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7/11/2010

9:04 AM

6 mi

39:29.17

6:35 mi

Health

145.5 lb
2764
50.5

Weather

80 F

Ratings

10 / 10
10 / 10

Race Result

1 / 147 (0.7%)
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Bradbury Mountain

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Notes

Today's race was awesome-sauced. I followed my race plan, the race unfolded just the way I wanted it to, and I broke my course record from 2 years ago as I won the race for the third time in a row.

While warming up and standing at the stating line, I saw a few people that are normally much faster than I am on the roads, and one person that I thought looked familiar and who warmed up in a BAA singlet but whom I hadn't met...I think I might have seen him in New England Runner at one point.

After Ian's pre-race speech, we lined up and I took a front position on the far left despite the slight turn towards the right at the beginning so that I could go out fast and not have to hurdle a large stone that sticks out of the trail on the right side around that corner.

My goal every year when I run this race is to be the first one to reach the single track so that I don't have to try to get around anybody and I can control the race. Because of a slight course change this year, we spent more time on the wide-double track of the snowmobile trail early in the race which meant that I had that much further to go before reaching the single track, extra time in which those fast guys could come up on me and get by me. I didn't want any of that.

So, I went out as hard as I could for the first quarter mile and pretty hard the rest of the early miles. Coming up on mile 2, I heard the guy from BAA coming up on me. Then we turned onto the Bat Cave trail. This trail has pretty technical single track and a lot of loop backs, and with last night's rain it was a little slick in places. My goal was to put in a surge after every blind corner while I wasn't in sight so that I would stay out of sight completely and wouldn't give anybody behind me any motivation to try and catch me late in the race.

It worked. The race was basically a time trial the entire way, but especially once I'd gotten a little ways into this initial stretch of single track. Knowing which corners I needed to slow down for, which would have trees I could slingshot around, and which turns really weren't that bad and I could maintain my speed helped, not to mention knowing what the roots and rocks would look like as I went so that I could easily choose my path.

I wasn't too worried about getting caught until the last 2 miles when we left the single track. Once you pass the aid station around 3.75(ish) you are back on the snowmobile trail, and while there are some nice mud puddles (although small compared to years past w/our current drought) you can go pretty quickly.

I think that there's basically 2 key strategies to winning the race. First, being the first to the single track, and second, using your finishing kick 2 miles from the finish when you pass the last uphill stretch on the snowmobile trail and have a sustained mile plus downhill run. You don't know you've hit that downhill right away because it isn't straight down at first, but being able to make use of that trail won me the first time I ran this race and has stood me in good stead the last two years. If they can't see you when you reenter the Knight Woods, it isn't as important to go as fast there. But you will anyway.

I saw Dora and Lisa after the race (the aid station volunteers) and they were discussing who they thought would win the race right before I ran by. I feel bad that I just skipped 'em by without waving or smiling or saying hi or anything, but I didn't want to lose and had no idea how far behind me anybody was, and I knew that the next two miles were where the fast road racing guys would best be able to catch me.

I came in under 40 minutes, although some of that I think is because whether the course is shorter or the same length with the minor change, you definitely have a good stretch early on that is easier than the normal single track you would normally be on. (One of the trails got closed for trail maintenance this weekend.)

I wound up winning by about a minute, which was good for a loaf of banana bread and a $50 gift certificate as a prize. Trail Monster Running won the team event, so I also got half a case of Smutty Nose (and I called my sister to brag about that as soon as I got home as it's her favorite beer.) I brought it with me to a post race BBQ at Trail Monster Mindy's house where we were watching the world cup and had 2 of them, and there were 3 left in my cooler when I left, so I even get to drink almost half of them.

Great time, despite the humidity, but thankfully we got some rain last night to muddy up the course a little bit since it's been way too dry lately. The rain was enough to drive away most of the deer flies, who were only in evidence at the finish line and who didn't bother me at all during the race.

I wore my Nike waffles during the race, which were a little slick in some of the muddier spots but I stayed upright the entire way. I wound up skiing probably 4 or 5 times but always regained my balance quickly without losing too much momentum.

I hung out at the finish line and gave a high 5 or shook the hands of probably 90% of the finishers (I took a small break to help Ian out with the results). A lot of people must have fallen today, since at least a third of the people had sandy/muddy hands and palms.

This race is in memory of Chris Douglass, who died a few weeks before the first edition of this race, and his mother ran really well and won her age group. Everybody cheered really loud when she crossed the finish line, which she powered right through the chute and actually collapsed into my arms. Thankfully, I caught her, since I wasn't expecting her to just fall over since nobody has ever actually done that to me before. I think she might have actually been aiming at Ian, though, since she repeated the maneuver for him once she had gotten back on her feet.

Other notable finishes include Sara who did a flip into the finish line, and Chandra who ran her first trail race and her first race over 5 kilometers today.

Great job to everybody, it was a fun day and I'm looking forward to actually running the other races in this series (finally.)

(And the BAA runner I noticed at the start? Mike Dowling, a 2:34 marathoner who would have kicked my butt on the roads. )

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