After getting lost at Farmdale, I figured I needed to redeem myself with a decent trail run so I signed up for the 2007 version of the Tecumseh Trail Marathon. After about a week of rest, I started back into my routine, logging anywhere from 50-65 miles a week and getting some 20 mile trail runs at McNaughton Park in Pekin and Clinton Lake in, well, Clinton. The running was nothing over the top and I was able to train at a solid level without ever wearing myself out. By race week, my legs felt strong and very fresh.
The night before, I drove from ISU to Bloomington, Indiana. Before leaving, my friend Kym swiped me a ton of food from the food court. Everything I needed for the weekend-cereal, water, powerade, bagels. . . if it had carbs in it, it was in the bag. I got a little lost on the drive down on a side road that looked like a shortcut on the map. (A word of advice: never take shortcuts that are over 60 miles) After speeding down backroads and zigzagging through towns, I finally made it to Bloomington, raced into the packet pickup right before they packed up and drove to Indiana University to meet up with my brother Mike. We went to some wrap shop, got some dinner and caught up a little bit, and then I left Mike to get to my campsite. I was under the assumption that the place we were staying at was right outside of Bloomington, but I had to drive about 40 minutes to get there. Nothing like being prepared.
When I arrived at the campsite, I realized that I had also forgot any sort of blanket. To top that off, the bed I was sleeping on had a plastic cover and was fairly uncomfortable when all I had were clothes to sleep in. Needless to say, I was still pretty tired when our alarm went off at 5 am. I left the group and went back to Indiana University to pick up Mike and then drove back to the finish line of the race so we could follow the shuttle buses to the start.
As we soon found out, the shuttle buses drove right by Indiana University, meaning I had just drove about 20 miles out of my way. Then, since we had missed the earlier buses, we found ourselves nervously looking at the clock as it grew closer and closer to the 10 am race start. We finally pulled in at 9:55. I was so nervous that I practically ran to the starting line. Fortunately, the race was a little behind schedule and we had to wait for one or two more buses to arrive. I caught up with Marla, Zach Gingerich, and my running buddy from ISU and first time marathoner, Travis right before the run. At about 15 minutes til, they lined us all up and gave us final race instructions. I turned to Marla and told her that I was going to go for it and see what happened. We were pumped for everything to unfold.
As we soon found out, the shuttle buses drove right by Indiana University, meaning I had just drove about 20 miles out of my way. Then, since we had missed the earlier buses, we found ourselves nervously looking at the clock as it grew closer and closer to the 10 am race start. We finally pulled in at 9:55. I was so nervous that I practically ran to the starting line. Fortunately, the race was a little behind schedule and we had to wait for one or two more buses to arrive. I caught up with Marla, Zach Gingerich, and my running buddy from ISU and first time marathoner, Travis right before the run. At about 15 minutes til, they lined us all up and gave us final race instructions. I turned to Marla and told her that I was going to go for it and see what happened. We were pumped for everything to unfold.
And Bam! The gun went off. We took off at a pretty good pace and the people up front were really moving. We ran down the road for about a quarter mile, just trying to position ourselves so that we didn’t get stuck behind slower runners. When we got onto the trail, the pack I was in consisted of about 40 -50 runners led by the lead group of 5. I moved up a little bit during the first couple miles, but not much. Everybody was running hard and I knew I was really testing myself by moving at this pace.
Running in a group of so many people was very difficult because I couldn’t attack the downhills as I usually do. I had to slow down every time we went down them because I was always on the heels of the runner in front of me. This was very frustrating, but I figured it was one way that forced me to pace myself. By the 5th mile, the pack had thinned a bit and the group I was running with was at approximately 15 people. We passed a spectator who rattled off our places, “14th, 15th, 16th,” and for me “17th. . .” This news shocked me. I had expected that the best I could do was pull off a top 20 finish and I had planned to reserve my strength for the end of the race. I was worried that I was moving too fast, but continued forward hoping that I wouldn't crash at a later stage in the race.
Travis was with me in the pack as well as some other good characters. I ran with a guy named Hank Risley, a competitive trail runner who finished 4th in last years Huff 50K. Hank was a great guy to run and his uplifting comments and frequent chatter kept the atmosphere loose. The rest of the pack was also talkative, which made the run rather enjoyable for the early sections.
The first half of the Tecumseh course contains the majority of the 3500' of elevation gain and to my dismay, the pack did not stop to hike up any of these hills. I had planned to run very conservatively through the hilly sections, walking whenever necessary. Everyone else had another agenda. The continued to bound up the hills and I decided to take a chance and stick with them. The hill sections were very long and I was very worried that I was expending more energy than I should have been running up them. At the 6.5 mile aid station, we were clocked at 45 minutes, which is a little under 7 minute miles. Again, faster than planned, but I felt that it was manageable. No sign of Mike at the aid station, I figured I would just have to catch him at the next one.
Shortly after leaving the aid station, we caught up with a runner wearing a blue bandana who fell back and became a part of the pack. As the race continued, we eventually would catch up to one runner after another, moving forward one position at a time. We were really making ground on the flat sections and Hank announced that our pace on these sections was 6:30. Hank was really fast and pushed us hard on these sections. The runner in the blue bandana was a stronger runner on the hills and would push ahead on these sections. After a while, I glanced behind me and noticed that the pack was thinning and down to about 10 runners, some of which we had caught in recent miles.
An enormous hill at the end of a brief section of paved road marked the 13 mile mark of the course. Halfway up, we were forced to hike, marching upwards with everything that we could muster. At the top, one of the volunteers announced that the difficult section was over, that the course was all downhill the rest of the way. The group took to that well, but there were a few more hills to deal with.
About 2 miles later, the pack finally seperated for good, leaving Travis with some of the other runners. For his first marathon, he was really doing well. I just hoped that he would be able to finish strong. At this point, the runners consisted of Hank, myself, and the runner in the blue bandana. After being forced to retie my shoe, I lost sight of these two, but knew that I had to catch back up to them if I wanted to maintain a substantial pace.
I ran through a tricky section where smaller trees lined the sides of the trail and forced runners to weave in and out to stay on the path. I sped up to catch the group ahead of me and soon I was able to see them running through the trees, now with another runner. As I got closer, I realized this runner was Zach Gingerich. I caught up to the group and on a long uphill, the three of us passed Zach, moving into 7th, 8th, and 9th place as a group.
After the uphill, leaves covered the trail and navigation became just as difficult as the running. Luckily, the course was very well marked and we just had to find the next pink ribbon in the trees. At about mile 18 we left the trail and ran along a road after another long climb. I took off down the road and although I thought I was running fast, Hank sped past me, forcing me to speed up. I could not believe that I was moving as fast as I was at this point and hoped that we could maintain the pace we were at. My hope was to maintain the pace and not lose my position in the race.
We continued to run fast through the woods and soon we reached the mile 2o mark, according to Hank's GPS unit. I still felt strong, but knew that I only had so much left. As we approached the next aid station I noticed two runners in front of us, leaving the aid station. I couldn't believe it! I never expected to be in position to contend for 5th place in the race, at best I figured I could hit the top 20. I quickly grabbed something to drink, downed a gel, and sped off. Hank, myself, and Mr. Bandana took off after them and on a flat open section, me and Hank moved past them. At this point, we were running faster than at any other point of the race. I knew I was moving fast and was running the way I usually do at a 5K.
At the next aid station at 23 miles, Hank and I sped through the aid station while the runner in the blue bandana stayed back. There was little distance left in the race and I knew that if I wanted to have a shot at 5th, I needed to make a move. I flew down the hills and started to really move. I felt like a badass when I flew past spectators after a downhill section. Hank lost a couple steps to me and I started to think that I was going to leave him behind me.
However, not more than 200 meters after this section, my legs started to really fatigue and I had to push to keep moving. Hank announced the 24 mile mark and not long after that, he ran past me. Now I was struggling to hang on and the minor hills were turning into quite significant obstacles. I was giving it everything I had, but was barely moving. Shortly after Hank left me, a long hill(which seemed like a mountain at this point) rose in front of me. I ran/walked most of the way up and by the time I reached the top, I was able to see the guy in the bandana closing in.
The rest of the way was an absolute struggle. I was barely running, just trying to finish the race running. I ran into the 25 mile aid station where the volunteers' words of encouragement motivated me to keep going. After I ran past them, I saw the finish area on the other side of the lake as well as the rest of the course. The finish was so close, but I knew there was still a lot of racing left to do. Shortly afterwards, I left the woods and went on to a road section. I saw Hank and another runner about a quarter mile ahead of me, but no matter how badly I wanted to catch them, I could not force myself to pick up the pace. I kept looking behind me, waiting for the bandana guy to come out of the woods, paranoid I would lose a spot. Soon enough he did and he started to close in. A short uphill section in the road took even more out of me and it was just a struggle to put one foot in front of the other. However, I was able to see the finish after this and ran onwards. The adreneline kicked in and now I started sprinting the last quarter mile. As I approaced the last turn, I recognized a car pulling into the parking lot. It was Mike! He finally found me. From this point on, I sprinted in with Michael running alongside me and crossed the finish line in 3:21:17. Whew! I felt so good! I was pretty beat from the last section of the race, but I was on such an endorphin high and my solid finish capped the entire race off.
My finish was good enough for 6th place overall and 2nd in the 20-24 age category. Mr. Bandana came in about 20 seconds behind me. Had the course been another 100 meters he would have surely passed me. The race was incredible and one of my greatest running experiences off all time. The run was exhilirating from start to finish and I came away having an absolute blast.
Congrats to Travis, who came in not even twent minutes later in 3:40:37, 22nd overall and 1st in the 19 & under age category for his first marathon.
Also, a major congrats to Marla, who won the race overall for the women in 3:47:05, posting yet another impressive trail victory.
Race results are available at http://www.dinoseries.com/2007TTMresults.htm
and I hope to post pictures soon!
If you are considering a trail marathon, do this one. The organization is great and the course will provide you with a lasting experience.
Running in a group of so many people was very difficult because I couldn’t attack the downhills as I usually do. I had to slow down every time we went down them because I was always on the heels of the runner in front of me. This was very frustrating, but I figured it was one way that forced me to pace myself. By the 5th mile, the pack had thinned a bit and the group I was running with was at approximately 15 people. We passed a spectator who rattled off our places, “14th, 15th, 16th,” and for me “17th. . .” This news shocked me. I had expected that the best I could do was pull off a top 20 finish and I had planned to reserve my strength for the end of the race. I was worried that I was moving too fast, but continued forward hoping that I wouldn't crash at a later stage in the race.
Travis was with me in the pack as well as some other good characters. I ran with a guy named Hank Risley, a competitive trail runner who finished 4th in last years Huff 50K. Hank was a great guy to run and his uplifting comments and frequent chatter kept the atmosphere loose. The rest of the pack was also talkative, which made the run rather enjoyable for the early sections.
The first half of the Tecumseh course contains the majority of the 3500' of elevation gain and to my dismay, the pack did not stop to hike up any of these hills. I had planned to run very conservatively through the hilly sections, walking whenever necessary. Everyone else had another agenda. The continued to bound up the hills and I decided to take a chance and stick with them. The hill sections were very long and I was very worried that I was expending more energy than I should have been running up them. At the 6.5 mile aid station, we were clocked at 45 minutes, which is a little under 7 minute miles. Again, faster than planned, but I felt that it was manageable. No sign of Mike at the aid station, I figured I would just have to catch him at the next one.
Shortly after leaving the aid station, we caught up with a runner wearing a blue bandana who fell back and became a part of the pack. As the race continued, we eventually would catch up to one runner after another, moving forward one position at a time. We were really making ground on the flat sections and Hank announced that our pace on these sections was 6:30. Hank was really fast and pushed us hard on these sections. The runner in the blue bandana was a stronger runner on the hills and would push ahead on these sections. After a while, I glanced behind me and noticed that the pack was thinning and down to about 10 runners, some of which we had caught in recent miles.
An enormous hill at the end of a brief section of paved road marked the 13 mile mark of the course. Halfway up, we were forced to hike, marching upwards with everything that we could muster. At the top, one of the volunteers announced that the difficult section was over, that the course was all downhill the rest of the way. The group took to that well, but there were a few more hills to deal with.
About 2 miles later, the pack finally seperated for good, leaving Travis with some of the other runners. For his first marathon, he was really doing well. I just hoped that he would be able to finish strong. At this point, the runners consisted of Hank, myself, and the runner in the blue bandana. After being forced to retie my shoe, I lost sight of these two, but knew that I had to catch back up to them if I wanted to maintain a substantial pace.
I ran through a tricky section where smaller trees lined the sides of the trail and forced runners to weave in and out to stay on the path. I sped up to catch the group ahead of me and soon I was able to see them running through the trees, now with another runner. As I got closer, I realized this runner was Zach Gingerich. I caught up to the group and on a long uphill, the three of us passed Zach, moving into 7th, 8th, and 9th place as a group.
After the uphill, leaves covered the trail and navigation became just as difficult as the running. Luckily, the course was very well marked and we just had to find the next pink ribbon in the trees. At about mile 18 we left the trail and ran along a road after another long climb. I took off down the road and although I thought I was running fast, Hank sped past me, forcing me to speed up. I could not believe that I was moving as fast as I was at this point and hoped that we could maintain the pace we were at. My hope was to maintain the pace and not lose my position in the race.
We continued to run fast through the woods and soon we reached the mile 2o mark, according to Hank's GPS unit. I still felt strong, but knew that I only had so much left. As we approached the next aid station I noticed two runners in front of us, leaving the aid station. I couldn't believe it! I never expected to be in position to contend for 5th place in the race, at best I figured I could hit the top 20. I quickly grabbed something to drink, downed a gel, and sped off. Hank, myself, and Mr. Bandana took off after them and on a flat open section, me and Hank moved past them. At this point, we were running faster than at any other point of the race. I knew I was moving fast and was running the way I usually do at a 5K.
At the next aid station at 23 miles, Hank and I sped through the aid station while the runner in the blue bandana stayed back. There was little distance left in the race and I knew that if I wanted to have a shot at 5th, I needed to make a move. I flew down the hills and started to really move. I felt like a badass when I flew past spectators after a downhill section. Hank lost a couple steps to me and I started to think that I was going to leave him behind me.
However, not more than 200 meters after this section, my legs started to really fatigue and I had to push to keep moving. Hank announced the 24 mile mark and not long after that, he ran past me. Now I was struggling to hang on and the minor hills were turning into quite significant obstacles. I was giving it everything I had, but was barely moving. Shortly after Hank left me, a long hill(which seemed like a mountain at this point) rose in front of me. I ran/walked most of the way up and by the time I reached the top, I was able to see the guy in the bandana closing in.
The rest of the way was an absolute struggle. I was barely running, just trying to finish the race running. I ran into the 25 mile aid station where the volunteers' words of encouragement motivated me to keep going. After I ran past them, I saw the finish area on the other side of the lake as well as the rest of the course. The finish was so close, but I knew there was still a lot of racing left to do. Shortly afterwards, I left the woods and went on to a road section. I saw Hank and another runner about a quarter mile ahead of me, but no matter how badly I wanted to catch them, I could not force myself to pick up the pace. I kept looking behind me, waiting for the bandana guy to come out of the woods, paranoid I would lose a spot. Soon enough he did and he started to close in. A short uphill section in the road took even more out of me and it was just a struggle to put one foot in front of the other. However, I was able to see the finish after this and ran onwards. The adreneline kicked in and now I started sprinting the last quarter mile. As I approaced the last turn, I recognized a car pulling into the parking lot. It was Mike! He finally found me. From this point on, I sprinted in with Michael running alongside me and crossed the finish line in 3:21:17. Whew! I felt so good! I was pretty beat from the last section of the race, but I was on such an endorphin high and my solid finish capped the entire race off.
My finish was good enough for 6th place overall and 2nd in the 20-24 age category. Mr. Bandana came in about 20 seconds behind me. Had the course been another 100 meters he would have surely passed me. The race was incredible and one of my greatest running experiences off all time. The run was exhilirating from start to finish and I came away having an absolute blast.
Congrats to Travis, who came in not even twent minutes later in 3:40:37, 22nd overall and 1st in the 19 & under age category for his first marathon.
Also, a major congrats to Marla, who won the race overall for the women in 3:47:05, posting yet another impressive trail victory.
Race results are available at http://www.dinoseries.com/2007TTMresults.htm
and I hope to post pictures soon!
If you are considering a trail marathon, do this one. The organization is great and the course will provide you with a lasting experience.
