From Kym: 15 gorgeous Ks' of dirt trail, aspen trees, fresh mountain air, sweat, hills, elevation, breathing dust people kick up, burning thighs........ is this starting to take a negative turn? They don't call it Gaspin' in the Aspen for nothin'..... I was hoping someone might follow me closely with a respirator and a stretcher. People like me are the reason there are medics around every turn of every race. Kidding. I've only passed out, like, once. Otherwise, running has been pretty harmless.... you hardly need a medic for barfing all over someone at the end of Pat Tillmans' 4.2mi run (the poor guy i threw up on probably needed some assistance, however).
Anyways. Flagstafff. Trees. Less Pollution. Scenery. Weather under 110 degrees. I'll do just about anything to get out of this desert, including 9.3 miles of self inflicted torture. Can you tell I love mountain running? I do zero hill training. Partly because there aren't very many easily accessible hills in our part of Arizona, and partly because...well, hills make me want to cry. I can go for miles and miles on my flat dirt trail but the second I see an incline my legs involuntarily seize up.
This article was interesting and gave me a little pep talk pre-race: click here!
The cool thing about this particular race is it's pretty much one of a kind, and for a REALLY good cause. The beginning and end portion of the race was mostly evergreens, but there is an AMAZING middle part where the forest opens up into an incredible trail through giant Aspen trees. Unfortunately, most of the Aspen groves in the area are sick and will be gone in 10 years or less. Flagstaff Nordic Center and host of the race does a LOT of work in that part of the woods to clear out the dead trees and maintain the health of the ones still living. The proceeds from this race help immensely in the efforts to keep it beautiful and thriving over the summer. The hippie in me says YES!!!!!!
I was less than prepared for this run. But it was absolutely phenomenal. Slow and steady, had to walk on the intense inclines. Flew down the hills and only fell once (and hard). The course was tricky and you had to watch basically every step you took to avoid twisting and ankle or stepping in a giant pile of cow poo. I crossed the finish line at 1:39 and have never felt better. Thanks to Tim at the Nordic Center for throwing us in this race so last minute, and thanks for Powerade for sponsoring us for this amazing event!!
From Dave: On a scale of 1-10 of AMAZING, "Gaspin in the Aspen" sits right at about an 11. This race held in flagstaff which has an elevation of around 7000ft so i knew i was in for a treat with this one. I had heard about other races that this company put on and assumed the course was going to be fairly primitive and my assumptions where correct. The race is called "Gaspin in the Aspen" for good reason, and as Kym said, the middle of the race puts you smack in the middle of some of the few remaining aspen groves left in Arizona. The race was interesting as it is regulated by the forest services, and will only allow 350 runners to race. The reason behind this is to preserve the forest and not do any more damage. These heavy regulations also mean that the trail at some points goes from single file to non-existent. At times the only reason we knew where to go was by following the chalk arrows in the grass and the line of little orange flags.
And it didn't stop there, recently the flagstaff area was hit by a few random tornadoes that did a good amount of damage, and at some point of the race we were practically run on the actual tornadoes destructive path. Cool, yes. but this also left a blown over trees, thick branches and other random obstacles all over parts of the course. At one point i felt as though i was running through a mine field with my eyes glued only inches from my feet to make sure my every step was a safe one. The other Crazy part was the mapping of the course, it seemed like the directors turned on their GPS, got on a 4-Wheeler and chased a bunch of deer for 15 kilometers. The course went straight up hills through random meadows, down steep grassy/rocky declines and through aspen groves. As an experienced Athlete and runner, this one is going in the books as one of the hardest. Not saying its harder then a marathon but on average, I've never had 9 consecutive miles work me in a similar manner. I recommend the race to everybody as it truly was one of a kind, definitely "bucket-list" worthy. "gaspin in the aspen" definitely gets my seal of approval. here's a quick recap of why
- Gorgeous Course
- Good cause
- Burning lungs
- Hard enough to work the pros but can also be completed by rookies
- Lots of local support and good atmosphere
- Good excuse to get out of the Phoenix heat
- Spectacular post race refreshments( Powerade......NBD)
- And if your looking for 9 miles that will kick your a@#!
I finished in 1:14, 8th in my division. This race will bring a dirt filled smile to your face, as it did mine.
therunningdiaries.
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