Saturday 28MAY2016 Georgetown Burro Race

Did the first burro race of the season.  A quick video recap:

A few things I did not mention in the video and a few other items to reiterate:

• Bob had a good first race with Boog.  He and Boog along with Justin and Yukon were WAY off the front to start and I thought the race was over.  They slowed up and a good number of folks caught up (including Jack and me).  If those guys could keep 1/2 that momentum though they’d be the class of all the field.
• Good on Justin and Yukon for making a great race of it.  We were in all through out the day until the town / roundabout / highway underpass slowed us but those two cranked on it until the very end to get a victory.  Really Justin and Yukon have to be considered the faves going into the rest of the races given how they ran and rallied today and the experience they have.
• Huge thanks to TZ and JZ for running the start, running the times, getting the awards assembly going.
• Thanks to Bob for porting Jack along with Boog up to the race and back today.
• Thanks to Dave C for continuing to make this farm set up we have possible.
• Thanks to Brian M for brining in close a dozen new racers.  We had some fast folks – including Shad (2:44 Boston recently), Brandon S (Nolans 14 finisher) and Anita O (winner at Pikes in the past) running today.  It was fun to see them have fun even if they were not crushing the race.
• Thanks to Tim and Steve for all the saddling they did.
• All the best to Brad (who is now home) as he recovers from his crazy near three weeks in the hospital with who knows what. 
• And thanks to Bill Lee for making this race happen.
• I was pleasantly surprised at how my grizzle held up.  I thought it was a very distinct possibility that I would not be able to finish this race outright because of a complete failure of the Achilles.  I wedged the back of the foot WAY up by cutting up several other insoles (3 of em) to make a heel lift.  It still hurt but it was manageable and I kept it together.
• My fitness is certainly a bit behind where I am used to it being and I was feeling it a bit on some of the climbs were were running.  Admittedly, I was even lagging on them a bit rather than pressing as I am just in that sort of shape.  If I can get the grizzle to hold though, I think I ought to be able to round into fitness well enough for Fairplay.  But that is a really really really big if right now.  This was my longest run in probably three weeks … and as expected, I felt it!  And that was sort of fun and good.  A little sore from a lack of training, a little rattle in the lungs from a lack of running hard at altitude.
• Doing all the saddles, getting burros up there … yeesh.  It is a lot more race day stress.  Some of that is good because it keeps you busy.  But when it is 20 plus burros … that is a bit more than I am used to.  I missed Brad.