Are You Crazy?

(Trail 8)

Last week was an up and down week for me, full of several highs as well as some stress. What better way to relieve (even if temporarily) stress and clear the mind than to run with friends in Bandera. I met John at Tigermart early, and we headed out to Hill Country State Natural Area to meet Robert. We were greeted by cool temps, humidity, and lots of fog. We set off down trail 2, headed up and over Lucky’s Peak, then topped Cairns Climb and Boyles Bump, followed by a quick circumnavigation of Sky Island before heading back to our cars. Robert left us here, having only wanted to run 12 miles, while John and I headed out for more. John was hoping to log a little over 20 miles and wanted to run some of the “flatter” stuff, while I needed to get in 6 hours (close to 30 miles) and chose the hillier sections. We bid each other farewell and took off.

I ran 1.5 miles down the road to the group lodge, where the Bandera 100K starts. Wanting to run a couple hours at a faster “tempo” pace, I charged down the trail, headed once again for Sky Island. Having already run 14 miles, I was pleased with how my legs responded to the increased effort. My goal was to push the pace, run more of the uphills, and get a feel for the course. I felt really good until I crested Ice Cream Hill. That’s when the sun reared it’s ugly head. The fog lifted, the clouds parted, and any trace of a breeze disappeared, replaced by clear blue skies which would have been nice were I not running another 3 hours. I dropped down off Ice Cream, jolted over to Nachos, and began the sneaky climb up Trail 7. After what seemed like forever, I popped out on the road by headquarters and linked up to trail 8, another uphill climb. By now the sun was out in full force, and I was cooking. I stumbled and staggered onwards toward Chapas, where I took the road back to my car, filled up my bottles, and ran another 4.5 miles. There were lots of people on horseback on the trails yesterday. Many I saw more than once, eliciting the usual questions of “how far I am running” and “am I tired?”. One guy thought it was absurd that anyone would want to run for 6 hours, asking me, “Are you crazy?”. Maybe I am. Overall I had logged over 29 miles in 6 hours. More importantly I got to scope out more of the 100K course, making mental notes of what sections I can run, where I can push, and what I need to run again in training. I also got to take a nice mental break from all the stresses life throws our way. Even if the relief is temporary, things seem so clear when I am running. I am able to solve all of life’s problems. Nothing else matters.