Part of what I like about trails, races, trail races, and
trail race series is the opportunity to explore new terrain and experience
different places. The Busa Bushwhack, with a twisty 10-mile course at
Callahan State Park in Framingham, MA, has one of those names that beckons
beguilingly to people like me. The race had been on my bucket list of regional
events for a few years now (though as I write that I suddenly realize I'm not all that partial to the concept of a bucket list; I'm more in the camp of hoping to savor the experience rather than checking something off a list), and I was looking forward to trying it.
There were 155 runners in the 10-miler, and another 160 or
so in a 5.3-mile version. Conditions were very nice, with overcast skies and
temps in the 50s, and the course was well-marked (except for one arrow near the
end that was clearly pointing the wrong way, I think because it was on an out-and-back portion and it wasn't clear on the return that you were supposed to ignore it).
After pre-race announcements by the Greater Framingham Running Club and Rich Busa himself at the Brophy school, we all jogged about half a
mile north through residential streets to the starting line on Major Hale Dr., right where the road crosses an underground aqueduct. We took off en masse and stayed on pavement for about a quarter of a mile. Then
we veered right onto a wide path in the woods. Following signs, flagging, and
the directions of volunteers, we wound our way around mostly easy trails for a
few miles.
Callahan really seems to be A Tale of Two Parks. The
property is more or less evenly divided into two halves, north and south, by a
paved road. The south half has wide, gentle, rolling doubletrack trails with
easy hills. The northern half has narrower, more rugged trails with harder
hills and tougher terrain.
I had taken photos near miles 4 and 7 of this race in 2013,
and at that time the downed leaves were pretty thick over portions of the
trail, enough so that I was concerned about hidden rocks and roots. But there
were many fewer leaves this year, and everything seemed to be visible. At about
mile 3 we crossed the road and hit the first water station, then climbed a
sharp hill and headed out for a very meandering tour of the park’s northern
half.
With only six days left until my A-race of the season, the
Stone Cat Trail Marathon, I’m in full-on taper mode, and as such I chose to
keep my pace firmly in check despite feeling like I could have gone a good bit
faster. Or at least a little bit
faster. Early on I found myself keeping pace with fellow western MA trail
runner Carolyn Stocker, but I soon realized that the pace wasn’t meeting my
“take it easy” taper week rule, so I eased up and held back some. She kept flying and finished 6 minutes and 20 places ahead of me.
There were
other familiar faces along the way too. At about mile 7, I passed and said
hello to fellow trail runner and photographer Anthony Tieuli, who I’d met
briefly before. And I passed Amy Rusiecki directing racers as I exited the
woods at mile 9.25, a surprise recognition that I was only able to acknowledge
with a belated wave about 50 feet further along.
trail sign in Callahan State Park
The course grew progressively easier after re-crossing Parmenter/Edmands Rd around mile 7. We flew back along Rocky Road, Pine Cone, and Coco Ridge Trails, which seemed to be mostly flat, doubletrack paths, and most of the final mile back to the school is on pavement. As I approached the end, I
picked up the pace slightly, but not enough that there was any danger of
overdoing it. I finished in in 52nd place in 1:21:34 (an 8:09 pace).
finish line photo (courtesy of Manos Tsagarakis)
Afterwards, I chatted briefly in the school cafeteria with
Carolyn and her father, Wayne, as well as Grand Tree series regulars Eric Wyzga
and Kehr Davis; self-described new trail runner(??) and the winner of the
women’s race, Kim Webster; and a representative of Sudbury Valley Trustees, a
strong conservation land trust organization responsible for protecting lots of
properties in the area (and the publisher of a great new guidebook: 40 Walks West of Boston).
Overall, it felt like a solid effort that I was well trained
for, and at the risk of tempting fate, I feel confident about the marathon
ahead. Oh, and I came away with a sweet Busa Bushwhack pint glass for
finishing!
extras
generalized course map
my 2013 Busa Bushwhack race photos here
Scott Livingston's recap of the 2011 race here
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