Rough Creek Trail Run Race Recap
As many of you know, I just finished my first 40 miler on the 23rd of September. Whether you are running your first trail race or your 50th, the Rough Creek Trail Run, which is hosted by Active Joe, is a great race to do. This is the second year that I have participated in this race and can't wait to run it again next year.
The race is on the Rough Creek Lodge property in Glen Rose, TX, about 2 hours from Dallas. There is a distance for everyone and even a fun run for kids. If you want to get your feet wet in the world of trail running and experience part of the challenging terrain, the 10k is your race. Then there are two middle distances, the half & full marathons, 1 loop and 2 loops respectively. Lastly, is the challenging 40 miler race. It is 3 loops of the tough, rugged terrain but was oh so much fun. My love for this race started last year when I decided to enter the half marathon. I had run a few trail races before this one but not with this challenging of terrain. Needless to say, my experience was a good one. I walked away with a first place female finish & fast forward a year later, I conquered the 40 miler!
Leading up to this race, I was so nervous about the distance. I was getting in the mileage that I needed to and following the plan I had laid out. The morning of the race, I was surprisingly relaxed. I got out to the race sight, checked in, said hello to a few racers and headed back to my car to get my drop bag and chair set up close to the start line. My friend, Nick, was running the marathon distance and so we would be starting together which made me feel more at ease. Once the race was under way, I settled into an easy pace. About three miles in, you start the first side of the infamous "rusty crown". You will find steep up & down hills with loose gravel. Then you came upon the "bowl" where you get to get relief & some easy miles before hitting the other side of the "rusty crown". The first loop seemed to go smoothly. Getting in the fluids and nutrition that I had planned for and feeling good. It took two hours and twenty-four minutes, I changed socks, dropped trash, refilled my hydration pack and grabbed my nutrition for the next loop and was off. Since there is not much coverage from trees on this course and the temperatures were going to be in the mid- nineties, I decided to fill my bandana with ice to go around my neck at the next aid station before hitting the "rusty crown". This made such a huge difference. I could feel the heat and having ice on my neck and down my sports bra (ladies this was amazing) got me to the next aid station feeling great. A hot spot of was beginning to form on the left ball of my foot at about mile twenty. I was worried about it getting worse but knew that once I finished this loop I could take care of it with my foot kit. Only once I did try to fix it, my foot kit was nowhere to be found in my bag. To this day I still have not found it...haha. I remember making it and placing it in my bag but poof it was gone. Bad luck. I slid on a fresh pair of socks and prayed it would just pop itself and I would get a little relief. That never happened. The third loop was harder, but my body was feeling great overall. After all the racers coming through multiple times, the climbs became a little tougher and the down hills were like sliding down a slide. The gravel was very loose at this point but I just kept telling myself to get down or up and over so that I could begin to jog again. As soon as I hit the last aid station with 2.6ish miles to go, nothing could stop me from getting to the finish line. I loaded up my bandana with ice and was off. Not jogging but running. I knew these last few miles were relatively flat and that I just wanted to cross that finish line. I crossed the finish line in 9:01:05. It was two minutes over my goal of a sub-nine hour finish but I was able to pull off a first female finish. I was so happy.
All in all, this particular race is great because of the people that host it and the volunteers manning the aid stations. The first aid station from the start/finish line could be heard from a far. I would be climbing and descending hills and hear hoots and hollers as runners would come down the final hill into their aid station before heading back to the start/finish line. It gave you a little extra push to try to get to them a little quicker. They gave words of encouragement and helped you get back out on the course quickly. The guys manning the "bowl aid station" or the half way point of each loop, were also amazing. They greeted me by name (yes, it was on my bib, a perk of early registration) and again gave me words of encouragement and helped me efficiently get back on the course. Cheering you on as you left their aid station. I couldn't have asked for anymore.
Again, if you are looking for a great trail run that is challenging and not too far from DFW, I hope you will give this one a try. Be sure to register early though, as all distances sell out fast.
Hope y'all have a great day! Stay active!
Samantha, Blissfully Fit Mama
Next up, Palo Dura Canyon 50 miler on October 21st!
