Rattling Around at Catoctin

My name isn't on the "official" finisher's list for the 2013 Catoctin 50K.  But I was there and I DID finish...in exactly 9 hours and 18 minutes - 3 minutes after the air horn.  I heard the last finisher before me, heard the horn, and surprisingly, I was still ecstatic for a finish at all!
After a couple unsettling months of good and bad running, injuries, and more than a few disappointments, I wasn't even sure I would be starting this race.  My house was torn apart as new floors were put in, my family of 4 was living in one shared room above the garage, and I hadn't run a long run of more than 10 miles since my failed attempt at Highland Sky 40.

But I had registered for Catoctin and really, really needed a play day in the woods.  So with minimal sleep, and coffee brewed in the bathroom, I climbed in the car at 5:30 a.m. and headed for the mountains.
Because I arrived pretty early, I was able to snag a parking spot right near the start (and the bathrooms) so I had plenty of time to mill about, and take in the views.

I'll never get tired of looking out at views like this...
And this...

Even with the fog, it was cool and comforting to be back at Catoctin.  When I picked up my shirt, I knew it was destiny, since I have almost the same words on a plaque hanging in my laundry room.

 The start came quickly and we all took off - down, down, down.  (Not thinking about the "up, up, up" that had to follow on this out and back course.)  Running really felt good and I was thinking about how thankful I was to be on this trail... when the runner in front of me warned me about the rattlesnake ahead.  Wait - what??
I knew there were snakes on the trails and had even run into a few black snakes, but a rattler?  Can't they kill you???  I continued on, eyes darting left and right and sure enough, there he was, slithering back into the brush at the side of the trail.   I always wish I were faster so I would have time to take pictures as I am running, but this time, all I wanted to do was keep going!  That was the fastest climb ever!
I managed to make all the cut-offs to the turn-a-round and was pretty happy that the two mile climb up from the river (the halfway point) didn't seem as bad as I remembered from prior runs here.  And then I heard it - an unmistakable rattle that left no doubt as to its origin.  To  my left, a huge snake, coiled and rattling like crazy.

 I jumped to the right, off the trail and comically started talking to the snake as if it was a dog...."easy there boy, I won't hurt you...you're okay...".  I took a few tiptoe steps then ran like a bat out of hell until I caught the runner in front of me. I asked if he had seen the rattler, and then instantly regretted it when I saw the look in his eyes.  He hadn't seen it, so we continued on, but I swear every stick on the trail looked like a snake now. That put a spring in my step and I actually think I gained some time on the cut-offs after that!
The last 6 miles really were my undoing.  Because I was heating up, I filled my shirt with ice at the last aid station, (than goodness for elastic sports bras) and tried to make some time on the downhills.  I passed more than a few runners here and was certain that I would make the 9:15 deadline.  Somehow I had forgotten about all that downhill on the way out that was now slow and painful uphill.  Those climbs the last three miles were brutal, tiring and as much as I wanted to just plug into my ipod, the thought of not hearing more warning rattles unnerved me more than I care to admit.  I carried on, but despite my best efforts, came up 3 minutes short.  I was the first "unofficial finisher" but that seemed unimportant after 9 hours and 18 minutes on this demanding trail.  For me, it was a victory of sorts - feeling good for the whole run, eating and drinking well throughout and finally completing this brutal race.  I'll take it.