Race Report: Angel Island 25k Trail Run

Race Report: Angel Island 25k Trail Run - Tiburon, CA

Alternative title: The Run that Almost Didn't Happen

Short cut details (for those that like to see how slow I was this time and do not want to read 1000 words to do so)

Distance: 25k (15.75 miles, plus I had to run 0.25 mile to catch the goddamn ferry. Total: 16 miles)
Time: 3:34:40 (self timed. I will get to that)

Pre-run

This run was cursed almost from the start. About a month ago Penny and Jo Lynn and I decided to do this run, then LA Run Buddy said she wanted do it too.

Totally awesome! Girl Power run. I was so stoked. (Every now and then I try to sound as stereotypically 'California' as possible, dude)

Then last weekend LA Run Buddy's knee went kaputt and she had to bail (ok, I told her she should NOT run and that she was a dumb ass if she did. I know, all sweetness and light that RBR). Then this week Penny got invited with her canine run partner, Velcro, to do a Runner's World photo shoot on Saturday (and ummm... hells yeah, I would bail too. Soo cool) so she was out. THEN Jo Lynn, in LA Run Buddy fashion, has her foot go kaputt and doctor says, "No running for you!"

And then there was one.

*sniff*

If you have read the last two posts (or the last 12 posts, I cannot remember a time when I was not blubbering about this stuff) I had a pretty emotional week (Run Buddy update will be at the end of all this.)

In addition to hubby recovering from cancer treatment surgery and my best friend being hospitalized for a unknown and scary as fuck brain type illness, my parents dog, who has been on chemo therapy for lymphoma for the last year, went into liver failure and had to be put down on Thursday.

In a former life, I was a veterinary nurse (still licensed, but not practicing) and am the 'go to gal' in the family for veterinary medical 'splaining. Which means, when they do not understand the options or diagnosis the doctor has given them, I explain it in more understandable terms. (I am sure it is hard to believe for anyone that reads my overly verbose rantings that I can make things more clear, but that is my job in the family)

Anyhoo, between testing and the specialist visits at my friend's bedside in the hospital, I was explaining to my crying mother and deeply saddened daddy, what liver failure meant and was having the dreaded "how do you know when it is time?" conversation.

Fuck me. Enough already.

Needless to say I strongly considered not even getting up to do the damn thing on Saturday.

Pre-run, part deux

This gets its own section because the other one was too long already and well, my blog, my rules. I can have 12 pre-run sections if I want. So there.

I DID get up on Saturday. I DID drive through fucktarded San Francisco with its fucktarded and convoluted detours to get to the race site in Tiburon. I DID fight with asshole Tiburon business owners that, even though there was a public parking kiosk and 47 fucking signs advertising public parking for $5 in their goddamn parking lot, said we could not park there. I DID eventually park my car and get to the ferry landing. I DID make it to the restroom before my bladder ruptured after 2 hours of driving and 42 oz. of coffee consumed.

Ferry Dock in Tiburon, CA

However, I DID NOT make it on the first ferry to Angel Island which was the one I was supposed to be on to make the 25k and 50k start time at 8:30.

I watched it pull away actually.

Standing on the dock, holding my little ticket.

*Alarms sound*
Whoop Whoop "WARNING: RBR MELTDOWN EMINENT"

My throat tightened, my eyes started to fill. I put my sunglasses on (trying to maintain a sliver of self-respect) and stared after the ferry.

RBR devil: Fuck this. I am going to get breakfast and drive back home.

RBR angel: Just wait for the next ferry and you can start late. There is no cut off for the 25k. You are fine.

RBR devil: I don't even want to fucking be here. Why the fuck am I here?

RBR angel: Even if you run a shorter run, just get out there. You will feel better once you are on the trail.

RBR devil: There is an 8k right? Where are all the fucking fat people? Why am I always the fattest fucking person at these fucking things? Fuck.

RBR angel: Just get your whining ass on the goddamn ferry! Fucking A, you are a baby. Damn! (Well, it IS an RBR angel. It is only so angelic)

And so I did. I got on the goddamn ferry.

The Run

I talked to Sarah (the very kind woman that runs the PCTR runs) and she let me and this other gal, a 50k'er that also missed the first ferry, start when we got there. She asked if we could keep our own time.

If you happen to look up my results on the website it will show my time as about 30 min slower than I report here. To prove I am not a liar here is a shot of my Garmin. Yeah, I like I would lie to make up a 13:39 pace. *eyeroll*

I was not sure what I was going to run when I got there. I wasn't sure how far I would go for almost the entire run. I decided this run was purely therapeutic and when it stopped being that I would stop, whether that was at 1 kilometer or 25 kilometers.

First kilometer was climbing a shitload of stairs. Hmmm.... may be a short day. We got to do these 3 times for the 25k.

The 50k'er was excited to have someone to run with and that we would be on the same trail for about 8 miles.

*sigh*

Goody.

She was super fit and clearly MUCH faster than me. I know she thought we were going glacially slow, but I was at a pace I could not maintain and we were climbing so I was DYING. She was really nice and very interesting and I usually LOVE running and chatting with people, but yesterday I just needed to be alone and run.

So I did something terrible.

I mean, really terrible.

I played the cancer card. Yep, I dropped the 'my husband has cancer' bomb. NO ONE, no matter how nice or how co-dependent, wants to run 8 miles (or even 2 miles) with a stranger talking about cancer. I know, that makes me an asshole, but I did it and it worked, which only reinforces my bad behavior.

About half a mile after the cancer bomb. She was a seriously cool person and on any other day I would have been thrilled to run with her.

After that I settled in for the run. Not knowing if this was going to be the only loop or if I was going to continue for 2 or maybe even all 3. For the 25k you run three loops the Perimeter Road loop, and two interior trails that I can not remember the names of. Each one is about 5 miles give or take.

Profile for the Angel Island 25k. 2035' ft of climb. Little cruel that the climb gets worse on each successive loop.

Running alone somewhere beautiful and away from everything was exactly what I needed. I was completely alone for 90% of the run since I started 30 minutes behind the 50k'ers and the other 25k'ers and about 10 minutes before the 8k'ers 16k'ers. I would love to say I had some great catharsis of the last few months or deep spiritual epiphany, but mostly I thought about nothing and ran.

View of the Golden Gate Bridge

Action Shot of me and the GG bridge. I am going so fast the background is blurred. Ok, fine maybe it isn't, but I was running.

Where's RBR? More self-timer silliness.


Angel Island has a mix of dry grass, full sun trials with panoramic views...


...and magical feeling, fern lined forest trails

This one is to make Penny feel better about missing the run. It was full sun and got hot. Not oppressively so, but certainly not the typical overcast, cool San Francisco area weather.


Cool house that we ran by.

This is where I missed a trail ribbon and went off course twice. Some visitors doing a walking tour of the island had to scream up to me that I was going the wrong way. Then since I was slow on the uptake and changed course to go the wrong way AGAIN, an older woman hiked back up the hill to show me where the trail was (in my defense the ribbon was on the ground and the "trail" was little more than flattened grass.) Her comment when I finally was headed in the right direction was "You have some catching up to do the other runners came by a long time ago." Awesome. Thanks.

Flat grass "trail"

Before I knew it I was headed in from the full 25k run. As I crossed the finish line they announced that the ferry for Tiburon would be leaving and the next ferry was in an hour. Fuck that I am not waiting an hour. I grabbed my t-shirt and a Diet Coke and took off running the 0.25 mile to the ferry dock to make the ferry. Thankfully I did not miss this one.

I was, however, the very last passenger to load. Kind of poetic, no?

Oh, and this one? This one was just for you, G. Smooches from Angel Island.

Run Buddy Update

Thank you again for your kindness and well wishes. She is home. I was able to take her home. Thursday afternoon. She does not have a brain tumor, or MS, or any other scary neurological disease, She was diagnosed with pseudotumor cerebre. It essentially presents like a brain tumor, but is caused by increased intracranial pressure associated with the cerebrospinal fluid (it is also known as idiopathic intracranial hypertension. Which translates to: "We don't know why, but you have increased pressure in your head")

She has more appointments this week with the ophthalmologist and has started some medication. I am still freaked out, but at least some of the scary stuff is off the table.