Skip to main content

Done One: Race Report Pirate's Cove 8k

My first Pacific Coast Trail Run!
The sea was angry that day my friends.




We had plans to stay in Berkeley Friday night for some music at Freight and Salvage, so I was really excited to see that there was a trail run Saturday morning taking off from Rodeo Beach. Added to my excitement was the weather report that called for 30mph wind, rain, hail, lightning, and general mayhem.



Combine that with this elevation profile:






READY
The 30k and 50k took off at 8:30 in pouring down rain and lightning striking out over the ocean (it was kind of scary beautiful), the 20k at 8:45, and then the 8k crowd took off at 9:00. There were some instructions about colored ribbons and turns that I couldn't really hear and then 3...2...1...

get goin
The climb was pretty brutal. And steep. And hard. I remembered really liking this trail about a month ago on a  sunny day hike when I was all, look how pretty it is up here, wow, STAIRS! FUN! 

This time, there were a few more bad words going through my mind. Especially when I saw the stairs again and this time had to halfway pull myself up them with the railing because my legs were tree trunks by this point. 

The rain had let up, and despite the agony, I wasn't having a bad time. I was actually having a perfect time. 

When I made it to the top I took a second to do a 360 and take in the beauty of the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Gate Bridge, and then it was all downhill...in the mud...with the flowing water...and good luck trying to slow yourself down. 

There were a few moves I was relying on to get me downhill in one piece:
The Twinkle Toe: Your feet are stepping as fast as they possibly can and as lightly as they possibly can sometimes forward, sometimes sideways, because you don't want to do the less reliable One Foot Roller Skate where one surely reliable step you take turns into a five foot skid. Then there is the Kamikaze that is used when you know you are going way too fast for your own good but have no way of stopping so you actually hurdle yourself toward the side of the trail with a big leap and start doing the Pinball by immediately bouncing off toward the other side and go back and forth until you get it under control. What are your trail running moves??

The steep downhill got less steep and much better footing. The kind where you just open up, let loose, and fly. Where your legs are turning over like wheels. Gravity is doing the work and it's almost effortless (except for the pounding on the quads). 

Pretty soon, it was back to sea level and Bunker Road was in sight. Then it was about a half mile back to the beach and the finish line. 
I love you, flat ground. 

This is how I smile when I am ecstatic, but my lips are numb. 

You can find the results HERE


Thanks PCTR, I'll be back for more.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LA Marathon Race Report - What I forgot about road marathons.

It has been many years since my last road marathon,  four years, to be exact , and the decision to run another one came about when it was announced that the Olympic Trials Marathon would be held the day before the regular people marathon in LA. It was like the buy one, get one free of marathon weekends. The Trials We flew into LA Saturday morning and arrived downtown at the convention center about ten minutes before the start of the men's race. The course couldn't have been more spectator friendly. The runners would loop past us four times, so we got to see the entire race unfold. So. Exciting. For a tiny little video I put together, see previous post here. Making 5:45 mile splits look like no big deal The LA Marathon   Dodger Stadium, 5am.  My race plan was pretty simple: Cruise the first ten miles at an easy pace, no music, soak up the experience, and have fun. At mile ten, put on the tunes and do the work to get through the next ten. Then, just hang on, and
3 comments
Read more

Skyline to the Sea 50k. Here's what happened.

Five days before the fifth annual Skyline to the Sea 50k, entrants received an email from race director Sarah Spelt that knocked the wind out of us all: I am beyond sorry to announce that I am forced to close the doors at PCTR, effective immediately... It's been no secret to the Northern California trail running community that Pacific Coast Trail Runs has experienced quite a bit of turbulence, especially in the last year, resulting in some cancelled races and even a no show. 2012 boasted a handful of successful races, the most recent being the Diablo Marathon and 60k just three days prior. Things seemed to be on the upswing, especially with the upcoming Skyline to the Sea Marathon and 50k being completely sold out. I'd been through the disappointment over previously cancelled races, but this time was different. I'd carefully chosen this race to be my first ultra. I was brokenhearted and angry, but it didn't take long for a runner coming from Illinois specifically for t
8 comments
Read more

Skyline to the Sea 50k, I lived.

To say the week preceding the race was an emotional roller coaster would be an understatement. What I didn't know, was that it would be nothing compared to my experience out on the trail. I had said going in my goal was a sub 6 hour finish, and, unknowingly foreshadowing my race, I added, "but you never know what can happen out there." My decision to run ultras came long before my actual ability to run them, so after collecting a couple years of trail running under my belt I finally felt ready to take the plunge. Skyline to the Sea came at just the right time providing a net downhill course with just over 3,000 ft of elevation gain. If you're not aware of the on again off again drama that ensued surrounding this race, refer to my previous post  here . Race morning, standing at the trail head with over 200 other runners, a collective feeling of gratitude hung in the warm air as Wendell counted us down to start. Spectators lined the street above us, and the runners e
10 comments
Read more