Tomorrow is a big day for me...my first ever trail race!! It's kind of a ridiculous trip really but I still think it's going to be fun. If I had planned it better i'd be camping out there tonight and tomorrow night but I didn't...so i'm not! Anyways, I'm doing the Nipika Crazy Soles 25km Trail Race in Kootenay National Park! It's about a 3 hour drive from Calgary and the race starts at 11am. However the package pickup is from 8-930 which sucks but I did manage to meet someone who is going to pick it up for me as he's camping out there tonight, fewf! So I don't need to worry about that in case i'm late for some reason. I would still like to be there by 9am so I can relax a bit, stretch my legs after 3 hours in the car, and get organized! So i'm aiming to be on the road by 6am!
Like I said, it's my first trail race and I don't really know what I should bring with me in my hydration pack besides the obvious drink, food and bear spray (yes we've already confirmed how terrified of bears I am). So for those of you out there that trail run/race...do you have any tips/pointers for me on things I should bring or do etc? Since I have never run a trail race before I have no idea how long it should take me to do it...I only know how fast I am on the road! So I would like to think I can do it in 3 hours but I hope it's not wishful thinking. If the race starts at 11am and I'm done by 2pm...that gives me a little time to relax, chat, eat, and enjoy the post race atmosphere before I have to boot it back to Calgary.
Why am I "booting" it back? Because I want to get back at a decent hour, get a decent sleep and get up at 5am again to run the Calgary half marathon on Sunday! I'm not crazy...I mean i'm not going to race it or anything...I would love to be able to hold 5 min kilometres for the half but that might be wishful thinking depending on how sore I am from Saturday! I just want to start getting used to these double days of long runs as I start preparing for the 6 days of running at Transrockies in August (which by the way I just finished paying for today so I'm officially doing the race now...no turning back baby!).
Anyhow, I'm excited but nervous about this weekend...I don't know what to expect tomorrow and I don't want to wimp out on Sunday's run either! I love the big city races so Sunday should be lots of fun!
Wish me luck! I'm bringing my camera so I hope to get some great pics during tomorrow's run!
Hi Deb, I saw your blog featured on TransRockies news. Good luck to you with your first trail race! Being a trail race newbie (have done a couple shorter ones and also paced my boyfriend at larger ultra races), it sounds like you are prepared to me. Have fun at both races!
ReplyDeleteMy boyfriend and I are also running TransRockies this year as Team New Leaf Ultra. We're flatlanders from Chicago, Illinois, so we can't wait to run in mountains (huff puff)!
I'm looking forward to reading about your TR training this summer, sounds like we're in for a treat!
-- Kelly
http://roerunner.blogspot.com
I would bring some paper tissues in case you "gotta go".
ReplyDeleteHave fun - I would be surprised if you wouldn't fall in love with trail running:-)
good luck lady.... and have fun.
ReplyDeleteHey! I look forward to reading your race report on the 25km.
ReplyDeleteMy boyfriend and I are also going down and doing Ttrans Rockies. Our team name is "Natural Gas Power".
Ya, it's funny to me how I have never ever seen a bear. My boyfriend has said to me over a dozen times..."theres a good chance were going to see a bear today"...but it hasnt happened (until friday). I think I am more scared of seeing one and not doing what I know I should do.