Sunday, November 2, 2014

Why Trails?

We asked a few DRC runners the question, "Why Trails?"  It was great to read opinions about the importance of trails for decompression, challenge, humility and cross-training.  The one common thread in each, EVERYONE benefits from flirting at least a little with the trails!
Why Trails? Why not? The road is the road. Sure-- it's smooth, it's consistent, that old reliable friend that will always be there for you. But what about that OTHER friend? You know, that one that you always take some "bail money" when you go out with her? Because you just never know what's going to happen? That's the trail. Unpredictable. Maybe you will find a new path. Maybe you will see a deer. Maybe you will fall on your face. Maybe you will get a little bit lost. It probably won't go as planned, but that's kind of the point. Shake it up. When I am "trail running", I let go of mile splits and distance. I see things. I listen to different music, or none at all. I go out with my other friend. The road will always be there for me when I get back.          -Molly Derner

Why trails? I started trail running this past June with a group that was training for the Pikes Peak Marathon. I wasn’t running it, but I figured I could benefit from the group runs. Before that, all of my miles were logged on pavement. I enjoyed running, but I didn't really get hooked until I took it to the trails. I started hiking and backpacking several years ago, but it practically requires a 3 day weekend or more to plan a trip worthy of giving me my fix. Trail running is like a concentrated version of backpacking, only I get to cover more distance in a much shorter amount of time. There is nothing better than being out on the trails navigating the dirt, roots, and rocks. The more technical the trail the better. Just relax and find that mental space where the only thing you think about is your foot placement. To me, nothing is more freeing.          -Denzil Jennings

Why Trails?  There is something about a friendly jaunt on a familiar trail that can cure just about anything.  Regardless of season, we can find peace and comfort in the crunch of leaves, the squish of mud, and the freezing tingle of snow.  The trails are deliciously consistently inconsistent.  Rounding that blind corner, what might we encounter today?  Will it be a newly formed mud pit (aka shoe-eating swamp), two turtles "hugging", a beautiful (and territorial) ten-point buck, or a disguised copperhead sunning himself on the path (SNAKE?! There are NO snakes on MY trails!).  The obstacles on the trails mirror the obstacles in life ("Is that ice?" BAM "$%#@! Yup...that was ice.") and give us a tranquil setting to ponder life's most critical questions ("How many bananas is too many bananas?"  "Is there such thing as PB&J toxicity?").  Finisher medals are replaced with bruised knees, cougar-attacked calves, and skinned palms- all badges of honor that piece together unforgettable adventures with the most dedicated, determined, and passionate group of crazy people that you could ever be so lucky to get lost with.  Happy stumbling...er...running!          -Kristen Strange

Why trails? Good question. I would certainly have an easier time answering “Why not trails?” After all, I don’t fall on pavement. I don’t end up with black toenails, rolled ankles, cuts, bruises or scrapes. On pavement, I can see the finish before I get there, and I’ve never gotten lost while doing a paved run for the tenth time. I can’t say the same about trails. So, why trails? It’s really a question I can’t answer. For me, the attraction can’t be identified, quantified, or qualified. It just is. All I know is this - for every runner who runs a trail and disgustedly announces he’ll never do that again, there are ninety-nine who finish their first trail wondering how they had missed out on that exhilaration for so long and when they can come back. Somewhere in that collective experience lies the answer. You can try to identify it yourself, or you can just trust me… it’s there.          -Frank Evans

Why Trails?  Everyone has that “place” they go to when they just want to escape the world for a moment and just be. To just be in solitude. To just be free. To just exist in the most natural way that a human being can exist. For me, that place is in the woods. You could say that I’m a runner, but to be completely accurate, I am a TRAIL runner. There is no greater peace than when I am out amongst nature. Very little of the hustle and bustle of the world can find me when I lace up my shoes and hit the dirt. Those moments are my escape. It is when I feel the most alive: I am a wild animal who is free from work, free from deadlines, free from bills, free from stress.  Trail running is my passion, stress relief, and exercise all in one. Every trail run brings something new-- new sights, new smells, new obstacles, new experiences. These are the times that I truly feel alive and free. I am a TRAIL runner forever and always.          -Bethany Murray

Why Trails?  Since I laced my first pair of trail shoes (newly purchased at Shoe Carnival and barely meant for trails), I found myself in the folds of one of the most accepting groups of runners that I had ever been a part of.  The run previously focusing on time and pace had changed.  Gone were the need for mileage splits, gone were pretentious runners with elitist mentalities.  Mostly anyway.   Within a group of runners where one guy wore his own version of running sandals (fashioned after reading "Born to Run") and another whom we still swear can run through the ripples of time, there is a shared respect for anyone who steps foot onto the trail.  Races, only called a race for those who move like frolicking deer, are more like family reunions that start with thundering cheers from all the runners.  The end of these races are a celebration of the completion of a challenge.  These people are not strangers if you have met them on the trail, they are simply a new friend you need to get to know.  Just as the scenery is never the same, no run is either.  Seasons and weather conditions create a new template every run.  A road run with friends is great for company, but nothing can bring the same emotion as a trail.  I've slogged through 2 marathons and I hated the decision to run them with every step, but I've bound through 4 50k's with eager anticipation all thanks to the trails.  I would encourage anyone looking for their "inner runner" to take a drive to your local single-track trail and find out just how amazing the path-less-paved can be!         -Drew Beaty

Big Thank You to Molly Derner, Denzil Jennings, Kristen Strange, Frank Evans, 
Bethany Murray & Drew Beaty for your literary contributions!



Below is a list of area trails and corresponding websites.  

This Trail Key can also be found in the Group Files.  
North Side of River
KATY Trail:  237 miles across state, double track, gravel, flat, many access points, many scenic views and connections to other trails

Klondike Park:  ~ 6 miles with KATY trail access, multiple loops, asphalt, packed dirt, overlook

Matson Hill Trail:  2.5-7.4 miles with KATY access if you take the Matson Hill Road up to trail head, main trail loop feeds into secondary loop and out and back option, all trails are packed dirt or rock shelf with minimal roots, elevation change is gradual with clean forest floor and tall old growth trees


Weldon Springs
Lost Valley:  10.5 miles, loop with gravel service road, single track meadow, 2 sections of single track, gravel and packed dirt, connection to Hamburg Trail

Hamburg Trail:  3 miles Point to Point, double track gravel service road, connects the KATY Trail to Lost Valley

Lewis and Clark:  5.3 miles on Clark Trail or 8.2 for both Lewis and Clark loop, single track, gravel, packed dirt, some elevation gain, overlooks


East of Washmo
Shaw Nature Reserve: 14 miles, asphalt, double track gravel, single track, system of 3/4 mile trails and service roads with multiple scenic views and Meramec river access 

Greensfelder:  7.8 mile DeClue Point to Point, 2.6 mile Dogwood Valley Loop, 3.4 mile Eagle Valley Loop (3 main trails), several adjoining trails/service roads, almost entirely single track, switchbacks, elevation climbs, creek crossings, gravel and packed dirt paths

Rockwoods Reservation:  ~ 13 miles (4 small trails and a difficult climb to connecting Greensfelder on the Green Rock Trail), some paved, stairs, bridges, single track, gravel, rock shelf and packed dirt trail

Rockwoods Range: ~ 10 miles (4 trails), all difficult single track trail, gravel, rock, packed dirt, creek access, connectors to Greensfelder and Rockwoods Reservation


Missouri State Park
Al Foster Trail:  5.5 miles, point to point, crushed rock double track with multiple connectors

Zombie Road:  3 miles, point to point, paved or gravel double track

Bluff View:  2.5 miles, point to point, accessed from Al Foster, steady incline to overlook, packed dirt, roots, rocks

Chubb Trail:  6.5 miles, point to point, open spaces, single track and technical challenges

Stinging Nettle Trail:  2.5 miles, point to point, connects Al Foster along the Meramec to Sherman Beach 

Castlewood
Castlewood Loop: 3 miles, entire length in flood plain, river/farmland views
Cedar Bluff Loop: 2.25 miles, highest point in the park
Grotpeter Trail: 3.75 miles, challenging elevation changes 
Lone Wolf Trail: 1.5 miles, bluffs and drop offs next to river
River Scene Trail:  3.25 miles, grand staircase
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Sunday, October 26, 2014

RUN, It's OK.

By Meg McCarrick


Around the time that I realized not everyone ran, I also realized not everyone wanted to talk about running.  I know, head-scratcher.  I just can't help it, I feel compelled to discuss my runs for the week or a new PR or about what so-and-so did when we ran at such-and-such place. I very literally throw a hand over my mouth when I pass the two-minute mark of "run speak" with a non-runner.  Non-runners don’t care.  Very simply because they don’t understand.  Try explaining to someone who doesn’t run about a “good sore”, “natural buzz”, or shoes, pace, terrain, elevation.  Prepare for glazed eyes and an occasional nod or “uh-huh”.  Sometimes that response is out of kindness, sometimes jealousy, but I think mostly it’s just disinterest.  Recently, I have been taking special care to recognize the indifference of non-runners as just that.  Shut up about the race, ask about their kids.
Imagine running as this grand and hefty book, as old and worn as time itself.  This tome is made of sections ranging from weekend sidewalk trots to week long mountain sky runs.  A lot of people never open the book.  Once you choose to, it can be so overwhelming that you slam it shut and never look back.  But, for some of us, we start slowly at page one and witness a world that gives back just as much effort as we put in.  You can’t explain that feeling of enlightenment.  You have to experience it for yourself.  Once you do, your life does actually change.  No wonder it is challenging not to desperately share (or force upon? semantics) the stories of running.

Often, I am faced with the dilemma of telling the truth about my running.  I can’t make it out for drinks because I plan to run early the next day.  I can’t take the kids to the park right after school because I really need a shower.  That weekend might be bad for us, I'm still trying to get my run in and make it to a race to watch friends cross the finish line.  I didn’t grocery shop, I snuck a run in, and now I have to take both kids shopping or I might just trick them into eating an oversized portion of kale salad with the promise of popcorn later. 

Non-runners, NRs, all have the same basic war cry, “You are running too much!!!!!”  For those of you who have heard it before, we all know what we would like to say, and it is not usually nice.  Sometimes, criticism comes from parties that we can't just blow off.  I am talking about a spouse, parent, child.  

Let’s first look at the significant other.  Sure, needing to depend on a spouse to watch our shared children (they do belong to both of us, after all) might come as an inconvenience from time to time, but the benefits of great attitude, higher energy and physical fitness are best not overlooked.  Personally, it has taken me a little while to figure it out, but encouraging passion in your significant other ultimately strengthens a relationship.   Giving your partner the go-ahead to chase a dream is an invaluable step toward a relationship based on respect.  It's a two-way street, and there's a learning curve.  But, starting by explaining the passion is sometimes all it takes.

Parents, I LOVE my mother, but if there is anyone on this earth that knows how to push my buttons more effectively than her, I hope our paths never cross.  She doesn’t “get” running.  Sharing my running accomplishments with her makes me happy and she can take a pretty good dose of it, but with one sharp, “Meg, I think you might be overdoing it” I decide I will NEVER discuss mileage or running schedules with her ever, ever again.  I try to make light of it, change the subject and then, for the rest of the day, doubt whether I should even go on my next run.  Sure, my free time might not include a daily hour-long conversation with her, and a lot of times that is because that hour includes a run...well I’m sorry, I will call you tomorrow, mom.  

Children. I am pretty lucky here, I scoot my hellraisers all over this town to get to their education and extracurriculars.  I feed, clothe, protect, and teach them.  I love them without any boundaries.  But, dude, Mommy’s gotta run to keep that up.  Fortunately, they are a big fan of the running as long as I let them GPS their jaunts around the house from time to time.  And if I can keep my 7 year old from asking if I ran a hundred miles while he was at school, I might just keep him around.  “18. 18, still pretty good, give me a break, kid!”  Hand the 4 year-old a cow bell and we're golden.

 I run a lot.  It’s no secret.  It’s not something that I am ashamed of, but I do feel that I have to hide it in conversation with many NRs.  If I was to say, “Yeah, I need one more short run, five miles, to get in my 50 mile week”, the fogged stare ensues and then the inevitable, “Why do you run so much?” or “How does your family feel about all the running?” (passive aggressive, much?)  Or, by far the most crushing, “You don’t make time for me anymore, just for the running.”  Ugh, cry me a river.  We're all adults here.  The daily battle between "need to" and "want to" usually balances out alright, but small sacrifices for sanity happen along the way, and you find that "want to" usually takes a back seat.   There's just not as much time for "want to".  That running that I chose over arranging a lunch date might have saved me from throwing in the towel on complaining kids, errands, a burnt dinner or a flooded basement.

Of course, there are those kind folks that just don’t want to watch you struggle or to be in pain.  Well, running is hard.  I get sore.  I have to recognize where they are coming from without making an excuse for my running.  I have to appreciate their concern without internalizing it too much.  It's tough, but I have to realize that they don’t HAVE to understand why I run.  

Disapproval from acquaintances or "non-essential personnel" can be let go with relative ease (though keeping this honest, some times not until after I "run on it").  The harshest judgements are those that come from close friends.  In my opinion, having a friend upset with me over running is the worst.  One of my NR friends recently said she thinks it’s "just best that we go our separate ways".  I really did try prioritizing her functions, even when it cost me a run day, but too often for her, I scheduled around runs and she felt like her value was less than my need for mileage.  It's a loss I've struggled with.  Last week I was asked to blow off a Third Thursday because a visiting NR friend doesn’t want my attention divided while she's in town.  I begged for her sensitivity regarding my "current obsession" (her words) and dedication.  Some pouting, whining and belittling later, I came out on the other side having not sacrificed my monthly commitment and still hanging on to a friendship.  Phew!/WTH?   I want my NR friends to see that I choose them.  But, I also have to choose running.  

So, maybe I screwed up, I cracked open that big running book.  I read it.  I'm still reading it.  I can’t unknow the feeling of a great run.  The rewards of training for mental synchrony and optimal muscle performance are ingrained in me now.  I am not giving that up.  What's really most important is that I choose to be OK with that.  

Meghan McCarrick lives in Washington, Mo., eats copious amounts of kale and runs 30 to 50 miles a week, usually with her dog, Magpie.
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Runner's High

 By Meghan McCarrick

Originally Posted in Terrain Magazine

The Runner’s High: That’s why we all run, right? Lace up, hit the ground, push ourselves all for that sweet bit of…hmm, what exactly is a runner’s high? 

Google “runner’s high” and the most legit definition is very scientific while still lacking explanation as to whether you are going to feel euphoric, delirious, or even just really good. In other words, it seems that this feeling is indescribable, but maybe graspable.

Sometime in college, I realized that not everybody ran. So when I first started sharing my running with others, often over a drink, pre-social media (well ok, we had IM and Myspace was becoming a thing), I always got the same questions: “Oh, you go for the runner’s high?”; “Do you get a runner’s high?”; “Heeey, what’s a runner’s high like?” I always felt weird saying, “Uh, I don’t know.” But that was the case, having run fairly regularly since the 7th grade, I never looked at aspects of running as ones that would be considered anything other than a stage of suckiness or a stage of “Oh, running, how I love thee!”. As I have gotten older, I guess I have paid more attention to those swings of emotional high and low that come with running.

Running provides a great coping mechanism for me. I often make peace with a disappointment or loss through running. Sometimes though, I unintentionally close a difficult chapter while out logging miles. One 20 mile run that I did this year was really just the pits. I had 4 miles left and, had quitting not meant I was stranded out in a cornfield, I would have just stopped, but I started thinking of a close departed friend (and previously accomplished distance runner) and I felt almost as if he were there with me. I was overcome with emotion, started really pushing the pace and felt a huge weight crush into my chest around the same time I realized that I had tears running down my face. 
Runner’s High? 

I have had speed days where I feel like I am flying, really toeing the line of that sub-6:00 mile, focusing solely on speed not even footfalls. Every skin surface tingles, all my muscles work in unison, the feeling of unhinged strength and ability. This is where I am supposed to be, this is what I am supposed to be doing. I am the shit. 
Runner’s High? 

From time to time, after a nice steady hill climb, when things start to feel as if you are just stuck in the same upward motion, I ask myself, “Sheesh, do I really want to be on this hill ALL day??” So, I push it, I stress my heart and turn off the pain receptors in my brain, and I go faster, uphill. It is hard to breathe, it is touch and go as to whether I will survive standing up, but as the hill levels I feel good...REAL good. 
Runner’s High? 

After a long run, I can label myself as fairly useless for the remainder of the day. Sure, I can handle obligations with farm and family. I can take on a few non-essential tasks, but I am sure that more than one bystander is like, “Really, that woman forgot how to use her pen”. I might start talking and all of the sudden that quick little tangent ends up being “a thing” that I want to discuss at length and research and potentially invest in. Crazy stuff. I am often thankful that I am able to drive without injuring myself or anyone else after particularly exhilarating mileage.  Delusi-run-al.
Runner’s High? 


Well, it has taken me years of running to quantify what exactly MY runner’s high is, and that might not come close to what is expected from another person’s experience. My runner’s high is a kind of gratitude. I am just so darn thankful for EVERYTHING. It’s an intense feeling, all while my body is running at a pleasantly sound mode. It sometimes only last a few seconds but I am happy to acknowledge it and I realize it is a little gift (just for me) arrived at due to a little push (from me). I can recall moments over my life where I felt very much in peak form and this “buzz” feeling certainly accompanies that. But, as for a high, I don’t know. Maybe I still haven’t gotten that. I don’t get asked about it much anymore as I tend to share my experiences and accomplishments via Daily Run Club, or with other runners. This way, I keep my poor extended family from asking questions like, “8 miles, oh my gosh, you are going to kill yourself?!?” or “Oh, I see, you go for the runner’s high?”

 Get out there, get your run on.

Meghan McCarrick lives in Washington, Mo., eats copious amounts of kale and runs 30 to 50 miles a week, usually with her dog, Magpie.
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