Most of us outdoorsy types either secretly, or openly, have a competitive streak and enjoy a new challenge and a goal to focus our training on. If you have been trail running for a while and are enjoying the challenge of the sport and the variety it brings to your training, then it is likely the thought of competing in a trail race has crossed your mind. The opportunity to tackle a new route and test your fitness and abilities against other runners can be hard to resist.
I found myself in this particular situation not long ago. I had been trail running regularly as part of my training for adventure racing and I had also taken part in a few of what can only be called hybrid races where I had ran on both sections of road as well as trails. I decided to take the opportunity to take part in a full trail race and registered for my first event.
I enjoyed every bit of the race but I did learn some important points. For pretty much all of my training I had been running on marked trails in my local Coillte Forests and on well-worn trails at my favourite hiking spots. Although I had been pushing myself physically on these trails, they were well short of the standard of the actual trail race route.
So drawing on my own experience with my first trail race, I’ve put together a list of the 5 main things to expect from your first trail race which will hopefully be of use to you when your first race comes around.
1. The Hills Will Be Steeper Than You Expected
Although I had been hitting the hills pretty hard on my local forest trails and had ran some hiking routes that I was familiar with, what I didn’t think of was the fact that race organisers would be able to mark out a route that was less used by the general public for the race itself. This gave them the full freedom to create a route that would bring racers anywhere that the organisers wanted, which included hills that were far steeper than the ones I had encountered on the more popular trails I had been using.
Most of us won’t have the confidence to take on unmarked routes in secluded areas until we have built up a certain level of experience in the sport, and our first race will likely come long before we reach that level.
Also, whether or not we like to admit it, or maybe it’s a subconscious thing that we are not aware of, but we have a tendency to avoid the hardest routes and hills in favour of the slightly easier option. This essentially means that for our first race at least, and for probably a few more after that, we will end up racing on much tougher routes than what we will be training on.
2. The Downhills Will Be More Technical Than Expected
Following on from the point above, the freedom to design routes that are not confined to popular and overly-trodden tracks means that the terrain underfoot will likely be far more challenging. This can mean anything from mud, long grass, sharp rocks or loose gravel and scree.
Whatever terrain you find yourself on, and also depending on weather conditions, the route will likely be far more technical in spots than you are usually used to. The technical features of the route will be far more prominent on downhill sections too. Similar to how the ascents will be steeper than normal; the descent will inevitably be steeper too, and in turn faster.
You will need to keep your focus and concentration on your foot placement, something which is very hard to do when running down a hill at full tilt. You will also have to deal with being surrounded by a number of other runners, something that you will definitely not be used to in training. You will need to be conscious not only of your own safety in this situation but also the safety of other runners too.
With all these aspects considered, this will lead to a much slower running pace than you would normally manage on clear, smooth and familiar descents with nobody else around.
Downhill running is a skill that develops with time, and again, this skill is likely to only fully develop after your first race has come and gone.
3. Smart Runners Know How To Pace
We all know that sprinting away from the start line is a terrible idea and I was very conscious of pacing myself correctly and not burning out too early in my first race. What I didn’t know was that what I thought was a cautious pace actually wasn’t at all.
I passed numerous racers who looked far more seasoned at the sport than I was and I couldn’t quite figure out why they were running so slow. Maybe they were carrying a slight injury, managing dodgy joints or keeping themselves fresh for a bigger race in a few weeks’ time? I was wrong on all three.
What I didn’t realise was that my usual reserved pace in training was too fast to deal with the much tougher and steeper route that lay ahead. It didn’t take long for the extra elevation gain and rougher ground to take its toll on my legs. As my pace dropped to a frustratingly low speed, those seasoned runners comfortably caught me, passed me and carried on into the distance.
And the noticeable thing was that I wasn’t alone on this. A surprisingly large proportion of competitors had grinded to a similar pace and it was clear that we were all new to the sport. The ones who weren’t knew from experience how to read the route profile in advance and paced themselves perfectly. They started slow and steady, continued slow and steady, and kept enough in the tank to finish strong.
Moral of the story… Do your homework and study the route profile. Don’t worry about who you are passing or who is passing you. Keep your pace steady and your heart rate low.
4. You Won’t Run It All
Between the higher levels of elevation gain, the tougher trail conditions and the likelihood that you won’t manage your pace correctly on your first outing, the chances are that you won’t manage to run the whole race route. This is perfectly fine. Walking is not against the rules and it is a lot more common than you might think.
Walking the steep sections of a race may seem like a cop out to the more competitive of us, but just remember that by walking, you are giving yourself the chance to recover a little while conserving energy for the flat and downhill sections.
In my first race, with the exception of the elite racers taking the top spots, the rest of us, including the more experienced racers, hiked much of the steeper sections of the route. And truth be told, if I didn’t stop running and walk for certain sections earlier in the race then I would have ended up having to walk across the finish line at the end instead.
5. Racing Is Addictive
My first race was something I decided to do out of curiosity and accountability. I had spoken to so many friends who had such positive experiences from trail races and as the this race was in January, I knew that if I had it marked on my calendar that I would stay somewhat consistent with my training over the Christmas Holidays. What I didn’t know was how addictive trail racing can be.
Although I had found the going tough in many parts and I most definitely had my ego checked by how many people passed me towards the end of the race, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience from start to finish.
The folks at registration were so friendly and warmly welcomed everyone on the morning despite the bitter cold January weather. The atmosphere and chat before the race was so positive and light-hearted. The race route itself was tough, challenging, technical, fast and most importantly it was exciting. The post-race banter and fun was so electric that I completely forgot I was dripping sweat on a freezing winter morning.
I just couldn’t wait to get home that evening to register for another race and since then I have found my experience to be similar at all my races. What had started out as me running a once off race out of curiosity, quickly turned into me squeezing as many trail races into my calendar as I could.
To Sum It All Up…
So if you have your first rail race coming up, or are thinking of registering for one, then you have no need to worry or be nervous. Trail races are great fun and well organised from start to finish. It will be an opportunity for you to take on a new challenge, on a standard of route that you may not usually run or have access to.
Having a race coming up will also give you a goal to focus your training on. The race itself will also be an opportunity to test your fitness and skill against other runners and adjust your training afterwards based on how the race went. And speaking to other runners before and after the race is a great way of picking up new tips on training and racing, or learning about new trails and routes.
During the race you might question yourself as to why you put yourself through this hardship but once you cross that finish line I can assure you that your biggest regret will be having left it so long to run a trail race in the first place. That trail racing bug really bites hard!
Read More: 6 Great Reasons To Start Trail Running
Comments