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The Imogene Pass Run is one of those idiosyncratic races that you either sign up for again and again each year - or you shudder at the mere thought and never consider it. I am clearly in the first category, as I did it again this year. There is something irresistible (at least to me) about running from one mountain town to another over a high mountain pass.
The cool thing about running a race for a second time is that not only do you know what to expect; you also have a mark to compare yourself against. My last year's time was 4:11; this year, I wanted to get under 4 hours, with a backup goal of simply beating that time, and a magic pixie dust goal of 3:45. I've been running a lot more this year, and running more hilly trail miles as well, although I have spent less time hiking or at altitude. I had analyzed my mile splits versus the terrain, and made some crazy assumptions as to how much better I might be able to do.
I had put together a pace card with guesses as to where I thought I would be each mile, mostly using the most pessimistic assumptions, and came up with a total time of 3:54. In fact, I ran 3:55, which looks like I hit it right on, except in reality I was about right on the first 6 miles (the reasonably steep part), way slower than I expected on the next 4 miles (the unreasonably steep part), spent too much time on the summit (and, er, in the portapotty just below the summit), and was much faster than I expected on the descent.
One of the joys of doing this was meeting up with a bunch of women I knew from a running forum. Two who live about 4 hours north of me I had met (Deltarose and Kazz - Kazz and I had met at Imogene last year, and the two of them had come down for the Steamworks Half in June) and two (Cara and Jana) live in Nebraska and had somehow let Kazz and me talk them into signing up. Jana made awesome t-shirts that we each wore at least part of the time during the race.
( Details... )
The funniest thing happened at the finish line. At the end, the course turns right onto a paved road and goes a block or so to the finish line, and that's where most of the spectators are. As I approached the line, a woman passed me on the right. I thought, well, hmmph! and sped up and sprinted past her. JUST as I got to the finish line, she passed me again, and I turned on the afterburners and we ran shoulder to shoulder across the line in a photo finish. (Although according to the official time, she edged me by 0.2 seconds!) Then we looked at each other - and it was Deltarose! We had both been so focused we hadn't realized who each other was.
Eventually our whole group met up in the finish area. The storm finally hit, with periodic rain and even one really impressive stretch of 15 minutes with huge, soft hailstones, but hey, we were done. Deltarose got a lift back to Ouray and then to her home with someone else; the rest of us got lunch and beer and then took the bus back, rested and hot-tubbed, then went out for dinner and too many margaritas...
...which is probably why we all agreed to sign up again next year.
The cool thing about running a race for a second time is that not only do you know what to expect; you also have a mark to compare yourself against. My last year's time was 4:11; this year, I wanted to get under 4 hours, with a backup goal of simply beating that time, and a magic pixie dust goal of 3:45. I've been running a lot more this year, and running more hilly trail miles as well, although I have spent less time hiking or at altitude. I had analyzed my mile splits versus the terrain, and made some crazy assumptions as to how much better I might be able to do.
I had put together a pace card with guesses as to where I thought I would be each mile, mostly using the most pessimistic assumptions, and came up with a total time of 3:54. In fact, I ran 3:55, which looks like I hit it right on, except in reality I was about right on the first 6 miles (the reasonably steep part), way slower than I expected on the next 4 miles (the unreasonably steep part), spent too much time on the summit (and, er, in the portapotty just below the summit), and was much faster than I expected on the descent.
One of the joys of doing this was meeting up with a bunch of women I knew from a running forum. Two who live about 4 hours north of me I had met (Deltarose and Kazz - Kazz and I had met at Imogene last year, and the two of them had come down for the Steamworks Half in June) and two (Cara and Jana) live in Nebraska and had somehow let Kazz and me talk them into signing up. Jana made awesome t-shirts that we each wore at least part of the time during the race.
( Details... )
The funniest thing happened at the finish line. At the end, the course turns right onto a paved road and goes a block or so to the finish line, and that's where most of the spectators are. As I approached the line, a woman passed me on the right. I thought, well, hmmph! and sped up and sprinted past her. JUST as I got to the finish line, she passed me again, and I turned on the afterburners and we ran shoulder to shoulder across the line in a photo finish. (Although according to the official time, she edged me by 0.2 seconds!) Then we looked at each other - and it was Deltarose! We had both been so focused we hadn't realized who each other was.
Eventually our whole group met up in the finish area. The storm finally hit, with periodic rain and even one really impressive stretch of 15 minutes with huge, soft hailstones, but hey, we were done. Deltarose got a lift back to Ouray and then to her home with someone else; the rest of us got lunch and beer and then took the bus back, rested and hot-tubbed, then went out for dinner and too many margaritas...
...which is probably why we all agreed to sign up again next year.