Whoa.! Two posts in less than a week! New territory for me. This is the first of a few race recaps from this past winter. I thought I better get them out while they are still somewhat fresh in my memory.
On February 6 I ran the Badger State Winter Games Train Run. Now, usually I would have done the marathon xc ski event at nearby Nine Mile Forest. Unfortunately I had to work the 3pm-11pm shift this day. Trying to fit a 2 1/2-3 hour xc ski event in before work just wasn't in the cards. Another case of not enough hours in the day for my playtime. The 5K trail run was a better time fit. The race started at 9:00 a.m. and with awards and time to get back for a shower and lunch before work I had a little wiggle time.
The race was held at Wausau School Forest just outside of Mosinee, WI. It was held on groomed snowmobile/ski trails. I wasn't sure what to expect for trail conditions since I had never run on anything remotely like this. Would it be hard? Powdery? Slippery? No idea.
I had some old shoes with sheet metal screws in the sole for traction but I didn't really think these would help. I thought even if the trail was firm I would still be sinking in a little with each step. I decided to run in my new Brooks Cascadia 5 trail shoes and see just how well they would do. Looking back it was a good decision.
I got to the event site fairly early and picked up my packet and went back to the car to get ready and stay warm. The weather was nice for early February. Sunny, mid 20's and moderate winds. I'll take that any winter day in central Wisconsin.
A little before the start I headed out for a short warmup to check out just what I would be running on. I hit the trail and was pleasantly surprised. The trail was very firm and gave more traction than I was expecting. This looked like it would be lots of fun!
I lined up just before the 9:00 a.m. start and tried to stay warm. It was a small field and looked pretty diverse. A few serious runners, middle of the packers, Moms and Dads with kids in tow and a few folks just out for some fun and fresh air.
The gun went off and away we went. I held back a little at the start to see how the field would work out. I usually go out way too fast and didn't want to do that today. I let the leaders string out and settled into a comfortable and steady pace. By the first turn the leaders were out of sight. I couldn't believe they could run that fast on the snow!
I kept my steady pace and tried to pick off a couple runners ahead of me. The trail remained firm and footing wasn't really much of an issue. It was mostly flat with some small ups and downs. Nothing too tough. After passing a few runners I got stuck out there in no mans land. I had a couple runners behind me and could see one or two ahead of me. I didn't have a GPS and there weren't any mile markers so I had no idea where I was on the course. I tried looking at my watch and gauging the distance by elapsed time. Not too scientific!
I finally caught up with a runner near what I assumed was the end. I could stay with him but just didn't seem to have enough to pass. I could pull even and then we would hit a small hill and he would pull just a step or two ahead. I was just grateful to have someone to pace with and pull me along. We came out of the woods and I could see the buildings near the start/finish line. I knew I didn't have enough to pass the fellow I was running with so I just put my head down and pushed the final yards to the finish line.
I headed to the car to change and then to the finish area for some water and fruit. Results came up fairly quick and I was surprised to see I had taken second in my age group with a 24:14. Not fast and there were only 5 in my age class but I felt happy with my results. Considering the level and quality of my running it was a bit of a surprise. My original goal was to stay under 8:00 miles so I beat that too!
I stuck around for the awards and headed out so I could get a shower and some lunch before work.
It was a great day for a winter run. Beautiful weather, a nice crowd, well organized, awesome trail and Tammy was there for some much needed support.
Next time I'll recap my 2010 American Birkebeiner and try to figure out what went wrong and what went right.
Gotta run.....
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