Running 2000 Feet Down the Side of a Mountain

Yes, that right there is the elevation profile for my very first leg of the Hood To Coast Relay race Friday!

I'm running the Hood To Coast Relay Friday through Saturday as part of the Runner's World Team. 12 runners each run a relay leg, then you do it again, then again. So each person has three legs to run. Teammate Bart gave me a choice: Run Leg 1 (and each subsequent 12th leg from there) or run Leg 4.

Leg 4's okay, but rather plain. But Leg 1 caught my eye. I like to look for certain places for me to get a little outside my comfort zone. I'm probably the slowest runner on the team, so what's more nerve-wracking, especially with a famous runner as a teammate, than to make yourself be the VERY first to go?!? I did the same thing when Steve and I went ziplining in Hawaii. With control issues and fear of heights, Steve was surprised when I volunteered to be the first to go on the very first zipline in our group.

Ziplining: A major getting-outside-the-comfort-zone moment for me

Aside from the whole going first thing, it is also considered a very hard leg. As you saw above, it drops 2000 feet down the mountain of Mt. Hood over just 5.64 miles. And as you can see below, it's not exactly a straight road we're on either.

How exhilarating! Scary, but I did some pretty good hill training during San Francisco Marathon training, and I saw it pay off at that race just 4 weeks ago. And that training included running downhills. It's funny to me people who CHARGE the uphill and then walk or lightly run the downhill. I go for even effort. Yeah, that often means walk the uphill, and then sprint the downhill. :-)

So yeah, why not take the challenge? Keep me in your thoughts, sending safe and healthy vibes, as I careen down a mountain Friday morning at 9 am. I can't wait for this experience of a lifetime!