And they were never heard from again... Indian Creek 50k Course Preview

Indian Creek 50's Course

The title of this post is a little ominous but with trail running, it sometimes feels like you’re flirting with the edge. Generally, everything is fine and dandy but one wrong turn, one twist of the ankle, one stray storm, one mistake in your gear, and you could find yourself in a tough situation.

A few weekends ago, Becky, Anna and I headed down for a preview of the Indian Creeks 50(ish)K course in Sedalia, Colorado. I had never been to, or heard of, Sedalia before signing up for the race. I think that’s true of most people because when I tell them where my race is, they cock their heads to the side and say “Oh?” But the people who know about Sedalia all say the same thing, “it’s beautiful.” And they are all totally right.

I’m glad I was able to run a little bit of the course for a few reasons. The obvious reason is that I was able to get a feel for what I’m in for. The less obvious reasons are that the course is really amazing, and it was also nice to run on some trails that looked and felt different than the Boulder/Indian Peaks variety.  

From what I saw of the course, it’s a lot of beautiful single track that makes me miss having a mountain bike. It weaves through pine forests and aspen groves, and once you come out of the forest, there are amazing views and some really fascinating rock formations.

Beautiful stuff 

The trail isn’t too technical, (i.e. no stair master sections or fields of rocky annoyingness), but it’s. Essentially, it’s either up or down, with not a whole lot of anything in between. I guess they have to get that 7,600 feet of elevation gain in somehow.

The course for the 50k is made up of two loops, a bigger loop and a smaller loop. Since we only had a 3.5 hour run on our schedule, we decided to tackle the smaller loop, which is about 15 miles. (Yes, I just said “only” 3.5 hours.)  

Our run was completely wonderful. It was beautiful and low key, with wild raspberry sampling, some nice chats with locals, and a four leaf clover sighting. So why the title of my post? Well:

• When we got to the trailhead early Saturday morning, there was no one around. Then, as we were getting ready, a fairly awkward looking guy in khaki pants showed up, ostensibly to hike. He was on the same trail as us and, even though he was just some dude out to enjoy nature on his own, he could have been a creepy dude and, after running into him on the trail … they were never heard from again. 

• At the beginning of our run, we made a wrong turn. We corrected ourselves pretty quickly but still ended up adding an extra mile to our run. Had it not been as obvious of a mistake, in theory, we could have gotten lost out there and… never been heard from again.

• Early in our run we came across some wild raspberry bushes with the most lovely, juicy looking, raspberries. It took me back to my childhood in Pennsylvania when my sister and I would pick blackberries in the woods behind our house. Becky and Anna were hesitant but I insisted each one of us have some. The berries were wonderful and we were fine, but, had I been mistaken about the berries, we would have eaten them and… they were never heard from again

• We came across a creepy looking shack in the woods that had a very Blair Witch vibe too it. Seriously, it was creepy. Becky and Anna were brave enough to peek their heads inside and… they were never heard from again.

Creepy shack

"And Becky and Anna were never heard from again..."

Creepy shack #2

• Around the halfway point of the loop, we ran into a ranger and a mountain biker who gave us some info on the rest of our route. The ranger told us that he had recently had several rescues in the area that we were heading– people who just got turned around and couldn’t find their way and needed help getting out. He called these SARs, for Search And Resuce, but we thought he said “sorry’s” as in “I’m sorry you had to come and get me in the woods.” As we headed off, we promised him we wouldn’t be a “sorry call” but you could tell he was kind of thinking, “…and they were never heard from again.”

• Right after we left the ranger, we stopped a random woman to ask her about one of the rock formations. She asked us where we came from and when we told her the Indian Creeks Campground she said, not hiding her shock, “you’re like 10 miles from your car!” Then she said, “wow… good for you,” but not in an overly enthusiastic way. It was like she was saying, “If I don’t hear about you on the evening news, I’ll be impressed,” which means a part of her was thinking, “…and they were never heard from again.” 

• Our 3.5 hour run turned into 4.5 and it was a hot day. I was starting to run a little low on water but had enough to get me through. Becky, however, was totally out. We shared our water with her but, if we had all be running low, perhaps we would have… never been heard from again.  

But none of these things happened. We had a great run and when we got back to the parking lot, the mountain biker we had met at the bottom was still packing up his car. He looked stunned to see us and said, “You ladies made amazing time!!!!!” Although that wasn’t exactly true, it probably helped him feel a little better about the fact that it took him almost as long to do the loop as it took us.

Even though none of these things happened, they all could have happened. I’m not saying that to be dramatic or to make it sound like I’m doing more extreme things than I actually am. Aside from running for what most people would consider a long time, there’s nothing too extreme happening, except for the amount of food I eat when I’m done. And there's a certain amount of risk that comes from just living, day today. 

But, trail running has taught me to always be prepared because, more than with other endeavors, your own your own out there and a slight turn of events can turn your day. Over the last few months, I’ve learned to:  

It's easy to make a wrong turn
when there are trail markers
that point to... nowhere

• Be prepared for anything. That means any kind of weather or conditions or time or  hunger levels or hydration levels or whatever. It’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.  

• Always physically prepare to be out there longer than you think (i.e. bring extra food/water).  Think you’re only heading out for a three hour run? Think again. If you underestimate your trail, or make a wrong turn, you could be out there for a good bit longer than you think.  

• Always mentally prepare to be out there longer than you think. There’s nothing worse than mentally pacing yourself for a 1.5 hour run that turns into a 3 hour run. If you’re three hours into a two hour run and the car is nowhere in sight, don’t freak out. You’ll get there eventually.  

• Don’t make big plans after a big run. Or, if you do, make sure you pretty much don’t have anything going on the next day, and maybe the day after that. God invented Netflix and couches for a reason.  

• Make sure you stop and take it all in. Don’t be so concerned about where you’re going that you don’t think about where you are. It’s really beautiful and amazing out there. If you’re not going to take some time to appreciate it, what’s the point?

After the course preview, I’m even more excited about this race than I was before! In fact, I think I’m more excited about this race than I’ve been about any other race in my life. Ever. When I did my Ironman a few years ago, I had a lot of energy around around that race but it was a lot of nervous, yucky energy. For this race, at least at the moment, it’s giddiness and excitement. It may not last but, for now, I’m rolling with it.

I can't quite pin down why I'm so excited. Maybe it’s because the older I get, I’m less concerned with the outcome of a race than I am with the experience. Or maybe it’s because I’ve done so many races so far this year that it’s hard to take any of them too seriously. Or maybe it’s because trail running is just seriously freakin fun. I think it’s a little bit of all of those things.  

Trail running - Super, freakin fun

Four leaf clovers - for real.