2010 North Shore Enduro - TAKE TWO!

 

Every year, without fail, Lauren asks me what I want for my birthday. I usually start with "I don't know" or "nothing, really". This year was different. I asked Lauren back: "what do I REALLY want?". And she said, "yes, what do you REALLY want?". So I replied with: "to go back to run the North Shore Enduro in North Vancouver with Club Fat Ass!".

 

Lauren hopped right on the computer and we bought some tickets!!! Thankfully, we had some good friends on the North Shore to bunk with - Thanks T/J Estates! You're always the most gracious of hosts.

 

What I'll call the "Weekend Enduro Event" started for Lauren and me on Friday afternoon. We arrived on the North Shore to a lovely dinner with Ean, Sibylle, Andy, Michelle, Wendy, Josh, Johanna, Eric, Karl & Lorraine - a really nice crowd! We feasted on home cooked goodies like vegan curry, roasted garlic/onion potatoes & grilled chicken. AMAZING. This "fueling" would eliminate any excuse for not having the gas to go a full 6 hours on Saturday morning during the run.

 

In his usual fashion, Ean "Action" Jackson introduced a wild card by offering the group a small taste of some Slovakian "medicine" he found at a sketchy pharmacy. No JOKE! I mean, come on, you all know Ean! This hooch (I mean..."medicine") was 32% alcohol by volume! Ean swears it tastes like Jägermeister. I'll reserve my comments for what I think it tasted like because this is a PG level note. Wisely, I kept it to just one small serving of this stuff. Just didn't seem like the right elixir to O.D. with on the night before a big run.

 

Lauren and I were very much enjoying the conversation with the gang, but we were coming from a 2-hour time zone difference out east, so tiredness caught us pretty quickly and we retired early to rest up for Andy's race in the morning. It was exciting to think that I had been on the North Shore for the 1st time exactly one year earlier to run this event, and I was coming back in good shape, eager to have another go!

 

At 8am on Saturday morning there were about 25 or 26 Club Fat Ass members ready to go. Andy, in the truly relaxed & easy going spirit of CFA, rolled in at about 7:55 to kick things off. 8:01 and off we went! Weather really doesn't get better than the conditions we runners and park goers, alike, were blessed with. It was a cool & crisp 45 degrees with nearly cloudless & deep blue skies. Gorgeous there in Lynn Canyon. The temps gradually rose to a very pleasant 60 degrees throughout the afternoon.

 

As the group headed out for the first loop I settled in with Ean A. Jackson and Chad Hyson. These two are more experienced runners than me, and I wanted to put down a decent time, so I just tried their pace for a while to see how things would shape up. Plus, my fatal flaw is ALWAYS going out too fast. Ean & Chad, I knew, were just way too experienced for that rookie crap. Sticking with them, I believed, would serve me well later in the long 6 hours ahead.

 

The first 1.6 miles, or so, are a rolling groomed trail along Lynn Creek heading towards the mountain. It's a pleasant stretch on your first loop or two because the cold air and water are rushing off the mountain and it feels like a huge air conditioner blowing gently as you make your way to "the climb". "The Climb" begins right after the 1.6 mile turn off of this groomed trail and goes directly in to what I calculate to be a 18-20% grade climb up rocks, stairs & roots. Something like a 600-700ft climb in about 1/4 to 1/2 a mile - WOW, it's hard. However, I was prepared for this since I had run a few laps on this course the previous year. I couldn't run that thing when completely fresh, so I knew better than to try and just power hiked as best I could.

 

Once it levels out at the top it's an extremely technical and winding trail along the mountainside. This is my FAVOURITE part of the trail! It's rolling hills, tons of technical obstacles, and a nice downhill BOMB back to the groomed path that returns runners to the start/turn-around/finish on this 7.6k loop. After the first loop, it was just Chad and I running along together and having great conversation with the faster runners somewhere out ahead of us. Chad shared some cool stories of his 100 milers and other Foolish adventures, like the Hijinx! Holy smokes, he and the other Fools really are FOOLS, but that's a compliment if you know who and what the fools are ;-)

 

Anyhow, in to our 2nd lap Chad mentions that he only has time for 3 laps or so. CRAP! That means I'm running Chad's 3 lap pace and I'm aiming for 6 or (if I'm really lucky) a bonus 7th. So much for not being out too fast :-(   Then, Chad says, "hey, you're probably not out too fast, this is about my 6 lap pace also". While I appreciated these encouraging words, I was guessing Chad's 6 lap pace was a fair amount quicker than what I could muster.

 

It was just quick enough that Chad decided he had time for a FOURTH lap. I was glad to hear this, because I was actually feeling like I could use the company. I swear, that hill at mile 1.6 gets taller with every single lap! Chad cruised in with me on the fourth lap and that was it for him - off to hang with the family. Thanks for the company Chad - thoroughly enjoyed running with you!

 

As I went out for lap 5 I was solo and actually managed a negative split vs. Lap 4 - so things were going in the right direction. Lap 6 was coming, but not going as quickly as I had hoped. What was a lovely jog along Lynn Creek back to “The Hill” on the first lap had become an arduous stretch of the course. The relative flatness of this portion really took a mental toll because there was no excuse NOT to run. Insanely, I ached to get to that damned hill so I could hike again! In any case, I was really questioning whether 7 was going to happen. I was calculating that I had plenty of time, but wasn't sure if I had the will power. Luckily, while running the downhill on the 6th lap, merely a mile or so from the turn-around, I bumped in to Pushpa Chandra! Pushpa was chipper and we were discussing how we weren't sure we were game for another loop, but we knew we had time. We split up on the downhill with words something along the lines of "well, we'll see how we feel at the turn - after all, this IS a 6hr race, not a 5hr race".

 

Upon arrival at the table for the turn I debated with myself on whether a 7th lap was a good idea with a 50-mile race coming up next Saturday. Then Pushpa came cruising in! We looked at each other and I asked if she had one more in her. She seemed to "sort of" nod or otherwise indicate that she did. I barked, "I will if you will!" and she was out of there like a shot! Pushpa was just the boost I needed.

 

I'm really glad at this point that I went for the 7th and realized even if I had to slow down, I had enough time to make the 6hr cut for a complete loop. I started feeling a little dizzy across the top of the ridge (getting low on calories, I guess), but I was so close to the finish that I just tried to hold it together as best I could. Sure enough, I made it in at 5:40:58 for the 7 loops! WOOO HOOO! I was greeted by Lauren with a solid high-five and Pushpa wasn't far behind and came in with a congratulatory hug. Way to dig deep, Pushpa!

 

Great surprises on the turn-arounds yesterday, as well. Reagan White couldn't run in the event, but he went out of his way to stop by to say high to Lauren and me. Thanks Reagan - always great to see you man!!!

 

Craig Moore was also there on my 3rd or 4th loop (can't remember exactly which) but I was glad to see him too. I had made it a brief turn around, but at least we got to say "hi".   :-)

 

Always good to see my friend, the Foolish Gilles Barbeau, on the trails.

 

Somewhere in there I SWEAR there was a David Crerar sighting - at least I think it was him???

 

All-in-all, a REALLY FINE day. Couldn't think of a better way to spend a birthday weekend than romping through the woods on the stunningly beautiful trails on the North Shore.

 

The finisher party included a couple of whopper 20oz draft Guinness beers and a tasty grilled salmon sandwich with yam fries – HIT THE SPOT. Really doesn't get better than that. Even though my sides were sore from the running, I appreciated the post event chuckles provided by the legendary John Machray & Karl Jensen - you two are a couple of cards!

 

Thanks Andy, & the rest of Club Fat Ass, for another wonderful event and ensuring a FANTASTIC Birthday Weekend for me - nothing less than spectacular and I hope to see you all again very soon!