My First Trail Run

I decided to take part in my first trail running event with my friend Beth… What I hadn’t decided was the distance. An honest mistake to make, the difference between Kilometers and miles… Right! I remember sitting across from my partner after booking the event and quite innocently asking “How far 16 miles?”. Oh. No. turns out it is quite far, the furthest distance I would run up to date. A lot of my outdoor pals and work colleagues are into trail, I always loved the idea of it after being a road runner for a few years. I could see the appeal of softer ground beneath each stride, trees for signposts, and signs of nature everywhere you step. 

The event was the BIG FEAT Mud Run. The event began in Queen Elizabeth Country Park. The days leading up to the run had been wet, windy, and very cold. I had been putting off looking at the weather in the week to avoid the disappointment of seeing grey rain clouds. On the day the rain stayed mostly at bay. The event was very well organised, with two aid stations during the route. The event had very minimal plastic. At the aid stations you had to bring a collapsable cup or your own water bottle a very refreshing site considering the road races I have attended leave a sea of plastic cups and bottles in the wake of the stampeding runners. 

The car park was off-road, and Maxwell the Mazda battled through the deep dips and curves in the gravel track to find a spot in the grass. A nervous endeavor given the state of the damp ground, I made a small prayer to the car gods to allow the car to exit unscathed and unstuck. A prayer I have never made at the local park run. Despite only two portaloos working (due to them freezing overnight) the crowd of 350-odd runners remained buzzed and positive. The process of collecting my number was straightforward and all the marshalls and staff were patient and supportive. The event felt small compared to the ABP Southampton runs and Race for Life events. It felt far more like a parkrun, an intimate experience only had by the few. 

The Run had a casual start straight up Butser Hill… I had decided to spend the first 5K (yes Kilometers) warming up and taking it slow. I waved goodbye to Beth and plodded along until my body felt prepared enough to gently jog. My goal for the day was to finish. 

My first culture shock moment on the trail was at points during the route you could be completely alone, the fields throughout were a thick sheet of white unable to see more than 10 meters in front or behind and it was quite scary at points. Being alone on a route unsure if you are going in the right direction was mentally challenging for me. I am not the best at working out Strava maps or GPS trackers so even with all the efforts of my boyfriend installing the route into my phone the night before I couldn’t work it on the day. I missed a few of the direction markers which left me going the wrong way a few times, going back on myself to get back to the route wasn’t as physically taxing as it was mentally crushing, desperate for the finish line. 

It turns out trail running shoes do make a difference… I was reluctant to invest in a swanky pair of trail shoes when I had some fine road running shoes already. An Expensive investment when I didn’t know if trail would be my thing however, I spent most of the morning skating on mud. Sliding and slipping around, navigating the route in an odd crouch to stop falling onto my arse. This could explain my tight hips the day after. 

I’m Sitting here on Monday with tight legs, stiff hips, and a date with my foam roller. The question is would do it again? YES. A very intimate experience in many ways. The feeling of coming across the finish line was emotional and a huge relief, seeing my people and the incredible marshalls at the end supporting me was an unreal feeling.

One of the lovely things about this run is there were lots of opportunities for friends and family to see you along the way, the route intersected with the country roads throughout meaning I had a few fantastic flybys from my partner John. All photographs in this blog are from his valiant efforts tracking around for hours. Thank You! visit johnathanswann.com

See you on the trails!