Tuesday, May 21, 2019

McDonald Forest 50K

A couple weeks ago I ran the McDonald Forest 50k for my 6th time.  I hadn't run the race since 2015, so I was excited to get back out there and see how fast I could go.  My training this spring was decent, but I did very few fast efforts or long runs because of a lingering shin injury.  Regardless, I still had high hopes for race day.

The race started out on an easy road climb and right away I noticed my shin.  Actually it was the lack of pain I noticed.  As we all cruised up the road, I kept waiting to feel something in my shin but it never came.  Honestly it was kind of weird not to have any pain because on every other run this year my shin was bothersome to various degrees.
Mile 1
Photo: Patrick Means
Just over a mile in we turned right down a gravel trail and I jumped in front.  I'm typically a good downhill runner so I wanted to be able to cruise down this initial downhill without having anyone in my way.  However, I still wasn't convinced that my shin would be one hundred percent so I took the first few steps on the descent a little easy because downhill usually is more bothersome for my shin.

Rounding the first bend in the trail I knew my shin was good to go!  With no pain on my mind it felt like I was floating down the trail.  I still can't get over how smooth and effortless the descent was.  My legs felt sharp, I was quickly pulling away from everyone else...it was going to be my day!

After the initial downhill, there some rolling trails, roads, and then a descent climb.  I kept moving well through this section focusing on running easy and not giving too much of an effort early on.  I made sure to drink a bit as the day was going to be hot, but mostly I was just pumped to be feeling healthy and fast.

As we reached the next section of trail a couple other runners started to catch up but I soon pulled away again as the trail began to descend.  Not that I was really concerned about other runners this early on.  I was aiming for the race to feel easy as long a possible and then push hard at the finish.

A few more miles of gentle single track brought us to a mile long downhill leading into the first aid station.  As I floated along on this downhill I started to noticed the outside of my quads down near my knees were a little stiff.  Kind of weird, maybe my IT bands were a little tight or something...I figured that was something I should take care of after the race, but no worries now.

I quickly passed through the saddle, aid station 1, at mile 9.7 and started the short but steep climb up Ridge trail.  I ran it all, but did my best to keep holding back.  I was so ready to get rolling, but I knew I should hold back for a while longer.

After a short section of road we hit one of the longer downhills on the course were I began the fast descent down a wide gravel trail.  I was ready to open it up but I could really start to feel my quads now.  I guess that wasn't just some minor issue a couple miles earlier, my quads were already getting beat up.

This was certainly a little demoralizing, but I tried to maintain a solid pace on the downhill.  Maybe I could just run the uphills a little harder and save my downhill legs for the final descents.

I reached the bottom of the downhill and began the climb up to Dimple Hill.  The initial uphill felt a bit tougher than I hoped and seeing the mile 12.7 sign was not too encouraging.  Barely 1/3 in and my legs are already trashed.  I tried my best to push on the climb up to Dimple Hill, but the downhill pounding had taken a little bit of spring out of my legs are I was really struggling to get moving.

About halfway up I stopped trying to move faster and just settled into a steady effort.  I figured that maybe I'd feel stronger later or that the different terrain later in the race would suit me better.

As I crested Dimple Hill I stopped to fill my water bottle at the aid station.  Meanwhile Lindon Powell blew right past the aid station and took the lead.  I left the aid station just a few second back from him and now was trying to chase him down.

Mile 15 or so, with Lindon up ahead
Photo: Patrick Means
I didn't want to work too hard to catch up since I knew the next few miles of the course were a bit flatter which doesn't suit me as well.  Still I didn't want to get too far behind either so I kept pushing a little bit to keep Lindon in sight.

I fell back a little ways on the initial road section, but I hoped that I would be able to make up some time once we hit the trail.  Fortunately that was the case and soon I was just a few steps back.

Near Hydra at mile 16
Photo: Patrick Means

Still feeling easy although my legs were a bit tired
Photo: Patrick Means
Photo: Patrick Means

Photo: Patrick Means
Leaving the trail, there's a long gentle descent on a gravel road.  This section is probably 1.5 mile long and I knew that I'd have to work pretty hard to keep up with Lindon.  He's got way more road speed than I do, so I tried to settle in behind him and not fall too far back.  I did a pretty good job of staying on his heels, but he started to get away on the last half mile of road.  That was okay since I figured I could close the gap as we entered the maze and began the rooted descent down Baker Creek.

It took me a bit longer than I thought to catch Lindon on Baker Creek, but I caught back up with him before we started climbing again.  I wanted to stay on his heel on the climb and was able to do so although it was getting hard.  I hiked a few sections as we neared the end of the maze, but was still able to stay right behind him.  As we left the maze, Lindon pulled away on the short section of gravel road before the descent down Extendo.  That was okay because I knew that I could run down Extendo fast and should be able to catch up.

The top of Extendo, around mile 19, is mostly rolling trail and I started to fall back even farther.  I was struggling a little bit, but still wanted to save enough for a strong finish so it was okay to lose some ground.  Plus, I knew I could run the downhill section on Extendo very well so I planned to catch up there.  But when the downhill came, I struggled to get it in gear.  My legs were shot so I had a hard time running quickly or smoothly down Extendo.  I soon lost sight of Lindon, but didn't think he was too far out.

I left the Extendo aid station probably 30 second or a little more behind, but was still able to see Lindon up ahead.  There are some long sight lines on this road section so it was a little encouraging to be able to see that I was still close.  With about 11 miles to go, I figured that I needed to start to push hard and try to catch up.  I ran well on the climb, but my legs were beat up enough I really couldn't get going very fast.

By the top of the climb, I was well out of sight and didn't really know how far back I was.  I headed into the maze for the second time with hopes of making up some time there.  There is some steeper, more technical running in the maze which I tend to run well on.

On the initial climb I never was able to catch sight of Lindon so I hoped that I'd be able to close the gap on the downhill.  Only, when I reached the downhill I realized my legs were in really rough shape.  I was able to run the smooth gentle sections, but the steeper more technical section were a struggle.  Honestly I was just about walking in spots.

Coming out of the maze, there's a fairly steep climb up a trail called Knucklehead.  It's got one switchback and is there's not much underground so I figured that I'd be able to see a couple minutes ahead.  I had hopes that I'd be able to see Lindon somewhere up ahead on Knucklehead, but once I reached that trail there was no one to be seen.

After climbing out of the maze I did my best to run the downhill to the saddle, but at this point, downhill was pretty rough.  Unfortunately the lack of long runs or fast runs this spring was kind of catching up with me and I was really starting to hurt.

I reached the saddle aid station, filled up my water bottle, and headed out for the final few miles.  The initial climb up Vineyard Mountain wasn't too bad as it's a gentle uphill and I could run decently well.   It was slow, but I was still moving.

After Vineyard, the next couple miles are smooth gentle downhill.  As I hobbled along through this stretch I couldn't help but think that Lindon must have been flying through here.  That's how it goes....at this point all I could do was focus on getting to the finish line.

I love this time of year in McDonald Forest because its just so green
Photo: Patrick Means

Because I felt like crap for the last 10 miles, I had plenty of time to enjoy the the views
Photo: Patrick Means

Shuffling off of Vineyard Mountain
Photo: Patrick Means

No legs at this point, just a sheepish grin
Photo: Patrick Means
As I shuffled along Dave's trail I ran into my friend Emile who was out for a run on the course.  It was good to see him and to share a few minutes on the trail with him.  I'm was feeling pretty demoralized so it picked me up a bit to see him out there.

With about 2 miles to go I saw someone catching up.  I figured I'd get caught sooner than later since I wasn't moving too well and I was curious to see who it'd be.  Turn out it was my friend Doug who was running his first 50K that day.  We hiked together for minute to the top of the last climb then I told him to take the lead on the last downhill.  My only goal was to not walk it.

It was good to be done, but reaching the finish line was bittersweet.  I was glad to be done running, but I really had hoped for a bit more.  I guess that was probably a little unrealistic.  My training really wasn't that great, and I probably went out far too fast for what my fitness allowed.  Still, the way I felt on that first downhill, I thought it might be my day.  That was just pure joy...to feel so effortless and have nothing hurt...it was probably worth running it way too fast.  Thinking how good that downhill felt still makes me smile a couple weeks later.

Well, even though my training wasn't great I don't want to take anything away from Doug or Lindon's runs at the Mac.  They both beat me fair and square and I'm for both of them for having such strong races.  I'm sure they probably prepared better than I did and probably ran smarter races as well, so good on them for putting together such good runs on a hot day.

Anyhow, the best part about a 50K is you can hang out at the finish line and see everyone come in.  I love hearing everyone's stories and unique experiences on the course.  By the finish line, whether you're first of last, you just want to be done, and really that's what it's all about.  Just go out there do the best you can and you'll finish when you finish.

I guess that was a good lesson to learn going into Cruel Jewel 100, which I ran last weekend, because I sure needed to eat a big slice of humble pie as I stumbled to the finish.  But, that another story for another day.

Anyhow, thanks to all the volunteers who were out there on race day.  Seeing you guys out there make it so much fun.  That's why the Mac will always be one of my favorite races.  Also thanks to Mike and Mom for putting on the Mac.  While there's a lot of volunteers who are needed to make the race happen, you two are the ones who make it happen and deserve a special thanks.  Seeing what you guys do first hand really gives me a new appreciation for how hard race directors work.

Also a quick thanks to my sponsors Injinji and Squirrel's Nut Butter.  All the support you've given me over the years is really appreciated.  At the Mac I used some Run Lightweight Crews socks and made sure to lube up with a stick of SNB beforehand.

Want to do the Mac next year?  Here's a link to the website: http://www.mac50k.org
Want to see more of Patrick's pictures?  Go here: https://trailhousephoto.com
Want to run the next local race?  It's Run for the Hills on June 9:  http://gltrunforthehills.com

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