To start the year off with the right foot, Gina and I ran in the Bandera Trail Run in Hill Country State Natural Area outside of the small community of Bandera, Texas. Gina ran the 25K and I ran the 100K. There is also a 50K. The 100K consists of two loops around the park and the 25K consists of the hardest part of the loop. It was my first time ever at this distance, so I set a PR. The course was much more runnable than the horror stories I heard going into the race. One local had even told that I would need to rock climb at some point during the course.
We camped at the start/finish area the night before the race, arriving just in time for the pre-race briefing and dinner. The amount of pie on the dessert table was a sight in and of itself. There was even a gigantic birthday cake decorated like the course for the race director Joe Prusaitis. I was able to fall asleep easily in the tent and since the race didn't start until 7:30 AM, we both got plenty of sleep.
Once the race started I thought was in for a day of hurt. After an initial grassy half mile, the race soon climbs up Sky Island. Then after dropping quickly off of the back side the race goes up and over Ice Cream Hill. Both of these climbs and descents are short, but steep and littered with rock of all sizes, none that stay put. All of this in the first 5 miles, I was starting to believe the hype. Luckily, after the first aid station (Nachos, I have no idea on where the name came from) the race becomes very runnable for the next 12 miles. By that time the sun had come out in full force, it was 75, I was getting sunburnt and looking forward to some more hills so I could walk a bit.
The middle portion of the race was uneventful, just putting in the miles and trying not to kick any of the rocks too hard. I came around the first lap right around 5 hours. The most memorable part of the race was leaving the second to last aid station (Crossroads) at 5:00 PM. The sun was really starting to go down quickly, air temp was really cooling and my energy level was rising. I ran the last 9.2 miles in 1:53, I know a 12:17/mile pace may sound slow, but the last part of each loop contains three of the five major climbs and after 53 miles just speed walking the hills felt fast. In the Arkansas Traveller I also felt an energy surge as the sun went down, but was able to maintain the pace to the finish. With the shorter distance in Bandera, I was able to keep feeling strong to the finish line. I came in second overall with a time of 11:22:22.
Gina also really enjoyed the race and we will probably consider running it next year even though it is a long drive from home and even though it's in Texas. Getting ready for the race we packed too quickly and forgot three essential items: sunblock, baby powder and ibuprofen. We need to be more careful next time.
12/31/2007-1/6/2008
total miles: 72.0
time: 12:38
YTD total miles: 72.0
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