Sunday July 9th was a great morning for a trail race…sunny, clear blue sky and temps in the 70’s!! Just trying to get my scatter brain self together is hard enough, but we did managed to get the kids dressed, fed and in the car by 7:30. It’s a good thing Blue Hills is only fifteen minutes away. My daughter is really into running at the moment, so on the morning of the race the three of us did a couple runs up and down the pathway : ) I was a very proud daddy! Around 8 about 55 runners and myself congregated at the bottom of the Blue Hill Ski slope for a very mellow start! The pre-race gear talk and up-coming trail runs are heard among the crowd. After the start we quickly exit the soft grass field of the ski slopes and the trail immediately sets you on a straight incline 635 feet to the rocky summit. This is one tough trail race because it doesn’t end after we reach the summit there are a number of small hills to ascend and descend throughout the 7 miles. I power walked the step inclines and ran my hardest when the trail was soft dirt…but most of the time was spent navigating the technical stuff! The trail was out and back so what goes around comes around and after the final push to the summit…I had my moment of glory as I peaked the summit taking in the spectacular view of the skyline and made the final downward dash to the finish! It was especially nice to have my own cheering squad : )
