Call me a Trail Nut
I also won a door prize - a pair of Injinji socks to my growing collection.
My first trail race in nearly 4 years has left me with not much to say. Running yesterday’s Trail Nut 10k in Bedford was somewhat spontaneous — I did blog about it the other day and discussed it on Twitter a bit — but I honestly didn’t decide until late Friday that I’d do it.
I thought a lot this week about the bitter taste of last year’s DNF in the half marathon of the Trail Nut event, even though that was really out of my control. At some point this week I realized I HAD to do this race.
What transpired was the most fun I’ve ever had in a race. 
It was so awesome, humbling, crazy, exhilarating … there are so many adjectives that I can’t even think of to describe the race. In the 56:27:16 that it took to do this, I learned so much, as well as had many things about trail racing reemphasized:
- Go as fast as possible to get to the trail head. There was a little more than a quarter mile through grass, up a hill to the trail head. I learned that in my DNF last year, but I really used my climbing skills to pass about 10 people. Had I not done that, I might not be nearly as happy about this race.
- Pacing is pretty much impossible due to the single-track nature, especially to this race. Fortunately I got behind someone that was going a speed I liked and then passed her when the trail opened up a couple of miles in going up a hill.
- “Pass to the left” is an important phrase. I think I had just 3-4 people pass me, but that statement was so crucial 4 miles or so into the race as I caught the tail end of the half marathoners who started 10 minutes before us. It’s also important to know that sometimes on a trail, passing just cannot happen until things flatten out or the trail opens up a bit.
- It’s OK to power walk the hills. That’s true of any race, but there were a couple of times in which I was actually slower “running.” So I stopped the motion and effort of running and did more of a hiking motion.
I felt like I was learning as I was racing. Using all these things led to finishing second out of seven in my age group (the race winner was actually in my age group) — my first age group award since 2007 — and placing 28th out of 96 runners. I still don’t have the right words to explain what this race means to me. I still need to let it sink in a bit.
Here’s a look at the course on the Garmin and elevation profile:
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Awesome! I've never done a trail race and would have not really thought about the passing people thing. Glad you did it so if I ever find the opportunity I'll know that little tidbit. Congrats on the age group, that's fantastic!
Excellent run! I'm becoming a trail nut too. My first official trail race is next Saturday. Can't wait. Good tips. I'll use them. Also, seems you made some changes to your site? Like them! Enjoy your weekend. Jim
Yes, I quietly changed the header image. Thanks for noticing!
Very cool write up. Thanks for the trail racing tips
Glad you decided to race - Congrats on the AG placing.
Great recap….I've only done one trail run and it was a blast….no need for speed on those - I was more focused on not turning an ankle. Reminded me of being a kid and running carefree through the woods surrounding my neighborhood with my friends. Your recap has me excited to do that race again this year.
When I get to actually running, I'd like to tackle a trail run. They seem like they'd be a lot of fun and a nice challenge.
I noticed the new blog header too, me likey!
Instead of hitting the road again, Steve, maybe just hit the trails. I'm sure you'd love it.
David,
Glad you had a good time at the event. I enjoyed reading your blog and look forward to reading more posts. It is important to share what is learned on the trail and I like what you said above, the lessons learned.
I provided a link to this page from my blog's race report.
http://morethanpaceandstride.blogspot.com/
Will you run at the Conquer the Cove???
No, I won't be doing that race - it's the same weekend I'm doing Relay for Life. But I certainly plan to do more of these events!
Just catching up after my vacation - great job on the trail race! Of course having fun is the main goal, and the age-group finish is the icing on the cake. There are some fun trail races in Richmond if you feel like traveling for one.
Glad to hear you had such a great race David. It sounds like we both had pretty similar experiences with our trail races last weekend - you can call me a trail nut too