Cranmore Hill Climb

The Cranmore Hill Climb, mountain race in North Conway, New Hampshire. Never, have I experienced anything remotely close in my running life to what I encountered on Sunday. I read through the course description, looked at all the course photos. Trained at Afton Alps. Was ready for a pace slower than I was accustomed to running...but none of that was remotely close to preparing myself for a mountain race.

When we arrived in the White Mountains area on Friday, we drove around to see the national forest, the mountains, and the area in general. The first few ski areas we encountered has enormous ski hills. When we drove to the actual site of the course, I knew that I was not fully prepared for what we were going to encounter in a few days.

Race morning was a bit different than most race mornings. The weather was cool, but humid. There seemed to be the threat of rain all morning. Driving to the course took only a few minutes. We did not warm up on the course...figured we had to run 2 loops during the race, may as well avoid hills during the warm-up. It is quite a different experience being at a race and not knowing anybody else there. All of the usual crutches that you have for performance measures are non-existent.

Now for the race...if you can call that a race. Started at the bottom, the one of only two flat sections on the course (bottom and top). You start the race by taking a quick right hand turn and the start of the ascent. The course narrows into single track trails within the first 400 meters. I was caught off guard by how fast it went out the initial 400 meters. I was caught behind a lot of people during this initial stretch. When the course opened up a bit, I was able to work my way through the pack, and towards the very back of the lead pack. The climbing was tough, but the pace wasn't too bad yet. I figured the back of this pack was a good place to position myself. Well...then the real climbing started. The first 7-8 guys hit the steep section and kept powering up the hill. I hit the steep section and thought I was going to pass out. Within a matter of seconds I was full-on walking. And not a fast walk. Felt pretty discouraged at this point. 10 minutes into a race, and I am walking?? A quick look behind me saw almost everyone else walking. It was then that I developed an entirely new level of respect for those few guys who kept motoring up the steep hill.

The first steep section seemed to take a while to walk up...and I knew there was a second steep section before the summit. And I was intent on running that entire portion. That didn't happen either. I was experiencing a new level of pain and hurt at this point.

On the drop down the hill...that was a relief. I took the first few minutes of the drop to get control of my breathing, and find a good pace. It took about two minutes to get into aggressive downhill mode. I was pleasantly surprised on the downhill...I was really only passed through the extreme technical portion. I held my place on the rest of the downhill, and even caught the guys who passed me on the technical portion towards the bottom of the hill.

When we got to the bottom of the hill, I felt pretty good. I was catching some guys on the flat, and went through the first lap in 26 minutes, and I knew the winning time was 52 minutes last year, so I knew my pace was decent. On the initial climb up the hill on the 2nd loop, I was catching and passing people. I was thinking that my strength on hills would help me with the 2nd lap. Well...that feeling was short lived. It turns out the steep portions were even more brutal on the 2nd lap. And it turns out that I am not a fast walker. The guys that I passed while running, were blowing me away walking up these steep parts. I lost quite a few places during the walk, and not to guys running past me, but to guys walking past me. Kinda frustrating, but nothing I could do at that point. Tried walking faster...couldn't, tried running a bit...couldn't, tried to move my feet in a running motion...couldn't. All I could do is walk slowly.

By the time the final downhill portion came around...I didn't really care about place or time anymore. I just wanted to get to the bottom and finish running. I was quite frustrated at how unprepared I was for this race. A few guys passed me on the 2nd downhill portion...I didn't make any effort to go with them. I didn't let them blow me away, but I didn't put up much of a fight either.

I ran the 2nd loop in 30 minutes...56 minutes for the entire race, and 24th place. Not what I had envisioned. The funny thing about the entire experience, is that within an hour after the race, I was preparing myself to do this again next year...and going over what I can do to better prepare myself. I think seeing the mountain in person is now a huge preparation tool. I am hooked now! The challenge is amazing, and I want more!


Song of the Day: Cuts Across The Land - The Duke Spirit