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my triumphant return to moab!
Mar. 23rd, 2022 04:15 pmMy racing history in Moab goes back to October 2009, when I ran The Other Half with my RW Forum friend Karah - we'd met in person the month before at the Imogene Pass Run, and she'd encouraged me to come do this one (and share a hotel room) - and came home with a new PR of 1:41:44 and a trophy. Over the next seven years I raced both The Other Half and its sister race, the Canonylands Half in March, nearly every year (along with two other Moab races, the Winter Sun 10K twice and the Dead Horse 50K once); I brought home more trophies and other awards most years, as well as my all-time half marathon PR of 1:35:55 at The Other Half in 2013.
And then in 2017 I didn't feel I had enough training to register for Canyonlands, and I got a pelvic stress fracture at a trail race in July, so I didn't do The Other Half either. 2018 was mostly very slow recovery and ramping up my fitness again, though that was also the summer of the 416 Fire which made training a challenge. I signed up to do a local half in August but strained a muscle in my groin mountain biking, so I bailed on that race. In early 2019 we were feverishly finishing our new house, so no Canyonlands Half for me that year, though I did run a local half in June, after we'd moved in. Our trip to Spain in the fall conflicted with The Other Half, but I signed up to do the Canyonlands Half on March 14th, 2020 - which was canceled due to the pandemic, as were many races over the next 18 months. I again signed up for the August half here and again had to bail due to mountain bike injury. (I should probably learn a lesson from this...)
Which is why, when I toed the metaphorical line on Saturday at the Sandy Beach river access pull-out on Highway 128 along the Colorado River, I had not raced a half for nearly three years, and had not raced in Moab for five and a half years. But I had ten weeks of solid, careful training, and a good taper week; I had reasonable goals and excellent weather. I was ready.
( Running the race )
( Final numbers and placement, and a photo of the ridonkulous medal )
( Analysis and musing )
Anyway, all in all, I am super happy with how this race went!
And then in 2017 I didn't feel I had enough training to register for Canyonlands, and I got a pelvic stress fracture at a trail race in July, so I didn't do The Other Half either. 2018 was mostly very slow recovery and ramping up my fitness again, though that was also the summer of the 416 Fire which made training a challenge. I signed up to do a local half in August but strained a muscle in my groin mountain biking, so I bailed on that race. In early 2019 we were feverishly finishing our new house, so no Canyonlands Half for me that year, though I did run a local half in June, after we'd moved in. Our trip to Spain in the fall conflicted with The Other Half, but I signed up to do the Canyonlands Half on March 14th, 2020 - which was canceled due to the pandemic, as were many races over the next 18 months. I again signed up for the August half here and again had to bail due to mountain bike injury. (I should probably learn a lesson from this...)
Which is why, when I toed the metaphorical line on Saturday at the Sandy Beach river access pull-out on Highway 128 along the Colorado River, I had not raced a half for nearly three years, and had not raced in Moab for five and a half years. But I had ten weeks of solid, careful training, and a good taper week; I had reasonable goals and excellent weather. I was ready.
( Running the race )
( Final numbers and placement, and a photo of the ridonkulous medal )
( Analysis and musing )
Anyway, all in all, I am super happy with how this race went!