Race Recap: Crossroads Trail Run 5k

A few weeks ago, I was planning my weekend out of town to Door County, Wisconsin. No matter where I'm headed, I always check to see if there are any races near my destination. I was surprised to stumble upon this little trail race in Sturgeon Bay. The Crossroads Trail Run has been held for the past 10 years at the Big Creek Environmental Learning Preserves. The race supports the Crossroads Trail programs and is also intended to promote environmental awareness in the community.

I loved all that, but what really got me was that every finisher would receive A TREE. The trees were donated by a local nursery. Also, because it was the 10th anniversary, every finisher would receive a handcrafted cherry wood medallion. Ok, they had me at tree, but I was pretty excited about the medallion too. Cherries are the local produce that Door County is known for. There are a variety of distances offered to participants: 10k, 5k run/walk, and a 2k walk. Because I'm still working on coming back and building endurance, I decided to do the 5k.

I talked with my son, who would be accompanying me to Door County for the weekend along with his girlfriend. They were excited to participate but decided to sign up for the 2k walk. I warned them that it would be an early morning, but they assured me it wouldn't be a problem. On Saturday, I woke them up at 6 am and although they weren't excited about the early wakeup call, we made the 45 minute drive to Sturgeon Bay.

We arrived about 30 minutes before race time in order to pick up our race packets. Parking was right at the facility. Packet pickup was easy. Every participant received a Green Layer gender-specific performance shirt. We pinned on our bibs and I headed over to the 2 portapotties before the race start. The 10k runners went off first at 8 am, followed by the 5k runners, and the 2k walkers.

Initially, I started out at about a 9 m/m pace, with lots of runners and kids sprinting past me. But you know how that ends up, right? During the race, I ended up passing a lot of those folks.

The course started out on a limestone path but most of the race was run on a grassy trail. There was a pretty wooded section with tall pines overhead, serving as a canopy. The forest floor was covered with pine needles and it was a little hard to find the trail. I was grateful to have runners ahead of me. Overall, the course was winding and a bit dizzying. There were different colored flags marking each distance but if there weren't volunteers directing the runners I probably would have taken a wrong turn and have gotten lost.

The crazy trail

I ran about 2 miles before I had to stop to catch my breath. After that stop, there were two more. I needed to remind myself that the terrain and the curvy course were making it a little more challenging for me than if it were a road race. Towards the end of the race, we ran back through the woods, over a bridge, and towards the finish line. My son and his girlfriend had just finished the 2k walk and were waiting for me. She videoed me crossing the finish line.

Volunteers were waiting to hand us our medallions. I took mine and put my hands on my thighs to catch my breath. The athletic trainer came over to make sure I was ok. I reassured her and grabbed a cup of gatorade. Talk about leaving it all on the course!

There were 25 ladies total in the 50-59 AG

We walked over to a computer kiosk to check our results and I was excited to see I came in 3rd place in my age group! This race had 10 year age groups and that makes it more challenging to place. Of course, I wanted to come in 1st because the prize was a quart of maple syrup. But still, the third place prize was a jar of honey. I can't complain about that! For finish line treats, there was vanilla ice cream with cherries and granola, all local products. Personally, I think every race should have ice cream and cherries!

This race was a surprisingly well-supported event. There were a total of 400 participants and I certainly wouldn't have expected chip timing and gender-specific race shirts. My only complaint about the course is all the twists and turns--I don't know if this is common for a trail race since I've only run 2 of these. The volunteer support was incredible. I've run much larger races that had nowhere near as many volunteers as this one did. I loved the quirky age group awards and receiving a tree at the finish line was a very cool thing. If finishers didn't want to keep the tree, they could donate it back to Crossroads and it would be planted there. We took ours back to my parents' house, where they plan to plant them along the driveway.

I would definitely run this race again. It was a fun morning running in a beautiful place.

I ran a trail race and got a tree at the finish line! /via @oldrunningmom #runchat #running #DoorCounty

Have you run trail races and if so, is it common for the course to be full of twists and turns like this one? Do you run slower on trails? What is the most unique award you've ever received?

I'm linking up with Kim and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.