Semi-relevant background note #1: I don’t think of trail races as ‘races,’ per se; I like to think of them as just challenging ‘runs.’ I don’t usually wear a watch or a Garmin, and I don’t (read: try not to) worry about speed. Instead, I try to focus on form, on staying upright, and on admiring the general splendor of the outdoors. If there were a non-timed option, I would totally take it. I think of these runs as my ‘tune-ups.’ I don’t hit the trails often enough, I know.
Semi-relevant background note #2: I had frost bite once when I was 12 (long. story.), so it takes my toes just shy of forever (5-ish miles in a cold race) to be not totally numb.
Race report proper:
When I arrived at the race site about 45 minutes before game time, the car temp said 27. This is v.chilly to me. I suspect it just was at or just above freezing when we actually started. I really didn’t want to get out of my car, and I was actually cursing myself for signing up for a January race. I decided to be tough, though, and just get over it.
I didn’t think I knew anyone else who had signed up, but I ran into a very nice woman that I had worked with in grad school who kindly invited me to start the race with her and her running buddies. We started near the back of the pack because, honestly, that’s where the sun was when everyone was lining up. We had a steady, conservative pace, which worked out well for me because I was really having difficulty feeling stable on the trails with my frozen toes (see background note #2 above). I probably should have pushed myself more, but I’ll take companionship over speed most any day, especially on the trails.
After about 3 miles, we hit some very slippery terrain where the river had flooded and just recently receded (recently=the night before). And by slippery, I mean that I had to jump from tree trunk to tree trunk for stability (like Tarzan, but lower to the ground and not as cool). Bright side: it was totally beautiful, so I was glad to have the opportunity to commune a bit with nature. After the mess, though, we soon hit a nice open patch, so I decided to see if I could kick up the speed—both to challenge myself and in order to get out of my wet shoes more quickly.
As I sped up, the toes felt better, and the terrain stayed workable. No falls (just one close one), no ankle rolls, no slips—just more awesome scenery. I even passed quite a few folks despite some pretty challenging hills. Then, about mile 7, I caught up to a group of very kind folks who were training for a 50K trail race next weekend. The pace was very comfortable for the home stretch, and we even booked it in at the semi-muddy finish, where I was so thrilled to overhear some guys talking about my RUN DRM shirt and to see Adrien Cooper and Kim Chapman-Page (both volunteering) cheering me in—a fine ending for a really fun race. Now I just have to figure out how to clean my shoes.
