Problem 1: It was 12F when I arrived at the trailhead. I don't think it's ever been 12F on my trail.

Problem 2: Snowshoes. Don't get me wrong, I love snowshoes. (Especially Tubbs snowshoes.) But when running? Yikes. At least I was lucky enough to have a pair of running snowshoes. (Yes, they really make running snowshoes.)

Problem 3: That guy. And that girl. And the other 12 real runners. I was doing a 5k, but they were doing the course twice to get 10k. They whooped me, but they didn't lap me. Barely.

Problem 4: Asthma. It sucks and it's worse in the winter. So after we were all done with the running I had to work on breathing rather than talking with the athletes.

Problem 5: I didn't even get a shirt! But I did get chili, so that kind of makes up for it.

In spite of the fact that running in snowshoes is really hard and I'm not a very good runner to begin with and ouch my back hurts it was a good experience. Too bad I have a conflict for the next race in the series. <phew>