Black Hill 10K Race Recap

This past Saturday was the Black Hill 10K cross country race. I hadn't run an official, timed race since June and was really looking forward to it. I was a little anxious because I had no idea what to expect. I've only run 1 or 2 cross country races in the past and those were 5K's.

The race was brutal! It was very hilly and it was hard to follow the dirt trail. It was covered in leaves, there were a ton of rocks, and a lot of twists and turns. I twisted my foot half a dozen times on the rocks and almost fell on my face once or twice. I was constantly looking down, trying to watch where I stepped.

Despite the toughness of the race, I'm happy to say that I ran the whole thing. I carefully crossed over 2 creeks and stepped over a few logs and I slowed way down on some of the hills. But I never walked. I stopped once to snap this picture:

It was such a beautiful morning for a run in the woods! I came in 98th out of 105 total runners with a time of 1:18:02. I didn't go in with a time goal and I'm very happy with what I did.

This race was put on by the local road runner's club which I'm a member of. They put on a number of low-key races throughout the year that are free for members. This was only the 2nd club race I've done this year but next year I plan on taking full advantage of my membership!

Here's my race photo, taken during the last half mile:

I saw the photographer and was trying to be serious and look focused. I think I need to start smiling when I see a camera!

I'm still getting in a few runs throughout the week. We've been having amazing weather this week and, with the knowledge that colder weather and earlier sunsets are right around the corner, I've been enjoying it as much as possible.

Here are a few pictures from my weeknight runs:

And my favorite:

So far I've run 54.57 miles this month. With one week left, I know I'll hit 60! And that's all running; none of it is walking. I'm so proud of the things I'm accomplishing!