PCTR Woodside 17k

Fun times at the PCTR Woodside Trail Runs at Huddart Park! This was my third year in a row running the event, which features distances of 10k, 17k, 35k, and 50k. I call it my “home course” since I often run at Huddart. Last year I did the 17k in 1:11:00 and was coming in hoping to break 1:10 this year. Weather forecasts all week predicted rain for Saturday morning and that is exactly what happened. It was wet out there and I was completely covered in mud by the end. Fortunately, the majority of the trails were resurfaced over the past year with hardpack gravel making it fast even in wet conditions. However, the unimproved sections were covered in sticky, slippery, and deep mud and you can imagine what kind of a mess it was after 500 runners stomped through it! I had a good run coming in at 1:07:40 (6:23 pace) indicating that I still have some speed despite doing no speed work in months. This PCTR event was excellently organized, as usual. Congratulations to all the participants and thanks to the directors and all the volunteers for making it a great day!