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Silverton/Hardrock Beer Mile (1st/8:0x)

July 13, 2017 (Afternoon)

Exercise Type: Run

Weather: 60, overcast

Comments:
We'd heard about a beer mile at HR, but never got any details. At the end of the meeting at maybe 1:45, we asked around and heard it was at "the track" (on the west end of town) at 2!

Crap.

No time, no beer. Oh well. I said to CA that we should maybe just jog down there to check it out, so we changed in the van and shuffled a mile down to the track.

Once we got there - this old, paved, cracked asphalt surface - there were lots of folks, and the race hadn't started. AND, on the line, beer in hand, was Jim Walmsley! I immediately wanted to do it.

A friend was there, and when I began to wonder if maybe I could do it, she shouted "DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY EXTRA BEER?" Sure enough, a woman had 4 spare PBRs!

"I guess it's ON!"

I jogged as much warm-up as I could, then grabbed my PBRs and headed to the line.

It was a shit-show.

At the start, apparently (though I never really did this), you can "drink while walking" from the mile waterfall to the finish line. In doing so, while chugging, I run *into the back of* Walmsley, which knocks my damn beer out of my hands! I fumble it, it foams, and I have to suck the foamy beer out of the first can. I do, and I'm out first.

Within 150m I knew it'd be a slow and painful day. Nearly 10000' altitude! WOAH. I ran, but did not sprint.

And I felt FULL. Not sure if it was from the foamy first can or the conditions. And it got worse.

I pounded the second can, which also seemed foamy, then more shuffling. Eric Senseman wasn't too far behind (while Jim was nowhere to be seen, running). I hurt more.

On the 3rd can, the stomach hurt just drinking in place. After that...I felt like my belly was going to EXPLODE. I jogged maybe 10 steps and doubled over. This is the closest I've been to puking in a LONNNG time. I didn't, but it hurt SO bad. I ran some more, doubled some more. Then, seeing Eric coming after me, I sucked it up and got my shit together. I ran and ran pretty hard.

I knew the last beer would hurt, but accepted the pain. Pounded, and ran. I pulled well away from Eric and crossed the line in first, at 8:0x -- not terrible, given the struggles.

Eric was maybe 8:30. Jim puked did a penalty lap, and finished in maybe 25 minutes, after CA and I ran a "cooldown mile"!

It was fun, but PAINFUL.

Post-race: actually chatted with Jim. Really interesting conversation. I'd been holding a bit of a grudge against him this past year, based on the fact that, post-WSER, I'd gone to the effort of mailing him a copy of "Deep Survival". In the front cover, I wrote "the only thing separating you from a Cougar trophy is the wisdom within these pages".

I never heard anything back from him: no acknowledgement, no thanks. That irked me.

Incredibly, one of the first things he did was thank me for the book, though say "I haven't read it yet...but I have it with me!". Interesting.

We then talked a bit about WSER, and UTMB. I'm quite buzzed (as is he) so CA asked a lot of the questions. In short, he was very nice, but both a little naive and-or dismissive - not quite taking responsibility for his race. I can tell he's not the smartest guy around, though he's "really nice".

Good chat with him.

After that...we jogged back to the van.

I was a little "sluggish" the rest of the afternoon, though with it enough to make "breakfast" (at 3pm) in a park on the east end of town. Ate, cleaned up, then hung out 'til "dinner time".

PM:
- went to a downtown bar for a happy hour hangout and ran into some familiar faces (Billy Yang, some other folks)
- got an amazing "funnel cake" from a shop downtown - this would be my "dinner"
- went to this off-main street pizza place...and ran into ALL the Curleys except Tyler! Really fun!