overtaking haynes

I had previously done this race in '08 which was without a doubt my best year racing due to the epic coaching of Haynes who has since abandoned me although he promised to give me a training plan...

I finished 6th in '08 with a time of 3hrs 26 min. I had stayed overnight at a hotel but decided to just drive up this year because it's only about 2hr 15 min. Thunderstorms were in the forecast but held off. Temp was pretty reasonable. I said hi to a few people i recognized and before i knew it the race was climbing 1800ft in the first several miles. I was in 6th place up to the top of the climb and was definitely pushing it. a large number of people were behind me half way up the climb but they were dropped. One guy eclipsed me on the downhill but i was in no mood to take risks on the slightly wet rocks. All the fast guys were smart and did not wear shirts or hip belts for extra weight. I was not smart. Another couple of guys caught me on the first downhill but one got dropped. One surged slightly ahead. As I climbed to the highest point of the course a past winner, now in his 50's began to catch up from out of nowhere. This section gained 1200 feet in 0.9 miles (so i've read) up to the high point of 3940ft. I caught the guy in front on the downhill and then we ran together. There was much chatting and i know i dogged the mid section of the course. I could have pushed more i think but it was hard to really get into a good rhythm on the sketchy terrain when i've been doing so much treadmill running. With 4.2 miles to go i had two guys right behind me. I had overtaken one in '08 on this section and it was perfect for me. I put a good 3 mins on both of them on the last downhill. This is the only section of the course i like. no longer overgrown and a lot fewer little rocks, more boulders and big drops. With about 1.5 miles to go i saw another runner in the distance. i was sure i would overtake him but could never make up the distance. lost out on 6th by 22 sec. winner (ben nephew) was ridiculous as usual running 2:58:59 to take his 10th title while i ran 3:29:22. At least i was still under 3:30. Very happy with my run considering i've done no long runs at all and didn't feel like i pushed myself all that much. Have told myself this is a race i will do only every other year due to how demanding it is. My left toenail felt excruciating pain such that i have never felt when i washed off in the lake. Some horrible blister or something was going on under there. 2 days later my quads are still sore. Will hopefully run on wed though. .