Ouch that Mutha hurt!!!I am no road runner I tell ya!!! I only signed up because it was a one time event.
I'm not sure how, but I ended up running 4 100's in 4 weeks. I wasn't even planning to. I owe it to my good friend and Dirty girl Xy Weiss. She ask if I would run Javelina with her. If I did it would make three in three weeks and I would run Mother road making it 4 in 4 weeks.
I knew I could run 3 100's in a row. I have done that a couple times. In September I ran 3 in a row, had three weeks off than ran the 4 in a row.
I just want to say thank you to Thomas Hill the RD and all the other people who helped with the race they were all very nice and helpful.
Many runners had crews, you were able to have your crew follow you the whole 100 miles.
I want to thank everyone who helped me don't remember names but you all know who you are. I know Thomas's crew was very helpful. I remember it being in the low 30's and I was cold and one of his guys gave me an extra jacket which was very nice.
I had no idea during the race I was going as fast as I was. I just hoped to finish in 26 hours. I must admit I was afraid of running 100 miles on asphalt. I wore my Montrail Hardrocks and they were great. I wore them during the 24 hour run in SF as well. Who says you can't wear trail shoes on the road?? I say you can!
It took my usual 6 hours to get into my zone. That's when my body & mind know yep she's doing it to us again 100 miles.
I came into the 50 mile check point in 10 hours and thought I'm doing pretty good. I didn't wear a watch infact all of past 4 100's I wore no watch. I ran in the moment and never thought to far ahead.
This race was special I was running for a poster to my blog anon-embarassed. He is fighting a drug addiction which I know he will win. I did it 12 years ago and now look at me.
There were points in the race during the night where I was so cold and I was suffering and just wanted to curl up inside a nice warm car and sleep. I couldn't I had to suffer because I know any amount of suffering I was enduring it was harder for anon. I had to stay strong and tough for anon. I had to beat that Mother road. Trust me I asked myself many times what the HELL am I doing running on this freakin road???? I'm not a road runner. I never run roads. Each time, I got the answer I was looking for. I'm running for anon-embaressed. If I can do this he can get clean & sober and he too can win the fight.
I also know my job in life is to inspire those around me so I just keep moving forward and stay positive.
I am so touched each time I run a race. I am so touched by the volunteers who spent all day, and night in the freezing cold to help us along the way. The small towns we went through. These people knew nothing about ultrarunning , they treated us all so well. Many of them saw me on the news the night before and said you're the famous girl we saw you on T.V. I stopped and got my picture taken with a lot of them.
Dan the weather man who interviewed me ran Mother road as his first 100 he finished. Great job Dan.
It was crazy running along the road there were times when you had no shoulder. and had to jump out of the way of trucks getting very close. I want to thank all the Law enforcment people for being there to help slow some of those people down.
It seems lately I am a second half runner. Once it got dark I picked it up this is where I noticed I started passing people. From mile 70 on I don't think anyone passed me.
As I got closed I had no idea what time it was. I thought maybe i might break 24 hours. I came through the finish line and was surpriased I ran 22:51 and was 4th place girl. I was so happy with my time.
I'm still amazed at how well my body & mind work together and I can do what I do. I believe it's positive thinking and all the prayers and positive vibes my friends send.
Thanks to all my friends for your kind words of encourgement and those phone calls and messages you all leave in my darkest hours in the middle of the night during my runs. When I listen to those it gives me the lift I need to keep going.
Anon-embaressed I ran for you and I kicked ass for you. Stay strong & positive just like I did during our run. I ran for you!!! You can stay clean & sober. I have faith in you even though I don't know you.
28 comments:
Great Job girl!!!!!!!
i'm very happy for you...one day you will be a trail goddess!!!!
ju
Congrats Catra on your 4th place finish! you are truly awesome. It was great to finally get to meet you and visit with you for a bit. thank you for being so kind and patient to visit with everyone and get your picture taken a million times. You are the real deal and I am proud to call you my friend and I am even more proud to have my name on the back of the finishers shirt from the Mother Road 100 with you. Yes, I got it done, my first 100. i look forward to the day when our paths cross again.
Steve
Congratulations on the great finish! Your positive outlook is beautiful, and it was awesome to see you smiling at 84 miles as you came through our aid station.
Reading your blog, I'm not the least bit surprised you've managed to run four 100-milers in four weeks. A girl who can outrun speed itself can run any distance she wants -- especially if she's running as a coach for others who are racing their demons.
Thanks for your wonderful attitude, your generous spirit, and your lovely smile through it all. I know you inspired at least one of the other runners, because she was talking about you while I was pacing her Sunday morning. Anon-embarrassed is blessed to have found a friend like you.
Catra you are seriously awesome. And inspiring. Way to be you!
Catra,
Way to go!!! See - the road is nothin' for you to beat! Hey, I just got certified as a CrossFit trainer, and while listening to the metabolic conditioning part of the seminar I thought about you. The amount of miles you run - how does that effect your strength ? I would be interested in knowing for instance your 1 rep maximum of exercises like the deadlift, overhead squat, back squat or front squat, how many reps of pull ups do you have, how long can you hold an l-sit ? I know for sure you have the endurance thing down ;) just for my own curiosity and learning - since you seem to be the PERFECT specimen for the experiment - has running these long distance miles effected your fitness in strength ? There is much talk in the CrossFit community that endurance type of "cardio" diminishes your strength and power.....just want to be able to say "na-ahh!"
Ouch, that musta hurt! Don't underestimate yourself, you are a runner, trail or road is secondary:) Awesome!
Wow, Catra! You just raced more in 4 weekends than all my races combined this year!
You're an ultra-bot!
You're FAB-ulous!
You wore your hardrocks? Gosh, I left mine at home thinking they would be too hard for the road! If I had worn my hardrocks my feet would be in much better shape!!! Congrats on a great finish time, you rock! It was also great to finally meet you in person. You are a celebrity in our house!
Tonya (Whitney's mom)
Hey Ju-
What are you talking about. I am a trail goddess!!!! ;)
How was the 24 hour run???
Thanks.
Catra
Hey Ultra okie-
I was so glad to meet you!!! I am so proud of you! Great job out there. It was way to cold for this California girl so I had to run fast so I didn't freeze to death.
I want to say everyone I met in Oklahoma I met were awesome. Even those Billy Bobs driving down the road that pulled over just to see the freaky tattooed girl running down route 66. I thought for sure there would be an accident or two the way some of those guys stuck there head out and looked back at me while driving..LOL!!!
I want you to know if you and your girl ever come to Cali. I will give you the grand tour. I am proud to call you my friend Steve.
I want to thank everyone for making me feel like a rock star. I truly did feel famous and I loved it!
Love ya,
Catra
Hey Emily-
Thanks so much! You were all so helpful. Was I still smiling in my delerium 84 miles into it!!!
It was lonely out on route 66 at night and boy was it cold!
You right, I did out speed myself. I ran so far away from that life and am happy I made it where I am today.
I'm so happy I inspired your runner. I'm happy she made.
I was hoping at least one person out there would think of me and push on knowing I had just run 4. I felt I needed to do that race to help others reach there goal.
Thanks for all the kind words.
XOXO,
Catra
Hey Jessica-
Thanks so much!
Catra
...not sure what to say.
would love to jump in sea of jubilee and lavish you with the praise you deserve. you are such an amazing person and what you did for me is not only thoughtful - it's fucking awe-inspiring... mostly surreal and unimaginable from this loser's current perspective.
and truth be told i'd love to continue my merry blog posts of last week's flavor all gung ho and fired up for cleanliness...
...but i can't because i screwed up on sunday. i don't deserve your efforts. i deserve nothing less than the complete loss of everything i hold dear - if i can't stay clean when i have a rock star runner pulling for me then there is probably less hope for me than i first thought - it could be i am beyond the ability to just change.
Without the devastating effects of true love lost - i will just continue my selfish mannerisms.
in my naive younger years i used to just think, "those druggies are so lame - all they need to do is just stop." ...yea, if it were that easy i wouldn't be destroying my family, my health ...my life.
the negativity only increases the need for pseudo elation ...a viscious, viscious cycle. drugs truly are the devil in the most complete sense possible.
kids, don't do drugs.
this is probably the last time i will post any more mopey garbage here - this huge, online bucket of Catra's positivity is hardly the place for a drug addict's musings.
catra - thank you for dedicating that race for me. i feel really low for not being able to even stay clean during that... i am even more embarrassed with my life than I was before i came here...
thanks again - you are a true, honest-to-goodness hero and you do and will continue to touch many lives.
it's looking grim - but - here's hoping someday i get my 'spirit' back.
Hey Shari-
Thanks so much!
Awesome job getting certified.
It really is something I want to do to.
My strength//I can only tell you this since crossfit I am running stronger than I ever have. I look stronger and people are telling me so.
I belive crossfit changed my life, well my running and has helped me by giving me the core strength I need to not get tired running 100 miles.
I can't do a pull up with out assistance but I'm getting there.
I haven't tried to test myself or my ability to push myself and see what my maximum reps of each exercise i can do.
I can only tell you I feel stronger. As you know everybody is differant. I seem to recover in between each race and do better the next.
I'm looking forward to start pushing myself more at crossfit since I don't run 100 miles until December 15 and that will be 42 hours through the wilderness for my b-day run.
Shari, I'm glad you made it through your flight. It really is safer than driving.
Namaste,
Catra
hey olga-
You rock!! I'm just trying to get fast like you! You are an amazing runner and Mom.
XOXO,
Catra
Thank you for your dedication, your inspiration, and your attitude!
anon-embaressed-
Don't give up the fight!!! Don't let drugs win.
It's not supposse to be easy.
Everything in life is a challenge. I thought back in the day no F ing way could I stop.
Sometimes it takes a little while to get it. You will get it, I know you will I have you in my thoughts and prayers. You will do it.
Please don't give up.
Could you please email me through my yahoo so I can continue helping you.
I know what you're going through it just seems really bad it will get better and you are not a loser.
I want to be your friend and help you in anyway I can.
here is my email.
don't be afraid to email me. catrarunner@yahoo.com
Email me and I will give you my cell number if you need to talk to me.
You are not a loser!
XOXO,
Catra
hey john henery thanks you made my day!
Catra
Hey Tonya-
It was great meeting you!!! I'm so proud of you for finishing.
You did it!!!
You are a great Mom, I can tell because you have a great daughter.
Congrats. to Micheal too. He's on a roll.
So what will be your next hundred??
It's crazy but my feet were fine not one blister. I did change into my Continental divides at mile 85 big mistake my feet killed me the rest of the way.
My feet felt so protected wearing the hard rocks.
Hope to see you again. Rest up and enjoy your week.
Catra
Hey Catra,
I fully agree that Crossfit makes you a better runner without a doubt. I put this to the test and PR'd in every race only after doing CrossFit for 1 month! What I was wondering if running so much has hindered your fitness at CrossFit or not. Seems the one common thread of theory is that endurance sports can hinder your overall fitness. I say not necessarily true 100% of the time - for instance, you can run distance even after starting the xfit routines. At the SJ gym, do they ever do max loads in their classes with you as a starting point ? I would be super interested to dive into your abilities as a super endurance goddess mixed with strength moves. Don't worry about the pull ups...when you get the kip down, they come really quick and you think to yourself "wow...I GET it!" I max pullup at 26 or 28, but am working to get to 30. The kip is HUGE...practice it and you'll have it. I'm glad Randy introduced you to Xfirt because it will without a doubt make you a better athlete....almost like cheating ;)
Catra,
Awesome job! 4 in a row and 100 on the road. I can't even imagine doing 100 road miles, I think my feet would explode! Maybe I need to try my Hardrock's on my next road run.
You truly are inspiring and I think what you are doing for "anon embarrassed" is great. Let him know that there are others here pulling for him. No addiction is ever successfully defeated in a single try. Just as it takes time to acquire an addiction, it takes time to rid oneself of it. Failures and slip-ups are part of the process. Sometimes, until you can see a screwup as just that, and not as a total backslide to where you were, you won't have confidence that you are truly past it.
Stay strong, anon.
-Steve
Catra, you're truly amazing and inspiring in passing through all these 100 miler suffering. And it was tears and (more) joys in return. I'm also touched by your cause to run Mother Road.
I complained about the paved road in Helen Klein 50M and Silicon Valley Marathon. Now I feel this is nothing compared to what you have had in MR100. Hats off to you.
Great 22hr finish after a series of weekly 100 milers!
Chihping
Hey - congrats on another awesome accomplishment, Catra! I wish I could have been there with you. Maybe at a 100 next year? (PS - won't be doing the Quad either, darn it. Adam will be running and I'll be volunteering at the start/finish with the kids. We didn't want to shell out all the $$ for a babysitter.)
jennyray
Catra great job, you are made to inspire!
To Anon: Never Give Up! Never Surrender! If you fall down get back up! as many times as it takes!!! Many of us have been down that road. Ultimately it is up to you! I did… and I have seen many others do it also. Keep up you can do it!!!
Great Job Catra!
Hey Shari-
I too have run faster times since doing crossfit for a month. There's no way for me tell if it hinderd my level of fitness at crossfit. I have nothing to go on.
Or to compare to.
I'm not sure if endurance sports can hinder your overall fitness.
That's my sport ultrarunning. Crossfit just helps me become a better ultrarunner.
I do believe I am differant than most ultrarunners and if you read my blog you know I am. I recover faster than anyone I know.
Infact had I known about this 48 hour race in Texas this weekend I would of been there pushing my limits once again.
Shari I believe a lot of what we do is mental well for me with my ultrarunning. The more positive I am the better I run.
If you want to test my abilities and see what I can do I'm into that. let me know.
Have a beautiful night.
Catra
That was one hell of a race.
I was getting a bit bummed with all the road kill. I tried to use it like those old buddhist tapestries that have decaying bodies. One is supposed to reflect on the decay and somehow find a path to nirvana.
As I thought about that, I instead decided to just stay out of the way of all those trucks and cars.
At times this race was really scary, I mean NO shoulder. I kept trying to find any sweet spot I could. I was so determined to run the entire race barefoot. I knew it could be done, but it wasn't meant to be.
I am so glad to see you did so well, and I am very impressed with how quickly you are able to recover. And that is another aspect of ultrarunning that I really love: gender does not play an issue in performance...especially as the distance and time increases.
BFT
Way to go girl! You are a phenomenon!!! 4 100s in 4 weeks? Wow!
Rajeev
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