Prior to bed, I told Karel that I was really excited to race but also nervous. Going into this event, had no prior trail racing experience and have only done a few off-road runs over the past few years. As a total newbie, I just bought a new (my second ever) pair of trail running shoes (On Cloudultra) on Monday - six days before the event. To break-in the shoes, I wore them on Saturday while spectating Karel's Xterra triathlon race. So much for not trying something new on race day.
After a light night of sleep, I woke up at 5:45am and had a pre-race snack of a cinnamon raisin bagel with PB, banana and syrup (I didn't bring waffles - my typical pre-race/workout snack) and a coffee and water. I did some light foam rolling and mobility in the hotel room before we left for the race venue at 7am.
With a bit less competitors compared to the Xterra race, we had no trouble parking. Each entry to the park was $5/person (cash only) but there was no line to get in so it was a smooth morning.
We arrived shortly before the start of the trail marathon so it was fun to give them a cheer as they started their 26+ mile off-road adventure.
After a short 1-mile jog warm-up, we met up with our athletes/friends Josh and Eedee who were also racing (Eedee also did the sprint off-road triathlon on Saturday!). Karel was there to cheer us on, along with Campy - the professional spectator.
I opted to not wear a tank over my sport bra as I am much more comfortable running in just a sport bra and my tri shorts. I also had my Naked run belt for my hydration (1 x 10 ounce, 80-calories Skratch Orange and 1 x 10 ounce, 80-calories Skratch grape). I also had two gels and some chews in my belt as I wasn't sure what I would need during the event so I had back-up fuel just in case. Although there were aid stations on the course (water and gatorade), I wanted to have extra calories as the woods make it hard to refuel in an emergency situation).
The 5K, 10K and 5 x 5K relay runners went ahead of us so we were the last wave to start.
We lined up for the start and at 8:20am, we were off.
The start was fast and I was not liking that pace. It takes me a while to build into a strong effort and if you know me, I am not a sprinter. So right away my heart rate was up. I embraced being uncomfortable from the start and welcomed the new experience and whatever came my way. I found myself at the back of the front pack and there were three women just ahead of me. I had one female next to me and we ran together for a good two miles. I pass another female in the first part of the trail section so around mile one I was the third female - but the lady behind me made sure I kept on my pace as I felt like I couldn't slow down too much or else she would catch me.
After a 1/2 mile of running on the road, we made a left turn into the first trail section. I passed a few males and everyone was really nice - there were a lot of back and forth cheers and "good job" to one another. I wasn't sure of the etiquette for passing on the trail so I just said "passing" to the person ahead of me.
The first mile was a good introduction to trail running as I quickly realized that I was not quick on my feet (literally) running downhill. While I was ok uphill, I definitely found myself slowing down a little on the downhills. I felt like I got better as the miles ticked by but it was more of a "learn as you go" type of experience.
Once we got to the first aid station, I had a sip of water (you had to grab the pre-filled cups from the table and then toss into the trash can) and cooled myself off. It wasn't too warm out but the effort was making me feel a bit warm. I also kept my ROKA shades on my hat as it was hard to see the ground with the tint of my sunglasses (I forgot to bring the lenses that I use for gravel riding, which are a bit lighter).
The next three miles went by pretty quickly as I was hyper focused on the terrain under me. There were some short steep climbs but nothing too long. I really loved the dynamics of running on the trail as it felt like a rollercoaster - up and down, up and down. I only checked in on my watch here and there as the pace didn't concern me but I was happy to see that I was averaging around 9 min/miles (I was thinking I would be closer to 10 min/miles since Karel "only" ran 48 minutes for his 10K. The aid stations were nice as I had something to look forward to (3 on each loop) and it was also fun to run into the other runners from the shorter distances. I even ran into Eedee so it was great to see a familiar face. Josh, her hubby, was in the front pack so I never saw him after the race start.
For the next mile (which was a loop before heading back to the pavement), I really enjoyed jumping over falling tree trunks and running on wooden bridges. I couldn't believe that 6.2 miles and 55 minutes of running had passed by so quickly! As I made my way on to the pavement, I tried to pick up the pace a bit to see if I could get closer to the other females but they were way ahead of me. But I still needed to keep my pace up to maintain my third female position. After making my way by the 2nd loop sign, I was onto the pavement again (after a short off-road section by the race venue) to start loop two.
I took in half of a gel to see if it would give me a bit of a pick-me-up around 15-20 minutes later as I knew I would need it. Although I felt good on the pavement, once I passed through the first trail section and onto the exposed path by the lake, I could feel a low moment. I had a video camera man running next to me so that gave me a little incentive to stay focused.
At this point, I was running by myself. I saw Karel a few more times near the end of the first loop and a few times on the 2nd loop and then there was a long section when I was by myself and I kinda convinced myself that I was off course. Thankfully I saw an arrow so I was relieved to be on the right course. Although the course was well-marked, it was easy to not pay attention as you have to be so focused on the ground under you.
When I crossed the finish line, I was exhausted. But the good kind of exhaustion. Unlike a road running race, my body didn't feel too beat-up and my joints weren't as smashed as I thought they would be. Even in the hours after the race, I was shocked that I was just tired but not struggling like in a road running race.
