I ran the trail half marathon as my first trail race. Advertised as 'fast and forgiving,' I was surprised at how difficult the trail actually was. (But I have nothing to compare it to.) I made the unfortunate mistake of wearing my road shoes (expecting an easy course.) My Garmin elevation profile showed that about 75% of the course was uphill, 20% steep downhill, and maybe 5% was flat. We ran over a trail with tons of large rocks and roots, scooted down boulders, climbed over a fallen tree, crossed a stream and another area of standing water, and climbed, climbed, and climbed some more. The toughest section was a steep downhilltrail shoes would have helped. I rolled both ankles twice and left the course bleeding from my shoulder from a tree branch. At the time, I knew I was in over my head (had trained on gravel and dirt paths that were not technical) and felt on the verge of getting injured most of the race. Afterwards, I was able to see the adventure of it all. I would do it again - with proper training and trails shoes!

I thought this was the course from hell, but after some reflection, this was a great event. This was my first trail marathon and I'm thankful I met the challenge and FINISHED. I've learned from this experience, you have to train to trail run/race. :-)