Half-Assed Runner

Today was the last of the three event in the Endless Summer Trail Series of races.  I ran the first race in the series at Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve back in July.  That race was a brutally hilly 10K race.  I skipped the second race in the series but signed up for this race a month ago because it was closer (within 5 miles of my work) and was a 5K.  Plus, I’ve been to French park quite a few times and did not remember any big hills.

Endless Summer Trail Series – French 5K

I went back and forth about whether or not I was going to run this race or not.  My heart was really not into it.  It rained a lot that day, I was behind on some projects at work, blah, blah, blah.  I tried to talk myself out of running, but in the end I drove to French and picked up my bib and race pint glass.

Pre race

The weather was nice.  It was 68 degrees at the start of the race.  The humidity was nearly 80% though.  I lined up near the back of the pack and off we went.  Although it had rained quite a bit earlier in the day, I didn’t notice it during the run.  The grass was not wet and there were no puddles or mud bogs.  I had not pregamed the course, so I was not sure where the hills were nor how big they were.  I started out pacing off the pack, but quickly started passing runners.  About .5 miles in I found myself between the larger packs of runners and was pacing off of a lady in front of me.  I was pretty surprised to hear Endomondo announce my first mile pace at 8:40.  That’s by far the fastest trail mile I’ve ever run.  In the four previous trail runs, I’ve never broken 10 minutes per mile and a couple have been very close to 11 minute per mile.  Hell, my road 5K PR pace is around 8:20 mile.  I decided to slow it up a bit at that point because we had not hit any monster hills, but I knew that they were in the mix.

Starting Line

Around the 1.2 mile mark there were volunteers handing out water.  I passed and wondered why they were offering it so early.  I made a right turn and saw the first monster hill.  I laughed and understood why they chose that spot to have the water stop.  I chugged up the hill and actually passed a couple of runners.  I got about 90% up the hill before walking.  I felt pretty good about tackling most of the hill, but I was getting winded and there was still another 2 miles left, so I didn’t feel bad about walking.

What goes up, must come down: soon after we hit a couple of steep downhills.  By that point there were only about 5 runners around me so I was able to zig-zag down the steepest hill to keep my speed in check.

Downhill

The course was quite pretty.  There was single-track, grass, sand, very little rock, and mostly packed dirt trail.  We ran through a lot of tree covered areas, across a small bridge, and along the water.  There were three big hills and – compared to the Murphy-Hanrehan hills – they weren’t too bad.  They weren’t too good either. 

My second mile (which included the monster hill) clocked in at 9:45.  While the first mile was a bit fast, this felt a bit slow, so I picked up the pace a little.  I was not feeling too tired, but I was sweating like a beast.  Stupid humidity slays me.  I felt pretty good about my race as I had only been passed by three runners since the 1 mile point and had probably passed about the same number since then.  I’ve been in the last group of males to complete each of these trail runs but I knew that – barring a major collapse – I would finish in front of a number of male runners.  I would not be threatening the leaders, but I wasn’t bringing up the rear either.

Around the three-mile mark I could hear the clanging of a cow bell and started up a medium-sized hill.  I then saw a volunteer pointing to the left.  I turned left…and saw that the hill continued up to the finish line.  Fuck!  It seems that trail races like to end on hills.  I ground out the last hill and finished under 30 minutes.  That was in itself a minor victory as it meant this would be my fastest trail race to date.

Finish Line

Like the other runs in this series (and last year when it was the Lifetime Trail Series) the after party was great.  Tons of pizza, beer, water, and soda.  I nabbed a couple of slices and stood around while sweat poured off my body.  I stuck around for the prize drawings and extended my streak of never winning a prize drawing.  I did pickup a free Scott water bottle before calling it a day.

I’m glad I ran this race and it sounds like they will be bringing the series back again next year (there were about 170 runners for this event).  I love the views and the feeling of being out in nature that trail runs provide, I just need to get better at running the short, sharp hills.

Pint Glass Front

Pint Glass Back

Endless Summer Trail Series – French 5K Course