Not long after I made the right hand turn, Matt C was calling out my name from behind. It was good to see Matt again. We ran together for the next few miles. This section of the course is mostly flat, and goes through a washed out area that is full of small gravels making it cumbersome to run through. Last year there had been rain and then freezing temperatures before the event, making these gravels much easier to run on. The runner in the red shirt went by us, and then we passed him again later. There was another runner who came by Matt and me running quite fast, and I wondered if he had gotten to Kentucky Camp late after the event started. He soon dissappeared ahead. In another spot , Matt prevented me from going off course...Thanks Matt. I was literally running right by ribbons and across a white line on the dirt road and the word "NO". Matt asked me where I was going. Well, apparently not in the correct direction. I was tired, and needed to make a more concerted effort to not zone out. I dislike sustained flat sections, and there are a few of these on the course. This particular flat section was draining me, and I longed for the start of the climb up to Gunsight Pass. About a half miile before Wasp Aid Station, Matt went off trail for a pitstop.
Entering Wasp Aid Station, I did not check my watch. I was happy to reach this aid station because it marked the end of the flat section. The Wasp Aid Station is run by Bob Redwanc, the RD for Zane Grey. He remembered me from 2004 ZG because when I reached the finish line I was not feeling very well. ( Last year, ZG was an opportunity to learn a lesson the hard way as to why why it is unwise to go ahead with an event when one gets a bug a few days before hand. I will not repeat that mistake again).
One of the volunteers had a roster and noticed that I was from Sugar Land , TX. She asked me if there was sugar in Sugar Land, Texas. I told her that Sugar Land was the home of Imperial Sugar company, and that the Sugar Land-area was once full of sugar cane fields. Now, unfortunately , it is falling prey to urban sprawl. |
