Life is either a daring adventure or nothing: Tahoe Rim Trail 55k

As the Tahoe Rim Trail 55k approached, I knew it wasn’t going to be the race I had originally set out to do. This training cycle was a bit of a mess. I suffered a pretty major flare up of my autoimmune at one point which set me back several weeks; I was barely able to swim and bike let alone do any running. That was May and I didn’t even break 100 miles. After I started to improve from the flare up, I was hit with overwhelming fatigue that I didn’t think was related to the autoimmune and after some labwork, it was discovered my ferritin levels were in the toilet. That cost me another couple of weeks with half-assed training; there was no running and hiking was all I could manage. I only ran 114 miles in June; not what you want when training for a very difficult 55k. I was just starting to get my energy back and feeling better when my foot issue from last year reappeared after an incident while walking our dog. I don’t recommend sprinting in Birkenstocks. My last “run” which was really just power hiking took place June 29^th; there would be no more running, hiking or anything other than some swimming and cycling until race day on July 20^th. Hardly what I could call solid training. But I kept up the cycling in hopes it would maintain some level of fitness so I could at least start the 55k and see what happened. My coach was great in helping me maintain my positive outlook and I found that as race day approached, I had no anxiety or nervousness like I usually experience. I had no expectations of how race day would play out. Admittedly, it was kind of nice J 

Twinning on race day!

My biggest supporter who makes things like this possible for me <3

I didn’t tell anyone that even with the injured foot, I had set some goals for this race. I didn’t even tell my coach. Keeping it to myself was a big deal as I’m an oversharer and like to tell the world what I’m doing…lol. I had no idea how my foot would react to so many miles and hours on race day so I didn’t want to put it out there. My goals were simple: C goal would be to finish under the 17 hour cutoff time/not DNF. B goal would be to finish under 13 hours and I thought this would be my "real" goal. And my A goal, which I didn't think possible, was under 12 hours. I’ve never really thought about DNF’ing a race in the past but it was certainly in the back of my head with this one. My plan was to take it one aid station to the other, rely on my trekking poles for support and just keep moving forward as my foot allowed. I was getting regular massages and having her work on my bad foot while also doing aggressive PT. The foot felt about 65% better on race day and I hit that start line with a positive outlook.

"...and thought she be but little, she is fierce..." 

TRT offers up some serious hills even in the 55k

The starting line at Spooner was filled with electricity, encouragement and an overall feeling of joy. I gave up my bib for this race in 2016 so standing here three years later filled me with an overwhelming sense of gratitude. The first tears of the day were shed. I would later find gratitude in every uphill and downhill of the course, every “great job” from the other runners and every hug from a volunteer. Finding Helena just prior to the start was a gift. I knew from our previous encounter that she was planning to hike most of the race (and that woman is one hell of a hiker, by the way!). So our plan was to stick together until we hit Hobart, check to see how we were feeling and take it one aid station at a time. As we crossed the start line, I tried out running to see how the foot was feeling. North Canyon Road is pretty flat and goes for almost a mile so it was a good opportunity to see how running affected it. I can’t say there was NO pain but it was very minimal. This gave me hope that I might actually be able to finish the race but I also knew I needed to rein it back in for now. I would later find out that running wasn't going to happen. As we hit the start of the first incline/hill, I slowed to a fast walk. We had many miles to go and running up to Marlette would be stupid. Chatting with Helena as we hiked up the singletrack, I watched my friend Sandra disappear. I had a feeling she would be gone fairly early in the race so it wasn’t a big deal. She was so well trained for this race and so well prepared; I knew she would have a great day.

A few miles later, we hit the lake and turned right towards the climb up to Hobart. Stopped for our first bathroom break and I saw folks had their poles out already (the race instructions said not to use poles until the Hobart AS). Helena said that one of the race folks the day prior had said it was fine at that point since the road opened up and it was no longer singletrack. I knew my poles would be my saving grace so I removed them from my quiver and got going. We hit Hobart and I was immediately offered a shot….lol. I politely declined but said I would love a shot of Coca Cola! Then this guy showed up...hahaha. Thankfully, there was no need for Mr. Blister Buster this early in the race. 

We had a few snacks then headed out for the climb up to the Marlette Saddle. The views were amazing and at this point, I shed a few more tears of gratitude and joy. How lucky and blessed I was to be doing this! I was so thankful that I didn’t take a DNS for this race. I would have been robbed of this beauty. Helena and I were having a great time getting to know each other and the runner in front of us was chuckling at our stories. We came around the corner and were hiking up the ridgeline when we saw the race photographer. Helena yelled back for me to come up so we could get a photo together. I scurried up the trail and we struck a pose for the camera with Marlette and Tahoe in the background. Shortly after this, we hit our first patch of snow. Hard to believe it was July and we were having to trek over decent size fields of snow. It made for a gorgeous contrast – the green trees, blue skies and then blinding white snow.

Washoe Lake off in the distance; it was neat to see from a different perspective

The next section was a gradual downhill into Tunnel Creek. I was enjoying the downhill but my brain registered quickly that it meant we would be coming back UP this later. It was here we encountered the first leaders of the 55k. Very cool to see these fast men and women pass by like it was nothing. Helena and I joked that you could tell the fast folks – they didn’t carry hardly anything. One guy passed by with a small handheld and bag of Cheez-Its. That was it…lol. As we got closer to Tunnel Creek, you could hear the party atmosphere. And it was definitely a party! Tons of tents, volunteers, food, drink, ice, cheers, signs and spectators. I was offered snacks by this young man who was volunteering J

It was time to head down to Red House. Yay! I remember thinking how bummed I was that I couldn’t fly down the hill. One of my favorite parts of trail running is bombing down hills and especially ones that are a little technical. There were sections of rocky areas that required your full attention. But I was trying to nurse the foot and didn’t want to piss it off so I was conservative. I remember seeing the faces of the folks coming UP the hill and chuckling because I knew that would be us in a bit. Definitely a climb! It was at this point my friend Katie texted me to see how I was doing. I was touched that she was reaching out to see how my foot was holding up. That meant a lot to me.

Two ginger runners - it's been a pleasure to train with her this year

Right about here I am trying not to think about what lives in this water....lol

We hit the bottom of Red House and after going through this eerie section that was a bit overgrown, the trail opened up. Up next was a big, muddy watercrossing. On the sides of the mudhole, you could avoid most of the water but what is the fun in that?? Helena and I charged through the water and it was here I picked up a hitchhiker on my leg – a leech! Ick. I screamed and whacked it with my pole which flung it off into the bushes. The next water crossing was much prettier; it was a clear and cold creek. It felt great on my feet. We then tucked in behind the only other person on the trail, a gentleman from Auburn. Helena and I were hiking along, chatting when all of a sudden, the man stopped and yelled “BEAR!!”. I started looking up the hillside in both excitement and terror. No bear. Then I realized the bear was on the trail in front of us! Oh crap. And it was a cub. A young one. While I was really excited at seeing a bear so close up, I was also nervous about where momma was hiding. All three of us were clapping our heads and yelling at the bear but he just stood there, staring at us. It wasn’t until we made forward progress that he suddenly bolted down the hillside. Very cool experience on the trail! 

Truth in advertising....lol

We came around the bend to see Red House….woohoo!!!! This was almost halfway through the race and so far, my foot pain was a steady 2-3 out of 10 which was really manageable. Helena wanted to change her socks so while she did that, the volunteers cooked up a quesadilla for me and I washed it down with a cold Coke. Best tasting quesadilla ever! The theme of Red House was disco and I didn’t hesitate to take a photo with the volunteers.

It was kind of weird to see this big AS out in the middle of nowhere; Red House feels very isolated. We headed out after probably 8-10 minutes (yes, I was spending a fair amount of time at the aid stations….lol). Once we hit the nasty climb out of Red House, I was anxious to get back to Tunnel Creek. This would be about 18 miles or so into the race and the home stretch. I wanted food, ice in my sports bra and a hug from the volunteers. The climb out of Red House sucks. No way around it. It’s steep and it got warm. I’m pretty proud of how fast we made it out of there. It was just one foot in front of the other while keeping my head down. I didn’t want to see how much farther up we had to go! When we started to hear the noise from Tunnel Creek, I was elated. We were almost there!

Tunnel Creek AS

We hit the AS and I realized I hadn’t finished my one flask of fuel that was supposed to be consumed by the time we hit Tunnel. So I quickly finished it up and then poured my concentrated Infinit into the flask and had the volunteers top me off. My fueling system was working great; I will be using it for any future ultras. I nailed my calorie intake; I never had any nausea or feelings of hitting a wall. I felt really good, both physically and mentally despite the nagging foot pain. We headed out of Tunnel Creek and it was a relief to see this sign.

So happy to see this sign!

The climb back to Hobart was a long one and we took it mile by mile. Loved seeing all the strong 50 milers and 100 milers passing by with smiles and encouragement. About a couple miles out of Tunnel Creek, my foot pain suddenly became worse. While I was a little disheartened, I was also grateful that it waited until miles 20-21. I started to really use that left pole heavily to keep as much weight off my left foot as possible. This worked well until I developed some awesome muscle spasms on the left side of my back from leaning so much on that pole. It hurt to take breaths with the spasms. We stopped for a few minutes while I tried to get my back to relax. As long as I didn’t use my left pole, my back felt better. But that led to worsening foot pain. Oh well, we really were in the home stretch. I knew if we could get to Hobart, I could finish regardless of how crappy I felt.

Helena leading the way

We hit Hobart AS feeling good. I loved seeing my PT and his wife (who is also a physical therapist) Tammie there. It definitely gave me a second wind. So did the hugs, smiles and encouragement from them. I decided to switch out my socks at this point and add more lube to my feet. I had been putting more weight on my right foot to baby my left foot and it was resulting in extra friction that I’m not used to. Peeled off the Injinjis, slathered my feet with generous amount of Squirrels Nut Butter then slipped on my Balegas for the remaining 10 miles. Sitting felt wonderful and I didn’t want to leave Hobart….lol. We were there for probably 10 or 15 minutes; I wasn’t kidding when I said we spent a lot of time hanging out at the aid stations! Tammie had to shoo me out of there. More tears of happiness fell as I said to her “I’m going to finish this thing!! My foot is killing me but I don’t even care anymore…I’m going to finish and maybe even under 12 hours”. 

Approaching the Snow Valley Peak AS

Climbing to Snow Valley Peak was gorgeous!! I didn’t even mind the uphill at all and it was actually a lot less steep than I had anticipated. The views were breathtaking once we got up there. We stopped for a few minutes to take some photos and just soak in all the scenery. As we headed down the slope to the aid station run by the Boy Scouts, they came up to greet us and take our flasks. I enjoyed their aid stations a lot! It was nice to see so many young men and women volunteering their time on a Saturday to help keep us moving along. We left Snow Valley and I knew at that point that no matter how bad the foot got, we were going to cross the finish line.

Boys Scouts of America Volunteers

As we started the descent to Spooner, I was again hit with a feeling of sadness that I couldn’t run down that section. It was exactly the kind of trail I enjoyed flying down. I did try to run at that point but didn’t get far before my foot reminded me it wasn’t happening. I won’t lie – that section to Spooner was ridiculously long and after a while, my mind was over it. I wanted to be done. My body felt great (aside from the foot) but mentally, I was ready to see the tent at the finish line. Helena had to use the restroom again so while she darted off trail, I sat down for a few minutes. I texted my husband to find out where Sandra was at and if she had finished. He said she finished a few minutes prior. I wanted to know exactly what the mileage was on the race since I had seen so many different stats; her and I had the same Garmin. He texted back “34.6” and my heart sank. While I hadn’t told anyone what my goals were, my “A” goal was under 12 hours and I had been doing calculations based on a 33.5-34 mile race. Crap. That meant we had over 4 miles still to go. Ugh.

We quickly got moving after I told Helena about my goal time. She encouraged me and said we were going to accomplish it. That last aid stations took FOREVER to appear and when it did, the volunteer running it said it was 1.7 miles to the finish (I would find out later on it was closer to 1.5 miles but still a looooong way to go after hours of hiking). I looked at my Garmin and didn’t think there was any way I could cover that distance in the amount of time I had left. I didn’t even stop to fill up my flask even though I was completely out of water at that point. I didn’t have time. So dying of thirst a little….lol….we took off, hiking as fast as we could. There is one point in this last stretch where you see the tent on the right but you veer off to the left. All I kept thinking was “NO!!!! We need to go back that other way!!” I hadn’t come all this way to miss my goal by mere minutes. Helena asked if I could run; I said I would try. I was hobbling along with 30 second intervals of what resembled running before the pain in my foot would get too bad and then we power hiked. I’ve never walked so fast before in my life. We came into the finishers chute and I was crying, both from gratitude and pain. I crossed the finish line in 11:56 and was in disbelief that I WALKED 35.1 miles in that amount of time. I had said earlier in the week that if I came in under 13 hours, I would be ecstatic. So to get a sub 12 hour finish time on an injured foot and walking….that was more than I ever could have hoped.

Still a bit surreal that I earned this plaque

For years now, my mantra has been Grit, Gratitude and Grace. I finished the Tahoe Rim Trail 55k with all three - grit in getting it done, gratitude for the experience and ability to even be out there and grace for myself in that it wasn't the race I originally wanted. Ironically enough, I am actually thankful for how it turned out because I was able to really enjoy every minute out there and not be so focused on "racing" it. My actual moving time was at least an hour less than my overall time because of the chatting with volunteers at aid stations, stopping for tons of photos and pausing frequently to just appreciate what was in front of me. I sincerely would not change a thing that took place on race day. Grateful for every step that moved me forward through 35 miles of beauty, camaraderie and community. While I savor this experience and reflect on the past weekend, my mind is already wandering to what's ahead. I told my coach that the mountains seem different now, as though they are a part of me. And her response "those mountains are a part of you now. And you are a part of them". She is so very right. 

Donner Lake Olympic Triathlon, the Sequel. Spoiler alert - I didn't cry this time! lol

I wasn’t supposed to be doing triathlons this year. And I definitely hadn’t planned on coming back to Donner until next year. But as fate would have it, the universe placed me in a position to be able to get a little revenge on the course that taught me about what determination was back in 2015. And how when we aren’t physically able to do something, our brain kicks in and gives us that mental push. When I did the Donner Olympic three years ago, I had signed up on a whim. I thought since I was swimming as cross training for my marathon, it was a slam dunk to do an Olympic triathlon. I mean, I was swimming 2000 yards twice a week in the pool and had cycled exactly twice, 20 miles at a time on flat road. Made sense, right? This is how irrational I am – my only other triathlon had been in 2013 and was a sprint. I hadn’t done once since. But I like to do stupid things from time to time so I hit “register”. How bad could it be? Then I spoke with a coworker who had done this race in the past. Her eyes got wide and she said to me, “you know that bike course is a killer, right?”. My heart dropped into my stomach. She was a very experienced cyclist who loved to ride hills. If she thought it was tough, I was probably going to die. Well, I didn’t die and you can read my race report a few pages back on my blog ;-)

Saturday before the start of the sprint w/hubby, a newbie triathlete

Back to the present year….I had hurt my foot in December at work and just as my foot was feeling better, I injured my knee rock climbing. The entire first six months of the year was shot in terms of what I had planned, running-wise; I was doing a LOT of swimming and cycling while my foot was rehabbing. I could swim and cycle without any issues but running was another story. So, I decided to register for Big Blue Adventure's Donner Lake triathlon and originally was going to do the aquabike – this race had been haunting me for three years and I knew I needed to get back on the mountain for a little redemption. I wasn’t trained for the swim and I definitely wasn’t trained for the run; my only goal was to best my bike time from 2015 (which wouldn’t be very hard; I am embarrassed to say what my time was that year….lol). Having done Coeur d’Alene 70.3 and thoroughly enjoying the hilly bike course there, I was ready to challenge myself at Donner. The icing on the cake is that my husband decided the Donner sprint would be his first triathlon. He’s not a triathlete and has always been in the gym, throwing around heavy weights. So I was thrilled when he decided this was his year to find out why I liked this triathlon gig. So I was able to support him at his race on Saturday, where he placed 2^nd in the Clydesdale division and then I was able to race on Sunday with him supporting me.

The most fun I've had in the swim at a triathlon

We were having fires in the area and I was worried about the air quality but it was a beautiful day for the sprint and I was hoping for the same on Sunday. It looked good out when we started the swim. I have to say…this was the best swim I’ve ever had. Not time-wise (I swam WAY off course and did an extra few hundred yards….lol). But I felt great and never had any anxiety. I have huge open water anxiety and it’s taken me a very long time to even be able to swim in something other than a pool. I was super relaxed and chill for the swim which set up me up for a good time on the bike, mentally. As I headed out of T1 and towards the road that would take me up 1000ft in the first few miles, I was grinning like a fool. Three years ago, I was so anxious and not enjoying myself at all – that’s what not training at all for an extremely challenging triathlon like Donner will do to you mentally. But this year was so different. I threw it in my easy gear and just spun my way up the mountain. I didn’t kill myself going up the hill and ended up hitting the summit about 20 minutes faster than three years ago. 

On my way up the mountain, feeling good! 

Then came the fun part – hauling ass down towards Kingsvale and Soda Springs. In no time at all, I was at the turn around. Donner is truly a gorgeous course and there is very minimal traffic on the open part of the course (they close Donner Pass road for the race). I was having a great time taking in the trees and fresh air that I didn’t even mind all the climbing back to the summit. It’s funny because you would think the first few miles going up Donner Pass from the lake are the toughest but I really think it’s the back end of that course. It’s a sleeper; you don’t realize what a grind it is until you are past the turn around and heading back towards the lake. Once I hit the summit, it was time to fly. This is what I had been waiting for – I’ve been working on my descending skills for a while now and today was a chance to open it up and have a little fun. Before I knew it, I was at the foot down stop – they have you come to a complete stop at the bottom of the mountain and put a foot down. This is for safety purposes as the road you cross is open to traffic and most riders are coming down that hill at a high rate of speed. My top speed down the mountain was around 40mph and I actually got into the top 20-25 on Strava in that segment (big deal for this back of the packer girl!). I remember passing my husband and laughing while telling him I killed the bike course (I think I beat my 2015 time by over 20 minutes).

The most fun you can have with your clothes on ;-) 

The run at Donner is great! It’s a lap around Donner Lake which is really pretty. It’s mostly flat except for the backside which has one monster hill then a few rolling hills. I was very familiar with the run course as I had done a few laps around it while training for my first marathon. The hardest part is running through the campground where folks are BBQ’ing and lounging around in the water – so tempting to stop and join them! The smoke from area fires had started to creep in by that time and it was affecting my breathing a little not to mention I had to walk most of the run because of my knee and foot. But I had already prepared myself for that so I was in no hurry. I had a few runners pass me and compliment me on my bike descent down the hill. That was nice to hear – I’m a fairly new cyclist and have worked hard at getting comfortable on the bike. As I came into the finish, I was so happy to see that I took 17 minutes off my previous time. Even better was how I felt. When I did Donner last time, I was totally wrecked and crushed. It was the hardest race I had ever done, marathon and 50k included. So coming back and feeling as good as I did was my ultimate goal. Especially since I wasn’t trained for open water swimming and I had to walk the run portion.

Post race, it was time for food and drink. I don’t drink so hubby got my free beer which he was happy about….lol. Everyone kind of hangs out at the beach on the grass and enjoys the beautiful Sierra sun. I always tell everyone if you are looking for a challenging triathlon in an amazing location, you can’t go wrong with Donner. It’s a terrific destination race; I just happen to be lucky enough to be local. I've raced quite a few events with Big Blue Adventures and have never been disappointed. Whether it was a trail run, a triathlon or a road race....Big Blue's races are some of my most favorites. 

Turning lemons into lemonade. Or turning asphalt into dirt :-)

Photo credit: Scott Rokis photography 

Since the trajectory of 2018 had to change due to the foot acting up, I decided what better time than to revisit something I love……trails. My goals of training for and racing a 5k, 10k and half marathon through the first six months of the year had to be scrapped. I was just grateful to get in whatever miles I could without my foot barking at me. The logical thing to do when you are not trained past 8 miles and haven’t been on trails/hills in two years? Sign up for a half marathon (which you know will NOT be a half marathon distance because Kevin’s races never are) that has over 2500ft of elevation gain. I did get my coach to sign off on it and I knew better than to have any expectations from this race. I would consider it a power hiking excursion more than anything. I also didn’t know how the foot would behave. I had run 8 miles without any pain in the foot but anything longer was the unknown. So as race day approached, I braced myself for the possibility that I would spend the time after 8 miles dealing with an angry foot. That was a bit of unknown that had me a little worried.

We would be running just below that snowy section

Another wrench that was being thrown into things was the weather. Trail races pretty much always go on, rain or shine. The forecast was predicting cooler temps (40’s) with pretty high winds, gusting up to 50-60mph along the ridgeline. Which is where I would be running. Fun times. So I snagged the appropriate outer layer on Running Warehouse, (a Salomon that performed beautifully) and prepared myself for whatever Mother Nature would throw at me. There were so many DNS’s for that race, it was crazy. There were at least 10 of them and only 13 finishers, yours truly being one of them. If there is one thing I've learned from the years of working with my coach, it's to not let bad weather scare you (unless there is lightning; I respect that and stay indoors). So why let a little cold, a little rain and a lot of wind deter me from a fun morning on the trails? 

Photo credit: Scott Rokis photography

Trudging up the muddy trail in the first few miles

I had forgotten the rude uphill section for the first 5-6 miles of this race. It’s definitely a power hiking section. I was trying to keep my average pace for the entire race under 17:30 so I knew that I had to at least slog my ass uphill at a decent hiking pace to even things out for the back half. I stopped to take a lot of photos and just enjoy the morning. Ash Canyon is so very pretty and that morning was no different. There was a decent amount of mud on the way up but once to the top, the trail was in pretty good condition. Some patches of snow here and there but otherwise, a clear trail where I could actually get to a running speed.

Some of the melted snow forming a little creek

Funny story. Anyone who knows me knows how terrified I am of mountain lions. So I was in last place, all by myself out there and just trying to push aside any thought of big cats. I was heading up a series of switchbacks when all of a sudden, I heard this crashing noise like something coming through all the sagebrush on the side of the mountain. I let out a blood curdling scream as my entire life flashed before my eyes as I thought “this is it….it’s a mountain lion barreling down the hillside to attack me” (I’m so dramatic). I dared to glance up and saw not an animal but a huge log rolling towards me down the hill. The wind had managed to push a felled tree down the slope. I sped up just as it rolled into the trail behind me. I remember breathing a sigh of relief as I kept running then looking around to see if anyone had witnessed my ridiculous performance. So silly. But it did reinforce why I don’t wear earbuds while I run – being vigilant and aware of my surroundings helps keep me safe.

The section where a felled tree almost took me out

Beautiful views of Carson City down below 

As I headed down the switchbacks on the backside of the course, I was thrilled. I was making good time and knew I would be able to hit my goal of a 17:30 pace. Not being trained for hills and trails, my knees and hips were definitely mad at me BUT there was no foot pain at all. I kept waiting for it to come and it never did. My foot felt fabulous. I passed up one runner so I was no longer DFL and then as I hit the last big hill (who in the hell puts a hill at mile 12 or so of a half marathon??), I passed up a young man who was looking like he bit off more than he could chew. Anyone who signs up for Kevin’s races should just assume it will be hilly AF and always, always longer than whatever it says. I’ve learned the hard way…..lol. I hit the top of the hill and then almost got knocked off my feet by the wind gusts in the meadow (I later found out they were having 50mph wind gusts down below so I know they were at least that strong).

The last hill to climb, around mile 12 

As I headed down the last set of switchbacks, I looked at my Garmin and was so happy to see my time. I would be finishing in under 4 hours which was my goal for this race. Had I been trained, my goal time would have been much more aggressive but I was pleased with how I was feeling at this point. I crossed the street and hit the last ¼ mile section on the bike path then saw my husband and son at the finish line. It was great to see their faces after spending almost four hours alone with nothing but my own thoughts (haha). My time was 3:45:43 and the distance was 14.3 – that averages out to 15:47/mile. The course ended up having over 2800ft of elevation gain. I beat my goal by almost two minutes per mile and was still upright….woohoo!! And I had just run over 6 miles longer than my longest run in months and months. Not a peep from the foot. All was right with the world.

Literally up the side of a mountain :-)

Photo credit: Scott Rokis Photography

After I got home, I started thinking about how much I had missed trails. I wanted more dirt, more hills, more trails. And I would end up getting that over the next few weeks. Suddenly, my spring went from racing short distance road races to signing up for races that were way outside my comfort zone….at least at this point in my running where I had been solely on flat roads for a couple of years. But doesn’t the saying go “growth happens outside our comfort zone”? Or something like that.....more to come ;-) 

My kiddo meeting me at the finish line