Mount Lemmon Marathon - RunMarathon

Amazing race. Simply because the event itself was just so mind-boggling. I was putting up 15 minute miles (I had hoped for 13 minute miles but the grade was just too much to run faster and hope to have the energy for the full time), for the first 11 miles. That put me at Molino Basin, from there the you can see the elevation take a huge increase before Windy Point. I decided to slow up and conserve my energy so I started run/walking. After getting up to WP I checked my watch, 3:15. pretty good time (I was most certainly satisfied). After WP the elevation keeps on going, but then settles down. I walked most of the big hills and caught up my time on the level/down grades. I managed to keep up 15 minute miles with my run/walk until mile 16. After that I just couldn't do it. I continued basically hiking up the damned mountain till about mile 19. Even with walking I was doing 16.5 minute miles because of my stride. I got a txt from Meg noting a killer down hill at mile 20, it really hit at mile 19.5, I started down in hoping to really make some time. Immediately my right leg starts spasming (please please please no... not now) I take a moment to rub it and my other leg out. Then start down taking it really slow and building up speed. From there to mile 22 I kept about 11-12 minute miles going without any difficulty. It was just willpower at this point and beyond that kept me going (that and wanting to prove people wrong about being able to do this race). I managed to get all the way to 24 when I saw Meg, it was everything I could do just to hold myself together at that point. There was an out and back up the ski resort road (the absolute WORST part of the race easily) then back down. I was hoping to hike up the road then blast down. Unfortunately at that point I was barely able to keep going. 16 mile minutes down something I would have normally rocked out in the last 1.5 mile. Just gotta get past that finish line.

I did and promptly clutched on to Meg for dear life. That whole 7 hours collapsed in on me right there and then. It was so amazing.

Trained.... way way way way more.

I give this race a 2 for the following reasons.

1) Vendors and Buses packed up and left way before the 10 hour close time.
2) Race start and information supplied was pretty piss poor. All questions were answered with, "It's on the website". Several of these answers had to be found through DIGGING through the site. Very important information was changed at the last minute (Parking areas and Route), without so much as an email, or at very least notification in the packet.
3) Packet was worthless. No freebies, only got a foam football. The medal at the end looked like my 6 year old nephew made it in his pottery class. (Most of us didn't even get the band part, only the ceramic medal.
4) Due to the lack of Buses after hour 5, many of us (including yours truly) had to hitchhike back down the mountain. (VERY LAME)