Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic
Snowshoeing is a great winter activity for runners and hikers who want to embrace the outdoors and stay fit year-round. Those who have never tried it may think it sounds boring, but with the right scenery and some interesting terrain it can be really fun and truly accessible to a wide range of abilities. We've been fortunate to have a handful of good snowfalls already in Santa Fe this season (currently a 56" base and 5" in the past week), and on Saturday the Striders running club sponsored their annual Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic. This was only my second time participating in the live race (last year I competed virtually) and it was fun to experience the energy and adrenaline of a racing environment again! It was reminiscent of my nordic skiing days, which seem like another lifetime ago, with a bunch of crazy athletes gathering together to embrace winter and push themselves physically despite the cold and the temptation to stay inside and get cozy.
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| Racers getting ready to start |
The race course was a 6K loop along the Big Tesuque Trail, Pacheco Canyon Road, and the Winsor Trail. The first section was a single track, winding through the woods, then turning right onto a steep uphill. Fueled by the enthusiasm of the racers around me and the fear of holding back anyone behind me who wanted to go faster, I started off hard. Very quickly, the combination of the elevation, the cold air, and the lack of any sort of warmup got to me and I could feel my lungs constricting. I walked the next uphill, taking long strides and deep breaths until I found a sustainable pace.
The next section was a long and gradual downhill along Pacheco Canyon Road. I got into a steady jogging pace with long strides on the downhill. It was here that a lot of the leading male racers (who had started 5 minutes later than the females) started to pass me. I had lost track of where I was in the rankings of females, but hoped that I was still in the top 20. Before the race I queued up an audiobook I was looking forward to listening to for the duration of the race, but it skipped ahead to the end and I couldn't get the beginning to load again (first world problems). I settled for Christmas music, which was actually quite perfect!
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| My race soundtrack when my book wouldn't load! |
There was a very narrow section next to a steep dropoff and it was tricky to balance without sliding to the side. On the one hand, snowshoeing is just hiking but with bigger footwear, but on the other hand there is some technique and balance involved in shifting weight laterally and smoothly scooting from one foot to the next when the terrain gets more complicated, while avoiding tipping over. I tripped on my toe a few times but was able to catch myself every time. I walked a lot of the uphills in the final stretch, but tried to still push it hard and challenge my breath, passing three or four other races in the final half mile. While my lungs and endurance were my limiting factors in the beginnings, my muscles were holding me back toward the end. I just started running again last week after a long hiatus and I'm not in shape at all for any sort of distance or elevation change, but this race was a great way to kickstart my return to running!
I didn't have a specific goal in mind because honestly I didn't know if I'd finish in 45 minutes or 2 hours, but I pushed myself the whole race, passed more people than I got passed by, and finished in just over an hour. I didn't make it to the podium, but finished 8th in my age group and 19th overall (out of 74 females), so I'll take it! There was a wide range of competitiveness among participants, from some very elite athletes (I knew I didn't stand a chance against the sleek, plastic snowshoes!) to a lot of first-timers. That's exactly what's so fun about this kind of sport, welcoming new people who are brave enough to try something different.
Prior to the race I had a few really great hiking days in fresh snow along the Borrego Bear Wallows trail, once as a solo hike on a sunny afternoon in late December, and I even talked my dad into a snowshoe hike when he came to visit earlier this month. Anyone who enjoys hiking should give it a try, plus the snow and the quieter days in the winter add a serenity that you don't find with other winter sports.
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| Borrego Bear Wallows trail last week |
Winter hiking is bittersweet this month, though, as we grieve the loss of our family dog, Kua. We said goodbye to her on January 17th after over 11 years with our family. She was such a good girl and LOVED being in the snow. We have so many memories together all over the trails in the Santa Fe National Forest and I still can't believe she's gone. She would have loved to be here.
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| Kua's last hike, Dec. 9th, 2022 |
While I was snowshoeing, Ady had her second day of White Tornadoes ski lessons, Jaycob skinned two laps up the mountain, and Meredith had some fun playing in the snow at the ski hill! This has been our year to get out in the snow as a family and embrace winter sports!
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| Mouth full of marshmallows, life is good |
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| She's loving her new sport! |
One of my goals this year is to learn to make better cocktails at home. We ended our our fun-filled winter adventure day with hot buttered rum. Kua would have loved this part too. Cheers!
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| Homemade Hot Buttered Rum and biscochitos from a friend. Cheers! |
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