The big surprise for me, though, was how well the run went. I've been struggling so long with my running and for the first time, I could go the distance without too much trouble. I went very slow and was not able to keep up with the group (except for Marshall, who I ended up running with), but two good things happened: I didn't really care AND I felt fine. YAY!
We all started as a group but after dropping a gu packet and going back to get it, I fell behind. Then I had to dash into some bushes to you-know-what and fell even further behind. Everyone but Marshall kept going so we just ran together the rest of the way. That was fine because I'm not sure I could keep up with them anyway!
But there was something very different about this run. Usually at around mile 8 or so, I start getting the "I can't make it" feeling. Mile 8 came and went and I was happily chatting with Marshall about kids and sports and to be honest, didn't even notice that we passed mile 8. Then mile 10 came and then mile 12...lo and behold, I wanted to keep going!
We ran to Jo Jo where Marshall needed to stop to watch Allie do a time trial. My kids were playing soccer at 9:00 at Monfort and originally I was going to run back to WOW, get the truck and drive to my mom's who lives down the street from WOW, shower, and drive to Monfort to watch the games (long story on why that was the plan).
But it was 8:40 when we reached Jo Jo so I had to make a decision....I decided to just run to Monfort and watch the games before showering. The problem with doing that is that I'm super sweaty and I hate sitting/standing for an hour in sweaty clothes but more importantly, I need to re-fuel for my big ride the next day and I wouldn't have any food or drink to do that.
So I stood in the street for a few mins to decide what to do....go back, shower, eat/drink, drive to game and be late....or run to Monfort, be sweaty, thirsty, and hungry but watch both kids' games from start to finish. The kids won out and off to Monfort I went.
(Funny side note - I was so tired that I accidentally ran down the wrong street while trying to take a shortcut and ended up having to backtrack to the main street that leads to Monfort. I've lived in Greeley 22 years and know my way around...oops!)
But Sunday was the bright spot of the weekend. I had the best ride of my life. I rode with Sarah, Brenda, and Todd. We rode 81 miles on a new route that Todd took us on and I felt fantastic. I have never felt stronger in my life. We started at our usual pace and I felt good but didn't feel particularly strong at that point but it got better as the ride went on, to the point where I was hammering the hills at the end.
I honestly don't know where the energy came from. I felt like I couldn't slow down. I passed Sarah and Brenda a few times, hoping they would stay on my wheel and then we could take turns drafting on each other but either they slowed down or I sped up because before long, I was way ahead. I felt a little bad about it but since Todd was way ahead of us as well, I decided to just ride up with him and then wait for them.
One thing I will point out is that I would never leave one person behind. That is one rule of group cycling that I learned a long time ago. Its ok for one person to go ahead of two people but two people shouldn't leave one person behind, unless that one person said to go ahead. So I went on knowing that they were together.
I also knew that they were wanting to stay in zone two, which is a lower intensity, and that they were going to run after the ride, so they didn't want to push too hard. That is very smart if you are wanting to run afterwards (plus, Sarah was having an off-day and her legs were tired - I've been there many times!). But I was not planning on running after the ride (per advice from Wendy and Kurt) so I was free to push as hard as I wanted. And I did!
So, all in all it was a superb weekend and I'm amazed that I ran and rode a total of 95 miles. I really believe that nutrition played a big role in how well I felt on both days and I will write more about that soon (in case anyone ever reads this blog and wants to know more!).
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