I heard about this event on Twitter and
decided to enter this to provide a challenge and change it up from just road
running. My training partner and I accepted the challenge and began to work on
mileage training.
We have both run numerous half marathons but this would not
only be our first trail race, but on what is listed as one of the most
challenging courses in Canada. Just what were we getting ourselves into? We
were soon to find out…
The morning started out with showers as we drove the hour
north to Blue Mountain and I knew it was going to be tough as I was running with
traditional road shoes, the weather was only going to make it tougher.
The run started with a quick dash across a few slopes and it
became obvious that we were going to be battling showers all morning and
dealing with mud and slick conditions. As we made our way across the slopes we
encountered a few bottlenecks and the crowd kept moving and warnings were
shouted to keep runners behind aware of mud, water, and dangerous footing.
Kerry and I kept a good pace for the first few KM with the
constant climbs and narrow passages in the trees it was important to keep
moving and my first break was once we hit an open area with a bit of road on
the downhill portion of the first part.
The climb approaching the first aid station was long and
challenging but I walked when I needed to so that I had the energy to carry on.
At the first station (5.5km) I caught back up to Kerry and we carried on now
that I had recovered and again we ran on this second section feeling strong.
The views were spectacular and the trail was in good shape
considering the rain we had. This second section was not as challenging as the
first but it had sections once we crossed the second ladder that worked through
the hills with a few series of switchbacks and single paths that were slippery
and made everyone cautious about footing and grabbing the small trees for
balance and support. It was during this portion that Kerry pulled away in traffic
as I struggled in spots with footing but kept on determined to run strong
heading towards the second aid station.
Knowing that the major climbs had passed was relieving, but
having seen the elevation map, I also knew that the next 10km was going to be a
constant series of ups and downs as we headed into the loop sections that
brought us back and forth across Blue Mountain with gorgeous views of Georgian
Bay.
It was through this section that I carried on conversations
with numerous people as we ran and walked along and began to enjoy more of the
trail camaraderie that I would normally have missed by running with earbuds and
music. Many were veterans of trail races or marathons, but we were all enjoying
the challenge of this course and inaugural race as the first Canadian stop in
the North Face Endurance series.
Mentally I was fine until around 16km at which point “Just.
Keep. Moving. Forward” became my mantra. At some points the trails was hard to
see in the trees especially if there was no one else around so it forced me to
pay attention to all possible paths which also kept my mind of the distance and
fatigue that was settling in.
I had properly hydrated and fueled using both ENERGYbits and
PocketFuel packets which kept me from “crashing” but the energy output
definitely was high as this course was
way more challenging than the local trail I had run on for training.
My goal since registering was to finish the race – which meant
I needed to stay ahead of the 4hr pace, which was never in doubt even with the
much needed walk breaks. No matter how bad I felt, or tired I was, I was not
going to stop or complain, and this was more a result of coming across a female
running the 10k who was navigating the course with one prosthetic leg (a blade)
and whose determination was incredibly inspiring.
As we made the final descent the course was again tricky and
treacherous as evidenced by my wipeout going down a set of stairs. Thankfully I
landed on my butt and avoided a major injury – only a few bruises and sore
ankle…
As we cleared the downhill section and doubled back on the path
we started the Village and crowd was audible in the distance and that motivated
me to carry on strong and finish with a smile. Triumphant.
As I came to the line there was Kerry to cheer me on and the
rest of the crowd at the finish line was inspiring and realizing that I had
completed this course intact and with little energy left meant that I had left
it all out on the slopes.
With many refills of water bottles, a quick spray of the
hoses, a stop at the Clif tent for fuel we headed to the ice bath to soak the
aching legs and change into dry clothes. The weather by then had cleared and
warmed up significantly so the atmosphere was just one big party – a great
reception to end a great day.
The event staff are to be congratulated for an amazing event,
one that I will definitely be back for… next time I will train for the hills
and will then focus on running a stronger race.
The goal was to finish. I did. That was a victory and I can’t
wait to get back out there again – but I will take some time off to rest the
aching legs… they earned it.
