I mentioned earlier in this blog that my husband and I are still
sticking with our New Year’s resolution of doing a 5K every month for
2010. Now that we are up north, we’ve
faced some different challenges than when we were running down south. Our biggest test has been adapting to the
terrain and the climate changes.
We searched online for our October race and came up with the “Race
to the Summit” run in Stratton, Vermont.
The event was to promote the opening of a new North Face store and all
participants got a free North Face shirt.
Well, that was enough reason for us!
Race to the Summit was actually shorter than a traditional 5K, but was
probably the hardest distance we’ve had to go yet this year.
There were less than 100 people in this adventure…and I’m
pretty sure they were all probably better prepared than we were. The steep
course had us climbing 1757 feet with a 17.4% uphill grade! The good news
is that it only ran 2.04 miles, because we probably would have died if it had
been a full 5K! Breathing was like a knife to the lungs. Again, we found that it was like we ran out of oxygen
about halfway up…seriously, Vermont should do something about that.
I had several Mid-Western friends running the Chicago Marathon on 10-10-10, so I realize we could have had it worse. (Those
guys had to fight unexpected heat and humidity…plus all those miles!) All we had to worry about on Stratton Mountain
was 36 degree temperatures, wind that could blow you off the mountain and ice
patches on the course! The course had
volunteers all over the mountain warning of ice dangers…that was certainly a
first for us!
To say this race was a “run” is sort of a lie…it was
really more of a hike! But y’all, the view from the top was worth the
trip! You could see for hundreds of miles! If it hadn’t been so dang cold up there, we
probably would have just hung out for a while.
Thankfully, getting down the mountain was a lot easier than
going up. It was the first time I had ever ridden in a gondola! Plus,
it was exhausting amazing to see how much ground we had covered from the sky.
For two Southerners who stick to surfaces not much higher than sea level,
it was a huge accomplishment. Brett and I both finished in less than an
hour, and this time I was only three minutes behind my husband. Those
killer times didn’t win us a North Face backpack like the clown runner who
did it in 24 minutes, but we were pleased to snag some North Face chap
stick as a consolation prize.
Now that we’re pseudo-Yankees, I still haven’t figured out why
we continue to torture ourselves at snowless ski mountains? My personal theory
is that it’s because we don’t have big mountains of land like this in
the South. The closest we get is the Crowley’s Ridge in Arkansas and
their elevation comes in at 550 feet.
Pretty small potatoes compared to Stratton Mountain’s 3,940 feet! These Yankee mountains are a sight to see and
torture to get up!
We only have two more races to go this year before we fulfill our New
Year’s resolution…hopefully we’re done with snow-less ski mountains for a while!
