Winter Spartan Sprint

I started 2017 with some BIG goals: complete my Spartan Trifecta, run a sub 22 minute 5k, run a half marathon PR (my current PR 2:00:00), and of course run a Boston Marathon qualifying time. I love writing out my goals. I am always looking towards my future, and putting my goals in writing motivates me to work towards making my future happen. However, writing my goals out in the beginning of the year only did so much to push me forward; I had no plan on how I was actually going to achieve them. The only races I had on my schedule as of January were a Spartan Sprint and Beast; I had no idea when I was going to have the opportunity to race a 5k let alone a marathon. I lacked a plan of action, focus, and motivation to work towards my goals.

January was a struggle for me training wise; I ran maybe three times a week, went to an hour long kettlebell and conditioning class twice a week, played some field hockey, and went rock climbing. Basically I was sampling a bunch of workouts, but I wasn't actually improving in any one field since I could not commit to anything. It is really hard to get stronger, faster, improve in the 5k distance and the marathon distance all at the same time. Since my big goal of the year is to qualify for the Boston Marathon I realized I needed to focus my efforts on running. However, I was not enjoying running like I remembered it during my marathon training last year. I missed the runs that felt effortless. The ones where I would take off, smile, sing, laugh, and run 15+ miles for fun! My eagerness to get back to where I was in marathon training clouded my memory of how I even got there in the first place. On January 31^st I decided I would do what had worked for me before. I registered for a half marathon with only 8 weeks to buckle down and train. I would be running a 5k on February 11^th, which gave me a short term and quantifiable goal to work towards. I finally felt like I had a plan of action to begin working towards my goals in 2017. I could focus on my 5k for 11 days, then I would focus on my Spartan training for my race on March 4^th, and finally run my half marathon on March 25^th. I would continue cross training, but it was time for me to buckle down and commit to running again.

On February 11^th I ran the Cupid Chase 5k in Pittsburgh. For the first time in this training cycle I felt confident in my abilities and I was excited to compete against myself again. My goal of the race was to run a sub 23:30 (my old PR) and to place in my age group. The weather was beautiful and the course was on one of my favorite trails. I finished the race in a time of 23:09 finishing 2^nd in my age group and the 7^th overall female. It felt amazing to race again and I was excited to see where I could improve in my fitness before my Spartan race.

Post race cookies are the best!

The next few weeks of training flew by. My Spartan team, Steel City Spartans, hosted a winter workout the weekend before the race. I am so thankful for this workout because my teammates really helped me with my obstacle strategies. I felt confident jumping the walls, flipping tires, and even carrying a heavy bucket for long distances without putting it down to rest. I was ready to conquer the first ever US Winter Spartan Race at Greek Peak, New York.

Practicing the rope climb at the Steel City Spartan Workout

I left Pitt the Thursday before the race, so that we could leave for New York Friday afternoon. I'm so glad I came home on Thursday because I still needed to get some last minute things before the race. The weather forecast was looking COLD, and I did not have the right pants to wear for single digit temperatures. I ended up buying a pair of North Face Isotherm tights, which offer wind protection and warmth, improving temperature regulation. With the purchase of these tights I was ready to pack my bags and head to New York. On Friday afternoon my parents and I began our trek to Greek Peak. On our drive we talked about how crazy it was that it was around this time last year that I was calling my brother an idiot for asking them to do a Spartan Race and now they were driving me to one (again). After checking into our hotel, we went to Perkins for everyone’s favorite race dinner:  pancakes and eggs, and water for hydration. After dinner we headed back to the hotel. I packed everything I would need for race day, laid my outfit out, and looked over the course map to visualize my race plan before calling it a night.

I did not have a great night’s sleep, but I was more than ready to get moving in the morning.  The hotel’s continental breakfast was invaded by Spartans that morning. I ate a plain bagel with cream cheese and an apple for breakfast. We left the hotel around 8:30 am to go to the shuttle buses that would be taking us to the race. It was a painfully cold wait for the shuttle bus to arrive, but once it came it was a warm 20-minute drive to the mountain. When we arrived at the mountain we were shuffled into the lodge for registration. The registration process was a mess causing the whole race to be delayed about an hour behind schedule. However, once I was registered I had plenty of time before my start time—I was in the first open heat.

At 11:00am my heat was called over the start wall to begin the first US Spartan Winter Sprint. I was one of the first people over the wall and ended up literally toeing the start line for the first time in my racing career. 

After yelling the Spartan pre-race chant, I set off running up the first hill of the race. I didn't stop running till I made it to the first hurdle (pun intended), which was a 5-foot hurdle. I had no problem scaling the hurdle and then scaling the 6-foot wall right after it. 

Once over the wall, I made my way towards one of my favorite obstacles, barbed wire. I quickly crawled through and continued running on the icy terrain. I was keeping a good pace and felt strong as I ran, but my high spirits were challenged when I fell off the rig on the fourth frozen ring. Although I made it further than I ever have before I was disappointed that I was going to have to stop and do thirty burpees. Even though it was 12 degrees out, I stopped for a drink at the water station before running on towards the the Atlas Stone. My strength improved from last year’s Spartan as I had only slight difficulties lifting the rock this time. The stone was covered in ice, but once I got a grip under it I was able to lift it and go. The bucket brigade was long, but it was not uphill so I was thankful for that! 

The next two obstacles were the vertical cargo net and the rope climb. The rope climb is my favorite obstacle and I was so happy to ring the bell (and come down without getting hurt), but I wasn't happy to see that the Herc Hoist was the next obstacle. As I ran from the rope climb I did not think to slow down to catch my footing as I approached the creek crossing… I slipped and fell in the creek. Now I was nice and frozen for the Herc Hoist. I was barley able to get the bag off the ground, and once I did, I was pulled off my feet and the bag dropped. I was doing another 30 burpees and I knew I would probably be doing 30 more at the spear throw right ahead. I gave it my best shot, but I missed the target by a mile adding 30 more burpees to my race. After 60 burpees in a row I was ready to run and finish this race. I climbed the inverted wall and ran towards the festival area. My parents were by the A-Frame cheering me on! Their encouragement pushed me up and over the A-Frame and on towards another run up the mountain. The rest of the race is kind of a blur. I was so focused on finishing strong I didn't really take the time to enjoy the special “Winter” obstacles Spartan created. The best part of the back half of the race was the icy sand bag carry. I think I liked this obstacle so much because I was passing people left and right, plus the descent was so slippery I just held my sandbag and slid down on my butt. Finally, the race was coming to an end and I was sprinting down a double black diamond slope to finish strong. I ran up the slippiest Slip Wall and went under the snow pit before getting to jump over the fire to victory! I ended up finishing faster than my parents thought I would and they missed my finish, they came out in time to see me get my medal though (Luckily Spartan 

Race captured my fire jump for them to see!)!

I thought the first US Winter Spartan was challenging and fun! It was a fast course and the conditions definitely tested my grit. I raced this Sprint as if I were in the Elite heat, taking no help and doing all 30 burpees for each of the three obstacles I missed. Even with 90 burpees, I was able to run almost the entire race and finish the 3.45 mile course in a time of 1:14:18. I finished 4^th in my age group, which to my surprise qualified me for the Age Group Division at OCR World Championships!

After the Winter Spartan Sprint, I decided it was time to revaluate my goals. I have shifted my training focus towards the races I have already registered for and graduating college on a high note! When I started my Spartan journey last July I never had any intentions on running in the Elite or Competitive waves, and I definitely did not believe I would ever qualify for OCR World Championships; however, that has changed because from here on out I will be racing in either the Elite or Competitive waves at OCR events to prepare me for OCR World Championships. I also know that it is probably not realistic for me to think I will be qualifying for the Boston Marathon this year since I still have no full marathons on my race schedule. Instead I will focus my road race goals on PRing in my upcoming half marathon and the Broad Street 10 mile Run. I may have started this year off lacking a plan of action, focus, and motivation to work towards my goals; but I am in a new state of mind and I am not going to make the same mistakes again. Instead of just writing out goals I wrote a set training plan for each goal to keep me on track and motivated. So far this year, I have learned so much about myself and have achieved things I never dreamed possible. If these early months of 2017 have taught me anything it is that my future is BOUNDLESS!