Post by Pacific Coast Trail Runs on Sept 19, 2007 18:31:59 GMT -5
Big Basin Redwoods State Park was in all her glory at yesterday’s trail run – water still in the creeks, filtered sunlight coming through the branches of the redwoods, soft breezes blowing through the trees, jays scolding from above, deer peeking out from the brush, and, unfortunately, yellow jackets aggressively defending their nests. But while some people cut their runs short after being stung and a few decided not to finish the pink loop, we were amazed and impressed that most people accepted the multiple stings they got as ‘part of trail running’ or something that just sped up their pace for a few hundred yards. This was our sixth year putting on events in the Park, and was by far the worse of the two years when runners encountered yellow jackets on the course. We are very sorry about the stings many of you received, but are also extremely grateful for the hardy nature of most trail runners! We went through a lot of Benadryl, as you can imagine, both at the finish line and when Flora went out on the pink loop with a supply to check on the folks who hadn’t come through yet, but most people decided to continue on to finish their runs on the orange and quickly-modified pink loops.
And, speaking of the orange loop, what a challenging course THAT turned out to be! Due to the Park’s construction and trail closure, we had to reroute and shorten the pink loop at the last minute which, in turn, meant lengthening the orange one. But not only was it longer, it was WAY harder than it used to be! But, although a few adults complained about its difficulty, the kids (ranging in age from 5 to 12) enjoyed the challenge and cruised proudly across the finish line with not a negative comment among them. While 5 year old Mark, who’s quite experienced on some of our most difficult short courses, declared this one “VERY hard!”, he still managed to run over 2 kilometers farther than ever before and sprinted under the finish banner having averaged a faster pace than he’s run in his 8 Kms!
Congratulations to all the kids, grown-ups, and everyone in between on your fine accomplishments at Big Basin Redwoods. Complete results are available at:
www.pctrailruns.com/BBR_Results_07.htm
And we want you to know that, in order to try to lessen the chances of yellow jacket encounters at this event in the future, we’re planning to move the event date to late April in 2008, when we’re planning to go back to running on the old, pre-construction course. Hope to see lots of you out on the lush, soft trails of this fabulous Park then.
Our next event is the Angel Island Trail Run, one of our easiest courses in terms of elevation gain. There are three loops around this little island, each with great views of San Francisco and other cities, a whole bunch of bridges, and many cool nautical sights. Please do try to join us on the 29th of this month for a ferry ride followed by an 8 Km, 16 Km, 25 Km, or 50 Km on this most fun small island.
Thanks again for driving to Big Basin Redwoods to run, and hope we see you out on the trails again soon.
Wendell & Sarah
And, speaking of the orange loop, what a challenging course THAT turned out to be! Due to the Park’s construction and trail closure, we had to reroute and shorten the pink loop at the last minute which, in turn, meant lengthening the orange one. But not only was it longer, it was WAY harder than it used to be! But, although a few adults complained about its difficulty, the kids (ranging in age from 5 to 12) enjoyed the challenge and cruised proudly across the finish line with not a negative comment among them. While 5 year old Mark, who’s quite experienced on some of our most difficult short courses, declared this one “VERY hard!”, he still managed to run over 2 kilometers farther than ever before and sprinted under the finish banner having averaged a faster pace than he’s run in his 8 Kms!
Congratulations to all the kids, grown-ups, and everyone in between on your fine accomplishments at Big Basin Redwoods. Complete results are available at:
www.pctrailruns.com/BBR_Results_07.htm
And we want you to know that, in order to try to lessen the chances of yellow jacket encounters at this event in the future, we’re planning to move the event date to late April in 2008, when we’re planning to go back to running on the old, pre-construction course. Hope to see lots of you out on the lush, soft trails of this fabulous Park then.
Our next event is the Angel Island Trail Run, one of our easiest courses in terms of elevation gain. There are three loops around this little island, each with great views of San Francisco and other cities, a whole bunch of bridges, and many cool nautical sights. Please do try to join us on the 29th of this month for a ferry ride followed by an 8 Km, 16 Km, 25 Km, or 50 Km on this most fun small island.
Thanks again for driving to Big Basin Redwoods to run, and hope we see you out on the trails again soon.
Wendell & Sarah