Well it sure felt good to race again. I missed running Hagg Lake 50K in Feburary due to an illness, so I haven’t done a race since early January. When I was sick I didn’t run for a solid 2 weeks, so I had some catching up to do anyway. By the time the Shotgun Trail Blast 50K rolled around on April 2nd, I was really ready try out my winter training.
The Shotgun Trail Blast was another small local race put on by the Eclectic Edge folks and was held about 30 minutes east of Eugene. The course was two 25K loops, each with about 2000 feet of climbing, maybe 5-6 miles of trails and 10 miles of logging roads. There were only 9 of us in the race as most of the folks were running the 25K. The aid stations had water and Gatorade a few snacks. They also had radios and took our splits at the start/finish and out on the course. I brought my own gels.
Mid-way through the first loop, I realized that Cameron Hanes, a talented ultra-runner and extreme hunter was only a short distance behind me. That kept my pace honest. I came through the first loop in 1:57:20 and I spent a little time at my car getting some more gels & fluid before heading out for the second loop. I felt like I had run the first loop fairly solid, but was still feeling strong. I ran the second loop in 1:55:41, an overall time of 3:53, average pace of 7:31, first place, and a nice negative split.
I enjoyed the course, the route was well marked, and there were just enough volunteers to make it all come together. I felt grateful to have a 50K race so close to home, and it was fun to chat with everyone after the race.
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