Wuzzam asked me to go to a race today, the Goodwin State Forest 30km.  I don't think I've been to a trail race since Nipmuck Marathon 2012 and Goodwin 2014, so this was a pretty big leap for me.

The weather looked really promising, basically nothing worse than mid-seventies with no humidity.  Because of this forecast, on Saturday night I told Wuzzam that I would be about a 25% chance of making the start line.  He said he wouldn't spend too much time looking for me then.

Goodwin is a special place for me, I have done my naturalists training there, and I think very highly of  the Friends who support the forest.  If I was going to run a trail race, this should be one of my first choices anyhow.  I was plenty familiar with the trails, as I had done the 1st Annual Goodwin 30k back in 2014, and I've usually run after the naturalists training.

So, I woke early enough to take the 50-minute drive and register for the event.  I was eligible for the "geezer" discount of $28 race day.  The race began after a pretty lengthy introduction by the race director, and I found myself well at the back of the pack.  One reason is that I haven't raced, and I am slow.  Another is that the race includes a 10 km version, which has about double the participants of the 30 km, and those runners took off quickly.

I remembered many of the trails and most of the landmarks along the way.  I ran steady, without any walking at all, and had no mental fatigue whatsoever.  My ankle felt fine the entire day, as did most everything else.  No complaints on this beautiful day.

I had run this event in 2014 in 3:37:36, which was good for 18th of 37th place.  Today, I managed 3:49:25, and 19th of 40-finishers.  Interestingly, I was passed with about 10-feet to go, which knocked me out of 18th again.  I have confidence that I am not far away at completing a marathon due to the fitness I showed today.

I was reminded today why I stopped racing a few years ago...

1) Having to arrive an hour early (or more) to do a run.

2) Paying an entry fee to do something I can do on my own.

3) Having to be at a certain place, at a certain time, and then depend on the event to be on schedule.

4) Crowds for the first several miles, havoc for the footing and rhythm.

5) At some point, despite best intentions, it becomes a race.

8) Like it or not, effort and speed tend to pick up at a race, which makes recovery longer.

On the plus side of things, the advantages I can think of are...

1) Water Stops and Aid Stations equipped for us at sensible locations.

2) A better work out than "just being out there" alone.

3) Awesome volunteers.

4) Supports a "good cause".

5) Trail Runners tend to be friendly, positive people.

One thing I noticed back at the last Nipmuck Marathon I did, and it was true again today, is that I didn't really know more than 4 or 5 people at the entire event.  During the 1990's and 2000's, I actually knew and spoke with 50 or 60 regulars at any of the dozen or more trail races I entered.  It seems like many, like me, have decided racing wasn't for them any longer.