31.38 - 4,403 ft. - 5:50 on feet.
Hosted the Silver Creek Evening Invitational at my folks' tonight and into the morning. We had a great turnout of 19 runner who collectively ran 81 loops for 282 miles!
I had a goal of making a workout out of the run and not just completing. Goal was 9 x 3.4 loops. First three easy (36-38 min), middle three moderate (33-36 min), and the final three the fastest (29-32 min). I feel good about the workout and effort despite not running laps 8 and 9 faster.
We were scheduled to start at 8:00pm but I had no idea how many people would show. We ended up having 19 runners throughout the night who collectively ran at least 81 loops for a total of over 282 miles!
I finally started running just after 8:30pm. As the organizer, I had to hang around the start for a while as people trickled in. I wanted to make sure that they knew the route and plan. I ran the first two loops with Leslie and Pete. The sun had not completely set, so it was good for everyone to see at least one full loop in the light. The loop starts with a climb on a dirt road, levels off and has a slight down, before climbing again. Aside from a few more rollers, that is the extent of the climbing until the final steep climb in the last .3 of the loop. We should have taken that first climb easier knowing that we had 8 more loops to go, but it is always tough to reighn things in at the beginning, especially when the sun is shining and you are just starting to get a feel for things.
We purposefully slowed up for loop 2 and then Pete had to take off. Again, we took loop 3 easy and I was feeling really good. To this point, we had taken short stops in between to grab some more hydration or nutrition and then to drop Pete so he could head home.
First 3 laps came in at 32:43, 34:13, and 34:49 - So, all three closer to what should have been "moderate" pace and done during loops 4 through 6. However, there was no way to fix that now, so it was time to press on.
I ran the middle three loops mostly by myself. I realized I needed to be to the hairpin near 15:00 and to the first beaver pond at about 20:00. I had the downhill section from there to gain a little time if needed. However, the downhill is also the rockiest section and is tough to navigate in the dark. Loop 4 and 5 felt good and I was able to push the down and flats and still managed to run all of the ups. I hit my first down point on lap 6 near the top of the first climb. I hiked out the top section of the climb and gently rolled into a run again on the flat. I was almost a minute behind at the hairpin, but I pushed hard on the down and was back on track at the beaver pond. I started feeling good again and was ready to test the legs on the last three loops.
Middle 3 laps came in at 32:28, 31:07, and 30:56 - With the fatigue of the night setting in, I was pleased with these splits. In the grand scheme, they should have been slower, but it was time to push through and try and knock out the next three the fastest.
When I started loop 7, I quickly knew I was going to have to hike more of the ups and push the downs to make up time. I was almost 2 minutes back off of lap 6's time when I reached the top of the climb and was rolling onto the flat. I pushed and made up a minute by the hairpin and another minute by the beaver pond. My legs were feeling it, but that was the point of the evening. I started lap 8 right behind Leslie and Andrew. Leslie was one lap back by now but was still plugging on strong. I didn't catch them until the upper climb. I passed them and mentioned that I wasn't feeling great. I was going to really have to work to make up time. I circled down the hairpin and I saw Leslie and Andrew's headlamps up on the hill. Leslie yelled some words of encouragement and it was time to cruise. I was almost back on track by the beaver pond, but the rockiest section was still ahead and I felt like I was about at max speed for the conditions and the lack of light. I passed Chris right before "the trenches." It was good to see him still getting after it. As I was part way through the trenches, I hooked my left toe hard on a rock and instantly felt something pull in my left knee. It was something I had never felt before. All the possibilities quickly ran through my head and I was hoping it was nothing serious. I kept pushing the down, but backed off a hair as to not fall on any rocks or push the knee too much. I was still pleased with my lap 8 time and by now the knee was in quite a bit of pain. I decided to not push the final loop, but I wanted to complete what I had started. Leslie and I finished the final loop together nice and easy as a cool down and I was really glad to finish all 9 loops. My body was hurting and the knee was throbbing, but it hadn't gotten worse.
Final 3 laps came in at 30:48, 33:37, and 39:57. If I had not hooked my toe and hurt my knee, I think I could have pulled off at least one sub-30. I would have really had to work with how tired and fatigued I was, but I think it was in the realm of possibility. The bigger picture is more important. It was a great night and a great workout. Packed up after Davy Crockett came in from his 9th loop and I got back to my folks and in bed by just about 3am.
More tomorrow on the knee and how I am feeling post 50k in the dark!
| 
