I ran a race in Denver last October, so I was prepared for how tough it would be a 5280" elevation (they don't call it the Mile High City for nothing!), but I'm in better shape now than I was in October, so I figured I'd give it a shot.
I woke up on race morning and had a delicious breakfast at my Hampton Inn. Food is always a challenge for me while traveling because it's hard to find time to eat good things...and with a race later in the morning I wanted to be sure to be properly fueled!
Toasted English Muffin with peanut butter, bananas and honey along with a cup of coffee and water!
I got to the race about 30 minutes early, picked up my packet and scoped out the location. It was definitely chilly, but I was pleased with my choice of outfit - a lululemon running skirt, tech race t-shirt and tech pullover from JCPenny. My hands were cold so I walked and tried to stay as warm as possible until start time.
The race was really well organized and started right on time. They had pacing signs so that the walkers and strollers didn't choke people up at the beginning, and there were tons of kids running/walking (the race benefited an elementary school) so it was a pretty laid back group. The course was mostly along a dirt trail, but it was very well taken care of and there were no rocks or anything. The altitude definitely was a challenge, but it was until the start of the third mile that it really got to me...
Almost exactly at the start of mile 3 I got an unbelievable side cramp. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced before - it was like an overwhelming stabbing pain in my right side that made it hard to breathe. I ran for a few seconds into the pain, but had to stop and walk to get myself back under control. Between the elevation, lack of oxygen in the air and the dehydration that comes from both of those factors, it was really the perfect storm for cramps. I don't get cramps very often and when I do they're mild and I can run through them with no problem. But the race took place within my first 24 hours at this elevation and I had just flown all day the day before, so I was going to be dehydrated no matter what.
After walking for about a minute I had curbed the pain and gotten my breath back. I started running again and finished without another cramp. The last .5 of the race was really tough - it was uphill until the last .1 and I was already struggling to keep my breath under control when it was flat...but, I ran the rest of the way and finished with an official time of 34:11. Not great, but not terrible for the elevation and about a minute of walking.
Not looking too bad at the finish...and check out that view!
I enjoyed this run and was glad to complete my April race. I am only more excited about running back at sea level after this experience! Here's to better runs for the rest of the year and a more manageable elevation! :-)
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