I hitched a ride with Mark J to the Moose Mountain trail race in Bragg Creek on Saturday. We left about 5 a.m. When my alarm sounded at 4:15 a.m., I had to dig deep not to go hit snooze. It was a long week and I just wanted to stay in bed. I don’t know Mark that well. I met him at Rundle’s Revenge back in June. He is new to Red Deer and he’s training for his first 100K in October.
I asked Mark whether or he was an axe murder. He said “no” so I knew I would be okay.
We arrived in Bragg Creek about 7:30 a.m. We had an hour to pick up our bibs and get our race faces on. We were both using the race as a training run. Neither one of us were planning to kill it. Mark was running the 42K (his first trail marathon) and I stuck to the 29K. There was also the option to run 16K with an 11 a.m. start.
I looked around at the start line and I wished I had signed up for the 16K. I wasn’t sure my legs would be up for the challenge. My achilles and ankles have been giving me major grief over the last month especially when I am on the asphalt. (Another reason to run trails!)
I started way in the back (and I finished way in the back). My plan was to take it easy and finish under 4:30. That’s just a random number I pulled out of the air. I knew nothing about this course or its elevation. I’ve been so busy lately that I didn’t do any race research. I decided to just go with the flow. The first half was tough for two reasons – I couldn’t catch my breath and the elevation gain was killer! I knew it would be tough so I wasn’t complaining (too much!).
The altitude was definitely doing a number on my ability to breathe normally. I really envy those runners from Calgary and Canmore who get to run in the mountains. They have such an advantage. Red Deer is so flat. I really need to get out to the mountains more often. I started to breathe normally around 8K. And I started to feel like a runner around 12K. My quads were screaming bloody murder but my achilles and ankles were not.
I saw Mark coming down Moose Mountain on my way up. This was a tricky part of the race. It was very rocky and tough to navigate. Parts of it reminded me of Grande Mountain in Grande Cache. Our turn around point was at the summit of the mountain. Seeing other runners come down was very motivating and encouraging.
I was disappointed because there was so much fog on the mountain. We couldn’t see anything. It was also chilly. I had removed my jacket because I was too hot earlier. I didn’t feel like removing my pack to put it back on so I suffered through the chill. I knew I was close to the back of the pack when I saw how many people passed me. Three people passed me on the way up too.
When I reached the top, I took a couple pictures and ran all the way down. I tripped a few times but I managed to catch my balance. I heard after the race that a few people wiped out. A runner told me that a guy wiped out in front of her after he tried to pass her. I guess he didn’t like being chicked! I kept running hard down the mountain (and I passed those three runners). I knew the worst was over.
I didn’t take too many pictures during the run. (These are Alison’s feet) I took some pics of runners coming down the hill. A few were like, “why the hell are you taking my picture?” (No they didn’t say that but I could tell by their dirty looks!) Anyway … I digress. I had a strong second half of the race. My legs were on board and I had a handle on my breathing. I didn’t see too many (other than the volunteers) on my way down. I was happy to finish and wait for Mark. I wasn’t sure what his finishing time would be. We didn’t plan it very well because he finished an hour after I did. For some reason I thought he would be done hours before me. So I shuddered in the cold waiting for him to finish. It was BYOS for the post-race grub and drinks. I desperately wanted a coffee but all my stuff was in Mark’s car.
Finishers! Mark came in 5:03 and I was around 4:09. My Garmin read a faster time but I am fine with this for a training race. There were a few people following me so I knew I wasn’t dead last. (Not that finishing last would have been the end of the world.) I was 16 out of 24 overall runners and 4 out of 9 female finishers.
We received these cool lunch kits as part of our race kit. I think they are geared for camping. They have a few smaller container inside and a fork/spoon. One of the race directors whipped up this amazing veg soup for the runners. It really hit the spot because it was a chilly day.
A few of us went down to the river to wash off our shoes. The 42K and 16K was apparently a mud bog. I escaped the mud on my out and back race. Yay! It was so nice to soak my legs in the river. I wanted to sit in it but I was worried I wouldn’t warm up well enough for a two-hour drive back to Red Deer.
We chatted with Alison (left) from Canmore after (and during) the race. She was the second place finisher for the women in the marathon distance. Cheryl from Lacombe was here for the 16K. She’s a strong ultra runner who has done just about every ultra in the province. She invited me to join her group next Saturday for a trail run.
Great way to spend a Saturday! The out and back drive wasn’t that bad. I was very tired when I got home. I just called it a day and went to bed!
It was a great day to get muddy out there! you had a great run 🙂
Thanks. You too chicka. Too bad we weren't on the same course.
Congrats on a great moose!
Thanks. I can't wait to do it next year!
Looks difficult. Congrats! I'm slowly building up and hopefully I'll be doing trail runs soon!
<3 Jamaica
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Thank you so much & thanks for stopping by! I will check out your blog too!
Wow…this looks fantastic! If my knee ever stops being a big baby, I'd love to do this one.
Ha ha I hear you! Get better soon! I hate injuries 🙁
Looks like fun Crystal. Great photos.
Thanks buddy!
That looks cold and scary and cool and fun and very very wet! Props to you for making it happen.
Thanks Linda!