2019 Moebius Green Monster Trail 50K

There is suddenly slippery mud that you don’t notice until it sneaks up on you. There’s mud that lurks below shallow pools of water and streams, Then there’s ankle-deep, shoe-sucking mud. Guess which is my personal favorite? And guess which was the most prevalent at this year’s Moebius Green Monster Trail 50K? I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the one other kind of mud that I’ve encountered, though thank goodness not today. Of course that’s the waist-deep kind.

Besides the mud, there’s the ever-present rocks, roots, fallen trees, and stream-crossings. This may come as a shock to some, but I’m not much of a trail runner. Since I don’t run trails so much, those things, and of course the mud, are a challenge to me.

What didn’t challenge me today was the weather. It was mostly clear, cool, and nice for the entire run. All the other runners, some of whom are old friends that I hadn’t seen in a while, were enjoying the weather immensely.

Photo by Syd

Having done this run in the past as fast as five hours flat and around five-thirty, I thought I could at least break six hours this day. Alas. It wasn’t to be. My 10K loops were 1:12, 1:12, 1:14, 1:14, and 1:19. I never really got going fast enough to come through with a fast overall time. I crossed the line in six hours, 14 minutes. That’s about the same time as my last 50K. But I had slightly higher expectations this time.

At least I’m still vertical. And I certainly did enjoy the run. Despite the rocks, the roots, the fallen trees, the stream-crossings. And the mud.