2007 - Year 3

Craig Moore 4-1/2h into the Vancouver 100

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Run Report: Still the hardest 100 km run anywhere ...

Something worth doing is worth doing well. Anything done well is worth the effort. Greatness is gotten by passionately following your dreams …

Okay, enough with the banal quotes. This was one bugger of a tough run and the people that did all, or even part, of the 2007 Vancouver 100 did what they had to do and are most certainly stronger for the effort.

Our day started early at 4:30 am on Saturday and was quite mild and calm even for early June in Deep Cove. The past V100 starts have brought us cooler temperatures and even a bit of rain. But because all of the people have lots of experience running on the North Shore we knew that a mild morning meant hot weather to come. And we weren’t disappointed.

The course was modified once again from the start. We ran to the end of Panorama Drive and only straight back to the trailhead instead of to Gallant Drive before starting our first of many endless climbs. Tim Wiens had done a GPS of the Baden Powell Trail recently and figured this small change would give us our 100 km total just fine. Less is definitely better in this case!

One thing that never fails is that the quick runners were chatting up a storm and were ready to pounce on the trail with their excitement. That covers nearly everyone in this event. But I’m sure there were others like me that were willing to spare their energy in Karl-Jensen-fashion and get into a quiet steady pace in preparation for the enormous distance to come. By the time Gilles, Monty and I were crossing through the first Deep Cove section of trail together, the nine other runners had scurried ahead and were nowhere to be seen. Monty and Gilles kept the chatter going and I simply was amazed that I dared to start this gigantic run once again. It had been two years since I completed it the first time and I was trying not to talk too much or think too hard.

I was able to keep pace with Monty and Gilles until just past Riverside Drive but after that I was on my own. It was nice to see the crews again at Lynn Valley Headwaters: Ethelyn, Cheryl, Rod Hatfull and now Ron Adams had joined in as well to cheer us on. On the way to this point I noted some early birds on the trail. I saw 10 people walking, 3 dogs, and a biker, all before what I thought was way too early for anyone but us to be out there.

Along the way to the ¼ mark at Cleveland Dam I saw some familiar faces that I’m sure all of the runners also saw. Curb Ivanic (Ultra Fitness) was out with his small gang of runners and I recall bumping into Jenn Mar (North Shore Athletics) near Skyline at Mosquito Creek. They were happy to cheer me on but I think Curb made some tongue-in-cheek remark about the need to pick up a headlamp along the way. For some reason he thought I wouldn’t make it to the end before dark I guess. And of course we all saw Sibylle, Pat and Judy making their way on the Grouse section toward us. All the cheering was very welcome, thank you ladies.

So all was well until the mid point at Cleveland Dam. That’s when I got a severe case of an itchy back. I’ll chalk that up to the increasing heat and the intense amount of sweating I was doing (Ethelyn said I was stinky already). It couldn’t have been much past 9:00 am at this point but it was already warm and humid. My duct tape had fallen off the critical chest points and I tried to replace that with Ethelyn’s help. But I was far too sweaty for it to stick any longer so I reverted back to my old favourite Body Glide. For my itchy back I had Ethelyn rub it with a large towel. That was heaven and I was getting some strange looks from people as I moaned in ecstasy at the relief.

By this time I had found out Rob MacDonald had dropped. He was using his better judgment in preparation for a new job on Monday. Rob had some technical crew difficulties to this point and felt he was already behind the 8-ball. Having done this run twice before and also knowing his own limits for heat frustration he felt it was best to pack it in and not tempt fate. So off I went with cheers from the crowd to keep on going. Little did I know what we all were heading into from this point onward and upward.

After a normally wet and cool winter and spring, it seemed to feel awfully warm heading up the British Properties and onto the Hollyburn Chute. Fyi, here’s a little weather comparison of the three years we’ve been doing this run:

June 4, 2005
Temp: mean / max / min 14 °C / 18 °C / 10 °C
Humidity: average / max / min 64 / 82 / 36

June 3, 2006
Temp: mean / max / min 16 °C / 20 °C / 12 °C
Humidity: average / max / min 69 / 88 / 51

June 2, 2007
Temp: mean / max / min 18 °C / 25 °C / 12 °C
Humidity: average / max / min 69 / 88 / 53

It’s worth noting that there was no recorded precipitation on any of these days. However, the maximum recorded temperatures were set in 2007 for both June 2 (25 °C) and June 3 (22 °C). Can you say, “global warming”?

All the way up the Chute I was thinking I would cool down by just laying down on the snow once I got to the ski runs. But of course I cooled down enough once I was there so I didn’t need to experience the shock and awe of the ice. I did however get a much needed refill on the water at the Ranger station. That was sooo nice and cold and refreshing. Cheryl suggested later that we should encourage crews to head up there to help out their runners. It really is a long way from Cleveland Dam to the next aid at Cypress Bowl. I think this is a great plan Cheryl. I was getting hungry by this point and new it was going to still be a long haul up and over to the next check point.

Not too far from the ranger station I met up with our Knee Knacker friend Jeff Trigg who was running in the opposite direction. Jeff saw a few of the others and the way he described things was not encouraging. Jeff knows that I know that we both know what the BP can be like at the best and worst of times. And yet, with the snow on the ski runs, the sun high and bright in the sky, and the knowledge that I was heading for the hurricane zone in the trees, he was shaking his head and wishing me well. And I have to add that I asked Jeff if he had some spare food. Clearly neither of us was well enough prepared because all Jeff had was one gel along with his water. I knew we’d both be fine ultimately but I also knew we were both about to get very hungry. We headed our separate directions and motored on.

So I’m chuggin’ up the ski runs on Hollyburn, slowly but surely, sun beating down, getting a sunburn on the back of my neck but not realizing it, and who should I see but Monty running toward me out of the bushes. I had finally reached the top of the ski runs where the BP meets up and was ready to make my way down to the creek crossing. Monty was shaken and stirred and very politely said “no thanks” to my offer to guide him to the trail. After spinning his wheels for about ½ hour he just wanted to get out to the road and head for home. C’est la vie my friend! But I did take Monty’s serious advice to use my best instincts to find the trail because there were footsteps in the snow all over the place. So I did just that and also followed my own instructions to head for the sound of the creek. Thankfully I went straight for the gully and made my way across quite quickly. The little bridge was once again at the foot of about 7 feet of snow with no safe way to pass so we all had to make due.

And then there was the trail, once again. Now, how’s this for irony? In 1999 when I ran my first ultra trail run, the Knee Knacker, we had nothing but snow to run on from Black Mountain to the top of Hollyburn Chute (about 8km worth). It was truly an exceptional year and quite amazing for the first week of July. Although I’ve been trying to forget this section through the trees of Hollyburn ever since, it was the most troubling and frustrating time of running for me the whole event. Basically, with my slick road shoes and my lack of experience at the time, I was in hell. So now I found myself back in the trees, with severe snow peaks and valleys once again. The only differences being it was June, fallen trees were everywhere and the trail wasn’t marked nearly as well. Oh ya, I had better shoes too. But the best part was that I was having the most fun of the day so far. I have been through that area in both directions many times, including at night. And getting off the ski runs and into the cooler forest was now heaven! My smile came back and I new I was close to food and water and the crews. So I, like the others no doubt, picked my way around and about through the trees, risking life and limb, mostly downhill to the Cypress Bowl parking lot. Along the way the most unusual thing I saw was a dead vertical wall of snow, coming out of a creek, with what looked like foot holes dug in. I was thinking, “they can’t be serious!” Those guys climbed up this thing? It wasn’t very tall but it was horribly awkward. I chipped away at it with bare hands and then a rock but couldn’t make it work for me. So I followed the creek down to the left and made it up the snow bank the same as at least one other person that day as I could see by their tracks. And did I mention that almost every place the snow had actually fully melted there was a stream or puddle of water? Eventually I saw the buildings through the trees and then saw the gang of Ethelyn, Anne-Marie, Sebastien, Georgia and also Monty and Cheryl. They had food and water and, oh oh, a chair ;( That’s when I knew I was in trouble. I had already decided I wasn’t going to go further than ½ way but would see how I did at this check point firstly. I had been drained without enough food after that long climb and needed to feel the spring back in my step before going on. It was almost 10 hours to this point and my head was clear enough to realize what this day could become. Not wanting to wreck myself for the near future I decided to stop. It hurts but it was important for me.

Monty also stopped after planning to go half way. We had the same notion that Black Mountain was going to be no fun in the heat and snow. The others later confirmed that just the thought of coming back up Black was daunting enough let alone actually doing the climb. They had to contend with a trail that was covered in blow downs and tree limbs so much so that you could hardly find the dirt in places. Not to forget they also came very close to a mother bear and at least one cub on the lower reaches of the trail.

For the return trip, Bill Dagg joined in the fun as did Ean Jackson. Ean wanted to lead the way for David Crerar but David apparently had energy to spare still. Bill was there to help Tim but Tim eventually bagged it a Cypress Bowl. Bill went on to hook up with Glenn Pace at Cleveland Dam and they finished up together.

After heading home with Ethelyn to get cleaned up and have a bit of a rest, we went to Cleveland Dam to find Sibylle and the others. Ean and David had arrived already and David was getting “refreshed” with the help of his wife Julia and their kids. David was well in the lead at this point with a strong and steady pace.

Not too long after though, Glenn came in to fuel up and put some dry and funky toe socks on for good luck. A big swig of milk and some pizza and he was ready to go again. Bill arrived fresh and just in time to go out on the last ¼ with Glenn. Glenn didn’t think he needed the company but relented. I think he realized that having a pacer for the next 25km was probably a good thing especially at night as it was about to get dark soon. Thanks to David for ordering up Pizza and thanks to Ran Katzmann and his two girls for bringing the awesome potatoes and chicken soup for all. But I have to confess … after everyone left, Ethelyn and I covered the leftover box of pizza and potatoes with towels and a chair and went for a walk over the dam. I thought this would surely be enough to thwart the birds from attacking, but not so! Ugh. We came back to a couple of crows that had pecked a giant hole in the box and were gorging on gourmet goodies. So sorry but they were happy birds!

By way of some phone calls, we found out much later that Gilles Barbeau, Sylvia Jorger and John Machray were only leaving Cypress Bowl around 9:00 pm. So we decided to head over to Lynn Headwaters and find the others. At the Lynn Creek pipeline bridge we had just missed David but Glenn and Bill came along soon. Rhonda had joined Cheryl as a crew member at Mountain Highway and we had a short visit with them in the dark. The boys quickly headed on to the Cove of course but were looking fine. That was essentially the end of the night for us but to make the day just that much more exciting, we realized that we were locked out of home by our own mistakes. Doh. In the end it wasn’t a problem as we were able to stay at my parent’s place in West Van until I could get my landlord to let me in Sunday morning.

To round out the stories about the others, Ryan had this to say: “Wow that was a tough run, especially without my dog to sniff out the trail for me. I thought that the trail down Black Mountain seemed a lot worse than last time until I realised I had taken the Donut Trail down. Do not ever go on the Donut Trail! Unless you like rock climbing and slipping off of cliffs covered in pine needles and branches.” John decided that 76 km was enough for him with a load of chaffing to boot. Loger Aure was helped by Rod Hatfull to get up and over Black Mountain before a planned end to their day. And Ron Adams joined in with Gilles and Sylvia at Cleveland Dam to escort them through the final 7 hours or so. Both Gilles and Sylvia said how much they appreciated Ron’s chatter, jokes and pokes. It was tough enough setting a new record for being out there longer than anyone in the past but Ron made the time slip by quicker they said.

There were some firsts this time as you can see:

> First woman to finish: Sylvia Jorger
> Longest finishing times ever: Gilles and Sylvia 25:56:00
> Lowest 100km finishing rate (4/8 - 50%)
> Most blow downs on the course after many severe winter storms
> Most lost people (on Hollyburn and Black Mountain, almost everyone got lost at some point)
> Most wildlife seen on any trail run by Glenn Pacé
> The most bears seen during the event: a mother and cub(s) seen at the bottom of Black Mtn.

If you can think of some others please let me know.

By the way, Bill Dagg said, “It was by far the easiest 50 km I've ever run (should have been) and could have kept going for a lot longer. It is amazing how much of a difference that extra 50 km makes. Those times for Gilles and Sylvia are amazing. That’s persistence! They must have seen the sun come up!”


And I agree with Bill. In fact, all of the runners that finished left me in awe. I know for sure they decided that nothing was going to stop them. And I remember at one point very early on in the day when Gilles and I were giving sage advice to younger Monty about running these distances, we both agreed that the ability comes with age and only after a few brain cells have already disappeared. But I have to take that back. The more I do the runs and meet the people, the more I realize that all the runners (and crews) are interesting, intelligent and articulate people. They are out there for the love of the sport and challenge of the adventure at any age, just like me.

I heard that Glenn has done his fill of V100 runs but I’m not so sure about the others. Are there any takers for next year yet? Hmmm, well, rumours have started already about Ryan, Tim, Karl, and if the weather cooperates, me too.

Thanks for a great event and an awesome after party!

Craig

Please find results below:

Points Name Crew City/Town Event Time  
2 David Crerar Julia Lawn North Vancouver 100km 18:59:59  
2 Glenn Pacé Cheryl Johnson North Vancouver 100km 19:52:00  
2 Gilles Barbeau Lucinda Barbeau Vancouver 100km 25:56:00  
2 Sylvia Jorger Mike Heiliger North Vancouver 100km 25:56:00  
2 John Machray Linda Machray North Vancouver 76km 18:00:00  
2 Tim Wiens Maureen Wiens/Bill Dagg Vancouver 63km 12:39:00  
2 Ryan Conroy Dave Seabrook and Nick Knowlden Vancouver 52km 10:44:00  
1 Loger Aure Rod Hatfull Vancouver 52km 11:57:45  
1+1 Bill Dagg   Vancouver pacer/50km 10:30:00  
2 Monty Watts Anne-Marie, Sebastien, Georgia North Vancouver 38km 09:14:00  
2+1 Craig Moore Ethelyn David North Vancouver 38km 09:44:00  
2+1 Desmond Mott   North Vancouver 35km 04:19:00  
2 Rob MacDonald Margaret James Burnaby 26km ~04:30:00  
1 Ron Adams   North Vancouver pacer/25km 07:15:00  
2 Ean Jackson   North Vancouver pacer/25km 04:20:00  
1+1 Rod Hatfull   Vancouver pacer/13km    
2 (+1) Sibylle Tinsel   North Vancouver custom 03:10:00  
1 Pat Barry   Vancouver custom 03:10:00  
1 Judy   North Vancouver custom 03:10:00  
1 Ran Katzmann     crew    
1 Cheryl Johnson     crew    
1 Ethelyn David     crew    
1 Anne-Marie Coté     crew    
1 Sebastien Watts     crew    
1 Georgia Watts     crew    
1 Margaret James     crew    
1 Maureen Wiens     crew    
1 Julia Lawn     crew    
1 Dave Seabrook     crew    
1 Nick Knowlden     crew    
1 Mike Heiliger     crew    
1 Lucinda Barbeau     crew    
1 Linda Machray     crew