Marathon #8

Beaver Chase Urban Trail Marathon

Indianapolis, IN

Okay, so I chose northern races for June and July.  Not so much for August.  Yes, Indy is north of Bama, but definitely not any cooler.  This race was billed as a trail race inside city limits. Trails equal coolness of shade, right?...nope.  This course is a cross country course. Which I learned means lots of running on grassy areas.  Not my favorite surface to run on.  There was also a great deal of open area, without the shade I looked forward to.  This is loop race, 4 loops for the marathon distance. Now, I have done looped races before, no big deal.  This course KICKED MY BUTT! In the first loop, no less!  I did like the first couple of miles, after getting of the grass and into the trail portion.  That part was awesome! Nice soft trail, shaded, views of the river...really, really nice!  But, then you go back out onto the grass and stay there for the next four miles.  On my last loop, and I was the last runner, I asked my favorite person if he would do the last 5 miles with me. I was going to walk it, and he walks faster than I do. I figured he could help me stay on pace to finish under cut off time.  He did, and I did.  I probably won't do this one again, but they put on other races that look like fun.