Lap 1 - Started out uneventfully on the road. Took it easy on that first hill since I didn't know what was coming up. After 1 mile, turned onto the trail and a steep descent. As soon as we hit the trail I realized that I was out of my depth. I was trying to keep control and wondering why on earth I would start my trail running in the winter with a 50k. I spotted a guy who seemed to know what he was doing and followed along, watching his feet picking their way more than watching the trail and walking the steep hills. There wasn’t much scenery to see because of the fog. I could only hang on to my trail pacer for a few miles before he dropped me. I bitched at myself in my head for a while, then things started to look up after a few miles. I started to remind myself how much fun it was to run in the woods when I was a kid,and each step felt a little lighter. Felt fine finishing the 1st loop.

Lap 2 – Did not take it easy on the road portion this time, I felt like I was flying up that hill, compared to the trail, where I was making terrible time. This time when I got to the trail, I started getting the shooting pain from my groin up into my back and got pretty bummed out. Once this pain starts, I’m usually done on a training run and don’t recover until later in the day. I walked for a while then took off the Nathan Belt and carried it in my hand. I have been suspecting for some time that that belt is the root of this pain. I think it’s a nerve thing starting in the lower back and traveling down, not a muscular thing in the groin. Anyway, the pain actually abated to the point where I felt okay. 4 miles into the second loop, I passed my car and left the belt. Just carried a single bottle in my hand. I felt so okay that I stopped paying attention and missed a turn and ended up going ½ mile down a hill that I shouldn’t have. I realized there were less human tracks in the snow and more dog tracks. Then I realized that I couldn’t see any of the ribbon markings they put along the trail. Luckily I had the garmin and checked the route screen, clearly showing that I made the wrong turn. If this happened on the first loop Garmin would not have helped, so I should be more careful. When I got back on track I saw a lot of people had caught me, but couldn’t tell how many of them were doing the 50k or the 20 miles that started later. At the end of the 2nd lap I dropped off the bottle I was carrying and decided to just get water where they gave it out. Carrying it was messing me up as my hands were cold and I needed the hands to stop myself from falling some times.

Lap3 – Going in I wasn’t sure if I would do the 3rd lap, but had pretty much decided after the crippling groin pain stopped that I would push on through, though my time was a joke compared to what I naively thought I could do. I cruised up the 1 mile road stretch again. Then the remainder became a slog and a gut check. My fingers were freezing, and I was fatiguing. Almost missed the same turn as in lap 2 and another to boot. To add insult to injury, my ipod was playing some really crappy songs in shuffle to run to. Even though it’s a run mix, I must have been punchy when I made it. On this lap I walked a lot more, not just the steep hills and the icy parts. Also, the rain had picked up late in the 2nd lap, so there was a lot more mud, where there wasn’t ice. For the last mile, I caught a guy who was having issues and we paced each other for last bit. This was a very friendly and low competition event.


1st - I bit off more than I should have, which seems to be my theme for early season. Trail running requires some specific training that I'll work on after the May 5 marathon.

Equipment -
- wear trail shoes, not road shoes on the trail.
- no elastic laces on the trails. They are great for road running and tri's giving just enough even tension, but I was slipping around in the shoes with all the side to side movement.
- heavier gloves.
- carry water in the camelback, don't rely on the course for these types of races.
- update the playlists

Met Tami and her friends for pizza. They did a 10 mile loop. Threw out that water belt. Went home and drank about a gallon of wine and built legos with the kids. Luckily nothing more physical schedule for the day.


Re-reading my race report it looks like doom and gloom. It probably wasnt that bad. I think I'll take to the trail running, i just probably should have started shorter.