Race Results - Rawson Chaplin
| Date | Race | Location | Length | Time | Pace | Place | Division | Div Pl | Comment |
| 2020-03-07 | Dirty Spokes Haw Creek Park | Cumming, GA | 3.3M | 24:56 | 7:33 | 9/140 | M 60-64 | 1/7 | The good: (1) My legs are good, and my back is slowly improving, not perfect, but strong enough to handle trail racing; and (2) I'm now in the slower 60-64 age group. The bad: My pace was 14 sec/mile slower than last year, even though I ran the longer race (6.45 miles) in 2019. That's a lot of fitness lost. Yikes! |
| 2020-02-22 | Quarry Crusher Run | Norcross, GA | 3M | 24:30 | 8:10 | 14/688 | M 55-59 | 2/31 | Course shortened from 3.7 to 3 miles because the bottom of the quarry was flooded. (Rain-o-rama winter.) Still a good climb from near the bottom. First race since Oct after battling foot, knee and back aches. Fitness not great (ran 7:48 pace last time), but I expected that after so many weeks of no speed work. Now I'm just hoping to stay healthy enough to get back in better condition. In the meantime, it was great to race again! |
| 2019-10-19 | Friendsgiving 5K | Suwanee, GA | 5K | 22:19 | 7:11 | 3/30 | M 50-59 | 1/3 | Left foot had been bothering me since Tuesday, to the point where I was thinking it would probably be best to jog the race. Foot felt surprisingly okay once the race started though, so I went with it. 26 sec slower than last year, but not displeased all things considered. Cool and drizzly; nice to not be running in the summer heat. |
| 2019-09-28 | Dirty Spokes Harbins Park Run | Dacula, GA | 6.2M | 48:07 | 7:46 | 17/145 | M 55-59 | 2/13 | First race after a 2-month break. Fitness not great (1:04 slower than last year), but hamstring is healed and legs felt okay. Great race T-shirt: "Run Trails - Worst Case Scenario - A Bear Kills You." |
| 2019-07-27 | Dirty Spokes Red Top Roaster | Cartersville, GA | 7.5M | 53:29 | 7:08 | 24/178 | M 55-59 | 2/12 | Several months of no speedwork, waiting for left hamstring to fully heal, took their toll. My time was a full 2 minutes slower than what I ran on this course back on March 30. Hamstring is better though, so I'm hoping to get back to work soon. |
| 2019-07-13 | Dirty Spokes Sawnee Mountain | Cumming, GA | 4M | 32:29 | 8:07 | 13/185 | M 55-59 | 1/9 | If you like brutal humidity, rocks (lots of 'em), roots and steep hills, this was the race for you. Hamstring improving, but still hadn't resumed speedwork, hoping for a full recovery. I did, however, get my mileage back up to normal levels, and that turned out to be enough to win first Grandmaster and fastest male age-graded, a nice way to finish the spring series. Fall series starts in two weeks! |
| 2019-06-15 | Dirty Spokes Haw Creek Park | Cumming, GA | 6.1M | 44:14 | 7:15 | 17/138 | M 55-59 | 1/8 | Hadn't done any speedwork for the 6 weeks since my last race, hoping to put my hamstring injury behind me. It held up okay today, but I still don't feel it's 100%. Perhaps I shouldn't have raced, but this was Race 7 of 8 in the spring Dirty Spokes series, and I wanted to continue competing for the series prizes. Clinched fastest male age-graded (which is based on the 1st 7 races only, allowing for personalized awards) and gained enough points to ensure my 55-59 group win. Things are looking up! |
| 2019-05-04 | Dirty Spokes Harbins Park | Dacula, GA | 7.15M | 56:10 | 7:51 | 14/125 | M 55-59 | 1/6 | Dirty Spokes Series Race 6 of 8. I hadn't done any speedwork since injuring my hamstring at Road Atlanta, so I arguably shouldn't have raced today... except I wanted to maintain my age group and age-graded series leads. 2:10 slower than last year - frustrating but expected. Hamstring survived without pain, but it was very tight late. One more mile could have been a problem. Somehow won 1st male 50+ and 1st male age-graded despite the slower time. |
| 2019-04-06 | Dirty Spokes Road Atlanta | Braselton, GA | 9.1M | 1:13:59 | 8:08 | 20/125 | M 55-59 | 1/11 | I'd been fearing this for weeks, and it finally happened - 6+ miles into the race, and I had stabbing pain in my left hamstring. I can't say that the warning signals weren't there, only that I ignored them. Somehow, despite slowing to 9+ pace for the last two miles, I still managed to win my age group. With 3 races remaining in the series (next one: May 4), the question is: will my hamstring hold up well enough to hang on to my age group and overall age-graded series leads? Stay tuned. |
| 2019-03-30 | Dirty Spokes Iron Hill | Cartersville, GA | 7.5M | 51:29 | 6:52 | 10/139 | M 55-59 | 1/9 | The name notwithstanding, this is the flattest course on the Dirty Spokes circuit and also the smoothest and least twisty. A rare opportunity to run sub-7:00 pace! Another two-award day for me, first male 50+ and fastest male age-graded. But the news isn't all good. My left hamstring has been acting up... I just hope it doesn't pop! |
| 2019-03-09 | Dirty Spokes Haw Creek Park | Cumming, GA | 6.45M | 47:09 | 7:19 | 11/141 | M 55-59 | 2/8 | Race #3 in the spring Dirty Spokes series. It was supposed to be held at Charleston Park on Lake Lanier, but the park was flooded. Haw Creek Park wasn't under water, but the trails were MUDDY! Fun, but slippery and a little slow. |
| 2019-02-16 | Dirty Spokes Thrill in the Hills | Winder, GA | 21K | 1:43:04 | 7:54 | 9/285 | M 55-59 | 1/16 | Great weather - around 60 with increasing sunshine, but course very muddy and slippery after recent rain. 2+ min slower than last year, but it was a new course and no doubt the mud slowed me down. I seem to do better relative to the field in longer races, making me think I should shift my focus to them. |
| 2019-02-02 | Dirty Spokes Heritage Park | Watkinsville, GA | 7.8M | 1:02:00 | 7:57 | 14/161 | M 55-59 | 1/9 | Ah! February in GA - 66 degrees and sunny (40s at race time). Race was 0.3 miles longer than last year, so my pace was actually a little faster despite the slower overall time. Won two awards - first male grandmaster (50+) and first male age-graded. Seeing as it likely can't get any better than this, it may be time to retire on a high note. :-) |
| 2019-01-05 | Mayhem on the Mountain | Cumming, GA | 5.15M | 43:21 | 8:25 | 14/215 | M 55-59 | 1/14 | No two ways around it - this course is brutal. After the steep mountain climb turns your quads to jelly, you're challenged to stay on your feet on the rocky descent. Did I mention that many of these rocks are loose? While running, I questioned why I do this to myself... but 30 minutes after finishing, I was looking forward to next year's race. 1:43 faster than last year - yeah! |
| 2018-12-15 | Friendsgiving 5K | Suwanee, GA | 5K | 21:53 | 7:03 | 2/54 | M 50-59 | 1/3 | A small but well-run charity race over a mostly flat gravel path along the Chattahoochee River. Flooding from recent rain left several stretches of the course under 3-4 inches of water, but what's a little splashing to a trail runner? |
| 2018-12-01 | XTERRA Mt Tabor Park | Dallas, GA | 8M | 1:08:32 | 8:34 | 11/76 | M 55-59 | 1/10 | A (very) rainy day in Georgia, enough so to turn the narrow, windy trails in this park to little streams. Folks who like to keep their shoes clean and dry had one option: stay at home. Given that, I'm not too displeased with running more 3.5 minutes slower than last year - you can only run so fast in the water and mud. Also, I defended my XTERRA Georgia age group title (perhaps for the last time, as it appears there won't be a series in the state next year). |
| 2018-11-17 | Dirty Spokes Chateau Elan | Braselton, GA | 5.5M | 42:20 | 7:42 | 13/132 | M 55-59 | 2/3 | Race through the magnificent grounds of Chateau Elan Winery & Resort. Course was a fun mixture of wooded trails, gravel roads, vineyard paths, grass lawn and cart paths. Tough though, with lots of hills. After a long streak of age-group wins, I've now finished 2nd to 5 different runners - gotta find a way to get faster! |
| 2018-11-10 | XTERRA Little Mulberry Park | Dacula, GA | 6.5M | 50:10 | 7:43 | 13/111 | M 55-59 | 2/9 | A chilly day in Georgia - 15 degrees below normal - definitely a shock to the system! Race 4 of 5 in the XTERRA GA series - finished 2nd in my age group for the 3rd time after winning the 1st race. Lost to 3 different runners though, so I have a comfortable lead in the series standings. |
| 2018-11-03 | Dirty Spokes Iron Hill Night Race | Cartersville, GA | 7.5M | 52:48 | 7:02 | 11/52 | M 55-59 | 2/5 | I've raced at night before, but this was my first trail race in the dark. What was I waiting for? Definitely an adventure that all trail runners should try at least once. That said, I was 17 seconds slower than I was on a slightly longer version of this course back in March - it's challenging to run as fast as usual when you can only see 5 yards in front of you and you don't know when the next bend or turn is coming. This was the final race in the 2018 GA State Parks series - won my age group. |
| 2018-10-27 | XTERRA Battle at Big Creek | Roswell, GA | 10.3M | 1:20:27 | 7:49 | 20/131 | M 55-59 | 2/6 | This may be the toughest course in the Dirty Spokes assortment; seemingly endless rises, drops, hairpin turns, roots and loose rocks. Gradually, maliciously, step by step, it beats you up. Or so it did to me today - I was a disappointing 38 seconds slower than last year. I avenged my age-group loss at Fort Yargo, beating my new nemesis by 12 seconds, only to lose to another new 55-year-old. The good news: I'm still in first place in the series standings. |
| 2018-10-13 | XTERRA Fort Yargo | Winder, GA | 8.75M | 1:06:20 | 7:35 | 9/132 | M 55-59 | 2/12 | 2nd race in the XTERRA Georgia series, now shortened to 5 races and finishing in December. A little under 9 sec slower than last year, not bad considering a slight muscle pull limited my training. Didn't win my division for the first time since January, beaten by an upstart 55-year-old. When do I turn 60? |
| 2018-09-22 | XTERRA Harbins Park | Dacula, GA | 6.2M | 47:03 | 7:35 | 12/119 | M 55-59 | 1/10 | Summer is refusing to end this year in north Georgia, but, heat or not, the time had come to start the fall racing season and to defend my XTERRA age-group title from last year. First race of a 6-race series: 5 this fall and the finale next August. My fitness wasn't great due to battles with minor aches, but still a pretty good race for me. |
| 2018-09-01 | Tortoise and the Hare | Canton, GA | 10K | 54:53 | 8:50 | 6/87 | M 50-59 | 1/7 | In Tortoise and the Hare races, the goal is, rather than have everyone start at the same time, have everyone finish at the same time. This is done with wave starts, and the result is a race that is catered to both fast and slow runners (a great concept) and thus draws a healthy number of slow (but no less dedicated) trail runners. After a 7-week racing hiatus due to a calf injury, this was a perfect place to return - the course was often technical and challenging, but always beautiful. |
| 2018-07-14 | Dirty Spokes Sawnee Mountain | Cumming, GA | 4M | 31:27 | 7:52 | 16/160 | M 55-59 | 1/8 | The final race in a 8-race series that started on a brutally cold January day and finished in the July heat and humidity. My results were all good: 40 seconds faster than last year and only 14 seconds slower than 2015 (pre-knee injury). I feel like I'm truly back now. In addition to winning my age group for the series, I won the prize for the top age-graded male in the long course division. Best prize I ever won: hand-crafted wood with my name carved into it. Age grading = best invention ever!! |
| 2018-06-16 | Dirty Spokes Haw Creek | Cumming, GA | 6.1M | 44:46 | 7:20 | 11/146 | M 55-59 | 1/7 | Race #7 of 8 in the Dirty Spokes Trail Series. A hot and humid day, but thankfully an early start on a shaded course. Ran 37 seconds faster than last year, not as big an improvement as my last race, but still satisfying. At my age, any race I run faster than the prior year is a good one! |
| 2018-05-19 | XTERRA UNG | Oakwood, GA | 5.3M | 36:49 | 6:57 | 9/81 | M 55-59 | 1/4 | Race #7 of 8 in the XTERRA series. Last year, this race (with a slightly modified course) was in the Dirty Spokes series. (Both series are put on by Dirty Spokes, so they feel the same.) It's hard to say how much the course change affected my time, but I was 2:39 slower last year, when I finished 21st of 116 runners. This was my first Dirty Spokes race where I ran sub-7:00 pace, very satisfying considering all the twists and sharp turns. My fitness is returning! |
| 2018-05-05 | Dirty Spokes Harbins Park | Dacula, GA | 7.15M | 54:00 | 7:33 | 11/120 | M 55-59 | 1/5 | Race #6 (of 8) in the Dirty Spokes Trail Run Series. One of the more enjoyable courses on the circuit, hilly and twisting, but not a lot of roots or rocks. Legs are still feeling pretty good, but fitness is still somewhat lacking. |
| 2018-04-21 | Dirty Spokes Unicoi State Park | Helen, GA | 7.8M | 1:04:35 | 8:17 | 6/45 | M 55-59 | 1/3 | Race #1 of the 2018 Dirty Spokes Georgia State Parks Series. (Yes, I'm now in the midst of 3 different Dirty Spokes series.) A gorgeous course up in the north GA mountains, probably the 2nd hilliest I've ever run. Legs are pretty good these days but fitness is a little off after lots of slow recovery runs. |
| 2018-04-07 | Dirty Spokes Road Atlanta | Braselton, GA | 8.6M | 1:08:54 | 8:01 | 12/83 | M 55-59 | 1/2 | 1. Road Atlanta is a motor speedway; this was a trail race in the adjacent woods. 2. It was a rainy morning. 3. Massachusetts mud may have it uses, but if you really want to slip and slide, there is no substitute for wet Georgia clay. 4. With my calf still healing, I probably shouldn't have run this race, but I didn't want to lose my 1st place age group standing for the series (this was race 5 of 8). 5. Despite all the slipping and sliding, my calf held up (barely), so all is good. |
| 2018-03-31 | Dirty Spokes Iron Hill | Cartersville, GA | 7.5M | 52:31 | 7:00 | 11/159 | M 55-59 | 1/7 | The good news: After 3 weeks of hard training (healthy again!), this was my best Dirty Spokes finish since a knee injury sidelined me for most of 2016. The bad news: With a mile to go, I had a sudden stabbing pain in my right calf. I've had this injury twice before, and it doesn't heal quickly. Augh! |
| 2018-03-10 | Dirty Spokes Charleston Park | Cumming, GA | 6.1M | 46:57 | 7:42 | 16/132 | M 55-59 | 1/6 | Ran a little over 2 minutes faster than last year - when I was coming off a hip injury - so it was nice to see some progress being made. Still think I can get faster though. |
| 2018-02-17 | XTERRA Thrill in the Hills | Winder, GA | 21K | 1:40:57 | 7:44 | 18/227 | M 55-59 | 1/10 | After a 2.5-month hiatus, this was Race #6 in the XTERRA Georgia series. The final two races aren't until May and August, but I've now clinched 1st place for my age group, earning me free entry into the September national championships in Utah. If transportation and lodging were included, I would be much more excited about this. :-) |
| 2018-02-03 | Dirty Spokes Heritage Park | Watkinsville, GA | 7.5M | 1:00:30 | 8:04 | 18/148 | M 55-59 | 1/11 | Race #2 in the Dirty Spokes series. Yet another Dirty Spokes course with steep hills, sharp turns and lots of roots. Bonus this week: a creek crossing - brr! I've now raced in 11 GA counties. 148 to go. |
| 2018-01-06 | Mayhem on the Mountain | Cumming, GA | 5.15M | 45:04 | 8:45 | 17/196 | M 55-59 | 2/13 | Race #1 in the 8-race 2018 Dirty Spokes series - one very nice thing about GA is the 12-month trail racing season. This one was very cold though, low 20s, well below normal for January mornings. Foot is better but not 100%; hope it is soon so I can get back to the hard workouts that will get me my speed back! |
| 2017-12-02 | XTERRA Mt Tabor Park | Dallas, GA | 8M | 1:04:53 | 8:07 | 15/91 | M 55-59 | 1/5 | Slow pace today, partly because this course must hold the world record for most hairpin turns per mile, but perhaps more because a sore back prevented me from doing any hard workouts in the past 3 weeks. My back was okay today, but my left foot was very sore, proving that I am officially old - if it's not one ache, it's another! |
| 2017-11-11 | XTERRA Little Mulberry Park | Dacula, GA | 6.2M | 46:05 | 7:26 | 16/146 | M 55-59 | 1/5 | A chilly morning in Georgia! Not by MA standards, but 42 is COLD when you're used to much warmer. Little Mulberry is a gorgeous venue with grass and woods trails, but extremely hilly. The twisting, rooted, mountainous descent in the 3rd mile, combined with the cool air, was too much for my lower back, which suddenly felt 30 years older. I was able to hang on today, but I'm thinking that getting out of bed tomorrow morning will not be easy. Ouch! |
| 2017-10-28 | XTERRA Battle at Big Creek | Roswell, GA | 10.3M | 1:19:49 | 7:45 | 16/134 | M 55-59 | 1/5 | Big Creek Trails is a fairly small city park that provides miles of trails by packing them in like intestines (read: hairpin turns). Trails are hilly (steep but not long) with roots and rocks, many loose. There's simply no way to get into a good rhythm on this course; it's all accelerating and decelerating. But hey, at least I avoided the yellow jacket attack - many runners were stung multiple times! |
| 2017-10-14 | XTERRA Fort Yargo | Winder, GA | 8.75M | 1:06:12 | 7:34 | 11/131 | M 55-59 | 1/8 | Race #2 in the 8-race 2017-18 XTERRA Georgia series. A pretty good race for me, but the hills in the last 2 miles revealed the truth - my strength is not all I would like it to be. |
| 2017-09-23 | XTERRA Harbins Park | Dacula, GA | 5.3M | 38:51 | 7:20 | 11/117 | M 55-59 | 3/8 | Tough competition in my division today, but this was a pretty good race for me, as I was only 1:37 behind the second place overall finisher. Need to do more hill sprints! |
| 2017-08-12 | Dirty Spokes Allatoona Creek | Acworth, GA | 8.75M | 1:05:43 | 7:31 | 14/153 | M 55-59 | 1/11 | Part of the fun of Dirty Spokes races is seeing the latest T-shirt. Today's message: "Give Blood - Run Trails." Very appropriate. By the way, Dirty Spokes isn't necessarily a cult, but there are a few people who run with Dirty Spokes tattoos on their calves. Eat, sleep, train, compete, repeat! |
| 2017-07-29 | Dirty Spokes Red Top Roaster | Cartersville, GA | 9.9M | 1:20:43 | 8:09 | 14/195 | M 55-59 | 1/14 | Challenging course through scenic Red Top Mountain State Park. My longest race since '04, and I definitely felt it late - I could barely stay on my feet. Well... actually, I didn't. With 0.2 miles to go, I somehow managed to trip on even ground. Luckily, I landed on fairly soft dirt, and there was no damage except for a few more scrapes and bruises for my collection. Meanwhile, my fitness continue to improve, as measured by comparing my times to the other regular Dirty Spokes runners. |
| 2017-07-15 | Dirty Spokes Sawnee Mountain | Cumming, GA | 4M | 32:07 | 8:02 | 17/284 | M 55-59 | 1/18 | Up to the summit of Sawnee Mountain and back on rocky trails. Saw several bloody knees after the race, thankfully not mine, although I've fallen several times while training on this course. Elated to be within a minute of my 2015 time; it's been a long, slow recovery from my 2016 knee injury, but I'm getting there! |
| 2017-06-17 | Dirty Spokes Haw Creek | Cumming, GA | 6.1M | 45:23 | 7:26 | 16/155 | M 55-59 | 4/11 | Fairly tough course: not too many roots and rocks, but lots of sharp turns and short but steep climbs and descents. Hard to tell how much I'm improving on these singular courses, but comparing my finishing time to other runners in the last Dirty Spokes race, I think I'm getting a little fitter. |
| 2017-05-27 | The Crusher Vineyard & Trail Race | Cleveland, GA | 6K | 27:50 | 7:28 | 3/168 | M 50-59 | 1/13 | Went up to the north GA mountains for this one, and not surprisingly, it was a roller coaster of a course. But the scenery was stunning as we ran between the rows of grapes with Yonah Mountain looming above us. |
| 2017-05-06 | Quarry Crusher Run | Norcross, GA | 3.7M | 28:53 | 7:48 | 7/535 | M 55-59 | 1/24 | 600 feet down (over 1.85 miles) on a winding gravel road to the bottom of a quarry and 600 feet coming back up again. The most unusual race I've ever done and perhaps the most fun. |
| 2017-04-08 | Dirty Spokes UNG | Oakwood, GA | 5.3M | 39:28 | 7:27 | 21/116 | M 55-59 | 4/12 | Fairly tough course. Not a lot of rocks and roots, but many very sharp turns and some short but steep ascents and descents... plus 3 fallen trees to navigate. My strength still needs a lot of work. |
| 2017-04-01 | Dirty Spokes Iron Hill | Cartersville, GA | 7.5M | 54:03 | 7:12 | 22/166 | M 55-59 | 3/12 | Fitness slowly coming back, although big improvement in pace mostly due to this being a flatter and less technical course. |
| 2017-03-11 | Dirty Spokes Charleston Park | Cumming, GA | 6.1M | 49:07 | 8:03 | 27/144 | M 55-59 | 5/15 | Moderately tough trail race. Hip finally feels normal again. Now to get some speed back! |
| 2017-01-21 | Mayhem on the Mountain | Cumming, GA | 5.15M | 45:43 | 8:53 | 26/165 | M 55-59 | 3/15 | A sore hip limited my training for this race, and it showed. Hoping to get fully healthy again soon. |
| 2016-12-03 | Victoria Bryant State Park | Royston, GA | 10K | 50:28 | 8:07 | 6/73 | M 50+ | 2/25 | Brutal, roller coaster trail, rutted and rocky. Fun! |
| 2016-10-29 | XTERRA Battle at Big Creek | Roswell, GA | 5.5M | 43:13 | 7:51 | 16/188 | M 55-59 | 1/9 | Twisty, windy trail race. First time racing since recovering from knee injury. Knee fine, but still have a lot of work to do to get back in top racing shape. |
| 2016-01-16 | Mayhem on the Mountain | Cumming, GA | 5.15M | 42:18 | 8:13 | 8/196 | M 50-59 | 2/30 | very tough mountain trail race |
| 2015-07-18 | Dirty Spokes Sawnee Mountain | Cumming, GA | 4M | 31:13 | 7:48 | 14/289 | M 50-59 | 1/33 | mountain trail race |
| 2014-08-28 | Woodland Trail Series | Northbridge, MA | 5M | 33:31 | 6:42 | 8/92 | M 50-59 | 2/7 | trail race |
| 2014-07-31 | Woodland Trail Series | Northbridge, MA | 5M | 34:33 | 6:55 | 9/95 | M 50-59 | 1/8 | trail race |
| 2014-06-08 | Great Lincoln Steeplechase | Lincoln, MA | 6.7M | 50:04 | 7:28 | 14/69 | M 50-59 | 2/10 | trail race, high 80s |
| 2014-06-01 | Woodland Trail Series | Northbridge, MA | 5M | 34:18 | 6:52 | 9/97 | M 50-59 | 1/9 | trail race |
| 2014-05-04 | Savage 5K | Wellesley, MA | 5K | 19:25 | 6:15 | 8/274 | M 50-59 | 2/29 | |
| 2013-10-20 | Flutie 5K | Natick, MA | 5K | 19:44 | 6:21 | 12/722 | M 50-59 | 3/47 |