This past weekend I ran my fourth, and final, race of the RNUTS series – the Mill Mountain Mayhem 10K. It’s the race I love to hate, and it’s also the race that was voted both ‘most loved’ and ‘most hated’ in the series.

I arrived in Roanoke about 40 minutes before the start and picked up my shirt and bib. Then I hit the restroom and caught up with a few friends before walking up to the starting area. I realized I was feeling really hungry, which worried me a bit. I hadn’t brought any fuel for the race, since it was a 10K. Luckily, for whatever reason, it never bothered me during the race nor did I think about it while I was running.

We all gathered at the start on the JP Fishburn Parkway, and just after 9 AM we were off and running. We started out climbing up the road. I alternated between running and hiking and tried to maintain a good pace on the way up. After a mile, we turned onto the singletrack trails. It was so green. I love this time of year when everything seems to come alive again.

Some sections along here were really rocky and I tried to be careful and not roll an ankle. I made it through unscathed, and popped out onto the old road up Mill Mountain. I was surprised to find a small cheering section here, and it gave me a little boost and I headed towards the steep climb on the old road.

The section on the old road during the race doesn’t last long, but it is very steep. I had planned on alternating running and hiking this part, but I ended up just hiking.

After the section on the old road, we turned back onto trails and made our way up to the top of Mill Mountain. Along the way, we passed by a water stop where I grabbed a cup of Skratch. Then it was a bit more climbing before arriving at the Mill Mountain Star. I started to realize I was on track for a course PR.

I passed by the star and prepared for the 1.5 mile screaming fast downhill to the finish. Theoretically, you should be able to make up a lot of time here. And I’m sure some runners do. But most of this trail is very rocky and rooty. My first priority was to not get hurt, with other big goals on the horizon. So I ran conservative here.

I made it down the trail unscathed, and crossed back across JP Fishburn Parkway where the race had started. From here, the trail was fairly smooth to the finish and I pushed my pace harder. I ended up finishing in 1:24:47, a 20 minute course PR. I felt really strong during this race. I worked hard, but didn’t push it too much. I definitely have a love/hate relationship with Mill Mountain Mayhem. And I’m always glad to make it through in one piece!

The Terrapin Mountain Half is a trail race that runs through the mountains of the George Washington National Forest. It starts and finishes at the Sedalia Center, located about 20 minutes north of Bedford. The course was absolutely gorgeous, but it was also a tough one. With over 3,000 feet of gain, this race was definitely one of those “big, scary” races for me. It brought new experiences and a few lessons. I knew it was going to be tough, but it’s a good thing I had no clue what I was in for.

Barry and I left stupid early on race morning to make the 2 hour drive to the Sedalia Center. We checked in, picked up our race bibs and participant mugs, and attended the pre-race meeting. The race started at 7 AM, just before sunrise, with the ominous Terrapin Mountain looming in the distance. It was in the low 30’s and windy. But with a clear day, we were guaranteed some great views along the course.

We started out running down a paved road, and then began climbing up a gravel road that eventually turned to trail. I ran the first mile or so, before starting to alternate hiking and running. During the second mile, I pretty much switched to 100% hiking. I expected to do so, as most of this race’s climbing comes during the first 5 miles.

I had a few waves of nerves hit me as we began climbing. I knew I had a lot of work ahead of me. Although I spend a lot of time on trails, these mountain runs are in a league of their own. I definitely felt anxious, similar to when I psyched myself out of the 311 to 220 attempt earlier this year. Each time, I took several deep breaths and told myself to chill out. I reminded myself that I was fine, to just keep hiking, and to take it at my own pace.

We went through one small stream crossing, and then arrived at a bigger creek crossing just before mile 2.5. I had walked through the first one, as I do most water crossings, not minding getting my feet wet. But at the bigger one, I hesitated for some reason. I saw footsteps off to the left at an upper part of the creek and decided to try and cross there. It was a poor choice. I slipped partway across and fell into the deep water – completely submerging my body and head.

I was absolutely soaked from my fall. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I also really banged myself up. I ended up with about 10 bruises on both of my legs, a big bruise on the back of my right thigh, and a cut on my right shin – all from that one fall. I guess I made it count. None of that hurt, though, and actually didn’t bother me until later that day. But I was immediately freezing cold after my fall.

When I fell, some runners behind me called out asking if I was okay. Per usual, I immediately answered I was fine. I popped up out of the water, and continued climbing up the trail.

Within half a mile, the folks who had asked if I was alright caught up with me. Turns out I couldn’t have fallen in front of a better group of people, as several of them were wilderness first aid trained. They again checked in with me to see how I was doing. I replied that I was cold, but I joked we had a lot of miles left and I would dry out. I realize now that they understood my situation a lot better than I did. Remember the weather? With the wind, the ‘feels like’ temperature was in the 20’s and would only get colder as we continued to climb. I was soaked to the bone and my clothes were actually already beginning to freeze.

Side note: I never told anyone about my blog or asked permission to use names, so we’re going with initials for the folks that I met and that helped me on the race course.

One of the runners, P, immediately started offering me a dry layer. She knew I needed to get some of my soaked clothes off of me. However, I was really cold and I couldn’t imagine taking anything off in that wind. Instinct was overriding common sense. As we got closer to the first aid station at Camping Gap (mile 4.1) I got even colder. I started to understand my situation better, and I started to feel scared. I was still with that group, though, and I tried to draw some comfort from that. I didn’t know it, but they were actually keeping tabs on me- watching for signs of hypothermia.

Given my situation, I considered dropping out of the race. However, we had been warned at the pre-race meeting not to drop at the first aid station. They provided support to the 50K runners through mile 22, and wouldn’t be closing up until the afternoon. If you dropped here, you’d be waiting a long time for a ride back. So although I considered it, I felt like I should continue on in the race if I could.

The climb to the first aid station seemed to take forever. I was so cold and I started to feel dizzy. When I finally saw the aid station up ahead I sighed with relief. However, the wind was absolutely gusting in the clearing where the aid station was located. I almost wanted to turn around and go back down the trail to get out of the wind.

There was a lady watching all of the runners come into the aid station. I think she may have been the medical person, because she kind of focused in on the cut on my leg. P explained to her that it was just a scrape, but that I had fallen in the creek and was soaked. She asked if we could get into someone’s car to get out of the wind so she could give me some layers. We were able to do so, and I ditched both my t-shirt and long sleeve for two of her long sleeve shirts. My hands weren’t working well and it took me several minutes to get out of my shirts and put hers on. I think this left her with just one shirt and a thin wind jacket. I asked several times if she would be alright, but she brushed off my questions. I’m pretty sure if I had tried to refuse her dry layers she would have forced me into them. Hah! We couldn’t do much about my soaked capris, but P advised me to tie my long sleeve around my waist. Even though it was frozen, she said it would help keep my core warm.

I felt a lot better with the dry layers on, but was immediately freezing again when we got out of the car. I quickly shoved my t-shirt in my pack and got ready to leave the aid station. Some of P’s group was hanging back to wait for more of their runners, but she said she was going to stay with me. We were headed into the final 0.5 – 1 mile climb to the summit of Terrapin Mountain. It had the steepest sections of trail we would see all day, and had the highest wind.

I didn’t make it too far up the trail, before I was so cold that I wanted to turn around and go back to the aid station. I couldn’t believe how hard the wind was blowing and my bare hands were cold and started to hurt a lot. I was moving really slowly and stopped a few times, but P was up ahead and encouraged me to keep moving. The trail was rocky and I did my best, but I kept stumbling over the rocks which was frustrating.

We soon caught up with T, who was part of the same group as P. I think I had gotten kind of whiny about my hands being cold, which I’m now embarrassed about. T gave me his gloves, which left him with nothing for his hands. He tucked his hands into his sleeves and told me to keep his gloves as long as I needed them. I’m incredibly grateful for their help. The trail community definitely takes care of each other, and I would not have finished this race without them. But beyond finishing or not finishing a race, I would have been in some serious trouble without their assistance. The only thing I had to help myself was my emergency space blanket.

We continued climbing until we finally made it to the top. The view at the summit of Terrapin Mountain was a highlight of the course. I had been looking forward to it, but when we finally made it there I stayed just long enough to briefly take in the incredible view and snap a photo. It was SO windy out on the point, and I started to get very cold again. So I immediately turned around and continued back along the race course. I parted ways with T and P, as they lingered to take in the view. They encouraged me to keep moving and said they’d be right behind me in a few minutes. They also told me it wouldn’t be as windy once I got on the other side of the mountain.

As I headed out on my own, my focus was on getting out of the wind. The trail was rocky, as it roller coastered along the ridgeline. Soon, I arrived at the second ‘highlight’ of the course – a section referred to as “Fat Man’s Misery.” It’s a crevice between two rocks that you have to lower yourself into and shimmy through. It was kind of cool, but honestly not my favorite.

From here the course went through some beautiful sections of mountain laurel. There was a lot of downhill, and I had expected to run all of it and make up some time here. But a lot of it was so steep and technical that I actually had to hike.

I picked my way down the mountain, running when I could, and finally rolled into the second (and last) aid station just before mile 8. On the way there, I linked up with two other runners – A and D. We were well matched, and I would stay with them from here to the finish.

As we left the aid station, we passed by P and T making their way down to the aid station. I was glad to see they were in good spirits, and I returned T’s gloves. P commented that I looked much better. I was feeling good now that I was out of the wind and my pants were nearly dry.

For the record – it took over two hours for my thinnest piece of clothing to dry during the race. My other pieces of clothing (long sleeve, gloves, etc.) were still frozen at the finish.

I was expecting the final 5 miles to be primarily downhill, but there ended up being a fair amount of uphill left to climb. A, D, and I ran when we could and hiked when we had to. There were a few more creek crossings, and this time I made it through them unscathed. In the final 1.5 miles, Barry showed up on the course to run us in.

It was funny when Barry realized half of the clothes I was wearing were not mine. I regaled him with my creek story, and he then shared with us how his race had gone. He had a great day and finished in 2:33 and change. It was nice to have his company and hear about his race. We made our way back onto the gravel road and then the paved road – retracing the course towards the finish.

Once we were on the pavement it was just a short stretch to the finish. We picked up the pace, and crossed together in 4:04. I had a goal of finishing in 4 hours going into this race. Given everything that happened out on the course, I’m happy with my time. After finishing, I got changed into some dry clothes and waited for P and T to finish. Soon they came across the finish line. I again thanked them both for their help, and returned P’s shirts (wish I could have washed them first!). Barry and I then enjoyed the delicious BBQ lunch being served at the finish line before heading home.

All in all, it was another successful race day. But on this day, my success definitely hinged on the goodwill of others. I already knew the running and trail communities were incredible. But that point was definitely driven home at the Terrapin Mountain trail race.

Last weekend Barry and I headed up to Montvale to run the Montvale 10 mile trail race. This race is my favorite in the RNUTS series. The trails wind through an old growth forest and they’re super twisty, which is fun. Check out the map from my GPS data:

Barry and I arrived about 20 minutes before the start of the race. It was just enough time to pick up our race swag and bibs, hit the restroom, and catch the tail end of the pre-race talk. It was a gorgeous sunny day, albeit a bit windy, with temperatures in the low 40’s. We were promised that the trails were in excellent condition, other than a few muddy sections near the creek. But before any of that, we all had one obstacle to tackle just to get to the start: the creek.

I think the ‘feels like’ temperature that morning was in the 30’s and let me tell you that water was icy cold! The creek dipped in the middle, and the water came up to my knees while crossing. We mingled at the start with soaked socks and shoes. My feet were freezing, and then numb, but my socks and shoes did dry out during the race… just in time for us to run back through the creek on the way to the finish. Ha!

A little after 9 AM, we were off and running. We started out down a flat, grassy trail along the creek. There were some muddy spots through here, but they would pretty much be the only sloppy sections on the course, other than the last little stretch to the finish. Within the first mile, we turned off of the wider access road and onto singletrack trails.

I focused on running a smooth, comfortable pace. The race also had a 5 mile option that started 10 minutes after us. I had hoped to make it to mile 2 before the front runners of the 5 mile caught me, but it was not to be. As I made my way up the gradual climb to the water stop around 1.5 miles, the top three guys came flying by. The 5 mile does one loop, while the 10 mile does two loops. So from mile 1.5 to our split around mile 4, I was constantly having to let faster runners pass. Everyone was polite in passing, and I made sure to listen for them coming up so I could yield to them. But I was getting tired of not being able to just run.

Finally, we made it to the split and the 5 milers headed off to the finish. I was really happy to let them go and finally have the course to ourselves. Things got peaceful and the course got quieter. I was finally able to just settle in and enjoy the trails.

During the first loop I had felt really ‘off.’ I seemed to have pains that were just rotating around – one minute my hip was bothering me, the next my achilles, etc. Nothing lingered or got worse, but it seemed to be a constant rotation of pains. But a little over the halfway point I finally just stated to feel like myself.

One thing I love about this race is how the trails are constantly changing. You’re going uphill one second, downhill the next, and then you might have a short flat stretch. It’s fun and if I was stronger I think I could definitely run the whole thing.

Around mile 6, I realized I had a shot at a course PR. That wasn’t the goal going into this race, but I figured why not go for it. With that resolve in mind, of course something crazy had to happen. Between miles 7 and 8, I came to a three way trail intersection. The girl sweeping the course was standing there with an armful of course markings. Uh, oh. She was confused to see me, and I was surprised to see her. She thought I had gotten off course or had gone the wrong way. But I explained I was pretty sure I was on course, and that there were other runners behind me. There was another woman who had been taking photos just up the trail. She walked down and pointed me in the right direction. About a quarter mile later, I saw another pink and black polka dot streamer and knew I was on course. All of the markings were fine the rest of the way to the finish, and the photographer stayed in that three way intersection to direct the rest of the runners. Sometimes things happen in races, and you just have to figure it out. Not a huge deal. However, I did lose at least two minutes in the confusion and wasn’t sure if I would get that course PR anymore.

The last mile of this race always kicks my butt. You’re so close to being done. But then there are a few short, steep climbs. Once you get up those, you get a nice view of a field and some mountains and then you have a big descent down to the creek. THEN you’re really almost done.

In years past, the creek crossing has had a skinny, bouncy log. However, I guess it has washed away since the last time I ran the race. Instead, I waded back through the water. I thought “Hey, cool. Now my shoes are super clean.” But that was short lived. The grassy section heading towards the finish had ankle-deep, shoe sucking mud. So much for clean! I had a minute left to PR, and I pushed hard for the finish. I crossed the line in 2:04:50, good for a 10 second course PR.

After the race, I hung out with Barry and enjoyed some post-race food while the awards were going on. When they got to my age group, I was surprised to hear my name called for third place. Full disclosure: there were only three in my age group, so it was an automatic placement. But hey, I showed up and ran, so it counts right?

Next up Barry and I both have the Terrapin Mountain Half Marathon this weekend. It’s got over 3,000 feet of climbing, and is sure to kick my butt.

I started running trails at the beginning of 2014, and I ran my first trail race in March of that year. Since then it’s been five years of trail running. I’ve learned a lot, conquered new distances and new types of events, and have pretty much transitioned to exclusively running trail races. But there was still one thing I hadn’t had the opportunity to participate in until this past weekend: A Fat Ass race.

A Fat Ass race is an unofficial, casual race put on by a group of friends. It’s a low key running event that is ‘invite only’ and is not open to the public. It typically does not have anything that is often seen at a traditional race: no bibs, no awards, no aid stations, etc. Directions or a course map are sometimes provided, but actual course markings are rare. A FA run is a free event. It’s fun and it’s really just an opportunity to get a bunch of people together to run some trails. It’s more of a training run and social event than an actual race. (And I have no clue where the name comes from.)

My friend Donna organized our Fat Ass, which would be a 10 miler at Powhatan State Park in the Richmond area. The stars aligned, as she planned this event on a weekend that I was already going to be in Richmond for a girls weekend. Perfect! On Sunday morning we headed over to the park and prepared to run.

The route would be two 5.8-ish mile loops, so participants had the option of doing one or two loops. We gathered for a group picture, Donna played the anthem and said a quick prayer, and just after 9 AM we were off and running.

The group was a mix of runners and walkers, and we spread out along the trail over the first mile. We each had been provided with a state park map with the route marked on it. Donna had also been out marking the turns at trail intersections by making arrows on the ground with sticks and marking a few with flour.

It was overcast and in the upper 30’s during our run, but luckily it wasn’t raining which was nice. However, we’d had a lot of rain in the two weeks leading up to the event. Some of the trails were super muddy and saturated, but others had dried out. Donna’s course had a little bit of everything: smooth trails, roots and rocks, mud, hills, a few creek crossings, and plenty of fun.

My friend Jackie and I stayed together the whole race. Despite the map and trail markings, we took a few wrong turns during the first loop. But we were able to quickly get back on track both times. Before we knew it, loop 1 was already done.

When we finished the first loop, a left turn would take us back to the pavilion where we started but a right turn would send us on the second loop. I think Jackie was a bit tempted to go left, but peer pressure worked like a charm and we were off on our second loop. This time we knew where we were going and ran confidently.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel on this run, since I had run 15 miles on Friday morning before driving to Richmond. But other than some calf and Achilles tightness during the first few miles, I felt really good. I’m glad my training for the Yeti 50 Miler is going well so far. There’s a ways to go still, but I’m cautiously optimistic.

The last few miles flew by. One of the last trails we ran on towards the end of the loop was the Turkey Trail. Since my blog name and social media handle is ‘turkey runner’ I couldn’t help but grab a quick photo.

Before we knew it, we were back at the end of the loop and on our way to the pavilion. Donna cheered us in and even had finisher’s medals for us!

Jackie and I were surprised to find that our other two friends who came with us, Laura and Jo, weren’t back at the pavilion. They were walk/running the loop and it turns out they had gotten lost in the park! Luckily, they showed up shortly after us (which was good since Laura had my car key!), after taking a nice tour of the entire park. Five miles turned in to 8 for them 🙂

Everyone brought some snacks to contribute for post-race food, and Donna and her husband even had warm mac & cheese and barbecue on the grill for us. Delicious and perfect on a chilly day!

After mingling for a bit, it was time to head out. Jackie had a plane to catch and I had to make the 3.5 hour drive home. All in all, it was a fun event and a great way to cap off our girls weekend.

This past Saturday I headed up the road to Roanoke’s Explore Park for race #2 in the Mountain Junkies RNUTS series. It was a crisp, clear morning and I was feeling excited for the race. Such a nice change from all of the rain and gloomy weather we have had lately. I arrived about 15 minutes prior to the pre-race meeting. That was plenty of time to park, hit the restroom, and get my race bib and shirt before the meeting. I love small races.

Following the pre-race meeting, we walked down to the starting area. I was happy to find a campground has been installed (is that the right word?) since the last time I was at the park. That meant we didn’t have to scramble up a slick, muddy grassy hill right at the beginning of the run. Sweet. Just after 9 AM, the 10K runners were off to the races. The 5K would follow 10 minutes later.

We had a short stretch along paved and gravel roads before heading into the woods onto the singletrack. I felt good and tried to keep my pace comfortable. There’s a lot of downhill during the first mile. I couldn’t run quite as fast as I wanted, because the trail was muddy and leaf-covered. But I gotta tell you, I was having a blast.

We encountered the first true hill of the day during the second mile. The course did a small loop here, so we got to see some runners ahead of us. We looped around at the top of the hill and headed back downhill for a short, flat stretch along the river. As I approached mile 2, the blazing fast leaders of the 5K began catching me. At this point, we were on a wide path and it was easy for them to pass. We headed up another short, steep hill and hit the first water stop just after mile 2. I grabbed a quick drink of water and kept rolling.

We had a brief respite before the real fun began. As we made our way to mile 3, we climbed a hill lovingly nicknamed “vomit hill.” It is tough. In the past I have always walked this entire hill. But this year I made a goal to alternate running and walking – so I took 20 steps of running and 20 steps of walking until I made it to the top.

From here, we were back on the paved road where we started. We ran by the finish line, where the 5K runners split off. The 10K runners continued onto a 3 mile lollipop loop. I have never run this 10K, but I knew the course (in 2015 I dropped mid-race to the 5K due to snowy conditions). I worried that I would pass the 5K finish line at the halfway point, and want to be done. But I’m happy to report I was in good spirits and excited to keep going.

I enjoyed the second half of the course. We started out with a long downhill (which was muddy and slick), crossed a bridge (which was muddy and slick), and started making our way up a long hill on the other side (which… was muddy and slick). The 10K leaders were coming back by at this point, on their way to the finish. Everyone handled the two-way traffic on the singletrack well, and we all exchanged cheers with each other on the way by.

There were some more challenging hills along the way. Some of the downhills through this section were also challenging, as they were leaf-covered, muddy, and had large rocks. Some of the mud was even ankle deep! But before I knew it, I passed mile 5 and was on the final mile of the race. My legs were definitely starting to feel tired now, but that’s to be expected towards the end of a race.

That last steep uphill to the finish was tough and I tried to hike and run it at a good pace. I finished in 1:16:38. My goals going into this race were to run strong and solid, and to finish in under 1:20. Overall, I was happy with my race. I felt good both physically and mentally, and I feel like I’m regaining a bit of my mojo after last week.

After the race I enjoyed the always fabulous Mountain Junkies post-race feast: bagels, veggies and hummus, bananas, crackers, and homemade baked goods.

I spent some time catching up with several friends and watched some of the awards before hitting the road to head home. Next on the schedule is my first Fat Ass-style race next weekend and then my favorite RNUTS Race – Montvale 10 Miler!