One of the challenges I made for myself this year was to explore the sport of trail running. I chose to race the Five Peaks Trail Series this summer as most of the races were within 1-1.5hrs outside of Toronto and the races appeared to be well organized with a fun and loyal following of trail runners. http://www.5peaks.com/ontario/
All of which would lead me up to my end of season goal, my first trail ultra-marathon, The Beav 50K trail race at the Hilton Falls Conservation Area in November. https://raceroster.com/events/2018/15698/the-beav
Race #1, Terra Cotta, was unfortunately cancelled due to a nasty freezing rain storm.
Race #2, Rattlesnake Point, had beautiful weather and I had a fantastic day running the 12.7km enduro course in 76min to a solid 4th place AG finish, pleasantly surprising myself, encouraging me to up my trail running game for the next event (see my blog dated June 18 for that story - http://contourspersonaltraining.blogspot.com/2018/06/june-blog-updates-riding-for-heart-and.html).
Race #3, Albion Hills. After my solid performance at Rattlesnake Point, I decided I felt ready to apply myself to the half-marathon trail race. I have lots of experience running half and full marathon on road (including the Boston and Toronto Marathons), but I have never ran this distance on trail. I love running long, I consider myself more of an endurance athlete with my Ironman triathlon background so this was a natural progression for me.
Unlike Rattlesnake Point, where I felt unsure about where I would place myself in the starting wave, I knew immediately I would start myself in the first wave of this race. I belonged in the lead pack. I don’t want to sound cocky here, its not my style to be arrogant. But I do have faith in my ability when I look back on past performance and training blocks and see that I have demonstrated capability. So I stepped up.
Some people might consider the race day weather less than ideal. It was raining steadily, a cool 17C to start, and cloudy grey skies. However, I love this kind of weather. I run so much better in cooler weather, and I don’t mind getting wet and dirty. Considering the oppressive heat and humidity Southern Ontario had been dealing with over the past month, I was quite relieved to have this break in the weather and I for one embraced this cool damp weather. I would rather run in 17C than 35C anyday!
The course consisted of three laps of a 7km looped and twisted forested trail in the Albion Hills Conservation Area. There were plenty of rolling hills, some steep sections, several switchbacks and a few flat open sections of grassy field. Runners had to pay close attention to the trail signage as there were a few different directional markers (some others for mountain bikers and hiking trails) and it would be easy to make a wrong turn, as I heard at the end of the race that a few runners did.
One of the differences between trail running and road running is the strategy involved in trail races. Of course you have to be a fast runner to be competitive in a trail race, but I find there is so much more strategy involved in trail than road. What clothes and layers do you carry? How much water/nutrition do you take with you? What type of trail shoe do you wear? Do you stay with a pack of other runners and keep pace with with, or race your own pace? All these things have to be considered carefully to compete in a trail race especially in a distance over 20km.
I consider myself a minimalist runner, thus I like to run with as little as possible. I decided to keep my outfit choice simple with a tank top and run skirt. Sure it was cool, but once I got going I knew I would get hot and didn’t want to worry about ditching clothes. I tucked 2 GU gel packs in my back pockets and decided not to carry a water bottle with me. Instead I left my water bottle at the first aid station which we would pass after each 7K loop. It was a cool day and unlike other runners, I don’t seem to take as much water as others because I tend to side-stitch. I’ve found the best hydration strategy for me, is to drink as much water as possible the day before the race, ensuring my pee is clear (not yellow) before going to bed the night before.
The trail shoe I wore was one area in the race I think I could’ve made a better choice. Being new to trail running, I don’t have a lot of experience with the difference type of trail shoe cleat depth and grip. Being a relative trail newbie, I stuck with a brand I was really comfortable with on the road, New Balance, so this spring I tried their version of a trail shoe, the WT620v2 trail runner. It has a tread depth ranging from 3-4mm. While I had a great race in this shoe during Rattlesnake Point, the trail that day was dry and hard packed. The trail conditions at Albion Hills were quite the opposite - wet, muddy and slippery, especially on the descents.
I managed to do my climbs and flat stretches well on this course, but the descents, an area where I usually pick up my cadence and speed were considerably slower, as my foot grip was much more precarious and I had to slow down to ensure I didn’t wipe out. It is important to keep in mind when you run trail that one bad step can take you out of the race, so always be mindful. I think under these conditions a different trail shoe with better grip and deeper cleats would have been a better choice. This is something I would like to experiment with in the future. You can never have enough pairs of shoes, am I right?!
Regardless, I got out there in the rain and mud, and ran the best I could. The first lap I treated as an orientation lap, and a time to settle into an appropriate pace. The second lap I was more talkative and I met some wonderful people out on the trail. I ran kms 6-14 with a really nice guy, Marc Lefebvre. He challenged me on the hills and I challenged him to run a little faster on the flat sections. He also prevented me from taking a wrong turn on the trail at one point, so I am thankful to him for that. I couldn’t keep up with him on the third lap as he powered up the hills, so I wished him luck and told him to go for it.
I remember running past the race photographer, Sue Sitki, a couple times and managed to strike a few poses for her camera. Kudos to her for being so patient taking pictures of all of us in the cool rain all morning. Big kudos also going out to all the volunteers who helped out during the race. I didn’t get the name of the man in the green rain jacket at the first aid station, but he was so helpful handing me my water bottle as I passed the station after each loop. He recognized me each time and was happy to help. Cheers!
Now I was on to my third and final lap. I remember struggling a little on the first 3km of the final lap. I’m not sure why. I felt hydrated and nourished, perhaps it was my lack of trail experience that was hitting me on the hills. I slowed to a walk for the first time that day on two hilly sections and I started getting frustrated with myself. I should be running these, damnit! On the downhill portions I picked up my speed again and started to snap out of it. I was going to run the rest of this course. The last 4km of the course I felt better and hit my stride again. I reminded myself that I have a strong finishing kick in all my triathlons and in principle this was no different. After running better for the next 10min I pulled into view of another female runner who I hadn’t seen since the start of the race. If I could pass her I’d move up the rankings.
I believe this part of the race was where my water bottle strategy came into play. I noticed her struggling with her water belt and I took this opportunity to dig in and run past her. Being a friendly race I nodded and told her she was doing great, but I had every intention to keep pushing hard all the way to the end. There was only 1km to the finish line. At this point I remember there was a wonderful volunteer who high fived me and held back a few mountain bikers as I crossed one of the last wooden bridges and ran it on home to the finishing line.
My first half-marathon trail race was done, and I managed to push hard holding an average pace of 6:41/km, with a finishing time of 2:18:03. Waiting for the race results was tough, and I took the time to refuel at the aid station with the awesome salted boiled potatoes and orange slices, thank the volunteers for their help, and change into a warm dry hoodie and jacket. Finally the results were in - I finished 3rd female overall, and found my spot on the podium in my second ever trail race. Woohoo!!! Not only do I really enjoy trail running, but after this performance I think I actually have some real talent for the sport and I will definitely be back for more. I felt really welcomed at this event and was pleasantly surprised to see another fellow triathlete on the podium, Suzanne French, 2nd female OA, who I have met on the local triathlon circuit in the past. Congrats ladies!
I will not be able to attend Race #4 - Heart Lake, as it falls on the same weekend as ultimate frisbee playoffs (and my teammates will have my head if I bail on them!). But I’ll be out for Race #5 - the Mansfield half-marathon looking for another podium run to end the 5 Peaks season, and one more hard training run before I tackle my first trail ultra-marathon in November.
Until then, happy trail running everybody!
Until then, happy trail running everybody!
The Race Results:
Stats:
Lap 1- 44:54
Lap 2- 45:44
Lap 3- 47:26
Total time - 2:18:03
Avg pace: 6:41
Third female finisher overall.
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