I run almost all of my miles on roads. Neighborhood roads around where I live, and giant loops starting and finishing at the MoPac bridge. Oh, I get in the Town Lake 10 miles now and then, but that doesn’t count. 
 
And though I run almost entirely on asphalt, the lure of the trails is always there. I have yet to drive by a dirt trail heading off into the woods that I don’t want to get out of the car, lace up my running shoes and explore.
 
I recently got a chance to get a serious trail experience, and decided why not? Last week I drove to Huntsville State Park, about an hour north of Houston, and though I was there to cover the Sunmart Texas Trails Endurance runs, which featured a 50-Miler and a 50K, I figured it would be a great opportunity to get in a long run. After all, I am registered for the Houston Marathon, and my longest run before last week was only 17.

I arrived at the park early Saturday morning- it was still dark, and the temperature was 28 degrees deep in the forest by the lake. Close to 1,000 runners were milling around, some camped out, others just arriving to the wooded gathering. The first thing I noticed was a huge “tent kitchen,” where folks were lined up with trays, loading up on pancakes, French toast, omelets, sausage, bacon, toast, potatoes, pastries, coffee, tea, orange juice... Did I miss anything?
 
The outdoor tent picnic was incredibly well-organized, with no litter or people clawing for food. Everyone was mellow and in control. Even though I was planning “only” 20, I felt I needed to join in. Luckily, I realized most of these folks were going a full 50 miles, and I stopped after one slice of French toast.

Wearing tights, a cap, long sleeves, and gloves, I set out with the 50K runners. I quickly found a few Austin runners—Bob Wuest and Pete Dolan, both experienced ultrarunners--(there were about 60 Austin-area runners down there all told) and tucked in with them.

The Sunmart course winds through miles of pine woods, on soft trails, and at times the 50 milers are doubling back towards you, so you have to stay alert not to have a head-on collision.
 
The trails themselves are great, except for stretches of soft sandy areas. Thankfully, those were only about 10%. After the first 10K, we passed by the start, and I was able to switch to a short-sleeved shirt- a benefit of a loop course.
Once you are well into the woods, the aid stations are a welcome site, and although they were well-stocked (almost a small buffet) I opted for just the Gatorade, though I did grab a potato just for authenticity.

The cool thing about loping along for miles in the woods, is that the trails are unmarked, and you never really know how far you’ve gone, or have to go. And that turns out to be a good thing.
 
The course is a 12.5 mile loop that you repeat, and the 50K runners tack on a 10K. With a 1.5-mile warmup, the 10K, and the 20K (12.5 or so), I would have 20 miles by the end of the first loop. At one aid station, I asked how much further to the start area, where the loop finished, and the guy told me 2.7 miles. Unbelievable. I was about to finish 20 miles, and I barely had noticed the time.
 
I finished the loop, and decided to throw in 2 more miles for good measure. All in all, I got in 22 miles at an 8:50 pace on the trails.

The next day, I had zero soreness. I mean nothing. I could hardly tell I had run 22 miles the day before, save for a bit of fatigue. I immediately realized I had probably gotten in one of the best marathon training runs ever. I’m psyched for Houston! Trail running rules!