Texas Trail 50K

For the 17th consecutive year, I ran the Texas Trail 50K (31 miles) at Huntsville State Park today.  My PR for this race is 6:33:25 (1999 at age 58).  The weather has varied over the years, but it is usually cold.  Sometimes very muddy.  Today, the temperature got up to 80 degress, with humidity in the high 90's.  I felt really drained early in the race and worried a lot about hydration.  I carried a water bottle between aid stations and always emptied it before the next aid station.  I finished in a disappointing 9:46 something, 30 minutes slower than the Rocky Raccoon 50K at the park last month.  I suppose it was the heat.  On the bright side, I only tripped on roots twice and fell down and got to visit with many good friends.  My thinking at this point is to make this my last 50K.  It is just not fun to zig zag and dodge roots for 31 miles.  My wife, Marilynn, came out to the park and was there for my finish.