greylock
(To borrow a phrase from kylecassidy, this is still not a fitness blog.)
So I did this thing this morning - a half marathon up and down a freaking mountain (in fact, the highest point in MA).
The first 3 miles were a nearly-continuous climb to the peak, which took 45 minutes. The next 10 miles were a nearly-continuous descent, which took nearly 2 hours. So you see neither part was "easy". There were roots, rocks, mud, streams, and a permanent sense of being barely in control of the trajectory of my own body.
I twisted my right ankle at mile 5. I fell twice, around miles 9 and 12, and messed up my left wrist. I finished 92nd overall (out of 177 finishers), and 11th in my age category. It was quite possibly the most fucked-up thing I'll ever do again. Because yeah, I'll do that again.
Afterwards, dropped in on the parents (because Fathers' Day?), and found both the local brothers, plus nephew, already there (because Fathers' Day?).
The "You may say to yourself, 'My God, what have I done?'" selfie, with the Veterans War Memorial Tower, socked in with fog. Cool and overcast is really good for running, BTW.
The meadow at the begin/end of the race. See that hill in the background? That's Mount Greylock. See the teeny tiny sticky bit at the top? That's the Veterans War Memorial Tower.
Down in the center of Adams, there's a statue of William McKinley. You may recall that McKinley was actually born in Niles OH, which I visited a few years ago. However, McKinley visited Adams a couple times, and they threw up a statue after he was assasinated.
So I did this thing this morning - a half marathon up and down a freaking mountain (in fact, the highest point in MA).
The first 3 miles were a nearly-continuous climb to the peak, which took 45 minutes. The next 10 miles were a nearly-continuous descent, which took nearly 2 hours. So you see neither part was "easy". There were roots, rocks, mud, streams, and a permanent sense of being barely in control of the trajectory of my own body.
I twisted my right ankle at mile 5. I fell twice, around miles 9 and 12, and messed up my left wrist. I finished 92nd overall (out of 177 finishers), and 11th in my age category. It was quite possibly the most fucked-up thing I'll ever do again. Because yeah, I'll do that again.
Afterwards, dropped in on the parents (because Fathers' Day?), and found both the local brothers, plus nephew, already there (because Fathers' Day?).
The "You may say to yourself, 'My God, what have I done?'" selfie, with the Veterans War Memorial Tower, socked in with fog. Cool and overcast is really good for running, BTW.
The meadow at the begin/end of the race. See that hill in the background? That's Mount Greylock. See the teeny tiny sticky bit at the top? That's the Veterans War Memorial Tower.
Down in the center of Adams, there's a statue of William McKinley. You may recall that McKinley was actually born in Niles OH, which I visited a few years ago. However, McKinley visited Adams a couple times, and they threw up a statue after he was assasinated.