The race has been ongoing since 1985 and so is one of the
oldest continuously running races in New Mexico. However, it is a fairly small race because it
is basically a skyrunning event, lots of elevation gain coupled with high
altitude. The race gains just over 2100 feet
in just under 6 miles with a starting elevation of about 10,000 feet and a peak
elevation of just over 12,000 feet. My
Garmin gave a starting elevation of 9,990 and a peak elevation of 12,024 feet.
The race, despite being called a “trail run”, is run
exclusively on a dirt service road that is used to access the radio towers on
top of Tesuque Peak. The road is kind of
rocky in many places, not enough to be called technical but definitely enough
to make you pay close attention to your footfalls. The other aspect of the race, probably the
best aspect of the race, is the amazing fall colors. At the time of the race the high altitude
Aspen groves are in their full fall glory and the entire mountain race is
dappled in green and gold.
I wasn’t really expecting much from myself as far as racing
goes because I have not been training much at altitude and I haven’t done much
climbing at all this season. Since I’ve
been focused this year on recovering from last year and running flat marathons
I’ve spent all my time either in the gently rolling foothills of the Sandia
Mountains or down in the Bosque flat lands.
In any case, this was really just a supported training run and a chance
to get out of town and run somewhere new.
Race morning was cold up on the mountain. I think the morning temperature at race start
was 35 degrees but I still opted to wear shorts and a short sleeved shirt with
gloves and arm warmers. I knew I’d warm up
pretty quickly once the race started.
When the gun went off I started running but my pace was too
quick. I rapidly became winded and had
to slow down as runners more acclimated to the altitude surged past me. I was able to regroup pretty quickly, get my
head in the game and approach the race as I should; power hike the steep stuff,
run anything that was flatish and jog anything that was only a mild
incline. Using this ultra strategy I
quickly regained control over my breathing and was able to run the race on my
terms rather than being reduced to slogging up the mountain. However, this meant having to watch several
people disappear ahead of me but I kept telling myself that I would most likely
catch them on my way down.
Several people who were running just up ahead of me or near
me were running continuously, no walk breaks just a slow steady jog. Even though I was keeping up with them I was
still impressed by their efforts. I knew
that if I tried to run this thing continuously I would have blown up within a
mile or two and been forced to walk. I’ve
done enough racing to know that I have to run my own race using my own strategy
and part of that strategy is to never put myself in a position where I have to
walk. I will always start hiking or
walking before my body tells me I must and that keeps me stronger longer. Using my strategy at Tesuque I slowly churned
out the miles playing leap-frog with several runners for the first couple miles
and then gradually leaving them behind while catching new runners as I neared
the peak. The views from the top were
amazing. With the crystal clear New
Mexico sky you could see for miles in all directions but I didn’t linger
because I wanted to see how many people I could catch and pass before the
finish line.
The descent off the peak was invigorating at first and then
it became increasingly sketchy as my legs tired and the rocky road continued on
and on in a relentless descent. On the
way down I averaged about 7:23 minute miles, passed several people and was
passed by no one. Even though the road
was not technical the rocks, dappled shade and weariness caused by staying so
focused on your footing really took its toll.
About half-way down the mountain a guy maybe 10 yards ahead of me
tripped on a rock and went down hard. I imagine
it was pretty painful because there was nowhere soft to land just a packed dirt
road imbedded with rocks.
I continued my descent and tried not to think too much about
the guy who went down because I knew that would start making me paranoid and overly
cautious. Onward I hammered trying to
stay focused and trying to stay upright.
I finally reached the finish line in 2:03:59, not a great time but it
put me in the top third of the pack overall and I felt really good about my
effort. As I waited for the GeekGrl I
helped myself to the best breakfast burrito I’ve ever had at a race finish and
in New Mexico that’s actually saying a lot.
The Big Tesuque Trail Run is a very cool race, tough but
well worth repeating. If you’ve never
run it and are in the area I would definitely say this is a must do race, a
real New Mexican classic.
When no one passes me in the second half of a race, that tells me I started too slowly :) In an uphill-only race, my experience/feeling is that my performance in the first mile or two determines my finishing position. Specifically, at this year's LL a large percentage of my time gain was in the lower, smoother portion of the race, and another racer's report I read had him 1min ahead after the paved section, and....1min ahead at the finish line. I 'peaked' early at LL this year and stopped passing people mid-way through the rockslide, which tells me there is still room for improvement.
ReplyDeleteBeating 1hr ascent-time at BT would be the dream-time for me at that race (my last time there was around 1:09, and I think that's after they moved the turnaround), as being pretty clumsy and conservative I'm not willing to take the risk of a hard fall on the descent. Doing well on such descents implies much risk-taking experience training on similar hard descents, something I won't do. Indeed, I fell hard in the final descent in MT50k this year, a red-flag that tells me I've done too much and am getting sloppy, and is the reason I skipped BT this year.
I'm impressed you did BT the week before CdeC, it was good to see you finish there!