first by mile 25. Fruita City Limits. Colorado River.
Mile to go. UP the overpass, jogged its downside into town. Quarter-mile to FINISH & I did, I finished.
Today my 4-year RUNniversary, 48 consecutive months marathoning. Most unlikely of marathon finishes, angry HOURS spent planning my running retirement – literally tried to quit TWICE. Never ever again. Well….never ever for 2 weeks. LOL>
Rim Rock Run 2017
Fruita, Colorado
Marathon Results
125 K R Haga Louisville CO 5:43:12
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- National Park marathoning
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- landscape more Utah than Colorado
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- 2500ft UP first 4 miles
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- Monument Canyon
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- Balanced Rock
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- Welcome to Fruita
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- my 4-year RUNniversary
Run the Year Motto: EVERY day’s a run day, 2017 miles in 2017
October 2017 update: Technically missed my miles, but still sported HUGE HIGH FIVES this month. Completed marathon #100 – celebrating with family in Dublin, Ireland 🍀. Logged 135 miles total, leaving ~ 80/month to SMASH another 2017 goal.
2018 goal-setting was an unexpected theme this month. Started tri training to improve fitness (more mental than physical). Shooting to complete this year’s UNFINISHED targets: a new marathon PR & Bighorn, my first 50-mile trail race (registration opens Jan 5th).
50 State Déjà Vu tour: kicking off 2018 with an all UPHILL ultra climb, Hilo-to-Volcano, Hawaii. Additionally, set a 7-continent marathon challenge. TIME GOAL: May 2020. Fingers crossed I’ll be marathoning Antarctica in January 2019!
2-month focus: STAY the COURSE
NEXT month my 4 year RUNniversary. 48 consecutive months marathoning!
Race ReCap: 3 marathons, 3 time zones – 2 continents. Portland, Omaha & IRELAND.
Marathoning Streak: 47 months
Mileage ReCap: ended October at 1,854 miles (only 163 miles ‘til GOAL)
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- ended October at 1,854 miles
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- no-race DOG weekend
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- Milestone 1800
Leader: The pathfinder, able to get from here to there, to connect in service of a goal. Setting an agenda, working in the dark, going new places and tackling unknowable obstacles.
