So this will be a review of the last couple of weeks. I won't go into every detail, but give a short synopsis of how things went.
First of all we went on a vacation to Colorado to see our friends Lynn and Linda and spend time with the donkeys. I also had a race with Leo (the best donkey in the world) in Creede. A 10.5 mile race at elevation. I posted this on Facebook about our adventure. He is a magical creature that I absolutely adore.
Creede donkey race report.
AKA the mountain race of many magical things.
AKA the race that Leo saved me and I saved him, both of us for what we felt was imminent death.
AKA crying does happen in donkey racing.
I have said from day one that every outing with a donkey is always a learning experience, not just for the human but for the donkey too.
This was another amazing experience for us both.
To begin with, this race began at 1:00pm, which makes it tricky for what to eat and when. I ate a good breakfast of avocado, bacon, berries and a couple bites of French toast casserole. I packed snacks in the saddle on Leo.
Speaking of his saddle when we got him saddled up we had to make some adjustments to his straps. It seemed too loose which Kevin pointed out compared to some of the other donkeys. I agreed. I took Lynn, Kevin, Alexis Drane and I to get it right!!
I decided to dress in Red White and Blue displaying great pride for our country. Leo who loves attention as much as treats enjoyed having his picture taken several times. The town of Creede all flooded Main Street for the race and commented on what a ha da one boy he was. As mentioned, he loves attention as much as treats. Today, he really, really, really loved the intoxicating smell of scrumptious dandelions.
It became his sole focus to find the perfect dandelion to eat, much to my encouraging to not do that. As such when the gun went off, due to our discussions about the dandelions. I was facing forward and he was facing backwards. Ass to ass.
They say how your race begins will be how it goes.
I got him turned around and we ran for a bit.
Going into this I was concerned about the elevation. The start of the race is at 8,898 feet. We have been in Colorado since Wednesday and I had hoped that I would be acclimated enough to run.
We ran for a bit and I was breathing hard. Damn. This is going to be tough. Leo decided to walk. I welcomed it and got my breath back and I got him to run again and again he stopped and walked. We did this over and over. Until it was evident that he wasn’t going to continue to run and I was finding it difficult to breathe. Okay as long as we are making forward progress.
Throughout the race there is flowing water on either side of you. Never far from it. It was breathtaking. So gorgeous. Simply amazing. That water though was playing on Leo’s freak out sensor. He would stop and look at it forbiddingly often. I would reassure him and he would move forward.
At one part we had to make a right hand turn over a bridge of roaring death (water) and he wouldn’t go. He tried to go back to the start. We ended up walking backwards, yes, backwards 30-40 feet across it and into the aid station that was on the corner. I guess he needed to keep an eye on the River of death. I don’t know. It was forward progress even if we walked backwards.
As we wound our way along the road progressively going up, the breathing was getting more challenging and the road was getting a little more narrow. Leo would stop and question me with his big brown eyes if this was a good idea or not.
We ran into other runners and donkeys and chatted with them and moved along. We passed a few pairs and I was feeling like we were getting into our rhythm.
That water though. Dang I had to pee. I had been told multiple times to drink tons of water to fight off altitude sickness. But, we were making good progress and I had a fella and his donkey close by and he didn’t need to see my bare ass! Additionally, I thought if Leo gets another taste of those scrumptious dandelions, we may be done for.
I decided when we got to the next aid station (there were 6 I think) that I would kindly ask someone to hold Leo while I went pee so he wouldn’t graze while he waited on me. It worked out. I pulled some grass and gave it to him as a thank you for waiting for me. Already quit breathless at this time I asked how much more climbing is there? She said, oh the climbing is just beginning.
Oh my. It wasn’t weakness in my legs. It was my lungs. Well, let’s get it done and we moved on. For a little bit.
Leo kept stopping and looking back and down where we came from. I thought maybe we went the wrong way. He has told me before that we went the wrong way. Then we saw a donkey and runner coming down the hill. I asked if we went the wrong way and he said no. He hurt his knee and couldn’t risk further injury so he was heading back.
Oh good. See Leo, we are going the right way.
Leo, having done this race before had some other things on his mind. I can’t read donkey minds. They don’t use words I understand. However, I am pretty sure this what he was trying to tell me.
1. That donkey is going back to where we came from. Why in all of the scrumptious dandelions should we go forward?
2. I know what is coming and it is straight up and some horrifying death water awaits.
3. You sound like you may die and I don’t want to be responsible for carrying you out because I already have this big saddle and pretty decorations. I don’t want them messed up by your dead body.
4. This was fun and now it isn’t fun.
5. You can’t go anywhere without me so I will just stand right. Here. Forever. I am a donkey. I will. Not. Move.
So we didn’t move. I tried and tried. At one point he did an impressive side step up the hill, see video.
He wouldn’t go. I tried snacks. I checked if his saddle was hurting him. I checked his feet. I checked for any obvious signs of distress. No sweating. No cuts. No rub marks. Nothing. He wouldn’t move. I began to cry. Irrational I know. We were less than halfway and not moving. I was embarrassed for not knowing how to move him. I couldn’t let go of the rope to wave my hands behind him or he would bolt back down the hill. I couldn’t just turn circles on the hill because he would take us further back to where we came. Nothing worked. I almost sat down. I begged and pleaded and cried. He did seem concerned I was crying but referenced his points from before.
Thankfully a gal named Heather and her donkey Pepsi (Carol VM) came along. I was never so grateful to see someone and another donkey. Normally, Leo is fine on his own with me. She walked past us and he didn’t go. So she got behind us and waved her arms while I applied pressure and release to get him going along with pleading and less tears. He finally moved. That particular mile took 40 minutes. We were stuck for at least 20-25 minutes.
Heather and Pepsi stayed with us for the rest of the race. I think it was good for all 4 of us to stay together. It is always great to make new donkey friends. We were the last 4 in. The story doesn’t end here.
We made the long climb to the highest point. 10,541 feet. Along the way Leo would stop, I was thankful so I could breathe and get my heart rate down. My head was killing me. I was dizzy. I wanted to puke. Altitude sickness. I was drinking water. Felt absolutely awful. I would try to recover and move on. Leo would pause and move on. It took awhile to figure it out, but, when he would stop would be exactly when I needed to stop to recover and when I recovered he would move forward. He was stopping for me. For me!! For me to be alright and move forward. Heather saw it too.
There are no words to describe how he knew I needed him to stop for a minute for me to recover. He was saving my life. All the time. All the time I was trying to get up the hill he was telling me that he was worried. When he stopped running early and I was breathing terrible, he was telling me that we will take it slow. I got you!!
We got to the top and started our decent finally. Finally, I would begin to feel better.
We saw Lynn at the aid station he was covering and I told him about Leonitus. That is his full name. Leo is my hero!!
It was all downhill from here.
We got to a canyon area that was absolutely gorgeous and so incredibly steep downhill. 18 percent!! Also on one side was roaring, not exaggerating, roaring water. It was so intense.
Leo was terrified. He was tense. Nostrils flared. Eyes big. He was so close to me. I had the entire lead in my hands. His body was touching mine. I talked to him the whole way telling him he was okay. It would be okay. I kept a hand on him and told him it would be done soon. Poor fella. I felt just awful for him. It was slippery too. I slipped a couple times. Pepsi and Heather were slipping too. It was so pretty though.
Kevin and the boys would be at the next aid station. I knew once Leo got through this he would be okay, we both would be. My breathing was better. My head hurt and my stomach wasn’t great but I didn’t feel like I would pass out at least.
The roaring water let up and calmed down. Leo relaxed and wasn’t as stressed and was visibly better. We saw Kevin and the boys and Leo immediately did a treat smile to Matthew and welcomed the love and affection from Kevin and the boys.
The 4 of us made our way to the finish line area. Leo in no hurry to run it in. He was funny as he was seeing his reflection on the windows and he would stop and look at that handsome hero in the window.
We walked in, not last ass. Pepsi and Heather were as Pepsi had no desire to run either. We all made it safe and that was all that mattered.
Brad M. Wann greeted us and gave Leo some loving. By now, Leo has one purpose. Get to the trailer and get the saddle off and some scrumptious dandelions. I agree sweet boy. Kevin wanted me to get a burger. I just wanted to help Leo.
As I walked to the trailer and emotional avalanche hit me. Hit me hard. Like a avalanche of freight trains.
I was bawling getting his saddle off. I was so proud of him. So incredibly proud of him. So moved by our emotional and physical connection to how he was when I was struggling. Upset and embarrassed that I am not a stronger runner for him. He deserves better. I can’t put it all into the right words to describe the love there is in my soul for this silly chunky donkey. I was a mess. He leaned into me and I hugged him and just cried. It has been such an emotional journey with Matthew and I needed this donkey more than I thought. I was just all over the place.
Linda, Alexis and Amber Wann talked with me while Kevin got me some vanilla milk, Tylenol, and Gatorade. I hadn’t eaten since breakfast.
Got Leo loaded in with everybody else and I got my act together the best I could and we headed home to South Fork. Got them unloaded and fed. Leo had a couple nice rolls in the dirt. His favorite thing to do after a race. His saddle was perfect for this race.
We all sat around later with Heather Wilson and Eero Allison talking about our race experiences. I am incredibly envious about their speed and their experiences. I get down on myself with that. I am trying to better myself and get faster. The elevation just got me so bad this time. With that being said, I wouldn’t trade my journey with Leo for a first place finish. I love this connection with him and I treasure every moment and challenge. Just as much as the front runners do. Ours just seems to take a little longer.
Thank you for reading if you made it this far. We will do this race again. I will do some elevation training to prepare better for sure. Next year the race should start earlier which will help too.
Love, Leonitus my hero and his crazy running human (godmother).
I got so many kind responses and motivational words that really lifted me up. One of the comments was a video that really hit home. It is a Miley Cyrus song before she went off the deepend and got a little crazy. I always loved the song, the lyrics really speak to me. Seem more so now.
I can almost see it
That dream I'm dreaming
But, there's a voice inside my head saying
You'll never reach it
Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking
But I, I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high
There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb
The struggles I'm facing
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down, but
No, I'm not breaking
I may not know it
But these are the moments, that
I'm gonna remember most, yeah
Just gotta keep going
And I, I gotta be strong
Just keep pushing on, 'cause
There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb
Yeah
There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes you're gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb
Yeah, yeah
Keep on moving, keep climbing
Keep the faith, baby
It's all about, it's all about the climb
Keep your faith, keep your faith
Whoa
I know the Cocodona race is going to make me face a lot of really hard times. It is expected that it will break me down into tears and make me feel that I can't do this. That I am a fraud, a jogger, a non-runner, a non-ultra runner. I know that in this journey to the race I will (and have) felt all of this.
But...that is part of the process.
Our week in Colorado was absolutely amazing. We were busy everyday as a family and with the donkeys. I came home motivated to get stronger and get things going. Matthew is doing better. My level of worry about him has dropped a couple thousand notches and that stress isn't eating me up anymore. Stress is an evil monster that will make your body do some crazy things. Make you eat like crap. Drink to much. Self pity.
The Colorado trip turned things around.
I got home and I was 7 pounds lighter!! On June 24th I am 10 pounds lighter than when I began this on 1 June. My confidence is better and I am super motivated to continue. I have put in more miles in the week after Colorado. I have been doing more weight vest lunges and squats. The heat is cranking up which is always a bigger beast to deal with.
I bought some wide brimmed hats to shade me more which really seem to make a big difference. I also got some new compression shorts to run in.
I know it may sound silly but, I organized my running gear so there are no excuses. Like I am guilty of, laying there contemplating running or not and using the excuse, it is so hard to find the right tank top, shorts, or that one shirt that I really like and then a whole tangent heavy in procrastination begins.....
I think that there is as much mental and emotional training as there is physical training for this. I have been working on my mindset towards my goals for Cocodona.
I also recorded my blog for the crew perspective for Cocodona for The Endurance House Podcast. You can hear it here if you want.
When I recorded it, it got me all motivated and excited to get this done.
I am constantly thinking of plans and scheming training runs to get me ready. The huge variable right now is the heat. More night running or very early in the darkness runs are a must right now.
In the words of the song:
The struggles I'm facing (The heat, personal stress)
The chances I'm taking (Taking on Cocodona)
Sometimes might knock me down, but (Hard race in Creede, life kick in the pants)
No, I'm not breaking ( I will not BREAK)
The chances I'm taking (Taking on Cocodona)
Sometimes might knock me down, but (Hard race in Creede, life kick in the pants)
No, I'm not breaking ( I will not BREAK)
I will wake up every day and RUN!!!
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