I decided some time ago that I wanted to run 31 miles in my 31st year of life. I had two options for that; a 50k in the woods & on hills & trails or a 50k on pavement in Chicago that was flat. Because I am dating a guy that loves his trail running, and I've been now doing a bit of trail running myself, I decided to give it a go on the trails. I've heard it's softer & easier and the hills will "allow" me to walk up them and not feel bad about it.
I had trained all winter for the Rockford Half Marathon in May. I was all set to run it, and very well believed I could set a good PR in it. I was running my fastest ever on my training runs. I did all of those on the pavement around my home & in Rockford. Then on my way back from vacation in Florida (having run on the beach all week), Luke's brother-in-law went to pick up my race packet but they couldn't find it. I searched in my Gmail but I couldn't find a confirmation email. Uh-oh. I know I signed up at work, I had my credit card out but I must have gotten distracted and didn't complete and hit submit. I had the opportunity to signup on race day, but I woke up and it was overcast, a bit chilly and rain was threatening. I decided to cancel and not even signup. I still kinda regret it to this day. Especially since the rain held off and the temperature ended up good by the time I would have finished! My boyfriend's family even had signs made and everything, they were going to be there at the end! Oh well. I got into a bit of a funk after that and for the next month, I didn't run. Not until the end of June, when a friend wanted me to run a 5k in my town of Geneva. And that was when I started my running again and did a few miles in Rock Cut, even!
When I told Luke of my idea to run a 50k on the trails of Rock Cut, he didn't think it was a good idea. He explained that I have never run a race before on the trails, I have never ran that far before, I haven't been running a whole heck of a lot in the summer in the first place. Unfortunately, if he wanted to motivate me, he didn't. I don't work well with the reverse psychology. Either that or he just really didn't think I had what it took and that's the way I took it.
I had a hard time training for the race since it takes place in Rockford and I live in Geneva. Luke & I travelled to Rockford every weekend just so I could get miles in on those trails. And of course the training was happening during the summer, in the heat. You would think that the woods would keep it cool and it did on some parts but other times, the heat gets trapped in there and it gets a bit humid and stuffy.
I found an older map of the race course on the Internet and was using it for training runs, starting from the starting point, which was not usually where Luke & I start our runs from. It was different. I got a good idea of the beginning of the course based on the map but there were times I got lost. I ended up finding a website for the trail running group of the Rockford Road Runners and asked them for a map that they hand out at their training runs for the races. I finally got a copy and glad I did as the course had changed since my version. The 50k course is one loop of a 25k or 15.5 miles and then you turn around and run the same loop going in the opposite direction.
I started out over the summer with a couple 10k runs on the trails I'm used to just to get used to running on the trails again. Then I slowly increased the mileage going on different trails than we usually run. Luke & I really had to tag team on this because my ending points were not going to be where he dropped me off at, so he would have to drive to another spot to come & pick me up.
I got my max running distance on the trails at the end of July. 7.84 miles. Never ran that far before. Then the following weekend in August, I got 10 miles in, double digits! I followed that run on Saturday with another run on Sunday for 7 more miles. I was only running twice during the week on treadmills or outside and felt like I needed to get in as much time as possible on the trails on the weekends. Second weekend in August I got half marathon in on the trails!
I ended up buying trail shoes. I was using my normal road running shoes and there were times in which I just didn't feel like I was griping the ground too well. I looked & looked & looked around. Trying to decide trail running shoes was tough. Do I go with water proof shoes knowing that I had to cross water twice? Or do I go with normal trail running shoes and bring an extra pair of socks with me? Did I want Salomon brand or go with a different kind? After checking out the local Rockford store and not liking the kinds there, I went to REI. There I found the Brooks Cascadia that had pretty good grip. It wasn't waterproof but that allowed it to be a little lighter. I was worried about the cushioning in the shoes. Will I feel every rock and root and bruise my feet? I got a bone bruise before my first marathon and my race was not pretty. I decided to give it a go and try them out anyway. If I can't wear them for the race then at least I can wear them for the summer trail running when I'm back to running just a 10k around the park.
Luke's family & I left for vacation in northern Wisconsin soon after that. I was a little worried about my training thus far. I knew that if I could run decent mileage up there, I would be set. Luke & I figured out a course and he came with me on his bike for one of the runs. I went 12 miles with that one. Two days later, I did 15 miles and he met me half way with his bike. Two days later I did 8 miles by myself. I rocked the mileage that week. I was starting to feel confident.
Labour Day weekend I did a race on Saturday and followed that up the next day with a 15 mile run in Rock Cut. All I wanted out of the training was to do half the course, one full loop. I would use heart & willpower to get me through the other loop.
I glossed over those runs. I had many many doubts running through my head during all those runs. Every time I got hot and didn't think I could do it, I had Luke's words pop into my head and I remembered how I felt hearing them and how he didn't believe in me. If he didn't believe in me, why should I? I didn't have the feeling of "Well, I gotta show him how wrong he is," instead I just kept on going because well, I had to to get out of the woods.
Once, I even got lost in the woods. I had no idea where I was. I made a wrong turn somewhere. And was walking. I was done with my run, just couldn't go any further and I couldn't follow the map that well. Luckily I had my mobile with me that day and I ended up calling Luke trying to explain to him where I was. He didn't have a map of the trails in his car. I ended up finding a bike path that went through the park and headed towards noises that were cars on a highway. I ended at Perryville Road and had Luke pick me up there.
When I ended my runs, I would explain to Luke the course and what more I saw. The beginning was all new to us. Never ran on those trails before. They were all horse trails too. Ended up running into (luckily, not literally) a couple horses a few times. And it was mostly out in the open. I hit my first hill at 2.5 miles and always walked up it. I knew I had to to conserve my energy. I figured I would be the only one doing the walking up this hill this early on in the race.
There was another part that I hated, it was like this ravine and it was muddy & seemed to never dry out. It was very curvy which was nice because it always seemed like I was going fast around the corners. But it was very tough to navigate, felt like I was putting my feet up on both sides of the Grand Canyon and then scooting my way over the river.
At 10 miles they had stairs to go down. And then stairs to go back up. There were plenty of them each way.
At 12, it was single track and weaving in and out through tight trees, decent footing a little jumps here and there over some small roots. It made it feel like I was flying through that part. Always does, a nice pick-me-up at that point in the race.
At 13, it was flat & along a road in the park. You would think this would be good but after being up & down & in and around, it wasn't so good. Very long, seeing the end of the trail and just open.
At 14, it was back in the woods & around many turns so that made it go by quickly. At 15, across a road and into a new set of woods and knowing that I only had half mile left made it so much better.
I completed my 1 loop, all I wanted to accomplish in my training, on September 4th, day before Labour Day. It was also my last run on the trails. The other runs, 5 in total, were treadmills or a race on the weekend. Was I ready to tackle a 50k with only 25k under my feet?
Race report in the next post.
I had trained all winter for the Rockford Half Marathon in May. I was all set to run it, and very well believed I could set a good PR in it. I was running my fastest ever on my training runs. I did all of those on the pavement around my home & in Rockford. Then on my way back from vacation in Florida (having run on the beach all week), Luke's brother-in-law went to pick up my race packet but they couldn't find it. I searched in my Gmail but I couldn't find a confirmation email. Uh-oh. I know I signed up at work, I had my credit card out but I must have gotten distracted and didn't complete and hit submit. I had the opportunity to signup on race day, but I woke up and it was overcast, a bit chilly and rain was threatening. I decided to cancel and not even signup. I still kinda regret it to this day. Especially since the rain held off and the temperature ended up good by the time I would have finished! My boyfriend's family even had signs made and everything, they were going to be there at the end! Oh well. I got into a bit of a funk after that and for the next month, I didn't run. Not until the end of June, when a friend wanted me to run a 5k in my town of Geneva. And that was when I started my running again and did a few miles in Rock Cut, even!
When I told Luke of my idea to run a 50k on the trails of Rock Cut, he didn't think it was a good idea. He explained that I have never run a race before on the trails, I have never ran that far before, I haven't been running a whole heck of a lot in the summer in the first place. Unfortunately, if he wanted to motivate me, he didn't. I don't work well with the reverse psychology. Either that or he just really didn't think I had what it took and that's the way I took it.
I had a hard time training for the race since it takes place in Rockford and I live in Geneva. Luke & I travelled to Rockford every weekend just so I could get miles in on those trails. And of course the training was happening during the summer, in the heat. You would think that the woods would keep it cool and it did on some parts but other times, the heat gets trapped in there and it gets a bit humid and stuffy.
I found an older map of the race course on the Internet and was using it for training runs, starting from the starting point, which was not usually where Luke & I start our runs from. It was different. I got a good idea of the beginning of the course based on the map but there were times I got lost. I ended up finding a website for the trail running group of the Rockford Road Runners and asked them for a map that they hand out at their training runs for the races. I finally got a copy and glad I did as the course had changed since my version. The 50k course is one loop of a 25k or 15.5 miles and then you turn around and run the same loop going in the opposite direction.
I started out over the summer with a couple 10k runs on the trails I'm used to just to get used to running on the trails again. Then I slowly increased the mileage going on different trails than we usually run. Luke & I really had to tag team on this because my ending points were not going to be where he dropped me off at, so he would have to drive to another spot to come & pick me up.
I got my max running distance on the trails at the end of July. 7.84 miles. Never ran that far before. Then the following weekend in August, I got 10 miles in, double digits! I followed that run on Saturday with another run on Sunday for 7 more miles. I was only running twice during the week on treadmills or outside and felt like I needed to get in as much time as possible on the trails on the weekends. Second weekend in August I got half marathon in on the trails!
I ended up buying trail shoes. I was using my normal road running shoes and there were times in which I just didn't feel like I was griping the ground too well. I looked & looked & looked around. Trying to decide trail running shoes was tough. Do I go with water proof shoes knowing that I had to cross water twice? Or do I go with normal trail running shoes and bring an extra pair of socks with me? Did I want Salomon brand or go with a different kind? After checking out the local Rockford store and not liking the kinds there, I went to REI. There I found the Brooks Cascadia that had pretty good grip. It wasn't waterproof but that allowed it to be a little lighter. I was worried about the cushioning in the shoes. Will I feel every rock and root and bruise my feet? I got a bone bruise before my first marathon and my race was not pretty. I decided to give it a go and try them out anyway. If I can't wear them for the race then at least I can wear them for the summer trail running when I'm back to running just a 10k around the park.
Luke's family & I left for vacation in northern Wisconsin soon after that. I was a little worried about my training thus far. I knew that if I could run decent mileage up there, I would be set. Luke & I figured out a course and he came with me on his bike for one of the runs. I went 12 miles with that one. Two days later, I did 15 miles and he met me half way with his bike. Two days later I did 8 miles by myself. I rocked the mileage that week. I was starting to feel confident.
Labour Day weekend I did a race on Saturday and followed that up the next day with a 15 mile run in Rock Cut. All I wanted out of the training was to do half the course, one full loop. I would use heart & willpower to get me through the other loop.
I glossed over those runs. I had many many doubts running through my head during all those runs. Every time I got hot and didn't think I could do it, I had Luke's words pop into my head and I remembered how I felt hearing them and how he didn't believe in me. If he didn't believe in me, why should I? I didn't have the feeling of "Well, I gotta show him how wrong he is," instead I just kept on going because well, I had to to get out of the woods.
Once, I even got lost in the woods. I had no idea where I was. I made a wrong turn somewhere. And was walking. I was done with my run, just couldn't go any further and I couldn't follow the map that well. Luckily I had my mobile with me that day and I ended up calling Luke trying to explain to him where I was. He didn't have a map of the trails in his car. I ended up finding a bike path that went through the park and headed towards noises that were cars on a highway. I ended at Perryville Road and had Luke pick me up there.
When I ended my runs, I would explain to Luke the course and what more I saw. The beginning was all new to us. Never ran on those trails before. They were all horse trails too. Ended up running into (luckily, not literally) a couple horses a few times. And it was mostly out in the open. I hit my first hill at 2.5 miles and always walked up it. I knew I had to to conserve my energy. I figured I would be the only one doing the walking up this hill this early on in the race.
There was another part that I hated, it was like this ravine and it was muddy & seemed to never dry out. It was very curvy which was nice because it always seemed like I was going fast around the corners. But it was very tough to navigate, felt like I was putting my feet up on both sides of the Grand Canyon and then scooting my way over the river.
At 10 miles they had stairs to go down. And then stairs to go back up. There were plenty of them each way.
At 12, it was single track and weaving in and out through tight trees, decent footing a little jumps here and there over some small roots. It made it feel like I was flying through that part. Always does, a nice pick-me-up at that point in the race.
At 13, it was flat & along a road in the park. You would think this would be good but after being up & down & in and around, it wasn't so good. Very long, seeing the end of the trail and just open.
At 14, it was back in the woods & around many turns so that made it go by quickly. At 15, across a road and into a new set of woods and knowing that I only had half mile left made it so much better.
I completed my 1 loop, all I wanted to accomplish in my training, on September 4th, day before Labour Day. It was also my last run on the trails. The other runs, 5 in total, were treadmills or a race on the weekend. Was I ready to tackle a 50k with only 25k under my feet?
Race report in the next post.
