Rocky Raccoon 25k (November 5, 2011)
Finishing time was 2:35:27.5, which is a 10:02 per mile pace.
Finished 80 out of 240 finishers overall in the 25K Run Race.
Finished 67 out of 132 finishers in the Male Overall Age Group.
Elevation Gain: 2673.9 ft
Elevation Loss: 2680.4 ft
Wow! What can I say? Today was truly epic. We’ll begin with last
night. Rachel and I arrived at the hotel around 9PM and I tried several
taping strategies for my feet. I rolled my left ankle the Monday prior
and have been resting ever sense. I’ve also had a neuroma in my right
foot, so the race was up in the air. We settled on the taping (support
for both ankles, footpad pain, and plantar fascia on my right foot) and
went to bed. I was asleep by 11pm.
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| Everything is Ready to Go |
I got up at 4am and had breakfast but was too excited to go back to
sleep. I got ready and arrived at the park with Rachel at 6:15am, got
checked in and loosened up a bit.
I eat some GU and the race started promptly at 7am; we set out as a
pack into the silent darkness. I had my headlamp, which was a big hit
with those around me (I have Petzl with 60 lumens). I was overwhelmed
with how beautiful everything was. Just under 300 folks setting out on
the trails together. The air was a crisp 45F but it was still. Perfect
conditions. The first two miles or so were very rooty, so rooty in fact
that I nearly rolled both ankles. (YIKES)
As we started out, I went with the pack, which was heading out at ~10
min/mi. The pace was faster than I had aimed for (12 min/mi was my goal
pace), but it felt good so I decided to keep it up as long as I felt
that it was manageable. My first 3 miles, I averaged 10:32 and enjoyed
the company of some new friends in the dark.
After the first 3 miles, my legs were feeling very strong and so I
decided to simply run by feel and see where things headed. I could
always reel things in, right? I came into the first aid station pumped
to try some Heed (from Hammer). I ran in, grabbed two cups. Downed the
first and carried the second about 20 feet as I padded back down the
road. Shortly after that it was time for my first GU (Roctane) during
the race. As I finished eating I realized how good I felt and a big grin
covered my face. As I ran, I began to consider picking things up a bit
and tried to chase down this ironman finisher in his late 50s (probably)
(a Houston area pastor, named Greg) who was about .25 miles down the
road.
I caught him about 2 miles later and pattered by, feeling pretty good
about myself (let’s forget that he could be my father!). My average for
miles 4-6 was 9:17 min/mi. Greg caught back up and I (along with a guy
about my age, Jonathan) trotted down the jeep road, chatting for the
next 6 miles or so. I hit the 7 mile aid station the same way I hit the
first: I only stopped to grab two cups, downed them, moved on. Ate
another GU about 10 minutes later. During the next 3 miles (miles 7-9)
we slowed down a bit (averaging 9:45 min/mi) and I considered breaking
from the group and moving on, but thought it best to stay and enjoy the
conversation. We talked ultrarunning and ironmen. I started to flag at
this point and nearly rolled both ankles again (4 total near rolls!) and
almost face planted 3 or 4 times when my toe caught a root.
Fortunately, I never fell or rolled my ankle (side note: one of the 50k
runners fell no less that 9 times! he was a bloody mess at the finish
line).
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| Feeling Very Good at Around Mile 7 |
Beginning at mile 12 we all started to separate as each of us picked
things up as we were able. There was an unattended water station at mile
12 and Jonathan took off after that. I did not see him again until the
finish line. I held off Greg for a while but his ironman legs took the
hills better than mine and he passed me by before too long. No worries, I
reminded myself, I was already destroying my goal time and running my
own “race” (it was a training run, but I was treating as something in
between at this point).
I had planned on picking things up at mile 12 and dropping 8
min/miles but my hip flexors didn’t feel like they would cooperate and
the hills suggested the smarter course of action would be to hold as
close to a 10 min pace as I could. Closing in on mile 15, I felt really
good psychologically and cardiovascularly but my legs ached
considerably. My ankles both began to feel a bit weak back at mile 10,
which hadn’t distracted me too much, but that was a sign of the wear and
tear I was experiencing. The final mile was a pretty drastic downhill,
but I spent the first half of it reserving energy because I thought I
that I was going to have to go back up it before finishing. Once I
realized that the downhill would end at the finish line, I picked things
up and pushed as hard as I could. The final half mile was an 8:45
average, but the final quarter was around 7:40.
I sprinted to the finish line, hearing Rachel cheerme on, along with the rest of the crowd. It was an incredible feeling.
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| Savoring the victory... I beat the course. |
It’s official. I’m addicted to trail running. I’ll definitely be back
next year, probably for the Hog’s Hunt in April, but certainly for
Rocky Raccoon...only the 50k leg this time. Bring it.
