WTF Half Marathon Race Report

A week ago (2/24/19) I ran my first trail half marathon, the WTF Half Marathon in Gibsonville, NC! And it lived up to its name, for sure! 🙂

Race: WTF {Trail} Half Marathon. It stands for….

Goal: Run a good race. Start conservatively (don’t go out so fast like I did at Lakeside!), then increase effort, and finish strong! I had a cold the entire week, so I wasn’t going to push too hard, but at least a solid effort I could be proud of.

Gear: Finally came out of our cold, rainy spell (whew, just in time!). Was expecting 40’s-50’s, so I went with my North Face base layer, Oiselle team tank and bra (and headband!), Smartwool pants (and socks and undies), Altra King MT trail shoes, Garmin watch, and gloves just in case.  Also had my RoadID bracelet, KT tape for my shin (worked perfectly!) and Nuun hydration in my Naked flask and fuel belt (which I ended up leaving in my bag).

Gut: Woke up at 6 so I could eat by 6:30 (3 hours prior to race time). Had 1 fried egg, 1 toast, and 2 pancakes with syrup. Washed down with 16 oz of Nuun Tropical 🙂  Worked great!

Also, brought Gummy bears for mid-race fuel, and that also worked great. Zero GI issues (Yaaaaaaay!)  The water stops had Huma gel (made from chia seeds) so I had 2 of those too. Really liked them! I think I’m going to swap GU and Honey Stingers for the Huma gel.

Weather: The rain FINALLY stopped, but the trails were an absolutely muddy mess. The race organizers had to change the route due to the extremely high river level. But it was the perfect temp for me (50’s) so I wasn’t too hot or too cold. And after I finished, the sun came out, a truly welcome sight after, what, 5-6 days of rain??

Pre-Race: I arrived before 9. Waited a bit in the car. Found the bathrooms and bag drop. Decided to “run free” (no fuel belt) since the course was a 3 lap course–I knew there were at least 3 water stops (there ended up being 6). I met up with my neighbor L and met her friend B, then saw a Oiselle bird (actually she saw me!) and we chatted for a bit. It was great to know a teammate would be out on the course!  I did a quick warm-up routine (lunges, leg kicks, leg swings).

Race: Off and running at 9:30! I started roughly in the mid-pack, and tried to go slow so I wouldn’t burn out too fast. In hindsight, I should have been maybe a little closer to the front. It was only a few minutes run to get to the trail. The trail–rocky, rooty, muddy, twisty, and hilly–created some difficulties in passing people, so I went slower for Lap 1 than I wanted to.

Lap 1 Goal was to use those 4ish miles as a warm-up. Towards the end of lap 1 I thought, wow I’m starting to get tired and it’s only lap 1! But I pushed those thoughts out of my head. Those hills though! And all the mud!! That combo of hills + mud (the kind that sticks to your shoes) made my legs ache. And just when I started to feel a little crummy, there’d be a water stop! I thought the water stops were perfectly placed, so I had some water and Gatorade, then water and a lovely surprise Huma gel. I originally thought my Gummy Bears would suffice, so I was eating 3 or more every mile, but the Huma worked wayyyyy  better (and went down a lot faster!)  When I finished lap 1, the clock at the aid station said 1 hour even. I thought, WOW this is gonna take me nearly 3 hours! But I didn’t let that bother me. One foot in front of the other.

Lap 2 Goal was to find a solid pace, and parcel out my energy (as in, save some for the last lap). For me, pacing on the trail means finding someone to run behind that is moving at a challenging pace. I found that with an older lady with gray/white hair (a kindred spirit! LOL) in braids. She passed me around the end of lap 1, and I liked her style (just go through the puddles, not dance around them as many others were doing–guess I found my trail running pet peeve). I was being a bit of a close follower, but I wanted to run strong, and she was running strong, so I just tried to stay with her. She said, you’re welcome to pass me. And I replied, I’m actually enjoying running behind you. I’m pretending you’re my training partner and we’re having a nice run through the woods. She laughed and said, OK. My name is Leslie. I told her my name, and we ran together for awhile, maybe a few miles? I ended up passing her at a water stop (I walked all the water stops; most people I saw did too). I got a little boost from passing people, so I focused on that for awhile. Just reeling in the next person, and when I passed them, my goal was to put space in between me and them so they wouldn’t pass me back.  I did get passed by maybe 2 people, but ended up catching them later on. The clock said something like 1:50 at the end of lap 2, so I knew I ran it faster than the first lap.

Lap 3 Goal was to finish strong! I knew I had quite a ways to go (4+ miles) so I just focused on running a challenging but not too fast pace. I was still feeling surprisingly good, so I knew I was going to be able to finish, and hoped I could feel strong at the end. I began lapping people (and got lapped by the fastest guys). I gave myself little goals and paid little attention to my watch, the time, or even what mile I was in. “Just get to the next water stop” or “Just get to the pine forest section where it’s flatter and less muddy” or “Just catch that next person up ahead.” In the final few miles, it became “Never give up!” and “You are fast and fit!”  Lots and lots of positive self talk, cuz my legs were beginning to feel trashed. The hills took a toll on my hip flexors and hammies, and the muddy sections were challenging for my ankles and calves. Finally, I got through lap 3, and the clock was around 2:40. Holy $h!t, I’ve been running for that long!!!

There was a bit more trail, then pavement. Of course, more hills. I passed a lady in front of me, and desperately hoped I could stay in front of her, just in case she was in my age group. I knew I had only a few minutes of running left, but running slightly uphill on pavement to the finish, I was feeling it.  You can tell by my pain face here, haha:

My head felt fuzzy, so my decision-making became cloudy–Do I turn here? I knew where the finish was, but there were ambulances at the corner that threw me off a bit. I decided to just run towards the finish and hope I wasn’t skipping part of the course. Turns out there was a turn sign, I just didn’t see it. With the finish in sight, I kicked it in and felt SO great that I completed my first trail half marathon!!! The time was about 2:51. I bent over to take a breather, and rest my weary legs, and met up with my old co-worker, BH. It was nice to catch up, and have someone to chat with since I went to the race solo.

Results: Final time was 2:50:51. 2nd place of 10 in my age group. I was thrilled with that. I didn’t care how far ahead 1st place was. Then of course I had to check… and she was 2 minutes ahead of me. I think I could have ran two minutes faster, had I not had a cold that week, and not started so far back. It’s OK. I’m filing that away under my “Lessons Learned” and I will do better next time. I had a huge runner’s high (balanced out by the extreme fatigue in my legs) so I have no regrets!

As I waited for the awards ceremony, and my neighbor and her friend, and my new Bird friend, to finish I helped myself to some pancakes and bacon that tasted SO. FREAKIN. GOOD. basically cuz I was starvation central. I had some banana and Nuun hydration too. I got cold so I put on more clothing but my pants and feet were wet so that didn’t help. Finally the sun came out so my upper half was warm at least.

My friends finished, we got some pics, I changed into clean clothes for the 45 min drive home. I felt tired but so, so good for not giving up.

Recommend: YES, for sure. The race was well organized, lots of support (both food/drink and crowds), well-marked, great swag, and the medals were awesome too!

This is race 1 in the Trivium Race series. All the medals fit together at the end like a puzzle… very cool for RunNerds like me!!

That feeling of racing my best and feeling strong is the feeling I chase, and on this day, I had it.  Thankful for my body for being strong, and my mind for not giving up!

Next up: the Northern Trails 10 miler next weekend 🙂

Strava Stats & Garmin Stats: