running 5:00:00 [5]
The Bad Thing 50k - gorgeous course between Goderich and Auburn following the Maitland Trail. Bender set a strong pace off the start, but we were caught by 2 runners at about the half-way mark who really ramped it up. I gave chase despite the pace being faster than I wanted, but my logic was that perhaps I could make time in the technical Sharpe's Creek section. The strategy worked to lock in 3rd spot, but I quickly discovered that I had nearly emptied the tank by the time I hit the road, with another 12k to go. Not good...
I figured I could hold on though as I pushed just to keep the legs moving, but in my dopey state I missed a tricky turn off an access road back onto the singletrack. As I made my way back (cursing like a sailor) I saw the runner behind me heading into the trail. No idea where I got the second wind from - 7km ago I was basically broken, but somehow I managed to catch him and hit the finish at exactly 5 hours.
I'm guessing that with the extra distance factored out I was about 2-3 minutes slower than my time from last year - a humbling birthday reminder that I'm definitely not getting faster with age! Good fun though. Outside of the need for perhaps a few more markers at key turns, this is a really well-run event, and a butt-kicker of a course.