Western States Commemorative Run at Mt Aggie

I ran at Mt Aggie yesterday in the WS Commemorative Run, hosted by the Mt Aggie gang. It is a six hour run over dirt roads and trails with some good climbing and descent over multiple loops of a three mile course. The loops make it nice for visiting with others on the trail. After all, this is as much a social event as a running event.

I arrived at about 8:30 (the run started at 7) because I didn't plan to run more than a few hours. Many people stop by to run a few loops without doing the entire six hours. I only had to wait a few minutes for someone to come through to run with. Bob N. and Michael came in with a pack of dogs, finishing up their third loop at a fast pace. Since they were starting their fourth and I was just starting my first, I figured I could keep up no problem. We set off and had a nice loop together. I ran the next loop hard with Michael who was finishing up for the day. Kevin joined us on the mountain bike at the summit and followed us down. We caught up with Cheryl, Melanie, Craig, Jeannie, and Bob D. at the bottom. I also met two women, Heather and Emily(?) who will be running their first hundred miler at Vermont 100 this year. I ran a half loop with Bob D and the two girls, walked a bit with Jeff then caught up with Melanie on the way down. If this was a competition to see how many different people I could run with, I'd be doing well!

9 miles done and I had seen almost everyone I hoped to see there. I decided to do one last loop and run it in the opposite direction so I could say hi to Joe and Charlie Z. before stopping for the day. On my way up I passed Craig, then Lori and some other fast GAC runners, then Jeff heading down. I went over the summit and soon ran into Charlie Z who told me he had just passed Joe, who was running the same direction as me for some reason. Oh well, I turned around and ran back down with Charlie for a total of about 12 miles at a good effort.

Kevin and I drove off to get a part for his bike (the Mt Aggie rocks had done a number on it). Then we explored the area a bit. By the time we got back to the run, everyone was finishing and I finally caught up with Joe. Some of us went over to Rich and Cindy's for good food, drink, and company. Rich is recovering from a serious accident, but was able to run one loop in the morning before I got there. He hopes to be well enough to run at MMD in August.

All and all it was a great day. The weather was perfect, the company was fantastic, and the running felt great.