To spice things up, we decided to head down south on the trail. We have run from the Publix at the Curlew/Dunedin Causeway intersection probably 100 times (I feel like I know every turn and landmark from Sunset Point road to Klosterman). This is still a favorite spot but we needed a change of scenery, literally! Using a run map app, I created a route to see some sights in the Largo/St. Pete area.
The original goal was to begin at Taylor Park and head south to Tyrone Mall. There are city parks and water stops along the way as well as a Target and CVS. As Saturday drew closer and we started to analyze the path, 16 miles one-way seemed kind of daunting. Instead, we decided to begin the adventure at Walsingham Park and take advantage of Cherry's car/mobile aid station and bathrooms.
(shelter at Walsingham Park--aka "home base")
It seemed like we came upon Seminole City Park fairly quickly which is a great rest stop, thanks to nice bathrooms, water and shade. We had our CamelBaks and no need for a bathroom break yet so kept moving. A couple of bikers in passing asked us if we happened to be on the Courtney Campbell Causeway a few weeks ago? We were like, "Yeah, we were there!" I guess our 3-pack stands out. This has been a topic during our runs--hydration packs give off the vibe we are hard core runners--hahaha! Maybe too it has something to do with "3" of us running; our merry little group? Perhaps 3 really is "the magic number";) Please tell me someone gets the De La Soul reference!?! Whatever the cause for attention it was fun to share our story with this lady and her friends. They rode along with us for a few yards, enough for us to fill them in on why they kept seeing us running all over the county and our goal to run the entire P-trail. They swore to look for us Sept. 5th!
Over the next few miles, bikers would call out, "good job, ladies", "great pace" and "keep it up"! Random strangers giving us a shout out made me smile and gave me energy to keep pushing! I took each cheer as a high five and faith in the kindness of humanity!
(view of Long Bayou near Bay Pines)
After a longer than anticipated stop (hidden bathrooms and water fountains that barely dribble) we were back on the trail. Another feature of this area are all of the overpasses. I think we ran up and over 4 just on the south tour (see pics below). Compared to our typical northern routes from Curlew--this was hilly!
The KOA campground came into view and I wanted to stop to pour some water over my head (it was starting to heat up). Dawn went in search of ice and Cherry to the vending/office. Dawn needed a quarter for water and/or a couple of bucks for ice. I only had a quarter left from my big Target shopping spree-water it was. There was a nozzle only, so we held one of the packs underneath it. Once D hit the button, the water shot out of the hose like a tsunami. Her pack filled in seconds and then water kept gushing as I rushed to place mine under the stream. Mine filled just as quickly with the water continuing to pour all over the concrete. A few campers wandered by and I prayed the water would shut off. Thankfully, it stopped but we discovered this crazy scene was anti climatic as the water was not cold at all:( We still had 7 miles to go, the room temp. water would have to do. We fastened up our packs and prepared to take off when Cherry strolled over carrying a gallon of water. She was smiling ear to ear--she had ice cold water, only $1.86. Say what? I paid the same price for 16 ounces at Target!@#$%
We reluctantly dumped the water we just chaotically filled into our packs and all 3 took advantage of the cold stuff. The gallon was not empty so Dawn said she would carry it. Needless, to say we received a few looks as our 3-pack grew with the addition of the gallon jug. We took turns lugging the quarter gallon around--what a sight! I wish I had a picture of this ensemble. We finished the water at Seminole Park and said goodbye to the plastic!
This was one of the first runs in awhile where the sun was out and not a threat of rain in sight. We have been lucky in our last few outings with cloud cover and rain (sometimes light, sometimes not--but always better than melting sun). Although the sun was out the humidity was not near as thick and we were moving along a half a mile at a time.
Close to our rendezvous point, we saw a lady pushing two small dogs in a stroller. We passed this lady on our way out and as we neared she called out and asked, "Are you girls running the PTC?" We couldn't believe we finally ran into someone else (her name is Karen) doing the run--yay!!! Karen ran the past two editions and happily filled us in on race details. She said there were only like 9 people the first year and maybe 20 or less the second year. This year there are 129 entrants, 52 of which are female. Speaking with Karen was exciting and motivating! We discussed our training on this particular day. We shared that we were on a quest to accomplish 30 miles. She said she was out for a "short" run. I am pretty sure her definition of short is not typical because she mentioned that she just finished running the Florida Keys 100. I think we all nearly dropped and I know my mouth hung open. I stammered, "You just ran 100 miles?!?" She casually went on about her struggles in the race but that she finished. I just did a search for her results and she was the first female, 60-64 to finish--great job, Karen! WOW!
We had to pull ourselves away or Karen would have kept us all day with her stories, but our quads, calves and hammies were locking up. The incidental meet-up and mental break fueled our conversation for the next few miles. We were almost back to the park when some guys on bikes yelled out, "Great pace girls." I think we all laughed out loud since we felt like we were crawling. Again an impromptu cheer made us smile and puff out our chests. The guys asked how far we were going (I am telling you the packs give us street cred.)... when we said "30", one guy wobbled on his bike and nearly toppled over (dude--we feel ya)! Good luck they cried and pedaled away.
Finally, we were back at the Cherry-aid station for some food, ice and Gatorade! I took this opportunity to change clothes as my shorts and shirt were soaked--19 miles complete. We did a loop around Walsingham Park which offered some shade and winding trails around the lake.
(north end of the park)
The loop was not as long as we hoped so we hit the car again--7 more miles! This seemed like the never-ending run, but there was no stopping our little army! Out the park and north we headed for this day's last excursion. Dawn had a good stride and I fell into step behind her. She said she caught a second wind. I told her I was catching a second ride in the form of "drafting".
From Wikipedia:
Drafting or slipstreaming is a technique where moving objects are caused to align in a close group reducing the overall effect of drag due to exploiting the lead object's slipstream. Drafting is used to reduce wind resistance and is seen most commonly in bicycle racing, car racing, and speedskating, though drafting is occasionally used even in cross-country skiing, downhill skateboarding, and running.It was nice to let my head hang and just zone out for some miles. At this point, we were all gutting it out. Our conversation was quiet with just the sound of our feet hitting the pavement. When we passed 26.2, Dawn energetically announced we had completed a marathon:) I am pretty sure I mumbled something close to "yay".
With the passing of the next mile, D & C became official "ultra" runners. Any distance longer than a marathon is considered an "ultra" race. Typical ultra events include: 50Ks (32 miles), 50 miles, 100Ks (62 miles) and 100 milers.
We hit our final turnaround and could not move our legs fast enough--we were so ready to be DONE! We continued to slug along when the two cyclists from before caught up to us right at the crest of the Ulmerton overpass. They were full of good cheer and offered us cold Gatorade--OMG--these guys were so nice! Their generosity inspired us and gave our slow parade new life. We kept our feet moving and saw the stoplight signaling one mile to the park--it was like a vision of the "Pearly Gates"! So, so close!
Cherry led our pack down the homestretch and we almost collapsed into the car--WE DID IT!
This run symbolized several milestones for the group, yet it was the simple altruism and camaraderie that punctuated the day!
Thank you fellow trail blazers!
To view our course: 30 mile map
How awesome! Is there anyway to show a map of the route?
ReplyDeleteI meant to add it and forgot;) It's there now at the end!
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