Ran a good strong race on a beautiful fall day.

It was good to get back on the trails on such a beautiful fall day. We lucked out by having a cool, frosty day sandwiched into the middle of a couple of drippy weeks. This left the trails a bit wet with a lot of soggy leaf cover. The run started uphill almost from the get-go and continued uphill for a couple of kilometers then crossed over the top of the mountain and downhill to start a winding route back up again! I found the downhill portions particularly challenging as my vision isn't the greatest and at my age (74) don't want to break a bone or twist an ankle.

Another surprise was the number of trees that had fallen across the trails from the recent windstorms. All, except one, were small enough to jump over. The sole exception only required bending over to slither under and we went under it twice, on both the outband and return legs of the race.

It was a great relief to finally get to Fred's Railroad and be able to run along comfortably. The last little bit down Cave Hole and back to the finish was totally exhilirating. Breaking out into the open field for the last 100m or so and a run to the finish was great.

My goal time was 1:15 and I was a little off that, but still a nice strong finish, just about in the middle of the total field.

It's SO GOOD to be back racing.

Note: Race was actuall about 11.4km, according to my Garmin