Race Report: Pere Marquette Endurance Trail Run

Ah the things that tequila after a bike ride gets you into . . . actually, I can't use that excuse this year. I signed up for this race last year due to that reason, but didn't get to race because of an unexpected trip to Texas. So this year I was all about it. The Metro East Tri Club bills this race as "an off-road 7.5 mile Train Run. We run along single-track trails through the scenic Pere Marquette State Park. Ours is considered the toughest and most grueling race in the Midwest!" That don't call this biotch Godzilla for nothing!
I got to carpool up to the race with Bob B, Tommy, Jenny and Liz. Although we spend a lot of Wednesday evenings together during the summer, this was my first race with them. We got to the lodge and picked up our numbers and vest. I was surprised at how many people I knew at a non-cycling event. It seemed like there was someone around every corner. Back at the car, I pinned on my number and found my gloves! I thought I had forgotten them and was more than a bit concerned since it was still only 19 degrees. It was about 10 minutes to our wave going off, so I did a short six minute warm up on another part of the trail.
There were 650 runners registered for the race, and I think something around 20 waves going off, 30 seconds apart. Bob was in wave 10, Liz and I in wave 11, and Tommy and Jenny in wave 12. I have no idea how they cede the waves because there were some hella fast runners starting behind us. We got a whistle and I took off. I looked over my shoulder for Liz but didn't see her. I fell in behind one of the men in our wave and let him pace me out for about the first half mile or so before I couldn't hold with him. It was within that first half mile that the trail went up, and kept going up. I tried to run it, but soon found that I was better off walking. With a good steady stride I was able to pass people and keep my heart rate under control. I decided that would be my strategy for the race. I don't think I've ever walked as much as I did on a run as I did on this one. I totally missed the first two mile markers because I was watching my footing on the ground and engaged in the race. at the first water stop I asked how far we'd come and the volunteer told just over two miles. I took water, but must have swallowed wrong because it made me cough like crazy. I took off running again.
I fell in with a small group of men and paced with them through mile 3 and the second water stop. I GU'd there and had to stop because my GU was so thick. I didn't think I could walk and chew. The group got in front of me so I set off to see if I could catch them. I got them back in sight on occasion, but never caught them. I also kept looking for Bob, wondering how fast of a pace he was keeping because I hadn't caught him.
The fourth mile marker gave me energy because I knew I was over half way done. It was around there I started toying with some girl in pink. I saw in front of me and set off to catch her. I passed her on an uphill, but she got me on the downhill. I worked to make sure I didn't let her out of my sight. The course is cruel in that somewhere right after mile six, you descend to the parking lot and turn and go straight back uphill. I kept her in my sight on that uphill, passing three men and catching her at the top. I reached the top and started running again. We hit the mark for mile seven and she passed me. Nope, not today. I went right back around her and took off. I descended like a mad woman. There were railroad ties in trail and I used those to launch myself. How I didn't fall, I'm still not sure. Regardless, I gapped her big. I wasn't sure how close she and the guy I passed were, and I didn't want to turn around to look so I just went harder. I could hear the crowd as I rounded the bluff and saw the line.
I finished in 1:13:09, which is a 9:45 average. I was 157th overall, 22nd in women and 4th in my age group. I don't know when I've been happier to run a near 10 minute mile, but on that course, I'll take it with a smile. I grabbed water, looked for Bob, and waited for Liz. I ended up running into more people I knew, which made it more fun. Liz came in about 15 minutes later and Bob was not far behind her. I guess I passed him somewhere in that first two miles where I was in the zone.
This amount of uphill in this race made it more challenging than Valmeyer, however the trails at PM were more "civilized". Still, I think it's the toughest run I've ever done. And I'll be back to kick Godzilla's butt next year. (provided it's not the day before state :-P)