Salado Creek Trail Run

Aah........ the benefits of growing old. At 51 I am often told "You're not old." No, to people near my age I am not, but to many of the 20 and 30 year old crowd I sometimes run with, I am. Even though they are kind and say otherwise. And to those older, as in an older co-worker, I am "just a snot-nosed pup." But at my age it is sometimes advantageous as in today's trail run at Salado Creek. I felt good and knew I could have a good race if I played it right and ran "MY RACE". As is usually the case though, I got caught up in the quick pace of the front runners, but quickly toned it down and ran with a group I thought I could hang with. The race started on the road for the first half mile then turned into a really tight single track trail. So tight at times that frequently it was necessary to duck under trees and at least 3 times I was brushing my shoulders up against trees and large brush. Low trees were abound and demanded ducking, dodging, and weaving. I was running with a group of about 10 runners and soon we dispersed as the trail became more technical. At times the trail opened up to a wider almost jeep trail and then to very rocky river bed terrain. I could tell some were not accustomed to running in such tight and rocky trails. At one point there was a fallen tree traversing the trail. In a split second I thought, Go under or climb over? I climbed over and nearly fell. Thinking I was running well, and fast, I again surveyed the field as I had done at the start and thought I could maybe place in my age category. Not too many old guys out here. Come on, don't we all do that? I passed at least 5 people the first 5 miles, but then I began to get passed. At the 5 mile aid station I stopped for about 30 seconds to grab some Gatorade. a group of about 7 people went pass me as I took my break. I continued and tried to keep that group in my sight. With about 2 miles to go I was feeling somewhat fatigued but was able to sustain a good pace. I finished in 1 hour 15 minutes and change. I felt good about my chances. Tom, Brian, Joe, Roy, Edgar and his fiance Kerri hung around and waited for the results. Tom won third in his age category, 45-49. Kerri won an award (she's young, I didn't pay attention to her age cat). And I won first! Granted, there aren't too many guys my age out there but it felt great! HEY CHRIS, I'M FAST....................For short distances, and among old guys. Lately I have been noticing the affects of aging on my body, and I am OK with it, but it feels great once in a while to be successful. Wait a minute........, I mean to win something, because just going out and running an event is being successful. I hope to keep running for many years to come and I wish for my friends, family and everyone to do the same.

Running into a friend

It was a beautiful Sunny day Saturday Feb 06. A welcomed change from all the rainy cloudy days we've been having. I decided to sleep in a little and had a late start (7:30AM) on my morning run. I headed out the door into a chilly breeze.
Running a mile on the road to the trail head of Leon Creek I was wearing my iPOD and enjoying the cool (38degrees) breezy morning. Staying on the paved path because I didn't feel like getting muddy, I was enjoying my music and the serenity of running alone. The usually dry creek was running rapidly. Passing walkers, leisurely bikers, and some runners and exchanging "good morning" was feeling good. The pond at the turn around (6miles) was over flowing and teaming with ducks floating on the water having a great time.
As I turned to head back I removed my top layer and felt a buzz on my Phone. It was Brian who was crewing for Liza at the Rocky Raccoon 100 miler. Liza was through the first loop (20mile) and in the lead! As I responded with an "Awesome", I looked up to see John Palmer. "Good to see ya John." Although I was enjoying the solo run, Running into John was great. I turned my iPOD off and enjoyed the conversation and catching up on things. At times there was silence, but just running with a friend is a conversation in itself. We hit the trails at the Birds of Prey Preserve before we headed back. The pace was a little faster than I had been running, but that is good for both of us.
At OP Schnabel park we parted ways, We each headed home. It's so convenient to live so close to the trails.
As for Liza, she won! Her second 100 mile victory in 3 months! Awesome! Can't wait to hear the stories from Her, Her crew, and pacers at our Thursday evening group run.