One of the reasons I run long distances is that the things I experience along the trail often transfer to my daily living. Today I pulled the plug after 50k. I woke up in a funk and the DNF entered my mind a few miles into the race. Im not sure why as I felt pretty good. But the thoughts kept infiltrating my mind. But I fought on. Normally if you keep pushing, youll find a way out of the depths of despair. The first 22 miles involve a very long climb and I worked hard mentally and physically. As I got closer to the summit of Cuyamaca peak, I could finally see me slaying the negative thoughts. The power of forward movement is very strong. My excitement grew until I felt spasms in both my groin. I quickly went through my check list of fixes. I kept drawing blanks. I made it to the summit, enjoyed a big handful of quesadillas, filled up my bottle and tried running. All I could manage was about fifty yards per stretch. The next five miles I was talking myself into completing the race instead of pulling out. At the next aid station, Tracy Dixon Johnston and the kids were cheering in full force. I told them I was going to pull. Its no fun fighting muscle spasms. After hanging out for a bit, I made my compromise. I would continue on and pull at 50k. I ran the next stretch as hard as I could. I also knew that I could probably finish. But I was happy with my decision. Its very rare that Ive pulled out of a race. Bottom line, I learned a lot from the day. I didnt have the will today to push forward. Some times it is okay to throw in the towel. And the upside is that I get to watch the ball game with my kids. Until the next adventure!
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 00:24:03 +0000
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