Flash - 1st Half Kneeknacker Course

1 Sep 2007 07:00

Run the first half of the beautiful Kneeknacker course.  Meeting at Cleveland Dam at 6:30 a.m. Saturday morning to car pool to the start and hit the trails by 7:00.  Everyone must be self supporting. There will be no aid but we should be able to get water at Cypress.  If you want to run the whole course, email and I will stop at Deep Cove to pick you up.

There is no fee and you don't need to be a member of Club Fat Ass to participate in a Flash event, however whining is not allowed. You are responsible for your own well being and safety and should be self sufficient. 

Please read the  Release of All Claims. By participating in this event you agree to the terms of the Release of All Claims.

If you are interested, please respond to this post (posting will be disabled starting Thursday 30th for a website upgrade, so better decide before Thursday ;-)

Nelson Creek to Cleveland Dam

I was very happy to learn from Cheryl last week that she was planning to do the first half of the Baden Powell Trail from Nelson Creek to Cleveland Dam as I wanted to run this stretch of the BP earlier in the summer and never made it.

6 bright eye and bushy tailed runners met at Cleveland Dam, noted the chill in the air before squeezing into Cheryl's car. At 7:00am sharp (perfect timing, Cheryl) we set out at Nelson Creek and followed this beautiful new trail through old growth stands of Douglas Fir up, up and some more up to finally merge with the BP. While I am sad about the destruction of the Bluffs due to the pre-olympic highway construction, I like the new start much better. Can anybody tell me, if this trail adds onto the total mileage of the BP, though? Seems to me, the BP/Kneeknacker remained at 30 miles through all trail changes we have seen over the years... I have heard that the new course now is pretty much exactly 50km.

I had hoped to be able to hang on to Cheryl and Rhonda, as they were behind me at the Go Deep last week. To my horror, I quickly realized, that I was the slowest in the bunch. Suffering from some unexplained gut rot didn't help. Cheryl was kind enough to pretend she had just about my speed and stuck with me as we huffed and puffed our way up through the woods, over the scree slopes (which is where I saw Geoff for the last time) and finally over Eagle Ridge Bluffs. The weather was perfect and the views magnificent.

Unsure about the course around Cabin Lake, Arlene, Rhonda and Cynnimon had to backtrack a couple of times, trusting Cheryl and me to pick the right trail. We somehow managed to miss Cabin Lake and the top of Black Mountain altogether (having picked the right turn at the first questionable intersection (Patricia Jensen tells me the KK does not go over the top of Black anymore - Ean is thinks she is dreaming, anybody elso wants to weigh in on this?)  Nothing was lost, though and we happily emerged at the top of the ski runs. The construction for the Olympic venue seems to never stop as we heard heavy machinery in the distance. Instead of following the pony trail over loose big rocks in easterly direction down, big signs directed us north-west steep down a new trail. I for one couldn't find my rhythm down the steep, slippery slope and was happy to finally reach the road at Cypress Bowl. Does anybody else think the new trail adds distance...? Must be just me ;-)

Hollyburn was beautiful as always, the blueberry bushes heavy with fruit and the meadows lush and green. The wet summer sure made the mushrooms grow very early in the season and exceptionally abundant. Rhonda, Cynnimon and Arlene took off again, while I had to focus not to stumble down the Hollyburn Chute. Cheryl was growing tired as well and when she fell and screamed "ouch, ouch, ouch" I thought she had broken her wrist (hope the swelling is going down, Cheryl?). Nothing can stop Cheryl, though... it would not help to whine anyway... there were still a few km left to run. A second or maybe third wind finally brought us through the British Properties down to Cleveland Dam.

Total running time was exactly 6 hours, including helping some lost hikers, path findinding and various pit and view stops. I only need to get about 90min faster....how very encouraging! My 50km training plan had 10km on the menu for today - so, I cheated a bit. Tomorrow, I am supposed to run another 10km.