In spite of a foolishly too-fast start and an embarrassingly slow finish I had seven hours of fun last week at my first trail marathon. Tom Brennan of the Montgomery County Road Runners Club captured one magical moment in the woods during which I somehow appear to have actually been running. (Or maybe he manipulated the photo?) Blue blazes visible on a few of the trees mark the route.

Trail running is built from contradictions:

• risk & control
• mind & muscle
• comfort & struggle
• nature & civilization
• caution & confidence
• simplicity & technology
• solitude & companionship

Meander through the woods for an hour, then cross a highway. Wear garments of the fanciest artificial fibers, then slip and fall in the mud. Walk alone for miles, then be overtaken by a small crowd of helpful people. Suffer crippling leg cramps, then eat just the right thing and be reborn. ...

(see also HAT Run 2004 (2 Apr 2004), RobertFrostTrail (10 Aug 2004), Seneca Creek Greenway Trail Marathon 2005 (5 Mar 2005), ...)

TopicRunning - TopicRecreation - 2005-03-13

(correlates: CloserToTheMachine, ThreeMooseketeers, Emily Dickinson, ...)