Umstead Trail Marathon - March 6, 2010

OK, so in 2008 I ran the Umstead Trail Marathon for the first time. It was a lousy, rainy day, plus it was my first exposure to long single-track running, so I ran really poorly, and finished in just under 6:20, well after the six-hour cutoff time that Carolina Godiva enforces for the marathon. I didn't get any door prizes and the massage guys were packing up, but the thing that really bothered me was the "missed cutoff" next to my name in the 2008 results.

So 2010 was going to be the opportunity to redeem myself and restore the family honor. Fortunately, the weather forecast was much, much better -- clear, sunny skies with no precipitation and cool temps (39 degrees at 9:00 a.m. start time, with temps climbing into the mid-50s in the afternoon). Actually, I had not been looking forward to this run for several weeks in advance, especially after a very poor run in February and missing my last half-marathon trainer in Myrtle Beach, but after a confidence-building run the previous week I surprisingly started getting excited about it with a few days to go, and with the weather improving, my attitude improved as well.

Each year the marathon organizers from Godiva choose an animal native to Umstead to serve as the race mascot on the shirts, awards and pint glasses. When I ran in 2008, appropriately, it was the turkey vulture. But for 2010 it was a rabbit, so I figured that was a good omen. I didn't learn until this year that it's a big secret each year which animal is chosen; normally the runners don't find out until packet pickup on Friday -- although I have heard you can run through Umstead in the day or two before the race and see if the signs have already been set out. In the seven years that Umstead has been run, the animals are: black fly, squirrel, turtle, fish, vulture, frog and rabbit. The rabbit shirts for this year are great -- optic yellow, with the big, classy logo and huge rabbit. This is the kind of running shirt I will wear to death.

As usual, there was no problem getting to the race site, and there were lots of folks to visit with while waiting for the marathon to start. The race is capped at 200 entrants because of the size of the trails, and the race is sold out each year. Because it was really chilly in the morning, most of the runners were huddled around the fire in the main cabin at Camp Lapihio. Fellow NCRCers Rhonda Hampton and Bill and Sally Squier (who have done all seven Umsteads) were also on hand, as well as Mickey Fong from Carolina Godiva and Laura MacLean. Mike Walsh from NCRC would be patrolling on his bike -- I think he's doing the Ellerbe Marathon next weekend -- so I knew it would be nice having a familiar face out on the route. And the field was pretty top-notch, with Wayne Crews from Cary in the race and North Carolina trail ultramarathon legend Anne Riddle Lundblad coming down from the mountains. Finally we got the call to come on out to the starting area, where the race directors made the last few announcements and then sent us out!

The first few miles were much better than the 2008 race, when we got a downpour right at starting time. The sun was out, and the sky was a beautiful solid blue. The first leg by the airport overlook is out-and-back, so everyone gets a good look at the whole field and can sort of tell where everyone is starting out. I can tell by my Garmin data that I got a little excited as usual at the start of the race and went out a little too fast -- sub-10 in mile two??? -- but it really was a nice morning to be out, and I was very upbeat.

After about three miles on the main bridle trails, we made a turn onto the first single-track section, the Company Mill trail. The first half-mile or so of the trail is blissfully downhill, but then you cross Lani's bridge (Lani slipped and fell there once) and start going uphill. That was the first place I really started huffing and puffing, and with each rise in elevation I got a little bit slower. In the trail section I only passed one person, but I was passed by at least ten or twelve other runners -- at least there was someone to talk to! Two years ago the Devil's Spine and the Tree o' Death were especially tough because of how slick the rain had made them, but this year they were no trouble. Company Mill took us back to the main bridle trail for an aid station and a creek crossing, and then we were back on single-track on the Sycamore Trail. The two trail sections parallel each other on opposite sides of the creek, so you could see the runners ahead and behind you for a little while. Then Sycamore starts going back and forth up the bluff, which made for another tough uphill. (I joked that they had used some stimulus money to add some new hills to the course.) Eventually, though, after about 3.5 miles of single-track (it always seems like more), we were back on the bridle trails for the rest of the race.

The middle part of the race is a big 8.5-mile loop that we run in both directions, with a few changes on the return. It doesn't seem like there are any level places; we get a nice break going down Powerline Hill, but then we have to go right back uphill to the aid station, and then we get a nice downhill on the Corkscrew, but it's immediately followed by an uphill at Bond Lake up to the aid station at Trinity Road. That's where I started taking some walk breaks, always trying to calculate my pace to make sure I wouldn't fall too far behind. After the aid station -- BTW, the volunteers all around the course were great and very encouraging, even to the back-of-the-pack runners -- I got to run South Turkey Creek, which is a nice level-to-downhill two-mile stretch that provided a nice break before we got into the big hills. I still felt really good and was able to enjoy those miles a lot. But after the Crabtree Creek crossing on the old roadbed, the hills of North Turkey Creek start coming into play, and they are serious hills. I walked up most of them and tried to make up the time on the few level spots and the downhills. I was a little relieved when I got to the halfway point in 2:40, which was much, much better than the 3-hour time I was pushing in 2008. Maybe there is something to not being a rookie on the course.

A great part of the loop-and-back section of the route is that you again get to see the whole field. The leaders were of course making it look easy, but I really appreciated that some of them spoke to us back-of-the-packers and encouraged us along; that goes a long way, and it's nice to have the talented runners encouraging the slower ones. I got to greet and encourage everyone as well, and it was good to see all my friends running strong on their return loop. Pretty soon, after I made my turn at the aid station, I figured out that there were only about four or five runners behind me.

The return loop probably wasn't as bad as I made it out to be, but I did worry when I took an extended walk break at mile 15 that I was going to drop below cutoff pace. And although I had all the leading runners to keep me company on the first loop, the return loop was very solitary and quiet running by myself; other than the aid station volunteers, most folks on the trail had packed up to go see the finish. By the time I hit the hill at mile 18, I was pretty much toast and walking more than running, although I did try to make up time wherever I could. At four hours, I calculated that I had just about 7.4 miles to cover in the two remaining hours, which would have sounded easy at the start of the race but was now beginning to worry me. I was lucky that there was an extended downhill back to Bond Lake, and I was able to rip off a 12:00 mile for mile 21 of the race, which I probably gave back by walking back up the Corkscrew.

There's a 2-mile spur out and back on the Cedar Ridge Trail once you get to the top of the Corkscrew, and that aid station was a very welcome sight. I tried picking up my jogging again wherever there was a break in the terrain, and that helped my spirits a good deal, as well as seeing some other runners coming back so I didn't feel as alone out there. There are some tough hills on the return trip, though, and it became apparent that I and one female runner were the last folks remaining on the course, as we didn't see anyone behind us.

Cemetery Hill was the last obstacle. I was walking as fast as I could at this point, knowing that I had 34 minutes to cover the last two miles. I jogged as best I could on a brief downhill, figuring that every quicker step would give me more breathing room on the cutoff. I had noted at the start of the race that the first half-mile was trending uphill, so I figured if I could get back to that point I could jog my way in and use the downhill to save a few seconds at the end. Finally I was back on the Camp Lapihio entrance road, jockeying for position with the cars of other runners headed back out after completing their race. I finally reached the top of the last rise and began jogging the final downhill back into camp, knowing I was going to make it within the cutoff time. Most of the folks in the cars shouted some final encouragement, and the guy on the PA announced my finish to the crowd at the camp. My final finish time on my Garmin was 5 hours, 57 minutes and 42 seconds for 26.38 miles -- the "missed cutoff" from 2008 is banished! I was very, very happy to be 161st out of 163 finishers.

(I had been anxious to see what the elevation profile of Umstead was when I downloaded my Garmin data, but I don't think it really reflects how uphill-and-downhill it feels. I'm told this is a better elevation profile, based more on actual elevations than off Garmin data. (click for larger version) Either way, it's not a flat race!)
The post-race party organized by Godiva was very nice. There were burritos from Moe's, lots of chips, gummi bears, water/Gatorade/hot chocolate/coffee, and massages from one of the sponsors. And I did get some soap as my door prize from one of the race sponsors. Each finisher got a nice pint glass with the race rabbit on it, and for the award winners there were rabbit-shaped plaques. The goodie bag was also well-stuffed, with lip balm from a sponsor, discount coupons, and some nice running socks. Everything about this event is just so well done. It is a tough, tough marathon, but you can tell it's a labor of love for those putting it on. I hope I'll be able to do it again someday, but for now I'm going to rest my sore legs and enjoy being an official finisher! Thanks, all!

You can tell that the Umstead Marathon is loved by many. There are lots of race reports from this year out there already.