American Birkebeiner #5

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Birthday run with Kepler!

Cool down

Subzero 1 mile race

First lots and lots of gratitude - to Bill for supporting me doing this crazy race every year, to my family for cheering me from afar, to TK K for the wonderful training plan and coaching, to Allix and Luke for welcoming me into their Birkie weekend experience, and to all of the volunteers and spectators who show up and make this race so energized and special. This is one of my absolute favorite weekends every year.

Speaking of, congrats to @Allix and @Luke on their PRs (a big one for Allix!) and to Luke for maintaining his Elite placement by finishing in the top 200 men!

I went into today's race a little banged up - battling some knee soreness the past few weeks and a tight/painful hip flexor in the days leading up to the Birkie. I imagined having to drop out by the first aid station if either issue flared up mid race. Instead, I started out at a conservative pace and by 15k I was fully warmed up and didn't feel my hip at all! From then on it was about embracing the Birkie experience and soaking it all in. I stunned myself by setting a 40 minute Birkie 50k PR. I definitely attribute my strong finish partly to the gains made strength training with Nathan Knitt! 

I'm really happy with my race, especially given the uncertainty I started the race with, I am mainly just so happy I finished and got to ski down Main street in Hayward once more!


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Sarah Guillot

American Birkebeiner #5

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American Birkebeiner #5

Return to McCarthy

Birthday run with Kepler!

Cool down

Subzero 1 mile race

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