Cleveland County - Gateway Trail 10-Miler - March 10, 2018

Cleveland County, North Carolina, just west of Charlotte, must have a good running community, because it supports a good number of races over the course of the year.  It also helps that they have a great greenway and trail system, including the Gateway Trail, which is planned as an eventual access trail from Kings Mountain, North Carolina to Kings Mountain National Battlefield, Kings Mountain State Park, and Crowders Mountain State Park.  This morning, though, the existing five miles of trail was being used as the home of the 9^th annual Gateway Trail 10-Miler (and also a 5k race). 

The Gateway Trail 10-Miler is an out-and-back race from the main trailhead parking lot just off highway 216 to the opposite trailhead at Foote Drive and back.  The race organizers had done a great job setting up for the race on a very cool morning:  there were a couple of different fire pits blazing away to keep the runners warm, a nice pre-race spread of fruit and bread and drinks were ready, and checking and packet pickup were in full swing inside the trail headquarters building.  The organizers had procured some beautiful handmade awards, pottery and metalwork like leaves that were going to go home with the best runners of the day.  All the organizers and volunteers were in a good mood and excited to have a bigger turnout than previous years for both the 10-miler and the associated 5k, which Kathy ended up walking with our boy in the stroller.  (46 runners finished the 10-miler, and 122 runners finished the 5k.)

After welcomes from the town mayor and the race director, the pledge of allegiance, and an invocation, the 10-milers were escorted down adjacent Quarry Road to the starting line, where the timers lined us up and gave us some last-minute instructions.  Meanwhile, the other organizers moved the 5k runners to the side of the main parking lot to give us room to move through (the 5k started a few minutes after the 10-mile runners passed through the headquarters area).  It was great to have the cheers of the 5k runners to spur us on at the start, and then we were off onto the trail, with only the plodding of our feet to encourage us through the race.

The “mountain” in the name of the city should have clued me in that this race was going to have some significant hills to it, but for some reason that possibility didn’t hit me until I was well into the up-up-up first mile.  In fact, we were about 2.5 miles into the race before we got an extended stretch of level or downhill ground.  The paved path at the start changed quickly into a crushed gravel path, and there were still some larger pieces of rock that you had to keep an eye on for fear of rolling an ankle.  The first 10-miler water stop also served as the turnaround point for the 5k, so those of us running safely in the back of the pack got to see the faster 5k runners twice.  There was a lot of up and down in the middle miles of the race, with very few flat places to catch your breath.  We did a very interesting hilly stretch alongside I-85, followed by a nice boardwalk section and then a pedestrian/bike bridge over the interstate where the second water stop was positioned.  After all the ups and downs of the first 3.5 miles, the 1.5 on the opposite side of the interstate was mostly flat with finer crushed gravel – although the last bit before Foote Drive had been replenished with fresh gravel and was like running in sand.  It truly was a relief to hit the turnaround and know I was on the way home.

The return trip including commiserating with the rest of the slower runners as well as thanking the water stop volunteers who had waited so long for the last of us to come through.  Given the difficulty of the race, it was a blessing to have had nice, cool weather so at least we weren’t suffering too much.  With the uphills at the start of the race, I kept reminding myself they would be downhills on the return trip, but even that wasn’t enough to spur me on to a faster pace.  It was a slow, plodding return trip, but I did enjoy the scenery as we circled lakes, crested hills, and enjoyed a big view of the quarry.  Finally I was back on the paved part of the greenway path, and after only a few more turns I could see the parking lot and the finish line, where it was a relief to be done.  I enjoyed a good rest near one of the fire pits with some wonderful fruit and a cold bottle of water.  The race organizers, who hope to add a half-marathon to the event for next year’s 10^th running, acknowledged it was a difficult race, which they took some pride in.  It’s one of those races I’ll say I survived rather than finished.  

They do have a great trail system in Kings Mountain / Cleveland County, and I can see why the runners are proud of it.  But be aware these are the foothills of the Smokies and you’ll see some serious ups and downs on the course.  But the great organizers, wonderful volunteers on the course, and the beauty of the early spring scenery made this a great stop.  Consider including the Gateway Trail 10-Miler on your race schedule!