Racereport 2008
Racereport 2006
Racereport 2007
by Kiltrunner
by Shannon Cutting
by Loopi
This event is the 2nd. Annual, and is put together by a local Reading,
PA running club. As with most trail run experiences, they are a
friendly bunch.
A few days before the race, I went to run on trails, and while I was
coming down a really steep grade, both my ITbands cramped. Oh well,
Sunday will prove to be a painful experience, and I was right, because,
oh boy, my legs hurt in the first hour of the race.
The woods are so beautiful in Reading, PA. Weather was very warm, 80-85
degree F. The race started at 8:30am at the Dry Brooks Day
area/Lakeview Pavillion. The sun was staring to shine, and the small
crowd of 100 was anxious to start.
The first half mile was on the road before getting on the trail. First
aid station was around mile 4 on the edge of road, so it was really
easy for friends/family to see the runners. My mom was at the first aid
station, and the next time I saw here was mile 27 at the same aid
station.
The course was an out and back that did a semi circle around the lake.
I shuffled the best that I could up and down the hills I ran
comfortably for the first hour, and didn't allow myself to get caught
up in the speedy runners. One guy kept surging past me, and I kept
thinking, man he is wasting a lot of energy. He ended up finishing
after me.
The second hour we went down a really steep grade and my ITbands
started to sieze and cramp. My remedy was to hit my legs to keep my
legs awake. Once I was on level trail, the cramping stopped. Closing in
on the turnaround point there were four people riding very large horses
on the trail. It was a busy part of the trail, because it was where the
runners were going in opposite directions, and the trail was narrow.
The horseback riders would quickly move out of our way.
Approaching the turnaround I could see there were two girls ahead of
me. One leader looked good, and the second girl looked tired. I easily
passed the second place girl. As I continued to run down the leader,
there were guys running in the opposite direction who voluntarily
offered me updates on how close I was to the female lead runner. I
caught the female lead around mile 19 on a very steep and long incline.
We were both walking, as it was a waste of energy to run. She stared to
ask me questions, and I didn't want to talk, so I decided to pass her
on the hill. In the long run that was not a smart move. My strategy was
that she would feel mentally defeated, and possibly slow down. I had
hoped to stay in front to the finish. Unfortunately, my legs didn't
last. She found me before the last aid station around mile 25/26 ish.
My mom said that she overhead the winner say that around mile 19 and 22
she was feeling bad and had thoughts of quitting. Another girl bridged
up to me who I previously passed early on around mile 7. We arrived at
the last aid station together. She got her water faster than me, b/c
the volunteer guy new her and rushed to get her bottle refilled.
At this point I was happy to walk the last 4 miles, so there was no
hope in keeping pace with her. . Last 4 miles, my legs felt like they
were going to come off, taking my avg. pace from a 9:01 to a 9:17. Wow
- what a day of galloping that was! I saw the funniest thing off the
side of the trail - this turtle was trying to get onto of another
turtle, then he toppled over, and I thought, jeez, do I stop and turn
that poor turtle over or keep running? The Blues Cruise is a fantastic
trail experience. Every aid station was well stocked and catered well
to our needs. The course was fun, and easy to follow. My only regret
was missing two things, my camera for the lake views, and racing legs
to keep the lead. |
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