Taroko Gorge Marathon, Taiwan 2012

       There are many kinds of races you can run. Among them are flat road races where you push your limits for a speedy time, trail races where you challenge yourself with the terrain as you careen up and down steep dirt paths, and there are adventure races where you run for the scenery or just to experience being someplace totally new and totally different. Nov. 3rd was definitely an adventure race, following the winding road up Taroko Gorge, Taiwan.

       It was an adventure from registration day forward. The race is limited to 10,000 people because of the venue and it sold out in a few hours. Thanks to wonderful people, I had the help I needed to navigate the website (which was all in Chinese) and get my information in. After that it was settling plane tickets, hotel rooms, and trains. Fortunately, Taiwan is a WONDERFUL place where all the signs are in English, everything is well marked, nearly everyone speaks English, and they are more than willing to help a lost traveler.

Sam and Nancy, without whom
 I would never have arrived at the start gate

       After about 12 hours of bus/plane/bus/train/train, I finally arrived in Hualien, Taiwan where my friend Sam walked me to my hotel and helped me order the best Chinese take-out I’ve ever had (that cost about $1.35 US!) I reorganized my bags and laid out my clothes for the morning when I would meet a group of young runners in the lobby to share cabs to the shuttle busses that would take us to the race start. Needless to say, I wasn’t exactly fresh and bouncy at the start line, but I was excited and ready to roll.

Bus drop off



Nifty red check bags



Miranda, who helped me get

 from the hotel to the shuttles



   

    The race start was a mad house! After being dropped off near the start arch, we had to walk about half a mile up hill to check our bags and then back down again. By this time the sun had come up, the day was looking fantastic, and the sea of 10,000 runners, plus spectators was roiling with anticipation.

 

Sea of runners headed back to the start arch



    

  

      The first 5K was flat and along the coast to give the crowd a chance to thin out before we funneled onto the road up the gorge.

       Like other big races I’ve been in, twists and turns in the road revealed an endless stream of runners pushing up the gentle grade. I had expected a wicked steep climb, but it was actually quite a gentle slope up the gorge since we stayed low, between the towering mountains. It was one of the most spectacular places I have ever seen! No pictures can ever begin to do justice to this place, but I did my best, stopping to snap shots that were dimished the minute they were framed in a viewfinder!



A well lit tunnel, not all were





Runner as far as the eye could see

       As we climbed higher and finally came into the sun, the potential heat was mitigated by a cool breeze that wafted out of the gorge like a welcome blast of air conditioning on a summer day.



The road still thick with runners





Tired smile



       Everyone was having such a good time! Nearly all the runners had cameras out and did not hesitate to stop and take pictures. Every time I stopped for a snap shot, another runner would stop next to me for the same shot, then ask me to take their picture with the background, then offer to take my picture with the background, then grab a third person to take our picture together with the background. Needless to say, it took a lot longer to get up the road than it should have! I didn’t care though. Speeding through a race like this would be like rapidly inhaling a gourmet meal, it would simply be a waste.



Cheering in the native costumes of Taiwan



 



Hard hats in case of falling rocks. Hikers were wearing them, but only one or two runners availed themsleves of the service. Good thing we didn't really need them since there would never have been enough for all the runners



       I was also a bit of a novelty on the course. There were very few Westerners present, fewer of them women, and I could probably count on one hand the number of blondes. Many people welcomed me to Taiwan as we ran and asked me loads of questions. It was so much fun! Once or twice they would run past me very close and then lean in to look inspect my face (or maybe it was the blue eyes they wanted to see up close.) It is an odd feeling when someone invades your space like that, but I’ve gotten pretty used to it and just smile. One of these days I should paint a third eye on my forehead, LOL.

           One thing that really surprised me was the number of barefoot runners! I think there were more people in minimal shoes than traditional trainers and I've never seen so many vibrams. Someone was even in "Invisible Shoes!" In this race though, there were many people with skin on pavement. It made me fell very overdressed in my Merrells. I considered taking them off, but I didn't want to carry them and, in races like this, I tend to get caught up in the scenery and don't watch where I am stepping, so the shoes stayed on.



Where's the runner?



       Since my Garmin didn’t work in the gorge I had my max split times printed and taped to my water bottle. As long as I managed to stay ahead of those times, I knew I could finish before the 6 hour cut off. I watched them closely, particularly with all the lengthy photo stops, and managed to keep ahead of the red zone all the way to the turnaround at the peak at 25K.

I've never had so many pictures of ME on my camera, LOL

A closed off section of road

       When we reached the summit, crowds were taking pictures with the marker sign, excitement mounting as we turned back towards the finish, ready to enjoy the easy downhill roll.

       In an out and back race, you can’t help but look to see who is behind you after the turn around. I was shocked at the number of people that were still struggling up the gorge. In Korea I am generally at the very back, even when I am moving much faster, but I had hundreds behind me this time. All were in good spirits though and excited to be in there.

       Not long after the turn around my left knee started niggling. Usually it my right knee that complains first so I was a little worried, especially since I had about 15K of downhill left to cover. I stopped and stretched my hip adductors and that seemed to take care of it since it never bothered me again. I think perhaps running uphill tightens them so I need to get in the habit of stopping for a quick stretch at the top of hills.

       The 30K mark was deep in a tunnel, again with crowds of people stopping for pictures. Some Army kids I had been running alongside asked if I would join them for a picture so we waited our turn for a quick snap before continuing on.

     

  Shortly before we reached the “Last 5K” sign the clouds rolled in, creeping down the mountain faces, and bringing with them a light drizzle of rain. It was still warm though so we didn’t mind. I was very glad I had gotten all the pictures I wanted early on. By now I had met up with Miranda and Sam, who were down to walking. My body was pretty beat up from traveling and carrying bags so, with nothing to prove on the clock and plenty of time to finish, I enjoyed strolling along for the last couple of kilometers listening to Sam’s stories about the other runners around us. In Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong, the running bug is just as strong as it is in Korea. Everyone runs so many races that they seem to all know each other and every third or fourth person we saw greeted Sam or Miranda.



So cool that the medal includes a map of the course!



       When we emerged from the last long tunnel, the finish arch was ticking away the seconds. YAY! Done! Most people that visit places like this, take a bus or taxi, stopping at key points to soak up the view, but when you cover the whole course on foot, twice, you see it all. You absorb your surroundings in a way you never could in a tour group or from a car window. Even on a bicycle, it would all zip by far too quickly. Saying good-bye to the Gorge after such a satisfying and fulfilling day spent with it was easy, like pushing away the clean plate after a wonderful, fulfilling meal. I’ve done it, I’ve lived it, I’ve seen it, I’ve breathed it, I’ve tasted it, I’ve felt it in my soul and it will never leave me.

Gapyeong Marathon

Dancing Gangnam Style to warm up

      

       I believe that once in a while we should set high goals, something that is beyond what we really believe we can do. We need pipe dreams, goals that stretch our wings and cause us to take a leap of faith. This summer I set one of these goals when I registered for 4 marathons in a month’s time. Part of me didn’t truly believe it was possible, but the stubborn kid in me was determined to prove naysayers wrong. There are so many reasons to take on a challenge like this. I learned a tremendous amount about myself, my mind, my body, and my abilities. I experienced so much more than I would have otherwise and at the end of life that is the only thing that can’t be taken away from you.

       Gapyeong was shaping up to be a tough race. The course is known for steep hills and, as if having run 3 marathon in the previous 4 weekends wasn’t enough, the night before was the Air Force Ball. I had a grand time at the ball, but didn’t stay for dancing since I needed fresh legs in the morning. Other than not partaking of alcohol, my other concession to the race was to wear flats with my gown. At least being floor length hid my feet. Despite my caution, I ended up only getting about 5 fitful hours of sleep and had over eaten so I wasn’t in the best shape for a race on Sunday morning!

Ugly elevation profile, it felt as bad as it looks!

       The area the race was being held in is a resort town up in the mountains Northeast of Seoul. It is stunningly beautiful and the course followed a lake with water-skiers zipping by, making me jealous of the cool water they were enjoying. Although not as hot as the race in August, it was still upwards of 80 degrees and skin-crispingly sunny, (as attested to by the spots that I didn’t quite reach with sunscreen.) The first part of the course, which was quite steep, was at least shady. A large part of the second half, which consisted of a cement bike path on the river bank, was unprotected and the aid stations were about 4k apart. It was flatter, but much hotter and lonelier.

I was holding up well on the course, pushing on the uphills and taking it easy on the down hills, to protect my knees. I intended to take the whole 6 hours by adding in lots of walk breaks, feeling no need to push my pace, preferring to finish feeling good despite the late night and long month. It was another one of those races with out-and-backs in opposite directions (with a little short one at the start) and after the first big turnaround I felt pretty good about the number of people behind me and my pace.

Mr. Kim far left

       Ever Faithful Mr. Kim had found me with my club and even snuck into our group photo! He paced with me for the first half of the race, but somewhere in the second half I announced that I was taking advantage of the 6 hour cut off and he left me in his dust. I must have sorely disappointed him because I didn’t see him at the finish.

Once I hit the 20 mile turn around I was happy. I could walk the rest of the way and still finish before the course closed so I relaxed a bit and took some long walk breaks to let my body cool down. We at least had a nice breeze, but the sauna at the gym has been broken for weeks and I haven’t been doing my heat training. I could really feel the difference! The temperature should not have bothered me as badly as it did, but I wasn’t alone. The Sweeper van (in this case, an ambulance) was very busy picking up overheated runners and shuttling them back. I wondered if the 6 hour cut off had lured an extra dose of beginners into a tough race. I realized after the turnaround that this time, there weren’t many people behind me and the ones left on the course were in really rough shape. One woman stopped and sat on a low wall a mile or so before the turn and she was still there when I came back around. I tried to encourage another runner to step it back up when I passed him and he waved me off saying, “I cannot!” With about 4 miles to go I passed a runner for the last time as he climbed into the ambulance. At the time I was enjoying a nice walk break in a rare shady spot and the ambulance driver yelled at me to get in. I waved him off with a stern “NO!” and picked back up to a run. It was a gentle downhill at this point so if I needed to keep running to not be caught by the sweeper, so be it. I wondered more than once if I had misread the website and the course actually closed in 5 hours. I didn’t care though, I know they always list finish times for almost an hour after course close and I had my Garmin so I could trace my route back to the finish if the volunteers at the turns had gone home. Fortunately, they were all in place, as were the traffic cones that separated me from the cars on the last stretch through town.

About this time I realized the police car that had been patrolling up and down the course was now just following me. Oops? Was I really in last place? I sure was! The police car was great because it kept motorists from coming too close to me, but it was more than a little nerve wracking to know that everyone was now waiting on ME to finish the race! The aid stations were still open, but obviously almost done cleaning up and anxious to be finished. The ubiquitous teenage girls were mobbing me with cups and cheers, glad to see their good deed for the day was nearly over. At the turns, the officers directing traffic and runners had lost a bit of their enthusiasm in the pounding sun, but they stopped the cars and waved me through with smiles.

         As I climbed the last hill up to the track where the start/finish gate was placed, the police car zipped around me and turned on the lights and sirens to announce the final runner. I ran through the arch, grinning from ear to ear because I had done it! The strangers around me had no idea how much this finish meant to me or what had been accomplished at that moment, so much more than a mere marathon finish. They cheered excitedly anyway, the photographer were snapping pictures, and the volunteers ran up to me with a double dose of snacks and my medal. Even my checked bag had been moved up to the finish! Someone very official looking stopped me for a photo. I have no idea if he was the race director or the Mayor of the town, but he congratulated me and we smiled for the camera before he went on his way.

       While I was resting and stretching to prepare for the long drive home, they were dropping the awnings and packing up. The runners that were still hanging around were giving me fist pumps and congratulations, friendly and supportive as always even for the last bedraggled runner. Later, on Facebook, one of my club members posted very excitedly that I had finished second in my age group. I laughed that it was second out of 2 and she didn’t believe me because there were so many runners. There were lots of men on the course, but as usual, very few women. As a woman, you can finish last and still be in the top 3 for 40-something!

       How did my body hold up through 4 marathons? I must say that it surprised me. There were definitely times when I hurt, either generally or acutely in one joint or another. I did not want to talk about the issues I had going into my last race because I knew people would give me a bad time for continuing on my journey and I didn’t want to hear the negative talk. After the Ansan race the week before, my left foot was very tender and I was afraid for the first day or two that I had another stress fracture. The rest of the week I wore my old Brooks trainers so that my arch would be propped up and could totally rest. I also taped it to get through the classes I taught during the week. I was worried equally about my knee. It never totally recovered from tweaking it in the first race and I was very afraid of the hills for this last course. I treated both my foot and my knee with KT Tape and prayed. The first half of the race was really rough. Every joint felt tight and my knees forced me to a walk on several downhills, but walking was fine and my foot seemed to be okay. By the second half, the pain had evaporated. I don’t know if it works this way for everyone, or if it is a symptom of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Perhaps the pain I feel in my joints would indicate injury on someone else, but is just my body overreacting. Another person running through the pain I feel might end up in surgery, where I end up finally lubricating my joints with the motion and getting them past an attack by RA. If I had truly injured my knee or my foot, and done actual mechanical damage, there is no way I could have finished all four races. Either way, no one would have faulted me for quitting at any point, no one would have cared if I didn’t meet my goal, and no one would have given it another thought but me. For myself and everyone else with this stupid disease, I had to do it to beat RA, I had to prove to myself that it cannot rob me of my life unless I let it. I expected the day after the race to be very painful with foot and knee pain, but I actually didn’t hurt at all! It was really weird that I would actually hurt less the day after a marathon than the day before! Sort of like deafening silence when a loud noise you have become accustomed to suddenly stops. I was healed by the last marathon, not torn down more.

       Nutrition: From the Marathon Maniacs page, I learned that one of the keys to multiple marathons is nutrition. Not only do you need to replace the carbs, but you need to recover fast and that means protein, fluids, and nutrient filled foods so your body can rebuild. Immediately after a race I can usually only get down a drink, banana, and maybe some fruit or a roll, but once I have cooled down and my stomach is settled, I need quality protein and I have found having a couple of boiled eggs stashed in my gear hits the spot exceptionally well. They are easy to digest and are lovely dipped in salt! Getting enough to eat right after a race to bring your blood sugar back up to normal is also very important if you need to have your wits about you to drive home. This requires enough glucose for your brain to function so handy carbs are important. They need to be quality carbs though, not chips or junk, something that will get into your system quickly and not put you on a blood sugar rollercoaster. Healthy fats help too. I’m still experimenting with what does this best and travels well.

       Between races: When you only have a week to recover before another full marathon, you have to be very careful with your mind and body. It made a big difference to have my life in order for the first couple of days so I didn’t have to think. Food was shopped for and set up, work was planned out, and lists were made so that I didn’t have to think much. By the end of the week I was ready to set up for the following week, creating a sustainable pattern for race-rest-race-rest-race. I made sure I got plenty of muscle rebuilding protein through the week, plenty of rest, and didn’t set myself up with much in the way of outside obligations. All the races were on Sunday so Monday was a pajama day with lots of stretching and foam rolling. My workouts between the last three races included very little running, but lots of core work and large range of motion exercises like squats. I taught my regular exercise classes, rode my bike home from work, and went through the warm up and skills for CrossFit on Monday and Friday, but only did a full WOD on Wednesday. It felt great to move and this pattern allowed me to push a little without overdoing it.

      Despite attaining my goal, and enjoying a beautiful day on the course, the best was yet to come. One of my favorite things about running is the people I meet and my travel companion for the 4 hour drive home was a lovely young woman who is a South African Zulu. Her English is fantastic and we talked the whole way home about world travel, life, and she even spoke a little Zulu for me, what a beautiful language! When I think of what I would have missed if I hadn’t taken up running, it makes me realize what an incredible blessing it is and how much richer it has made my life!

Lessons learned:

1. Heat training is never wasted time, I wish I could have done more of it.

2. There is nothing wrong with slowing down and enjoying the beauty of the course.

3. Finishing last is still a finish!

4. Once again, I am far stronger than I think I am!

5. After 3 marathons in quick succession, it starts getting easier.

6. Our bodies can adapt amazingly to extreme situations!

7. Protein is the most important thing to take in for recovery from very long runs.

8. Stretching is the second most important part of recovery.

9. You don’t always have to run to stay in running condition. When you are building up to a distance, it is important, but once you are there and consistently able to cover it, you can back off your mileage as long as you are working equally intensely at your cross training.