Mission Tejas Trail Run Recap

I ran the Mission Tejas Trail Run 25k on Saturday, September 9.  The 25k was one of multiple races on that day which included a 50k, 25k, 10k, and 5k.  This is my Mission Tejas Trail Run recap.

Race day eve had me home a little early off work to get prepared. Once home, I prepped my things for the morning ate a quick dinner (garlicky green spaghetti) and headed to bed early... wake-up time was going to be early!



On race day morning my alarm went off at 2:30 am!  I made some coffee, took a shower and geared up.  I made up some almond butter toast and grabbed a banana and another cup of coffee for the road.  My departure time was by 3:45 am... really early!  The park was about 2 hours away from the house and I needed to get there in time to pick up my race packet (and pump some gas).

Mission Tejas Trail Run Recap

The race started and ended near the Mission San Francisco de los Tejas in Mission Tejas State Park.  Parking was a bit away from the start, but they had a shuttle running to ferry people to and from.  Port-a-cans, were plentiful for this race (I never had to use one), and there was a real restroom with flushing toilets just a few steps away. Like all the last TROT race, there was no bag check ... what you do is bring a chair and just leave your stuff on the chair.  No one messes with it, it's a whole different vibe at a trail race vs. a road race.

Weather conditions that morning near perfect... temp at the start was right around 60, just a bit on the humid side, the skies were clear and blue... at my finish it was in the mid-70s.

After a quick course briefing, the race began promptly at 7:00 on a course that ran through the park.  The course consisted of 2 loops that we ran 3 times.   It was very well marked and scenic course.



There weren't any spectators on the course, but at the start/finish that we passed at each loop the folks there cheered us on. Even the park rangers got in the spirit!

The Course...

The race had an aid station set up around the start/finish area.  Depending on the loop you passed it around 2-3ish miles.  Oh... there were so many enthusiastic volunteers and it was more like a buffet than anything else.  The race is cup-less for water, I carried a hydration pack with Nuun performance and a colapsible cup for water.  I took my Huma gels as I had practiced in training, drank some pickle juice, and had a couple potato chips when I needed a break from all the sweet.

The course was mostly single track under some beautiful tall pine trees.  There were lots of hills, some technical parts, rocks, and stairs. At several points I thought "you've got to be kidding me".  Those challenges are what makes trail running so fun! I really wasn't sure exactly what to expect, I had seen the drone fly-over of the course and the strava data from the 5k portion... but it's still hard to tell until you are on the course.

[slideshow_deploy id='3133']

My finish time was 4:10:49. There was no real strategy going in, just run easy and take some walking breaks as needed.  I ended up walking the steep uphills and the technical parts.  The speedy folks passed me several times, which just left me in awe of how they could run so fast on the course without breaking their neck.

At the finish, they handed out the finishers medals... and high 5's!



There was plenty of water and snacks from the aid station at the finish. I changed into my Oofos and made my recovery drink and walked around for a bit.  There was an Altra booth there which I was happy to see!  I wanted to check out the new Timp trail shoe in person... they are so comfortable!  Since the "real bathrooms" had a little changing area, I was able to change into dry clothes. This made for a comfortable drive home, as I stopped off for a bite to eat.

Trail Racing Over Texas is the racing company...  It really was a fun party atmosphere... I had such an enjoyable time. If you get a chance to run one of their races, you definitely should!

Racing Goals

I made a few goals prior to the run- let's see how I did:

1. Practice pre-race meals (evening prior and breakfast) - nailed it... pasta with sauce and no dairy seems to be a good choice for dinner before and toast with almond butter and banana works good in the am.


2. Execute on fueling and hydration strategy - What I have practiced works in race setting, I tried some "extras" with no ill effects (pickle juice and potato chip).


3. Keep pace "steady" through the race - my pace was all over the place with the hills and rocky technical parts.


4. Don't fall - I fell... made it through all the hard parts and fell on a flat, even surface... it was soft, so didn't even get one scratch.


5. Have fun!! - I had a blast!

The Mission Tejas Trail run is a great race. There are a variety of distances to choose from. Volunteer and course support was stellar! The run was at a smaller state park and was therefore a more intimate event (only 250 registrants). The atmosphere and vibe is definitely different than road races... I really enjoyed it.  I would definitely include it on my race calendar again, and can't wait to run another TROT race.

---

I'm linking up with HoHo Runs and MissSippi Piddlin’ for the Weekly Wrap; and with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My no-guilt life for Tuesdays on the Run