Great Day For A Trail Race - The Mountain Man

Sunday was a great day for a trail race, my first of the year - The Mountain Man Challenge.

The race was a local one; just down the street from my house. The trail is one of my favorites; one I run regularly. Small race; under 200 people. And the time was perfect; 10a.m. start. It has been warm but raining intermittently all week; the trail was nice and mucky. Put it all together, and you've got the perfect conditions for a trail race.

We got there early because the Tees were limited, received our stuff, and proceeded to stand by the fire to keep warm (mid 30s) and chat with the other runners.

I do think that talking to other runners before a race must be the easiest thing to do. Everyone seems eager to talk and laugh. There must be different reasons for each of us - I know for me, it’s to meet new people, take the edge off from knowing I plan on throwing myself down a trail, and to learn some folks names - I do this to cheer them on at the finish if I get there before them.

Anywho. The race went off without a hitch. It started on time, the route was well marked, they had enough water stations, the timing was accurate, the awards were timely, and best of all, they had great bananas at the end (I had two).

I finished strong, coming in tenth overall (with my wife on my heels) and my PR for the trail. I even got cheered in by some of the faster runners - and then cheered in some of the slower folks I had met earlier. Big smiles all around.

Even the weather didn't feel too bad on the trail - just a lot of mud, but that’s the fun part. When else do we get to play in the mud anymore?

P.S. I should mention that nothing motivates you more than your wife catching up to you without your knowledge and screaming through the woods, "Go Matty!!!".

Indoor Training's Comming to an End

Well, almost.

As I sit here on this beautiful Saturday morning planning to hit the Stony Creek Loop for a nice 6 mile run before work, I'm amazed how my plans for the morning have changed so dramatically from just ten minutes ago. I woke up, made coffee, opened the windows to this lovely, cloudless morning, and checked my weather station to get a feel of the temperature. Just as the aroma of the beans hit my nose the frigidness of the morning hit my brain - 12 degrees. The weatherChannel.com can't leave it at that - I might have still gone. No, it has to go a bit further; it then proceeds to inform me that it feels like 3 degrees and windy and heavy snow flurries. Back to the Gym I go.

But, I can wait it out. February is coming to a close and with March comes rain, mud, getting on the trails, and racing season for 2009. I've had some great fun throughout 2008 and am looking forward to 2009 and all of the new challenges that I hope to overcome.

I've been Mountain Biking since 1991, serious since 1997, and have never participated in one race. This year will be different; I've joined the Rochester Bike (Sport Community) Team and plan on racing with them throughout. RBS has already started training at the store, and I've been able to meet up and train numerous times. The group seems to be a bunch of good people; fun to be around and excited about biking (I think the coach is tring to kill us).

I've been running since December of 2006. I entered my first race - a trail half marathon - in September 2007, and loved it. Since that time, I've entered multiple races throughout 2008; ending the season with the Detroit Marathon this last October. I've met many great runners and running groups, and hope to do a lot of miles this year with them. These 8:00am runs need to end, though.

I've got two goals this year; Running - to qualify for the Boston Marathon, Biking - to finish the Iceman Cometh race in the top 10%. That’s it, not to much to ask for. High expectations when the coffee kicks in.