CRC/S2F Trail Race

Start 2 Finish was back to today with their CRC Trail race at the Whitewater Center. Good to see them again. It has been over a year. 

Having done this race for serval years now, it has become the yearly kick off to my trail season. For many of those years I ran the 13 miler, but for the last couple of years, I have opted for the 9 miler. That 9/10 mile distance has always been one that I really enjoy racing. Long enough, that it is not a sprint from the starting line, and short enough that I am not running on fumes by the end of it. 

This morning may be been one of the coldest, and the course may well have been one of the wettest in recent memory. I opted for my Hoka Evos in hopes that they handle these conditions. I expected that I would need as much traction as humanly possible to keep myself upright. 

Several of us watched as the timing clock counted down to 8 AM. Jenn came over and gave us a few race instructions. From the looks of it, most everyone was waiting until 9ish to start their race. I guess that they were staying in their cars until the temperature rose above 32 degrees. 

Once she said that we could go, I was off. Three of us formed a small group and made our way down and around the channel. What's not to love about this start. My legs felt fresh. Or did they? Maybe it was just the downhill talking. 

The cones guided us off the channel loop and on to the North Main trail. The decent here is sharp and muddy. I could feel my Evos giving as I sailed myself off in to this section. We are only on North Main for a quick second before turning on to Figure 8. It was equally muddy, and it has several bridge crossings. One thing that I have learned, I need to watch those bridges. On a frosty morning, they can be more slippery than the trail. 

On the backside of Figure 8, a tree had fallen across the trail that goes around a steep drop. Yeah, I suspect the Mt. bikers love this drop but it is a pain for us runners. I simply step off and could feel myself starting to slide down it. 

We finish off Figure 8 and went back on North Main. The WWC guys have been working the trail in several sections. There is a ton of loose dirt here, and it soaks up water like a Bounty paper towel converting it to mud. 

I wore gloves for this race partly because it was so cold but also because if I fell, I got some protection for my hands. As I climbed up the ridgeline, I noticed that my fingers in my left hand were numb. I tried flexing them in hopes that this would help restore the circulation. I was only marginally successful. 

When I made a turn or the trail looped back upon itself, I would glance at the trail sections behind to see if I could see any other runners. Mostly, I saw a lot of empty trail.

I passed by the boat docks and headed up hill toward South Main. It was here in this section that I rolled my left ankle. Oh, did it hurt. 

Dropping down on to South Main, I thought ahead to the three side trails coming up. First, I would be tackling Carpet. Then, Goat would be next, and finally, it would be Toilet Bowel. 

Carpet is a tail of two cities. The section going up Carpet is filled with dips, drops, twist, turns, bridges, roots, and rocks. It throws a little of everything at a runner. The backside of Carpet, a runner can pin their ears back and go hard. The trail gently winds back down to the South Main trail again. 

I pumped my arms on the climbs but honestly, I am not sure if it did any good. May legs didn't want to follow. 

I got a smaller breather for the flat half mile between side trails, and then ran head long in to Goat hill. I shifted in my lowest gear and climbed my way to the top. At this point, my breathing and my heart were having their own race to see which could go faster. 

Back on South Main, I urged my legs to move faster. Urge might be too strong of a verb. Suggested might be a better way to describe it. My quads wanted to cry uncle on the climb near weigh station. It always hits me hard.

I turn on to Toilet bowl. The soft pine needles feel good under my feet. I let gravity pull me down the trail as far as it could. I pass two Mt. bikers. They kindly gave way to me during one of the climbs. As I neared the end of Toilet Bowl, I knew the end of the race was also close. I needed to push more. 

Heading under the power lines, and back in to the woods, I rolled my left ankle again. It hurt the first time. It really hurt this time. I did my best to ignore the throbbing. I hoped later that it wouldn't swell too much. 

The trail flattens out as I run parallel to the powerlines. I dip back in to wood one final time before exiting in to the parking lot. S2F has coned off an ally for me to run back to the finish. I can see the finish line. It draws near but it draws near slowly. 

I crossed under the finish line in 67:34. This was faster than last year but again, the course was a little different, and conditions were different. I cannot exactly say that this was an apples to apples comparison with last year. Last check, I finished 2nd overall in the 9 miler. 

I felt that I was running faster but it just didn't reflect on the clock. It just tells me that I need to work on some things. Knowing there are areas that I can be improve is a good thing. Getting to a point and not knowing what to do next, now this is a problem. 

Only when you take a little mud home with home with you, do you know that it was a good run. 

Cool Down Runner Adventures