Mesa Falls Marathon Part 2 - Race Day

Race day finally arrived.  After verifying that our large group in the group site had not blocked the route and ensuring the restrooms had plenty of toilet paper - I'm still a campground host - I got ready for the race.  I laced up my over-worn shoes.  I was tempted, when I found both Lube Stick and Blister Pads in my race packet, to use them.  But I remembered rule #1- nothing new on race day - and resisted.  I drove into Ashton and caught the bus to the start line at Bear Gulch.

There were 191 runners in the Half Marathon.  Remembering my running etiquette, I started at the end of the pack.  I had decided that my strategy would be to hang back on the trail and catch them on the hills.  Looking back, I think this cost me a couple of minutes.  I did pass quite a few racers on the hills, but could have really opened up on the trail if there hadn't been so many slower runners in front of me.

At about mile 8 I caught up with a couple of runners – Ryan and Tricia – that seemed to be running at my pace.  They appeared to be in their forties.  Ryan welcomed me and commented that “it’s nice to find your pace group friends.”  As we chatted about kids and her grand-kids, I realized that Tricia was not forty-something; she was fifty-something.  I had to beat her.  I made my break at the aid station on the last mile.  I crossed just ahead of her.  I took second place in our age group; she took third.  I gave her my coupon for a Huckleberry Shake for one of her kids.

My final results:

Time:  2:05:39
Finished 2^nd of 8 in my age division
Finished 30^th of 119 women (top 25%)
Finished 64^th of 191 overall (top 34%)

Lessons learned for the next race

1.  Buy a new pair of shoes at least six weeks before the race and run in them.  That way I’ll have a choice on race day.

2.  Start in the top third of the pack.

3.  It’s OK to be friendly – but all’s fair in love and racing.

My goal for the next half-marathon:  finish under 2 hours.

Mesa Falls Marathon Part 1 - Training

I had wanted to run the Salt Lake Half Marathon last April, but when we learned of our early start date for our camp hosting job in Warm River, we had to push another trip into the slot formerly reserved for the race.  So I was delighted to learn that I could run a half marathon right here in Warm River – in fact – right through our campground.

I've been calling this my first half-marathon, but in reality it’s my second.  My first was the Molestus Mini-Marathon, Ogden, Utah, in the summer of 1977.  I don’t remember my time.  I do remember that my brothers, who promised to run with me, left me in the dust in the first 30 feet of the race.  All’s fair in love and racing.  I also remember being grateful to them for making me train on the 30^th street hill.  I got shin splints on that race, hung up my running shoes, and didn't run again for 25 years.

But back to the present.  I modified the training schedule from the Wasatch Training Group for the timeline leading to the Mesa Falls Half, which was August 24.  I trained on most of the course, making sure nearly every training run included the hill into Ashton.  I didn't go too far up the railroad grade trail – scared of bears.

On my 12 mile training run, August 14, my right foot started to hurt.  Yikes!  I knew what was happening.  My running shoes had too many miles on them.  Unfortunately, ten days ‘til race day didn't give me enough time to break in new shoes.   Rule number 1:  nothing new on race day.  Suck it up, buttercup!

I did have plenty of training runs left to try the new food supplements members of the Wasatch Training Group recommended.   I liked both the Sports Beans and the Honey Stinger Chews; settled on carrying the Sports Beans because they were the easiest to manage.  I just dumped the package into the pouch on my water belt.  No trash; no sticky mess, and easy access to pop one in whenever I wanted.

I stayed with short runs between the 12-miler and the race.  Training done.  On to the race….

A Marathon Runs Through It

Lower Mesa Falls

When I first started researching the Warm River area in preparation for our summer here, I stumbled across a reference to the Mesa Falls Marathon.  I was delighted – a certified race right here in my new home-away-from-home.

Warm River Spring

The Mesa Falls Marathon and Half-Marathon is this running camp host’s dream come true.  The marathon begins at the Warm River Spring – the source of the river that runs through our campground.  It runs down the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway, past upper and lower Mesa Falls, and then takes off on the Railroad Grade Trail into the Warm River Campground.  That’s right – the Mesa Falls Marathon runs right through our campground!

Railroad Grade Trail

This year’s marathon is scheduled for Saturday, August 24.  You can learn more about the Mesa Falls Marathon at mesafallsmarathon.com.  Here’s the brief description of the courses.

Marathon

The Marathon course features a unique blend of running surfaces including 9.8 miles of gravel roads, 2.8 miles of packed trails along Warm River, and 13.6 miles of pavement and provides spectacular views of the Targhee National Forest, the Teton Mountains, Lower Mesa Falls on the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River, and Warm River. The course starts at an elevation of 6135 ft. and is generally downhill. There is one significant uphill climb from mile 17.1 to mile 19.9 with an elevation gain of 300 ft. in 2.8 miles. The race finishes at 5253 ft. for an overall course elevation loss of 882 ft. Aid stations are located at approximately 2 mile intervals beginning at mile 2.

Half Marathon

The Half Marathon begins at Bear Gulch and features 2.8 miles of packed trails along the old railroad bed paralleling the spectacular Warm River.  The remaining 10.3 miles are on pavement and feature views of

Tetons from the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway

Wyoming’s Teton Mountains and the rolling farm fields in Idaho’s famous potato country. The course starts at an elevation of 5746 ft. and is generally downhill with the finish line at 5253 ft. for an overall elevation loss of 493 ft. There is one significant uphill section from mile 4 to mile 6.8 with an elevation gain of 300 ft. in 2.8 miles. Aid stations are located every 2 miles.

The spectacular Warm River – yep, that’s the river that runs through our campground.  The significant uphill section is the climb out of the campground toward the city of Ashton.  I’ve been running this hill since I arrived at Warm River.

Both my husband and our area manager have given me the go-ahead to take Saturday morning, August 24, off work.  I’m planning to run the half-marathon.