The Yeti Mt. Wash Race Report

I just realized that it is almost Friday already and I have yet to post a race report from The Yeti last weekend!!

Here goes, The Yeti consists of two five km loops and once the race started I just tried to keep pace with the lead group. We were into a significant climb within a few hundred meters and not having run on my snowshoes at all this year I completely forgot how damn hard this sport is! My heart rate was jumping way up and I dropped back a bit to pace off with the second group. The lead three runner's were on their own after the initial climb.

This route had a ton of single track running, which is great, except there's nowhere to pass anyone in single track. Take one step to the side and you're swimming in snow! The first lap was significantly harder than the second as we were packing down quite a bit of snow. The course had been boot packed prior to the event, but until the 175 runner's did one full lap, the snow was still a bit loose and really tended to throw you around. I was trying to run with my natural stride length but quickly realized that to step outside of the exact path of the runner in front of you was to waste a ton of energy.

As we were progressing through our first lengthy single track route I glanced over my shoulder to see Justin Mark of the Helly Hansen Snowshoe Team and Todd Nowack, my A.R. partner and good friend just behind me. There we two runner's a few hundred meters ahead as well and I went to work trying to close the gap on them. By the time we cleared this tight section of the course I had managed to latch onto the two runner's in front of me and gap the two behind me. As we bounced out onto a wide Nordic ski trail, myself and one of the runner's I had caught up to, Jason Loutitt, made a move to drop the third runner in our group. As we headed back into a second lengthy single track route Jason was able to out climb me and put some time into me. I was now sitting in a solid 5th place.

From the top of this last climb there was about 1km of open downhill running. With snow flying everywhere I layed into this with all that I had. I managed to close the gap on both Jason and Andrew Clarke who was about 35 seconds ahead of me after the first lap and in third place.

As we crossed through the Start - Finish area, and back onto our initial climb, both Andrew and Jason left me in their...well snow I guess! I had a decent gap on the runner's chasing me and just kept my head down and told myself to keep a solid pace and not look back. I actually ended up spending the entire second half of the race without any other snowshoer's in sight! It was hard to force myself into the pain zone of a 'sprint race' like this, and at one point, as I felt that I was slowing down, I yelled at myself to try and get some adrenaline pumping...yes I am crazy at times!

By the time I hit the extended single track run through the meadows at the top, with a few km still to go, I was confident that I could hold onto my 5th place. However, the team points are a direct reflection of overall time consumed by team members to cover the course. I quickly reminded myself of this and pushed with everything I had in me. I knew that Stefan Jackobson was on team HH and was most likely going to win the event, we had our work cut out for us to limit our losses against such a strong runner!

I pumped my now lactic loaded legs through the last climb and absolutely unleashed on the downhill run to the finish line. I was amazed that I managed to stay upright throughout this section and eventually came across the line in just over 54 minutes.

Andrew Clarke ended up finishing third in 52min, Stefan won in 49min! Todd had a super solid race, especially for his first snowshoe race ever, to finish sixth in 56.5min. Team HH members were seventh and eighth, and Kertis Heidt of NSA was ninth. It was neck and neck and would come down to our female runner's! HH had the first and third women across the line and we had the fourth...now for the math! We did not have access to the exact finish times and would have to wait until the awards ceremony.

"We have the closest finish we've ever had in the team category! Just two seconds separate first and second!"

"The winner's, Team North Shore Athletics!!"

We were pumped to have pulled out a win in our first race as a team...now, fast forward to three days later...the results are posted...and Team Helly Hansen ends up being the actual winner's of the event, by a full twenty seconds!! There was a miscalculation while on the Mtn, and in the end, we had to settle for a second place showing. Not to worry, we get another shot at them in just nine more days on Mt Seymour...GAME ON!!

GR

I Love This Place!!

I just got in from a solid 2.5hr night ride...with my awesome Princeton Tec Switchback 3 light of course!

I was initially only heading out for a 1.5hr ride, but the night was just so perfect that I simply had to keep it going! The temp is currently -5 Celsius, but with an additional layer on...say a Helly Hansen Lifa base layer maybe...I had no issues with warmth on the ride at all.

I brought Roxy along, but realized after 1.5hr that she was ready to call it quits, so I dropped her off at home and continued on by myself. Just me and my tunes out there loving life while enjoying a clear, crisp night under a huge full moon! Life is good. Yesterday morning I once again went ski touring before work with a few friends, and as always we managed some stunning pictures.

I often hear people say they are 'living the dream'. I always find this statement a bit presumptuous as everyone's dreams and goals are so very different. I do know one thing for sure however, I am living my dream, and not a single day goes by that I do not feel blessed for all that I have here. From my incredible friends, to my health, to my awesome job, to this beautiful town of Squamish, I simply could not ask for more out of life!

Of course as I type all this I am still high on endorphins from my ride...but I'm pretty sure I'll still feel on top of the world when I head out for my morning run in the mountains before work tomorrow, or at least I will be when those endorphins kick in again!

GR

A Successful Weekend!

A very quick update regarding today's Yeti Snowshoe Race.

Conditions were perfect with the sun shining bright for the second 1/2 of the 10k event. My team, North Shore Athletics narrowly edged out Team Helly Hansen, by just two seconds!!! I know what you're thinking, why in the world are you competing AGAINST a team Helly Hansen? Basically I started up Team North Shore Athletics, as I manage the store, and another HH sponsored athlete put together their snowshoe specific team. Everyone knows each other quite well and the 'friendly' competition is always concluded over a round of pints. It looks like it will be a tight race all season long with a few more competitive teams signed up for the next three races in Vancouver.

I'll post a short race report in the coming days.

GR

No Snow...Finally!

So this morning was the first morning, in what felt like months, that I opened up my blinds to find that there was not a stain of snow on the ground! I haven't been on my mountain bike in at least four weeks, in fact it might even go back as far as The Beast at the beginning of December. The trails have held more snow this year than ever before, and it was such a waste of time to even try biking in the snow that I have been planting my butt on the stationary at the gym for a few weeks now.

Tonight was the weekly night trail running clinic that I host, and we had nine people out for it (all loving their Princeton Tec Apex headlamps I might add!), which ain't too bad considering the temps were near freezing! As we were running such local favorites as Crumpit Woods and S&M Connector all I could think was "WOW, I wish I were biking this right now!"

As soon as we finished our post run stretch I burned home in my car to grab my bike and my dog. I was outfitted and out the door within twelve minutes (including a quick 'dinner', and some vitamin I to help alleviate my back which is still a bit 'tired'). I love my dog for so many reasons, not the least of which is that I would never, ever consider doing this solo at night. It's not like Roxy is gonna administer first aid or call an ambulance if something goes wrong, but she is gonna help keep the wild animals away. Just two weeks ago my trail running partner came within thirty feet of a Cougar! A FREAKIN COUGAR!! His words summed up the whole experience quite well,

"Of all the animals on the planet that you might want to see in the wild, the Cougar, while out running by yourself, is NOT ON OF THEM!!"

I texted a friend to tell him of my route and expected return time and was off like it was a race! The excitement associated with getting to play with one of my toys that I haven't seen in awhile is a truly primal...well maybe infantile is a better description (is that even a word?)

The best part of the ninety minute ride was that I was finally getting a chance to test out the best x-mas present of the season...my brand new Princeton Tec Switchback 3 Bike Light...sorry Ma and Pa, the shoes are great, but I absolutely love this light!!

I simply can not say enough about this product. I will do a proper gear review in the coming months as I get more time to play with it, but my initial thoughts,

FINALLY A LIGHT THAT HAS BEEN THOROUGHLY THOUGHT THROUGH FROM TOP TO BOTTOM!!

-The first time I drained the battery it took a full 8.5 hours...that's 8.5 hours on it's highest beam!!!!(they advertise 6.5hr) That blows away anything I have seen from another bike light set up. Not only did it last this long, but it still had a bright enough beam to ride with when it finally did take a rest!
-With a tri-bulb design, the brightness of this light rivals any 'Light in Motion' set up that I have ever used
-The light itself removes from the attachment on your helmet, meaning you never have to fumble with taking the entire light set up on and off (or just leaving it on all the time) again!
-The light has a short cord so that even if you are riding with it on your helmet, while not in use, the cord is not dangling away waiting to snag on something. There is an additional extension cord to attach everything together.
-All wires have locking ends! FINALLY! You will never have to worry about pulling a wire out of the battery while riding again...never a fun experience!!
-It has a rapid charger that fully recharges the battery in just 2hr! AND, it can also be plugged into your car! Great for adventure races where an actual outlet may not be handy.

These are just the highlights that I have noticed from the start. If you're looking for a nice bike light this season, look no further. Team Helly Hansen-MOMAR will test these to the max this year and give a full gear review from each team member in a few months time. Until then, pray for snow...just 1000 feet higher than it has been falling so far this season!!

GR

Next Up: The Yeti Snowshoe Race Series

Wow it's been a week already since my last posting, how time can truly fly when you are enjoying yourself so much!

With all the fun I seem to be having lately, through ski touring mainly, I am also noticing that my body seems a bit more broken then it has been in previous years. I am unsure as to if it is simply just taking me a bit longer to get into the swing of things, that I am utilizing somewhat different muscles while touring, or that I still have some lingering issues from 07...or even that I am being far too lazy on my stretching and general upkeep! Whatever the cause, I had to stay off the spin bike tonight as my back has been screaming at me all day long. My good buddy Aaron and I had a solid 2hr run at 6:30am today, although he did bail in a big way during that run and for a fraction of a second I thought I'd be carrying him home!

Yesterday I went ski touring with three friends before work and it was one of the most spectacular starts to a day that I've ever seen. Notice the posted pics!

This coming weekend marks the first Yeti Snowshoe race of the season, on Mt Wash, Vancouver Island. The Yeti is a great, fun, winter racing series with four venues to choose from, Mt Wash, Cypress, Grouse, Seymour. For the first time ever there will be a race on all three Vancouver Peaks, and they will award a true King and Queen of The Mountains!

2008 looks like it could be the most competitive year The Yeti has ever seen. If even a fraction of the runner's who are 'threatening' to show up do, I'll be fighting for a top ten placing! I have raced three Yeti's to date and finished 5th in all of them. It looks like my 'ego' is about to take a beating this weekend.

No matter where I place during the event...I am always near the top in the post race alcohol consumption...must be my Newfoundland roots...and a lifetime of beer training, verses just a few years with this running stuff!

Some exciting personal news is that I had my first ever published magazine article appear in Impact Magazine just a few weeks ago! Check out the latest edition for all my not so secret snowshoe destinations in AB and BC.

Raid The North Extreme had their network television debut this past weekend as well. My team Helly Hansen-MOMAR were definitely presented with our fair share of airtime. Having said that, we were probably the team to face the greatest issues througout the race. Much of the footage was almost painful for us to watch as it brought back such a mix of emotions. However, I think they did a great job at showcasing a top notch expedition adventure race in an incredible location, and for the sake of the sport, I sincerely hope we get to see more events like this on National t.v. in the coming years!

I'm sure my post race report from Mt Wash will be all about me getting hammered on and feeling lots of lactic acid build up over the 10k 'sprint' snowshoe event!

GR

Raid The North Extreme On National TV This Sat Night!

This Saturday at 9pm on Global TV. My team, Helly Hansen-MOMAR will certainly get some decent airtime, as a featured team, who faced issues such as ripping a four inch hole in the side of our inflatable kayak, and suffering from severe hypothermia, you'll see our lovely faces throughout the race! Just be sure to put on your 'earmuffs' when we rip our kayak...I might loose it for a few seconds!!

Here's the official write up:


RTNX Broadcast Jan 12 on Canadian Network TV
2007-12-20T02:15:06Z by Race Staff


Canada’s premiere wilderness expedition adventure race, Raid the North Extreme, arrives in an unusually urban location this January – your television set!

The one-hour High-Definition feature broadcast of the race will air on Global TV across Canada on Saturday, January 12 at 9 p.m.

For those of you reading this that weren’t there, this six-day, non-stop, 500+km expedition race features coed teams of four from around the globe facing the challenges of nature, team dynamics, sleep deprivation, and gear failures as they bike, trek, paddle, portage and navigate the wilderness around BC’s North Coast - Prince Rupert and Haida Gwaii.

Nearly thirty teams of four from across North America, and from as far as Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, blew away their physical and emotional limits during Raid the North Extreme. These athletes are not Olympians or sport celebrities, just regular people with a thirst for adventure and a desire to discover their potential. As Gary Robbins of Squamish-based Team Helly Hansen/MOMAR said after the race, “Raid The North Extreme is a genuine expedition style race and they practice exactly what they preach: Real Wilderness, Real Navigation, Real Freakin’ Tough…OK I made that one up, Real Adventure”.

Canada’s top adventure race organizers, Frontier Adventure Racing, in partnership with ATV Productions of Vancouver, had a vision to take adventure racing to new heights on Canadian television. Using boat, ferry, helicopter and aircraft support, along with caffeine and bug nets, film crews shot the event day and night in High Definition, capturing the action, the drama and the emotions as teams traversed the incredibly rugged northern BC terrain.

This broadcast is a first in Canada. For the first time, the mystique, excitement, wilderness, intensity and human drama of this incredible sport will reach Canadian homes on a national network in prime time.

“This type of coverage is ideal for this event,” says race director Geoff Langford. “There are incredible stories of determination and team dynamics that a broader audience will be fascinated by, and we put competitors in places that require aerial, high-definition shots to truly capture the immensity of it all. Viewers watching prime time Global will be blown away by this sport, this part of the country, and the entire experience.”

The breathtaking wilderness of the Prince Rupert region is made for TV. Viewers will watch teams paddle vast inlets that puncture the majestic Coast Mountains, under a Summer Solstice full moon. Racers will cover thousands of metres of elevation, traverse snow-covered ridges past pounding waterfalls, explore deep valleys and bike ancient First Nations trails, and paddle oceans with 24 foot tidal changes. Viewers will also experience the history, culture and overwhelming hospitality of the Tsimshian and Haida people.

Race organizers are encouraging enthusiasts across the country to organize viewing parties at their homes, local pubs, or community centres. Invite anyone with the remotest interest in adventure sports. Let’s use this opportunity to share our passion for adventure racing. It’ll be a cold dark night in January - what better time to gather together with a drink and some great adventure on TV?

Following the Canadian broadcast, the show will air in the US on PBS - full details will be released early in 2008. The show will also air again in Canada on menTV, the Extreme Channel, and will be available on DVD or by download on iTunes.

Happy New Year!! (Fat Ass 50 Race Report)

I am four year's into a tradition that is a little less conventional than most for ringing in a new year...running 50km in Vancouver as part of the Fat Ass 50k, and then hoping in the ocean for a polar bear swim (a west coast version, which is to say we have it easy out here!).

When I first ran this event in 2005 it was the first 50k I'd ever run, and just my second ultra. It took me over 6.5 hrs to get through it and on an annual basis my goal is to 1) continue to get through this run and 2) try to improve my time from the previous year.

This New Year's Eve was the most partying I've done in many years. I usually enjoy the holiday's and then chill out on the big eve. I intended to do the same this year, until my roomie decided to have a few people over for fondue and drinks.

At 3am, after 7 or 8 beers, some brandy, some wine and lots of dancing (in our living room) I figured it was time to hit the sack. My party friends laughed, saying there was no way in hell I'd get up and follow through on my 50k run...I doubted it myself at that point.

The alarm went off at 6:30am and I hit snooze without even flinching. I continued to hit snooze for 45 minutes, then peeled my eyes off my pillow, looked at the time, and deduced that if I was out the door in ten minutes, I might still have a chance to make the start of the event. I told myself I'd move until I hit a 'road block', like not being able to find my shoes, not being able to tie my shoes, or just plain getting sick.

I left Squamish at 7:52am and was on the Lion's Gate at 8:34am! No traffic, loud music and a somewhat heavy foot allowed me to temporarily forget my situation. Once I arrived in Stanley Park it was great to see so many familiar faces, and to know that some, like Wade Repta for instance, were much worse off than I! (I could determine the alcohol that Wade had consumed the previous night by the odour of his sweat!)

Once again almost 100 people showed up, including an unusually high concentration of t.v. camera's (must have been the nice weather). High cloud cover and warm(ish) temps presented us with one of the nicest days in the fifteen year history of the event!

We started off in a large group that eventually grew smaller as the distance grew larger. One bathroom break and one small wrong turn later, we were at the turnaround in just over 2hr! About 5km from this turnaround my left knee started acting up. I have not had knee issues in quite some time and was not happy with the pain I was suffering through. It did not seem to slow me, but it definitely added to an already long list of reasons in my head to stop running on the day!!

Normally we socialize and hang out for a few minutes at the half way point, but after about 60sec I looked at the other runner's I was with and simply said,

"I have to go now, or I might not go at all".

We seemed to keep a solid pace on the return trip and I initially decided to pace off with Ellie Greenwood, because she had run the course just ten days prior and seemed to know it inside out. This quickly changed into me just trying to keep pace with her! Ellie is from the UK and has never spent a full summer in Van, having worked overseas during that time and returning here in the winters. She will be a staple on the local running scene this year and I warn you all, if you see her name on the starting list, keep yer head up or she'll leave you in her dust!!

My knee wasn't getting any better on the return run, and at one point, as Ellie and I crossed a paved road between trails, it flared enough that it made me consider quiting on the spot. Once I realized it would just be a long walk back if I did so I told myself to suck it up and just try to keep up with the 'chic' on my left!

Once we hit the last section of trails, with about 15km to go, I figured I should make the most of the cushier terrain and I picked up the pace for a few km. From there we were down onto the road and back along a paved, flat surface to the finish line, which is a fire hydrant that you have to kiss!

I was feeling pretty good until I hit the Burrard St Bridge, at which point it seemed like someone had tied a few bricks to my ass! I had not looked back since the last forested section, having run solo since, but knew I should be caught at any moment.

As I crested the bridge two runner's did indeed catch, and very easily pass me. Ellie, still running like she had just gotten outta bed five minute prior, was one of them. We talked briefly, but it was very apparent that they were out pacing me at that point in time and I could do little but watch them disappear in front of me. It was at this moment, approx 44k (?) into the run, that I did something I had never done before...I mentally gave myself permission to quit. I told myself that it was OK to finally walk and rest my knee, it was alright to trek it back and just take my time in doing so, it was alright to give up...it was over...now I know that this is a fun run, and it's always fun to get out there on New Year's Day and start the year off on the right foot amongst a group of friends, but giving myself permission to quit...that just pissed me off in a big way!

I got angry with myself and said that there was no way I was going to quit now, no matter how much pain I seemed to be in. I decided that I would just try to keep sight of the two runner's in front of me for a few km and see how I felt. As we struggled our way through the throngs of polar bear swimmers in English Bay, I kept bobbing my head up and down so as not to loose sight, and pace with the leaders.

With about 3km to go I decided it was now or never, I had to try and 'get back on'. I pushed hard for 1km and was closing the gap nicely. Just as we rounded the corner into 'Lost Lagoon' Ellie turned and was noticeably surprised to see me again,

"You didn't think I was going down without a fight did ya!" I said with a laugh.

As I caught up to them I just decided to keep my pace as I figured I could hold it until the fire hydrant. I was a bit surprised to see that neither runner decided to follow and continued suffering my way along the sea wall. Last year I had the luxury of following Chris Benn and Tim Weins home, but the year prior, I ran right past the turn up into Brockton Oval and continued on down the seawall! I was very cautious to not let this happen again and had read through the course instructions twice before the run. As I struggled through the final km of the day, I noticed the Totem Poles and then the Harry Jerome statue for the first time, I was almost done.

Just a couple of painful steps up what seemed like a monstrous climb into the parking lot, a kiss of the fire hydrant...and a Global News camera in my face?? I was on the verge of tears and could hardly stand. My friends told me I looked 'real impressive' on the news that night!!

At 4h04m I not only bettered my time from last year by fifteen minutes (and apparently the course is 1km longer than last years version), but I somehow managed the new course record as well! The other two runner's were not far behind at 4h05m and 4h06m. Ellie will be a force to be reckoned with this summer. Keep yer heads up guys, I know she's got me training harder already!!

Congrats to all runner's on the day, many who completed their first ever ultra! Thanks to Ean and Sibylle of Club Fat Ass for another great event, and the numerous volunteers along the course, it was truly a perfect day for to be out there!!

Nutrition: In case you're wondering, I consumed three gels, two packets of Cliff Shot Bloks, one Nuun tablet and one bottle of Carbo-Pro 1200 (watered down in 1.5 litres of water), for a total of about 1700 calories.

I couldn't walk for a few days after the event, but that's pretty normal for me. I managed an easy paced, but painful 35m run on Friday night and 2hr on the spin bike last night. Finally today I am able to walk without hobbling and should be good to go for training tomorrow. I already have floor hockey, a few spin sessions, ski touring and maybe even skate skiing on the list of things to do next week. It has snowed over two feet in the last few days on the mountains...let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!!!

Happy New Year!
GR

Back Country Skiing

A few videos of my weekend 'training' session, a 6hr back country ski tour just North of Pemberton.

Ski Touring In The Cayoosh Basin

A few videos of my weekend 'training' session, a 6hr back country ski tour just North of Pemberton.

Ski Touring

A few videos of my weekend 'training' session, a 6hr back country ski tour just North of Pemberton.

Powder Skiing

A few videos of my weekend 'training' session, a 6hr back country ski tour just North of Pemberton.

Cayoosh Basin Skiing

A few videos of my weekend 'training' session, a 6hr back country ski tour just North of Pemberton.

Up Late On Christmas...

I was just enjoying some tea n toast, while staying up late after a great Christmas, and watching 'The Hour' on CBC. It was a refreshing show with several different musicians and singers performing their favorite holiday music. The show ended off with Paul Potts singing a few. I couldn't help but be overwhelmed by him and his story in 2007. (If you somehow do not know who I am referring to then you need to hit up this link and see for yourself) As was to be expected he has been amazingly successful since this all transpired earlier in the year.

There really is something about this guy that is truly inexplicable and all at once enthralling. Outside of the fact that he is such an incredibly talented individual, I think to most of the population, Paul Potts is the personification of the fact that dreams really can come true...if, of course, you believe in them and have the courage to pursue them.

When you sit down in the coming days and put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboards, to make your list of New Year's Resolutions; Do not hesitate with what you write, do not hold back on what you believe, and do not ever doubt what you can accomplish:

If you can imagine it you can create it. If you can dream it, you can become it.

Ward, William Arthur

Always follow your passion, and never let go of your dreams,
GR

Winter is All About Playing

Just loving the winter play time right now...some might call it training, but that seems to imply lack of fun, and it's been all about the fun factor lately! From back country skiing, to back country snowshoeing, Roxy has been sleeping very well!

I still seem to feel my foot injury, from the West Coast Trail run in August, from time to time. It is however at a point where I can almost completely ignore it, which I guess means it can't be that bad. Basically, as long as it doesn't get worse, I'll be fine. I have found that wearing a more stable running shoe, The Montrail Hardrock, has made a huge difference with this lately. Anything less has left me limping for a bit afterwards. It's all about the right foot ware...have I mentioned that I Manage a running store? North Shore Athletics? On Cleveland Ave in Squamish?

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone, hope the fat guy is good to you!!

Merry Ho Ho,
GR

P.S. That's Roxy's pre Christmas gift you can see her wearing...and yes I am proud of the fact that my dog now wears a jacket!

Powder Day!!

Wow it's been almost a week since I posted already, time flies when you're having fun I guess!

Just got in from my first 'resort' day in nearly 1.5 years. The snow in Whistler was amazing with 25cm's fresh, and some areas wind loaded with 40+. I must say that even though I had not skied like that in over a year my legs held up amazingly well. I guess all that running, biking and core work really has paid off!

About half way through the day, while I and everyone around me was hooting and hollering at the incredible conditions, I realized that many of my greatest memories are thanks to the snow. How almost all of my favorite life experiences have revolved around mountains. I am truly at home in the mountains, for it is a playground for grown ups...grown ups who refuse to grow up. Long live the kid inside all of us.

GR

Quickie

I'm not one to complain, at least not THAT much, and this shouldn't be taken as complaining, more a point worth mentioning...I am still getting tingly toes from the 'winter' adventure race! I just wasn't built for the cold...well I may have been at one point in time, but frostbite is not something you ever seem to fully recover from.

Anyways, winter is too much fun to let a little thing like numb feet stand in the way! I rounded up three friends for another pre-work ski tour this morning. Up at 5:30am, out the door for 6:00am, pick everyone up and at the parking lot for 6:50am, about 1.5hr skinning up and 35 minutes back down, with two dogs running hard to keep us in sight the entire time. Roxy hasn't moved a total of one square meter in the twelve hours since then!

I was still at work in time to open for 10am and put in my eight hours. After work I headed to the gym with a friend for some strength - core work. All in all, a solid day...I even managed to get my Christmas presents in the mail for my family back in Newfoundland. They might just make it on time this year, which would be a first for me!

GR

A Not So Perfect Saturday

So for the first time in quite a while I was without a solid plan heading into the weekend. It was not for lack of ideas however.

I am constantly reminding myself of how lucky I am to know such great people from within the athletic community. Here were the options presented to me, each by a different group of people, for a Saturday that offered up nothing but sunshine and snow covered mountains:

A) X-country skiing in the brand new Callahan Valley facility (site of the 2010 Olympics)

B) Downhill skiing on Whistler-Blackcomb (constantly rated as the best ski hill in North America)

C) Snowshoeing into The Black Tusk and back (one of my favorite routes due to the incredible scenery up there)

D) Ski touring up at Elfin Lakes (although there would be quite a few 'city folk' up on a Sat this place never misses for a great day out)

E) Running 50km through an 'off limits' area (with a group of people all decked out in black clothing and playing catch me if you can, at least that's how it went down last year)

So with all these amazing opportunities which one did I pick...

F) Drive to Vancouver on Friday night, attend a pretty happening Christmas party amongst a group of people I hardly knew (I knew three people in advance of the night), drink a bottle of rum (not the small bottle), and fill the roll of 'that guy' (something I have managed to perfect over the years, sometimes for good reasons, mostly for bad reasons)...sleep till noon on Saturday, drag my ass outta bed, drive back up to Squamish and crash out on the couch while watching Hockey Night In Canada. Not exactly how I envisioned spending my day today!

I'm getting up early tomorrow to atone for this sin of missing out on a perfect day in the mountains!

On another note, the pics I put up here. Brackendale, which is basically Squamish, is 'The Winter Home of The Bald Eagle', and as you can see they are everywhere at this time of year. That's all of a five minute walk from my front door and a pretty typical scene around Christmas time. The darker colored birds are actually the babies. I guess they don't get their white feathers until they're wise enough to deserve them!

When they do the annual count in Jan they usually top out at about 2,000 eagles!! Pretty amazing area I live in, well when you're not sleeping in at least!

GR

A Great Homemade Video

I just had to post this link because it's too damn funny. There's this great website called JibJab and it allows you to cut and crop the heads of your friends and family into short movies. Anyways, this clip has myself, Mark Fearman (a fellow Helly Hansen-MOMAR teammate), my brother, Chad Fox, Peter Watson and Nicola Gildersleeve in it. I guess it could be considered a bit graphic by some, with cartoon violence, so maybe a P.G. rating, but just amazing that you can do this so easily!!

Enjoy, (opps, I guess you have to refresh the browser once it has loaded to get the vid to play)
GR

The Beast Adventure Race Report

Speed blogging, here we go...

The Beast Adventure Race in Washington State 06 was the first race that Todd and I ever did together...this was our one year anniversary...of course Todd forgot and didn't even get me a stinking card!!

We managed to link up with some local racers who lived just minutes from the starting area. Colin and Connie, of 'Colinoba' fame (a birthday adventure race that involves a pub crawl...how awesome is that!), were gracious enough to host us in their incredible home. The lights were on, the tree was up, and it made me miss Christmas at home with the fam! We also met Reed and Andrea who were up from Portland for the event. Together three of the four (Connie was too sick to race) also did the race and put in a solid performance. With PQ 04 experience they are talented and experienced racers who like to have a lot of fun. Check out this link for what looks like an incredible mountain bike event in Oregon next summer. Appears to be the perfect excuse for a road trip (note the FREE beer gardens), and I'll be looking to organize a crew to head down there for this next summer...ahh, I miss summer...

Leaving Squamish with a mountain bike on my roof, in the biggest snow storm of the season, garnered me those 'special looks' from people, like they were saying,

"Ahhh, that's cute, he's an idiot!!"

Picking up Todd at the Tsawassen (don't care if that's spelled right or not) ferry and adding a second bike to my roof only increased out profile while driving on the highway.

"Look honey, those Canadians are funny, they have bikes on their car!!"
"Dumb ass Canadians!"

"Hi, we're not stupid, we really are going to ride these things...umm, actually, come to think of it we are kinda dense aren't we..."

The drive down was truly scary at times. Not because the roads were that bad, although it was dumping pretty good in places, but more so because the other drivers out there had a very noticeable lack of winter driving experience. I just tried to keep my distance from most other vehicles as Todd and I counted six cars in the ditch and three that seemed to have just pulled over and quit...
"Honey, rent a truck and come get me, NOW!!"

We weren't even sure if the event would go ahead and were actually amazed at how many people turned up on the day, with an even 100 people at the starting line! Personally if I had the option I truly would have stayed in bed!

The race course was covered in about 3-4 inches fresh snow (for the third straight year), and it was starting to rain on top of that...perfect conditions to freeze yer ass off!

The Beast is different from a MOMAR in that the majority of the participants are new comers and out to experience adventure racing for the first time. DART-Nuun do a very cool thing each year where they volunteer to pair up with newbies and help them get through their first race. It was great to see Ryan, Aaron and Glenn (hope I didn't miss anyone. Matt Hart was also out volleying on the day and has a short video on his blog) sharing their hard earned expertise with some brand new adventure racers...welcome to the sport, you might as well apply for an additional credit card asap!

Having not done much in the last two months, well, I did a lot of drinking, some ski touring, some floor hockey, some dodge ball, basically anything but a.r. disciplines were on the menu...where was I...this was/is our wake up call that race season is again, just around the corner. I do a 50k ultra every New Year's Day, so it's time to get back on the feet again. The Beast is our kick in the ass to get some focus back into the training sched.

I can't do short blog postings can I...I'm not even at the start yet...

GO!!

Run to our bikes, then two bike loops back to the start finish and a running loop back again. I believe distances were about 40k of biking and 15k of running?

My biggest weakness is cold weather. I did a full year in the Northern B.C. oil and gas industry as a Pipe Fitter's Assistant. This involved working outside for at least 12hr a day, seven days a week, through the dead of winter. At one point I went into a back country 'camp' for three weeks and the WARMEST it got in those twenty one days was -27 degrees Celsius, with the mercury dipping to -47 one day...there are no days off. I remember getting out of camp and wondering when I would get the feeling back in my toes, the answer was fifteen days and they've never been the same since. My fingers are similar and it doesn't take much for me to loose sensation in my extremities these days...at least most of them!

GO!!!

Within ten minutes we had about an inch of slush covering our feet on the bike. It was a slushy, slippery mess and I knew that I would struggle through it. Had I been wearing my biking booties and ski gloves I would have been better off, but I simply did not anticipate these racing conditions.

Before the first bike loop was complete I had literally lost all sensation from my kneecaps down. I had two stumps below my quads that weren't quite sure if they were pedaling in the right direction or not. With all that crap sticking to my derailleur I had lost all but one gear on my bike, thankfully the easiest one. I was only able to shift between the mid and big ring on the front. As we hit flat sections of the race Todd would effortlessly pull away from me,

"TODD!!!! WAIT UP, I CAN'T GO ANY FASTER!!"

My fingers also went completely numb and to actually shift gears I would have to reach under my bars and pull down on the shifter as I simply could not push my fingers enough to shift normally. To downshift I had to punch the shifter with my hand cause my thumb wouldn't move. Todd did not comment until after the race that I seemed to be taking forever to punch the checkpoints on our passport...that was because I couldn't flex my hand at all! I had to line up the punch over the right number and then slam both hands together to get it to go...I was not really enjoying myself, but kept telling myself that this was great training in case we ever get into these conditions in an actual expedition.

After both bike loops we attempted running out of the transition area, but we struggled to get our feet to respond to the terrain. After a few CP's we stopped to check on them because it felt like our socks had bunched up into a huge ball under our arches. It turned out that it was just painful sensation of our feet trying to resuscitate themselves!

After 4h10m Todd and I crossed the finish line...and continued running to my car for a change of clothes! As mentioned, this race is about fun and not a super competitive event. We loved it, there is such a great crowd of people in the Pacific North West and it's awesome getting to know more of them at each event we can participate in.

Our amazing host Colin (and Connie of course) had teamed up with Reed and Andrea to come in second across the line, but looking at the results I guess they missed a CP which dropped them down to fourth. They didn't care, they had huge smiles on their faces as they finished, and I believe the Santa hats were back on within seconds.

Thanks so much to Roger, Yumay, Eric and Aaron for hosting such a great event, and especially the volleys who were the only people that may have had it worse than us on the day!

It was cool to see another Canadian team down there as well. Team Suburban Rush, consisting of Magnus Byne, Christopher Lister, Sarah Goring and Lannie Theielen finished a solid 11th and I'm sure they would echo my sentiments...it was f$%king freezing but well worth the drive!

I'm not even joking when I say this, it's Tuesday night, and I still do not have full sensation back in my feet...if this lasts more than fifteen days I guess I'll head to the Dr. again!

Full Results Here

GR

'The Beast' Adventure Race This Weekend

This Sunday will be the first competitive thing I've done in over two months...well outside of floor hockey and dodge ball I guess!!

The Beast adventure race is held just outside of Seattle and has a similar layout to a MOMAR sprint race. Finish times are almost exactly the same, except there will be no paddle leg, and there is some pretty tough navigation throughout...at least that's what Todd tells me!

The Beast 06 was the first race that Todd and I ever did together. We headed down under the impression that we could do a race in a non-competitive environment, amongst people we didn't know, and therefore get to know each other's race styles a bit better. Instead, we...well I, decided that we were in fact going to race the event. I let Todd know of my decision about thirty seconds before the race directors said go! We raced hard, suffered lots, cramped regularly, and really came together to pull out a solid win...it was the perfect way to get to know each other's race styles...or at least that's what I told Todd afterwards.

Having not run more than sixty minutes a week since Sept, and having biked only once in the last two weeks, this should be interesting for us. I'm sure we will feel physically fine during the race, but the recovery time might be a bit slow afterwards.

Either way wish us luck...in fact get yer own ass down there and race it for yourself, it's a great event, and a ton of fun to be racing in a completely new area!

GR