Dino Series’ Tecumseh Trail Marathon took place yesterday (December 4, 2010). Steve Kincade, long-time Team Ragged Glory member and longer-time friend, and I (Doug Theis) headed down to Yellowwood State Forest in Nashville, Indiana, wondering what the wintry mix of weather had in store for us.
As sleet poured down on the racers, Brian Holzhausen, the Race Director, announced that the roads were too dicey for the bus drivers. He wisely changed the route from a point-to-point to an out-and-back. The south half of the Tecumseh would be our gauntlet. As fortune would have it, the south half is the hilliest half of the trail.
My running partner Steve Kincade and I have been playing in the woods together for a long time. Steve and I met in 1989. Steve worked in the Lab at Methodist and I worked in IT. During the 1991 Indianapolis Mini Marathon, Steve and I ended up running together during the last mile. We started running together shortly thereafter and haven’t quit yet. I was glad he was running with me. He has an uncanny ability to grind out high mileage. Misery loves company.
The gun sounded at 10am. A mixture of sleet and snow fell steadily as we circled Yellowwood Lake and headed north to the 13 mile turnaround. The temperatures stayed right in the 30 degree range the entire event. Between 2 and 4 inches of snow fell as we ran the course. Aside from some tricky passing for the leaders in two-way trail traffic, the race was well executed and tough, as always. Steve and I ended up finishing in about 6 hours and 15 minutes. Our Indy adventure racing friends Eric Henricks, Angelia Kniesly, and Phil McNealy all ran much faster and finished well.
I had a great time with my old friend, Steve. Thanks Brian, for another high-quality installment of the Tecumseh Trail Marathon.
Hi Doug – I also ran the race. What an epic adventure it was! Check out my own blogpost at mtrappe.wordpress.com.
Happy Running!
Matt