Working on the Chain Gang

Many 100 mile races require entrants to complete a certain number of volunteer hours. Some even specify that these hours must include trail work (aka manual labor). I needed 12 total hours for Tahoe and 8 for Wasatch, so I have spent the past couple months accruing a couple hours here, a few there. I had cleaned the trails at McAllister, checked for fire ant mounds at Government Canyon, and volunteered at an aid station at a trail race in Burnet. Yesterday, Larry and I spent the morning in Bandera at Hill Country State Natural Area, where we would complete our obligations.
I always say that I wish I did more volunteer work in the trail running community (when it isn’t required), but I always find an excuse to not do it. As stewards of the trail, we should give back and help maintain the very trails we enjoy running on so much. Many of these parks and trail systems rely on volunteers to keep going. I promise (heard that before?) that I will be better about this in the future.
As soon as Larry and I arrived, I noticed that there were already several volunteers doing work. Any they had a chainsaw! Interestingly, they were wearing matching outfits. Well, it turns out they were “volunteers” from the nearby Hondo prison system. Inmate labor. Larry and I should fit in just fine. We soon were given hedge clippers and a hacksaw (Larry got the saw, and it had seen better days) and told to hike over to trail 5 and “trim it back” to make it more accessible for horseback riders. After nearly an hour of this, we moved to Trail 5b, known lovingly as “Sky Island”, quite possibly Chris’ least favorite trail at Bandera. Larry and I took great pride in the irony that we were spending our morning making this section of trail “easier”. Now Chris has no excuse for not breaking 24 at Cactus Rose!
All in all, Larry and I had fun. We got sweaty, dirty, and a little sunburned. It was fun to catch up with Larry, who will be toeing the line with me in Utah in September at the Wasatch 100. The folks at Hill Country State Natural area are awesome to work with and very friendly. Now if I can just find the time to volunteer more often ☺_