A Total Rock Star

I ran the Soutpansberg Mountain Race with three other volunteers Saturday morning. The half marathon follows an unpaved, dirt course, winding up 9 kilometers (5+ miles) after a relatively flat 3k. It’s a beautiful route that attracts a lot of hikers for its mountain views, but it has a reputation for being a difficult race and I was nervous that I wouldn’t finish. My friend Eric, who has done the Boston marathon, said that, as far as courses go, this is the most difficult one he’s ever done. I decided before the start of the race that I would declare a personal victory if I could finish without having walked.

Sure enough, running up a mountain is tough. I train on a more or less flat tarred road so going up was brutal. There was one disheartening moment when I was passing a walker on a particularly steep section (registered walkers start the race earlier than runners) and we were chugging along at the same pace: this tall skinny dude doing his hip thrust speed-walking and me, gasping through my old lady shuffle, side by side.

By the time I get to the top of the mountain, I feel really faint. I used to faint quite a bit in high school so I’m pretty familiar with the symptoms. As I reach the top, my skin gets cold, I see little silver sparkles floating in the air, and my stomach hurts. So I whip out my Clif mocha GU (courtesy of Mirth) and chug that liquid fudge down. Truly a Popeye moment followed. With renewed energy, I charged down the mountain, summoning the goat within. I don’t think I’ve ever run so fast for so long in my life as the downward part of the race, which was a real cakewalk – except for this one time when I tripped over a rock, sailed forward, scraping up the left side of my body and covering my clothes in red dirt.

I crossed the finish line in 2 hours and 6 minutes, attracting a lot of attention because I was covered in dirt. 2:06 sounds like a shit time, but, may I remind you, half the race is uphill! I was the third woman to finish the race, earning me 100 Rand and my photograph’s place in this week’s paper! Plus half the race, I was ahead of the number 2 chick, who only finished 30 seconds in front of me. In the last two minutes of the race, she charged in front of me. At the time, I thought that was a little competitive and immature, but it was the difference between bronze and silver. I guess I don’t have that killer instinct.

I suspect there weren’t many women running this race, but I’m still a total rock star for finishing that course.