For a variety of reasons, I have neglected my trail running training this year. A different project at work and more involvement with the yoga for runners classes added up to few opportunities to go hoofing in the wilderness on the North Shore. Oh ya, and this really cold spring that kept the snow on a lot of trails until recently. I will use that excuse too.
After the great time I had at the Times-Colonist 10K, I needed to start thinking about my first trail race of the year at Golden Ears. I quickly realized that I couldn't practically fit in enough training to make any difference, only potentially to injure myself, so I continued with my road racing training and practiced some inclines on the treadmill in our condo exercise room.
The weather was perfect for the run on Saturday May 9. The missus and I got up VERY early, had a quick breakfast and headed out to the deepest suburbs of Metro Vancouver. We passed by the Golden Ears bridge being constructed not too far from the park. To me it looks like not a lot of progress has been made on it but of course it is what you can't see that is typically the most important element of any bridge structure.
When we arrived I got out of the car and immediately realized that I had dressed just for the race, not for the pre-race activities so I was COLD, being in the mountains and all. Next year, I need to bring a jacket for sure. I got my race bib, t-shirt (because I signed up for all 5 events) and the race souvenir which was a race bib hangar. I had never used one of these before but after some fiddling I got the bib secure and I have to say that it worked extremely well. Better than fiddling with safety pins.
The missus set up on a picnic bench just outside of the sunshine now falling onto the beach of Allouette Lake. I did a few warm up runs and got ready for the race. I got my good luck kiss (from the missus of course!) and then went to the start line. I tried to position myself so that I would be in either the second or third starting wave and waited. Then waited some more. Apparently there were a lot of folks that were signing up for the race that day and the organizers were willing to delay the start until the majority had completed the paperwork. I didn't mind so much because the more that attend the race the better but now I was into the "Do I have to pee again?" frame of mind, which is very distracting to say the least.
At around 9:15 or so we got started. This was a very similar course to last year, so I was familiar with the route. Since I did not have a lot of trail running under my belt this year, I took it very easy. Lots of folks passed me but I kept on plodding away. When I got to the first significant incline I walked for a bit as I wanted to conserve my energy for the very steep climbs mid-route. Taking this walk/run strategy I noticed I was yo-yoing with a few of the other runners, which was kinda nifty. There was a team of two women running together one of which had bear bells on her Camelbak hydration system, so I told them that I knew they were running hard behind me or ahead of me when I heard the bells ringing loudly.
Unlike the first 5 peaks run last year, the split point for the Sport and Enduro routes was very well marked and the volunteers were really on the ball in directing people per their bib colour. As I approached the incline trail the walk/run strategy seemed to be paying off as I had not yet twisted either ankle and I was feeling pretty good. I started up the incline trail at a good walking pace and even managed to pass a few participants. I looked behind me and saw that there were still lots of runners behind me down the trail so this bode well for me not finishing last in this event. At the top of the incline trail I managed to catch up with the bear bell women but then they just cannonballed down the other side and that was the last I saw of them.
As I began my descent I recalled the reading I had down about trail running techniques. Apparently the best approach for going downhill was to lean forward (leaning backward just applies a very inefficient braking effect) and to always keep your feet under you as much as possible. With this in mind, I ran down as fast as I could. To my amazement this downhill run felt good and I maintained a reasonable sense of confidence throughout the descent. The best bit? I didn't twist either ankle. A few people caught up and passed me but I wasn't concerned because this was the best downhill run I had had to date. But oh, I could tell that my quads would be complaining about this the next day.
After the descent the route retraced back upon itself briefly until I came to the ascent for the sport course. Again I did some walking up the incline but then ran some of the flatter bits. There is a very nice waterfall just before the descent on this trail but I did not stop to admire it. The second major ascent went almost as well as the first but I could definitely feel the quads complaining about the great demand on their shock absorber capabilities. As I reached the main road for the park and crossed it I was relieved the the ascents were done with and despite the run/walk strategy I was still making some pretty good time. The route wound through some reasonably flat trails and again I was noticing the distinct lack of ankle twisting. At this point I wasn't sure whether it was the yoga training or the run/walk strategy that helped with this: it was probably a combination of both.
As I was heading into the last 2 kilometres a group of men, who looked like tourists to me, asked me if I knew how far it was to the waterfall. Now normally I am not interested in stopping and talking with people who should quite easily recognize that I am participating in a timed event unless they are in some sort of distress, but since I was not booting it in for a record setting finish, I managed to tell them (all the while still on the move) that the waterfall was about kilometre or so away and oh ya about 150 metres up from where we were now. Apparently the up bit didn't suit their tastes too much but they thanked me anyway.
I ran through the last kilometre and came into the finish area with a strong finish. The missus managed to get a few snaps of me finishing the race and she remarked that this was the first trail race she had attended with me where the awards ceremony hadn't started before I crossed the finish line (LOL!).
The only injury I sustained was a tree bite (OK, a scratch) as I climbed over one of the several fallen trees along the route. Oh ya and some really worn out quads and a slightly sunburned wife (despite the reminder to use sunscreen!).
It was a great run for the first trail race of the year and I am looking forward to several more.
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