Bang!
The start pistol cracked (loudly) and our huddle of warm-hat wearing runners suddenly sprang to life. Surging forward, we passed scenic Ruggles Pond on the right, blissfully calm and breeze-free at that time of the morning, and then an impressive (given the chilly conditions) throng of cheering volunteers and spectators in the icy picnic area to our left.
The start pistol cracked (loudly) and our huddle of warm-hat wearing runners suddenly sprang to life. Surging forward, we passed scenic Ruggles Pond on the right, blissfully calm and breeze-free at that time of the morning, and then an impressive (given the chilly conditions) throng of cheering volunteers and spectators in the icy picnic area to our left.
The first hundred feet or so of the course were flat and everyone moved swiftly, but then we abruptly began ascending the first hill. I watched several of the obvious race leaders pull away, including Mark Rabasco, Barney Collins, Garth Shaneyfelt, Sean Dacus, and Patrick Pezzati. I briefly kept pace with Mike Barlow and Brian Williams, but soon they too pulled away ahead of me. Part of me wanted to give chase, but I kept my speed in check (which was not hard to do), and honestly, I was happy to just be there.
*****
In late summer I found myself experiencing a severe pain in my ribs and had trouble taking complete breaths. I even spent 2 nights sleeping upright in a recliner. I also developed a bad cough, and after a worrisome but inconclusive chest x-ray was treated for probable pneumonia. The prednisone made me feel better and I tried some runs, but the slightest uphill made me feel like I’d never run a single step before.
When I didn’t really get better after 5 or 6 weeks, I went in for a CT scan of my chest. On my drive home to Greenfield from Cooley-Dickinson in NoHo, I got a call from the head pulmonologist telling me to immediately turn around and go check myself into the ER. It turns out I had several blood clots and fluid buildup in my lungs. So that was a little scary.
Between blood thinners, rest, and natural dissolving, the clots began to go away and by mid-November my recovery was well underway (though I still needed to go in for echoes, ultrasounds, a repeat CT scan, and a full-body bone scan). So this race was meaningful. It was my first real hard effort since the summer, and it felt good to be among my tribe again.
Anyway, at the top of the initial climb the course leveled off and continued along the rolling dirt roads of Wendell State Forest. This portion had been plowed, so the running was fairly easy, though there were occasional slick muddy spots. I found myself among the three lead women, each of whom seemed surprised and delighted to be the possible lead woman. They chatted with each other for a while, until everyone eventually went silent and saved oxygen for the task at hand.
After passing Wickett Pond there was a steep climb for a quarter mile or so, followed by a more gradual rise, and then a right turn onto an unplowed dirt section where the going got tough. A truck had driven through earlier and the tire tracks through the two inches of snow frequently created an icy slick for us to run on, which was especially treacherous on the downhills. I’d seen earlier that Jodi McIntyre had screwed bolts into her shoes, and at that point I felt pretty jealous as I slid all over the place trying to keep my balance and maintain some semblance of speed. Also, the narrowness of the tracks made me realize just how duckfooted I am when I run (kick, kick, kick).
The course featured one more really big climb (up Brook Road), and two of the lead women, Nicole Duprey and Molly MacMunn, left me in the dust on it. Then it was basically downhill and rolling all the way back to the finish. Crossing the line back at Ruggles Pond, I took a popsicle stick for 13th place from Laure Van den Broeck Raffensperger and then handed it off to her husband Tom over at the results board.
When I didn’t really get better after 5 or 6 weeks, I went in for a CT scan of my chest. On my drive home to Greenfield from Cooley-Dickinson in NoHo, I got a call from the head pulmonologist telling me to immediately turn around and go check myself into the ER. It turns out I had several blood clots and fluid buildup in my lungs. So that was a little scary.
Between blood thinners, rest, and natural dissolving, the clots began to go away and by mid-November my recovery was well underway (though I still needed to go in for echoes, ultrasounds, a repeat CT scan, and a full-body bone scan). So this race was meaningful. It was my first real hard effort since the summer, and it felt good to be among my tribe again.
*****
Anyway, at the top of the initial climb the course leveled off and continued along the rolling dirt roads of Wendell State Forest. This portion had been plowed, so the running was fairly easy, though there were occasional slick muddy spots. I found myself among the three lead women, each of whom seemed surprised and delighted to be the possible lead woman. They chatted with each other for a while, until everyone eventually went silent and saved oxygen for the task at hand.
After passing Wickett Pond there was a steep climb for a quarter mile or so, followed by a more gradual rise, and then a right turn onto an unplowed dirt section where the going got tough. A truck had driven through earlier and the tire tracks through the two inches of snow frequently created an icy slick for us to run on, which was especially treacherous on the downhills. I’d seen earlier that Jodi McIntyre had screwed bolts into her shoes, and at that point I felt pretty jealous as I slid all over the place trying to keep my balance and maintain some semblance of speed. Also, the narrowness of the tracks made me realize just how duckfooted I am when I run (kick, kick, kick).
The course featured one more really big climb (up Brook Road), and two of the lead women, Nicole Duprey and Molly MacMunn, left me in the dust on it. Then it was basically downhill and rolling all the way back to the finish. Crossing the line back at Ruggles Pond, I took a popsicle stick for 13th place from Laure Van den Broeck Raffensperger and then handed it off to her husband Tom over at the results board.
Finishing feeling... fine! (photo by Chandra Hancock)
This brand-new mid-distance race on the rolling dirt roads of Wendell State Forest attracted a sizable crowd of runners ready to take on the challenging conditions. With start-time temps in the 30s and several miles of the course covered in a few inches of snow, no one was likely to PR yet nearly everyone probably did, because I mean when was the last time you raced a 9K? Event MC and co-RD Patrick Pezzati planned and marked the course, announced at the start and awards, and even ran the race himself (4th place overall, in 42:54!). The event was a fundraiser for Friends of the Franklin County Regional Dog Shelter, and held in memory of Ray Brown, who was Superintendent and CFO for the Sheriff’s Office in Turners Falls.
the course
I love running trails at Wendell, but it turns out I also enjoy racing on the dirt roads there. It’ll be interesting to see how much times improve next November if there’s no snow; I hope to be there to improve my own time either way.
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