What:  Paleozoic Devonian Spring 25K Trail Race

When: 3/24/18

Where: Cook County Forest Preserve in Palos, IL about 20 min SW of Chicago.

Background:  Paleozoic Trail Runs take place twice per year 25/50K in the forest preserve trails around Chicago.  The Fall race is usually November and Spring March.  Last year I did both the Fall 50K and Spring 50K.  This year, I opted for the 25K which is a new race distance for me.  Bill Thom puts on the race with help of many others, and also the Kettle 100 races, both of which I frequent at one distance or another.

Course Info:  it is 7.5 out and back with short loop around the start finish to get the 25K.  50K does that twice.  That loop and one other stretch is "cross country" grass running (very windy) and uphill,  with two other parts of the course:  the first section is smaller rolling hills and flats on a crushed gravel trail which is very runnable.  The second is mostly single track with roots, rocks, often mud, short but sometimes steep hills.  For Chicago, this is one of the more hilly/technical single track you can find.

My training:  I am doing a modified Pfitz 12/55 block targeting an upcoming 50K in April which is a springboard to Kettle 100K.  This race takes the place of one of his suggested 10-15K tune up races in the training.  The trail is very close to where I live, so I have time to get out there 1-2x per week.  3 and 4 weeks ago basically ran the whole 25K just to get a feel for it and work out a plan.  Those runs were at moderate effort at 9:50 and 9:30 pace.  But they were 1 mile shorter because I did not do the first loop around the start finish on the grass because, well, I hate running on grass.  One those runs there was a decent amount of mud that was thankfully much less today, so I would say the best conditions there I have see this year.   I took a rest day Fri.  Thu just did 4 mi on the trail easy (they were doing burns out there, very smoky, but thankfully all burned out by race morning).  I moved my weekday workout from Thu to Tues, (vo2 max intervals) so I had a couple days to recover.  That way I didn't really have to taper.  As far as goal, it was more for fun and to experience the distance for the first time.  Also, I wanted to make sure hike the hills from the beginning, not go out blasting up them and flatline my heart rate, try to evenly pace the flats around 8:00-8:20, and the hills either jog or hike depending on how steep.  I watch my pace, heart rate, and effort.  Using effort as the final arbitraitor, but at the start HR helps because I am amped up and effort is not as useful.

Pre-Race:  every news station has weather report showing a snow/rain storm coming in Fri night-Sat am, but uncertainty as to how close it will come to the race area.  Projected up to 9-12 inches of snow just south-south west of the area where the race is.  For context its been pretty much mid 30s- mid 40s lately and no real snow or rain for some time.  No snow on the ground.  Basically winter was over.  Oh and btw it will be 50s and sunny.  I didn't do anything special pre race night.  I found I was excited like I usually am for a race, which is always a fun thing.  I basically just put everything for any possible weather-snow,rain, or not, into a plastic box.  I didn't need a drop bag so prep was easy.  I decided not to bring my phone or headphones because I didn't want to mess around with it, and I wanted to concentrate more on the running especially the technical areas where it isn't hard to trip on a root and fall.   I was deliberating how to do the water/fuel thing.  I didn't want to use a handheld because they always leak and my hands are the coldest even with gloves, so in the winter I am not a big fan.  I didn't think a vest was needed either.  So I ended up just putting my ensure (fuel) in a small soft flask and not bringing any water, just using aid stations for water (no long distances between stations to worry about).  I also brought a gel but didn't use it.

Race:  The race started at 9:30am.  This is late for me..  The 50K at 8:30.  I had this odd amount of time in the morning to just mull around.  It was cold mid 30s at the start and very windy (20-30mph).  The race starts in an open grass park area in a pavilion on top of a hill to maximize wind chill.  There is a loop and then out to the trail part on grass (about 1/2 mi?), then trail.  It is a small race, the 50Kers had already started an hour later.  71 people for 25K, only 24 brave souls for the 50K.  I did about a half mile jog just to keep warm before the start which was right on time.  After the grass section is the sweet stuff, crushed gravel, rolling hills, it is very runnable, so I wanted to take advantage of that.  I pretty much stuck to my race plan running around 8 min mi though my effort/hr were on the high side.  I sometimes take a few miles to warm up, but its hard to know is it that or just not a great day.  Then after about 3 miles there is a water only station, I had some (fiddling around with the spout for longer than I like to) and got on my way.  I am back and forth with a guy whos running my pace but I walk some hills he runs, so we are leap frogging.  I the water stop he goes on ahead and I don't see him until the end.  I was thinking I should have brought a soft flask instead for water and put it in my pocked at the start.  Anyway, in a mile or 2 more, the course breaks out into another grassy section on a hill overlooking a lake, so the wind chill is bad there.  The trail winds down to the bottom of the hill and then back up the side of a road all on grass and then up a hill, ugh.  You are just looking at the road there going I wish I could run on that, but hey this is what I signed up for.  There are a lot of 50K runners coming back towards us.

Then you go into the woods, the wind backs off, except its up on a ridge so still a bit,  and the single track section begins.  Lots of roots, rocky sections, small hills I hike up or jog slowly.  There are tons of intersecting trails all over, it is marked with spray paint arrows and flags.  Luckily, I don't have to worry about that, because I run here all the time, I know my way around.  So this is one of the few races I didn't go off the trail on.  They also were doing a lot burning there, so a lot of the ground is charred black.  But the fires are out, and unlike 2 days ago, the smoke is gone.  I would hate to fall into a pile of hot ashes.  The single track is interrupted periodically by short sections of gravel trail or long abandoned road but no great place I can just hunker down and run.  The part before the turn around has the most mud, but its not bad today.  Coming down one hill my mind wanders, I trip on a root and smack my ribs.  The wind is temporarily knocked out of me and I think I must have fractured a rib and then what if I get a pneumothorax, no phone, etc etc.  But shortly I can tell there is nothing like that, I get going again, I landed on my hands too, thank God for gloves because they were really hurting.  I make a point not to let my mind wander.  Then comes the turn around, I stop for a brief bit, talk to the aid station workers, grab some Gatorade and water and take off.  By now I have had most of my ensure.  I really was never hungry but I had some extra breakfast which may have helped.  After the turn around things pretty much went okay.  It is always seems so much faster on the way back.  My effort was good, it was not tempo effort just below.  My HR was about 80-85% max which is good.  After the turn around it was actually more 80% so either the monitor stopped being accurate or I was holding back a little.  It is not unusual after a hour or so running for the wrist HR monitor to go a little whack.  I think maybe sweat?

I get through the single track and grassy hill section without incident and then its that lovely crushed gravel section which you can relax and get in a rhythm.  I had considered picking up the pace here when thinking about the race, maybe to tempo pace, but I didn't do that, not sure exactly, I think I was just enjoying it.  Then the last section, another cross country section circles around and up the hill to the top where the freezing pavilion is.  That was a painful half mile uphill.  At the end I was able to shorten up my stride and race into the finish which I like to do even though it serves no purpose (no one there I was chasing really).  In fact, until the very end, when it was too late, I didn't really have anyone to chase down, I was passing some 50K? people, maybe a couple 25K but not really anyone to race.  (I wasn't in the lead, just kinda in this no mans land behind the lead pack).

The finish:  My time was 2:14 and change, which is a PR (because I have never run a 25K).  I was 14th overall and 3rd age group (40-49).  I got a nice etched beer glass for the AG award which I plan to fill with beer in a bit.   But, I was 4th that age overall. Wtf?  The same thing happened to me at Hennepin 50 mile and I thought it was a mistake.  But its not, what they do is pull the Masters overall out of the AG award.  I thought the Hennepin AG was an error but turns out its not.  I am not saying it is any great thing to get an AG award in a small local race, but hey, I am a guy who has never one any sport accolade since 7th grade triple jump!  (they put me in that because I could not do anything else).  So I take what I can get.

The aftermath:  We sat in a tent with a tiny heater waiting a bit and chatting with some of the 25K runners.  Coree Woltering is our local elite trail runner, so he was there.  He ran the 25K in like 1:3x something (5:55/min) pace.  He basically blows away the field when he is in one of the races around here.  I talked to him about upcoming races, he got into Western States on 1 ticket, and doing a bunch others around the country and some local.  He is a nice guy, David Roche coaches him, anyway my brush with the elite so I can name drop.  Had a Goose Island Wheat Beer which was good, some hot soup finally came which was great.  The 50K winner, Jean-Bernard Flannigan, 51 y/o came in @3:38:38.  He apparently has one a bunch of the Paleozoic and the Ice Age 50 mile  which is one of the older/bigger races in the Midwest. Eventually, I was shaking hard enough from the cold, I decided to call it a day.  It is great to be done by early afternoon.  I think I am going to look around for another run (10k-25K) in between the next two races.  If I can find one...

up next Earth Day 50K 4/21

Thanks. I dindnt have my protective hydration vest w softflasks which doubles as an airbag.  Nothing bad from the fall but today itb is bad.  Pretty typical after a race though.  I think its gonna be a cut back/easy week   Before I do anymore workouts.

Very nice RR!  Congrats on that AG too.  It's nice you can get a good trail race that close to Chicago.  It will be interesting how you feel the Pfitz plan works for the upcoming 50K.  I'll have to try Ensure.  I hate gels.  Thanks for sharing.

i'd like to try ensure also...but what if it gets warm in a drop bag? seems like warm ensure might make me puke

I could see if it’s warm being gross.  Room temp its ok.   Most of my races are spring/fall so that will be fine.  I guess I’ll find out in June at Kettle,  it can get hot there.   I could put a couple ice cubes in the flask w it I guess or freeze it.