Race Report for Rocky Trails 50 Miler (Read 844 times)

I jumped into this race with the wild notion that it would be cool to do an ultra in the month of November, having completed one in Sept and Oct, with one planned in December. I didn't know much about this event, except that it was a relatively small race (limit 40 for the 50 miler, 40 for the marathon). Rocky Trails is an appropriate name, as there were plenty of both! Held at Inks Lake State park in the Texas Hill country, the backdrop of the beautiful lake, deer, cactus, rocks, great people and did I mention Rocks??? combined to provide for a fun-filled weekend. I picked up my 21 year old son on the way down from North Texas (student at Baylor) and he and I made it to the pre-race dinner in time to meet some colorful members of the ultra scene. We had a lovely lasagna dinner on the lakeshore under the stars, with deer grazing nearby. Quickly to our campsite, we pitched the tent and looked at each other as if to say "what's next". It seemed late, so we hit the sack at about 7:45 pm! I slipped out of the tent at 4:30, made ready and walked the 150 yards to the start/finish to see what I could do to help with setting up for the day's activities. The race volunteers had things well under control, so I just tried to jump in and unload whatever needed unloading from the various vehicles that periodically backed into the limited parking area with ice chests, pop-up tents, fire rings for cooking the fajitas, eggs, black beans and rice...you know, the usual runner's fare. After a few quick instructions, Sam the RD walked us out to the start line and said GO! Twenty-one of us went into the morning darkness, flashlights a-bobbing. Darkness reigned for almost half of the first loop, making the already challenging footing quite difficult. We were fortunate to have glow-sticks to follow until the daylight took over and allowed us to spot the flagging that marked the trail. I was able to catch up with a few of my running friends throughout the first few loops (total of 6 loops), feeling pretty good and running well. I made it through 34 miles feeling pretty good, but thinking my 50K race of two weeks ago was taking a toll on my legs. After 4 loops, my stomach went south and I never recovered, making the last 16 miles sort of a death march. Remembering the ultra-runners mantra of "relentless forward motion", I pushed on, thinking I would find the right combination of food/fluids to get through the rough spot, but it was not to be. I began to fall off the pace I had held for 34 miles, knowing I could walk the rest of the way and still make cut-off. Well, I probably did power walk half of the 16 remaining miles, ran about 6 of them and stumbled the remaining few to lock a 12:24:33 finish, 14th overall out of 21 starters. It was a fantastic day, except for the wanting to puke part, and once again I am reminded of what a wonderful community of runners come out for ultras. Many of the volunteers that doted over us were accomplished runners, vetrans of the ultra grand slam (5 100 miler races in 6 months), Badwater (135 miles in Death Valley in July), etc. Thanks for letting me blather on.... Lynn B

Eric, It isn't uncommon to run a lot of an ultra alone, particularly the longer ones. For the Rocky Trails event, the race took place on hiking trails in Inks Lake State Park, which total only a little over 8 miles. Because of this, the course doubled back on itself quite often with out-and-backs that allowed you to see other runners that might be up to 15-20 minutes ahead or behind you. In fact, I saw the winner no less than about 5 times during the race (once when he lapped me ) Lynn