“I can’t believe I’m doing this!” Callie exclaimed as we approached mile 2 of the Run The Quay 5K. It was her first race, and she was doing an amazing job, especially for a 6-year-old. But before we jump to the final mile of this experience, we should probably start from where it began.

This year's strategy was to go out a bit faster in the beginning, trying to take advantage of the rolling gravel hills during the first 5-6 miles before getting onto the singletrack. Often in races, especially hillier trail races, I'll try to conserve early and pace accordingly, trying to save as much as possible for the later miles. But not this course, as it gets more difficult and technical as the miles go on.

The race director, Richard, wrangles us runners and gets us gathered down by a gate to prepare for the start of the 2021 Beast of the East 50 Miler.

“3…2….1….Go!”

The race begins with a steep gravel climb, roughly a mile or so long before we funnel into some singletrack which quickly becomes some gnarly rock scrambles and a lot of jumping and hopping.

The URE Marathon is a free annual trail marathon that takes place in the Uwharrie National Forest of North Carolina, and it’s easily one of my favorite races to participate in. The course is roughly 26 miles with a little over 4000 feet of elevation gain and a similar elevation loss.