It’s been an eventful month since running Pikes Peak.
A foot injury from the race sidelined me for three weeks. I enjoyed a post-race, seven-day burger binge. I also went bald with Shelley and a few others when she decided to buzz hers off before chemo could take it from her.
I also covered a PR for distance in a day when I ran/walked 18 miles at the Hawk Hundred 100-Mile Trail Run last weekend at Clinton State Park in Lawrence. About six of those miles were pacing the wonderful Debbie Webster, and the others were logged while re-marking part of the course and doing other race assistance duties.
Now it’s time for the next big adventure. A week from right now I’ll be preparing to start my stretch of pacing duties for Nick Lang at the Bear 100-Mile Endurance Run. It starts in Logan, Utah, and ends in Fish Haven, Idaho. I’ll be pacing Nick for about 20 miles — another new distance PR.
I was pretty nervous about pacing Nick when my left foot flared up after Pikes Peak. I’d basically been totally idle for three weeks. Conditioning was lost. The foot hadn’t even been tested, so what if I got out there and started to pace only to find out at 3 a.m. that I couldn’t go?
The long day at the Hawk Hundred did wonders for my confidence. The foot had been feeling quite a bit better, and once it logged a record number of miles and still felt fine the next morning I knew it would be OK.
I’ve run a few more times since then, including Wednesday on the rocky trails at Shawnee Mission Park, and it continues to feel normal. Even better, my legs still feel strong and my lungs feel fine. I guess my conditioning didn’t suffer much during the break.
Now that I know the foot is good to go, nerves are setting in. I need to pack. I have to make sure all of my work-related duties are completely taken care of in advance. I need to log a few more miles and run a few more hills.
It seems like just a few days ago I was in Colorado, standing atop Pikes Peak at the end of the Ascent. What a journey that was. Now it’s time to go again.
Chris Wristen 