Sunshine in September - 2010
Starter Photo: 11 September 2010 - 13 Starters
Report: Contrary to the weather forecast leading up to Saturday, we truly had Sunshine in September on the Sunshine Coast this weekend. On Saturday morning, we arrived at the ferry terminal to find our starters properly caffeinated and ready to go.
After a brief summary and details for those unfamiliar with the trails, everyone was off. Starting off on the short section through the local neighbourhood before getting into the canyon, Jason, Ran, Bill and Des quickly took the lead, followed by Heather, Craig and Helen with Jess, Kelly, Lishe, Ben, Dave and Jackie meandering along until the guilt got to us and we took to our feet as well.
As much as it might be preferred to the old route that followed the highway to the mountain bike park, the first 500m or so (or 500km as Kelly noticied in the course description!) can best be summarized as "miserable". But we soon hit the canyon and started the true climb. This was the first time I have seen mountain bikers, hikers, mushroom pickers and other users on the trail. It was nice to see the trails actually being used!
Thanks to the frontrunners for finding the first flaw in the course description and confirming that taking a left at the second junction is indeed the wrong way to go. Changes will be made! But everyone made it back onto the trail and continued the climb as planned.
As we continued to climb, we first encountered Des on his return trip to the ferry terminal. Wow! We were barely halfway and he was on his way back?!? Des was kind enough to warn us about the mother bear and two cubs shortly ahead of us on the trail, but the head wandered off by the time we got there.
At the 10k/2hr/clearing we decided that it was time to turn back. After an entertaining chat with a group of mountain bikers, and some encouraging words from Ran and Jason on their descent, Jess, Lishe, Kelly and I started back down the hill. Dave decided that he was going to keep on climbing.
Shortly after turning around, Kelly and Lishe very kindly found the wasps' nest and saved Jess and me from also getting stung (thanks!). Kelly seems to be a wasp magnet - this wasn't her first sting while running this summer. Those three went on ahead and I decided to hang back and wait for Dave since he was just a bit behind.
Shortly afterwards, Bill came screaming (not literally) down the hill and was hot on the trails of the girls. A short while later (I couldn't help thinking about this mother and bear and cubs wandering around) Craig, Helen and Heather came running up. Deciding that standing around was not going to get me to the finish in time wasn't the best idea of the day, I decided to follow this group down the hill.
Have to say - other than the second turn, the directions worked well getting up the hill. Coming down was another story... I eventually encountered Jess, Kelly and Lishe again and realizing that there was no way we were going to get to the finish in time for our planned 12noon rendezvous, snacks and prizes, Kelly and Lishe booked it back to the start. Since this was just the beginning of our weekend on the coast and we didn't have to be on the ferry, Jess and I came in at a more sedate pace.
Upon reentering the ferry terminal, we could see a group of runners making their way to the loading area across the parking lot. We had missed the entire post-run social! Oh well - Bill took care of everyone for us and made sure we had finishing times and garbage points recorded. Thanks Bill. We finally caught up with the group as they reached the loading gate. But where was Ben?!? Just as we were starting to worry, Ben can storming up the parking lot and even found the strength to hop the fence to get into the pedestrian area. Good show!
Dave caught up with us back and the car and must have been caught up in the excitement of the event. Not only did he run to the gravel road as planned after we turned back - he ran the entire 26k course! Well done!
That was it for the 2010 Sunshine in September. We started the drive to the cabin for the weekend and the rain started!
Thank you all for coming out! Hope to see you next year. Jackie
Photos: If you have photos of the day, upload them to the Flickr CFA group, tag them with SunshineInSeptember2010 SunshineInSeptember and ClubFatAssEvents. Photos uploaded so far are posted in the slideshow below:
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Results:
| First Name | Last Name | City | Age | Event | Time | Reg. Pts | Garbage | Total Pts. | Prize? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackie | Montgomery | Vancouver | 40-49 | 19k | 3:53 | 2+2 | 1 | 5 | |
| Desmond | Mott | north vancouver | 50-59 | 26km | 2:53 | 2 | 2 | Yes | |
| Jason | Eads | Kirkwood | 30-39 | 26km | 3:02 | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Ran | Katzman | Vancouver | 40-49 | 26km | 3:02 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Yes |
| Bill | Dagg | Vancouver | 40-49 | 26km | 3:19 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Yes |
| Craig | Moore | North Vancouver | 40-49 | 26km | 3:35 | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Helen | Tilley | White Rock | 40-49 | 26km | 3:38 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Heather | Urquhart | North Vancouver | 30-39 | 26km | 3:38 | 1 | 1 | Yes | |
| Kelly | Corday | Vancouver | 20-29 | 26km | 3:46 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Yes |
| Lishe | O'Kiely | Vancouver | 50-59 | 26km | 3:46 | 2 | 2 | Yes | |
| Jess | Dagg | Vancouver | 20-29 | 26km | 3:53 | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Ben | Harapat | North Vancouver | 50-59 | 26km | ?? | 2 | 2 | ||
| David | Montgomery | Vancouver | 40-49 | 26km | 4:23? | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Claudia | Bullington | Richmond | 40-49 | DNS | -1 | -1 |
Sunshine in September 2010 - Run, Ran, RUN!
For those of us NOT from BC or another coastal area, ferry rides are a rarity. I really didn't know what to expect in terms of what this "boat" would look like. It was a pleasant surprise because BC ferries are PLUSH! First of all, the things are HUGE and can hold more than 100 cars - WOW! Plus, they have full service restaurants, multiple levels and even a sun-deck upon which you can sit outside and take in the cool & fresh Howe Sound air on the way between Horeshoe Bay and Langdale.
Craig hadn't had his coffee yet, which explains this glazed over look on his face, but he perked up one he scored some Starbucks from the barista on the ferry.
Generally speaking, it was pretty overcast as we made our way over to the sunshine coast, but sure enough, about the time we were arriving there was a very bright spot of sun right over Langdale - as if to say: "Yep, this is the Sunshine Coast allright!". Once we were all off of the ferry and settled in Langdale it was apparent that the weather would actually continue to improve. Improve it did, and Sunshine In September certainly lived up to it's moniker. A very nice trail run.
The run
Early in the run is a short bit of road, then you hit the trails and continue to climbing up, and up, and up. There are a few rolling hills that give you a brief reprieve from the constant climbing, but it's a bit taxing for the entire 1st half of the 26km option for this run.
Making our way out of Langdale, I settled in with Ran Katzman (YES, that's his real, given name!) - a great runner that most of you know. Can you say 5:47 at the 2010 Kneeknacker?!? Suffice to say, deciding to run with Ran probably wouldn't be the best decision I would make this day - or would it??? The thing about Ran is Ran RUNS. He doesn't walk hills, he doesn't "power hike" hills. He RUNS hills. I'm mean, c'mon, the guys name isn't "Walked", right???
Although Ran pulled me harder than he knows up the 7.5 mile slap in the face that the 1st half of the run climbs, it's the back half that was pretty rewarding. I tried to talk to Ran as much as I could, but I didn't have the oxygen to hold a lot of conversation. Fortunately, Ran was simply cruising around effortlessly and navigating - so he was chatty, which was good. He also had printed directions of the route, so once I committed to running with him I was in whole hog or risk getting lost.
Once we FINALLY made our way to the high point of our run (and the turn around to back from whence we came) we encountered a cool little airplane sculpture that marked the beginning of a very technical and super fast downhill. I knew Ran would be 10x faster than me down this, so I asked him to go ahead - hey, if I get lost, I get lost. No big deal. Instead, Ran insisted that I lead - so I did, for about 200 meters. Then I hear Ran the Freight Train coming down the tracks! I step aside and watch Ran dice this technical downhill up like a pizza. He was kind enough to wait for me at the bottom and we made our way back up the fire access road to get to the single track that would take us home. Thanks for waiting, Ran!
All this time, I'm telling Ran how impressed I am that he can take these hills (both up and down) the way he does. He's a modest guy, and says "spend a year or two on the North Shore and you'll get better at it too". Yeah, right. He also gave me some B.S. about what Ran calls "the leader effect". Now, I don't dismiss this theory, but I can tell you there's not a snowball's chance in hell that I was motivating Ran very much. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was slowing him down and he must have slowed for me to catch him a million times.
The leader effect goes something like this: You get a little extra push of energy because you are leading someone else down the trail (presumably, knowing where you're headed) and the follower is guessing on your next move because they aren't necessarily focused on much besides following. I SUPPOSE, Ran, I suppose. 
Anyhow, we enjoyed eachothers company on what resulted in a 3hr 2min dash about near Langdale. We both managed a garbage point, and Ran's hydration strategy was a BIG surprise to me. How he sneaked in a Pabst Blue Ribbon while mowing down all those hills is a mystery to me, and he even crushes the cans on his BARE FOREHEAD! What a BEAST of a lad!
We arrived back and the Langdale ferry terminal to find Des Mott chilling near the car. Des had practically worked himself to death all week and decided a custom distance for SIS 2010 was the better option for him this day. Ran, Des and I wandered over to Wheatberries coffee stand and Ran treated me to a big chocolate milk and a sports drink. Good stuff! Made me feel better almost instantly!
Jackie hosts an awesome run and since she IS the QUEEN of homemade energy bars, you'd be crazy not to take her up on this one next year! This run was a ton of fun because you get to hang out and share war stories on the ferry ride back to Horeshoe Bay. Heather even scored a battle wound! That may actually be my favorite part of the whole deal. Thanks, fellow Fat Asses - it was an awesome day!