Race Day - Officially Done

Not Exactly as Planned

Without going into much detail (I'll save that for tomorrow), I did manage to hit a few key milestones, but my finish time was............nowhere near where I wanted it.

Time to Montpelier

I had targeted 4 hours to get to Montpelier - the first supported feed zone.  I missed it by maybe 10 minutes, if that.  It came at a price - details later.

Catch at least one Tandem by Salt River Pass

Considering that they started 66 minutes ahead of me, I though this might be difficult.  Turns out, I caught two of them at the top of Salt River Pass.

Stay out of all Neutral Feed Zones

It took a little creativity, but I did manage to stay out of the three neutral feed zones.  I did spend a little time at two watering stops, as well as spent too much time in the supported zones at Afton and Alpine Junction.  This isn't what ultimately contributed to my longer than planned finish time, but it certainly wasn't planned that way either.

The Bonk - Double

Bonk is what runners call "hitting the wall".  It is basically when you completely run out of gas - for whatever the reason.  I had two periods that I Bonked - and hard.  The first was leaving Montpelier and pretty much all the way to "king of the Mountain" at Salt River.  The second was with less than 20 miles to go.  In both cases I was able to pull through, but it was costly in the end.  Again, more details tomorrow.

Summary Assesment

I'm disapointed overall, but pleased with several of the keys.  I think I could make several improvements, but keeping in mind how conditions play a big part in the equation - hard to say.

Tomorrow, we go back to the awards ceremony and then head straight home.  Tonight I try to sleep in a motel room in beautiful Driggs, Idaho.  I have a hard time with Hotel/Motel rooms.

Take the rest of the weekend off................