Saturday began with a flurry of activity. Although I haven’t been attending rehearsals,
I somehow found myself promising the band director, Jill, that I’d show up for
an outdoor concert. A distracting
pressure built behind my nose and gave me a killer headache as I played. I finally realized that those weeks of
skipping practice were probably the best thing to do for my poor sinuses. Stuffed into the back seat of Matt’s parents’
rental car, I changed from my old-time, Sgt. Pepper band uniform into my
running clothes. I moaned dizzily in the
back seat as we drove south.
“We’ve seen the mansion, now we need to see the trees,” Matt’s
mom, Linda, proclaimed. Of course, we
immediately knew where to take her: Humboldt Redwoods Park. As they explored the visitor center and a few
nearby hiking trails, Matt and I took off on our long run for the week.
We are running the local fall half marathon, Humboldt
Redwoods, in two weeks and it seemed like the perfect place to cover our
miles. For the 14 mile long run, we
began at the start of the half marathon and ran a little extra out the other
end. What a great refresher on where the
hills were.
The funny thing about this out-and-back half marathon course
is this: it feels downhill both ways. No
I’m not even joking. I don’t know if it
is the trees, or the way the hills are positioned (they are steep but quick),
but it really is downhill both ways.
 |
| High water mark from Dec. 1964 flooding. |
The first mile is breathtaking. Every time I run this route, my heart
flutters and my eyes turn skyward. I
resist every urge to stop in the middle of the road and gaze up in amusement as
I move along.
After the initial euphoria
wears off, I realize that my lunch, a hot dog, chips, and apple cider,
following the performance wasn’t the best idea.
Commence mental training run here.
It didn’t help that the side effects from my new allergy med: nausea,
dizziness, weak muscles, upset stomach, depression (probably the reason I slept
10 hrs a night and needed a 2 hr nap each afternoon) peaked about five miles
into the run. This run, approximately
day 8 of accumulating intensity, convinced me that I need to choose another
route with my doctor. Singulair, you
suck.
 |
| Incredible beauty, inside and out. Yes, I know you just gagged a little, that's okay. |
Matt and I mostly ran quietly as we took in the small
changes our beloved Redwood forest was undergoing. The colors don’t change dramatically for
autumn, but the poison oak, cleverly disguised for most of the rest of the year
comes alive. Its crimson and gold leaves
warn us of the danger. “Stay away or you
will be sorry.” Fortunate for us, the
paved security of the Avenue of the Giants’ roadway, we never came even close
to being exposed.
We turned around precisely as Garmin indicated 7.00mi. I forced down a snack despite the
nausea. Luckily, my body’s level of
nausea never seemed to change.
 |
| Mother Nature's porta potty? Kidding...kidding... |
 |
| Hollow trees are for snugglin'! |
About
mile 10, Matt affirms my initial thoughts, “wow, we really are going downhill
both ways!” The only hill on the entire
course is the bridge crossing the freeway (mile 0.75 and mile 12.5, definitely
felt on the return trip!).
I’ve run this
half marathon twice and that hill makes me want to cry each time. As I crested the hill, Matt decided to take
off and finish at his own pace.
Surprisingly, I felt the need to chase him. I thought I had one more mile left, but
somehow Garmin shorted me on the return trip (shocking, I know, especially
considering the dense tree cover) and it was about 0.75 miles to the car, but
still an 8:00/mi pace.
 |
| Who loves baby Redwoods? I do, I do!! |
I suffered a lot through this run and for most of the week
leading up to it. I hope that
discontinuing the suspect medication will solve that and that my allergist will
have further answers at my appointment on Thursday. Feeling better sure would be nice.
 |
14 miles, 2:05.40, 8:58/mi.
|
Here are links to the races that take place on this route:
The scenery is incredible and these races should be on
everyone’s bucket list!
6 comments:
Karen, as a fellow avid mid-run (or ride) picture taker, I'm genuinely curious — how to you incorporate your picture stops into your pacing? Seems like those alone would cut 3-5 minutes out of your run.
That's why you'll see photos of my long runs but not my tempo or marathon race pace runs. I'm more concerned about the pace of those than my long runs. I dilly dally a LOT with them.
Since the pace is really easy for Matt, I often have him run ahead and take quick photos or be my photo subject as I shoot and then quickly catch up.
And that's the main reason why my photos are mediocre, I don't do much more than push the button most of the time.
You are so DUE to feel better! I hope the doctor gives you something that will actually help - you've been suffering with this entirely too long my friend!
I ran the avenue half years ago. It is such a beautiful course! And I remember that hill. You are amazing that you can do so well with feeling so awful. Maybe it is time to move. What are you allergic to?
Ave of the Giants is totally on my list.
Good luck with the doctor, this sinus stuff is madness :(
Great run, Karen! And I sympathize with your allergy suffering. Been there, done that and still sometimes suffer. Have you been tested for dust mites/mold/fungus? I have outdoor allergies but as long as I manage my indoor allergies, I can usually tolerate the outdoor, if that makes sense. I use dust mite covers and Hepa air filters in most rooms. Kills the electric bills but soothes my allergies so that even when the cat sleeps on my head, I can still run. (Though for me, much, much slower than you, I cleverly use my allergies as an excuse. 'Oh,' I say, 'I usually go so much faster but my allergies were acting up.')
P.S. Nice redwood photos. Kinda beats cornfields, no?
Post a Comment