Valley of Fire Marathon 11/20/11

Valley of Fire Marathon
November 20, 2011
Finish Time: 6:05:35
We are officially Marathon Maniacs!
#4631 (Tracy) and #4632 (Stacey)

                                                         Seriously just look at those hills!!!

Day 2 of the Double Marathon Weekend:

The only word that truly describes the double marathon weekend is "EPIC." The word epic is one that is overly used and misused on a daily basis. Why? Because the actual definition of epic means unusually large or powerful. It's funny because this word is used every day so you wonder, is it really epic? Well... we carefully selected this word and will only refer to these two races... this weekend in November 2011 as EPIC. 

After watching the movie in Mesquite, we drove our little rental red car to Overton Nevada (about 40 minutes), where we stayed at the only hotel in the town- the North Shore Inn. Upon arrival we met the man who as won the race two years in a row, and ended up winning this one too. He was a very nice guy from Germany, Marcus Lehr. We talked about the race a bit and he talked about his goal of hopefully winning this year. A very humble man because this race is not easy by any stretch, at all!

We got into our room and then headed to the only restaurant in town, "Sugars." A cute little restaurant with locals eating out for the night. The menu had just about every fried food you can imagine. We asked what the southwestern chicken was and found out it just meant grilled, so we opted for that with a baked potato, salad, and peas. It was good, plenty actually. We also had a nice huge slice of Pecan Pie. After all we had just run a marathon and were about to run another.

                                                        Oh yeah and it was goooood!!

After dinner it was time to set out our race clothes for the next day and go to bed because we were going to start all over again. We were both pretty excited and nervous because of the hills we heard about, but we were ready.

The Race:

We got up at 5:00 and headed to the race at 5:30. The race started at 7 and there was a little drive to the start so we dressed, grabbed our gear, checked out of the hotel and left.

This race is referred to as "the toughest course you'll ever love" this is so true. The Valley of Fire is a small race that takes place in The Valley of Fire National park in Overton, NV. There is a 10k, half and full marathon - with only about 60 or so people doing the full.

The course elevation scares people from this one. There is one part dubbed "the hill of hell, " which earned it's name in our book. Is it a course for a PR? Absolutely not, but it is breathtakingly beautiful, extremely well run, and promises a memorable experience! Running the Tri-States Mesquite marathon the day before was an even added bonus. 

When we got to the start, we saw several of the Marathon Maniacs there again. We were motivated by their shirts because this weekend would earn us entry into MM's and a four star level at that. We hung around the start with some of our friends from the Mesquite Marathon (Salt Lake City running club- see picture below). The winner Marcus also took our picture:

                                                                          At the start

There were about 30 people doing the double so we all got to know each other pretty well. These were definitely the smallest races we had ever run, and we really liked the small nature of it. The race directors, volunteers, snacks, start, finish, medals, everything was perfectly done.

The Course:

                                                                The hill we start on

The Valley of Fire starts on a hill and continues to weave throughout the park's beauty with scenic picture spots all along the way. We took our time with this one, stopped for pictures, talked and ran with other runners, and had a blast! The first half has a series of rolling hills. When we hit big hills we walked them.

Throughout the run we met up with different people and talked with them as we ran or walked the hills. Joe, from the Salt Lake City Running club, who was in his 60's told us about the ultras and Ironman races he has done. Impressive!!!

                                                                 One of the many views

When we got to the half way 13.1 mark we literally had to run right by the finish line. This is when we saw all of the half marathoners finishing up. Wow was that a tease! We had to run by it, but fortunately they had GUs which made it a little better. 

We even ran by our car.... and kept on going toward the hills- argh!!!

The route wasn't marked so we thought we had it right and made a right turn but there was literally no one we could see in front and no one we could see behind us. At this point the 60 marathoners had really broken up. We knew there were some ahead and some behind so we just kept moving.  

Miles 13-20 are gradual hills ending with the Hill of Hell at mile 20,  but what goes up, must come down so the last 10k is downhill. As we climbed the hills we kept thinking that this meant we would be running down it in the end. We went up and around a rock area and then straight down for the final 6.

Sometime around mile 15 we stopped to put on some Biofreeze and pose for some pictures (we said we weren't about to PR with time by any means- our PR was 2 in a row) so we had fun!!!

Tracy

Stacey

Shortly after these pictures were taken, we saw our buddy Larry from the SLC running club. He was our photographer for some of the Mesquite run. 

At this point, it was all hills and just straight up, even gravel in some spots.... so.... we walked fast with Larry to the end. The funny part about this weekend is that we thought we would need music to distract us more than anything. But that didn't happen at all. We talked to each other and other runners so much that we didn't even think about music. This is the nice part about small races, you can do that. You can talk and hear each other. We had some of the best conversations out there!

And we kept on moving... even up through that Hill of Hell and what a hill it was!! It was hard to get any pictures of just the hill because it was always winding around the rocks. But the view really did distract us from the aches in our quads.

                                                             

                                                              Mile 18 almost to the top

There were great snacks along the way too! GU, gummy bears, pretzels, Peanut M&Ms, and bananas. Also something you never see in big races.

We also met up with another double marathoner from Colorado around mile 19. As we climbed the last 1/4 mile, we saw those who were ahead of us cheering for us as they went down. Our friends who ran the double (a couple from North Carolina) gave us a high 5 and said the hill was "an investment in gravity." So true! And we just kept moving.... 

Once we reached the top of the Hell Hill we felt like we should scream at the top. In fact I think we all sort of did. We went to the bathroom, refueled, and then we were ready to head down for the last 6 miles.

Usually around mile 18 or so your legs start to build lactic acid and you really start to feel the race. Add a marathon before that AND hills like no other, well we were so ready to run down but didn't even know if we had it in us. We did though, and we ran, and kept moving. We refueled when we needed and talked as we ran.

Apparently, they did miss mark mile 20 so the course was .6 longer which isn't fun when you've just conquered those hills and realize you see the finish line and it's definitely not as close as it should be. We found this out as we were nearing the finish line and our watches were saying we were close but that finish line looked really far away. Also, one of the runners yelled at us as he drove off saying that the course was .6 longer. At that point what does it matter though...?

                                                   Our buddies from the SLC Running Club

When we got close to the finish line, we ran up the last hill. Larry didn't want to run so we waiting for him at the finish. It was great running through and hearing them announce our names. The other runners we knew were cheering for us too and it really felt like we all bonded over the weekend. This is what marathoning is all about. Having a good run with family, friends, telling stories, and enjoying the sites along the way.   

You finish at the start where there was a DJ. Our bags were right where we left them at gear pick-up ( spot on the ground) and we had a short walk to the car right across from the start. The logistics of this course could not have been any easier, including the convenient packet pick-up which was at the Mesquite finish line.

                                                 Double Marathon Weekend Accomplished!!!!

We met some wonderful people, had really good volunteers, and excellent snacks along the way. This race is definitely a favorite and should be on any marathoners bucket list. Don't let the elevation scare you. Just go there expecting to run in the beauty with no worries about time.  Our favorite saying with this race was on the shirt.... Beauty, it's a beast!!!!

After the race, we said our goodbyes, promised to run the St. George marathon with our SLC buddies next year, and headed to Vegas to the Hard Rock hotel. Once there we ate at Pinks tacos and has some yummy celebratory champagne margaritas. Then we went to the spa for much needed massages and went to sleep. Up at 4 am for the planes to head for home. The Epic weekend over. But what a fun one it was. And the theme for the weekend.... Just Keep Moving.

Mesquite Tri-States Marathon 11/19/11

Mesquite Tri-States Marathon

6 miles in Utah, 17 in Arizona, and 3.2 in Nevada- we counted this for the state of Arizona

November 19, 2011

Finish Time: 5:21:13
Day 1 of the Double Marathon Weekend

Sometime over the summer Stacey sent an email to Tracy with a link to the double marathon weekend in Nevada with the Mesquite Marathon on Day 1 and Valley of Fire Marathon for Day 2. The title of the email was, "If we were crazy, we could...." Intriguing, yes. Scary, yes. Fun, yes. Marathon Maniac Status, most definitely. 

And so we contemplated for months, especially since we knew the races would not sell out. There is no cap because they are so small and relatively unknown, and the Valley of Fire elevation chart is enough to scare anyone out of it altogether. But, the reviews for the Mesquite and Valley of Fire on marathon guide are great.  The idea of running through 3 states sounded so fun and the mesquite elevation looks fairly tame (however the elevation profile is a bit skewed because the hills at the second half are much bigger than you would expect- more on that later though). Meanwhile the Valley of Fire looked tough but breathtakingly beautiful. Every one who ran and reviewed it said the beauty was a big distraction. This was very true.

We decided to wait on registration until after the Chicago marathon (10/9/11) to see how we were feeling, especially since we had already registered for the Vegas RnR race on 12/4/11, just two weeks after the double. Four marathons in two months was a lofty goal...but attainable.

Chicago went well and the idea of the double kept calling us, especially since they said it was the only time they would ever be offered back to back. Note: The feedback and energy from all of the back/back runners were so high that they are considering keeping this double weekend next year. 

The races were also fairly inexpensive for registration so we jumped in two feet first!!!!

The Expo

Races this small never really have much of an expo. We both flew into the Vegas airport on Friday night, rented a tiny cheap red car and headed to mesquite Nevada.

                                                  Stacey and our little car

We arrived to the Casa Blanca (race headquarters hotel) at exactly 10 minutes until 8:00 p.m. after the hour and fifteen minute drive. We wanted to get our packets the night before so we sprinted to the tent and grabbed our race bags with the bibs and shirts. The shirts are red with the mesquite logo on them (see the top of this post), cute and nice. When we got our packets we were super excited and decided to only think about each race at a time. First, we had Mesquite on Saturday. We wouldn't even think about the Valley of Fire with the infamous "Hill of Hell" until Saturday night, after the mesquite was finished.

Well.... that line of thinking was stopped when the lady giving us our bag asked if we were doing both and then told us that the Mesquite was beautiful with some hills, but the Valley of Fire was spectacular with hills that only very serious runners would tackle. Hmmmm.... are we in that category?.... don't think so..... which meant nightmares all night about the hills.

We awoke at 5:00 ready to get to the bus that we had to be on by 5:30 am. We checked out of the hotel, gave our bags to the hotel staff, and made our way to the buses. 

The Bus Ride

"Who traveled the farthest?" yelled out a red headed tall and very skinny lady who was sitting with her husband next to us. This was the first set of friends we made. A couple from North Carolina who run races all over the country- they are trying to reach 50 state status too and they bring their two kids. They are also training for their first ultra (100 mile run in North Carolina). They were the farthest and also running the double, along with a few others on our bus.

The fun part of racing is the time you get to talk to other runners about races they've done, funny stories, etc. We chatted it up until we got there. We were driven up to the start in Utah.

The Start Line

You know you are at a small race when.... the race starting line is chalk drawn on the ground. This was the start of the Mesquite. There was only about 4 Porta Johns out there too which wasn't enough with about 100 racers who all had to go at the start.

                                                  Waiting at the start

There was a DJ there and some very yummy whole grain bars with water. We ate, talked, and got ready to start the race.

The Race

At 7:00 am off we went. The race starts in Utah and runs for 6 miles in the state. It was beautiful because you are running mostly downhill amongst all of these Joshua and Yukka trees. It reminded us a bit of Dr. Seuss Lorax trees.

We knew we had two days of races so we agreed that we would take both days easy, run at a moderate 10 minute mile pace, stop for pictures, talk, have fun, and walk any big hills. 

After 6 miles we saw the Arizona sign and then went along a long straight road through Arizona for 17 miles. We saw runners here and there, some we passed, or some passed us. Everyone seemed to be having fun talking and enjoying the scenery.

                                                   Somewhere in Utah

                                                           Arizona!

We met some guys from the Salt Lake Running Club who were in their 60's and also doing the doubles. Very inspiring! Three of them were running, and the fourth was walking. One of them, Larry, stopped and took pictures for us along the way which was very nice.

The first 13 miles are basically either downhill or very flat so we ran through it all and at some times ran faster than we planned but it was such an easy course to do that with. Right around mile 13 we hit a pretty big hill and felt bad for the half marathoners because that is where they started. They didn't have the downhill start we had.

There are no major landmarks in this race. It is really straight road, no turns until the end when you are in Mesquite, NV near the finish. It was almost ominous in some ways, like we were on a training run together. People were miles apart from each other and for the majority of the middle of the race everyone had their pace and were in their spot. So, we talked a lot, laughed, and just had a great time. At one point it was eery because one of us (Stacey) felt the need to scare the other one (Me- Tracy) about the horror movie The Hills Have Eyes. At any moment some crazy zombie could run at us and attack. Imagines can run wild when you have 26.2 miles of time.

We were just out there in the middle of nowhere following mile marker signs and coming up on aid stations every 2 miles. It was unique for sure. Nothing like the big races we had run in the past. Up until this point, Colorado was the smallest race we had done with 2,000 marathoners.

No spectators obviously, but the aid stations and volunteers were great! They had GU, water, Heed, gummy bears, pretzels, and bananas. At one station they had no cups though....so we were told to just give a pull form the jug. Hmmmmm.. runners are funny aren't they?

Arizona had some beautiful views, like the pictures above. This was in some canyons we ran through. We continued to run and stop for pictures, walk the big hills (which did exist). In fact, several people said the course elevation profile looked a bit skewed. There were pretty large hills at the second half. But then nothing like what we had coming the next day.

We entered Nevada at mile 23 so we were almost there. This was probably the only part of the course that was just okay. We entered Mesquite and had to run along the city streets, even through a parking lot at one point. They had good mile markers and police stationed, but it was still odd.

                                        Entering Nevada, Arizona sign is behind

We weaved through the streets of Mesquite for the last 3.2 miles and then as we got closer to the finish we ran up a curb and into the convention center/tent where we picked up our packets the night before.

It was the most unique finish we ever ran because as you ran from the sun into the dark tent, all you saw was the marathon clock and the finish line of balloons. There were people cheering with cow bells and beer at the end. And we were done.

There were free massages at the finish tent so we got quick massages, picked up our packets for the Valley of Fire there (same race directors so that was very convenient.

Next we decided we wanted to watch the new Twilight movie- New Dawn. Yes the idea of eating big bags of popcorn, watching a movie, and sitting in comfy clothes sounded great.

We changed in the cars into some swishy pants, sweatshirts, slider shoes and off we went to the movie theatre that was .2 miles away.

What a day it was! Great run, a lot of fun, and at this point very excited for Day 2 of the double weekend. Bring it!