Huntsville SP card punched

I have a lot to say, but for the sake of the length I'll TRY to keep it short.

Today was my first time running in Huntsville State Park. For starters: The weather was perfect. The scenery was unbelievable and the trails were awesome. The only problem I had this morning was a dead battery on my garmin. I'm sooo addicted to the numbers. It drove me CRAZY without it, but oh well, life goes on. I didn't even have a regular watch, so the numbers for today are a pure estimate.

The scheduled route was ~12.5 miles. Sean joined us (Striders) this morning. He's running Sun-mart next weekend and wanted to sneak-a-peek at the terrain. We didn't run together much because he was hanging out near the front of the pack. Side note: The Striders only saw a small preview of his running ability. Sean is a truly gifted runner.

Back to the run. Near the nine mile mark I was descending a hill RAPIDLY and lost my footing and fell. It knocked the wind out of me. I stayed on the ground for a minute before getting back on my feet. Shortly after the fall I made a wrong turn, which extended my run by ~6-7 miles.

A Woodlands, TX trail runner heard that I was separated from the group and set out to find me. His name was Les. SUPER nice guy. The first thing he asked was, "Are you Bill?". Then Les proceeded to say that he was done with his 25k loop and wouldn't leave the park, knowing that a runner was missing. After several "thank you's", we talked about everything from trail shoes to training strategies. I had a wonderful time talking to him about ultra-running related stuff. Thanks Les! If it wasn't for you, I'd probably still be wondering around in the woods.

Before Les "found" me I had run out of water and decided it would be safer to walk until I knew where I was. My best guess is that I ran 11-13 miles and walked 4-5 miles. Les and I ran the last 3/4 mile to the camp. That short run with him was the highlight of my day.

With the exception of the fall I never stopped moving. This is bitter-sweet news. I'm glad I stayed in motion. BUT. Today's run has planted negative thoughts about my ability to finish a 50-miler. We'll see, the best I can do right now is run one day at a time.

The attendees included: Bessie, Amaila, Carlos, Jim, Steeeve, Steve, Chip, Heather, Amy, Barb, Vic, Sean, Pam, Frank, and me. Sorry Striders for the drama that held up breakfast. You forgive me, right!

Activity: Trail run
Mileage:
Run: 11+
Walk: 4+
Time: Approximately 4 hours??
Location: Hunstville State Park
How I felt: 9

My legs are very sore right now. I'm curious of my "recovery time". One last thing. Someone, I don't remember who, said that HSP was flat "as a pancake". Let it be known, I'm calling BULL-SHIT!