Winter Buckeye Trail Run

This morning I woke up bright and early and headed down to Peninsula for the Winter Buckeye trail race. They have the options to do a half marathon, 18 miler, full marathon, or 50K. I signed up late for the half marathon and was on the waiting list, but made it in when someone else dropped.

So I went out today with the intention of getting in a good hard effort 13 miles, perhaps 18 as I had 15 on the schedule.

The weather was incredibly warm, which was a shock after the bone chilling temperatures we have had the past few days, so I was surprised to read 40 F on weather.com after I had already dressed in two pairs of tights, two long sleeve techs, a jacket, gloves, and ear warmers. I shedded the second layer of tights but kept everything else in case it was windy.

We started at 7AM and it was still pretty dark out. The snow allowed for some vision but the crowds and uneven footing kept the initial pace slow. I started with Tri-Erics' wife, but we parted early on unfortunately. I ended up running with MB, BH, and some of their friends on the first 5 mile out and back loop (Brandywine Falls). The pace felt good but I felt bad knowing I was only running the half and all of the people I was running with were doing the marathon or 50K. I decided I was definitely going to do 18 and see how I felt after that.

Had to make a quick bathroom stop at 2.5 miles. Never a good sign! But I managed to catch my friends after some hammering the next mile. We came through the first 5 miles in about 50 minutes, which was pretty quick considering the conditions. I stripped off my jacket, gloves, and earwarmers and left them on the porch as we headed out onto the 8 mile out and back (Pine Lane).

We made good time through Pine Lane and chatted. The pace felt quick to me but doable. The group was already busy convincing me to do the whole 50K at this point. When we hit the turn around I grabbed three cookies a potato chip and got in line for the restroom. My stomach wasn't feeling great and I didn't eat much after that, which was disappointing as the food is why I love ultras so much!

My legs felt good though and as we came through the half marathon at 2:31 I decided to head back out for at least another 5. I filled my handheld with Gatorade and marched ahead as my group changed some clothes. I hadn't brought a drop bag since I thought I was doing 13 miles and wouldn't need anything.

I did my best to hustle but my friends caught and passed me on the uphills. I listened to my body and kept my own pace. I knew if I wanted to go long I couldn't push it too much. I noticed on the second time through Brandywine that it was hillier than I thought on the first loop. I had convinced myself the 5 mile loop wasn't so bad and that it was "just 5 more miles." I took a few pretzels and a cookie at the aid station but ended up carrying them with me the 2.5 miles back to the start/finish/porch, and threw them away. My stomach was not down with solids. I contemplated stopping at 18 but knew I was going at a good pace and wasn't sure if anyone else was doing 18 so I moved along back out for another go at Pine Lane, promising myself I would walk all the hills and the minute I stopped having fun I was allowed to walk the rest of the way.

I had fallen about 5-10 minutes behind my friends and was pretty slow on the uphill section starting Pine Lane. I still felt good and despite being by myself for about 8 miles I was enjoying myself. Having fun getting muddy and watching the trail progress from snow, to ice, to mud throughout the day. As we hit the section of road before the actual rooty pine section the trail is named for I was caught by another female runner and her friend. I decided to hang onto them as their pace felt comfortable and it was easier to move faster with company.

This ended up being a good move on my part as we stuck together the rest of the race. The hills on Pine Lane had turned into pure ice and I finally had my two spills of the day coming down one of them. Two falls right in a row. I was more in shock then anything, and after the second fall gave into gravity and slid down on my butt a ways. I figured it was good as I was icing my hamstrings :) I got back up pretty quick and we made our way across the stream and up towards the aid station. The cold water felt good on my feet and my shoes seemed to dry pretty fast.

The aid station had soup so I decided the stomach could handle the broth and asked for a cup of ramen noodles. Yum!

There were tons of runners out today and it definitely took its toll on the trail. There were sections that were just full of mud, but I had fun slipping and sliding my way along. I am sure the good company made a difference. Eventually we came to the marathon point. I looked at my watch and with it at 5:24 I decided I should continue on to do the 50K, as I would likely PR by close to an hour. I could have stopped and "won" the women's marathon as none of the 3 women in front of us were only doing the marathon, but I figured a 50K PR was better than a marathon "win," and we headed out onto the last 5 mile loop.

The 5 mile loop wasn't much fun starting off. It was towpath for a ways and flat, boring. My legs don't respond well to the flat stuff late in the race I guess. I was waiting anxiously for the hills and mud so I could enjoy myself a bit more. The stairs had started to melt a bit so they weren't quite so slippery the last time around, but man are they brutal! I still feel like my quads haven't fully recovered from JFK. Anytime I tackle stairs or steep hills my quads just feel tired. But eventually you get up the stairs and then you get to fly down hill :) Coming down the stairs was a slower process but the muddy downhills were a blast! I was surprised when we got to the last aid station so quick. I chatted with JA who has a stress fracture right now but came out to work the aid station all morning. We made a pact to run a marathon together this fall. She's speedy but hasn't got a BQ yet so I think if we tackle a flat marathon together with the goal of an even pace 3:40 we can get a BQ easy.

With 2.5 miles to go my third wind came and I hammered all the downhills and chatted my way up the steep hills and stairs. I felt like my new friends had pulled me quite a ways and I needed to earn my keep by pulling us in strong! I wasn't looking forward to the towpath but knew it was only about 3/4 miles once we got to it, and anyone can run 3/4 miles!

I was really pleased with my pace and as we neared the finish we all grouped together in a line. We came across at 6:22, and walked over to the race headquarters to check in with Tanya and give her our time, and collect our shirt!

The shirts are awesome! And despite my late entry Tanya still managed to get me a medium which I am very grateful for. She made the best chili and I sat down to chow a bit and grabbed some hot chocolate before begging for a ride to my car about 3/4 miles away. My toes were getting cold and I wanted some fresh clothes!

I was surprised how great I felt today and how much fun I had. I am not sure when I made the transition mentally to someone who could go out with the intention of running 13-18 miles and end up running 30, but it is definitely an interesting phenomenon.

My right knee is a little sore, but I think that was from the spill, and I have a nice bruise on my behind and a small scrape on my arm but otherwise feel really good. No hobbling even. We'll see how it goes tomorrow once DOMs sets in.

So it ends up my first race of the year is an ultra. I think it's appropriate as it seems like the most fun I have been having running lately has been out on the trails. As a bonus now I don't have to feel so guilty when I wear my Buckeye 50K shirt (I got one because I thought they looked cool), as now I can say I have done the Buckeye 50K!

Check out some other fun race recaps!

Rob "Buckeye" Powell
Kim
Mike
Tri-Eric

It is so interesting to see how others felt about the run.