The first three miles are a gradual uphill along the highway to Anchorage. As we passed the sign that said Nenana is 50 miles away, Matt mentioned that we would be running the equivalent to halfway there. Man, that seems like a lot. Five miles out, we turned off the busy highway to a country road, and encountered an one mile uphill. At this point, I was ready to collapse on the side of the road. Several coughing fits while running had caused several side stitches. And we were only 1/4 the way there.
Miles 5-10 were the most technical, with two more 1/2-1 mile long hills. One of these hills is really steep and I have never gotten all the way up without stopping to walk. Perfect time for a gel boost.
Miles 10-15 brought us to the campus of UAF. Earlier this season, it was always a comfort to finally get to the university campus. This meant that we could run without staring at the ground. UAF knows how to clean their sidewalks. Thank you. :) As we took in the second gel, we looked at the Alaska range, glimmering in the sunshine from nearly 80 miles away. We stopped for a water walk at the reindeer farm. Several new babies scurried around. They seemed to have two speeds : run like crazy with spindly legs flailing under them, and stop. So adorable. I could've sat there all day watching them play.
Miles 15-20 were finally flat. It's an out and back that starts really close to our apartment. When I first planned this route, I thought it would be torture to come that close to home yet still not be finished with the run. It has proved to be the easiest part of the course. I've run that part many many times and my body almost went into auto-pilot for those last few miles. Mentally, it was easy to handle because I told myself, "It's flat, and you've run this route before--it's not THAT far." These last five miles were the worst for my coughing fits. After examining the pace chart that my Garmin watch makes, I noticed that there were a lot more slow spots because I had to stop to cough, and then begin running again. I arrived home thoroughly exhausted. I could have run another few miles, but only if someone was chasing me. Although I was pretty sick, we managed to finish two minutes slower than the previous 20 miler (which I felt fantastic for!)...and about only 5 seconds/mile slower. If I had been well, there would have been a deficit. 20 miles in 3:27. Definitely puts my goal time within reach.
With this run behind me, I can rest up (and get rid of this pesky cold) and enjoy the taper down to race day. Green Bay. 26.2 miles. Here we come!
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