In October, my family and I headed east to Hollister, NC, for Medoc Trail races, specifically the Medoc 10 Miler, www.medoctrailmarathon.com. I had been training for the Medoc Trail Marathon but a series of injuries sidelined me. Then I noticed a Facebook post by the race organizers showing the finisher medals for the 10 miler.
Apparently I said aloud “I can still sign up for the 10 mile race, and if my training doesn’t go well, I’ll just hike it.” The way I recall it my daughter, Genny, overheard and said “I could completely do that sign me up too.” She claims it was my idea and was more like “while I’m at it I’ll sign you up too.”
Either way it was June, and we began our training. We trained 20 to 45 minutes twice a week separately on treadmill, track or trail. On weekends the two of us got up early and hiked the Tusculum trail, a multipurpose, 3.5 mile running, walking and biking trail near our home in Greeneville, TN. I served as personal trainer and pack mule carrying a pack with water, snacks and motivation.
It had been a while since she done much hiking so we started with two miles. The first few hikes took a lot out of her and she began to wonder if she could do it. Every four weeks we would dial back the mileage of the weekend hike to consolidate our gains. The first time we hiked five miles it didn’t go well, and she really began to question “my idea.” A month later when we hiked that distance again she said. “Wow, this is easy. I can’t believe that I’m saying that it’s only five miles.” We were on our way.
One of the cool things about Medoc is that in addition to your number each bib as a trail name. You can pick it or let the race organizers do it for you. My policy has always been that there is no reason to wait for someone else to embarrass you when you can just go ahead and embarrass yourself. I picked Trout Lily, after one of my favorite trails to run at nearby Panther Creek State Park. Genny went with Pumpkin Fang.
Throughout our training we got regular posts on Facebook from the race organizers. The posts were cool, funny and motivational. We got to vote on bib designs, suggest trail names, make song requests for race day, etc. There was even a monthly newsletter. I downloaded some of the images from these posts and made a poster to hang near Genny’s computer. Mr. Motivation that’s me.
In late June, when race registration opened on a Monday at 8:00 am, I was at my computer poised and ready to sign us up. This was a good thing: the 10 miler sold out in less than two hours. More than 200 people signed up for both races in the first 10 minutes. Obviously there was quite a lot of buzz about this race.
Since this was our first father-daughter event we decided to make our own t-shirts. After batting some ideas around we came up with Team Stubborn. It’s probably genetic. We went with a crossword scheme on the back; spelling the word stubborn vertically with synonyms for stubborn. The mule on the front provided a mascot and the finishing touch.
Race day dawned clear and cold. As we waited shivering for the races to start we checked out some of the trail names on people’s bibs as they milled about a few favorites include: Stumbleweed, Root Sweeper, Sir Trips-A-Lot, the Kraken, Roly Poly and Moon Pie Girl.
The marathon started first. Then a half hour later, the 10 miler started, and we were off and hiking. Things went very well for the first 2.5 miles or so. Then we came to a wide footbridge across Little Fishing Creek. At this point the 10 miler runners are crossing on their way out and the marathoners are crossing back. Both races share most of the same trails. The pre-race handout said stay left on the bridge going out and coming back. I told Genny at the start of the race “stay left on the bridge.” The volunteer stationed at the bridge told both of us to stay left on the bridge. Genny stepped onto the bridge, moved to the right and into the path of oncoming runners. Now everyone is yelling “stay left.” Just before a collision takes place, she realizes her mistake and moves left.
Now we are on Damn Site Trail. Yes, we snickered. The trail gets steep and we climb Medoc Mountain. Now she is glad that I made her climb the “practice hill” on the Tusculum trail every single weekend. I’m not a complete idiot, some parts are missing. (I am not the first person to say this.)
We come to the second aid station where we are greeted a miraculous sight: along with other snacks, they have boiled potatoes. My daughter thinks potatoes are nature’s perfect food. After we each eat one with salt, we press on.
The trail snakes back down, and we cross the foot bridge going the other way. This time everyone remember to stays left. We follow the creek for awhile and climb back toward the main picnic shelter near the start line. From there the trail goes up and down, crosses multiple bridges, and we finally find the steep stairs that everyone has been taking about.
We are slowing. Genny is beginning to tire. We have been mainly walking on the left side of the trail to let other runners pass. This happens a lot as we are hiking. Her right knee and ankle are fatigued and hurting.
She remembers having a minor breakdown at the eight mile marker, realizing she is exhausted and we still have two miles to go. I somehow missed the breakdown. I do remember her snorting like a burro at one point. This may have been the point where I dug the strawberry Honey Stinger Waffle that came in my race packet out of my pack and ate it. I’m easily distracted when eating.
We continue. We are Team Stubborn. We do not quit. We are not quite sure how to quit. We think it involves stopping but aren’t sure. After what seems like a long time we hear music. It gets louder. There is only one possibility, we are closing on the finish line. We come out of the trees into the field pass the last aid station and make the uphill turn toward the finish line. We have it in sight and pick up our pace. Before we know it we are ankle deep in mud. This the only mud we have seen all day. Genny strides through the arch and I follow. Team Stubborn is across the line.
We are given our Medoc 10 Miler Finisher Medals, and they are freaking awesome. The finishers suprise is a Nathan Quickdraw Plus water bottle with Medoc Trail Races logo. Freaking awesome. So in summary, race organization, volunteers, course, food, weather, 10 mile and marathon runners were all, yeah, pretty, exceptionally, indisputably awesome.[polldaddy poll=6740582]
Love the post. Keep’em coming!