A Good Lesson

I sit here and ponder life and am truly grateful for the many opportunities and choices available if one so chooses.  The one day, double crossing (R2R2R) of the Grand Canyon this past weekend was memorable and taught me probably more about ultra running than all other races combined--you can come back from “the dead”.  As I approached the North Rim, barely 20 miles into a 48 mile run, I was mentally and physically in a very low place.  I had consumed less than half the amount of calories per hour than I would during a race, yet, somehow expected to cruise through the day unscathed.

Slog up the North Rim (what are "calories"?)

Olga had since dropped me a few miles from the top making a choice to not allow herself to be exposed to my calorie starved negativity.  And, I definitely don’t blame her.  Eventually, I would make it to the North Rim trailhead, which was anticlimactic.  I sat down on a rock wall, put my elbows on my knees, and rested my hands on my forehead.  I was “done”.  The next words out of my mouth to Olga were, “you go get the car, I’ll wait here…”.   Of course, that would have entailed waiting for her to run back across the canyon and then drive over 5 hours to get me.  It was a nice thought but obviously unrealistic and I knew that, but it was all I could think of at the time.  She did her best to cheer me up, but almost immediately I said, “don’t talk to me”.   I was in dire need of focusing on my condition and any distraction, including the constant knats, flies, no see-ums, or whatever the hell was buzzing around me constantly as I sat in the shade trying to compose myself.  One thing was certain, I was only halfway through the run and the South Rim might as well have been on the Moon.

Initial steps back down the North Rim (rising from the dead...)

It took me about 15 minutes to muster up the energy and will to take in some calories, which entailed  some beef jerky, 2 GUs (w/ 2x caffeine), 1 sCap, and 2 ibuprofen.  The first hundred yards back down the North Rim were on wobbly legs with a lot of walking to keep my stomach settled, but, thankfully, gravity was taking care of most of the effort.  After almost 2 miles, I reached the water spigot at Supai Tunnel where I caught up to Olga momentarily.  After leaving Supai, within minutes I felt like a new person.  My energy levels were high and my mental state was the best it had been all day.  It didn’t take too long to catch up with Olga where we would spent the next 20+ miles together until the end of our journey.  The climb up the South Rim, which I had dreaded  most of the day ended up being the easiest part of the day.  I, even, had a strong urge to run up as much of the climb as possible, although better judgment prevailed and did it for just half a mile with 2 miles to go in a 48 mile day.

After having strong opinions while on the North Rim that I would finish in the late evening, Olga and I managed to finish before dark, which was the major highlight of the journey.  The best part, however, was spending it with Olga and her seeing me transform from a defeated person into one that was reborn.  And, the lesson was to never give up.  All it took was a sustained, increased calorie intake (duh!) and some initial help with gravity to turn what seemed impossible into an amazing lesson in perseverance.  Again, you can come back from the dead!

Done!