Quarry 5k

the size is deceptive- the tires on this truck were taller than most men

Saturday I ran a 5k that started outside a quarry, ran down into the quarry, then ran (ok, I walked this part) back out of the quarry and past piles of gravel, processing equipment, and really large trucks and through the finish line.

I left the boys home, but they would have been in raptures over the big trucks and diggers they had sitting out for people to climb on

The last two 5ks I’ve run had difficult uphill stretches that totaled a mile in each race. This 5k only had a half mile up hill stretch, but I feel like it was more difficult than the other two. I blame the heat. Not that it was actually that hot where we parked our cars (about 70*), but it was a lot hotter in the quarry. I think all that rock was soaking in and radiating the heat back at us.

towards the beginning of the race, skirting the edge of the quarry

As I was running, I was thinking about why I was doing this particular race. It’s further from home than I usually go for a 5k, but I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to add a quarry 5k to my list of different races I’ve run for my 40 by 40 goal.

running down the half mile to the bottom of the quarry

the guy coming towards me was the lead runner

I knew it wouldn’t be an easy race (though the quarry wasn’t as deep as I was expecting), but I knew it would get me out of my comfort zone. One of the side goals of my 40 by 40 goal is to run a variety of race distances and locations. There’s nothing like facing the fear of the unknown (just how hard is this race going to be?) over and over to get you out of your comfort zone.

almost to the bottom of the quarry

I ran 3.03 miles in 35:20. I maintained a good pace the first two miles, but the half mile uphill in the third mile killed my pace.

1st mile: 10:21

2nd mile:  10:45

3rd mile: 14:01

running across the floor of the quarry, just past the water stop

My running mileage still isn't as high as I'd like, but I'm still fighting my plantar fasciitis and just can't manage more. At least I can still walk my mileage. I'm disappointed though, as it means I won't be as well trained as I'd originally planned.

it was a long walk back out of the quarry

On Monday I crawled around in the chicken run, nailing the fencing to the board supports. It wasn't much mileage (unlike when we worked on it last Saturday), but lots of twisting and bending. Oh, and poison ivy. I now have poison ivy blisters in more places than I'd like. Blech! And all the leaf mold I kicked up went straight to my sinuses and made me feel icky. Double blech!

I had planned on doing my long run on Wednesday so I could get an uninterrupted long run in, but I woke up feeling so tired. Not food related tired (been there, done that, know what it feels like), just tired. Part of it was my allergies still in overdrive, but a good part of it was my mileage. My mileage has been creeping up as my training progresses and I think I've passed my sustainable weekly mileage limit. After I'm done training for my half marathons I'll be keeping my weekly mileage at a lower level. I did manage to get a long walk in on Wednesday, but there was no running involved.

looking down into the quarry, opposite of the first pic looking down into the quarry

Thursday we skipped our usual hike because we had a field trip in the afternoon and I had things that needed to get done in the morning. So much to do, so little time.

Saturday after returning home from my race I hit the treadmill for some more miles. It's not ideal to split up a long run like that, but that's the way it sometimes has to happen.

Weekly Mileage
Monday: 6.14 miles walked on the treadmill
Wednesday: 6.25 miles walked on the treadmill
Thursday: 2.1 miles walked while on our field trip
Friday: 4.25 miles walked on the treadmill
Saturday: 3.03 mile race + 6.37 miles run and walked on the treadmill
     total miles: 28.14 miles

251.5 miles towards my #365milechallenge
race #47 towards my 40 by 40 goal