Camp Dodge Trench Run 10K
August 13, 2023
Location: Camp Dodge Iowa
Start Time: 7:30am
Entry Fee: $40.00 ($43.85 with Fees)
Race Director: Anthony Loween - [email protected]
Website: https://raceroster.com/events/2023/63520/trench-run
Race day had a high of 79 and a low of 66. A few raindrops during the race
After another late night at work, I hopped into bed around 3:30am and the alarm screamed in my ear at 5:45. Per usual, next to no sleep on race day, but thats the only choice I have with my job. We loaded up the car and headed over to moms house to grab her and some family that had come into town for the Iowa State Fair. Eventually, 10 of us were on the road headed to Camp Dodge but thanks to Google Maps, we almost didn’t make it to the race. A closed road only a few minutes from the destination had us make a pretty big loop out of our way but we arrived just 7 minutes before the gun. I retied my shoes and slapped on the bib that Ayrin and TJ picked up for me. I didn’t even have time for a warmup jog or much stretching and hoped that my first mile the guys would take it easy and I could warmup that way. Then out of nowhere a cannon blasted off and rumbled the pavement, it was awesome. We all took off - I believe there were 291 registrants. I was Bib 504. A young man took off hot wearing a skin tight under armor shirt and sweatpants. I’m guessing he wasn’t aware of the water or river crossings as sweatpants are a terrible idea. I was rocking my new Saucony Endorphin Edge Trail shoes, they felt wonderful throughout the entire race. Eventually, the lead pack was five of us. We had a few barriers to hop over and smoke bombs were going off with green and yellow smoke. Then boom boom boom, guns were firing everywhere - luckily they were just blanks, but it simulated running through a war zone and I was smiling ear to ear - it was so cool. There were soldiers everywhere cheering us on and pointing us in the right direction. Humvees, medic vehicles, APC’s, and even tanks were on the grounds. Eventually, we came into a building and were shoved out by a solider with a pad that is used for blocking kicks and punches. Then we arrived at another building where we had to carry a fire hose up the stairs through the building and then back down and perform some chest compressions on a dummy. At this point, Peter Rotich, Terry Kruse, Myself and one other runner are in the lead pack so I knew chances were good to be in the top three! I continued to run hard, running around 6:30-6:45 pace and blasted through the trenches and open fields. Eventually, we came to an area where they said hop in the water and head downstream. It never made it up to my waist and I was able to run most of the time, but running in water is exhausting. I loved it though because the water felt wonderful and the trail shoes held up perfectly on the loose gravel, sand and mud in the water. Unfortunately, my shoes/socks did fill up with some sand and gravel. Then we were running in some trails in the trees that had some decently steep hills with ropes if needed. Here I could tell that Peter had no intentions of slowing down and would be able to keep up with me throughout and once we got back to the pavement, I’d probably be in trouble. Sure enough, middle of the way through mile five, he passed me with his long stride and got about 20-30 seconds ahead. The soldiers lining the streets were yelling at me to catch him, so I gave it a shot, but recalled we had a big uphill to climb and I just didn’t have the juice so I left off since I couldn’t see anyone behind me. Peter finished in first 31 seconds ahead of me and I finished in 49:30 and Terry Kruse right behind me in 50:51. Terry ran a 40+ mile Ultra just a week ago so he was kind enough to run slow today. I believe it’s the first time I’ve ever finished ahead of him in a race. After a bottle of water and a few deep breaths, I was recovered and grabbed a nice shiny medal. A few minutes after that, TJ came strolling across the finish line at 1:00:52 and Ayrin finished at 1:04:36. I’m glad I was finally able to get this race on the books, it was a lot of fun and I’ll definitely do it again. Huge shoutout to all of the soldiers that let the kiddos explore all the vehicles, guns, and machinery! USA baby! Finished 2/291 and first in my age group. I won a nice custom wooden plaque, I’ll display it proudly
August 13, 2023
Location: Camp Dodge Iowa
Start Time: 7:30am
Entry Fee: $40.00 ($43.85 with Fees)
Race Director: Anthony Loween - [email protected]
Website: https://raceroster.com/events/2023/63520/trench-run
Race day had a high of 79 and a low of 66. A few raindrops during the race
After another late night at work, I hopped into bed around 3:30am and the alarm screamed in my ear at 5:45. Per usual, next to no sleep on race day, but thats the only choice I have with my job. We loaded up the car and headed over to moms house to grab her and some family that had come into town for the Iowa State Fair. Eventually, 10 of us were on the road headed to Camp Dodge but thanks to Google Maps, we almost didn’t make it to the race. A closed road only a few minutes from the destination had us make a pretty big loop out of our way but we arrived just 7 minutes before the gun. I retied my shoes and slapped on the bib that Ayrin and TJ picked up for me. I didn’t even have time for a warmup jog or much stretching and hoped that my first mile the guys would take it easy and I could warmup that way. Then out of nowhere a cannon blasted off and rumbled the pavement, it was awesome. We all took off - I believe there were 291 registrants. I was Bib 504. A young man took off hot wearing a skin tight under armor shirt and sweatpants. I’m guessing he wasn’t aware of the water or river crossings as sweatpants are a terrible idea. I was rocking my new Saucony Endorphin Edge Trail shoes, they felt wonderful throughout the entire race. Eventually, the lead pack was five of us. We had a few barriers to hop over and smoke bombs were going off with green and yellow smoke. Then boom boom boom, guns were firing everywhere - luckily they were just blanks, but it simulated running through a war zone and I was smiling ear to ear - it was so cool. There were soldiers everywhere cheering us on and pointing us in the right direction. Humvees, medic vehicles, APC’s, and even tanks were on the grounds. Eventually, we came into a building and were shoved out by a solider with a pad that is used for blocking kicks and punches. Then we arrived at another building where we had to carry a fire hose up the stairs through the building and then back down and perform some chest compressions on a dummy. At this point, Peter Rotich, Terry Kruse, Myself and one other runner are in the lead pack so I knew chances were good to be in the top three! I continued to run hard, running around 6:30-6:45 pace and blasted through the trenches and open fields. Eventually, we came to an area where they said hop in the water and head downstream. It never made it up to my waist and I was able to run most of the time, but running in water is exhausting. I loved it though because the water felt wonderful and the trail shoes held up perfectly on the loose gravel, sand and mud in the water. Unfortunately, my shoes/socks did fill up with some sand and gravel. Then we were running in some trails in the trees that had some decently steep hills with ropes if needed. Here I could tell that Peter had no intentions of slowing down and would be able to keep up with me throughout and once we got back to the pavement, I’d probably be in trouble. Sure enough, middle of the way through mile five, he passed me with his long stride and got about 20-30 seconds ahead. The soldiers lining the streets were yelling at me to catch him, so I gave it a shot, but recalled we had a big uphill to climb and I just didn’t have the juice so I left off since I couldn’t see anyone behind me. Peter finished in first 31 seconds ahead of me and I finished in 49:30 and Terry Kruse right behind me in 50:51. Terry ran a 40+ mile Ultra just a week ago so he was kind enough to run slow today. I believe it’s the first time I’ve ever finished ahead of him in a race. After a bottle of water and a few deep breaths, I was recovered and grabbed a nice shiny medal. A few minutes after that, TJ came strolling across the finish line at 1:00:52 and Ayrin finished at 1:04:36. I’m glad I was finally able to get this race on the books, it was a lot of fun and I’ll definitely do it again. Huge shoutout to all of the soldiers that let the kiddos explore all the vehicles, guns, and machinery! USA baby! Finished 2/291 and first in my age group. I won a nice custom wooden plaque, I’ll display it proudly
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