Frosty 50k i.e. 25 @ Salem Lake, Winston-Salem

 After several years of hiatus, I was back at Salem Lake to run the 25k event of the Frosty 50 races. I have run this race when it was really cold, but this was probably the worst weather. The rain was coming down and the wind was blowing while the temperature hovered just above freezing. 

I opted for warm inside the building over any warmup miles. Another sign the while I am getting older, I am also trying to get wiser. 

Yes, the course was muddy with puddles everywhere. I did some slipping and sliding but nothing major. I settled to get warm as my body came up to racing temperature. 

My miles were all over the place. I was slow one mile and fast another mile. I finished the first lap with a climb up what they called "mud hill". The hill wasn't muddy in my opinion, but it was steep. I did like them moving the start finish to a new spot. At least, it was in a different spot from when I last ran it. 

I started the 2nd lap, and I grabbed a Gel. I was working my way back around the lake when a couple of runners blew by me. At first, I was looking at my Garmin. I was wondering if I was slowing down but then I noticed that these guys had remarkable clean kits. I guess that they were running the relay. 

As I round backside of the course and headed back toward the finish, I was catching a few guys. I think that I moved up 4 or 5 spots in the last few miles. 

The 2nd time up "mud hill" was equally hard. 

Given the conditions, I was pretty happy with my effort. I finished 5th overall and was the 1st male master with a time of 1:46:57. I was trying to remember the last time that I was the top master in a race. It has been a while. 

Maybe I will head back next year. 

Cool Down Runner