I felt good most of the race. What can I say - I was really enjoying running downhill! It doesn't bother my knees too much, although I was surprised at how overworked my calves felt by the end. However, I felt like I was running faster than I actually was on the down parts. I think I only broke 9 minute miles on one segment. I blame the altitude; running at 10,000 feet is maybe not twice as hard as running at 5,000 feet, but it's definitely more of a challenge.

The best part is that I never felt like I was running as far as I was. I totally put the hammer down on miles 11 and 12 to try to get a PR, which I did, by a few seconds, anyway... I never feel that fresh and aggressive at that point in the race, so it was a fun half marathon experience to do it.

Train at higher altitude more often. Do more trail running.

Stretched, got a two freeze pops (whatever those colored ice sleeves are called - yum), took in a lot of liquid and a bit of fruit; skipped the shuttle and walked the mile back to my car to loosen up my legs


Altitude


Overall, a great race! The course is beautiful - about 5 miles unpaved, the rest on pavement, with great views of waterfalls and mountains.

Definitely get there as early as possible, because the shuttle buses to the beginning get very backed up. The people on the last bus had to basically get off and start the race almost immediately.