My quest to
repeat as a Beast continued this past Saturday in beautiful Burke’s Garden,
VA. Burke’s Garden, known as God’s
Thumbprint, is a beautiful area of Virginia with mountains on each side. Don’t let the scenery fool you. This Half Marathon is one of the
toughest. Its hilly terrain will
challenge even the most seasoned runner.
This will be
Christy and my second trip to Burke’s Garden for the Varmint race, and we think
the second time will be better than the first.
When we went last year, we knew nothing of the area. There are no hotels in Burke’s Garden. The nearest place to stay is in Claypool
Hill, about 28 miles and 45 minutes away from the race site. Our dining choices are just as slim. Last year, we chose a Mexican place in
Richlands that was…well….less than Mexican.
When your waiter’s southern accent is thicker than yours, you know it’s
not going to be a good experience. No
Spanish spoken there.
This year,
we chose Cuz’s Uptown Barbeque in Pounding Mill. Cuz’s had been recommended on a blog by
another runner, so we took the chance.
You’ll miss Cuz’s if you’re not looking for it, even though it sits
right on the side of the road. There is
no sign that has the name on it, only a fence that has spelled out in huge
letters, THIS IS HIT. Yeah, I didn’t
make a typo. That is exactly how it is
spelled. Maybe it’s a local thing. Anyway, we gave it a chance. Cuz’s looks like an old barn that’s been
converted into a restaurant. The place was packed. We were seated and looked
over the menu. The words were all
jumbled together in run on phrases. No
spaces, it really was a mess. Close to
where we were was a doorway with what looked like wrestling action figures
attached to the doorframe.
We both ordered
the Barbeque Pork platter. We expected
to be able to put our own BBQ sauce on our pork, but that was a huge mistaken
assumption. Most BBQ restaurants will
give you sauces on the table to pour over the pork on your platter, but not at
Cuz’s. This pork was cooked in the BBQ
sauce. It was a bit more sauce than pork
and wasn’t as good as I would have expected.
The race was
to start at 8am. We left the hotel at
6:30, grabbed a quick breakfast (McDonald’s), and began the trek over the
mountain to Burke’s Garden. We arrived
around 7:20 and went to check in. I
don’t like to stand around a lot before races so we try to arrive as close to
the start time as possible. I make sure
that I do arrive in enough time to stretch and to apply Body Glide, which has
become my best purchase for the last few years.
I always
have a goal for finishing. Last year I
finished in 2:03:29. My goal for this
year was to finish in less than 2 hours, a challenging goal but not
unattainable. After having run the Varmint Half last year, I think I know where
I can attack the course and where I need to hold back. The clock strikes 8am. A few announcements, a prayer, the National
Anthem, and we are ready to run. In
front of us are 13.1 grueling miles.
I’ve wanted
to buy a GoPro camera to be able to video a race from start to finish with
commentary. At this point funds are an
obstacle to that dream. So I decided
about 2 miles into the race that I would use my phone, which is also my race
timer, to video myself at certain points along the race. I’ll add those in as the blog continues. If you get seasick watching video that shakes
(like me), you might want to skip the videos.
Miles 1-3.5
The first
mile is downhill and lulls the unsuspecting into a false sense of security. I know the most treacherous of the hills is
coming at about mile 3.5. I start at a
steady pace of about 8:45 min/mile. To
finish under 2 hours, I need to average fewer than 9:15 min/mile. So far so good.
We make the
turn toward mile 2 and begin a slow upward climb. Still running a good, comfortable pace that
hill is still in the back of my mind.
Mile 3 begins the steep climb up the hardest hill on the course. Making it through this part of the course
gives you the feeling that you can make it the entire way. I passed many who started to walk at this
point. One young guy was standing
halfway up the hill on the side of the road puking. Yeah, it’s that steep. I backed off my pace a little on this hill
knowing that I wouldn’t be able to attack this hill and still make my
goal. I made it to the top with a sense
of accomplishment knowing the next mile and a half was downhill and flat.
Miles
3.5-6.5
After
conquering the steepest hill on the course and still maintaining my PR pace, I
felt resolve to continue on a good trajectory toward the halfway mark. I try to break my races down into
segments. If I can run a certain segment
at a certain pace then I can finish at a certain time. It also helps on the longer runs to break it
down. I always think on my half
marathons that once I make it to the halfway mark the miles start counting down
instead of up. It’s a sense of
accomplishment to make it to the halfway mark and begin the turn toward the finish
line. The next segment was pretty much
flat or downhill with an occasional upward slope. Nothing really big and I made great time
during this part of the race. I passed a
few people who had started before me and that made me feel stronger. Although passing what looked like a 65 year
old man, doesn’t have quite the ring to it…haha. But I did pass a few runners younger than I
am. Overall pleased with this part of the run.
Miles 6.5-11
The halfway
point is on the very backside of the course route. It has some short steep hills but nothing
major. By this point in the race you
really get to thinking that you can hold your pace and finish strong. At mile 10, a runner came along beside me. I rarely talk to runners along the course. He
spoke to me as he was about to pass. I
spoke back and found out he was from just outside Johnson City. This was his first time to run the Varmint
Half and was shooting for less than two hours.
I knew he would make it. He
encouraged me by running alongside me, but by mile 11 had left me in his dust. Mile 10.5-12 is an out and back on Litz Lane
before you turn for the finish line.
Miles
11-13.1
The last two
miles are medium rolling with two hills, one leads right up to the finish
line. With most Half’s that I run, if I
have anything left, I like to sprint to the finish. The uphill climb to the finish line at the
Varmint would prove to be a challenging sprint.
As I topped the hill, my eye caught the clock at the finish line. I crossed at 1:59.07, a PR for me at that
distance, shattering my time from last year by 4 minutes.
Christy
always gets a picture or video of me crossing the finish line, but this time I
also wanted to have one from my perspective.
As I crossed
the finish line There Is A God by 33 Miles was playing on my iPod. All I could think was, how could anyone see
this beautiful country here and not believe that. Psalm 19:1 rolled through my mind, “The
heavens declare the glory of the God, and the sky proclaims the work of His
hands.”
Whether we
are running, or walking, or just admiring the scenery; the beauty of the earth
declares…There Is A God. This is the
proof. And all around the evidence is
speaking the truth. From the center of
my soul to the edge of the universe, creation is crying out, believe it or not,
there is a God.
Keep moving
forward.
