#which with the rent on top would have been like $3100 or something close to that

[insert-game]

i’ve been meaning to add a couple things to my etsy store and make new things as well but the crushing weight of being alive under the current administration has been severely impeding my ability to do anything in general

[winsister91]

Breaking a Promise

Part Two - Don’t be Shy

Summary: Dean is gone. But the reader is determined to step up and find him, even if it means breaking her promise. She revisits her old hometown, haunted by memories of the past. Characters: Dean x Reader, Sam, OFC Jenny, OFC Harper

Warnings: Language, canon-typical violence, character death, angst, themes of addiction, a small breeze of fluff in the background. Word Count: 3100 roughly (oops) A/N: Thank you so much to the peeps who left wonderful feedback on part one! I’m kinda scared and feel under pressure now lol Sorry this took such a long time coming, been a bit of a failure lately. I am DETERMINED to finish what I started here. I hope you enjoy the angsty ride. Thanks to @sofreddie for being a wonderful, supportive and amazing friend while I ranted about this one <3 THIS IS UNBETAD SO APOLOGIES IF IT SUCKS AND IS FULL OF TYPOS Feedback will keep the writing coming!

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STARTING MY TAGS OVER AGAIN FROM SCRATCH! Lemme know if you wanna join my posse!

~ Series and forever tags are open! ~

(Italics are flashbacks)

It wasn't a long drive to where you were headed, about forty minutes. To you however, it felt like the longest forty minutes of your life. You'd vowed to never return here, always sitting out of the cases Sam or Dean had picked up in this place. It was cowardly, but they always understood, Dean would give you a sympathetic smile and a wink when they headed out. Sam would give you a hug, and they would both promise to make it as short and sweet as possible. They always kept that promise, ensuring to head straight back to the bunker when they were done, even if it was during the early hours of the morning. Dean would always come back to you. Always.

You feel your eye twitch at that thought and a pang of pain sharply attack your guts. Shaking it off you turn your attention back to the road, driving the practically antique car that you'd loaned from the Men of Letters garage. You lean forward and press play on the cassette player.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Whoa Black Betty!” Dean barked along with the music from the driver's seat of the Impala.

“Bam-a-lam!” you shouted at the top of your lungs, tapping along with the beat on the dash.

“She really gets me high!” he turned to you with that knee trembling trademark smirk and wink.

“Bam-a-lam!” you continue with a giggle.

“You know that's no lie!”

“Bam-a-lam!”

“She's so rock steady! She's always ready!”

You were a fit of giggles now, blushing at the adorable jerk before you. To your surprise, he quickly leant over, planting a deep kiss as his lips collided with yours.

“Dean!” you squealed when he released you and you noticed the car drifting into the wrong lane.

“I got it, I got it,” he chuckled, swinging the car back into the correct position.

“Keep your eyes on the damn road,” you playfully tapped his arm whilst shaking your head. The huge grin on your face somewhat diminishing the authority of your demand.

Dean continued his chuckling, turning the volume dial on the stereo up so the music blared even louder.

“Whoa! Black Betty!” “Bam-a-lam!”

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

You were trying so hard to be optimistic. Thinking back to the good times to keep your spirits up. Imagining a happy reunion at the end of all this. You will find him, he will be fine and he will understand why you are doing... this.

You pass the dreaded, graffitied to hell 'Welcome to Town' sign and a familiar knot forms in your stomach. As much as you'd tried to avoid this place by sitting out on hunts and what not, every now and then you and the boys have to pass through here while heading somewhere else. You'd see this sign and quickly turn to another activity, like scrolling on your phone, reading your book or sometimes just straight up closing your eyes and focusing on Dean's Metallica album. 

You take a sharp breath and roll your shoulders, you had gotten this far so you weren't backing out now. You feel your heart racing as more familiar sights come into view. Your old school. The park your parents took you to when you were a kid. The diner you worked weekends at before...everything.

With a deep sigh, you pull into the diner's car park. Your hands were trembling with nerves. You hoped this place still did those awesome milkshakes you would partake in when you were feeling down.

The door to the diner still has that annoying high pitched squeak, even after all these years. The furnishings hadn't changed either. Paying for your shake, you sit yourself down in a booth in the far corner and watch out the window, twirling your straw through your thick dairy treat.

Mum and Dad's old house wasn't far from here. You missed your parents so much, but they really were a distant memory compared to your life now. An intoxicated truck driver stole them from you on a cliché foggy night. He lost his own life too. You were the only person left alive after the accident. Alone. No other family. Left to couch surf friend's sofas when the house got repossessed. Working a dead end weekend job in the diner and taking all the extra shifts you possibly could. Eventually, this allowed you to just scrape enough to rent a dingy little apartment on the other side of town. You were in such a dark and lonely place in your mind back then, shutting out everyone around you despite their efforts to help. You were depressed. Broke. Angry. Didn't see the point in continuing.

Then there was Jenny. A hypnotising friendly face you couldn't shove away. She worked at the Diner too back then. She could do things. She would mesmerise you with little tricks she performed for your entertainment. Dumb little things like levitating ketchup bottles and the like. She told you she could do more, and you could do it too if you wanted to learn. Your new hobby was born. Every Sunday after work you and Jenny would lock up and head to her sister's house.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Tonight's going to be so great,” Jenny beamed, pouring a cup of coffee and handing it to a waiting customer at the counter. “The last ‘four’ Sundays have been great,” you smiled as you started to create a fresh pot, “What's so special about tonight?”

“My sister ‘loves’ you,” Jenny continued excitedly, before leaning towards your ear and changing to hushed tones, “We don't normally initiate people until they've been accepted as a part of the coven after a couple of months. But Harper thinks you've got something. Natural talent we've never seen before, so you've been bumped up the list!”

“Um...thanks?” you chuckle nervously, “I didn't know there was an initiation. Should I be worried?”

“It's a little intense I'll admit,” she suddenly came across serious, “But you're up for it right? We love you. We don't want to lose you.”

“Uuuh,” you are taken aback by that statement, “S-sure. I'm not going anywhere.”

“Awesome!”

Jenny skipped around the diner with glee for the last couple of hours of your shift. You wondered what was going to unfold later that night. 

From what you'd seen the last few weekends, these meetings were just a bunch of women reading out of spell books and giggling at little tricks. It had blown your mind seeing real magic first hand. You found it ridiculously easy too. You’d managed to light a candle with nothing but a swish of your hand and thin air the first time you tried. A small twinge of anxiousness poked away in your guts.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

Your fist slams the table automatically, causing a few odd looks from nearby patrons. You hated this town. You hated it for the happy memories which made you grieve your family. You hated it for the horrible memories of being on your own after their deaths. Most of all, you hated it for reminding you of how dumb and naïve you once were. Sure, you were ignorant of what was out there back then. You didn't know what magic really was or about the darkness that coincides with it. The vile people who wield it and use it to control and intimidate. People like Harper. You force yourself to remember why you were taking this damned trip through nostalgia Hell. It was to get what you needed and to gank that fucking bitch. Then to find Dean. You had to get through this to get him.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Will you swear an oath to your fellow sisters Y/N?” Harper's voice flowed dreamily almost like she was singing. You raised an eyebrow, “Um...”

“Do you swear to abide by our magical laws, to serve, to live, to breath everything that is our coven. To join our family. To become a sister of the blood,” Harper extended her hands out to you.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

Gritting your teeth, you endure your mind replaying these scenes. Remembering this was the moment your anxiety won and you tried to bumble your way out of it. You shudder at the thought of your own voice weakly mumbling back then “Um... I think to need to think a bit more about this, I'm sorry.” You clench your fists at the thought of Jenny's heartbroken face when you turned to walk away. Your heart stops at the recollection of Harper's power. With a swift flick of the wrist, she had you flying back through the air towards her like you were magnetized. You rub your neck at the memory of her nails digging into your skin when she held you there by the throat. Then she...she… You wipe the cold sweat from your forehead, noting your heart was thudding much faster. The chatter of people around became a dull buzz of white noise. Just thinking about the stuff, after all this time, it still made you go nuts.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Harper!” Jenny squealed from the side in horror, “What are you doing!?” “She's too good,” the witch mumbled, brushing a stray hair from your face as you struggled helplessly while you choked, “I must see what happens.”

She brought up a vial full of red liquid. You started to panic, kicking wildly with your feet and trying to pull back with all your strength. It was useless, Harper's hold on you was too powerful.

Forcing your mouth open, she emptied the vial's contents down your throat.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

Another slam on the table. More awkward looks shot your way as you rise to your feet and hastily charge out of the diner back to your car. You drive, foot to the floor on the gas pedal. You knew Harper was still at that damned house of hers. She was cocky like that and knew you'd be too terrified to come back anytime soon. Her study would still be intact... the cabinet full of it behind her desk… You honed in on the house automatically without thought and now sat outside with a heart trying to bust through your ribcage.

This was the first time you'd ever come back. The first time since that day.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Hey, Y/N?” Jenny whispered, lifting your slumped body up to a sitting position on the floor. She would always come to check on you every night, “Can you hear me?” “Jenny...” you mumbled, struggling to open your bruised and battered eyes. Everything still sore and throbbing from your latest beating. Harper didn't approve when you showed signs of rebellion in your 'training sessions'.

“I'm so sorry...” Jenny had tears in her eyes, “If I'd have known about all this, I would never have brought you here.”

“Not your fault...”

“It is, I forced you into all of this. I swear to you, Harper has never been like this before!”

You could just make out your friend in the little light in your cell. Her usual bubbly brightness had been replaced with fear and nerves. Her beautiful blonde curls turned ragged and messy.

“I'm getting you out of here,” she continued with a nod, like she was confirming this to herself, “I'm getting 'us' out of here. She's gone too far...too damn far.”

You grip your friend’s hand as her body began to shake with fear.

“Jenny...we can't. It's too dangerous,” you squeeze her hand tightly, “And 'I'm' too dangerous.”

“I met two guys,” Jenny ignored you as she undid your iron shackles and pulled you up to your feet, “They came in the diner. Hunters, but good guys. They're gonna help us.”

“Hunters?”

“Shhh...” Jenny hushed as you slowly made your way through the house, “They're watching over the house right now. We just need to get out, then they'll come in and...do the rest.”

As you reached the sitting room back at the front of the house, a voice came from behind you.

“What the hell are you doing?”

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

You find your pistol in your bag, checking it was loaded with Witch killing bullets. With a deep breath, you step out. Blood pumping as you marched to the front door. No messing around, you give one hard kick. Doesn't budge. Another slam, nothing. A loud roar escapes your lips as you kick again, smashing through.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

You are both flung across the room with force, crashing into the walls with a hard smack. You groan as it feels like some bones shatter. The Witch that had found you both began shouting and raising the alarm. You couldn't have that. Her shouting ceased as you summoned up the energy to raise a free hand and point it towards her. She begins to choke, hands frantically grasping her throat in panic. Harper's incantation twirling through your mind like a record stuck on repeat. It wasn’t enough though. It had been too long since your last fix and your spell was far weaker from normal.

“Y/N!” Jenny's screamed, alerting you. Three more Witches entered the room. One of them grabbed Jenny and tore her away back down the corridor. The others made a beeline for you.

The front door crashed open, two men colliding through. One of them tall with a serious face and emerald green eyes, the other taller with long brown hair. They had guns aimed and ready. They began shooting.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

As you crashed through the door, you were met by three women instantly in the familiar old sitting room. You didn't recognise them. Seems Harper has been recruiting over the years. They look startled at your pistol, but they don't run or scream. They were more scared of you than the pistol in your hand, you could see it in their eyes. Harper had educated them on who you were.

“Where is she?” you grunt threateningly. They don't answer, but respond with movement. Raising there hands the three of them started to chant different spells. You cut them all off with swift bullets to the head. One by one. Dean had taught you well on how to shoot a gun.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。 

Bang. Bang. Bang. The shorter of the two men ended the three Witches present. You gasped as you watched their bodies drop to the ground with a thud. The taller one approached you and guided you to your feet.

“Y/N right?” he asks.

You nodded, breathing shakily.

“I'm Sam, this is my brother Dean,” he explained quickly, “We're getting you out of here.”

“Get her out Sammy,” Dean ordered, “I'll go after Jenny.”

“Jenny...” you mumbled under your breath, shaking out of Sam's grasp and stumbling back towards the corridor, “Jenny!!”

Without pause, you storm through the door off the sitting room and into the corridor that lead to the back of the house.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Harper!!?” you bellow, storming down the back corridor.

More Witches appear through the multitude of doors leading off the long hall. You end them swiftly. Stopping only to reload. She'd be in her study.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Harper!!?” you screeched, finding the woman in her study. She had Jenny, holding her like a human shield with an arm wrapped around her neck and shoulders, “Let Jenny go!” Sam and Dean crashed through the door behind you.

“Jenny!” Sam barked at the sight, pointing his gun.

“Y/N get back...” Dean reached to grab your arm, instead to be hit by one of Harper's spells. He and his brother were thrown back into the walls and held there by her power.

The Witch cackled at the presentation before her. With a wink, she took out a vial of red fluid and rolled it across the table to you.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

You barge through the study doors, ready to start pulling the trigger. But it's empty. Keeping the gun raised, you cautiously take further steps in, occasionally looking back over your shoulder. You see the cabinet, a primal feeling of want gripping at your heart. You can physically feel your body's hunger accelerate at the knowledge you were so close to what it wanted. What it needed. What you'd deprived it for so long. Clutching at your chest, you are drawn over there. You suddenly find yourself holding one of the small bottles from inside. Cupping it with both hands, you stared, not remembering when it was you laid your gun down on the desk.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“Y/N don't!” Jenny cried as you picked up the small glass container and stared at the contents with heaving breaths, “Y/N! Put it down!! This is what she wants!” “Listen to your friend,” Dean's voice came from behind you whilst your hands shook uncontrollably.

“You don't need that,” Sam's voice followed, “No matter how much you feel like you do, you don't!”

You hesitated. Your jaw trembled as you froze with the bottle in your hand. You wanted it so badly, but feared it at the same. “WEAK!” Harper shrieked impatiently. She shoved Jenny in your direction. Before you had the time to even reach ouch and catch your friend, with a click of Harper's finger, her necked snapped.

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

“No...” you gasp, clutching the bottle to your chest to take it out of eyesight. You shake your head, stumbling back slightly as your heart thuds erratically. Jenny... If you hadn't hesitated you could have saved her.

A sudden voice cuts through the air. For a moment, it felt like past and present imitated each other. You blink rapidly at the sight before you, seeing both momentary events meld into one.

“C'mon now pet,” Harper grinned eagerly, “Don't be shy.”

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。

You watched Jenny's lifeless body crash to the ground at your feet. Harper's words striking a rage within you. A monster, and it wanted to get free. You open the vial and hungrily intake it's entire contents.

“Y/N, NO!” Sam shouted desperately.

Dean's head dropped to his shoulders in defeat. He feared what was about to come next.

You take in the rush. A surge of energy ran through your entire body. It built, becoming painful, everything honed in on your brain which felt like it was about to burst.

With a shrill scream, you thrust your arm forwards, forcing all the energy accumulated in your head into the one spell. It was like an explosion. Your eyes illuminated a vibrant purple and a wave of matching colour fired from you. You were so focused on the spell, it was like everything else moved in slow motion. You willed the spell with all your might but it wasn't quick enough. With an inspired smile and a wink, Harper turned and vanished in a millisecond. The spell crashing through the place she stood mere moments after her. The blast was powerful, cutting through the wall behind like butter.

“NO!!” you screamed, running the hole you created and smashing your hand on what was left of the wall.

You sobbed, unsure whether through anger or pain. You didn’t notice the two hunters drop to the floor with a thud behind you. They tentatively approached while you were distracted in your outburst. You felt your arms grabbed and cold iron click to your wrists.

Tags! 

Crossed out means Tumblr won’t lemme tag you :(

Forevers Posse: @sofreddie @chelsea072498 @ria132love @untitled39887 @chicagolove88 @akshi8278 @sis-tafics @younoeatcheeseyounobefat @mandilion76 @teamfreewill92 @supernaturalmagicfolk @emoryhemsworth @musicistobeheard-blog @pheonyxstorm Breaking A Promise Squad: @arikas5744 @lessons-of-red

[theveganliciousrunner]

Brazos Bend 100

Event date: 12/09/2017

Oh geez, how do I start? I guess a good place is to answer the question - Why? Why would I want to put my body through this for the 2nd time? It’s so painful, the course is so flat, recovery takes a long time, it’s not the cheapest thrill out there, etc. But before I get into the why ... I’ll describe the experience first while the pain is still super fresh.

At packet pick up. Gotta love serendipity after looking at Charles’ shirt.

RACE DAY

After a solid 6 hour sleep (with the help of melatonin), I woke up at 2:30am, in disbelief, and asked out loud, “What the eff am I doing here?!”

Charles and Phil looked at me, then at each other as if to say “Oh boy, it’s going to be a loooooong day.”

In a strange mix of matter-of-fact and dream state, I ate breakfast, taped my feet and dressed for a cold weather run like I would for a winter 50k back home. The biggest difference being that my friends were getting ready with me. Charles was my crew chief and Phil would pace me for the last 2 loops (out of 6), over a 50k distance.

Rocking my derelique fashion sense. Photo courtesy of Phil.

We all agreed it was best to get to the start line early. It was so cold that all the cars at the Best Western parking lot were wrapped in ice sheets. Phil quipped that it was like looking at sparkly teenage vampires. While I cracked up, good ol’ Charles was watering down the car and Phil tried to blow smoke rings.

When we got to the park, all the other cars there were running, blasting heat inside and exhaust into the air. Then, with 10 minutes to go, we walked to the start. I was very happy I brought the long jacket so I could stay warm once I took off.

The brain is funny. It was only once I started running that I finally accepted the hard fact that I was here to push my body to finish a 100 mile distance. So I made the best of it. I marveled at the few runners who weren’t wearing much. I saw shorts/singlet combos and three ladies wearing tutus as their warmest covering. Although they weren’t elites, I’m sure they were moving much faster than I would be and therefore, generating much more heat.

Around mile 2-3, I caught up to a guy pulling a 22-pound tire around his waist. What? His name is Steven Monte and we shared about 25 miles. Since Dallas is flat, the best way for runners to train for mountains is to pull a tire. He started training with a tire for Cruel Jewel 100. Then, since Brazos Bend 100 is so flat, he wondered if he could finish it with the tire. Side note, he also does this race without any support, just to make things as hard as possible. 

Here’s a link to training with tires, just in case anyone is interested: https://ultrarunning.com/featured/lugging-along-the-benefits-of-tire-pulling/

The first quarter of the race was super fun because we swapped stories and I learned about other crazy, crazy races around the country that he’s done. I also got to enjoy his local celebrity status as every 5th person made a comment on the tire (a handful were original) and every 10th person wanted a picture or high-five. The energy and inspiration surrounding Steven and his tire was infectious. By mid-2nd loop, I started getting nervous about my pace, so I waved good-bye to Steven and picked it up.

Above is one of Phil’s shots.

Below is the only picture I took during the entire race because I had to stop, take off my pack, and pull out my phone to snap it. It’s an American Alligator.

Brazos Bend has the challenge of having a super flat course going in the same direction six times. Just after 2 loops, I started imagining the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 mile footrace in NYC which goes around one city block. But even that race allows runners to alternate the directions of their loops. I’m not whining though.

On the 3rd loop, I made a new trail friend, Austin, who was running his first 50 miler. I was running my own race now and Austin kept up. We had to split because he wanted to stop and greet his family at an intersection near the start/finish. He caught up with me an hour later and we chatted some more, but once his race neared the end, he was able to surge forward and finish as my proverbial tires began falling off the cart. Despite this, the 3rd loop was my best loop overall, because it was mostly daylight, my brain was still working, and I generally felt strong enough to keep up a decent pace.

THE SECOND HALF

Sigh. What can I say about starting my next 50 miles? I would start in the dark, I was tired, I was behind my planned pace. I forgot to ask Charles for my music. The ramen served during the race was not vegan although I was told it would be. Nowhere on the website said that I could have a pacer during this 4th loop although at packet pickup, it was announced that I could’ve had a pacer at the 4th loop. I’m not whining though.

In the middle of my pity party, a lovely lady came alongside me named Gabriela Martinez from San Jose, CA. I knew Gabriela from North Face 2015 when I gave her a ride to the shuttles and also when she completed 75 miles at Headlands while injured earlier this year. She is such a strong runner, I was surprised to see her. She needed to spend 30 minutes at the medical tent to get her foot taken care of from the aftermath of Achilles surgery. What? Note: She does not have pacers or crew for her races.

Gabriela was a godsend. She talked my ear off and I loved every minute of it. My brain and body were shutting down and it was wonderful to learn about her extraordinary life as I could not find the wherewithal to run ... at all. Gabriela was so encouraging and she even set our power hiking speed. Nearing the end of our loop together, I was so out of it, that I was convinced she and I had accidentally cut the course because we were talking so much. It took Gabriela, a couple of volunteers and my calculator to assure me that we followed the course correctly. Lordy!

After that brutal loop, we finally, FINALLY got back to the start/finish where my beautiful angel friends were waiting for me although Charles was breaking down himself. He normally has a high tolerance for cold, but he was not prepared for this weather. As crew, this meant that he’s been exposed in the cold all day without reprieve, just waiting to take care of me for a few minutes after I completed each loop. What’s harder? Running 100 miles or taking care of your friends, being in charge of dozens of details while staying up for 30+ hours? That’s a tossup.

Charles and Phil walked me to the bathroom so I could do my business, change to dry tops, switch out my headlamp and add another layer. When I came out, they told me that I had eaten up all my spare time during loop 4 and that I had to boogie if I was to make the 7am cutoff.  Alrighty then. I had not planned on chasing cutoffs, but here we were.

Bless Phil. He had no idea what he was dealing with. This was going to be our first time “running” together and all he knew was that during loop 4, I was sending nonsensical texts and that I took much longer than I should have. He started his job with a bitch faced f-bomber with a bum knee. Phil truly saw the real me during these loops. 

Thank god Phil was there to pull me through. I loved that I could shut my brain down completely while I listened to his happy chatter and followed his fresh feet. Following him still took a lot of effort so I wasn’t talking much (I think) as I focused all my energy on moving forward and keeping him in sight. 

Aside from screaming because I thought I saw a rat close to my hand while I was peeing behind a bench (it was just cobwebs mixed with fatigue), there isn’t much to report on loop 5. I do remember that Phil said we were ahead of cutoff by 30 minutes and we passed a lot of people. That made me happy but I wanted more cushion. That made him happy because he knew he wouldn’t have to do any brain surgery on me to keep me going. 

When we finished loop 5, Charles wasn’t there. It was unexpected but completely understood. When Charles crewed me at Javelina, he was able to rent a tent and sleep a little so he would have enough energy to pace me the final 10 miles. For Brazos Bend, there is nowhere to sleep unless you have a trailer. Even in the car, you can’t sleep if you’re constantly turning the engine on and off. So Charles, desperate for some rest and to warm up, left for the hotel. 

He only missed us by 30 minutes ... bless him as he still tried to catch us. But all went well as cool-headed Phil, in a matter of seconds, was able to find what Charles had pre-prepared: hydration pack, coffee and music. Then we skedaddled on that last gosh darned loop 6.

Below is the picture Phil could take before his phone died at loop 6

My body doesn’t want to ingest calories in the wee hours of the morning. It wants to sleep. So when I do eat something after 2am, it gets confused and wants to eject what I’m consuming. Combine that with the bouncing, I feel nauseous. As my brain was turned off, I asked Phil if I had to eat or drink at all as I had started to belch constantly. I think I belched for the whole 50k we spent together. 

This is how awesome Phil is. Even though we were under the gun, he kindly explained I have to eat and drink, but I shouldn’t run at the same time. That’s a recipe for disaster. So sacrifices need to be made. I can eat, drink and walk, then he’d encourage me to run again once a few minutes had passed. I also don’t believe Phil ever let up on the pace, even as he was getting super tired himself and that he had to factor in my cranky right knee.

As we neared the end, I was still nervous. I was nervous because I REALLY wanted to walk to the finish but there was not enough cushion for that. And then we both looked up and there were no flags at the intersection. WTF. There were no signs as well. I was indignant. They couldn’t even wait for us to finish?? They had to sweep the flags and signs??  And I felt so stupid because after 5 loops, I should remember the way back home, but I didn’t recognize this intersection. OMG, I was going to DNF with less than 2 miles left!!!

Phil, who kept his cool, backtracked. I obediently followed and saw the familiar bridge, which we had missed. Oops. We might have lost 10 minutes from that detour, but it was enough to get me going faster than I wanted to. 

Phil’s phone had died pretty early on so he couldn’t call/text Charles to tell him how close we were. But then, a mile away from the finish, we saw them ... the beautiful faces of Charles and Victor. I was ecstatic to see them! They had been waiting all day for this. This was the only point where I could finally relax because neither of them were making me run. Thank goodness!

Victor took this sweet picture of me shuffling toward the arch.  I was the Dead Last Finisher (DLF) and damn proud of it!  96 finishers 101 non-finishers

Thanks to Charles for this pix of me with the sweet buckle.

Gear Shoes: Brooks Ghosts 10   Socks: Injinji Headlamp: NAU Hydration Vest: Ultimate Direction Jenny Watch: Garmin Forerunner 935 (died after 27 hours which is pretty good) Clothes: Various brands on sale

Nutrition Breakfast - Rice and beans Next 30 hours - Fluid Performance, MamaChia, beans & tortillas, pickles, pickle juice, potato chips, Oreos, Coke, Sportlegs and salt tabs, 4 cans of Starbucks Cubano double espresso coffee

Note: 7 days later, I believe the key to my fast recovery was the steady source of protein (beans & tortillas) during the race and definitely the recovery drink immediately after the race. 

THANK YOU!

Charles and Phil, if either of you ever need an organ, or the moon and stars, you know who to ask first.

The tire guy, Steven Monte. Thank you for your stories and for inspiring me to live life to the fullest like you do. I’m waiting to see you on the cover of one of these trail magazines.

Gabriela, mujer, thank you for staying with me even though you could’ve left me behind. It was inspiring to eat your dust as you pulled away in that last loop. We did it!!!

Victor, always a pillar of positivity and class-act sportsmanship wherever you go. If I have one regret it’s that I wasn’t wearing the Victory Sportdesign cap (that I love so much) at the finish line. Thank you for being there!

Jesse Ellis of Let’s Wander Photography. I totally thought you were running!  Ha ha!  Can’t wait to see the photos and thank you so much for being out there.

Rob Goyen, thank you for this race, and thank you for waiting for all the runners to come through. You and your wife and team of volunteers are wonderful.

Coach Bob Shebest who only had 7 weeks to work with me. Your words “Don’t burn through your glycogen stores” kept ringing in my head.

Greg, always putting me back together after I do these crazy things. Love you!

THE AFTERMATH

I know it’s not inspiring but it sure was needed and it was actually pretty fun. I’m talking about how Charles took care of me the following morning. I was pretty screwed up. My bodily movements appeared halfway between stiff and cadaver. When we got to the airport, Charles thought that I should use a wheelchair. I was like “Well, I’m still walking if you can hang with this.” He promptly beelined for the wheelchair. 

It was a cool experience. While Charles stood in line at Starbucks, I played with rolling around in it and it was pretty easy and intuitive to maneuver. Plus, BOOM! We got to jump in front of all the lines and got the best seats on the plane. At Oakland Airport, they have employees to help get our luggage and then push us to the shuttles. I don’t know if y’all want to run 100 miles to get this treatment, but I’m just saying it was pretty awesome.

When Greg got home, he explained that the tingling I felt on the bottoms of my feet are the nerves being impinged from all the swelling. From my notes on Javelina, it took 5 days before I was able to run 2 miles. I’m hoping it’ll be the same or sooner this time.

Tree trunk legs from the swelling. No blisters though!

SO WHY?

OK ... thanks for sticking with me for this long.  

The reason I ran this race is to prepare myself for a self-supported 500 miler around the San Francisco Bay Area. 50k/day for 17-20 days. It’s called The Bay Trail. http://baytrail.org/  And the reason I want to run this is to raise the seed money for my for-purpose charity - The Animal Run (TAR). With the help of friends within the running community and my sister, I’m still setting this up and I’m hoping the website will ready by next Feb.

When will this 500 mile run (50k/day) happen?  I’m shooting for May 2018

What’s the fundraising goal? $10,000

What’s the seed money for?  To hold 1-2 races per year to fundraise for non-profits whose mission is to enhance the lives of all abused and neglected animals

When will the first TAR race be held? I’m thinking August 2018

Which charities will be the initial beneficiaries? TBD but I do have a short list

So it’s still a few months away, but please look out for my notifications about The Animal Run and donate generously if you can. Happy Holidays!

Paz y amor

Video credit: Charles Dexter Lim ... the best crew chief in the galaxy

WHAT TO DO BETTER NEXT TIME

Bring turmeric pills for the inflammation

Bring cranberry pills for the kidneys (super cranactin)

Load up on glucosamine MSM before and after the race

Wear compression socks for legs and feet on plane & @home

Ice my legs and feet down asap after the race & once I get home with a cold blanket or cold wrap kept in the fridge

TRACKING MY RECOVERY

Race ended Sunday 12/10 - Got a 1.5 hour massage 

Monday - Needed a wheelchair at the airport

Tuesday - Still in pain. Did not leave the house ... still shuffled ... able to get adjustment. Spent the day writing the race report.

Wednesday - Still limping but got another 1.5 massage (which worked wonders for my gait). Got another adjustment.

Thursday - Walked to Transamerica from BART in the morning and then walked 2 miles to meet Charles & Phil. I limped most of the day. But I was walking normally at the end of the day. No anti-inflammatories.

Friday - I’m recovered 100% except for the knee. It’s still sore when I got out of bed, but I was able to clean the house.

Saturday - Spoke to coach Bob. No running until the knee is 100%. We’ll focus on staying active with swimming, yoga, maybe biking. I might not run again for 2-3 weeks or mid-Jan at least.

10 days after the race ended, I still have not worked out. Knee is much, much better ... but the twinge is still there. Still not 100%

Finally, on 12/24, I woke up without knee pain.  Woo hoo!

My knee stayed tweaked although I was only running 1-2 miles. I took a complete break from running between Feb-March 15.

[honestreview4you-blog]

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