You ran how many miles?!?

Let me start off by saying thanks to Ricki and the boys who tolerate my training and support me in running down my dreams (pun intended) if they were not on board I would not be able to do what I do. Thanks to Mom and Dad who inspire and support me, and only occasionally hint that I should chase a less painful goal. And of course my Heavenly Father who created this incredible planet to explore and created the human body that I get to push to the limits.
Yes this is me, running at nearly 6000 feet elevation and yes, that is Mt. Rainer in the background. This was about 15 miles into the race, just after a 10 mile climb. I have posted the course profile for everyone to see, mostly to remind myself just how difficult it was.
We drove down to the course the night before and stayed in a "Quaint" little hotel. Ricki wasn't too impressed but the boys loved the twin beds in the loft. I was up and O-Dark 30 to get ready after a fitfull night of sleep and Ricki took me down to the starting line.

You can see how mountainous this terrain was. I started the course easy, you can see the rock faces behind the starting line. Our first task was to climb to the top of those faces. I did not know this to start. I became intimately aquainted with that mountain. I soon found a group of 3 other runners, all first timers as well and we swapped training stories and kept each other motivated for most of the first half of the race.

The insane uphill trudge was soon moderated by a much too steep decent which had my quads cramping. By 27 miles I had left most of my friends behind and was making up time. The 27 mile mark was rewarded by a small cheering crowd near the starting line where Ricki and the boys cheered me on, fed me, supplied a much needed IPOD, but the boys didn't understand it when I started off again. Tired legs, an exposed 8.5 mile 3000 ft climb in the heat of the day was made emotional by cries of Krevan who just couldn't figure why he got to see me then watch me disappear into the woods. The support was awesome. You would run into the aid station. They would read off your race number and mark you down on their list. They keep track of everyone's progress to ensure no one gets lost. Then they fill up your bottles while you grabbed whatever you could eat (mostly P&J sandwiches, fruit, and sodium supplements for me. Occasionally a cup of Coke or Mt. Dew). Other than that I survived mostly

on water and GU. Soon after I left the 27 mile aid station Kre's cries were drowned out by the cries of my legs. The second climb was difficult but I proved my stuff by passing 12 "runners" over the next 8.5 miles of serious up hill. By 37 miles I was feeling it. Sun Top Peak aid station was awesome and I even felt good leaving the top. The next 6 miles of steep gravel road transformed my legs from human muscle tissue, capable of feeling pain into very effective pain amplifiers. At 43.6 miles I was spent and had run further (distance) and longer (time) than ever before. Ricki met me at the aid station, supplied me with more electrolyte tablets (to stop the muscle cramps) and a much deserved kiss. The officials at the aid station ruled the kiss to be "Out of bounds" support but kindly forgave the foul and decided not to DQ me. :) It was a struggle to finish the last few miles. I knew the family was waiting, and regardless of how irrational it is to run 48 miles and quit, all I wanted to do was sit down on the trail and stop moving. Eventually I found my way out of the forrest and my rough patch to the finish line. Soon after I finished I collapsed to the ground, lucky for me Krevan was there to revive me :)

So yes I survived my first 50 miler, became stronger, faced a new challenge and overcame. Will I do another? Yes. Do I still want to do a 100? Yes. I'll start training just as soon as I can walk down stair unaided. My final time was 10:07:52. That translates to a 12:09 mile pace, not bad considered we faced over 17,000 feet of elevation gain/loss. I was 89th out of over 200 finishers, 250 starters. 13th in my age category. I'll look for a stronger finish next year. Thanks Ric for always wanting a picture with me and sharing in my adventures, it wouldn't be worth it without you!