2010 - Year 17 - Vancouver New Year's Day Fat Ass 50 Run and Freeze Your Fat Ass Swim - Results

1 January 2010 - 106 Starters

New Year's Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. ~Mark Twain

Like many running friends, I have managed to accomplish many running goals because I established goals in the first place. Getting those running goals out in front of each other while doing something we love was what I had in mind when I loosely organized the first Vancouver New Years Day Fat Ass 50 in 1994.

Straight up, I also needed to get out of the house and move a bit. I figured that by picking a stupid run distance, for a day that has the worst weather in the year, on a day when most friends have the least amount of sleep and are the most hung-over, I'd find an equally stupid friend to run with and earn bragging rights. I was shocked and amazed that New Year's day 17 years ago when 10 friends showed up.

With the weather forecast calling for record rainfalls on the first day of the second decade of the second millennium, I was even more shocked an amazed that 106 running friends should show up for this bizarre resolution run. It was a record-breaking year in many ways.

First, and most obviously, the weather. It rained at the start. It rained at the finish. It rained the whole freaking day. I've experienced torrential downpours in Singapore, but during this lifetime of running, I've never experienced the type of cloudburst Des and I ran through as we approached the home stretch at Second Beach. Even the ducks headed for cover!

Second, the turnout. I accepted 116 sign-ups for this free resolution run assuming that at least 20% would roll over on the morning-of, hit the alarm button and go back to sleep. An unbelievable 106 showed up from all over North America.

Third, the times and distances. Several new world records were established. Tim Wiens earned the "Double Bagger" award and bragging rights for becoming the first person in the history of the world to run the 50K course twice. Congrats, Tim, for setting the high bar at 10:48... and not even puking once! First Dave Papineau, then Sammy Lotfi-Pour broke the record of longest swim. Sammy earned the "Numb Nuts" award for spending 16 1/2 minutes in the icy Pacific, and is apparently still looking for his boys. This is a run, not a race, but the fact that four (4) men broke the previous speed record deserves mention. Congrats to Dave Papineau for his record time of 3:51.

Fourth, the smiles. A confession: I don't love to run in the rain. Did I mention it rained all night on New Year's eve? I had nightmares of running 50K in the rain and didn't sleep a wink. I was in a less-than-ideal frame of mind when my nightmares became reality. However, everyone I spoke to before and during the run told me they either enjoyed the rain, preferred it to the snow of last year or didn't even notice it was raining. Despite the rain and the wind, the pavement and the mud, the very challenging distance and all of the other physical and mental hardship, everyone I spoke to during the run was either smiling or outright beaming.

Ran Katzman barely made it to the start after a long flight from Israel. Ran ran the 50K in a great time but almost fell asleep at the wheel, so opted for bed and felt bad for missing the finisher party. Gary Robbins ran 10K to the start, broke his own record for the 50K and ran home. Robbins felt bad for missing the swim for the first time. Glenn Pace was injured, but still came out and ran the first 500m with his pooch, then drove out to several points along the course to encourage the other runners. Pace felt bad for not being able to keep his streak of 50Ks on New Year's Day alive. David Crerar ran the last marathon of 2009 on New Year's eve and a 50K on New Year's Day. Crerar just felt bad all over the next day!

A great big "Thank you" to the Kintec crew. Kirsten, for the second year in a row, thank you for standing out on Spanish Banks in the cold to host the aid station. I'm sorry your car broke down on New Year's eve and that you had to scramble and bum a ride to even get there with all of the goodies. Graham, thanks for the recognition prizes. Ryne, congrats on being one of the 4 participants to break 4 hours this year. Thanks, also, to Trail Runner Magazine for the prizes and to Kelly and Lucie at the Mosquito Creek Grill for the free celebratory pint at the finisher party!

To Sibylle Tinsel, Manager of Club Fat Ass, thank you for all of the help with the event website and other aspects of organizing this run. Club Fat Ass is the best running club in the world and you make it run. Congrats, as well, on overcoming your injuries and completing the 50K.

This was my 100th ultramarathon. Thank you for celebrating it with me.

Whatever your distance you ran or time you finished in, congrats to you for your accomplishment and my sincerest best wishes to you for a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010!

Ean Jackson
Host of the Vancouver New Years Day Fat Ass 50K Run
and Freeze Your Fat Ass Swim

New Years Fitness Resolutions
Too late to get into the contest for 2010, but never too late to make them!

Results
Preliminary results are posted below. If I don't have your time/distance or have either recorded incorrectly, please email me.

Photos
Did you or yours take any photos? If so, please share them on Flickr. Add to the CFA Flickr group and tag them with VancouverNewYearsDayFatAss50 VancouverNewYearsDayFatAss502010 VancouverNewYearsDayFatAss ClubFatAssEvents ClubFatAssEvent2010

Click on the start/finish line (the fire hydrant, silly!) for a slideshow of photos and entertaining little videos shared so far:

Video:

Post Event Survey. Please give me your feedback via this brief survey:
http://www.clubfatass.com/events/VancouverNewYear/posteventsurvey

I'd love to see you add your story either via the comment function below or through a post on your CFA blog. (If you use your blog, I'll attach it to this page)

Keith Nichol kindly supplied the GPS readings from his Garmin at http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21462735

First Name

Last Name

City

Event

Points

Time

Comments

Tim

Wiens

Vancouver

100km