I finished the 12.5 km trail race yesterday. It's the one I've been planning to do for over a year, back when I signed up to volunteer at the 2024 race. Volunteers get a guaranteed spot forthe next year's race — the spots fill up quickly on registration day — so this seemed like my best chance at getting in. Plus I got to visit the location ahead of time, something that always helps to calm my pre-race jitters.
I had two main concerns for the race: don't slip and fall, and make sure I've trained enough. My training didn't go so great, thanks to my reluctance to use a treadmill or the indoor track in the winter. However, I did avoid falling. I'd acquired a pair of trail shoes in January so I'd have more grip on slippery terrain. They are minimalist and zero-drop, which requires an adjustment period. I did not spend enough time adjusting to them, of course. I spent the morning of the race uncertain if I should risk straining my calves with my trail runners, or doom myself to a slippery run with my road shoes. I spoke with two other runners while waiting for the race to start. They had run the trail last year in regular shoes and fallen. I changed into my trail shoes. I'm glad I did; the route turned out to have multiple steep hills, two muddy sections, and several patches of snow. I only slipped in one spot. Had I worn my road shoes, I'm sure the number would have been greater.
The route started out easy enough with a flat, straight path through the forest. This isn't so bad, I'd thought. Then the hills appeared. Those weren't too bad either at first, but they just kept coming. My insufficient training left me huffing and puffing so loud by around kilometer 7 that I'm sure everyone could hear me. Trail runners are a kindly bunch; many of them said things like "good job!" and "you can do it!" as they passed me. Those were the 25k-ers and 50k-ers who were on their second, third, or fourth loop. The hills became torturous as time went on. Had I not trained on hills all winter (something I did manage to do), I can't imagine how much harder the course would have been. By kilometer 10, I had no choice but to stop and rest at the top of each hill. My hamstrings and calf muscles were burning. I could not seem to catch my breath. I should have grabbed an energy gel at the aid station; my body was likely running on fat stores at this point, increasing my fatigue. This went on for another 40 minutes until finally, a small group of us were climbing the final hill. The finish line was in sight. I resisted the urge to stop and rest right there. We were so close. If nobody else was stopping, then neither was I!
Crossing the finish line brought a huge sense of relief. I was handed my finisher socks and a wood medal that doubles as a coaster. I walked stiffly inside the chalet to grab my duffel bag and get changed, pick up my lunch, and finally sit down. The organizer was announcing the winners and handing out the awards. They had a non-binary division this year. I scarfed down my vegan falafel wrap and then walked to my car to drive the 75 minutes home. I walked up the two flights of stairs to my apartment without much difficulty, surprisingly. I showered then laid down with my cat for several hours. Texted a few people and listened to a podcast. Got up later and ate half the fridge while binge watching "You" season 5. Sleep came easily that night.
Today I slept in later than usual. Now I don't know what to do with my extra time. That race took up a lot of space in my mind, and now it's gone. I will likely go for a short walk to help with muscle recovery. My glutes are sore. I still have a veggie burger and sweet potato fries in the freezer, plus snacks in the fridge, so I'll eat those later. I kind of want a drink, maybe a watermelon cooler. I should go to the LCBO and treat myself. There are six more episodes of "You" to watch. I've been wanting to plant snap peas or some type of lettuce in my balcony's window boxes. Today is for relaxing, I think.
I checked my finish time. I placed dead last in my age division, 74 out of 82 in my gender division, and 116 out of 125 overall. At least I finished. And now I know not to sign up for a spring race again. Training in the winter and early spring just doesn't work for me. I'm going to spend the summer training for a half marathon. If I get my speed up to where I want it, I might sign up for a race in the fall. We'll see.