DH and I decided it would be better to get to the race from the cottage - (1hr 30min drive), then from home (3 hr), and I didn't really want to stay in a motel, so we headed up to the cottage Friday afternoon. My wonderful sister indulged my request for carbs and prepared an excellent pasta dinner! Perfect! It was a really nice evening so we just hung a bit down at the lake and headed to bed early. It was going to be an early morning on Saturday!
Up and dressed with oatmeal consumed by 6am, we hit the road. Amazingly we did not get lost once, and easily found the race area. I quickly picked up my bib (I love small races!) and proceeded to run into tons of people I knew. The crew from the RR, a maniac who, I think, lurks, but does not post much any more (KB), and a couple of friends of my sisters! This was so nice! The weather was perfect too!
We got my husband set up right under a tent at the start/finish, and since we had the dog, we walked around with him a bit.
Finally! After the 56K, 42K, and 28K runners had departed, it was time for us 14K'rs. Off we started down the road to the beginning of the trails. Trails - oh so soft and cushy. This is going to be fun I thought! It wasn't long before we hit some really technical parts though, and running was impossible (which it was MUCH of the course). They did mention that the trails were muddy, but being a newbie, I had little comprehension of what that really meant. Well for future reference it means 'MUDDY' - ankle to calf deep, with no real way to avoid it. And it was constant throughout (my shoes are still recovering). Nevertheless, I ran when I could, and walked when I had to. There was very few 'flat' areas though. It was a constant up and down, up and down.
I don't know what I was doing wrong though, because I kept landing on my left foot on the side, and my ankle and calf became really sore. It wasn't too bad at the time, but it was frustrating, because I kept doing it again and again!
I stopped and relaxed a bit the fantastic aid stations (unlike whizzing through them in a road race). Let me see... Gummie bears, chips, pretzels, fruit - nice!
I really enjoyed the scenery - the forest was awesome, but I really need more experience trail running to really enjoy it. I think my inexperience really showed. This course was also, from what I hear, VERY technical in comparison to many. The muddy conditions did not help at all. The 14K that I covered was some of the hardest running I've ever done. Time to finish was 2:01:35 - still good for 9/26 in my age group, so not totally embarrassing anyway.
Now the finish area was great! A fantastic lunch of salads and chicken kebobs was yummy! Plus there was a lake nearby to wash of the muck - it was a popular spot!
So all in all, I enjoyed it, with the exception that I kept turning my ankle. It was a bit frustrating too, because you would be smoking along on a nice section, and than BAM! Mud or hills or rivers to cross.
I cannot compute doing this for 100 miles in the middle of the night though - heck! I couldn't even compute one more loop! Maybe if my calf wasn't so sore after the 14, I would have been happier, I'm sure.
I spent yesterday resting the calf (I could barely walk), but today it is SOO much better. I might be off running for a day or two more. It is an acute injury, and has healed so much already, that I know if I rest it, it will be completely fine.
Kudos to the organizers! It was a truly well run event! Despite the hurt, I'm glad I did it. It humbled this cocky road racer a bit.
Hope the ankle heals soon.
