Tonight was the first night race in a series of three for the summer. Tonight's race was at Inks Lake State Park in Burnet, Texas, an incredibly gorgeous park I had no idea existed. I will absolutely be visiting again in the future, but perhaps without the running obligations. Three loops of 6.2 miles each had me finishing the first 30K of the summer as an introduction to the series and as a training run for the 60K in late August. The course beat me over the head with grueling climbs, rocky descents, and hidden heat and humidity, all the while running in the dead of night only with the aid a headlamp and the full moon. In contrast to my past races, this race felt incredible: I was mentally sharp, ate and hydrated nearly perfectly, and only had run-of-the-mill muscle cramps to run through. My training paid off tonight, and I am beyond proud to say I finished as the 14th female and 74th overall in four and a half hours even. Next Up: The Falls 30K at Pedernales State Park in Johnson City.
