This race starts at an elevation of 5000 feet above sea level and finishes at 3000. The altitude of the start was something I didn't notice when signing up. All I could think about was a 2000 foot drop and how great that would be!
Had I read this article beforehand I might not have signed up...and that would have been unfortunate!
http://www.runnersworld.com/races/downhill-all-way?page=single
Race Report:
The organizers moved the race time from 7:30 am to 7:00 am a week before race day due to higher than normal expected temperatures.
As you might expect, the logistics of the start did not go as smoothly. The buses to the start line got backed up. Someone came onto the bus and told us that it was half a mile to the start line and we had better walk or else we would miss the start. Running half a mile uphill in the dark was an unexpected warmup routine.
Once at the start it was still dark and the porto-potties were lined up. Lots of runners ran off to the bushes...but in the dark it felt a bit more adventurous than normal. :-)
Once those wrinkles were done the race started on time just as the sun was peaking over the mountains. It was a beautiful sight!
We wound our way down the mountain with some steep downhills early on. My Garmin had died the day before and I didn't bring the charger. I decided to run without a GPS watch...the horror, is that how the cavemen ran??
I definitely felt something was a bit off early on. I've never run more than 500 feet above sea level before so it's likely that the altitude was affecting me but it's also certain that I don't know enough to say for sure. Basically my chest felt tight and my breathing was a bit labored. Despite that my splits at the halfway mark said I was on track for a personal best.
Speaking of the halfway mark: We went off the main road and did an out and back on Biosphere Road. The rolling hills were painful and I don't even know if the Biosphere was visible or not.
From that point on, the main road was a gentle downhill which was very nice. A few small rolling hills at the end hurt but that was just because it was at the end of a Marathon!
I finished at 3:19:09 which was an improvement over my Surf City time of 3:21:49.
So this year began with my best time and finished with a new best time with a lot of frustration, injury and disastrous race times in between. I'm very glad I did this one!!
A few notes about this race:
1) The roads are closed and as such there is no crowd support. There are a lot of Saguaro Cactus and you can imagine that they are people holding up funny signs.
2) There are very few buildings on the course. It is mainly mountains, fields of bush, cacti and such.
3) It is the complete opposite of a big city urban marathon like Chicago that takes you through different neighborhoods.
4) I was there alone. If you bring family and friends, the finish line is pretty much the only place you will see them.
5) The temperature change from the top to the bottom is big. This is to be expected with the drop in altitude combined with the sun coming down from a crystal clear sky.
I thought the course was beautiful and it was a nice contrast from the urban marathons. (which I also like).
Overall, this was a great race. It was a different race with different scenery and a different atmosphere. It is definitely one I would recommend!!
