State #36, Run With The Horses, Green River, WY, 8/19/17, Part 2

Race morning I was awake before the alarm I had set for 5:00 am. I was up nearly every hour throughout the night due to nerves and all the water I had been having since arriving in Wyoming. It is crucial to stay hydrated in the dry, desert, high altitude surroundings here. I did my best to get ready without disrupting my family, but in one small hotel room, that proved to be pretty impossible. The noise from the microwave heating up coffee and water for my oatmeal was so loud in the pre-dawn hours. I felt bad that I was waking them up in such an annoying way. 

Pre-dawn selfie in the car on the way to the start with my gang!

We all had to get up anyway to get to the start. I’m so grateful to my family for making these sacrifices for me when we are away on vacation. It isn’t easy, I know.

Start/finish line for the race.

We made it to the starting line area of the race at Expedition Island Park in Green River. It is a small parcel of land in the middle of the Green River with a nice little park there. A small crowd of runners gathered just prior to the start at 6:30 am to hear the safety rules from the race director. He cautioned us to stay on the sidewalks while in the town area to remain safe from traffic, and (a first for me) told us to be aware of rattlesnakes while up in the horse country. Rattlesnakes??!! Yikes!! What in the world was I in for? 

Green River at Expedition Island Park.

Rattlesnake warning from race director.

We stepped off promptly at 6:30 am. I realized right away that I was having trouble starting the GoPro camera strapped to my head, so as I started, I ran over to my husband and asked him to hit the start button. Starting line blip! 

Running to Craig to get help with the GoPro.

We then continued on with a loop through the park area that led us out to the immediate neighborhood and up on to the main road toward where my hotel was. 

Problem fixed! Off and running.

This first two miles of the race was mostly flat, although a couple of cross-sections went slightly uphill. It wasn’t too bad though. We took the turn for Wild Horse Canyon Road, which brought us off the main drag and up to the start of “the hill.” Basically this next stretch was about 5 miles of a steep climb in to the high desert plateau. Although my test run the day before went pretty well, I knew I wouldn’t be able to sustain a strong pace through this part. My goal was to just run as much as I could and take walk breaks when needed. 

I ran under the underpass at the beginning of the road and could see my hotel up ahead, along with the first water station. As I got closer to the hotel, I could see Craig and the girls there taking pictures and cheering for me. I gave them a wave and some high fives and kept on going. 

High-five power!

I was hoping to make it up to the 10K turnaround point without stopping, but I fell short of that goal and had to walk sooner. I walked just enough to catch my breath and then started to run again. The next mile or so I kept in this way, and then I decided to try a stronger strategy. I knew I wouldn’t have a PR on this race, but I also wanted to run more than walk. So I started counting 100 running steps followed by 50 walking steps. I maintained this pattern for most of the climb up until things leveled out and became more “rolling” hills at the plateau. It worked pretty well, as I never ended up feeling completely beat up. 

[Hoping to add some of the GoPro footage here...check back later, as I need more time to find the right clip(s) and format.]

I caught up with a man probably around the 4 mile mark who was wearing this year’s Flying Pig Marathon t-shirt. We Right at about this point we came upon the wild horses grazing next to the road. We both remarked that this was the show we were hoping for. There were the horses…just as the race had advertised. Well done, race director!

We chatted for awhile as we climbed the final bit of steep hill and began on the “rolling” hills of the plateau. He was from Cincinnati and was working on completing full marathons in all 50 states. Wyoming was number 45 for him. We chatted about the Flying Pig and our families. He had two grown daughters ages 25 and 29, one of whom had just gotten married. We talked for probably about a mile and a half or so, and then I pulled ahead of him.

I knew the turn around point for the half was coming up fairly soon, based on the drive we did a couple of days ago and judging by the runners who had turned and passed me on the way back. I couldn’t help but notice that there weren’t very many people ahead of me based on those who had come by, and it also seemed that the women I’d seen were all quite a bit younger than me. At this point I was thinking that even though I’d been running fairly slow for my standards, I might have a chance of placing in my age category (40-49). I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but I tucked the idea in the back of my head, pledging to do my best on the downhill return to Expedition Island Park. 

I made my turn at the top of the plateau, and then took off running! The wind was in my face on the way down, but I didn't mind, as I was pretty hot and sweaty at this point. I took off my windbreaker and tied it around my waist. The cool air helped dry me off, and it felt really nice.The downhill portion of the run was of course easier in many ways, but running downhill on a gravel road was tricky at times, too. I had to be careful to keep myself from slipping on the rocks, and I had to avoid potholes, large rocks, horse manure and other minor obstacles. Mostly, though, I was making good time and knew I’d have a negative split for this race. I took water at all the aid stations on the way back down, but didn’t stop running…just grabbed and ran on. 

The run down provided interesting perspective. The view on the way down was just of the desert canyon, very much tan all the way. It almost felt like running on another planet because all I could see were the tan canyon walls and parts of the winding road. I couldn’t see around the corners, so each section was very secluded. It wasn’t until I was pretty close to the bottom that I could catch a glimpse of civilization below. Before I knew it, I was back at my hotel with only 2 miles to go. 

I made my way back to the main road and in to the town and neighborhood areas of Green River. I ran though the park and across the finish line at a time of 2:15:00. I met my family, and we took a walk around the park as I caught my breath and stretched my legs. 

Crossing the finish line.

The woman at the finish line who gave me my finisher’s medal mentioned that my results would be available on a card in a few moments from a man who was printing them out. When he handed it to me, I couldn’t believe it…I had come in first in my age category! My first first-place age group finish! Holy moly! And I thought this would be my worst race ever due to the hills and altitude. I was thrilled! I presented my time card to the lady at the finish line and she gave me a golden horseshoe as my age group trophy. Cool!

Age group win!

I walked around with my family some more and stretched out while the kids played on some swings. We eventually made our way back to the hotel so I could shower up, then we hit the road. We stopped midway to Jackson in a small town called Pinedale where we had lunch at a local brewery called Wind River. We celebrated my win with burgers and beers. 

Brewery stop in Pinedale. WY.

Race shirt, number, finisher's medal and first place age group  golden horseshoe award.

This was just the start of our trip, and it was already so awesome! The rest of our vacation was to center around Teton Village in Jackson Hole with sightseeing in Teton National Park and Yellowstone. Thank you, Wyoming, for a fantastic race and great memories! The Run with the Horses race is worth the trip and the experience. 

Teton mountain range when we got to Jackson after the race. So beautiful.

State #36, Run With The Horses, Green River, WY, 8/19/17, Part 1

We arrived in Wyoming on Wednesday (Sounds like the title of a Magic Tree House book, doesn’t it?). We flew into Jackson Hole, and right away we knew we were in the west. The view of the mountains from the airport were gorgeous, and we snapped a few photos before we went on our way. We needed to get to a town called Green River for the marathon, and that was approximately 3 hours from the airport. Onward we went! 

View of the Tetons at the Jackson Hole airport.  

Antler arch at the airport.

The town of Jackson was so much fun to drive through though. There are all kinds of restaurants and shops, including a deli (Creekside) that is owned by relatives of good friends of ours. We will stop back there when we had back to the area after the race is over. 

Once out of Jackson Hole, the drive to Green River was long and fairly desolate. We left the mountains behind and made our way out to the high desert. The topography was grassy and polka dotted with low, scrubby desert brush. 

Convenience store we stopped at on the way to Green River. Too funny!

Our hotel in Green River was a Hampton Inn nestled in the wild horse loop area of the town. The hotel was at the base of a large hill that led in to the high desert lands. Large painted rocks surrounded the hotel area, and we couldn’t wait to do some exploring around them. I was grateful to arrive on a Wednesday so that I would have a couple of days to try to acclimate to the higher altitude. I learned from my race in Colorado that the thin air at high altitude was no joke while trying to run a half marathon. This race in Wyoming promised to be similar per the warnings posted on the race website. I was concerned, but figured I’d just plug along slowly and do the best I could. This wasn’t going to be a PR race. 

Painted rocks directly behind our hotel.

More views of the rocks next to the hotel.

After settling in to the hotel, we had dinner at a local spot and ended up turning in pretty early. The travel had been long and tiring for all of us.

The next day, we took a drive along the Wild Horse Loop road, which was the same road I’d be running in the race. In fact, right in front of our hotel and at the base of the giant hill was the sign marking mile 2. We drove up into the hills of the high desert to check out the difficulty of the route and to hopefully spy some of the wild horses. Our drive didn’t disappoint. We came across three different herds of wild horses and saw some amazing scenery along the way. 

View from the top of the race route looking down over Green River.

Wild horses in the area along the route.

Periodically along the side of the road were historical markers that told the story of the history of Green River and information about the topography and horses. It was a breathtaking route, and we stopped many times to take photos and read the various placards. 

Views from the top of the plateau.

Pilot Butte off in the distance.

Green River off in the distance.

We could even see Pilot Butte off in the distance, a formidable sight. I snapped some shots of the amazing views to post on the blog so I wouldn’t have to stop mid-race. What a fun adventure! The horses were stunningly beautiful. 

Desert sagebrush.

More views from the high plateau. 

And more wild horses!

Pilot Butte, closer view. Now that's a big butte!

After the drive, we did a few errands for mostly food supplies so we could make sandwiches back at the hotel for lunch. Our hotel had a nice patio in the back that looked out on to the rocks and hills. It was a great spot to hang out. We relaxed over lunch and then decided it was time to take a hike up in to the rocks and hills. It would be a fun activity for all of us and a good way for me to gauge my breathing in the altitude. We ended up walking for about an hour and a half, and that was pushing the limit of our youngest. She was fading fast on those high desert trails, and the only thing we could get her to do to keep going was to promise she could add rocks to the cairns along the trail and to let her start some new ones of her own. The walk down was much easier, and I spied a rock with a fossil on it as we descended! That really make our littlest one very happy. Everyone was happy in the end.

Hiking behind our hotel.

After freshening up, we headed out to dinner at a local brewery, Bitter Creek. The food was great and the atmosphere was fun (much better atmosphere than the restaurant we went to the first night). Our waiter, Drew, was very friendly and full of personality. It made for a delightful night out for dinner. We turned in early again after all the hiking and horse excitement. 

Friday morning after breakfast, I decided to try to do a test run up the hill a bit to see how my breathing felt. My husband took the kids to the pool, and I set my phone timer for 20 minutes, figuring I didn’t want to overdo it the day before the race, but I really felt like I needed some practice. I started out in front of the hotel, and while running up hills isn’t really my favorite thing, it wasn’t so bad. I was parched; probably a bit dehydrated despite the fact that I’d been trying to drink lots of water. (Note to self…pound more water in the desert!) Some parts of the hill were steeper than others, and I was able to run without stopping almost the whole 20 minutes. I had to stop just before I hit the 20 minute mark to walk and recapture my breath. Once I turned around, I felt great! Downhill was fine. In fact, I ended up running past my hotel to the end of the road for about an extra half mile. I finished with 4.25 miles clocked on my RW:GO app. Better than I thought, and breathing wasn’t as hard as it was in Colorado. At least now I had a sense of what I was in for. 

The rest of the day we spent taking a trip out to the Flaming Gorge/Red Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah. The drive out to Utah from Green River was largely desolate desert views, but once we arrived at the gorge, the vistas were unbelievable! All along the drive up to the top of the gorge, there are signs that inform you of various scientific and/or land facts in the areas you drive through. We saw signs announcing that the oldest fossils in Utah were found in a particular area, or that dinosaur prints were widely found or ancient shark species or ancient sand dunes. It was really mind boggling to soak in all the information about the area surrounding us. Our kids were amazed. We stopped once on the way up the gorge to snap some photos. What views!

Flaming Gorge as we drove up.

Another view along the drive.

We arrived at the visitor’s center at the top of the gorge, had a quick lunch in the car and then set out to hike the Canyon Rim trail at Red Canyon. The views of the gorge from here were sublime. The recreation area below in the gorge was created when the Flaming Gorge Dam was built on the Green River. Far below we could see boats and some folks tubing in the water. We hiked the rim trail which was largely flat but a bit rocky and uneven. The area surrounding us was a campground, so periodically we would see campsites or tents, but largely it wasn’t crowded at all. What a beautiful, unspoiled place to visit. We cut our hike a little short because the kids were getting hot and tired. 

View of the gorge from our hike on the rim trail. So incredible!

Topography of the top of the canyon in the campground. 

On our drive home, we took a different route that brought us by the Flaming Gorge Dam. It was cool to show the kids what it looked like and to talk about how hard it must have been to build. The dam was built to help Utah, but apparently it was very unpopular with Wyoming because it affected water flow on the Green River. One of the first explorers of the Green River area was John Wesley Powell who gave Flaming Gorge its name. The drive out was long, but the scenery and learning made it totally worth it. 

Flaming Gorge Dam on the lake side.

Flaming Gorge Dam on the Green River side.

Returning to Green River, we stopped so I could get my morning Starbucks coffees (and some treats for the family) before heading over to pick up my race number. The race registration and pick up took place at Expedition Island in Green River, right on the river. There was a park and playground nearby, so the kids were excited that they’d have something to do race morning while I was running. After that, we headed back to the hotel to relax and change for dinner. We ate the Coyote Steakhouse in Rock Springs, the next town over from Green River. We had a nice meal, and our waitress told us about another place in town called Cowboy Donuts where she also happened to work. Craig and the kids pledged to see her the next morning at the donut shop. 

Back at the hotel, we did our best to pack up our things so we would be ready for check out after the race. I gathered all my race necessities for the morning, and despite our early bedtime, I tossed and turned all night and had a terrible sleep. Not what I was hoping for, but what can you do?

Next up: Wyoming!

Wow! Summer is flying by. It is unbelievable that the first week of August is already over. Where do the days go? As much as the running in the first part of July was difficult due to the heat and humidity here in CT, these last couple of weeks have been really nice. Cooler mornings feel wonderful, and for some of my afternoon runs, cloud cover has been plentiful. Both circumstances are a welcome relief from the higher temps earlier in the summer. 

I am gearing up for my next half, the Run with the Horses in Wyoming. I’ve been pretty worried about this one. This trip was planned with the focus on catching the full solar eclipse heading to the U.S. in August. The race was second priority. I don’t know that I would have chosen this race if it weren’t for the timing of the eclipse. I suspect I would’ve gone with a larger race like the one in Jackson Hole or Yellowstone; however the description on the race website has me excited to run in what I suspect will be stunning (if difficult) terrain.

The race site cautions runners to the difficulty of the race, and it seems that only about 150-200 runners compete in the combined collection of races (full, half and 10k). The race takes place at elevation, starting at approximately 6100 feet and rising about 1400 feet or so before the turn around to head back down. Certainly not a course for the faint of heart. I usually try to avoid hilly courses, but this being the race that coincided with the eclipse, I just have to deal with it. 

It will be a slow go for sure for me, especially after the difficulty I experienced in Colorado in the altitude…and that was on a downhill course! I’m just going to take it slow and keep my legs moving. Taking a look at results from last year, the winning female finished in just under 2 hours, so I expect to be a fair chunk beyond that. (Originally I thought the first place female for the half finished in 3 hours which scared me to death, but when I double checked, I saw that it was closer to 2 hours. I can handle that.)

So apparently the run takes us through high plains desert terrain with views of buttes and mountains. Sometimes there might be a glimpse of wild horses. It should be incredibly gorgeous. I plan to try running with a Go-Pro camera for this one to try to catch some of the beauty. I can’t wait to post some footage on the blog of what the camera captures. I figured that since I’m mentally prepared to not be running for a PR this time around, I may as well have some fun filming it, right? Hopefully the results turn out ok. With my luck, I’ll get finished to find that the camera was pointing at the sky the whole time! Oy!

The rest of the trip to Wyoming will feature hiking and visiting the National Parks, along with a visit to Jackson Hole and the eclipse, of course. I look forward to experiencing the beauty of this part of the country. Only a few more easy training runs to go before the big event. What a wonderful way to wrap up the summer.