Destination Race: Moab Trail Race
Running a destination trail race had been on my challenge list ever since finishing my first marathon at Surfside Beach in 2017. For some, a race on the beach could be considered a destination race. This was not the case for me, having been born and raised on the gulf coast. Over the years I’ve logged more beach miles than I care to recall, heck I’d ran 30 miles across Galveston Island on multiple occasions. I had always longed to run somewhere completely foreign to what I had grown accustomed to. When a friend of mine, Justin asked if id be down to run the Moab Trail Marathon the answer was easy…Hell Yeah!
We arrived in Moab, Utah Friday afternoon. Quickly checked into the hotel and headed to pick up our race packet’s and do a little recon on the course. I could feel my heart rate increase when we turned onto Kane Creel Road and started getting a taste of the epic scenery that I would soon be running across.
Race Day – 6:00 AM
As expected, I didn’t get much sleep, never do the night before a race but overall was feeling pretty good. We made it to the parking area with plenty of time to spare but I opted to wait in the truck since the thermometer was reading 29º. This wasn’t too concerning since I knew things would warm up once the morning sun found its way into the steep and shaded canyon. I didn’t see the point in standing around waiting in the cold if I didn’t have to.
Ready…Set…GO!
There were quite a few starting heats to this years Moab Trail Marathon to keep everyone spread out which was fine by me, I never liked getting tripped up at crowded starting lines. The course quickly gained in elevation and winded up towards the plateau that had just been towering over us. It didn’t take long for my quads to start burning, soon after that I began to really warm up and shedded my 1/4 zip.
Finally some flat terrain!
Around mile 3 the terrain flattened out which came as a great relief to my legs. In order to hit my target goal of 2:15 I knew I would have to increase my pace. By this time the sun was in full effect and things seemed to be going well.
Then all the sudden I turned around a blind corner and was greeted with a drastic view of the canyon below. Couldn’t help but make a quick stop to snap a photo…
Then again and again, I was greeted with views that I couldn’t help stop and appreciate. Each one bringing a bigger grin to my face than the one before.
Half Way!
By mile 7 the idea of hitting my target time was long gone. There was no doubt I underestimated the course elevation change, but coming from Houston there isn’t not many ways to prepare for that. One thing was for certain, I didn’t feel the usual anxiety or frustration that would have been raging through me during past races when lost track of my goal.
This was much different from my experience at races in the past. There was no cramping or exhaustion, I simply was moving slower than planned due to all the unexpected stops to soak in the epic scenery. Sure, I could have put my head down and hammered out the remainder of the race to shave off some time but what would have been the point?
After all, the challenge was to run a destination trail race. Not set a PR record for a half-marathon. So I continued towards the finish towards the finish, still with the same big grin on my face.
Last minute surprise!
At mile 12 the course dipped into Kane Creek for the final home stretch. Still was feeling great but knew the best of the scenery was behind me so I started to pick up the pace…
Moments later I was standing on the bank of the creek bed trying to plan my jump across to avoid getting wet in the knee deep water. First jump was successful but as I came around the bend all hope of staying dry went out the window. Things went from trail race to obstacle course race very quickly!
Running in wet shoes on the beach was nothing new for me. However, running in COLD WET shoes was something new for me. I couldn’t feel my toes or feet when I crossed the finish line but in the end it was a small price to pay for getting to traverse such a beautiful landscape and I couldn’t have been more grateful.
Ended up finishing at 2:38 a few minutes behind Justin who had went out of the gate a lot faster. Ultimately, glad I stuck to running my own race instead of getting caught up trying to keep pace with someone else.
Destination Race: Completed!
On the way back to the hotel both of us acknowledged how glad we were to be heading to get food and a beer instead of having done the full marathon!
The following day we decided to explore more of what Moab but wanted to cover some serious ground so we had to upgrade the running shoes to something a little faster from Moab Adventure Center.
Overall the Destination Race: Moab
The race was definitely the highlight of this trip despite not finishing as quickly as I planned. It reconfirmed my belief that you should always focus first and foremost on the Main Goal (Destination Race) followed by a subset of goals that you’d like to accomplish during the main goal but not big enough that they will send you into a panic if you don’t reach them.
If you’re in the Moab area I would recommend hitting a few trails on foot but also consider motorized off road vehicles. The capability those machines had to climb up rock faces blew my mind not to mention being able to access remote places few are fortunate enough to see!
Planning a trip to Moab? Let us know!