I ran the Clinton Lake 10 Mile Trail Run this week-end, making DeWitt County the 57th Illinois county I have run in as I try to run a race in all 102 Illinois counties.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. I don't like trail runs even though this is the fifth one I've run in. But, I have to admit that after this race I can at least now understand (somewhat) the attraction that some people have towards trail running. Trail running is definitely a different sport than regular running and the runners have a different attitude.
Today's course, held at the Clinton Lake State Recreation Area that surrounds the Clinton Nuclear Power Plant, consisted of a narrow trail that went up and down huge ravines. Many of the downhills were worse than the uphills. The course was difficult and yet the hard-core trail runners seemed disappointed that the rain and snow that had threatened all week hadn't materialized to make the course even tougher.
As it was, I thought the course was hard enough. I can usually run a 10 mile road race in just over an 1:30 and I had hoped to do this race in under 2 hours. My time came in at 1:49:17, so I accomplished that. Trail runs are difficult and hilly.
Aside from the hills, today was very cold, although once the racing in the woods began it was warm enough. I tripped three times on roots along the course on the run, although I only fell once.
The race consisted of one loop around a spur of the lake. There was also a 30 mile race as part of this trail run, which ran the same loop three times. I can't even imagine doing that. About 45 people participated in the 10 mile run and slightly more in the 30 mile run. The annual race had been 30 miles only but this year they added the 10 mile run. I'm glad they added the 10 mile race because there is no way I'm running a 30 mile race and this is the only race I know of in DeWitt County.
The shirts for this race were short sleeved running shirts but were plain, with no lettering, which I found interesting. After the race, they served wonderful chili, soup and bread and had just tapped a keg when I left. All race finishers received a very small hand made medallion. Pre-race facilities were pretty spartan and it was cold waiting for the race to begin. All in all, it was a very well managed race, although I'll bet the park would have been beautiful had the race been held in the fall, rather than on the edge of the end of winter.