When I started training this year, running the Glacial Drumlin State Trail wasn't my goal, however upon realizing I miscalculated the distance of my original goal, my coach suggested the Glacial Drumlin State Trail. We picked a day and went with it.
The morning was cooler than average for a May morning, 34°F. I bundled up with a jacket, mittens and an extra layer of vaseline on my legs to keep my legs warm in shorts. I had planned to have friends join me for this journey, a moving party of the sorts, and that's exactly what it was. Jason joined me for the first 15 miles which was my favorite part of the trail. I was feeling great and I had warmed up enough to start shedding layers. I held a pace between 8:45 and 9:00. We picked up more friends in Lake Mills, including my coach Spencer, friends, Steve, Jake, Kayla, and another unexpected friend Scott. They all stuck around til around mile 22. Temperatures picked up to the low 60s with partly cloudy gorgeous blue skies.
At mile 22, alone with Steve, I started feeling quite a bit of fatigue in my legs and by mile 25 I was struggling so much that I had to run/walk portions to keep moving. I struggled with that fatigue from 20-40 but was mentally strong and happy. My crew was able to keep me going by feeding me pickles, pickle juice, olives, potato chips, huma gels, Maurten gels and hydrating me with water. I was surrounded by positive energy and friends throughout the day which helped me push through the hard times.
By mile 48 I was able to run without walk breaks, it wasn't fast, but it was running so that was great. We played music, sang along and even danced our way through the last few miles.
At the end, it wasn't super clear where the trail ended so we may have tacked on a minute or so to find our bearings. Overall, it was a fantastic day on a gorgeous trail.