Haulin' Aspen Trail Marathon

I haven't been posting much lately because work and family have been taking all of my time.I have been running though, and had the chance to run a great trail marathon with Karl last weekend. Here's my report:
My second venture into the world of distance trail running was a blast and enough to make me want to focus on trails instead of roads. The Haulin’ Aspen Trail Marathon starts just outside of Bend, Oregon (around 4,000 feet) and climbs 2,500 feet in the first 14 miles, followed by 12 miles of downhill technical single track. I was worried about the elevation at the start and the climb during the race since I suffered greatly from altitude during my road marathon in Bend last summer. I was also worried about the heat. It turns out I had no reason to worry.

Race morning started out cool and crisp as we loaded onto buses at 5:15 a.m. 45 minutes later we arrived at Shevlin Park and stepped out into the 40 degree morning. I was bundled up in a long sleeve tech shirt and Marathon Maniac jacket. We had an hour to kill at the start, but it went fast as Maniacs gathered in a big huddle and talked of races past, present and future. Minutes before 7:00 I stripped down to my race attire: black coolmax running skirt, Marathon Maniacs yellow singlet, black Brooks hat, gold hoops and diamond studs, tomato-red Brooks Cascadia trail shoes and Iron Butterfly Dirty Girl Gaiters in shocking pink. I decided to carry a Brooks handheld bottle of Gatorade because the aid stations were 3-4 miles apart.

Karl and I started the race together, covering the first 3-4 miles at a very conservative pace. I knew the first half would be hard and wanted to warm up properly before starting the climb. We started climbing at mile 2 and it didn’t let up. Karl began using walk breaks according to his pre-race plan and I slowly pulled away from him. I was feeling good, but continued my slow and conservative pace. I caught a glimpse of Karl again at the 6 mile aid station and was pleasantly surprised to see him so close behind me. At mile 10 things turned nasty. The course sent us up a very step forest service road, in full sun and so steep everyone was walking. I remembered the advice I was given on the Ultra Board: walk with purpose, don’t just amble along. I tried my best to walk “with purpose”. I think I did fairly well, but I need to really practice my hiking before my next trail race. My legs don’t do walking. The aid station at mile 12 was in full blazing sun (although temps were still on the cool side) . I thought it would be good to refill my bottle before continuing the climb and was surprised to find I had barely drank any of the contents. Oops, that was a bad sign and I had to make myself start drinking more. Mile 14 marked the end of the climb and we turned onto single track trail for the 12 mile descent to the finish.

The trail was great… fully engulfed by forest and out of the sun just in time to avoid the heat. The downhill felt good but I had to keep my focus sharp since rocks and roots were jumping out of nowhere and taking unsuspecting runners down. I was a little concerned that my legs would tire from so much downhill and I would be stumbling near the end. Fortunately all of my hill training the past 6 months paid off and I was able to stay upright the entire distance. Others were not as fortunate and I saw many bloody marathoners doing their best to keep putting one foot in front of another as they edged closer to the finish. I crossed the finish line in 5:05. Good enough for a 4th in age group.

I grabbed some food, looked for the beer (gone thanks to the half-marathoners) and made my way to the shuttle bus line. I felt incredibly good without the stiffness and aching joints that are trademarks of a road marathon finish. I think I’m ready to tackle the Northface 50k in October.