This Saturday was my first trail run, and my first run with my Fleet Feet Trail Warriors group. I almost missed it because I was as sick as a dog on Thursday night and felt even worse on Friday. I called out sick from work, which I never, ever do. I slept 6 hours during the day and drank an entire (large) bottle of orange juice, plus some tea. After Bill and I put Liam to bed I was rooting around in my chest of drawers and Bill was like "What are you doing?" And I said "I'm getting my clothes out for my trail run tomorrow." He looked at me like I was crazy and said "You are NOT seriously thinking about going to that." I think I was a little overzealous in saying "I AM. I rested ALL day and I drank so many fluids so that I could go to it tomorrow. I'm going." Usually I get a little push back, but he just resigned. I was like "I like how you don't even try anymore." He said it didn't matter because I was going to go anyway. I am not saying this is smart behavior, but I do think it is pretty typical endurance athlete behavior.
After a good night's sleep though, I actually felt pretty good. I'm glad too, because trail running is HARD. Like REALLY HARD.
It was actually kind of cool how it was set up. Fleet Feet had representatives from Pearl Izumi and Brooks there so that you could try out some trail shoes. I chose the Pure Grit from Brooks, which was described as a lightweight trail shoe. The other trail shoes had more stability and padding, and I figured I was used to a lighter ride, so it was probably a good choice for me.
The coaches gave us a few rules about trail running before we set off:
1. The trail is marked with pink tape and flags, keep the pink tape on your right. Always look for the pink tape or you could end up totally lost in the woods. (I kept thinking about Jenn and Billy in Born to Run and how they got lost and had to drink some sort of animal diarrhea to stay alive. I didn't think French Park was all that crazy, but I also didn't really want to get lost on my first trail run.)
2. Don't be a show off and zoom past people like you would in road races. Always signal to them audibly as you are coming up behind them so they don't freak out. (I assumed this was because trail running takes a lot of concentration...I was right). Plus, she said, chances are, if you zoom past someone and act like a huge jerk, you're going to wipe out and need someone to help you, and guess who will be coming up behind you?
3. Let the trail dictate your pace. This is not road racing and your pace will vary according to the terrain.
4. It had been raining, so remember, it will be slippery.
So, we take off in this huge group towards a field (just like high school cross country) where the pack easily separates into three groups. I was at the front of the second group. We climb a gigantic hill to get into the woods and seriously, 2 minutes into the run, I have to walk. The hill is enormous, the path is narrow, the terrain is bumpy and the mud is slippery. I felt kind of like a loser, especially since I was out of breath.
But then I noticed...
Even the fast people in front of me were walking. And then I was okay and could run again. And then we came upon some crazy roots and I was jogging super easy...and so was everyone else. It just seemed so crazy. I mean, that seems to NEVER happen in road racing.
I fell in behind two older guys and we all started talking and running together. The one guy was kind of a showboat, which was super driving me nuts...like he was treating the trail like it was one of those urban obstacle races where people run up walls and do flying spinning jumps onto railings and stuff. I kind of wanted to see him fall. I know, that's so bad. I mean, I would come up to a log and STEP over it, or cautiously jump over it if I could see it was clear and unmuddy on the other side. But this guy...
The other guy was a lot nicer though. Sometimes when I had to walk some of the hills and they were pretty far ahead of me, he would circle back to get me. I was like "No! No, please! Go ahead! This is my first trail run!" But he said he was happy to circle back. And he did it like 3 times. I think they were afraid I was going to get lost.
And that's the thing too, it would have been SO easy to get lost. First of all, after we got into the woods, the people in front of us disappeared rather quickly and we had a huge lead on the people behind us (like 5 minutes or so). Plus, you are concentrating so hard on the path in front of you that its hard to pay attention to the markers as well.
Oh yeah, and that's another thing. I was CONSTANTLY adjusting my center of gravity. Also, my feet were slipping big time a couple of times (but I think I figured out the trick...just keep moving...every time I did, I landed on my feet.)
Also, I think my natural gait is totally suited to trail running. As my fellow trail runners pointed out, my heel barely touches the ground and I'm quick on my turnover which is apparently very helpful when the terrain changes so much.
Anyway, that little four mile run totally winded me...even with the walking/jogging/running combo. My muscles were a little tired, I was breathing heavy and I was done after 4...no more! I LOVED IT!
This is exactly what I needed to spice up my boring running routine!
I will definitely need to get some of those Pure Grit shoes though. They definitely helped me grip the terrain where I could tell that my Adizero Aegis would have had me sliding on my butt down a muddy, rooty hill into a fallen tree more than once.
Oh yeah, and I also got a free shirt for attending the trail mixer. You can always win me over with swag. :)
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