This was the first year for this race. Some people became lost on the course. I only really was lost one and ran an extra mile and then also back tracked another mile or so when some veteran trail runners said I was going the wrong way (I wasn't and eventually went with my instincts and made it back fine). I didn't really know what to expect, but it was a lot hillier, rockier and muddier than I would've thought possible. This is probably obvious to trail runners, but my 4:12 marathon meant nothing on the course. I ran up and down many of the hills, during the first half, but fewer on the second half because I didn't have the muscle strength/control to avoid some of the trip hazards when moving faster.

I didn't specifically train for this race and had never done a real trail run, so it would be good to train further and on more varied terrain for next time. My road running and triathlon fitness was sufficient though to carry me through. The last few weeks I've been reading some about ultras and have been wanting to do a 50k badly, but also need to start training for IMWI. I was happy to have the best of both worlds.

A lot of runners were complaining about the course markings, but I had never even done this before and only ran one small extra loop. I hope the complainers don't cause TRC to not hold the race again. I thought it was a great first experience and I come away wanting to do another trail run in the future.