Costa Rica: The Coastal Challenge 2009
Day 4: Revenge of the Borucas ridgeline route
Jacqueline Windh / 09.02.2009
At last night’s briefing, RD Tim Holmstrom congratulated all finishers of yesterday’s route - what he called “probably the most difficult day of the course.� That word “probably� had me worried; today’s route, although shorter at 37.5 km, had the most elevation gain of any day on this course. Yesterday’s big 800 m descent had been pretty hard on my knee. Today’s route would have us start with a 1 km climb, then hike along the rolling ridgetops with 360 degrees both inland and out to the coast, and then descend 1 km via a steep technical route back down to sea level, to finish in the town of Palmar Sur. Last night I spoke to the doctors about my knee, and on their recommendation I stopped the ibuprofen I’d been taking and received an antiinflammatory injection.
We’re getting used to starting these mornings with steep ascents on winding jungle trails. As usual, the top runners darted out from the start line and I never even saw them in the semi-dark, while the rest of us filed up the path, some people stopping for a break and others passing as the queue sorted itself out by climbing speed. I started with the Project Athena women, Robyn Benincasa marching uphill with not one, but two towlines fanned out behind her to give her team-mates a boost.
PC1 was on the way up, then, at the top of the ridge, we emerged from the jungle onto a rolling dirt road passing through farmlands, with small clusters of floppy-eared Brahman cattle watching us amusedly as we marched past. By now the Athena women were ahead of me, and I was walking with another woman my age named Lisa. Today’s route had PC3, at the 19km mark on the ridgetop, as the finish line for the Adventure racers and the time cut-off for the Expedition racers.
SleepMonsters
