Goodwin Forest 30K

Hampton, CT

Sunday, June 2, 2024

This was the same day as the Fairfield Half, the 4th road race of the USATF-CT Road Grand Prix.  With a lot of road races coming up on my docket, I just wasn't into another road half, so I opted for the trail race over the road race.  Besides, they offered a discounted $20 entry fee for seniors aged 50 and over!  Bargain!

There were two distances in this race:  30K and 10K, starting at 9am and 9:30am, respectively.  I target getting to races about 1 hour earlier than start, and there was no issue at this low-key small race with parking, check-in, or bathrooms, yet somehow I didn't have time for a proper warm-up and only got in 2/3 mile.  I need to do better at this.

This was advertised as a cupless race, so I brought my Nathan hydration pack.  (Some wore hydration packs, some hand-helds, some wore some waist belt device.)  A big mistake I made at Quebec Mega Trail 50K last year (one of several) was not bringing a cup, which means while I had no issue getting water from my pack, I had no means of getting any Gatorade at the aid stations.  This time I solved that and put a collapsible cup in one of the pack's front pockets, and two GU gels in the other.  About 10 minutes before race start, I filled about half my pack bladder (2L capacity) with ice and cold water.

After studying the course and also reading comments that the two leaders last year went off course, I decided to download the course route onto my watch.  This would turn out to be a smart move; more on that later.

The RD was enthusiastic and clearly a runner himself, and he gave a really good overview of the course and course markings, including how trickier course turns would be marked with extra flags, confidence ribbon markers, and several "X" markers which if you encountered them means you are off course.  More on that later as well!

Race start:  I chatted with Mike Daniels a bit at the starting line, especially as there was some delay (about five minutes).  Mike is a previous winner of this race and was giving me a few pointers.  I was already thinking the best I could possibly do at this race would be 2nd place.   I mentioned to Mike that it's going to warm up quickly during the race, to which he responded, "It's already warm out!"

Chatting with Mike Daniels moments before race start
(From race website)

49 of us took off (almost triple that number in the 10K, as 144 runners would toe the line 30 minutes later), with a short uphill from Pine Acres Lake, before heading out on mostly easy double-track for the first few miles.  We were only a 1/4 mile in when I felt no one wanted to take the lead.  I didn't really want to either, but even this early in I just felt the pace was too slow so I reluctantly took the lead.  Well, that didn't last long, as at about 1/2 mile one of the runners went past me.  He (Tim) certainly wasn't in my age group, but another guy (Jon) caught right up to me and ran beside me and he most assuredly was an old guy like me, and was definitely someone I had raced before.

Over the next couple of miles Tim gradually pulled away and was out of sight.  Meanwhile, at times Jon would be a couple of steps ahead of me, and other times right on my heels.

Change of terrain, and change of position (4M):  About 3.5 miles in, the relatively flat and easy terrain morphs into hills and technical.  Tim is back in my sights!  I catch up to him, and as I'm just steps behind him, I hear "Let me know if you want to go by.".  What a great sport!  Now I'm starting to remember this competitor and being in the same situation with him before, but I can't place where.  But I'm not feeling this is the time to make a move, so I follow behind him a bit longer.  Then we hit a long 150' downhill.  Now!  I called out "On your left!" and go past him.  Quoting from Tim's Strava post he penned later, "Took it out pretty steady because I knew the easy first miles would be my advantage. Jeff bombed past on the first technical descent several miles in and continued to pull away. "

At the next hard right turn, I glanced back and saw I had put a fair amount of distance on Tim, and couldn't see Jon at all anymore.  But I certainly took nothing for granted, including either one of them coming back at me.  And where is Mike Daniels?  Is he going to be coming up on me at any moment?

We go through an open field section and I am noticing I am feeling really warm.  Thus far I have avoided aid stations and have sufficient water in my pack and am taking GUs every 45 minutes.

Waterfall (7M):  Coming up alongside a river, I saw the waterfalls that the RD and others had mentioned.  It does look pretty, but I've got to focus, especially, as we're headed 100' uphill, steep, and all rocks.  I feel like I am going so slow here.  Indeed, my Strava post later confirms this is by far my slowest pace (12:35) the whole race, but what I don't know at the time (but can see now on Strava flyby) is that Tim is also slowing and it's at this point in the race that my separation starts to open up (again, totally unbeknownst to me).  

1/2 mile later, we reach the bottom of the final lollipop loop.  The course turns hard left, and the return is from the trail straight ahead of me.  I miss the turn and go straight ahead in the wrong direction.  Two things abruptly happen:  my watch beeps and flashes "Off course" and I see a big "X" sign that the RD warned us about.  Uh oh.  Fortunately, I'm not very far off the course at all.  I reverse direction back to the intersection, see the correct route on both course signs and my watch, and take the correct clockwise to start the final loop (or the "pop" on the lollipop).

I navigate a long downhill, and I'm back along a river for a couple of miles.  This is the first time that I see buildings and people, but they're on the other side of the river and not involved in the race.  Unlike the waterfall section of the river, this two-mile stretch is mostly flat and non-technical.  I'm worried people will catch me on the non-technical sections.

Return home (10M):  At pretty much exactly ten miles in, I reach the northernmost point on the course, and make about a 135° turn and start my climb up a 200' hill that will put me right up to an aid station in the field by the stone chimney at General Lyon State Park.   There are several switchbacks on the climb, and at the final one, I look down and see no one else within sight.  

from Nathaniel Lyon Wikipedia article
Attribution:  By Morrowlong - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14892883

Wow, did this chimney look familiar.  That's because Matthew, Brady, and I went here a year and a half ago when running the 19-mile Natchaug Trail E2E.  It turns out this is all that remains of General Lyon's birthplace, who has the infamous distinction of being the first Union general killed in the Civil War.

Interesting historical photo of same location.  Gen Lyon was born in 1818.
Source:  ozarkscivilwar.org

As I came up to the aid station, another runner was leaving the aid station, but running in the opposite direction as me.  I asked one of the aid workers if he was in the race.  He responded that he was, but they got word that a few runners missed the turn, and were running the final loop I was on in reverse, and they were letting them continue, as it's essentially the same course.  That got me fuming, as that's just not right at all.  It's not the same course if you run a portion in reverse, and it's not fair to the leader that ran the right course (me) and is thinking I'm in first place, when in reality I don't know where I stand now.  I spent the next few miles borderline angry and trying to figure out how I would react if someone running the wrong direction was crowned the winner.  I finally convinced myself to lighten up, run my own race, keep pushing, and that mathematically that outcome was not likely, based on doing some mental math in my head of my position in terms of my miles down versus his.

As I came into the aid station at Mile 14, I grabbed a GU (my two were finished) and asked one of the aid station volunteers to fill my collapsible cup with Gatorade.  I was back on the main part of the course now, past the lollipop, and I asked if anyone had come through yet.  The answer was "no".  OK, that laid those fears to rest (that someone running the lollipop in reverse had gotten ahead of me).  Drank the cup of Gatorade, asked for another, and then was on my way.  No time to waste.  I had no idea where the legitimate second place position runner was.

The last few miles were just a grind, as I was really worried I would get caught and passed.  I ran through a clear cut section, uphill no less, and open sun was just brutal, with the temps now in the mid-70s.  With one mile left to go, in my tired and weakened state, I wasn't lifting my feet up enough as I was getting sloppy, and tripped over a rock, and fell right into a pile of rocks.  My knee was bleeding, but it wasn't bad.  Get up and get moving!  You're almost there.  You can't lose this thing now.

With about 1/4 mile left to go, we made a hard left turn off a dirt road onto single-track and now I knew exactly where I was, remembering this section from where Matthew, Brady, and I ran it back in fall of 2022.  

About to cross the finish line.  1st place overall!
Photo from race website.

Final result:  2:38:37, 1st of 44 finishers.  Full results here.

As soon as I crossed the finish line, I just let my body collapse onto the grass.  I was exhausted.  One of the race officials came over to check on me, and also collect my bib tear off.  (Old school; no chip timing, which was just fine in a race like this.)  I told him I was fine and just wanted to lay down for a few minutes.  Mike Daniels came over, explained he DNF'd at Mile 8, helped me get to a picnic table to sit down, asked me what I wanted, and went up to get me a bunch of food and drink.  What a nice guy!  There were sandwiches, pizza, oranges, and a bunch of other stuff.  Besides two slices of pizza, a sandwich, and chips, I ended up eating five oranges.  Not five slices, but five whole oranges!  They were smallish, but still probably the most oranges I've eaten in my life.

My race equipment.
Shoes were disgusting and I couldn't wait to get
out of them and just walk barefoot.
But my trusty VJ XTRM2 shoes held up well,
and got the job done on all terrain today.

I hung around for a while, watched Tim come in six minutes later, and Jon ended up the next person in my age group, 20 minutes after me.  Jon wasn't very chatty, and just said he really faded.  On the other hand, I had a really nice race conversation with Tim, and I figured out where I remembered him from:  the Norfolk Half Marathon last fall, where similarly he was ahead of me for the first few miles, but then on a technical downhill section I went past him.  During that race, I could often see him behind me for nearly the entire race, and he finished less than two minutes behind me.

Due to so much separation during the race, it was quite a while before awards ceremony, but I ended up hanging around for that and glad I did.  While I was waiting, the RD came over to talk to me and we had a good chat about the several runners that went off course, and I told him frankly my opinion that they should be DQd.  He felt badly that they went off course, and I get it, but in the end they were not DQd and it didn't affect me.  I won outright.  I told him I thought the course was well marked, and the one place I momentarily went off course, besides my watch beeping at me, the big "X" was right there exactly as he described during pre-race instructions.

What went well:

• This was a very fun low-key trail race atmosphere.  Exactly what I had been looking for.
• Race Director pre-race instructions, both via e-mail and in person just before race.  It was clear he was a runner and passionate about the race.  (That isn't the case in all races.)
• The course was well marked!  (I'm sorry about the runners that went off course, but they didn't follow directions or markings.)
• Nice post-race spread.
• Fun awards.  An apple pie, and a small wooden custom award.
• Fun and challenging course, with a mix of non-technical, technical, flat, and hilly.
• Very friendly and helpful volunteers, both at registration and and at aid stations.
• Did I mention the race cost me $20?!
• Did I mention that I won overall?!

My prize for overall win

What could've gone better:

• Not too much, really!
• I struggled in the last few miles, especially in the heat I'm not acclimated to, but that's all on me, and apparently at least I struggled less than my competitors.
• The drink and GU choices at the aid stations worked well for me, but the food choices did not.  I love M&Ms and Fig Newtons, but had trouble eating both on the run.  The former I choked on and spit some out, and the latter were just too dry even when I tried to wash down with water.  "Wetter and softer" food at Quebec Mega Trail worked better for me, such as watermelon and moist fudge.

Awesome race!

May 2024: Vermont Overland and The Rolling Stones!

Running stats:

Miles run:  263.5

Elevation gain:  16,873'

Weekly miles (for weeks ended in month):  28, 52, 58, 59

Slight uptick in miles and elevation after end of April marathon

Primary running surfaces:  Trails (156 miles), roads (76)

Primary running locations:  Charlestown (67 miles), then Exeter (49) - same pattern as last month

Other disciplines:

• Walk / hike:  28 miles

Quick synopsis:

• Slight bump in mileage post-marathon.
• One low-mileage recovery week.
• Just two races this month, and both of them I performed well in.  I'll take quality over quantity any day.  Something I need to put into practice more often.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Interesting runs:

• Pachaug Half, Voluntown, CT, May 15.  13 miles.  Re-ran the now defunct Pachaug Half Marathon (of which I hold the CR; imagine that!) with Brady.  I enjoy much, but not all of the course, as there's some loose rock sections, but I do remember I really enjoyed running the race at the time.

  

  Rocky, hilly terrain.

  
  
• Arcadia Catch-up, Exeter, May 16.  11 miles with Matthew and Brady.  Mix of dirt roads and trails.  Just fun to catch up with the former, for the first time since he was out here for Christmas vacation.
• Heat Acclimation, Exeter, May 21.  11 miles with Matthew, sans Brady due to heat.  Started/finished at check station, but much of the run was in southern Arcadia (Richmond).  Definitely had never run this route before, and it included at least one unmarked trail that I had never run.
• Two Months 'til Blessing, Narragansett, May 22.  11 miles solo workout, including the vast majority of the Blessing course.  Ran a descending ladders workout, which I was pretty happy with.  Finished the workout and signed up for my 22nd consecutive Blessing race in late July.  Will be here before you know it.
• Two Province Run, Ottawa, ON, May 26.  8 miles with Brady, pretty much evenly split between Ontario and Quebec provinces.  Almost entirely on paved bike paths, with many views of the Ottawa River.

  

  On the Ontario side of the river.

  
  

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Races:

Vermont Overland Trail (May 11):

West Windsor, VT

15 miles and ~2,000 feet in elevation gain.  2:01:01, 1st in 50-59 age group.  A mix of single-track and dirt roads with some good hill climbs and descents, this put my endurance to the test and I'm really happy with the results!

Race report here

Ottawa 10K (May 25):

Ottawa, ON

Flat and fast.  Canadian national 10K championship in the nation's capital.  37:11, 1st in 50-59 age group.  Other than the chaotic bib pick-up process and no seeded start, this was well run and again, I'm pretty happy with this result as well.

Race report here

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Miscellaneous:

• I was actually able to lead one WLT Thursday series hike, as so many were cancelled this spring due to rain and/or flooding.  This was a 4 mile hike in Burlingame North leading 11 humans and 3 canines, with the highlights being the dam and the canoe camp site.
• Continued my long overdue clean-up of the basement.  We've lived here for 22 years now, and just accumulated and kept too much "stuff".

  

  Well, based on the current geopolitical climate,
  if there were ever a time that I would swear off learning
  Russian, it would be now.  And good thing I held on to
  my Fortran textbook from my Computer Science degree
  back in the 80s.  I have had to refer back to that one exactly
  ZERO times.  And yes, the "77" in Fortran 77 refers
  to the 1977 version.

  
  

  

  It's hard to throw away stuff that there's nothing wrong with,
  but being able to donate all this winter sporting equipment
  (that no longer fits anyone)
  to a second-hand store made it easier.

  

  Good thing I saved a set of four hubcaps
  from my 2000 Volvo station wagon.  I haven't had that 
  car in 14 years, but you know just in case I happen to
  buy another 2000 Volvo station wagon that also happens
  to need hubcaps.  Ugh.
  

  
  

  

  Just such a cluttered mess.  Why would anyone post a photo
  of this?  Kind of like a previously fat guy posting a picture
  of himself in his previous state on the refrigerator door:  to remind myself
  of the need to change and improve my ways.
  ---
  The hot water heater (left) sprang a leak, and if there was
  a silver lining, it's that it gave me more impetus to get this area
  cleaned up before the technicians arrived to remove and replace it.
  
  

  
  

  

  Real happy with the shelving I set up, both standalone and hanging rails on the wall.
  This allowed me to take so many items off the floor and organize them better.
  Incremental progress.

  
  
• The most exciting event for me in May was finally seeing The Rolling Stones!

• 

  Actually my first time ever to Gillette Stadium.
  Fun fact (as announced by Mick Jagger):  the Rolling Stones
  played at Gillette Stadium before the Patriots did!
  (Stones played 5 days before Patriots' season opener in 2002)
  Fun fact #2 (also as announced by Mick):  this was the
  Stones' 100th concert at Gillette!  100!

  

  7:56pm.  Arrived 1/2 hour after the announced
  start time of 7:30pm; had no interest in the
  warm-up band that I'd never heard of.

  
  

  

  8:30pm:  Seats are starting to fill in now.
  Estimated attendance 60,000.

  
  

  

  Why on earth was this band chosen as the warm-up band?!
  Some band from the south, which didn't even play rock & roll.
  One of the band members had a t-shirt with the words,
  "Who the f%#@ [spelled out] is Mick Jagger?"  Not at all funny to me.

  
  

  

  With Jana, awaiting the Stones.  Seats weren't bad.
  I had originally scoffed at paying about $300/ticket,
  then prices actually went DOWN.  Seats were available
  as low as $129, but I paid a bit more to avoid the
  nose-bleed seats.

  
  
  

  

  The Rolling Stones took the stage at 8:49pm, playing Start Me Up.  Wasn't sure how
  the octogenarian Mick Jagger would sound, but he was AMAZING!  If I didn't know
  his age, seeing his appearance and running and dancing around the stage for
   two hours, I would've guessed 65.  So glad I went to the concert.  Top notch!
  
  
• Apparently the carpet on the catwalk was wet and a bit slippery in one spot (it had rained earlier in the day).  After the first song, Mick asked his crew to fix that carpet "before he falls on his ass".  That one got some laughter from the audience.
• Early on in the evening, before it even got dark, the guy to my right stood up, tried to go over the then empty seat in the row in front of me, and promptly fell, landing horizontally two rows down on top of four people.  He seemed more embarrassed than scathed.  His partner said he had had too many beers.



Keith Richards, on the other hand,
yeah, he looked 80.  But he sure can play.

And lest you think it's all old white guys,
here's Chanel Haynes and Mick duo singing
Give Me Shelter
(Photo by iorr.org [It's Only Rock n Roll])

Mick and the boys (Ronnie Woods [left], Keith Richards [right])
were just AWESOME.  (Photo by Boston Globe)
---
They played Emotional Rescue for the first time in 10 years!
How Mick hits that "falsetto" singing is beyond me.  So many 
classics played, from Bitch, Little T&A (glad this slightly raw
song didn't get cut due to political correctness), Sympathy
for the Devil, Paint it Black, Jumpin' Jack Flash,
and closing out the night with (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.

Note in lower right who is this sponsored by!  A nod to the
overall age demographics, for sure.
---
Again, just an incredible concert.

Closed out the month with a visit to the Mystic Aquarium, as my membership expired May 31.

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Looking ahead to June:

Two races on the docket:

• Goodwin Forest Trail 30K, Hampton, CT, June 2.  Longest trail race since last summer, but should be a fun low-key one.
• Branford 5M Road Race, Branford, CT, June 16.  Never run this one before.  Unfortunately it's the same weekend as the Summer Solstice 8M Trail Race, which I ran last year and really enjoyed, so I'll alternate this year.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Monthly highlight: 

Running:  Vermont Overland 15M.  Just a fun low-key race, yet one that pro runners also run for serious money.  And my own performance was much better than I expected, especially on the back half catching and passing so many.

Non-running:  The Rolling Stones concert!

Monthly lowlight: 

Just in general struggling on warm runs.  I feel I struggle in the heat more relative to others.  Maybe it's just my perception, and hopefully I'll acclimate enough to be able to run well in several goal races I have this summer.

Ottawa Race Weekend

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Memorial Day weekend, May 2024

Fri May 24:

Drove from home to just over the border in Gananoque, Ontario.  This was at the tail end of Matthew's visit home between spring and summer semesters.  Broke up the ~6.5 hour drive with a stop at the previously unheard of location of Little Falls, New York.  Given that it was 73°F and sunny, we opted to have Brady forego the run, and it was just Matthew and me.  Actually, we ran apart for much of this as I struggled and rightly got dropped pretty early.  Very nice and clean path on a small part of the 360-mile Erie Canalway Trail.  The sections we ran on today were part paved and part manicured gravel.

Nice views of the Erie Canal along parts of our run

Sat May 25:

AM:  Three miles easy in Gananoque with Matthew and Brady on a mix of paved roads and gravel bike paths, before driving the ~2 hours northeast to Ottawa.

Gananoque Confederation Park,
Gananoque, Ontario

Noon:  Packet-pickup and lunch.  The wait lines for both were just incredibly long, as were the lines for accessing and leaving the underground parking facility.  I was getting really hungry and in a bad mood.  Not the way I want to be a few hours pre-race.

Long line to get into the expo, wrapping around to the front of the building. 
It did move reasonably quickly.

If there was a silver lining, it's that the venue
was dog-friendly and Brady was welcome in
the expo.

Evening race:  Ottawa 10K race.  Left the hotel about 5:30pm, walking with Jana and Brady to the start just under a mile away.  As we arrived at the race start location at Confederation Park, the enormity of the event and number of participants finally hit me, as there was a huge gathering of runners and spectators here.  I did my best to get in a very short warm-up and a few strides, but it was tough because the roads weren't closed yet, and there were people seemingly everywhere!

Pre-race with Brady.  This is a very dog-friendly
city, but it's just too hectic and crowded to take
him on a warm-up.
---
And look at that bib number!  Possibly
my highest number ever.

I watched the start of the women's elite race at 6:15pm, got a few strides, and then went to line up.  Uh-oh, the race start is already crammed, and there are barriers preventing you from getting in.  Just as I was starting to fret, someone opened one of the barriers for a very fast-looking young male runner, and before they could close the barrier, I quickly jumped in right behind in.  Yes, I'm in!

This race has almost 7,000 runners participating!  Although there were six different color-coded corrals corresponding to your self-reported expected finish time, the first corral (blue) was up to 45 minutes with no further break-down, so I needed to be reasonably up front.  But how far up front?  This was the Canadian national 10K championship.  I ended up about 10 rows back, and then once they asked people to move up to the starting mats, I was in probably about 15 rows back.  I visually scanned the scene and didn't really see anyone looking about my age.  What I did see that concerned me was that several rows in front of me was the 45-minute pacer!  Yikes - that's about a 7:15 pace; he's just a few rows from the front, and I'm a number of rows behind him.  Am I in the wrong starting position?  Or is he?  Can't change anything now.

Race outbound - first half:

The course starts on a major downtown road,
Elgin Street, then proceeds along the west side of the Rideau Canal,
 before crossing over on a bridge and returning on the east side.

There is a countdown from ten, and as the gun goes off, I'm feeling really jammed in without much room to move.  Clearly some (but not all) of the runners ahead of me are much slower than me.  Ugh.  This is fine in a marathon to help reel me in, but not so much in a short race like a 10K.  In the first kilometer, I do a fair amount of weaving and get elbowed a few times.  A few minutes into the race, someone pushes me so hard that I wonder if it's deliberate.  My instinct is to turn around and confront the runner, but then what?  And who knows if I cut the runner off or if it were perceived that way.  I vow to let it go and truck on.

(Pics by Jana)

Crowded start

After about a kilometer, the road has opened up enough for me to run unimpeded.  My watch beeps out my first mile split at 5:52.  That's fine, but I am conscious of my heavy breathing and fear a slowdown soon.  If you write a Strava description of your races, maybe you can follow that in my mind I'm already writing my Strava description of how the race went long before it unfolds.  Or maybe that's unique to me.  At any rate, I've already turned a bit pessimistic on the outcome, but I push hard regardless.

I'm pleasantly surprised that Mile 2 is a 5:46 for me.  Towards the end of Mile 3, we take an exit off-ramp with the only "hill" on the course - a 25' rise onto an overpass bridge to cross over to the other side of the Rideau Canal.  Mile split 5:50.

Race inbound - second half:

I enjoy the corresponding downhill now coming down from the overpass bridge to along the west side of the Rideau Canal, and have my fastest mile in Mile 4 at 5:41.  OK, then.  Can I ride out this pace for the rest of the race?  If so, that might be close to my PR of 36:45.

It's pancake flat now, there's no wind, and I have plenty of open room around me, so no excuses, but unfortunately Mile 5 is where I started to fade.  Mile split 5:57.  I figure I can pick it up a little in the final mile since we're coming to the finish, but it's not to be, as I'm breathing so hard and just want to see the finish line.  Mile 6 split 5:59.  I have zero kick even when I see the finish line.  Just nothing left in the tank.

Plenty of room at the finish,
just didn't have anything left at this point.

Final result:  37:11, 104th of 6,879. 1st of 248 in age group.  Full result here.

I finished and kept walking, but was a bit delirious and walked right past Matthew without seeing him and didn't stop until I heard Jana calling me back.

Another runner offered to look up my chip time
on his app; that was really kind of him.  He was
also very complimentary on my time.
---
A female runner, observing my time above and
my appearance, came up to me and politely asked
my age, at which she seemed astounded!  She said
something to the effect that she just hopes she's
still running well at my age.  

What went well:

• Race website and communications were really good.
• Course itself was [mostly] very flat.
• I paced myself pretty well for the first four miles.
• Bib with your name pre-printed is always a nice touch.
• Roads were closed (I guess they'd have to be with a race this large).
• Chocolate milk at finish!  Grabbed a couple extra of those.

What could have gone better:

• The expo lines were just too long, and parking at the expo was a disaster.
• Well, of course, I would've been happy if I could've kept my 5:40s pace the last two miles!  But it wasn't to be.
• This was probably the latest start (6:30pm) to a race that I've ever had.  Not a fan as it messes up dinner and means you'll be eating real late, with more limited choices. 

My distance on GPS came out a little long at 6.36 miles.  For reference, with the same watch, I got 6.25M and 6.28M the last two years at Middletown.  Obviously, it's a certified course, but did I get more mileage because of GPS error with tall buildings at start, or does it reflect that I did more than usual extra running with some weaving in the first mile?  Maybe a little of both?

Anyway, overall this was a good race, both in terms on it being well run and my performance as well.  Probably my 2nd fastest 10K on a certified course.

Sun May 26:

Headed out for an 8-mile run with Brady, half of the Ontario side of the Ottawa River, and half on the Quebec side.  Almost entirely on paved bike paths.  Very clean, with restrooms along the path, at least on the Ontario side.

On the Quebec side

After having crossed the river back into Ontario

Everyone stopped for the large crossing of geese and goslings.
Fortunately, Brady had no interest in them.

Mon May 27:

Spent the night in Stowe, Vermont, after having dropped Matthew off at Montreal airport for his direct flight back to LA.  Ran five miles on the Stowe Recreational Path.

Nice included breakfast at the Innsbruck Inn,
before driving home to close out the mini-vacation.

Vermont Overland

West Windsor, VT

Saturday, May 11, 2024

I learned about this race from running friend Nick Alge, who has run it the past two years and signed up again this year.  There is an Overland Trail (15M) and Overland Path (5M) option.  The only reason I'd consider the shorter Overland Path option was that it allowed dogs, but even then, it wasn't a canicross race, so I'd be at a big disadvantage if I ran with Brady on a leash.  

This fit reasonably well in my schedule, given that it was two weeks out from my spring marathon, but the issue I feared is that I hadn't been training on hills at all, and this race was at Ascutney Mountain, with over 2,000' of elevation gain.  Nothing crazy, but still several 300' and 400' climbs, and a 700' drop.

For lodging, I was leaning towards the recommended mode of camping, which was available at $5 or $10 per night (note: no facilities).  I periodically checked in on the weather and as of the Monday of race week (i.e., five days before race day), the weather forecast was for rain both the evening before the race and the morning of the race itself.  Well, that does it - no camping.  This is a fairly remote area, and that late, the best I could find was a motel 30 minutes north in Woodstock, so that's what I booked.

Course preview:  We arrived at the race site, Ascutney Mountain, Friday afternoon in time to get changed and go for a featured 4pm course preview run.  I checked in with the course preview leader, who introduced himself as Dan, as to whether dogs were allowed on the preview run.  He said yes, we're very dog friendly.  The course preview would take in the first 1.5 mile section and the final 1.5 mile section.

Although I had studied the course maps prior to the race, and found Strava posts from previous years' participants, there is no substitute for getting out the course itself.  About 30 people (plus Brady!) showed up for the run.  The first half of the preview run was mostly uphill, and I sensed that I was breathing harder than those around me.  This was not a good omen for tomorrow.

Start of the group run 
(Brady and I on far right side)

Once we hit the hills, the group broke up
into different sections

On single-track with Brady just ahead of me.
It's difficult for me to run with my left leg being so much
longer than my right leg, but I do my best.
(Race Instagram site)

With Brady being the only canine in the group, several runners asked his name, including the race leader, Dan, and a fast looking blonde woman.  

One of my favorite pics.  Exited the single-track,
and back up to climbing grass slopes.

Group pic at top of slope

Brady found a nice stream to
cool off in.

Finishing up the group preview run.

Our motel that evening was nothing to write home about,
but it worked for a short stay and good night's sleep.

Quite rural area.  We crossed through this
neat covered bridge, and were on miles of
hilly dirt roads between the motel and race site.

Have my racing gear all laid out for tomorrow's race.

Race day:  Arrived race area two hours before start, got a simple breakfast, and actually got in a few more winks in the car before loading my pack and getting ready.  Met up with Nick (running the 15M) and Heather and Meriden (running the 5M "path" option) and went out for a short warm-up with Brady, before heading back to the start to line up.

Runners and dogs before the race.  Interesting that the
race photographer once again including Brady in the
race photos.

Very dog friendly here!

The Race Director went over a few logistics, including that 15M runners would follow orange flags and signs, and 5M runners would follow turquoise, and if you forgot which color to follow, look at your bib (also color coded).  There were other pointers given, but that was probably the most important one.

Race start:  I lined up about three rows back, and we were quickly off without much fanfare.  Shortly into the race, the blonde woman from yesterday jokingly asked me, "Not running with Brady today", as she passed me at the start of the first uphill.

Pic by Jana.

Exactly like yesterday, I was breathing really hard in the first significant climb.  I was already writing my Strava post "obituary" in my mind - "was dying on the first climb, getting passed by so many runners, and it got worse from there."

The first climb

Top of the slope, just before going back into single-track

As you can see in above pic, I was just barely ahead of two fast women runners.  As we left the field and entered the single-track, still climbing, I was keenly aware that I was now holding back the two of them as well as several guys who had now joined the back of the queue.  I had a quick flashback to the Quebec Mega Trail 50K, where I made the analogy that I was a school bus holding up a long line of cars and should pull aside to let them pass.  At QMT, I did pull aside, and while I pondered the same here, an opening came up quickly which made it unnecessary.  The two women went past me, and promptly one immediately wiped out in the mud and went down and the second one veered off course onto a different trail!   (Yes, we did yell for her to come back, and yes, as they each recovered and got back on course, they both repassed me again.)

Miles 3 -5:  I was glad when the 300' climb ended about two miles in, although Miles 3 and 4 featured one of the twistiest miles on the whole course.  It was towards the end of this section, about four miles in, when I heard, "It was nice of you to wait up for me!".  I recognized the voice of the only other runner I knew in this race, Nick Alge.  I expected him to go past me at this point.  We left the twisty section and were headed downhill on a wide grassy section with lots of mud.  I could hear one person just behind me and I just assumed it was Nick.

Miles 5 - 7:  We emptied out onto a gravel road, which we would be on for the next two miles.  This would also feature a 400' climb, but surprisingly I not only held my own but actually passed quite a few runners, including the two women that went past me back at Mile 2.  There was an aid station on the left side of the road and runners were stopping for it.  I was tempted to see what they had, but resisted the urge to stop and sauntered on.  (Note this was a cupless race, so you would have to come to a complete stop to get a drink or refill your pack.  I guess this was one advantage of me filling my pack with about 1.5 liters of water; I never needed to stop.)

Miles 7 - 10:  After a short downhill section, the gravel road continued straight, but the course took a hard right off the road and onto an uphill single-track section.  I continued straight on the dirt road, veering off course for the first of two times.  The person I had just passed yelled at me, and as I turned back, he said, "I think the course goes this way", pointing into the woods.  Indeed it does.  Argh.  Following the race instructions, I had downloaded the GPX route onto my watch, and vowed to actually pay attention to the watch going forward.

I repassed the runner, as well as the next runner who was power-hiking the hill, as we ascended another 400' to what would be the highest point on the course.  Shortly after, it was on this section where I made my second and final error in going off-course.  About the time I noticed I hadn't seen a flag in a while, I checked my watch which indicated that I was indeed off-course.  Obviously, I missed a turn but since it appeared I was running parallel and very close to the true course, I continued on hoping the two trails would reconnect.  They would not.  Unfortunately, I quickly came to a point where the trail I was on continued straight while the true course veered left.  Now what?  Retreat or bushwhack?  Given that I was seemingly so close to the true course and I had run at least 1/4 mile since the trails diverged, I chose the latter.  Here I briefly came almost to a walk as I was bushwhacking through thin trees very close together.  Fortunately, after only about 50 meters of this, I came upon and re-entered the course, right in front of a runner I had passed at least a mile ago.  Yes!  Just as I was fearing a DNF, I was back on track.

Mile 10 was downhill, partially with switch-backs through the woods, and partially along the edge of a grass field.

Miles 10 - 12:  These two miles would be on dirt roads.  We exited the grass field onto Bible Hill Road, and Mile 11 saw over a 300' drop, with Mile 12 going back up for about 160'.  My legs are feeling really tired by now, and I'm welcoming the downhill on gravel roads.  Mile 11 will be my fastest mile at 6:26 (6:56 GAP), and I again pass quite a few runners on the downhill and uphill, probably at least a dozen more.  This includes at 2-3 that have resorted to walking uphill, but I'm feeling reasonably good and that's not even a consideration for me.  I pass aid station #3 with two runners stopped, but at this point I feel good, I still have plenty of water and I have been taking GUs every 45 minutes, so I decline to stop and continue on.

Miles 12 - Finish:  We turn off the dirt road for the final time, and head slightly uphill over a long and very wet and muddy grass field.  I catch up to a runner, who promptly takes off again as I catch him.  I'm running my own race and not specifically chasing him, but we play this cat and mouse game for several iterations more before I finally pass him for good.  When I reach the top of the open field, I recognize this from yesterday's course preview run, and realize that we just have ~1.5 miles to go, with the vast majority of it downhill!

Wet muddy section towards the end

I am really enjoying this section of the course and savoring that we are very close.  There are actually a couple of spectators on this single-track section of the course, likely runners themselves, and they are telling me that I've also to the finish.

As we exit the trails and onto the short section of ski trails downhill, I catch and pass several more runners.  The finish line is in sight.  When Jana asked me what time I expected to finish in, I had guessed about 2:20, so I was that much more surprised when I saw 2:00:xx on the clock as I approached.

Finished!  Feeling pretty good, actually.

Final result:  2:01:01, 23rd out of 106 males, 1st in M50-59 age group.  Full results here.

Celebrating with my fan base

What went well:

• Very well organized.
• Fun, low key event.  (I didn't know the course preview leader was pro runner Dan Curts, he just introduced himself as Dan.  Similarly, the friendly young woman runner that was talking to me even during the race went to win the race and $1,250, but never mentioned it.  Humble.)
• Nice mix of single-track and dirt roads.  Going into the race, I wasn't sure how I felt about that, but I rather enjoyed it.
• Near zero asphalt (only crossing roads or transitional to the next trail).
• Continuous camp fire added to the trail run vibe:
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• Dog friendly!
• Post-race burrito lunch:
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• I ran well and had a lot of fun!

What could have gone better:

• The race seemed a little pricey to me, at $115.
• I struggled on the uphills, especially early on.  I've always been a slow uphill runner relative to others my pace, but I have some work to do.
• While the course was generally well marked, I still managed to go off-course not once, but twice.  Fortunately I followed the directions and downloaded the route to my watch, otherwise it would have been tough to recover from my second deviation.
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