Paris Mountain 12k : Beautiful Trail Running
Trail running. It seems so natural. The idea of it seems like it would come as second nature to us. Something written in our DNA. The same code that tells a newborn see turtle to make a run for the ocean. Everything has these codes written into our very being.
This would explain why my first long distance trail run gave me an unexplainable amount of joy. It does not explain why it was so unbelievably difficult. To be honest it was not the entire run that was difficult, but the nasty bits were incredible.
The event was the Paris Mountain 12k Trail Run. The event was scheduled as an 11k, but some new mountain bike trails had just been finished, so literally 30 seconds before the start, the race director tells of a 1km addition. This is strangely prophetic for the attitude that surrounds a trail run. The only thing you know for sure is that you are going to have to put one foot in front of the other many times. Some with the grace of a ballerina as you go barreling down a hill into a switchback. And some times it will be with the deliberate purpose that drives many of the actions that involve you finding a way to drag your body through.
The race started with a nice winding downhill on pavement that would serve as a way to get the runners divided into packs as we made our way to the mountain. Everytime I line up for the start of a race, I normally think about a start of a race I had when I was about 13 years old. I have a friend who is a great runner. We were very close at one point, and even though he won state titles, he never really gave me any running advice. He would give me some knowledge of courses and things to watch for, but never really any running advice. Then one day at a road race, I was running the 5k after he ran the 12k, I was lining up at the start. I heard him say my name and with a strange amount of force, that type of speech that is part of the last few lines of a coaches speech before the big game, he told me to get up to the front. I tell you this story to get one point across, do not let your own sense of politeness keep you from getting into the position you need to be in. I take the approach that I will get myself into what I consider to be a good position, and then stay aware of the fact that others may need to pass. No one minds passing, as long as you recognize the time when someone needs to pass you.
So as the pack was filling down and about to enter the hill, I made a quick estimation about the fitness of the runners in front of me. One guy looked to be winded already, as I did not want to get stacked up behind him, I made a move to get in front of him before we went single fill into the trail. The first part of the trail was rolling hills and they felt fantastic. This is why people trail run. This beats a road or track 10 times over. I felt great going into what would be “the ascent”. This is where trail running become amazingly real.
When I say uphill. I mean uphill. As if that was not enough, the type of hiking uphill that involves grabbing trees to pull yourself up, hands on knees, watch your step or fall to a tremendous amount of pain uphill. First three mile splits, 9:05 / 8:57 / 18:57. Okay so the damage to my time was obvious, but I found that the biggest amount of damage it did was mental. From that point on, uphill becomes SOOO tempting to walk. I found that getting running again was really hard. Not because I was tired, I was though, but for some other reason. I did not know if this uphill was the last. Should I run and power through this hill only to have the next one defeat me. This is a hard thing to shake. I believe now, after running the trail, I could take 4 or 5 minutes off of my time by knowing purely when to power through and when to conserve. As a side note to anyone running this race in the future, after the crazy mile three uphill, run the other hills. Plenty of downhill to recover. Moving on.
Now after the amazingly tough third mile, came the most enriching and most fun experience I have ever had running. The descent that came after the third mile felt amazing. One item to put in the pro column was that I was with a group of about three other runners that were great to run with. We would get into a good pace and stay close and then separate and then linked back up. As I runner, I really love the moments of peace that running alone brings, but I also liked the shared misery of running together through all of the horrible bits.
Most of the downhill consisted of new mountain bike friendly switchbacks. This meant nice sure footing and high walled sides on the switchback. The high walled switchbacks worked great to ease up to slow yourself down a bit and regain control and then start the next descent. Did I mention this run was FANTASTIC!
The end of the trail had us rejoin the rolling hills of the first miles and take that to the finish. It was a fantastic way to finish. In a weird way, it kind of brought you back to reality. We had just spent four or so miles running mostly downhill on some of the best trails you could have for controlled yet fast running. You almost forgot what it was like to not have nature so in your corner helping you through what could have been a miserable trudge to the finish. As it hit the openness and flatness of the final 1000 meters or so, I remember being really bummed out. I could see 75 yards ahead of me. Where is the fun in that? Who wants to have it all so cut and dry. So ahead of you with no time to enjoy each and every step of the present.
To me. That is what trail running shows us. Enjoy each and every step. Some require grace. Some require more determination than you could have ever trained for. But enjoy. Enjoy each and every step you take. Because when the trail opens and you are back in the clear. Make sure that you have it in you to turn around and head right back up the mountain and into the unknown.
Hike Your Hike.