My first trail race of the season is coming up Saturday, and I confess to being a little nervous.

I ran four trail races last year, two of them marathons, and they all were a blast, so I'm sure the Northern Nipmuck race will be fun, too. I'm always nervous and excited beforehand. I just hope my sore leg holds out!

It may not be too late to show and go, if anyone's interested. I posted the application here a while back, and you can also find it on the Grand Tree series site.

It's in Union, Conn., just a little ways down I-84 into Connecticut. Here's the course description from the application:

The course starts at the Nipmuck Trail & Rt. 171 junction just opposite the Bigelow Hollow State Park entrance. The course runs 8 miles south on the Nipmuck Trail to Boston Hollow Road in Ashford (the northernmost point of Nipmuck Marathon) and returns on the same trail. The terrain is constantly rolling, and although there are no monster hills, there are enough steep sections to test your anaerobic capacity. The total gain over the 16 miles is approximately 3,200 feet. The footing is usually decent, but there are some steep, rocky sections that demand caution. If it has rained recently, expect to get your feet wet in several of the low-lying areas.

I will offer my own description once I've done it!