Last year I ran 12 miles of the Bosho Marathon course with Katherine and Lindsay. On a bit of a whim Lindsay and I had mentioned to each other that we each wanted to run the whole thing this year. Little did I know what I was getting myself into. This course is H.A.R.D. Brutally so. I mean, look at this elevation chart from my Garmin. Those climbs are no joke.
We started at 6am and headed off into the darkness. Laurie, Lindsay and I ran the six or so miles together and despite the plan to all run together I found myself pulling ahead of the other ladies. Half way up that first ascent I could no longer see them and just decided that I should do my own thing. That first climb to 6,406' is appropriately named Uncle Fucker. It was a beast. I felt really good climbing it and sang along to some music and chatted with a few ladies on my way to the top.
The next climb wasn't as bad, and got to run along and chat with Aaron (trail and ultra friend, and husband of my friend Kristyan) for a bit before his fast self took off. Then there was one more big huff up to
Meridian Peak. That was actually the hardest climb of all because I was already tired and lots of the 7am start (read
fast runners that would start an hour after me and finish an hour before me) runners began passing me like I was standing still! I had had some bad intestinal cramping a little earlier on, but by the time I got to Meridian Peak it was horrible and every (very steep) downhill step was like a knife stabbing my guts.
I finally pulled it together for my climb out of dry creek and managed to slog, tired and feeling pretty crappy. I had been trying some new running fuel, Tailwind, and had not had enough water to go along with it, so on the climb out of dry creek I was parched and feeling a little funny in the head. Once I finally made it back to the aid station the wonderful volunteers filled my pack with ice water, gave me ginger ale and ice to chew on and stick in my clothes (did I mention it was pretty warm and sunny?) and I sat in a chair for just a couple minutes. I was totally renewed and able to run most of the rest of the course.
I came in at 7:03 realizing that not only did this race take me a half an hour longer than my last 50k,
Antelope Island 50k, but it was
a lot harder than my last 50k! Afterward I felt pretty great. Tired, but really proud that even though I hardly trained for it, I ran this super tough marathon and finished! Laurie came in about a half an hour after me, congratulations Laurie! And Lindsay ended up dropping at around 20.5 miles due to some tummy trouble. All in all, all of us worked damn hard out there! I am so glad I did this race! What an amazing confidence boost!
26.6 miles
7:03
15:54 average pace
To see all the photos take a look at this post:
Bosho Marathon Photos.
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