2025 Haunted Marathon

The Background

After a DNF at Canal Corridor 100, I wanted to race again and find some redemption. So I signed up for the Haunted Marathon in Temple, Texas the next weekend.  This company US Road Running had been putting on a lot of small, no-frills races with short loops in Temple and other places and had now expanded to marathon distance there.  Temple is slightly farther than I like to drive for such a race, but not too bad. 

I had been ultra training, so I had little time to switch to road marathon training.  After recovering, I ran 5-mile runs at 9ish-minute pace on Thursday and Friday, with the race Saturday.  My legs had been strong in the last 2 races, so I thought there was a chance I could run the whole thing.

The Race

The course was a 1.64 mile out and 1.64 mile back on a sidewalk at a park, with 8 loops total for the marathon. The race had no electrolyte drinks.

I started out with a couple of 9-minute miles, then held steady at 10-minute miles.  My right calf and shoulder were hurting, signs I later figured out meant I was cramping from lack of electrolytes. By 11 miles, I was dead.  I switched to hiking 14-minute miles, with bits of running thrown in.

I felt bad and wanted to quit. The loop went right past the parking lot with my car, so that was a temptation. But I said, "I have never DNFed a road marathon, and I am not starting now."

There were 4 runners in the marathon. One guy was running at a 4-hour pace, so he had me beat.  There was a guy in a white shirt who had been behind me when I was running, then passed me when I was hiking. I worried that I would be the only one left for an hour or so, and the workers/volunteers would be waiting for me.  That was ridiculous, as I paid my entry fee and the cutoff was six hours. Still, I knew I would be cutting it close and hiked hard.  I calculated at 15-minute pace I would make it with 20 minutes to spare. 

A good thing about the course was you could see where the other runners were a lot of the time. At some point with under 10 miles to go, I saw the guy in the white shirt walking over a mile ahead of me. This gave me extra motivation to push, as maybe I could catch him. 

At this point, it was hot.  I finished all the gels I had brought, and was drinking as many cups of water I could and eating fruit snacks the race provided.

As I approached the end of the 6th loop, the guy in the white shirt passed me headed out the other way.  I calculated he was about 12 minutes ahead of me at this point. As we reached the turn around, I had cut that distance considerably. 

At the end of the 7th loop, I could see him up ahead, and he stopped for a bit and stretched at the finish line, which allowed me to catch up further. We passed by each other on the sidewalk toward the finish line.

I got some water and a fruit snack.  A worker/volunteer thought I had finished due to a glitch in the timing, and it took a few seconds to explain to her that I still needed to go out on another loop.  

The runner with the white shirt was now further ahead but in sight.  I slowly cut the distance between us until at the final turnaround it was a few yards.  On the way back, I ran for a short burst to get ahead of him, then hiked hard to keep him behind me.  I finished in 5:40, with the other runner a minute and a half behind me. 

I finished 2nd place out of 4 finishers.

After finishing, I lied down for a minute in the shade next to the restrooms.  My left leg cramped up, and I was not sure I could stand.  Finally, I could stand up, prepared to take an ultrarunner's shower by pouring jugs of water on myself.  I poured about half a jug, but felt like I was about to faint.  I staggered to my car, and threw myself on the car seat still sweaty. I cranked up the air and tried to sip a coke.  Then, I thought I would be better off drinking water, and I honked my horn until I got the attention of a worker/volunteer, who got another guy to bring me water. Before he could bring it, I threw up out my car door on the parking lot. After drinking the water and then the coke, I was in better shape and went back to wash myself off and get changed.

Reflections

This race showed me how sometimes a race does not go well, but you can work for a good effort. I paced poorly and crashed.  But I still worked very hard to finish.  

Also, this year at Great Springs Trail Race - Austin, I trudged to a finish without competing as hard as I should have.  That too was a small race, and I would have won an award if I had worked hard to beat a guy who was in front of me.  This time, I raced against the guy in front of me and earned 2nd place overall.  I had told myself that if I was 3rd place out of 3 finishers, I would not care that much about the award, but if I worked hard to beat someone I would. 

Objectively, a 5:40 road marathon is not a great performance for me at this time.  But the effort I put in to earn the 2nd place made it a great race for me.

Obviously, I should had brought my own Gatorade.

I am heading into road marathon season, so I need to work on my pacing in training and races.

Thanks to the God, Terri, friends and family, and the workers and volunteers for the support! 

2011 USA Fit Marathon

Retrospective Race Report

I started running in January of 2010.  I had a slight background in running, as I had done cross country in 7th grade.  But I had pretty much been physically inactive for 18 years.  When I was a teacher, I was on my feet a lot.  But then I got a job in the central office.  I sat at my desk and had fast food for lunch.  My weight ballooned to 203 pounds.

Deciding to do something, I started running on the treadmill, one song run, one song walk.  Then I read Jim Fixx's Complete Book of Running and started running outside. 

I signed up for 5ks and started chipping away at my time as I dieted and lost weight.

2010 Rise and Shine 5k

2010 Dad's Day 5k

2010 Monster Dash

I won first place in my age group.

Marathon Training

I decided to run a marathon.  I loved the idea of earning a medal for the marathon. I followed Hal Higdon's marathon training plan.

I remember my first longer run was at Austin's Town Lake:

For 2011, Houston Marathon had a lottery, and I did not get in.  So I signed up for the 2011 USA Fit Marathon.

I decided to complete a series of races designed to build up to the Houston Marathon, which would still work for USA Fit.  

The first was the 2010 Space City 10 Miler.  I finished in 1:16, 7:38 place, 171th out of 830 finishers.  This was the first time I thought I might be good at running.

Then I ran the 2010 Houston Half.  I finished in 1:48 I think.  Incidentally, I used this result to bypass the Houston Marathon lottery the next year and get in.

Then I ran the HMSA 25k:

Finally, I ran the Sugarland 30k. I had run a 20-mile training run before that, then one more 20-mile training run after.

2011 USA Fit Marathon

I went out too fast, and crashed. Somewhere in the last few miles, I looked across a field at businesses and wondered if I should ask for a ride back.  Reduced to a walk in the last 3 miles or so, I trudged along as people passed me. But I completed the marathon in 4:57.

At the time, I thought the race was a disaster.  While I paced very poorly, the overall time was decent. Years later, I would celebrate a sub-5-hour marathon.  Regardless, I had finished my first marathon.  

2011 Gusher Marathon

Retrospective Race Report

After crashing at my first marathon at USA Fit, I wanted to give it another try. At the Gusher, I went out slower, and it paid off.  I ran the whole thing. I remember running past an oil derrick and running on some brick areas.

I remember running towards the end slowly with a couple of guys, one who was wearing what I think was a red bandana and maybe a cowboy hat saying, "We got us a pack going!" I felt like I had been hit with a ton of bricks, but I kept running.

At the time, I thought it was just a okay performance.  As of 2025, it is still my 3rd fastest marathon time. 

I was 3rd place in my age group.  I lost the award in my divorce, which is a great regret.

Post Race

2011 Frankenthon Marathon

Retrospective Race Report

After I had improved my performance at the Gusher Marathon, I remember waiting for what seemed like forever to race again.  I was not tuned into trail running at this point, and the Frankenthon may have been the next road marathon in Texas. Regardless, I remember thinking the Frankenstein theme was really cool.  I wanted the race-themed socks.

I remember at some point walking a bit in an area like a park or sidewalk.  But overall I ran most of it.  I was 14 minutes slower than at the Gusher.  I think there was a bit of smooth trail, but the terrain was not excuse.  I was not in as good of shape as at the Gusher.  

Still, I was 54th out 133 finishers, so not too bad.

Results

2012 Texas Trails Endurance Run 50 Mile

Retrospective Race Report

I was feeling strong after my finish at Cactus Rose 50 Mile.  I think I signed up for the Texas Trails  Endurance Run 50 Mile after that one, as this season had not been fully planned out. This was at Huntsville State Park.

I think the cutoff was 12 hours or so, and runner at the start said that was fast.

I headed out a a fast pace, trying to compete.  I remember at an aid station asking if there were folks ahead of me, and someone said that a bunch had come through. 

At some point a crashed, but I do not think I walked that much. The pace was 12:06, which shows I pretty much ran most of it.  In 2025, it was still my 2nd fastest 50 miler.

I remember my ex-wife went to a family party after dropping me off, and I had to wait a long time in the dark to be picked back up. 

 

2012 Cactus Rose 50 Mile

Retrospective Race Report

I am pretty sure I scouted out Hill Country State Natural area prior to Cactus Rose and was wearing Hokas for this race.  I do not remember too much other than climbing a hill and turning a corner to head back down and then sitting at the finish in a chair looking at the medal that said 50 miles.  Definitely a good performance for me for my first 50 miler. The pace was 13:55, compared to 13:49 at Bandera early next year. 

2013 Capt'N Karl's Colorado Bend

Retrospective Race Report

I really don't remember anything about this race.  So I will focus on the results.  My pace was 15:35 at Muleshoe compared to 13:55 at Cactus Rose on somewhat harder terrain. So I was really slowing down.  I had not figured out compression shorts and Desetin yet, so I think my chafing issues had begin by this point.

2013 Capt'N Karl's Muleshoe Bend

Retrospective Race Report

I really don't remember anything about this race.  So I will focus on the results.  My pace was 14:16 at Muleshoe compared to 13:55 at Cactus Rose on harder terrain.  So this was a decent performance but shows I was beginning to slow down.

Little did I know that in 2025 Muleshoe Bend would be may race with the most finishes: 7.

2013 Capt'N Karls Pedernales Falls 60k

Retrospective Race Report

I showed up for my first Capt'N Karls race early.  I sat in a chair and waited for a while.  I was feeling sick, I think my stomach.  I made it 18 miles then dropped, which was a shame since I finished the rest of the series.

2013 Hells Hills 50 Mile

Retrospective Race Report

I didn't want to stop racing, so I ran one more ultra.  At first, I was going to sign up for the 50k, a sign I was getting tired.  But my love of ultrarunning won, and I signed up for the 50 mile.

The course was on bike trails with a few short up and downs.  But it was way faster than Cactus Rose or Nueces.  I think I may have gotten dehydrated and staggered along, but my memory could be conflating this with another race.  

Anyway, I was slower at Hells Hills than Nueces, so that shows I was getting burnt out.  I forced myself to take a break of like a month of no running before coming back in June for the Capt'N Karl's series.

2013 Nueces 50 Mile

Retrospective Race Report

After finishing the Bandera 100k, I did not want to stop running.  So I signed up for the Nueces 50 Miler. This was in Camp Eagle in Rocksprings, where other Tejas Trails Races would later be, including Bandera when weather forced it to move.

I do not remember too much about this race other than seeing the giant cross and hiking through the rocky area that looked like a creek bed which I called "The Trash." 

Here is a photo from the internet of that year's race:

When I finished, I was a bit incoherent and Joe said, "I think you need to sit down!" with a smile. 

The time was 11 minutes faster than the previous year's Cactus Rose, but on slightly tougher terrain.  So this shows I was still strong.

2025 Trailway 50k

The Background

After finishing the Night Moves Marathon the previous weekend, I ran one 5-mile run the Thursday before the Trailway 50k.  The past two years, Trailway was the last training race before Arkansas Traveller 100.  

I wrote on my Goggins Accountability Mirror post-it note: "Run half of the Trailway 50k, then run some sections."

The Race

It was cool at the start, but I knew it would get hot later.

I ran 11-minute pace for the first 4 miles.  I felt good, so I naturally sped up to 10-minute miles.  There were a few very slight hills, but my legs felt strong on them. All the stairs I had been doing may have paid off. That is good to remember, because sometimes I only do stairs in preparation for steep courses like Bandera.  

By mile 10, I dopped back to 11-minute pace, but I still felt good.  I finished the first loop at 15ish miles, meeting my goal of running half of the race.  

Since I felt strong, I made a goal of running to 20 miles.  Too many times, I had gone into a 100-miler without a 20-mile training run where I ran the whole thing.  At this point, I had run every step, apart from a second where I ate a cookie. On mile 19, I did start to falter (probably Goggin's mental governor telling me I was near my goal) and I hiked up a couple of the climbs.  But then I ran it to 20 miles.

I hiked miles 21 through 23 at 15-minute pace, with an aid station bumping mile 22 up to a 17 -minute mile.  It took me a bit to recover from the 20-mile run, I probably could have hiked the trails at 14-minute pace were I fresh.  

As I headed toward the final turnaround, I looked to see if there was anyone I could try to chase down ahead of me, but I did not see anyone.  One lady ran past me, and I knew by her pace I could not catch her.

At the final turnaround.

But then on the way back, two runners caught up with me.  One guy wearing a green shirt said, "Good work!" and was about to pass me.  Many times, I would have just let them go by.  But I started running and put some distance between us.  Switching back to hiking, I pushed the pace.  Miles 26 and 27 were at 14-minute pace. At some point, they were going to catch me again and I ran again.  From, that point, I hiked as fast as I could, looking over my shoulder from time to time.  But I never saw them behind me.

I did falter a bit because I saw I could get in under 6:30, but did not have it in me to run the last mile.  I ran a few steps as I approached the finish line.

I finished in 6:31, 11th out of 29 finishers (top 37%) and 32 starters (top 34%).  The two guys behind me finished in 6:35, then another couple of folks finished in 6:39.  So if I hadn't pushed it, I would have been in the bottom half of the field.

Reflections

I am proud that I fought not to get passed.  I have improved my performance from 7:38 in 2023 and 6:47 in 2024

This was my 2nd fastest 50k, behind 2013 Texas Trails Endurance Run at 5:04.

Thanks to God, Terri, James, Paloma, all my family, friends, Chris, Tejas Trails, and the volunteers for the support!

2025 Night Moves Marathon

The Background

I ran/hiked a 20-mile training run, running the first 11 miles and hiking the rest. I continued using my Goggins accountability mirror post-it notes, because I did not want to finish that one.  My next note was "Run some sections you do not want to run at Night Moves Marathon."

The race would begin at 6pm, and was less than an hour from my house at Stephen F. Austin State Park.

The Race

The race was 8 loops on smooth trail with only 3 or 4 slight climbs.  So the whole thing was runnable.  A lot of sections curved back and forth slowing you down slightly, but otherwise it was a fast course for trail. The loop had a red section and a blue section.  In the middle, there was a yellow section added on for the first 2 loops.

I saw a fellow I had run with at Great Springs Trail Race - Austin and Seabrook Lucky Trails and said hi.

I ran the first few miles at 10- or 11-minute pace.  My first goal was to get the the yellow loops out of the way. Then, I made it to mile 10.  Next, I focused on running to 11 miles, the length I ran in my previous training run.  

On lap 4, I had to work to keep running to half marathon.  I reminded myself of my goal to running some sections I did not want to. 

After half marathon, I switched to powerhiking to practice for Canal Corridor 100 Mile.  I was able to complete 14-minute miles all the way through lap 7. This was good, as I figured 16-minute miles on slightly easier trail at Canal Corridor might feel easier for a while at least.

On the final loop, my hiking pace slowed a bit. On the spot, I made up a goal of keeping the miles 14-minute pace. So I picked .25 mile sections to run. The first mile of that loop, achieved this, but the second was a few seconds over 15-minute pace.  But I did not really matter, as the goal kept me competitive.  

With a little less than a mile left, I saw headlamps behind me.  It looked like a single runner, then a group of 2 or 3. That was enough to get me running. But then for some reason I thought I might have gotten off the course; I didn't see a flag for a while.  I slowed down to look, and then a runner passed me.  Sure enough, just ahead was a flag.  I ran hard trying to catch him, but couldn't.  Once again, all of this did not matter too much, but it kept me competing. 

Overall, a goal was to finish under 6 hours, and I finished in 5:51.  My splits were very consistent in the running and hiking sections.

I finished 23rd out of 51 finishers (top 45%) and 64 starters. 

Results

Split	Time	Pace
Lap 1	39:30.74	10:36
Lap 2	41:07.55	11:02
Lap 3	38:15.61	12:19
Lap 4	41:50.38	13:28
Lap 5	47:43.82	15:22
Lap 6	47:13.69	15:12
Lap 7	47:24.2	15:15
Lap 8	47:46.81	15:23

Reflections

This was a training race, and I am increasing the distance I am running.  The powerhiking will be more important at Canal Corridor, and I was strong at that.

If I did not have a hundred miler coming up and was focused on running the whole thing, I could perhaps be more competitive here some year.

Thanks to God, Terri, James, Paloma, friends and family, Cal, Trail Racing Over Texas, and the volunteers for the support! 

2012 Rough Creek 40 Mile

Retrospective Race Report

After DNFing Grasslands 50 Mile, I decided I needed better training before my next attempt at an ultramarathon at Rough Creek 40 Miler.  

Hill Country State Natural Area Training Run - 7/29/2012

I wisely decided to preview the trails of Hill Country State Natural Area.  I am pretty sure I bought my first pair of Hokas shortly after.

That week I believe I was travelling for work and finished up a 100-mile training week by running up and down a street by the hotel.

Franklin Mountains Training Runs 8/2/2012 and 8/3/2012

Work led me to El Paso, and I did a couple of training runs in the Franklin Mountains.

50k Training Run - Huntsville State Park - 8/12/2012

I ran a 50k training run at Huntsville State Park, fueled by red Gatorade in a hydration pack.  I remember getting past marathon and counting down the trail markers to make it to 50k.

Hill Country State Natural Area Training Run 9/2/2012

I did another training run at Hill Country State Natural Area. 

2012 Rough Creek 40 Miler

At Rough Creek, the weather was cool, which it would not be in subsequent years.  When I hit the Rusty Crown, a series of steep hills, it was my first time racing with real hills.  But the hill training paid off and my fitness was strong, so I did alright.  I went up The Beast for the first time, a steep hill you have to finish by using your hands near the top.

I chatted with a guy named Bill I would later see at subsequent races, like Rocky Raccoon 100 Mile in 2014.

I remember, maybe on the 2nd or 3rd loop, encountering a strong runner coming out of the Rusty Crown as I was entering.  He said, "Dude! I'm hammered! This thing is a bitch! !"  He said I was killing it for my first ultra.

I remember toward the end I was on a trail in a field, running very slowly but still running.

When I finished the last loop, my ex-wife thought I had another to go, but I told her no, that is the finish.

James ran across the finish line with me.

My time was pretty good 8:36, 70% compared to the winner, and 11th of 21 finishers.  Not bad for my first ultra!

The Rusty Crown

Results