This was what I would call a very experienced field. I spent the day being passed by everyone and their dog. Actually, there was a dog there that had done his first 50k in June. But I degress..I was really cautious in the beginning because I knew I had a long way to go. The thing with a trail race is that one wrong step and your day is over. There was one section that was pretty sheer. If you trip on that you would roll down the side of the mountain. I made the decision from the beginning to be conservative. My times started out where I thought they might be. When I saw the second loop being so runnable, I was sure I could make my goal of under 7 hours. The problem was that I really hadn't trained on flat at all. I know that sounds crazy but tons of hills give you a "Galloway" type strategy. You hike up a hill, have some sort of recovery in the process, then hammer the downhill section. With so much flat, I felt like I never got into a rhythm. It was always hard even though the course was "easy". I felt stronger at North Face, which is likely the hardest marathon I will ever do and had hills that were unrelenting.

I need to train on flats more. This is something I often struggle with. I think I must have an muscle imbalance that also effects my biking on the flats. Nutrition is still a work in progress. I am good for about 5 hours now. Trying to take in solid calories on the run is tough for me. I hate eating and running. There are only so many gels I can take before I need to mix it up. I have learned a lot in the last year about what I can handle nutritionally. I think I need to keep pushing the envelope and experiementing.

Hugged my pacers and sat right down. It was good to sit. My feet were killing me for the last 10 miles but really tough that last 5 mile loop. I couldn't eat anything but I was dying for a Coke. We hung out and talked to the other racers. They were all very supportive and congratulated me on my first 50k. I like the trail crowd. It is a very laid back group. I mean when people run through the aid station and stop to give water to their dogs, you know they are running because they love it.


I WAY over dressed for this event. It started in the 40s and I dressed like it was in the 20s. My actually Garmin time said 6:49. This means I spent 11 minutes changing clothes and getting water at the stations. At the end of the race I was wearing almost nothing I started with. I had always planned on changing my shoes out because I hadn't run more than 15 in the one I wanted to wear. I was afraid to double the distance in these shoes. Anyway, being hot doesn't help your time. Definitely need to work on running more flats.


Trail races don't typically have the "bling" of other races. There was a small BBQ at the pavillion. There were no volunteers on any part of the course (that I saw) other than the one water station. This is how a trail race usually is. The race had some amazing views. The weather was PERFECT. If you are looking for a low key, mild 50k, this is a great place to start. I will say that the cotton 50k shirt with bats on it isn't one of my favorites. We also got a mini flashlight with the race name on it. I know most people would prefer something useable but I would have loved a metal since it was my fist 50k. There is also a hard core 50k in these same woods called the Misty Mountain 50k for those that want to kick it up a notch or two.