2016 RCC Run The Woods - Burning the woods up :)
I love trails. I've said it a million times over. I love to run on the trails, I love to hike on the trails, I love to sit and look around. I love parks, I love mountains...I love trails. Unfortunately, living in Iowa puts me in a position that I have to travel 30-45 minutes from my house to get in some longer trails with some technical footing. That's what I always thought...until I discovered RCC Run The Woods...
I discovered this race somewhat by accident a few years ago. I was looking for a November race and saw that this one was a few short miles from our old house. If I would have been paying attention to the race description I'm not 100% certain I would have gone to try it out. Thus, changing my opening statement and my running career.
"4-Mile trail runs over open pasture to dense timber; including rocks and rough terrain, steep upgrades and water crossings.
(Your shoes WILL get wet"
ACTUAL RACE DESCRIPTION :)
RCC Run the Woods is 4 miles on what I can describe as the antithesis of Iowa "off road running". You start out with a shotgun start...literally...from a shotgun...get some gravel road that leads to a short stint in a ditch leading to some game trails, cow pasture (which contained cows this year), more game trails, sprawling hay field, more game trails, back to farm land, on to some single track, through some creeks, over some rocks, up a couple of ass kicking hills, followed by a short section where the race directors love to mess with your head because you can see/hear the finish line and finally a finish in small state park surrounded by family, friends and a pull up bar...more to come on that.
When I ran the race in 2006, I had no clue what trail running even meant. I had never done a single trail run and honestly didn't even know anyone who had. My initial thought was paved bike trail. I knew people who had hiked in the mountains, but didn't know that you could run on them. Boy, did I get an education the first time I ran this race...and it as INCREDIBLE.
The lead up to the 2016 running has been a rough year on the running front. With all of the racing I've done this year and the birth (and subsequent inadequate sleeping patterns) of our newest baby, I've been a little burned out. The stresses of life have been dealing me a significant blow to my training. Now, don't get me wrong, I've raced pretty well and am thankful that I've been able to do so, but going into this race I didn't know where my fitness level would be.
One of my good friends helps put on the event and is one of the most solid runners I've been fortunate enough to meet over these past 12 years of running. Marty Dalton is a 2:23 road marathoner with a 15 min 5k PR. He's a school administrator and an amazing track and cross country coach. When it comes to racing, Marty has done it all. I was talking to him about the fact that the Equalizer Endurance Run was so early in October and that I actually felt properly recovered and maybe wanted to give RCC another try. Of course, Marty wasn't going to let me not do it so I committed...not remembering the pain I went through the last time I ran it :)
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| Won the race in 27:41 |
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| Jason & Alex from Active Endeavors |
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| Me and my buddy Dennis |
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| Me and Mike. I love this guy. So much fun |
The first section of the course is a slight downhill on some gravel. I feel most comfortable on the downhill so I went out with the lead pack of Marty, some high school kids, my buddy Jason and a couple of others. I told myself that I wouldn't look at my Suunto until we hit the flat section in the first part of the course but I wanted to keep up with these guys. Knowing Marty, he loves to push the pace from the beginning...and boy did he do it.
As we jump off of the gravel, you get into a ditch that leads back up the side of the road that you were just on, slight uphill, but nothing too unmanageable. A slight left gets you into the first section of cow pasture and leaves you dodging "cow pies"..and...well...cows :)
I was doing fairly well keeping up with the lead pack and we were pushing HARD. I don't wear a heart rate monitor, but I could tell that my heart rate was threw the roof. It's only 4 miles, I should be FINE. I was a little dehydrated because I don't drink enough water during the day, so I began sipping on the weak Tailwind mixture I had made before just to keep from cramping up. It helped but the combo of not enough water and the 3 beers I had the night before weren't helping the energy levels in my legs.
Making our way back downhill, you hit a section of rutted out cow paths, that if you aren't paying attention, can be ankle breakers. The course was dry this year and the beautiful fall weather leading up to the event had dried everything out where in years past you do have to worry about getting your shoes stuck in the ruts. We were still keeping a really solid pace during this section, but I could see the lead 5-6 people slipping away in the open field that we'd entered. This was the first place that I checked my watch as I heard the beep signifying we had gone through the first mile. 6:29 pace?!?!?!?!? Are you kidding me?!?!?!?! That's my 5k pace on FLAT, ROAD races. Oh crap...this wasn't going to end well....
After my short little panic attack and the end of the open field, we got onto the game trails. The thing I love about this course is how even the best runners are challenged by something and the game trails will challenge even the most seasoned veteran. Keeping vertical and not breaking ankles is a key ingredient to success at RCC. The game trails were soft, but manageable and it was a constant up, down, left, right for the next mile or so.
Coming out of the woods, we got back into a big open field where we were greeted by families, people taking pictures and someone with a drone, which was pretty awesome. I was feeling really fatigued from the quick pace and there were sections of the game trail that actually had me walking and getting passed by a couple of people. I really didn't have a time goal in mind other than to beat what I thought was my PR of 40 minutes.
As we made our way through the short section of pasture, we got on to the portion of the event that I feel the most comfortable on, the single track. I feel most comfortable on this section because when I get out on the trails, this is the type of terrain I'm running on. Twisty...curvy...up...down crossing through creek beds (that actually had some water in them this year)...roots....everything....I love it!!!! I love it, but I was depleted and wiped out. The next couple of miles were a slog and I just wanted to keep up with a couple of people whom I had clung to for a little bit. I just was wiped out.
If I hadn't wanted to keep up with this group, I would have stopped and taken more of it in. The last two miles of this course are beautiful Iowa trails. The colors and dense woods are breathtaking. The leaves crunching beneath your feet, the smell of clean air is amazing. My feet were wet and a little cold, but this portion of the race are tremendous.
When going up hills, I am much more efficient when I use my long legs to power hike. I've found that over the years and I told myself coming into this race with this one long climb coming into the finish that I was going to run if I could, but try to keep my pace up hiking if necessary and it was necessary. The course in the last 1/2 mile or so has changed since I ran it last in 2009. The addition of gravel has helped with some nasty footing in years past. This climb gets me every time, because as you make your way up it goes from 10%-40% incline in a hurry. It's not a very long hill, but if you've been red lining the entire time and you can hear the finish line it is DEMORALIZING but energizing at the same time.
At the top of the hill, you are greeted by a few people, caution tape and the finish line in sight...but wait...you still have to make your way around a few extra twists and I finally crossed the finish line in a time of 34:21 (a new PR on this course), 13th overall greeted by volunteers, friends, family and that pull up bar that I mentioned earlier. Results here
New for 2016, RCC Run The Woods added a team component to the overall competition. The teams are scored similar to a cross country meet with the caveat that you can actually take time off of your overall team time by how many pull ups you can do...yep...you read that correctly. You are supposed to go run this twisty, gnarly, nasty race and then you can 30 seconds off of your time for each pull up you can do........For anyone who knows me, I have little to no upper body strength but with 4 out of the top 13 people being on my team, I wasn't worried about our chance at winning the team competition. I watched as a couple of the dudes on my team rattled off 10 and even 25 pull ups. It was awesome to watch. I did all of 0 pull ups because I was enjoying my delicious beef stew from the Machine Shed restaurant :)
Overall, I had a great race with my current fitness. Would I wanted to run faster and be stronger on the hills? Sure, but am really encouraged by the strides I've made over the past few years.
For those considering running RCC Run The Woods, please consider making the jaunt to Earlham, IA (Goeldner Woods Park). I know it's "only 4 miles" and the distance seems relatively short for my infatuation with 100 mile events, but DAMN this thing is great. Great race, great post race food, great energy before/after the event. Great family feeling. Just an amazing experience that will challenge even the most seasoned trail runner.
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| I had to work at the store after and realized I was still covered in mud :) |
Items I used during the 2016 RCC Run The Woods
UVU Race Shorts
HOKA One One Huaka - No longer in production
Injinji Trail 2.0 Midweight Mini Crew
Fitness Sports Racing Brooks shirt
Suunto Ambit2R - Tracked every step flawlessly!!!
Moeben Arm Sleeves (Orange MS colors)
HOKA One One/BOCO Technical Trucker Hat
Tailwind Nutrition Green Tea (100 cal mix) - SOOOOOOO GOOD!!!!!!
Go Pro Hero4 with chest mount
Strava data
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