Cedar 12k

February 5, 2012

Heading into this race, I didn't have huge expectations. While I was racing very well in the fall and early winter, Pioneer was a bit disappointing. In addition, my training has been decent in overall volume, but a bit inconsistent, particularly over the Christmas holidays.

Therefore, I didn't really know how the race would unfold and didn't plan on an exceptional performance. Going in, I simply planned to try and get a similar time to last year (40:24). A short 10 min warm-up and final pit stop and we all toed the line. Right off the line, the two race favorites, Simon Witfield and James Lander, quickly gaped the field. I managed to place myself in the chase pack which included Sean Chester, Andrew McCartney, Nick Walker, Mark Cryderman, and Ben Brzexynski.

Within a short time, I found that I was feeling quite strong and the pace was comfortable despite a fairly quick start (3:12 pace for the first 2 km). While probably a bit faster than I should have been going, I felt in control so decided to simply go for it. I thought that I may end up fading a bit, but didn't think I would crack. I hung onto Sean and Andrew as the pack began to splinter after about 2k.

I continued to move well and hung with Sean and Andrew for another km or so before they gradually pulled away. I didn't attempt to match them, realizing that would be risking it a bit too much. My splits continued to be quick aided by a couple of nice downhill sections and I averaged a 3:13 pace for the first 5k.

I was still feeling strong, but couldn't maintain the same pace as we crested a small rise towards the turnaround on this out and back course. I regained a bit of speed for the next 2 km and was a bit shocked looking at my watch and realizing that I had actually just set 8k PB of 26:14 (5s faster than Pioneer last year). Although with 2 significant hills in the last 4k, I knew that my pace would slow.

I started to feel my quick start and bit and faded slightly for a couple of km, posting my slowest km (3:32) from 9-10km. I still felt in control though and when things flattened out again I was able to pick the pace back up a bit. I knew that Nick Walker wasn't far behind at this point, having closed the gap so I was going to do all I could to nail down 5th spot. The last few hundred metres of this course is a tough grass field which saps what little energy that might be left. And like Pioneer, this time there was a mat 100m out to measure every ones finishing kick.

The final 100 m with Nick in the background. Photo Credit Erin Burrett

Unlike Pioneer, where I had nothing in the tank for the sprint, this time I managed a solid sprint of 14.97s for the last 100m. It was good thing that I had something left or Nick would have kicked right past me since he was 0.5s faster for the final 100m. In the end, I managed to just crack 40min for the first time with a 39:58 clocking, good for a 26s PB. This was significantly better than expected and it felt great to feel that I was back on track. Nick finished 2s back in 6th, while Simon edged out James for the overall win in a impressive 37:36. Sean ran a great race for 3rd in 39:01. On the woman side, Care Nelson added another win to her impressive streak, although this time she had to work to edge out Catrin Jones by just 2s. Clarie Morgan rounded out the top three. It was great to see a couple athletes that I coach also run well with great performances from Larry Nylen and Heather Afford both running strong PBs.

Results.

Splits: 3:15, 3:09, 3:19, 3:10, 3:11, 3:26 (19:30 6k split), 3:21, 3:19, 3:26, 3:32, 3:26, 3:20

On another note, a big thank you to my running club PIH who just hosted annal awards last night. It is amazing to have such a great club in Victoria with so many dedicated people to keep the running community strong. Many deserving awards to handed out and was very honoured to received more than expected.

Pioneer 8k

January 8, 2012

This was my 6th Pioneer race, having done it every year except one since I began doing Island Race Series races back in 2006. While I have raced fairly well here a number of times, I have found that coming so soon after the holiday season makes it a tough one. Last year I ran a pretty solid race to PB in 26:19. Based on my strong fall race season, I was hoping to improve on this a bit with a sub 26 min as my goal (3:15 per km pace).

This year Sonja and I arrived early as we were both volunteering and I was kept busy helping with parking until around 10:25am. It was then a bit of a rush to hit the bathrooms and get a 10 min warm up in. I made it to the start line with with only 45s to spare so that was cutting it just a bit too close for comfort. Bob Reid was announcing as usual at this race as it is a Prairie Inn Harriers hosted event. It is great to have such a veteran at the mic as Bob knows so many runners in the community and beyond.

The first kilometer of this race is super fast since it is all downhill and I clocked a 3:01. I had settled into about 10th place and was running near Ben Brzezynski. I was feeling decent and felt that if I could run a similar race in terms of relative pacing as I did in 2011 I should be able to sneak in under 26 min. The 2nd km was flat so my time here should have been close to my overall goal of 3:15 pace, but I was a bit fast at 3:09. I eased off a bit, knowing there was plenty of race left. I did work the uphill through Brentwood Bay pretty well gaining on Ben and eventually catching and passing him around the 3km mark.

Still feeling decent, I hit the halfway mat at 12:49, which gave me a buffer of around 20s get under 26min. Knowing that the 2nd half was more difficult than the first, I knew I would need it. When I saw my next split of 3:20 on a km that should have been fairly fast, I had the first idea that I was in trouble. Over the next km, Ben passed me back again as I struggled to maintain my rhythm and Ian Hallam cruised by me soon after that. I couldn't respond. This km was up a gradual hill and has generally been the slowest of the race for me, but it was still disappointing to be fading. The next split was a shockingly slow 3:40 which was even more discouraging - I knew for sure a PB was not going to happen - let alone a sub 26 min race. I did find out after the race that the turn around was placed too far out, increasing the course length by about 75 metres. I estimate that it cost be about 15s, which would seem about consistent with what it felt like I was running at that point (3:25).

A few hundred metres before the 7km marker, Nick Walker passed me seemingly moving pretty well. Again, I wanted to respond, but just didn't have the ability to do so both physically and mentally. I gutted out the last km, knowing that I was not moving that well, but not wanted to lose anymore positions. Luckily, Shawn Nelson was still too far behind to catch me.

This year race organizers had added a timing mat 100m before the finish line so that everyone could now contend for a Green Jersey sprint award. Generally, I have an acceptable sprint, but not this time, I was just happy to get to the finish line. I finished in 26:48 good for 11th place and first in the M35 category, below my expectations even if you take off the 15s for the longer course. It was the first time since I started running these races that I have not posted a better time at particular race, year over year. I knew the day would come when this would happen, but I hadn't expected it quite so soon.

Congrats to Steve Osaduik for taking the win in 24:46 and Lucy Smith the woman's win in 28:30. Kudos also to Larry Nylen for a PB (despite the long course) and Claire Morgan who ran here 2nd best IRS race based on points.

While disappointing, this race was not my focus for this year so I'll move forward continue training hard and hopefully run better next time. On the plus side, I felt pretty good on the 12k run I did after the race.

Results.

My splits: 3:01, 3:09, 3:19, 3:19 (12:49 4k split), 3:20, 3:26, 3:40 (75m too long), 3:31

2011 Review and Plans for 2012

My first race of 2012 is tomorrow so it made since to spend a few minutes reviewing my running in 2011. Overall it was a really amazing year for me in terms of running, with more race wins and good performances this year than almost all other years put together. In particular though, lets take a look at the goals I had set myself for 2011 last January:

• Qualify for the 2011 World Mountain Running Championships in Albania. This requires that I run exceptionally well at the Canadian Mountain Running Championships in Canmore Alberta so I have a chance to be selected for the Canadian Team. Completed - placed 5th at Canmore to grab the last automatic spot on the team.
  
• To achieve my primary goal, I will need to do as much hill work as my legs will take and race as many hilly trail races as I can fit in. Some of the trail races that I already have plans to do are the Dirty Duo 25K, 4 or 5 Gutbusters (the schedule has not been posted yet), and Kusam Klimb. Prepared well with lots of hill workouts and racing at Dirty Duo and Mt Tzouhalem Gutbusters. Kusam was unfortunately cancelled.
  
• If I could also set a few more personal bests in road races (I'm planning on doing 5 or 6 island race series races) that would be icing on the cake Set PB's for every road distance raced this year except the half marathon. Ran better than expected.
  
• Throw in an adventure race or two to keep things interesting. I'm also keen to try a 24-36 hour adventure race and/or a 24 rogane if I can fit them in. Did two MOMARs, but unfortunately did not manage any other new races.
  
• Start coaching a few more runners and help them achieve their goals. Currently have 4 people I produce a full program four and another group who regularly drops in to Thursday sessions. I've been quite happy coaching and plan to continue.
  
• Stay (mostly) injury free. Was generally healthy although I have been battling a mild groin injury for a number of months.
  

I'd say that I did well in reaching my goals. Some other Positives for 2011 include.

• Set personal bests at the Mile, 5K, 8K, 10K, 12K, and Marathon
  
• Ran sub 33 min for 10K for the first time (32:43)
  
• Picked up wins in 8 races including my first Island Race Series win (Sooke 10k), my first Gunner Shaw win, and my first road half marathon win (Shawnigan)
  
• Managed to get a handle on my plantar fasciitis which is now fully cured
  
• Got to watch some of those I coach set PB's
• Got to experience my first international event at the World Mountain Running Championships
• Was able to run a respectable marathon with no specific training with only moderate suffering
  

Of course is wasn't quite all rosy as there were still a couple of negatives for the year.

• Had a terrible race at the World Mountain Running Championships in Albania due mostly to the heat. It was unfortunate to race so poorly at the highest profile event I have even attended.
• Made a huge navigational blunder at the Cumberland MOMAR which gave our team the lowest placing in several years
  

Goals for 2012

• This year, I'm shifting gears a bit and will be concentrating on longer distances so I plan to add volume to my training schedule and longer workouts overall
  
• Race well at Chuckanut 50 in March
• Race well at Boston Marathon in April
• Not crumble at Squamish 50 (a 50 Miler) in August
  
• If I could also set a few more personal bests in road races (I'm planning on doing 5 island race series races) that would fantastic
  
• Do at least 1 adventure race. I'm also keen to try a 24-36 hour adventure race and/or a 24 rogane if I can fit them in.
• Continue coaching runners to help them achieve their goals. Perhaps add a couple more athletes.
  
• And as usual stay mostly injury free

Lets hope 2012 turns out to be as successful at 2011 was.

Stewart Mountian 10 Miler

December 10, 2011

Stewart Mountain is one of my favorite fall races. The climb, which comes near the half way point, is steep and excruciating , but once you get over that, there is a lot of sweet quick trail on the way back. Last year, I fought a tough battle with Trever Ruck to eek out a small victory. And when you are the defending champion, there is a strong desire to not do worse - so I had put a bit of pressure on myself.

The weather was cool, but dry and trail conditions were excellent with minimal mud and water, no snow and only a bit of frost. It was a good day for a fast race. I warmed up with Shawn Nelson and Eric Findley, both of whom are better runners than myself, but nether are concentrating on training at the moment. They mentioned that Stephan Kilshaw was registered to race. I don't know Stephan personally, but knew that he is a triathlete who competes well at the 70.3 distance and is a very solid runner. I didn't know how he was on the trails or hills, but knew that he would likey be quick.

Once we got started, I soon got to find out just how quick. The start was fairly sensible and apparently a bit too slow for Stephan, so within the first couple hundred meters, he floored it and gaped the field and I soon found myself in 2nd place. This is a reasonably long race, so I wanted to pace myself well and decided to not fight to stay with him. I did pick things up a bit so I could keep him in sight though - once you totally lose contact, it is a bit harder to push yourself to come back. He built a bit of a lead over the first few kilometers up to around 30 seconds.

Then we came to a puddle we had to run though. During the Gunner race two weeks ago, the water was only ankle deep, but this time it was up to the knees and damn cold. Up ahead, I noticed that Stephan was walking though the water rather than running as expected. I was a bit surprised at this since it wasn't too deep for running, but once I got into the water myself, I realized why. There was a few milimeter skim of ice that was super sharp. Trying to run through ripped up the knees pretty badly. Stephan got the brunt of it, having to break the ice, but I ended up with a few sharp pieces carving some notches in my knees.

I did manage to make up a bit of ground, but Stephen still held onto a decent lead which he actually opened a bit more on the way to the main climb of the day around 7km in. I usually do well on the climb, but like everyone else find it quite painful, particularly since I always try to run everything. I thought I might catch up on the steep sections, but he climbed well and I made up little ground. Unfortunately, my guts where not being kind to me either as I had the urge to head for the bushes (should have make another pit stop before the race started I think), but luckily it was manageable and ended up subsiding a bit later. On the last cruel single track section before the summit, I was able to make up a bit of distance since he was forced to a hike will I continued to "run."

With the climb mercifully over, I got to open it up on the downhill. Within a minute I had closed the gap to Stephen who apparently didn't like the technical stuff quite as much as I did. I tucked in behind for a bit waiting for a good opportunity to pass which came quite soon. I bombed by, testing to see what he would do. He responded quickly, coming back right away. I continued to push the pace, but did not try any additional moves for several km until a short but steep hill presented itself. I gunned it, quickly gaining a few seconds. I settled back into my race pace once over the top, but soon enough he fought he way back to me. There was no doubt he was working hard to stay with me as I could hear it in his breathing, but he was tenacious and refused to be dropped. I gained a bit of ground on him a couple more times, but each time he rallied back to my heels. It was obvious that this one would be a close victory no matter what way it shook out.

I was cranking it out and digging pretty deep to maintain the pace, but still felt quite strong and was hoping that I had just a little left in reserve. The final 3 hills were coming up on Lower Thetis Trail, and I felt this was likely my last opportunity to avoid a sprint to the finish. My sprint is not bad, but I'd prefer not to leave it to that unknown outcome if I can. Therefore, much like I did for the Gunner race, I hammered it on the first hill, hoping to gain enough time to avoid yet another comeback. This time, it finally worked, and I managed to gain 12 seconds on the final hills, crossing the line in 1:02:22, a full 2:34 faster than last year. It was tough, but I felt it was a very good race for me. There was little doubt, however, that I would never have run that hard if I wouldn't had such stiff competition for the win. Thanks to Stephen for such a hard fought battle - you are a worthy opponent! I'm quite excited about my time, which is just 1 sec slower than the course record set by Jason Loutitt back in 2008 (when I barley ran under 1:07).

Congratulations go out to many others who had great races. I was quite happy to see many of those I coach under Perseverance Running run very well. Andrew Pape-Salmon ran to a strong Master win and 6th overall, and Garth Campbell, Larry Nylen, and Sonja also all ran their best times on this course. Congrats go to Claire Morgan as well in picking up yet another win this year taking and placing in the top 20 overall.

I wanted to post my Garmin data here, but unfortunately, something went wrong with the file.

Results.

Thetis Lake Relay, Gunner Shaw, and Bear Mountain

In an attempt catch back up on this blog, I'm combining my last 3 races into one report.

Thetis Lake Relay, November 11, 2011

I joined Paul O'Callaghan's Aspire Running group for this fun little event. Each person in a 4 person team runs an approx 5k lap around Upper and Lower Thetis Lake. Our team consisted of Paul, Claire Morgan, Brad Cunningham and myself. We were racing in the senior men's category despite having a woman on the team (we would need 2 for a mixed team). I was running anchor so did a warm up lap while Brad led out for a strong first leg in a bit over 17 minutes. Clair and then Paul followed, also running solid legs before it was my turn.

Despite knowing better, the race environment caused me to head out a bit hard and I had to ease back a bit after a few hundred meters to avoid cracking. While I was moving OK, both legs and lungs felt a little flat and I struggled to find my groove. When Paul handed off to me, our team was in 6th overall place so besides getting a decent time, my goal was to try and gain a position or at least not lose one. There was no one in sight (except other teams on their 3rd lap) until the last few hundred meters when I spotted Stephen Kilshaw just ahead. Stephen was running all 4 laps solo so I felt a little bad about sprinting him at the line, but it was a race after all. I finished in 16:50 which was OK, but I definitely wasn't on form. We ended up placing 5th overall. Another Aspire team of Sean Chester and Ben Brzezynski took the overall win.

Results.

Gunner Shaw Cross Country, November 19, 2011

When I picked up my number 1 bib for this race I knew the expectations would be high for me to perform well at this race. Then when I saw both Shawn Nelson and Shaun Stephens-Whale I knew it would be a competitive day. Shawn took off the line very hard and Shaun and I stayed with him. After a km or so though, I really felt like the pace was too brisk for me. I knew that I needed to back off a bit or end up cracking or fading badly later in the race. It didn't take much of a slow down to make the difference and put me back into a more comfortable racing zone. Soon after I eased off, another runner came blasting past me. It wasn't anyone I recognized, but from the way he was running, I could instantly tell that he was a not an amateur. Later I found out he was Jasper Blake, former Canadian Ironman Champion - no novice indeed!

The 3 of them pulled slightly in front, but never got more than 10 or 15 seconds ahead of me. At the first significant climb of the race, I managed to claw my way back to the group and we were all together after the first puddle. Soon though, Jasper plowed on ahead while Shawn, now feeling his fast start started to fall back. Shaun chased Jasper while I fell in behind. After a few more minutes I passed him, trying to limit the time Jasper was putting into us. I was feeling strong and smooth and was hoping to make it a real race for 1st place.

Jasper had a small fall in the 2nd puddle which helped me close a bit of the lead down. We then were onto the single track section of the course. This is my favorite surface and I rapidly closed the gap and when I saw an opportunity to pass I grabbed it. Course designer, Bob Reid, had added a fun new single track section this year which was great. I managed to gain a bit of time on this section and tried to push hard to take advantage of terrain that was favorable to me. I don't know how much I gained, but I could no longer hear Jasper close behind. Once we were back on the main Thetis trails, I knew I simply had to focus on keeping the legs moving well and not getting complacent.

As I was nearing the final few hills of the course, however, I heard him catching me fast. Fortunately, I had left a little in the tank and as soon as he came abreast of me at the start of the first small hill, I gunned it. I knew that he must have had to work hard to catch me so my strategy was to push the pace before he had the chance to sit on my shoulder and recover. It seemed to work as he didn't respond as I also hit the final two hills hard and gunned for the finish. I stopped the clock at 34:57, 16 seconds ahead of Jasper for my first ever Gunner Shaw win. It was a good battle and a satisfying win and I was happy to see that I had run the same time as last year despite the course having the extra single track. Shaun came in 3rd and Shawn held on for 4th. Melanie McQuaid won the woman's division over 2nd place Claire Morgan.

Results.

Bear Mountain 10k, November 26, 2011

This was my 3rd attempt at this course. In 2008, I went out too hard and faded badly to finish in a weak 8th place. Last year, the course was shortened to 6.5km due to snow and while I ran fairly well to a 4th place finish, I wanted to be able run a good race on the full course. This time, I was handed a number 2 bib so immediately wondered who had number 1. I soon found out on the start line when I saw Jason Loutitt, an impressive runner who recently placed 2nd at the world trail running championships (a 70k ultra race in Ireland). Jasper Blake and Shawn Nelson were also in attendance so it would be another interesting race.

Thankfully, the pace at the start of this race was a little more comfortable than Gunner. Jason pushed out ahead and I did not try to match him, thinking that I would either have a chance to catch him on the climbs or he would be gone. Either way, going too hard and blowing up wouldn't help me.

The main climb started at about 1.5km and I pushed fairly hard chipping away at Jason's lead. I was able to catch and pass him about 2/3 of the way up. I knew that Jason is a beast on the downhills so figured my only chance was gain some time on the climbs. I had a small lead at the 3km marker, but despite my best efforts to move quickly down hill, Jason was able to pass me back after another km or so. I resolved to do my best and hope that Jason (who sometimes goes out slightly hard and fades a bit) would come back to me.

This course is relentless, nearly all of it taking place on the paved trails of the Bear Mountain Golf course. The course is never flat and had numerous corners, getting any sort of rhythm is not really possible. I wasn't feeling quite as good as I had at Gunner, but I was still feeling solid and was able keep the pressure up. At the 5k mark I was 9 sec back and I was able to keep Jason in sight for the entire race, closing the gap on climbs and losing it again on downhills. Jasper was also a factor, just 9 sec back of me at 5k. I never looked back, but knew that I couldn't let myself relax for a second or he would be flying past me.

The last few hills are tough with the final one coming just a couple hundred metres from the finish, but I moved through reasonably well. Unfortunately, Jason never faded (or at least no more than I did) and he ended up finishing 29 sec ahead of me. I posted a 35:52 time, over 3 minutes slower than my best 10k time - this course is that hard! Jasper rounded out the top 3 about 30 sec back - Shawn took 4th. Care Nelson set a new woman's course record in 39:29 and Clare Morgan took another 2nd place finish well ahead of 3rd place Melanie McQuaid. For me it wasn't a win, but overall I was quite happy with a 2nd place and was even able to pick up a little prize money in the process. Thanks to Mark Nelson and Nick Walker at Frontrunner Westshore for another well run event. I'm really happy to see that they have the timing down really well now, with results posted before I even get home.

Splits: 3:19, 4:03, 4:15, 2:56, 3:32 (18:05 5k split), 3:20, 3:59, 3:33, 3:26, 3:29

Results.

Shawnigan Kinsol Half Marathon

October 30, 2011

I've been considering doing this race for a number of years, but never managed to get there. This year, particularly since I had not raced an event at the Victoria Marathon weekend, I was finally able to make it happen.

Weather predictions leading up to the race called for rain and they seemed to hold true as Sonja and I were treated a steady rain on the drive up. While it wasn't too cold, it seemed inevitable that we would get soaked very quickly. Happily, by the time the race started, the rain at pretty much ceased and conditions were nearly ideal for racing.

The hall used as race headquarters was a building on the Shawnigan Lake School grounds. I'd never been there before, but this private school is quite nice with impressive buildings. I didn't know exactly what the my main competition was to be in this race, but I spotted Shawn Nelson shortly after arriving so knew a win would require some work.

After a minimal warm-up we were on our way. Myself, Shawn, Hugh Trenchard, and Thomas Marrs soon separated ourselves from the rest of the group. The first part of the course had a couple of downhills which I dutifully noted as we would be coming back up them near the end of the race. We moved along at a decent pace for the first few kilometers and while I had no problems matching the pace, I didn't feel as comfortable as it should have at this point in the race. If things didn't get better it would be a long day for me. I noticed right away, based on his breathing, that Thomas Marrs was working quite hard to stay with us and I could tell immediately that there was no way he would be able to maintain that pace for the balance of the race. It may be fun to run with the leaders, but if it compromises your overall race, it probably isn't a good idea. He is young though and will learn to pace himself better I am sure.

Around 4km Thomas fell back a bit while Hugh continued with Shawn and myself for another kilometer or so until the course moved onto the Trans-Canada Trail and headed north. It was around this time that I actually started to feel better and was able to get into a comfortable rhythm where I was working hard, but staying controlled. We ran for about 6km on the trail with a slight uphill grade. While the gravel surface and gradual climb certainly slowed me a bit, I didn't find it bad at all and may have been preferable to the rolling roads in the area. While I set the pace, Shawn held a tenacious grip onto my heels and would not be shaken. I considered trying to put a surge in to drop him, but with half the race still to go decided to just continue to dictate the pace and wait for a later opportunity (assuming I wasn't just hanging on myself by that point).

Around the halfway point, we detoured onto the road and were treated to a significant, but thankfully short climb and decent. Soon though we were back on the trail and making our way towards the Trestle. The Kinsol Trestle was recently rebuilt and opened to the public so it was a treat to be able to run access it (the first time for me). Unfortunately, there wasn't time to take a good look since the race was on. We continued past the trestle for 1.5km before turning back and heading for home. The trail north of the trestle was not as well groomed as the other sections we had run, but it wasn't a big factor.

On the Shawnigan-Kinsol Trestle with Shawn. Photo Credit: Don Carson

It was nice to see many other racers as we passed them heading out to the turn around and I lent encouragement to many and received some in return. Hugh was still running in 3rd, but was a couple minutes back from us so it was definitely a two man race for the win. I was quite pleased that I was still feeling quite smooth and knew I could put in a surge if required.

Soon after passing back over the trestle, we moved back onto the road 3km. Shortly after moving onto the road on a downhill section I noticed that I have pulled slightly ahead of Shawn. I was still feeling strong and saw this as my chance to build up a gap. I pushed ahead strongly on a flat section building spread of at least 20 seconds. I felt that as long as I could hold it together on the final hills, I would be fine. The hills were challenging, but I moved as smoothly as possible, finally rounding the corner to the finish and making a decent sprint. My finishing time of 1:15:20 was faster than the 1:16-1:17 time I was predicting for myself so I was quite pleased, particularly since it wasn't a fast course.

Shawn came in 40s later for a solid 2nd place, with Hugh rounding on the top 3. Care Nelson pulled away from Claire Morgan on the 2nd half to win the woman's race while Sonja ran very well to a small PB and 3rd overall. I ended up enjoying the course more than expected and while it wasn't a fast flat course, it wasn't brutal by any means.

Splits: 3:31, 3:26, 7:06 (missed marker), 3:29 (17:31 5k slpit), 3:33, 3:34, 3:36, 3:33, 3:36 (35:22 10k split), 3:47, 3:26, 3:33, 3:41, 3:36 (53:25 15k split), 3:34, 3:43, 3:30, 3:26, 3:49 (1:11:28 20k split), 3:51 (final 1.1k)

Results

MOMAR on the Island - Enduro

September 24, 2011

Learning to navigate like a newbie.

I teamed up with Garth Campbell again to race this, our 12th MOMAR together (I have also done 2 solo MOMARs). We have been fortunate to be able to be on the podium for teams of two men quite a few times in the last few years. This race would sadly be different, but more on that later.

We lucked out on the weather for race day since it was pounding rain all night before and surprisingly the wind was also light on Comox Lake. It was the calmest conditions we have ever raced in. This was really great, because it allowed us to complete the kayak section in a record time for us of just over an hour. It wasn't fun and my weakly trained shoulders and arms started to fatigue out during the last 15 minute, but we got the job done.

We punched the first checkpoint around 13th position and rolled right into the run. Most MOMARs transition to the bike off the kayak, but I prefer going straight into the trek since it is usually our strongest discipline. It took a few minutes to get the legs moving properly after being cramped in the kayak, but eventually we were rolling along and passed a couple of teams on the road before turning onto trail and started climbing. Unfortunately, Garth's stomach was acting up and he wasn't able to push quite as hard as he would have liked. Still, he hung in there and we were still able to gain on teams ahead of us as we climbed. I picked up the 2nd checkpoint with little issue and then we moved onto a long gradual climb.

We passed a few more teams and then I was a bit surprised to catch up to Hayden Earle and Roger MacLeod (a team expected to place well overall). They had put 6 minutes into us on the kayak paddling their double outrigger so I hadn't expected to see them so soon. The route turned up sharply and a power hike was in order to get us up. Soon after we caught up to Todd Nowack (now 9 time MOMAR champion) who was briefly checking out another route. We soon established that we were on the correct path and we continued on together. After a bit more climbing we picked up checkpoint 3 and heard from the volunteers that we were not far behind two leading teams (Marshall House & Ryan Pogue and Norm Thibault & Stefan Jakobson). This stoked all 3 of us up as grabbing the lead was now within grasp.

The single track turned onto logging road and it was at this point that we spotted both teams just ahead. We gradually ate away at their lead and were feeling pretty good. As it turns out, I should have been paying more attention to the map and less about the competition. On the map, it showed a left turn onto a another road so when we hit the next intersection that seemed to match the map, we all turned left. Soon though, the road ended in a clear cut and didn't seem to continue. We were all baffled since everything else seemed to match and their was no dead end road shown on the map nor had we seen any other intersection.

Soon we found ourselves in the bush wondering what to do. Todd disappeared while the rest of us were bungling around. I decided to head off in the direction that the road should have gone, hoping to intersect the trail that we needed to take. The going was slow off trail and there were a few swampy areas to traverse. It was frustrating going so slow and not being confident that we were going the right way. Given the limited information on the map, things did seem to match up, but as the time drug on and we did not hit a trail it became obvious that we were not where I thought we were. We finally made the decision to head south and hope to hit a road or trail so we could get back on track. By now more than 30 minutes had passed and we knew our chances of a high finish was over.

We did find a road and then it was time to try and figure out where we were, after a few wrong choices we finally decided to head north, joined by Marshall House & Ryan Pogue and another guy who had also gone way off course. Norm Thibault & Stefan Jakobson headed south with another team of 4 we had also picked up. For once our choice turned out to be correct and after a couple of km, I was able to find where we were on the map and got us back to where we had make the mistake. It turned out that we had all ran passed the correct turn which wasn't a logging road as we had expected, but rather a quad track. The spur we had taken wasn't on the map at all. While the map was part of the problem, we should have paid more attention. An even more disastrous problem was that we barged into the woods without really knowing where we were going. When the road ended, we should have gone back and figured out where we went wrong - even if we had gone back and confirmed that we were on the correct route, it would have been better to risk losing 10 or 15 minutes rather than the 1 hour 15 minutes we ended up blowing. It was a classic beginner mistake that I should not have made - I'm still kicking myself.

After losing that time, we found ourselves way back in the field and it was kind of tough to motivate ourselves to push too hard being so far behind the leaders. Still, we trudged on and started gaining positions back. Once we were back on track, checkpoint 4 was easy to find and we then had a fun single track to bomb down. One and a quarter hours behind schedule, we finally pulled into checkpoint 5 where Todd's girlfriend Kim was volunteering and Sonja waiting to snap a few photos. We gradually got our mojo for the race back as we picked up the rest of the trekking stage checkpoints with only one minor bobble. We picked up a huge number of positions throughout the remainder of the trek and battled our way back to the front half of the pack which was some solace at least.

We finally pulled into town and grabbed our bikes for the single long cycling stage - to my knowledge, having only 1 bike stage was a first for a MOMAR. The mandatory climb started almost immediately and while it started out gradually, it angled up quite a bit towards the top. We both were in our granny gears, but managed to grind it out for the duration, picking up a few more positions as we went. We finally reached the top of the climb in decent shape, except for my throbbing back from being hunched and straining for so long. Now the payoff for all that climbing - tons of sweet single track! It was a lot of fun and pretty much all within my abilities - a couple of sections were rough and punishing. It was all flagged, so navigating was easy as long as we paid attention. I feel we made pretty good time, rode to the extent of our skill level and only got passed by one solo, Ron Hewitson who flew by us near the bottom of the single track. We ended up posting a pretty decent time (top 5) on the bike stage given how much we ride (I have only ridden 3 times on my mountain since the last MOMAR in May).

The final stage was orienteering, in the same area as it has been for the last few years. Our legs were toast and while I navigated fairly well, I didn't hit some of the controls quite as quick as I would have liked, leaving us with a fairly good, but not exceptional final stage. We finally made it to the finish in 6:05:59 (our longest MOMAR ever), having fought our way back to 16th place - actually a bit better than I expected (and better placing and a bit better than some of our early races). Despite making a mistake at the same place as we did, Todd got back on track much quicker and battled back for the win. Hayden and Roger pulling in for a strong 2nd.

Next year, we plan to be back to redeem ourselves.

Results.