Yikes! Sounds like we’ll have to weed by the King Road turnaround sign soon. Great run.
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Kris and I (and Dior) chose this morning for this run as it looked like the coolest morning of the week. We got an early start so it was 51 degrees to start and 61 degrees at the end, delightful running weather. This is definitely a hard run… at least we humans thought so. Dior ran circles around us and still wanted to play when we got home. The trail was in good shape, even the wet area beyond Woodard Rd wasn’t too muddy. Warning however…there was a lot of poison ivy in that stretch between Woodard and the turn around. Watch where you step or wear long socks! Kris also had a tiny deer tick on her calf when we got back to the car. It was embedded, but hopefully hadn’t been hitching a ride for too long. All in all, a great outing. Gorgeous course, beautiful day!
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Gill and I and our amazing trail running pooch ran this course this morning. Beautiful morning and a lovely course. Lots of birds identified through sound and the Merlin app, a few ticks, long wet grass near East King, the hoot of a barred owl as we made our way down Lick Brook. Glad we did the Treman side first. Challenging and fun.
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Having now run this trail twice, I found that running Treman first was best for me.
My first time we ran Lick Brook first and I did well on that half of the course but fell apart on the Treman part. I was so tired and walked for many parts of the Treman ups and downs.
This time, I was fresh for the 4.5 miles mostly uphill on the Treman side and got to rest on the downhill back to the parking lot. Then I just walked the one mile up Lick Brook for a 20 min mile and then was able to keep running up to the turn around even though I was tired. So I basically had to walk one mile when tired instead several miles.
In the end I shaved over 20 mins off my time and was not as tired when I finished compared to the first time.
And I strongly encourage bringing water. I drank on the Treman side and then refilled at my car and still finished my water pouch before I got to the Lick Brook turn around. But then it was all downhill and I could wait for the water…
Jamie
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This is me next to the sign I did not see before embarking on the lick brook Tremain run. Afraid I must have confused many a runner as I was going against the current. I saw Gerrit van Loon and Margaret Frank. And I think Amelia Kaufman. But lots of others too. And Klaas van Wijk, but he might have been in the same boat as me, running rogue with no bib on the wrong day.
I had tried to do this run Memorial day too, but I got lost. Still haven’t managed to get Rungo on my phone. Yada yada.
In a word, though, gnarly (dude)! By the time you hit mile 9 or 10, it’s just you and your runner’s high, nothing civilized about it. Up and down and up and down and in and out and in and out. Gerrit told me once, when he runs these long races, all he thinks about is form. And I get that. Running past Charlie Fey, who was volunteering at the Skunk back in April, he called out “Smooth into the finish”. Best advice ever.
I did the lick brook side first because I did not want to be running down that hill with exhausted legs. The last stretch coming back from the Treman side does allow for some smooth running too. So, good fun was had by both my legs and my little pea brain.
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Robert H. Treman State Park is one of my favorite places in the world. This is not an exaggeration. The trails are a perfect combination of well-maintained and just wild enough, and there’s something about the feeling of running along the forest floor surrounded by grass and ferns and tall trees that just can’t be beat. Not to mention the rest of the park: swimming, camping, etc. But today I was here for the running.
I was planning on the forecasted rain to help keep me cool this morning.
Ron Howard narrator voice: there was no rain.
07:57am, 00.0 miles
I actually got up early this morning! I guess I was pretty excited to do this?
I had stashed a drop bag at Woodard Road, which I crossed at 3.5 and 6 miles, downed some Gatorade on the way out and scarfed a banana on the way back down. I was better about slowing down for a couple minutes and not just blowing through, and that definitely helped me regain some energy.
On the way back down I crossed a hiker and an ultra runner with poles at the same time – a little crowded for single-track – but other than that it was a quiet morning.
09:43am, 09.3 miles
I came into the Yaris aid station feeling good. I chose the Treman side first because that long flowing downhill at the end would have been wasted after 12 miles. Chugged half a liter of water and headed out towards the tracks.
The inlet looked like it was only about a foot deep, so I just took the water crossing. It was more like 2 feet, but still nice and refreshing, and my socks and shoes got rid of most of the wetness fairly quickly.
I knew what to expect for Lick Brook: even if it has been 9 years since I did CT50, you don’t forget that sort of thing. Maybe it’s just because I was already pretty spent by that point, but it actually didn’t feel too bad, hiking up. By the time I made it to Town Line, I was back to a shuffle, which shortly turned back into a proper jog. The way back down felt smooth and quick, though my legs were definitely solidifying by this point.
I crossed the tracks via the bridge on the way back, apparently with good timing, as a train came by within 5 minutes. Once I heard the 13 mile alert, I hammered it in pretty hard --6:49 pace, according to my watch.
10:27am, 13.2 miles
This was my longest run in 9 years (since CT50 in 2013), but overall I’m quite happy with my current endurance level. I’m definitely looking forward to doing this a few more times as I continue to consider giving Virgil Crest another go.
Challenge completion celebratory chocolate bar in the woods!
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These race reports are so much fun. Thanks for sharing!!
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It was a beautiful clear day. Anne and I had vowed to be on the trail by 7am, and we were. Not too hot, still only high 50’s when we started. Our plan was to hike the route, heading first toward the Treman side. I carried a bottle of water and Anne had her Camelbak. I tried to walk at a fast clip, and soon the traffic faded into the distance, birds singing, saw a few newts, a couple snakes, the gentle sound of rain in the trees -wait, that’s not rain, that’s the gentle sound of gypsy moth poop falling through the trees. Oh well, glad I wore a hat. And lots of insect repellant to ward off ticks. (Would’ve worn higher socks if we’d noticed Gill’s note about the poison ivy). But before we knew it we were at the turn-around and headed back toward the cars. My breakfast oatmeal was sticking with me pretty well, but I stuffed a couple bites of a peanut butter sandwich down just after passing the parking lot. The Lick Brook side got real when we got to the switchbacks and steps. My butt muscles got tired! But we did it. Challenge completed!!
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We drove over to the Lower Treman entrance and had a picnic of Gorgers sandwiches and watermelon to celebrate.
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Well, I told myself that if the weather was decent, I would give Lick Brook & Treman FLT course a go this weekend. I needed a longer trail run and wanted to play with my hydration vest prior to FL50 (25K for me).
It was cool and drizzly this morning. I decided to start with the Treman side and immediately was questioning why I thought this was a good idea. My legs were tired and heavy. I came upon another runner within the first mile and learned he had just started the course as well. I did not ask his name, but we ended up crossing paths two more times.
The up and the down and the fear of poison ivy. I just kept moving forward. I was pleasant surprised how quickly the return to the parking lot was, but I was aware on paper of what lie ahead of me.
The trestle crossing was a bit scary, mostly I was concerned about putting my foot between railroad ties. Then it was the back and forth and back and forth and back and forth up the hill. The scenery was beautiful!!!
Near South Hill Cider, my Garmin started freaking out and sending alerts to my emergency contact. I have no idea why it thought I was in danger. But I had to text my husband to I was fine and to ignore the alert and also figure out how to stop it. I did not enjoy when the orange spur trail got really narrow. I didn’t see the turnaround sign at King Road, but I just followed the RunGo directions.
Technology failed me again. I guess my Garmin stopped tracking with the emergency alert and then I was locked out of my phone to stop my backup up trackers. Oh well.
When I was done, I was done. I had zero desire to go anywhere but home. I showered immediately, taking care to wash well to hopefully avoid a poison ivy reaction!
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What an amazing run this morning! So fun to go early and meet up with the group run at the end for delicious watermelon and oranges and some great camaraderie.
Kieran (our son who is home just for a week) needed to do a 12 mile run this morning according to his training schedule. Since the group run was happening at Lick Brook this morning we thought this would be a great excuse to take him on a trail run. Kieran now lives in Urbana IL so he really enjoyed the woods and shade but the hills were perhaps a little more than he expected! Jamie suggested we get up early and do the Treman side first and then catch the group at Lick Brook. This worked pretty well as we finished the whole course at the same time as the group doing just Lick Brook.
The Treman half of the run went pretty smoothly though I will say the weeds on the side of the trail have gotten VERY tall. Tall socks won’t protect you from poison ivy anymore. Kieran and I were going at a pretty good clip the whole time so I didn’t stop to examine the weeds but I am pretty sure I spotted poison ivy in a couple of spots. We scrubbed our legs with soap upon returning home and now have our fingers crossed.
To add a bit of excitement on this section, Kieran and I saw a black bear high-tailing it away from us as we came cruising down the trail. We came upon it pretty quickly so were lucky it heard us coming first. No babies is site, I always worry about getting between a Mama bear and her cubs.
We also enjoyed meeting up with Matt on the trail twice. He had the same idea we did this morning and started the Treman side just a bit before we did. This course completed his challenge. Congrats!
The other funny thing that happened on the Treman side is that we passed the same hiker twice, once when we were heading out and then again coming back. The second time past he asked if we were related. We said yes and then he asked if we were grandmother and grandson! What the heck, do I really look that old that I could have a 24 year old grandson? The comment only made me run faster!
It was great to make it back to the base camp but the group run had already left. The hill was as brutal as you would expect, even after the switch backs it just keeps going up. Soon we caught up to Tonya and then a large group of ladies. At the turn around we said hello to Adam and the guys but had no time to lollygag, though Adam ran with us for a bit which was super nice. Kieran set the pace heading down the hill which I was grateful for and before we knew it we were crossing the trestle and heading in for the finish. We really enjoyed hanging out with the group chatting and waiting for Jamie and Tonya to join us.
Three cheers to Adam and Tonya for bringing us all together with these challenge courses!
Do I really look like his grandmother???
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I couldn’t convince the family to stop at Eddydale for some fresh strawberries (huh?) but they did allow a quick stop at TJMaxx to do a errand, they waited in the car.
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A bear!!!
Nice job Loehr family! And you do not look like his grandmother. 
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Hot and steamy! We started this with the Saturday morning group run, running the Lick Brook section first and then stopping for a fantastic watermelon break before continuing on to the Treman / FLT section. Everyone was in good spirits despite temps in the 90s (next time we agreed we should start earlier!) and ample poison ivy.
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Stopped at Franco’s for a slice and soda. Maybe it was the heat, maybe it was the mileage, but it was the most delicious pizza of my life.
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No grandmother runs at your speed! You guys look awesome, and congrats on running all the courses twice! 
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I took advantage of this morning’s group run to tackle the Lick Brook & Treman Challenge Course again… this time in the great company of @raenb0 and @Gretchen on the Lick Brook side and the beginning of the Treman side, and @medardia and @Katie_Gannon until the finish!
What a group of badass ladies!
I still found the adventure quite tiring (it was even hotter this time around) but much more fun not to run alone. Thank you so much to @adamengst and @tonya-engst for bringing us together, once again, and sharing the leftover food from the Tortoise & Hare race! It was so funny to see that Adam the runner does not follow the RunGo directions of Adam the voice, and sometimes gets lost too 
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After a bit of sunbathing at Flat Rock (can’t really call that “swimming” because there is barely any water) I went to Ithaca Beer Company with friends… the pizza is excellent 
and I love their rosé cider! 
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So glad you ladies made it! Thank you so much for running with us for a bit and steering us in the right direction
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See Caitlin’s post for the family story. I ran behind Caitlin and Kieran and ended up falling FIVE times on the trails. One was a doozy, going off the trail and 20 feet down the slope. Fortunately no broken bones but some nice cuts and scrapes. I was a bit slower than my #2 run but I feel it was a good run.
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My trail shoes have lasted a year but have been splitting open at the seam. Today did them in - check out the picture. So part of the day was a trip to Finger Lakes Running Company and got some new trail shoes! I like supporting them.
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We got it DONE!!! I’m so glad you ladies made it too! You gals made it fun! 
Here’s a photo of @raenb0 and I having made it to the turn around point at the top of Treman. 
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So I really did not intend to do this run today. My intent was to take the dog and do one of my favorite runs at Treman, up the FLT and back down on the Gorge Trail or Rim Trail. I started at 7 am, which is a bit later than my usual morning run and it was warming up fast, and I was carrying no fluids with me, so I was pretty sure we were going to stick with about 7-8 miles. But then, half way up the FLT, a little voice in my head said, “well you could, when you hit the Rim trail, just cut back onto the FLT and keep your options open to do the Challenge Course. You can always bail at the CCC stone and head over to the Mill.” Once I had gone past the CCC stone, the little voice reassured me that even though I hadn’t taken any drink with me, I could always cut over to the Mill on the way back. Once we had passed that option, the voice said, “well it’s mostly downhill from here to the car and you have water in the car. Besides, Dior is still chasing chipmunks and hardly panting, so she is fine.” And of course once back at the car having a drink, “well you’ve done this much, you might as well finish the course!”
The Lick Brook side was hard, I walked the entire hill and then tripped about 4 times, a sure sign that the heat and fatigue were kicking in. Fortunately made it back in one piece and then went for a cooling dip in the creek near the railroad crossing. Despite the heat, this was slightly faster than my first run through, so that was a nice bonus.
No bears were spotted, but I’ll be on the lookout from now on!
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I don’t think you even look old enough to be a mother of a 24 year old!!!