skating as recreation
This September, I completed my first ever skate race, a half marathon at the 2021 NorthShore Inline Marathon and Skate Fest in Duluth, Minnesota. It was a fantastic experience—part of the race takes place on I-35, and now I can say with confidence that the best way to skate is whooshing along on an interstate…! But my journey to Duluth started here in Richmond, where I have the perfect training ground—the Virginia Capital Trail—right at my doorstep.
I’ve skated since elementary school (on asphalt and ice), and inline skating has never felt like exercise. So when I moved from Germany to the United States twenty years ago, I packed one heavy but absolutely necessary item: my K2 inline skates. I discovered rail trails in college and then commuted on my trusted K2s—the ones with the MTV logo on it; very retro chic now—throughout graduate school in Madison, WI. Unfortunately, the hook for the laces broke about a decade ago, right around the time I moved to Virginia for work, and I resisted buying a new pair because I did not like the plastic straps on most modern models (laces and velcro straps only are much more my style).
But the Virginia Capital Trail beckoned after 2015, and in early 2019, I finally bought a new pair. I broke them in on February 27, 2019, on a super muddy day. After only ten minutes, my skates were caked in mud, but I didn’t mind one bit—I was so happy to be back on them!
At first, I only skated a mile or so, from Great Shiplock Park to the big hill where the Trail meets Old Osborne Turnpike. After ten years off skates, that seemed plenty far, and I did not attempt the hill. Over the next year, I discovered different stretches of the Capital Trail. The fully paved, fully protected trail is wonderful for skating to decompress and enjoy being outdoors. After work in Williamsburg, I’d skate from Jamestown to Route 5 and back. On the weekends, I’d skate the stretch from Great Shiplock Park to the big hill, eventually making my way up and back down. On the Capital Trail, I built up my confidence again so that I was able to start skating in-town once more when I took a new job in Charlottesville and had to find my way around the city. Why walk when you can skate? Much more expeditious!
A memorial day (Mis)adventure
Until this summer, I always thought of myself as a recreational or sidewalk/commute-type skater only, not someone who’d ever compete in a race. I didn’t even know skate races existed! But I did continue to challenge myself to go further and skated from the Four Mile Creek trailhead back to Great Shiplock Park a couple of times. I also looked into different types of skates and discovered more advanced models. On Memorial Day, I decided to test out a new pair and completed the round trip from Richmond out to Four Mile Creek and back. The day was picture perfect and the three-hour skate fantastic—there was only one problem. Turns out that doing twenty miles or so on brand new skates is about as good of an idea as hiking twenty miles in new boots.
Although I had felt twinges around my ankles the entire time, I was so elated at finishing my longest skate by far that I did not notice I’d incurred massive blisters until after I’d gotten home. And by massive, I mean quarter-sized and then some. Needless to say, after that adventure and a subsequent trip to Urgent Care, I was off skates for the entire month of June. But I’d also gotten hooked on distance skating. So when a friend from Minnesota, who’d heard all about my Memorial Day trip, texted me about the NorthShore Inline Skate Fest, I was intrigued. I’d never heard of marathon races for skaters, and a half-marathon, at least, seemed attainable after my twenty miles in less than ideal circumstances. So I decided to test myself on the half marathon distance—just to see if and in what timeframe I could do it. On July 17, a beautiful Saturday morning, I skated 13.1 miles, going from Four Mile Creek out toward Richmond and back. It took me an hour and fifty minutes—that’s very slow, but the slowest half-marathon skaters at the 2019 NorthShore Skate Fest had taken more than two hours to finish. I’d be slow, but not egregiously slow (and hopefully not last). So I signed up for the race that day. The moment I’d done so, my training started for real. I had two months to improve on those 110 minutes.
training
In late July and August, I went out on different stretches of the Trail every other day and for longer skates on weekends. I aimed for at least five miles each session. That big hill outside of Richmond, so daunting only two years ago, now seemed fun and inviting because it helped me build up my strength and endurance. Before, I had turned around before or right after climbing it. This summer, going from Shiplock Park to Mile Marker 48, where the Trail crosses Route 5, became the norm instead. Not even rain could deter me; on a particularly dreary day in early August, “You Got This” graffiti on the side of the trail was a welcome sight and encouraged me to keep going.
As I explored various parts of the Trail, the stretch from Four Mile Creek past Dorey Park to Route 5, which leads through the woods, became (and still is) my favorite segment. It has just the right mix of smooth stretches and inclines to allow me to alternate between fast and slow strides, and to catch my breath on the downhills. As a skater, I have to be a little more careful than cyclists; gravel and sand are definitely not my friends, and the wooden bridges do slow me down. But most of the trail is made up of nicely maintained asphalt, and it’s a joy to roll along on it. To my delight, my efforts paid off fairly quickly, and my second practice half-marathon took me only 92 minutes.
I also ventured farther afield and returned to Williamsburg. I figured that the Duluth race course was mainly flat, so I should do a practice half-marathon on the Jamestown end of the Trail, which I remembered as being fairly even. So after meeting old friends from William & Mary for brunch, I set off on a hot Sunday in late August from Jamestown to the Chickahominy Riverfront Park. In a nice coincidence, that out-and-back is a perfect half marathon, distance wise. Plus, unlike my usual stretch, which involves lights at Laburnum Avenue and Willson Road, I never had to stop for long on the Jamestown end, which only has the occasional stop sign. In the end, I shaved another four minutes off my time, for a new personal best of 88 minutes. After this skate, I felt ready for the race in Duluth
New goals
I had an absolute blast at the NorthShore Skate Fest and posted a time of 1:20:45.02. Slow, compared to others (the fastest woman finished in 43 minutes), but respectable—and not last. I immediately signed up for the full marathon distance next year. This summer, I trained for the 13.1 miles for only eight weeks, so hopefully I can get up to speed (literally) for the full 26.2 miles over the course of the coming year. I will likely skate from Great Shiplock Park to the Four Mile Creek trailhead a number of times, but I also want to explore the stretch between the Four Mile Creek and Herring Creek trailheads.
I’ve been as far out as mile marker 34, but not beyond, and I’m excited to discover that section of the Capital Trail. Overall, I am so grateful to have such a beautifully laid out, fully paved, nicely maintained, and varied training ground available. One day, I would love to skate the entire trail (my private Cap2Cap, but on skates). But I’ll see how the marathon training goes first.
Happy Trails to everyone this autumn!
By Nadine Zimmerli
Thank you, Nadine for sharing your amazing Capital Trail story with us!
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