Tuckfest – Day 2 – Nighttime 4 miler
After the ½ marathon, I stuck around to watch some of the
other Tuckfest events. About 7:30 PM, I headed for my car to get ready.
The day was a day of transition. The morning was humid and
warm. The afternoon had the storm front roll through. An hour after the storm
finished, the temperature was down, the wind was gusting, and the skies were a
clear blue.
The moment that the race started I felt slow. I spent the
first mile adjusting my head lamps. It takes time to get the lights set at the
right angle. The trails were wet and muddy. They told us that the storm had blown down some trees on the Lake Loop. Broken branches were everywhere. I came
around several corners to find myself having to come to a halt and crawl across
a downed treed. In another section, I waded through water.
I was just about finished with the Lake Loop when I came up
on a woman running with no light. I don’t know how she was finding her way
through the woods. I would have been running in to every tree on the trail. I
told to her to stay with me, and I would get her out of the woods. We ran
together until we got back to the lite parking lot. I just couldn’t leave
someone hanging. That just wouldn’t be right.
Incidentally, she looked me up the next day to thank me for my
help. She was telling me that she had a head lamp but the batteries had run
down.
The 4 miler turned in to about 4 and ¾ mile race on my
Garmin and part obstacle course. I finished in the 35:46 for 9th
overall and 1st in the 50-54 age group.
Soon after the race was over, I headed home. I needed to
refuel for the races in the next two days. More so, I wanted a shower and sleep. I was tired.
Tails from the trail
The Cool Down Runner
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