Vertigo Night Run-31k Race Report

Wearing my favorite InkNBurn tank!

All week I debated on whether or not I should upgrade to the 63k since my long runs consisted of 34 total miles this weekend.  Finally, I decided to just stick with the 31k, which ended up being a blessing in disguise with the crazy weather that hit towards the end of the race!

Shanna, her mother, Karen and myself

I had been looking forward to this race for months because one of my Kingman buddies was coming in town to run it and it's always fun to see Shanna-even if it was only going to be for a few minutes because she is SOOOOO much faster than me on trails :-)  We got to the start line half an hour early and mingled with our friends for a bit before taking off.

Chris and I pre-race

The course consisted of three 6.5 mile loops with one aid station at base camp and one about four miles in.  I ran the shorter distance last year, so I was familiar with the terrain and the technical portions of the course.  I specifically remembered there being one steep climb before coming to a pass and then a very technical portion on the back side of the mountain before everything leveled out (for the most part). 

At shoes-to-the-trails time, the thermostat read 105 degrees-proper hydration was going to be key for pushing through this race.  7:30pm and the 31k runners were off!  I tried to bank as much time as possible on the first portion, knowing I would slow down when I came to the climb and the subsequent technical part.  I felt like I was flying and was in a great mood, singing to myself and enjoying "playing" on my trails.  As always, I found myself in awe of the beauty of the desert as the sun was setting against the mountain backdrop.  I've lived in Arizona almost two years now and I don't think that scenery will ever get old!  I actually ran up the entire climbing section of the course on the first loop-all of the hill work I have been doing in my training is evidently paying off :-)  I almost fell on the back side of the mountain and decided to slow down to navigate the rocky terrain.  When I caught myself, my left hamstring went into a spasm from which I never fully recovered.  Thankfully, the "runner's high" masked most of the pain until post-race!

Lightning strikes in the distance

On the second loop, we started seeing lightning off in the distance.  I was in such a good mood that I just kept thinking, "Look at the fun light show!" and not really considering that it could be headed our way.  When I got to the end of the second loop, I found out that a lot of people had dropped out of the 31k, citing problems with the heat and not wanting to go back out in a potential storm.  I shrugged the concerns aside and took off on the third loop.

When I realized my Garmin was paused-oops!

About three-quarters of a mile into the third loop, I looked down at my Garmin and it said 12.95 miles.  It had been on 12.95 miles for roughly ten minutes of running and I KNEW I had been moving-turns out I bumped it at the aid station and had paused the Garmin without realizing it.  Oops!  I took this opportunity to walk for a few yards, refuel and check my phone.  I'm glad I checked my phone when I did, because there were multiple dust storm warnings as the clouds (both dust and rain) were looking more and more ominous against the stark backdrop of the night sky.  Lightning strikes were getting closer, so I picked up the pace.  When I reached the aid station, they provided me with a zip lock bag for my phone and iPod, as rain was becoming an imminent concern.  Not even one hundred yards past the aid station, the rain started.  It was then that I panicked.  Thankfully, my reasoning overtook my initial instinct rather quickly, but there was between thirty seconds and a minute that I couldn't breathe.  I started having an asthma attack, panicking because I thought I was going to freeze to death-remnants of Old Pueblo mental scars.  Once my brain convinced my body that there was no way to freeze in 100 degree rainfall, I took off again-this time, with a sense of urgency as the need to outrun an electrical storm was rather pressing.  Wind was stirring up dust everywhere and lightning was crashing right above my head.  I thought to myself, "I'm not near as cool as that runner at Hard Rock-if I get struck by lightning it won't be in the news so I better hurry it up!"  Flying through those last few miles, splashing in the mud, I listened intently after every lightning flash to count the seconds between the flash and thunder-trying to judge how far away the lightning actually was.

View from the mountain on the third loop

About a mile from the finish line, I came across the "sweep vehicle" that was headed backwards on the course to check on all of the runners.  They let me continue.  I passed multiple people that were headed back out on the course to check on their friends and loved ones that were still out there.  The last group of people I passed told me that the finish line was already torn down-such a set back was not going to keep me from finishing!  Evidently a huge gust of wind had come through, messed up some of the tents and forced the race directors to make the call to cancel the race.  Thankfully, they let me email my finish time, since I finished the final loop and it will still be recorded.  It was definitely a smart call on the part of Aravaipa Running-lightning is not something to mess with!  Great race as always-fabulous help at the fully stocked aid stations, medics onsite for those struggling with the heat and injuries and another finisher's mason jar on my shelf :-)  Maybe next year I will attempt the longest distance (hopefully sans-lightning!)

This was taken at 12:30 at night, but it looked like daylight with the lightning