Trail debut - 25K of fun
Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 4:30 pm
It was my first trail race. Yesterday I wasn't sure if I should run 10K or 25K. I had no idea what should be my pace. I wasn't sure if I will be able to finish the 25K I decided to run.
Today I am seasoned trail runner
And now I totally understand:
Weather was perfect. Sunny 10-12C at the start, not to hot under mostly tree covered trail during the race.
I met up with Kinga (kmiklos) and her non RM husband Viking, Sheldon (Doonst) and Mike (mlazenby). Meeting with maniacs boosted my confidence
me, Kinga, Doonst
mlazenby, me, Doonst
I didn't have any race expectations. I was very weak in the last few kilometers of my first marathon two weeks ago partially because I haven't done a lot of leg strength training or hard hilly runs. I started leg strength training earlier this week and this race was to cover hard hilly runs
I didn't have a race plan, but right after the start I started to follow Sheldon, this was his third race on this trail, and he is very seasoned trail runner. I have seen him right from the start, he was going very fast, 10-15 runners ahead of me. Soon I joined him and this was really blessing. He remembered all, where all turns and hills are and the most important he shared his knowledge how to run a trail race. We were walking some uphills. I didn't have to worry that I might be lost on one of those multiple turns or splits for different distances. I have learned a lot. Time was passing fast while we were talking. We were running together for a while although Sheldon was in the front most of the time.
I think I knew around 15K that Sheldon's pace was to fast for me. Somehow I couldn't let him go, because it felt so safe and pleasant, I was clinching to him like a baby to mother. By the 20K accumulation of fatigue from marathon, hard training, this hilly trail and Sheldon's acceleration left me alone.
Now I realized how tired I am. My calves were in pain, especially on the downhill parts of the trail. I finished 3-5 minutes behind Sheldon, results are not posted and I forgot to turn of my Garmin. My time is somewhere between 2:16.xx and 2:19.xx
*Edited to add final result: 2:16:52
after the race:
I am so happy, it was good training run. I love trail running I will do it again
I wouldn't be able to make such great training session alone. Thank You Sheldon and congratulation on a huge 23 minutes PB 
Today I am seasoned trail runner
And now I totally understand:
-mlazenby."hilly trails make hilly roads seem like a walk in the park."
Weather was perfect. Sunny 10-12C at the start, not to hot under mostly tree covered trail during the race.
I met up with Kinga (kmiklos) and her non RM husband Viking, Sheldon (Doonst) and Mike (mlazenby). Meeting with maniacs boosted my confidence
me, Kinga, Doonst
mlazenby, me, Doonst
I didn't have any race expectations. I was very weak in the last few kilometers of my first marathon two weeks ago partially because I haven't done a lot of leg strength training or hard hilly runs. I started leg strength training earlier this week and this race was to cover hard hilly runs
I didn't have a race plan, but right after the start I started to follow Sheldon, this was his third race on this trail, and he is very seasoned trail runner. I have seen him right from the start, he was going very fast, 10-15 runners ahead of me. Soon I joined him and this was really blessing. He remembered all, where all turns and hills are and the most important he shared his knowledge how to run a trail race. We were walking some uphills. I didn't have to worry that I might be lost on one of those multiple turns or splits for different distances. I have learned a lot. Time was passing fast while we were talking. We were running together for a while although Sheldon was in the front most of the time.
I think I knew around 15K that Sheldon's pace was to fast for me. Somehow I couldn't let him go, because it felt so safe and pleasant, I was clinching to him like a baby to mother. By the 20K accumulation of fatigue from marathon, hard training, this hilly trail and Sheldon's acceleration left me alone.
Now I realized how tired I am. My calves were in pain, especially on the downhill parts of the trail. I finished 3-5 minutes behind Sheldon, results are not posted and I forgot to turn of my Garmin. My time is somewhere between 2:16.xx and 2:19.xx
*Edited to add final result: 2:16:52
after the race:
I am so happy, it was good training run. I love trail running I will do it again
I wouldn't be able to make such great training session alone. Thank You Sheldon and congratulation on a huge 23 minutes PB 
I thought he was!
