Race Location: Chesterfield, NH
Race Date: September 14, 2008
MUD RUN
This year’s race could be dubbed Pisgah Mountain & Stream 25/50K. The northeast received plenty of rain Saturday night that continued on into Sunday setting the backdrop for the day ahead. My dad and I drove up from Boston to Chesterfield, NH early Sunday morning and to my surprise when we arrived at the Chesterfield Fire Station start/finish area my dad spontaneously decided to sign up for the 25K, so much for his plan to do a easy run and then visit Brattleboro, VT. So we quickly got ourselves geared up and followed the crowd to the starting line. My dad, I and a number of other adventurous runners spent the day squelch squirting our way through the hilly foggy mess of mud. I had a decent run – no low points and felt strong all day; I kept it simple for Pisgah using a handheld filled with Gatorade supplied at each aid station. I was anticipating 9-10 minute miles but this didn’t happen with the conditions and lack of trail running this season I averaged just over 11 minute miles finishing shy of 6 hours. My dad’s a trooper although he was undertrained and unprepared for a long wet day on the trails he was up for the challenge, he set out to walk/run the 14 miles and expected to finish around the same time as me but got a little disoriented and did some backtracking along Pisgah Ridge. A little discouraged he pushed onward and finished the 25K with a smile. Even if the sun didn’t shine the event sure did, I enjoyed running under the tall pines of Pisgah State Park, the satisfaction of a tasty burger after crossing the finish line and especially all the help from the dedicated volunteers.
A few photos from the day taken by Scott Livingston.
OVERALL RESULTS
A few more race reports -
Sherpa John
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