After almost 6 long months and three cancelled/postponed races, it’s finally time to pin a bib on again.
Kinda.
The Catoctin 50K is all set to go off Saturday morning. In order to secure their permits though, they were forced to make some serious changes to the structure of the race. Here’s the short list:
- No official start time. You can start whenever you want though the aid stations are only going to be open certain times.
- No official start line. You can start anywhere on the out-in-back course as long as you finish where you start.
- No tracking of runners. We’ll submit times online after we’re done but need to finish inside 9 hours 15 minutes to be official finishers.
- Face mask (or buff) must be used in aid stations.
- Hand sanitizer must be carried and shown to RD during the run.
- Aid stations will have strict protocols to maintain social distancing.
- No post race BBQ or t-shirts.
- No bibs. We’ll need to mark ourselves.
So it’s basically a slightly more official fatass than your typical fatass. And I’m completely fine with all the changes and structure of the race. I’m never going to be mixing it up at the front of a race like this so it’s fine not to have everyone start at the same time and place. My bet is people will show up about when they normally would or 60-90 minutes before the prior 7:30am start time. They’ll check in, hit the restroom, and then instead of sitting around for 45-60 minutes will just start running. This is just about my dream start scenario. For years, I’ve nervously sat and walked around the starting area waiting for races to start. All the while the tension just continues to build and I get more and more nervous. Do I need yet another trip to the port-a-potties? Is my bib pinned on straight? Check my watch. I locked my truck, right? Where did I put those S-caps? What time is it? OK, one more quick trip behind some trees. Finally, I can get myself organized at my own pace, line up (by myself), and just go.
While some things will be different this year (OK, a lot), the weather is shaping up to be exactly like last year. High temperatures will be a little cooler (90 degrees vs. 95) and there’s currently a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Unlike last year, I should be pretty well acclimated to these conditions as it’s been hot and humid for over a week at this point. As long as I can stay hydrated and grab some ice at each aid station, I should be fine. And by fine, I obviously mean not die.
Overall, I’m really excited to get back out and race again. Even a heavily modified race like the Covid Cat. It’s been far too long.