NJ Winter Trail Series - The Not Half Marathon

So earlier this week I had the brilliant idea to run my first trail race--a half marathon--in the snow at that! I had no idea what to expect, but I knew it would be an "adventure" at the very least. I should have seen the foreshadowing when the Mazda rented from Zipcar couldn't get up the snowy hills in Hoboken....

See that? That was the trail. While it was beautiful, it was treacherous for a newbie like myself. Within the first half mile I twisted both ankles (one being the ankle I twisted two weeks ago during a run on the WSH which left me with lovely asphalt burn) a few times. I had put a pair of Yak Trax on my Adrenaline 11's for the race, but I'm not sure I was able to get any "traction" from them. I thought I'd try and tough it out. I was bundled up so much I wasn't even feeling that cold.

See? I did have fun. But by mile 2.5, where the first aid station was, I knew I had to bail. I asked the woman at the aid station what the quickest way to the finish line was. I had rolled both ankles countless more times, and took a lovely side fall. (Which hurt my ego more than it actually hurt me) Every step was a mystery. Was I going to step down on ice? A giant rock? Water? Each tweak of my ankles caused me great pain, and after tackling a 200ft hill around mile 4, my left hip was on fire. I was disappointed and frustrated that I couldn't finish the race, but I was grateful that I could sit in a warm car and change into dry clothes while the friends I drove out to Jersey with were finishing up. What was even more frustrating was seeing a guy wearing CARPIS fly past me.

Elevation map for the 5 mile loop.

A little brook that wasn't frozen. Or was it?

Regardless of my race, there was a well deserved beer at the end for me.

Waiting in the car for everyone else to finish up....sucked. Though no one made me feel bad about it, I still felt like a loser. I don't think I've ever cut a race short like that, but I knew for me, that was the only option. The worst part was when I finished my loop, the race organizer told me I was leading the women's half marathon. Sigh. Maybe one day.