There were three trail races to choose from. There was a 4 mile, 8 mile and 14 mile course. I chose the 8 mile option. I have run a few trail races before including a half marathon trail run. I felt like the 8 mile race was doable.
It was a beautiful Saturday morning at Oak Mountain State Park. I was not that familiar with the course. I have run at Oak Mountain before but not the trails on this side of the park. I heard rumors before the race that there were some hills in the course. I started to have flashbacks of when I ran the Peavine Fall Run and the Statue to Statue Race for the first time. What have I gotten myself into?
The first mile started innocently enough. The trail was narrow and there were a few twists and turns. There were tree roots to avoid and narrow bridges to run over. This was nothing new for me on a trail run. It was right before mile two that made me realize I was going to be challenged. At 1.7 miles I was running at an elevation of 665 feet which was about 50 feet higher than where I started. At this point I would begin a slow gradual climb up very rugged terrain to reach 1,280 feet. I walked up this hill for way over a mile. I thought at this point I would finish the race maybe around lunch time (it started at 8 AM).
During this long trek up hill I was breathing pretty hard and I could tell my heart rate was up. I have to admit the possibility of DNF crossed my mind. Once I reached the top I was still breathing heavy but resisted the temptation of walking. I continued a slow steady jog. It was beautiful at the top of this peak and there was a nice cool breeze. I got my second wind and started my descent down the trail.
Trail running has a lot of mental mind checks. I was right in the middle of one. During miles four through six I did not see a lot of people on the trail. I was by myself. I questioned whether I was going the right way. I kept seeing the blue flags so I was hoping I was on the correct path. At this point I had not had any major trip ups or falls but as usual I tripped on level ground where there was a minimal amount of rugged terrain. I scraped my knee a little bit and my palm but nothing major.
I was very happy to see the aid station around mile six to confirm I was on the right path. I did see a few more runners at this point so that made me feel better. I did get concerned as I made the turn away from the aid station that maybe I went the wrong way. I really got concerned as my GPS watch read I had gone eight miles and the finish line was nowhere in sight. When my watch read I had gone 8.5 miles I really got concerned. At this point I figured if I am going the wrong way I will eventually see civilization again.
When my watch read 8.7 miles I could see in the clearing I was near the finish line. I was very happy to cross the line. I was a little sore and a little tired. I had a great sense of satisfaction completing this race. It made me feel like I was back on track with my training. This race gave me a lot of motivation to continue increasing my training for future road and trail races.
Thank you to the Birmingham Track Club (www.birminghamtrackclub.com), Mountain High Outfitters (http://www.mountainhighoutfitters.com) and the Southeastern Trail Series (www.southeasterntrailruns.com) for putting on this race. What a great experience this was. I can't wait to put on my trail shoes and take another run through the woods!
Congratulations on finishing the "8 miler". I ran that one too. As long as David Tosch's advertised mileage is within 10% of the actual mileage, he's OK with that. The next day (which I also ran), his 10.15 mile loop was 11.3 miles. As for the yellow/white connector, that's a 20% grade for much of it. You deserve a medal just for getting to the top.See you on the Trail.
ReplyDeleteAl, thanks for the feedback and sharing your expertise on trail running. I enjoy reading your posts on "Running With Al". One day I hope to build up to some of the miles you are running!
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