A longer run through Mendon

On sunday morning I ran the Medved Madness trail race at Mendon Ponds Park. I finished in 2:28:53 for the long course which was around 14 miles? I last ran this race in 2023, but the course changed significantly since then.

The race had most of the hills right at the front. While it is nice to be able to attack the hills with fresh legs, I probably went out too aggressively. While none of this park is flat, on the middle section where there was a bit less climbing I felt like I was getting passed by many other runners.

The weather was a slight rain, and the trails were significantly worse than my race last week. The main problem I had on the muddy trails was that I had to slow down a lot for the downhills. The worst section of the trail was the northwest corner of the park where I was in mud up to my knees at one point. However I made it through the race without falling which means I was either extremely lucky or too cautious.

With the course having almost no resemblance to the last time I ran this race and the distance of the long course being a bit of a mystery, I never knew when I was approaching the end of the run. The good news is that I felt fairly strong even over the final few miles.

I hope to run one more race before the Buffalo Marathon which will be a 10k on the 18th at either Highland Park or Letchworth Park.