Me 'n My Lat! (A Review of Running in '23)
Two things stood out most prominently about my running in 2023. The first being that I missed two races due to perhaps the silliest injury I’ve ever encountered. The second is that for the first time since I’ve resumed competitive running in 2017, I believe I'm starting to slow down.
Regarding the former, I pulled a latissimus dorsi muscle (with “lat” being the common term) doing Turkish get-ups in early April. I ignored the tightness in my ribs, believing it a minor strain that would go away. Research also supported that view - contingent on the strain being "minor."
However, when I had to cut my Memorial Day run short as I began to feel sharp pain in my ribs, I know that strain was no longer minor. That meant both PT and minimal running in June, wiping out two races for that month. A valuable lesson relearned - never disregard an injury.
More notable was what followed. Despite strong workouts after recovering from that injury, I failed to match previous times in following three races. My best efforts fell short of the paces I’d maintained just two years earlier. Such declines are inevitable with age. Still, it's not something I want to accept. The final two races for '23 had times closer to my better races. Am I slowing down? Time will literally tell in the coming months.
But that's next year. Looking back on this year, there are several moments that stood out.
The Fall. July 3 was a beautiful summer morning. With the Cars’ “Candy-O” blasting in my earbuds, my legs moved from a long downhill onto a short patch of rocks and concrete, torn up from construction. No big deal. I’d navigated this short stretch several times before. Suddenly, I felt my right foot catch on a rock. Next thing I knew, my body went down with my head hitting concrete. As a quick touch of my forehead came back with blood on my fingers, I immediately worried that whatever had just happened would have me to miss the upcoming Bix 7. The men's room at a nearby service station confirmed multiple cuts and scrapes. But absent major pain, I did what most other runners would do. I ran the rest of this route towards home - also including several strides at the end that were part of this workout. Spending the next few days in tank tops for road rash, I knew I’d been quite lucky. Needless to say, I've been more attentive since then.
Missed Exchange at Market to Market. Easily the most frustrating and embarrassing moment goes to a botched exchange at May’s Market to Market Relay. We’d gotten stuck behind two slow vehicles on narrow gravel roads, but still thought we had plenty of time to reach the next exchange. What we didn’t realize is that we pulled into the wrong one. Several panicked texts and phone calls had us send a different runner and alter our order. This unintended rule violation cost us first place in the Open division. It’s my hope to have an opportunity to atone for that in 24’s race.
Misery was the St. Paddy’s Half Marathon. Without question, the most miserable running experience of the year (and perhaps ever) occurred at this mid-March half marathon. An Arctic blast had wind chills close to minus twenty, cutting through my multiple layers of clothing, leading me to the closest I’ve ever come to dropping out of a race. As though that weren’t sufficient, the cold also aggravated my IT band, forcing me to walk most of the final seven miles of the half marathon.
Redemption at Drake. Speaking of issues with my IT band, it had flared up in each of the past two Drake Half Marathons. Because of that, I was determined to avoid a three-peat going into 2023’s event. Fortunately, my IT band did indeed behave itself. However, I stubbornly dismissed growing twinges of pain in my right rib area. While I found redemption in that race, by not addressing that lat injury, I paid a frustrating price later.
Synthpop at The Hillbilly Hike. It was around the fourth mile of this early November race when I heard Ultravox's "Reap The Wild Wind" on my earbuds. It was a song I've been waiting 40 years to play that early 80's gem during a race. I had planned to use it for this same race last year. Only a healing hamstring delayed that plan by a year. This engaging piece of synthpop kicked off just as I finished my fastest mile in this race. Although I'd clearly wandered into the "Pain Cave" by this point, I also knew that all I had to do was maintain this pace and I would have my best 10K of the year. An exhilarating feeling which fit in perfectly with a song I'd waited four decades to hear in a race.
Age Group Finish at the Bix 7. Still sporting some scabs from that fall in a few weeks earlier, I competed in Iowa's largest race, blessed by cooler temps brought in from huge storms the night before. Knowing that my conditioning did not match the previous year, the goal had been to place in my age group. To my complete astonishment, I came in second in that age group - my highest placement ever at this race. Although the record heat and humidity from the days leading up to the Bix 7 likely limited the field, I was okay with receiving that award.
The Circle Widens. A delightful aspect of 2023 is the number of people I now know because of this insane sport. The solitary experiences of those 2017-18 races have been replaced by a growing network of friends. A few kind words before and after races means a great deal to me. Likewise, I've enjoyed being able to meet people in person whom I've known through social media. I admit that I'm not always good at making friends. But let me say here how much I appreciate all of you.
While 2023 had it's challenges, I consider it another good year and look forward to 2024 - which I'll talk about in my next blog in two weeks. What about you? What were some of your experiences this year? Feel free to share them below or on Facebook.
Can't conclude this review of 2023 without sharing more of wonderous breakfast items at November's Hillbilly Hike in Carlisle, Iowa.