I am fried from racing Saturday in the heat and doing a run-bike-run race on Sunday. Running cracks me. I don't know how I did in high school. I guess being 25 years younger and 10 pounds lighter would make running seem easy and fun. I ran fast, jumped hurdles, ran long jump and even did the high jump. (Okay. I think I ran fast. But I did not jump long or high so I did not continue those events.) My ankles are strained and my right hamstring is tweaked from stupid suicide sprints from last Tuesday (I was calling them football sprints but nobody knew what I was talking about. You run 10 yds, jog back, run to the 20 yd line, job back, etc. to the other end zone.) Hmm. I thought I was okay as warmed-up on the soft track with a slow mile, did one set and jog another half mile. Running sucks.
I remember when I forgot I wasn't 15 anymore and I tried to jump a few hurdles about 10 years ago. Oh, maybe that is when I tweaked my hamstring, slamming into the hurdles. I also had a brain freeze about that same time when I forgot I was not a flexible gymnast anymore and I just whipped out a back handspring and thought I broke my body in half. I did the back handspring, badda bing. It was over and I was aching. I don't think I was even drunk. I probably should have been as I might have been more limber. I think as I get older, I just get crazy ideas that I have to try new sports. At least biking is involved with most of these endeavors.
I must confess. I started running in the beginning of August to get running legs for my first adventure race I am doing in two weeks. Yes, in two weeks and I am trying not to panic. I paddled a canoe two weeks ago and laughed as I have very little upper body strength. I get an email from the experienced partner, Dr. Drew Wellmon, whom I have not met, that the adventure race may be "run heavy". Great! My friend Karen, laughed as she knows her and Drew will be towing my ass in the running. She will be fine as she loves running and is a triathlete. His email goes on about what to expect. I'm digging in my basement for those old sneakers as he mentioned we need 3 or 4 pairs in the transition area so we are not running in wet shoes, I am thinking about ordering low tread tires for my Barracuda mt bike (that is at least 10 years old?), and again, I am trying not to panic as he writes about the podium. I hope he is being sarcastic. He must know Karen and I have never done an adventure race before. We're just doing it because why not, Sutliff Hummer is willing to sponsor us crazy women with Dr. Wellmon and two months ago, we thought it would be no problem getting in shape for this race. We have yet touched our mt bikes. Karen and I talked today about cramming in all the workouts this week just to get the cob webs out of the way. We are swimming tomorrow to loosen up all the achy joints and tweaked hamstrings, running and road riding on Wednesday, mt biking on Thursday and Sunday, and I think I am squeezing in one more road race on Saturday.
"I will hang on to your wheels as hard as I can on the bike, and hopefully your run legs will hang on long enough behind me to get us home in time to get a podium spot." I think Dr. Wellmon will be towing our asses in more than just the run. I hope I am wrong.
