Today I Found My Strength and My Stubborn

The first snow shoe race of the season turned out to be a snowy, blustery day! If my running shoes weren’t already screwed into my snowshoes I would have been prepared to run with my yak trax and call it good. I was really thrilled that the snow started to blow as we got to Silverthorne!

Time for a reality check…in July I slammed 3 shots of cortisone into my left hip, butt and hamstring. Then I created the illusion of training for 3 weeks leading up to Worlds 2011 in Beijing. Since that time I have been able to do very little. The prolotherapy sessions have been crippling and it is still unclear if they are helping. I haven’t had any Vitamin I (ibuprofen), ice or massage for months. The goal of prolo is to completely piss off the tendon and ligaments and then let them stew, heal and get stronger.

So what compelled me to think that a 10K snow shoe race would be the smartest “first effort” in months I will never know…but I tied on my badass snow shoes, overdressed by body and headed to the start line.

Here is the funny thing about me…I LOVE snowshoe races. I always have. I find them ridiculously hard and hysterical. The majesty of the mountains and the beauty of the courses always outweigh the sky high heart rate, gallons of sweat and screaming legs that come with a race! I have never won, placed or even paid any attention to my results at a snowshoe race. I don’t even win anything from the raffles. It is always about me, winter, the mountains and the challenge…plus playing with the other idiots dumb enough to jack up their heart rates and sit in traffic for 5 hours to get home!

 

The Snowshoe Skedaddle did not disappoint! A crew of us arrived early enough to have hot tea, catch up with old friends like Melissa and Gary and watch Anthony B warm up! My goal for the day was to simply move fast enough to stay warm, laugh with friends and not hurt myself. SUCCESS! Some people who train with me regularly may tell you that I never really get out of shape. That is just stupid. However, I do seem to have some power/endurance chip that allows me to keep moving; not fast but just moving along at a steady clip. I think maybe it is survival. I hate to be cold and if I move fast enough I can avoid freezing! Keith, Nancy and I headed up the mountain for the 10K. Anthony was long gone by the time I climbed the first hill. Michele, Jewels, Melissa, Monica crushed the 5K course in no time.

The 10K took me a long freaking time. My snowshoes felt great and I would have been golden had I not worn the wrong pants. I really thought there was no snow so I wore some moving comfort pants that had FAR TOO MUCH cotton in them and after 3 miles I was completely soaked and my butt cheeks were FROZEN! OUCH!  One more reason to MOVE!  I ran all the down hills and flats and cruised up the climbs with as much power as I could. My hamstring held strong and allowed me to stay steady. I was a little worried during the last 2 miles as I could feel how tired my legs were and I knew I had no lateral support…if Keith tried to hurt me I was doomed! Ha! Fortunately for me he decided there wasn’t enough snow for a full throttle wrestling match at the finish line so we ran across the finish line together laughing so hard I had to focus not to pee my pants!

Today I found my strength and my stubborn. I wonder if after a long hiatus/injury we question our strength or our resolve to endure…that is why I had to do the 10K! I had to find it again. I will never forget after my shoulder surgery a couple years ago my coach actually told me he thought I wouldn’t “come back.” He thought I was done. Clearly he didn’t know me very well. Just like last time, I had to dig deep and find the stubborn and resolve! I am SOOOOO relieved it is still in there! How much would it suck to train for an Ironman and still wonder if it is in there…