In December of 2023, while recovering from overuse injuries after attempting a daily 5k for 30 days (I made it 11 days), I signed up for my first Half Marathon. I registered for the Sugar Badger 50m/50k and Half Marathon that runs at the end of May. I didn’t really think about it and I can’t seem to find the right word for my decision. Delusion, hope, innocence, ignorance… the list goes on. I had a hint of what I was getting into, but not a real awareness of it. The race? Sugar Badger in Madison, WI. This event is produced by Ten Junk Miles Racing and the folxs who run the Ten Junk Miles Podcast. The energy of this Community is contagious and all consuming. It’s like being wrapped up in support, and community while laughing constantly.
I committed to my first ever training program that had it’s interruptions and challenges, but also helped me grow my running in ways I never expected.
At the time I had registered, I still couldn’t run an entire 5k without walking and I’d only done a single 10k and a single 8.1 mile hike. I was no where near placing in any of these events, let alone running them the whole time.
Training
I used a free Beginner Half Marathon training that came with my Garmin watch. It was 16 weeks with 3 runs a week and a cross training day. My asthma and Fibro were going to be the biggest challenges to this process so I also got a gym membership for the days I can’t run outside or my fibro would only allow me to cross train. This ended up being critical to the success of my training consistency. The plan was to run wherever after work on weekdays and then get up and do a Sat long run on the River.
I was pretty consistent with the weekday workouts and as I saw improvement in pace, stamina and form. I also saw improvement in my overall coping skills in other areas of my life. I was in PT for the overuse injury and was able to partner with my therapist to treat individual flare ups during training while developing a race day plan. I also peppered in a few 5k races to substitute for planned workouts, mostly because the groups presenting the races or the cause they’re supporting were dear to my heart.
As training went on I encountered several injuries. Around Week 8, my 65lbs dog plowed into me while I was in my crocs, throwing me to the ground, but landing on my foot. A quick trip to Urgent care revealed a serious foot and ankle sprain, putting me in a boot and forcing me to change a 5k race over to volunteering. I had a blast, but wished I had been able to run it. Later that week my PT evaluated it and took me out of the boot. My Fibromyalgia made a strain present as a sprain, but I was all healed up and ready to run.
In the middle of Week 14 I was hospitalized with Vertigo. I was down for 3 solid days and left the hospital with a walker. We’re still working through treating this, but the general consensus is chronic migraine causing vertigo. That diagnosis also means that I need to adapt to doing things a little bit dizzy and I’m cleared to keep running. The treadmill in the gym allowed me to adjust to running dizzy as I could grab the sides or the front bar for balance. I got back to moving without the walker or the cane very quickly, but am still pretty consistently dealing with it. I only got in 2 runs along the river post hospital, pre half marathon.
On the days I didn’t want to get up and run, I reminded myself that the first long run was during a snow storm… so it can’t be that bad. My 10k test run was painful as a result of poor planning, doing a mid day run with limited water in the desert heat. Before each long run, I recorded a short video talking through how I felt and what I was doing different that run. They’re very personal to me so I’m not sure I’ll share them, however you can see progress in the results images below.
The Race
This trip included travelling to visit dear friends and a full week of vacation. What a lovely bonus. I started my day with an insane amount of protein and headed to the park. My travel companion registered for the 50M so I went with them and watched all the other distances head out.
The Pre-race briefing was a little different for each group, but all included the reminder to ask “What would a Train Do?” if you get lost. I found that the farther the distance, the less Scotty had to remind people to be stewards of the trail. The energy was excited but relaxed an unusual combo at the start of any race.
After watching the 50M and 50k runners leave, it was time for the Half Marathoners (and shortest distance) to line up for go time. I lined up in the middle and waited for the cue to take off.
Race Report
It rained the night before so the grassy parts of the park (start/finish) squished under my feet in a way that this desert dweller isn’t used to. Luckily my feet dried quickly. Down a quick flight of stairs and around the curved underpass. My vertigo kicked in here and I started listing to the right. I remember putting my hand on the wall to keep from colliding with it and the next thing I knew Lynn was saying hi and talking to me about the route. Thanks to Lynn, I was able to adapt to the vertigo so that it only impacted me if I looked into the distance. I was also able to do a 16:30 pace for the first two miles. I wouldn’t have held that pace without her race strategy and the beeps of her watch.
About 2.5 miles in, I twisted weird and my knee screamed at me so I had to slow down. I did some intervals until I made it to the aid station at Tunnel Hill. Everyone was fabulous and refilled my handheld water quickly. I did a quick round of my aid station mobility stretches and was ready to continue despite the knee. The route detours here, onto paved, rolling farms roads. The views were amazing, but coming from the shaded trail to this was brutal in the sun. I jokingly “ran uphill” and cheered on everyone who came past me on their way back to the start. Soon I found myself on the route alone save for cars and ATVs making their way about their day. After a grueling 3 miles, it was time to return to the trail. Somewhere on this trail I recorded a funny (to me) video comparing the Rail Trail to running the Rio Grande River, with lots of mentions of “except trees” and “so much green stuff”. Another video I’ll keep tucked away for me. I saw Lynn headed back before I hit the turn around. She shouted “almost there” and kept going focused on her own race. When I hit the turn around, I stopped for a quick photo op with the sign, did my stretches and had a few snacks.
Once I turned around, the route back felt harder. A lot of it is just snippets of memory. Waving at the people driving by as they clapped or honked their horn. Stopping to stretch or take a rock out of my shoes. The heat of the asphalt. I remember limping into the aid station. They asked if I had blisters and I simply explained my knee was trapped in a cramp. I sat for longer than I wanted and rubbed out the poor muscles until I could use my knee again. I also guzzled more water and had them refill all my water sources. Everyone was so cheerful and supportive that I felt fully refreshed as I stood to do the last 5kish of the distance through the shaded trees on a dirt path.
I hit a place mentally where the vertigo switched from things tilting to just untrustworthy shadows, lol. The flowers on the trail grow so tall I often mistook them for runners out the corner of my eye. I’m sure it was hot, but I only registered when the warm breeze would hit me. As I got to the last two miles I had to stop and check my map. Between the vertigo and the amazing conversation, I didn’t remember ANY of the places I was running from the start of the race. As I climbed those stairs near the finish I remember thinking “how rude to put stairs at the end f this race”. I hobbled across the finish line DFL after 5 hours and 10 mins on the trail and nearly collapsed into Scotty’s finish line hug.
I spent this entire race present in the moment and in my body, not lost in ruminations or processing hard thoughts. I’ve never spent so long in that headspace and I’m eager to do it again (just maybe not that big of a distance).
Post Race
After I crossed the finish line and received my medal, I wandered over to a group of people watching the finish line. I knew none of them, but we had a great conversation about everyone’s reason to be there and how everyone felt about training and this trail. It was amazing to feel like such a part of the community. I later discovered that those were the people who placed 1-3 in the half and they had stuck around to watch everyone finish. Everyone was just as excited for first place as last place and that’s the group I want to be around.
The friends I was visiting brought their kids over as I finished so I hung out with them while I recovered. Eventually I felt well enough to go get my free drink and it turns out the pizza truck was able to get me a tray of Gluten Free meat (from a French dip) with cheese on top so that I could have real food in my stomach while I waited for the 50M to finish.
I cannot say enough good things about the people who attend and throw this event. As I sat there decompressing from the run, people who were faster than me congratulated me (and I them). The crowd cheered for every finisher. The energy stayed high for all 14 hours we were in the park. I may never do a Half Marathon again, but I will look for excuses to be at these events in the future.
The Take Away
This entire journey taught me so much about myself. I learned that with practice, I can balance my health issues and still grow as a runner. That I really love trail running over all the other surfaces and “crowd energy”. That I will constantly show up for myself in new ways. That running is an amazing outlet for the stressors in life. That I will do the hard thing because I promised myself I would find a way to do it. That my favorite distance may be an 8 mile long run. I discovered a new health issue and then found a way to work through having it in my life. This event inspired me to put together Oak Flats Picnic Trails.
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