Categories
Mississippi running

Sloppy 20k

[Today’s run: 20K (12.4)]

We drove down to the race site after work last night. It was our goal to go to the race site and pick up our numbers. Otherwise we would need to be there much earlier than our 8 am start time for the 20k (the longer races started earlier and I suspect they wanted their staff folks to have the packet stuff done before the races started).

The race people sent out a message that the venue had received approximately 5 inches of rain in the previous day and the dirt roads into and out had become difficult. They recommended using 4WD or AWD vehicles. We saw that message just before we left and there was some trepidation that our FWD (front wheel drive) SUV might not be up to the task. But we drove down and, with some slipping and sliding in the mud, we made it to the site and got our numbers. We went in by one route, which was sloppy but not too bad. We left by a different route which was much worse with deeper ruts and slippery-er mud. We told some folks they should not try to go in the way we were coming out but to go to the other route. (We didn’t use route B today, so I don’t know if it is littered with civics in the ditch.)

From there we went to the hotel, which is the same hotel we have used in the past for this event.

We got up in the morning, put our running clothes on. We saw on Facebook that #1 Son had successfully arrived, got his number, and started his 50K (31 miles) event on time. That gave us some confidence as we started out.

Sure enough the good road was still mostly good and we did make it to the starting line at 8 am.

Away we went.

There was some nice running in the tall long-leaf pine forest. And then there were some muddy spots where the rain had not yet been completely absorbed or displaced. And there were more muddy spots. There were little creeks rushing down, with muddy, cold water which we needed to cross. There were a few more nice running spots, scattered about between the crossings and the mud.

Facebook has various pictures of the water for those people who started the 100 mile event on Friday at mid-day. Some folks actually had to swim. For me today it never came to that. It was mostly trotting, jogging, walking, slogging from one muddy water feature to the next and sizing up the least dangerous way to get through. There seemed to be hundreds.

The water was nice and cool and the mud was a bit slippery but otherwise not offensive. My wife tells me I didn’t have mud-caked shoes because the shoes are designed for this eventuality. I don’t know. I didn’t see anyone with mud caked shoes. But she is more knowledgeable about these things.

I wasn’t trained up very well so I did a lot of walking.

After 3 hours and 43 minutes I arrived at the finish line.

Lovely wife arrived about 45 minutes later. And #1 Son finished his 50K (more than twice as far) shortly after that, having started two hours earlier and running much faster. He has run 50K events before, but this one was his best by far: a Personal Record (PR!).

We changed shoes and other clothing as appropriate then went to a place and ate some small “i” italian food, then drove home. I am sitting now in a warm dry house on a cushy sofa. I am winning.

Mrs. Leslie Williams crossing one of the water features that I crossed some time during the race in more or less the same state. I did not take this picture. I copied it from Facebook.

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