Sun Run

The Sun Run was this weekend, a local 10k and 5k race. TopoFusion was a sponsor, and besides that, Paula was the co-race director. She had some good ideas that turned out really well in the end. One of the coolest was having the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Assocation setup a telescope (and appropriate filter) for viewing the sun (including prominences, spots, explosions). She also got some nice food donations (tons o’ Krispy Kreme, grapes, coffee). I was quite happy to see the race go well after all the work she put into it.

We gave a copy of TopoFusion to the male and female winners of the 10k and 5k. We also helped map out the course & mile markers, which of course is much harder than mapping mountain bike courses. Here the course must be a specific distance, and mile markers need be precise). I was doubtful of how well GPS would work for this, but I came out pleasantly surprised. It is definitely not good enough for “USATF certification” since good signal cannot be guaranteed. However, at Reid Park in Tucson, it worked really well. Still not as precise as a measuring wheel, but any form of measurement is prone to error, especially human error. We were spray painting at the mile markers and the GPS was generally right on with where the certified course description said we should be.

I also did the timing for the 5k, using a palm top and a stylus to enter the numbers. I’m not sure what I think about this method. A keypad seems like a better strategy to me. But this worked out just OK; I was taping up the results for the 5k very quickly after its conclusion. Some confusion over finishing chutes led to a few errors in the 10k results.

I don’t know if I just had running on the brain after watching the race, but I found myself on a 10k run of my own construction later that evening. I just couldn’t pull myself together for a real ride, despite what I think is a strong desire to do some real mountain biking. I pulled on my running shoes and did a ‘big’ (for me) loop around the house. Tucson streets are so dark that it really keeps you on your toes. I dodged many a car, hopped last-second over potholes and cruised past lines and lines of cars on Speedway that were stuck waiting for the police to clear up the aftermath of a big accident. This, of course, resulted in hordes of Drivers In a Hurry (DIAH) who were more than willing to risk the safety of their fellow man (in this case, me), because they were inconvienenced on their Sunday evening drive to wherever the hell they were going. I quickly exited Speedway, heading north on the quieter but very dark Treat Av. Here I noticed how nice it is to run without traffic. I need to get out for some trail runs.

By the time I made it back home I had run 10k (by GPS), though I just followed my whim on the turns. My time? A weak 53 minutes, which puts me at 110th place in the Sun Run, at 8:30 pace. Any time I sped up my left knee would hurt (as it always does), so I just didn’t. I wasn’t racing, or even trying to run fast, so I suppose it’s not bad for a mountain biker.