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- patapsco valley 50k race: 5:30:18, 13th place
i will have more to write later, but i'm pleased overall. could not have run faster without really pushing myself, which is good to find out. tweaked my left ankle about halfway through the second loop. it didn't bother me for the rest of the race but it's a bit painful now and it's going to be stiff. oh well. i was planning to run tomorrow but i think i'll stay off it instead.

much learned.

ETA: alright, some additional thoughts.

• nutrition was pretty good. i had almost all of my two bottles of homemade gel, plus a couple of small cups of coke and a few chips and cheez its at aid stations. felt just the barest hint of stomach upset about km 44-45, but it wasn't bad and it went away. that's not the reason i faded so badly. i could have used a little more water in the second half, and also a little more salt in the bottles.
• 10 km splits were 58:42, 49:40, 1:07:46 (including a few minutes at the start/finish to change shoes at the halfway point), 1:06:50, 1:15:30. first half and second half split is stark: 2:33, 2:57. two main possibilities. the first is that i went out too hard, but while that may have played a role and would obviously be a big factor in a flatter race, i actually don't think that's it. my heart rate held pretty steady around mid-150s, higher than i meant it to be but comfortably below threshold. what did me in felt like muscular endurance. this is the farthest i've ever run by ~8 miles, and that's about when the wheels started to come off. i was also noticeably clumsier on the second lap, and it got worse later in the race, until i slowed down so much that i wasn't in as much of danger. the ankle twist wasn't the only time i stepped awkwardly. it makes sense, i wasn’t able to do as long of single runs or as many back to back long runs as the training plan i was loosely following called for. my breathing was noticeably more rapid in the final ten miles or so and stayed elevated for about 15 minutes after the finish.
• there were 1552m of elevation gain, nearly a mile. 165 feet/mile, which gets into "very hilly" territory. the route was a little different from the one i ran a few weeks ago. the sections closest to the start/finish area are particularly steep and technical, with a lot of rocks and roots. the stream crossing was fine, water cold but felt nice under the circumstances.
• the race itself, as an event, felt well organized. the trails were marked clearly, especially at junctions. aid stations were well-stocked and well-staffed. people were friendly. i didn't talk much to other runners, except one guy who i went back and forth with a few times in the second half. turned out he was running this race for the tenth time, and he's doing his 13th JFK next month!
• i do not like the asics trail shoes i bought. they aren't that comfortable and the stack is too high to be trustworthy, at least on tired legs. stupid, i knew i didn't like them and went ahead with my plan anyway. the speedgoats felt better, if still a little narrow. i actually thought briefly about not changing over, but it was nice to put on dry socks and shoes.
• i had fun.
• other than my ankle, my legs feel great now, 6+ hours after the finish. my back was a little tight at the end, and i noticed myself carrying more tension in my shoulders than i needed to. no headache, hurray.
• my marathon split was almost exactly 4:30. only noting it because it's the first time i've crossed 42.2 km!

agreed that if your body feels good you should follow through with the race. most of the faster guys in my running group are racing all the time, even throughout the summer, and it seems the training stimulus from non-tapered races is hard or even impossible to replicate in training. as long as you're not always trying or expecting to PR. i intend to race more frequently once i get past the JFK.