Red Moon Run Recap 2021:

 

Everything in life is training for our next something. Such is running. Each race dedicated is to help improve you as you reach your "A" race. 

I many have gotten a lil carried away with races. I scheduled 3 races in 9 days. This isn't the dumbest thing I have ever done and I can't really say I would do it differently. 

The trick, don't run like a knucklehead. Run Smart. That I can do, sorta. 

RED MOON RUN

Date: Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021

Location: Midland City Forest

Time: 8PM

Distance: 5K and 25K

Company: Melissa, Erin, Andy, Chris 

Terrain: "wide trails (not single track)."  A 5K loop in the woods. 

Andy and I arrived at the course a little after 7pm. Melissa and Erin were there waiting for us and Chris arrived right behind us. 

It was stifling hot, I was trying to be tough about it. It was way too early to start whining, I mean we hadn't even started running! 

I bailed on running the 5k I was signed up to run before the 25k. I thought that was one of my better ideas for the day. 

I followed that idea up with my race plan, a FUN race with little suffering. After all, I did bring a light up tutu, no one would be seriously running in a TUTU?! 

READY SET GO! 

As the National Anthem finished, I quickly turned around grabbed the girls and prayed for a safe race. 

I headed to the front when I heard the race director say "If you are competing you should get in the front because it is a gun start." 

As I took off with the runners I quickly thought, "WHAT are you doing Anita? Your here to have fun, you can't compete you moron, you have a big race next weekend..." 

After about 2 minutes of conversing with my crazy self  I brought my pace down. It was then that Chris caught up to me. 

LAP ONE: 

Chris and I chatted, laughed, encouraged the runners on and discussed our plan. 

Chris and I were on the same page only I was out of breath with a plan that sounded good on the first lap.....26:53 Pace: 8:40.

LAP 2: 3-6 miles. 

It was still light. This was good because I didn't have my headlamp. Melissa was going to bring it out to me after she finished her 10K, that and my skirt! 

The sun was setting fast. A lil too fast. As Chris and I came around a turn in the trail, the roots were tangled across the path. BOOM! Down I went! I was running so fast I didn't have time to think about it, I rolled out of it and bounced back up trying to catch back up.  Just as I settled down the guy in front of us tripped like I have never seen. We asked if he was ok, we slowed down but he told us us he was "Good". Let me just say, I was haunted by the image of that man displayed across the trail. I am pretty positive he was not "GOOD" the way his legs split in half was totally not natural. 

53:13 Pace: 8:34

LAP 3: 6-9 miles.

This is where fear settled in. Chris and I were running pretty strong but I knew I was running TOO fast. "Chris, we are not even half way...." 

"Chris, I had that mile at 8:22..." 

Then BOOM! down I went AGAIN in the same stinking area. By now it was dark out and I was literally falling apart. 

I knew I would see Mellissa with my head lamp and skirt, I just had to stay upright. As we made those gnarly turns Chris pointed them all out for me and navigated me through them. I was hanging a little behind Chris because by now it was black out and I had no light. I stopped at the aid station to get a drink of what I thought was Gatorade and quickly found out it was FireBall. "OH OH, that's not ..." PSST".. I was spitting it out and trying to catch back up with Chris. 

 In the dark, like really dark,  I had a brain fart and remembered I had a flashlight, YEAH! 

"CHRIS and Anita.." we now heard them announce us for the 3rd time and there was Melissa with my skirt and headlamp. 

1:20:20 Pace: 8:38

LAP 4: 9-12 miles

With my skirt in my hand I did a quick change, slipping my legs into the skirt and trying to catch back up to Chris.  

Chris was slowing down a bit making it a little easier for me to locate my "ON" switch to get my skirt to light up. 

I was having anxiety about the last half mile to the loop end. All those knotted, twisting roots waiting to grab me again while all I had was my silly flashlight because I decided not to take my headlamp from Melissa. But I made it without falling!

1:48:18 Pace 8:43

LAP 5: FINSH 

Chris and I had been taking turns leading each other. The entire time we continued cheering for almost every runner. 

The dirt and sand were stuck to the sweat across my legs and back were I fell. My hands were grimy  from my nutrition gel and I was trying not to gag at all the sand in my nails. GROSS. I felt so nasty. 

"Hey, is that rain?" Chris asked. 

And with less than a mile to go the evening sky OPENED UP.  The rain came down so fast that I was blinded with all the sweat dripping in my eyes. It truly was by the grace of GOD I didn't fall. My eyes were stinging so bad and I had nothing dry to wipe them with. I could barely hear Chris trying to direct me over the roots as we closed in on the finish. 

But just like that we heard our names for the last time!

Full Course 2:16:46 Pace 8:49

Chris, me, Andy, Erin and Melissa

I was pretty tired. And so wet. It was such a fun run. I ran a bit faster than I planned. I blamed it on Chris and of course Chris blamed it on me! 

Whoever is to blame it ended up giving me a shocking OVERALL FEMALE AWARD! 

A total surprise! 

My award was awesome. Truth be told, it was a very small field, BUT..Hey, I'll Take it! Thank YOU Dig Deep Races, another incredible event! 

It was GREAT to see Sean, Elisabeth and Will out there. And congrats to Dale who also ran it but I never got to see her! 

Sean and I 

Elisabeth and I 

And the biggest take away....GLORY BE TO GOD. 

Anita~

Jokes on me

 

As I headed out to run, Andy was heading out for work. I shared my route with him lacking motivation. We got into a debate about the distance of my run. 

"It's a 9 mile route..." Andy confidently said. 

"No...it's way farther than that...I replied. 

Both laughing Andy responds, "OK! Let's bet dinner, If I win we get sweet meat tacos..." 

I curled my nose up at his hillbilly version of tacos, "YUCK" I thought to myself. However, I didn't give it much thought because I knew he was going to LOOSE!

The problem with winning this debate is worse than me having to eat nasty sweet meat tacos it was that I would have to run an extra 3 miles when I didn't want to run at all! The joke was on me. 

I ran hoping I was wrong. 

I ran in denial still pacing myself for 9 miles.

I also ran with no nutrition, no gels. 

I kept looking at my watch as my Garmin recorded my mileage closer and closer to 9 miles and farther from home than I wanted. 

I considered quitting but I had no way of getting back home.

I also considered slowing down, finding an alternative route and even stopping my watch and walking it home. 

Today, was my 3rd day running with an accumulation of over 40 miles. 

I was trying to keep sub 9's. It just felt awful. 

I finished my 12 mile run, chuckled to myself about my dinner options and of course texted Andy right away to rub it in. 

And like Andy and Doug both say, its doesn't count unless its on STRAVA! 

(Too bad I have my STRAVA locked down from even Andy!) 

It may seem like a lot of running but it isn't the mileage as much as it is the effort level. 

B2B runs (Back to back) are always followed up by a easy run. 

Saturday I ran 20 miles of trails and followed it up with 9 miles of easy trails and backroads. "If you can't converse during long runs than you are going too fast. Easy days should be 50-75% of the volume you run during other weekday runs" According to Bryon Powell (Relentless Forward Progress) 

I started tapering last week. My weekly mileage: 50miles down over 30 miles! 

This Saturday night is Red Moon run. I registered for the 10k and the 25k like a fool. I think I was a little over zealous. 

My training plan is spot on for a 50K. 

3 weeks out 50 miles.

2 weeks out 43 miles

Enjoy the Little things. 

On N. Holly road is a farm, the Mitchell Farms. This year they planted hundreds of sunflowers surrounding their crops. It  is breathtaking. 

Sunday morning, I was in the area and stopped and took a few photos.

Today, I made it part of my route hoping to take some more photos. The sunflowers tower towards the sun much taller than me. The flowers almost look fake they are so enormous. Rows and rows of these bright yellow and brown blossoms. But today when I ran there, a man was sitting outside the garden. I politely asked if I could take a photo. 

He said "The owners do no want anyone taking photos..." 

"Hmm" I thought to myself. I didn't rat on myself. 

But I stood there, I took a deep breath and smiled. I tried to photograph it to memory it was so impressive. 

I thought about that for a couple miles on my trek back home. Something so beautiful and it couldn't be photographed. Unbeknownst to him I had been by there a couple days prior at 6:30am and snapped a couple photos. 

In my angst running home, I thought about the lil things. The remarkable sunflowers. The thoroughbred  horses eating on the fence line, the eagles nest on the backroads. 

I searched for gratitude in my suffering and found so much joy in my accomplishments. 

I didn't play the "compare" card and make myself pouty or envious of others. I stayed present. I wanted to get discouraged at some of my yesterdays running routines but they are gone and I had to let them go. 

I have to find gratitude in today. In new things. In the present things. 

Like the sunflowers, sometimes we can not take a picture to carry with us, but its memory will always be there. Enjoy the moment. 

Anita~

Your almost there.

  "He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Chad and Mallory ABC 12

There are things in life that make your heart skip a beat. 

Circumstances that make your palms sweat, your pulse quicken and your ears ring. 

There are things that give you anxiety. Things that scare you. 

Most of us try everything to avoid fear, anxiety and for good reason. 

I grew up in a petri dish of fear. The fear that makes you want to throw up. The kind of fear that makes you loose your mind. The kind of fear you cry yourself to sleep and cut yourself in agony. 

But 30 years later, there is just something about that fear, about overcoming it, about fighting against it that you crave. 

Its a love / hate thing. 

I have learned that some of my greatest heartaches can also become my greatest testimonies.

Overcoming Fear. ENCOURAGMENT

Saturday I threw out the idea of running a 6 hour training run. A run that I wouldn't worry about pace or distance, strictly "Time on Feet". 

I had some friends that were running the same course that day and even had Andy and Cristine come out to run as well. 

But they all came and went and I was there still running. 

I wanted to call it in at 5 hours. I was alone, hot and over it. 

Before Andy left he pulled up beside me on Buckhorn Lake road "Anita, you got this, 6 hours, you can get a 50k in, you can practically walk the last bit in...." 

Truth be told, I walked that last mile in. I wanted to quit so bad. 

That evening after running 31 miles, we had tickets to the Aerial Park in Frankenmuth. 

Somewhere a fun glow in the dark night of ziplining turned into a white knuckle black diamond course of extreme heights and obstacles. None of us were having fun. Team Harless decided to do the hardest course. We were all gripped with fear after only the first of several obstacles. As I approached the second obstacle I could barely grasp the rope above my head.  All the blood had left my arms I had clung for dear life. I had to hang from the rope above me and climb my legs in rope loops dangling from the rope above me. Because I am so short I cold barely get my feet into the loops and grip the rope. About 4 loops in I looked down into the darkness. I was so scared they were going to have to rescue me. I put both my arms around the rope above my head and hung there trying to calm down for the next 4 loops ahead of me. "Mom, You got this, your almost there...." Austin was encouraging me at the end of the platform. He was waiting for me. "Austin, It so hard, I don't know...." 

I tried to relax, still shaking I reached my arm out and tried to get my leg out of one loop into the next without getting tangled. 

"Good job mom, your almost there..." Austin coaxed me all the way to the finish. 

I finished the course, I smiled and for a brief second even thought...I would do that again.

Collision:

ABC 12 interviewed me last Thursday. Mallory and Chad met me at Holly Rec to ask my questions about overcoming cancer and running. ABC Interview link

I found myself getting choked up as I recollected how much pain and fear I had to overcome. 

This interview would go out to the masses. 

To those who have their own fear and pain. To a community struggling with their own challenges. 

I am not a lone island. Many, I pray will never have to deal with cancer but many deal with the similar fears that cancer gives birth to. 

Fear and anxiety that make your knees knock like mine did 30 feet in the air. 

Its Life on Lifes terms. Its raising kids, its sickness, its marriage, its bad relationships, it's not being able to pay your bills, its physical abuse, it's addiction, its new environments, mental illness, death, grief and the list goes on. 

"Good Job Mom, your almost there..." 

Its encouraging one another. Its walking a mile in someone else's shoes. Its being compassionate, being tolerant, being KIND. It's seeing the struggle in someone else and letting go of your struggles to help someone else. 

That is what Austin was doing. My big meat head son is stronger than a ox and he was struggling. He was sweating like a stuck pig but he looked beyond his agony, saw mine and encouraged me. 

And when you have no one cheering you on, you are going to have to cheer yourself on. Your going to have to inspire yourself. Cling to all those obstacles in life you have already overcome and use them to inspire you to not give up. 

RUNDOWN:

Monday: 23miles-Time on Feet 5hr : West, Grubers, North; 

Wednesday:10miles

Thursday:15.8miles  Wilderness and CRU

Saturday: 31.3 Time on Feet 6hr : Rose Oaks

Sunday: 7 miles

Total Miles: 83miles

PEAK Week for North Country, 3 weeks out. Again Sunday, I wanted to call it in and rest. But back to back runs are very important in my training. Running on tired legs has been a major element for my ultra training. Andy convinced me to go out with him on Sunday. Every mile Andy said "Your doing great, good job hunny." I couldn't really talk. Andy gave me walk breaks every mile and kept our pace at a 10min/mi. 

And again, you could have rang Andy out he was sweating so bad but rather than think of his own misery, he continued to encourage me. 

Life can be scary. My greatest encouragement comes from the Lord, My ultimate inspiration. 

 Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. — Deuteronomy 31:6

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. –Psalm 23:4

ANITA~