Rockledge Rumble 15K

Somehow I've always missed out on the Rockledge Rumble trail race, which has been a staple in the DFW racing calendar for over 20 years.  It just didn't fit into my training schedule or I've messed around and missed signing up before it sells out because it is such a popular event.  This fall/winter I want to race more and I want to run on trails more often so I was determined not to let this event pass me by another year.

I went back and forth between running the 15K or the 30K.  I knew that I could cover the 30K distance, but I decided on the 15K because I've been working on getting faster on the trails and I wanted to see how fast I could run it.  We had a pretty miserable week leading into the race with rain, wind, and cold temperatures.  Thankfully this moved out by late in the week and it was a perfect 40ish degrees with low wind and plentiful sunshine - that is running weather! The trails seem to drain fairly well and mud was not an issue at all.

The 15K did not start until 7:45 and Mr K and I arrived in plenty of time to park, visit with friends, and make all of the necessary trips to the restroom.  It was chilly as we stood around waiting, but I resisted the urge to over dress and I raced in shorts, a long sleeve shirt, and a hat - which was perfect.  The race started out on the road for a little bit, which gave me a good chance to settle in and find my place in the group.  I knew that I would be familiar with the trail from just after mile 2 to somewhere around mile 7. The beginning and the end would be new to me as I've only run to Rockledge Park once or twice.

I was tentative about passing people at first, because I know that I'm a bit of a chicken on the trails and I didn't want to be re-passed if the trail became more technical.  I got over that pretty quickly though as my confidence and familiarity with the trail grew.  It is a race, after all!

There were not tons of spectators, but there was one guy on a mountain bike that popped up every time the trail crossed the road. He always offered a very reassuring word of support and I really appreciated him.  My goal was to get to the turn around at Murrell Park with a pushed, but steady effort and not to get re-passed by anyone that I passed.  I made it through 4 miles with approximately at 11:00 pace, which is a solid one for me when it comes to running trails.

I grabbed a drink of water at the aide station and saw Mr K emerge from the woods.  "I didn't know you were ahead of me" he said before grabbing a drink and hitting the trail again.  I got back to work and tried to close the distance between he and I, but this would prove to be impossible as the man was on a mission.  Give him 40 degree temperatures and he can run for days, it is like magic.

There were a couple of runners between Mr K and me and I just worked on gradually picking them off.  Having those runners as rabbits helped me quite a bit because I knocked off three consecutive miles with paces in the mid-10s, really cooking for me on the trails.

I was able to pick off the runners that were between us, but he was out of sight within a couple of miles.  Run strong, Mr K!  See you at the finish!  I could feel the fatigue starting to set in and I knew that I'd been running in Zone 4 for most of the race.  I told myself to hang in there while counting down the miles to the finish.

I slowed down a bit in the last mile in a half as the course became more technical and I became more fatigued.  I could hear another runner behind me and I remembered my goal of not letting anyone re-pass me.  I am not sure if I would have pushed myself as much at the end had she not been on my tail, but I was determined that she was not going to pass me.  I kept listening for finish line sounds and looking for that famous steep stairway and it just felt like I would never see them.  Finally, I saw a guy with a medal telling me that I was almost to the end.

 Approaching the turn around (Photo: Mark O)

The girl behind me was getting closer and closer, but I was determined to make it up those stairs before her so I gave it one final push to the finish line.  I was so happy to be finished! Mr K was there waiting for me, having finished a couple of minutes ahead of me.

My official time was 1:45:53 which gave me an 11:00 pace.  Upon checking the official results, I found that I was 1st place for women 40-49 and 10th place female overall.  I had a blast running out there, I pushed myself on the trails and took a few risks, and I met my goals - pretty good little day of running.

I'm so thankful for the girl behind me for the push

The best part of trail races is hanging out with all friends afterwards and we had a great time while waiting for Baha and Brian to finish the 30K and for Ali to finish the 50K. The Barnwells of Blaze Trails Racing do a wonderful job putting on these races, I highly encourage you to check out their race calendar if you are looking for a trail race in the coming months. I got so many compliments on my new running shorts - they are the fitted run shorts from Coeur and I'm officially hooked.  They are so comfortable and they have two big pockets on the legs perfect for carrying a phone or fuel.

So there you have it, one of my first steps on the way to my first ultra at Black Canyon 60K in February.  I am having a blast so far and the journey has only just begun.  I can't wait for the many adventures that the coming months hold.