2006

Run day dawned bright and sunny, much needed. Runners seemed to find the rec centre OK and after the usual quick chat rolled out at 10:02 am. Almost immediately a strong front group of 3 opened a gap when they made a light and the rest didn’t. Floating around on course I re-met the runners at the top of the first climb. Within 3 km they had already climbed more than 300 meters or close to a 1000’. There was a few good slam comments tossed my way

but in good CFA spirit, they all continued up the climb even higher. Their efforts were rewarded with fantastic views (as promised) along the top of Eagle Ridge and at the aid station ridge lookout.

The next section of trail down Eagle and Academy seemed to be the highlight for most, and offered a bit of a break from the climbing. Strong Road trail network was the hardest to navigate, but luckily there was a few runners intermixed that knew the way and the great part about this area is, if you get totally screwed up, head downhill on any of the many options and it will get you back on course pretty quick. Lori, one of our runners joked that through this section she used the “eenie meenie, I don’t know�? process to pick her route.

The final homeward stretch rhythm along the inlet was broken only by a nice aid station at the 16 km mark with lots of healthy and unhealthy (but enjoyable) treats. Thanks to Diane and Baldwin for manning this oasis.

The first strong runners came in together all in a smoking fast time of 2:07:26 with a short break to 3 others pretty quick behind. First female finisher rolled in with a 2:38:30 proving all the hill training and trail running she has been doing is turning her into a superwoman. Special additional mentions need to go out to Angela Spooner, Heather Summerville and Sharon Bryson who had just returned from racing the Boston Marathon just 5 short days ago. All three of these inspirational runners showed me they can mix in some CFA fun with some serious marathon racing and still enjoy both. Great job girls!

Shout outs also go to Lorraine Suomi who decided this new run would be “fun�? to do as her first run longer than 10 km in maybe a half a dozen years or more. She finished looking strong and still had a smile on her face so we may see her out for more runs in the future. CFA spirit thanks also goes out to Dan Daoust (local tri-cities runner) who sacrificed a much faster finish time to hang back and ensure a few out of town runners made it through the sometimes confusing trail route and didn’t get lost. And no Dan, although you thought you would be DFL, you weren’t.

Although we were 75 meters from the front door of a beautiful rec centre, most runners enjoyed laying out on the grass at the finish area and soaking in the sun. The only thing that dragged them away was the appealing thought of a cold fermented beverage and some food at the nearby pub. Rickers Red seemed the popular choice of runners, but I think it was consumed strictly for re-hydration purposes…

Because of the generous donations from North Shore Athletics, Norco Performance Bikes and Kinesis, every runner that came to the pup after party went away with some sort of draw prize. Thanks to these supporters for the icing on the cake of a fantastic day.

Also, in thanks mode, I have to send thanks out to the following keeners who made this run more enjoyable for all. First to Chris and Greg, the 2 volunteers who delivered the much enjoyed water, Gatorade, RedBull, fruit and treats in their backpacks on their off road motorcycles way up to a point on the run course that no regular 4 wheel vehicle could get to. Then to Ruby and Diane who helped out at the start line getting everyone checked in and accounted for. Ruby helped right through the day with logistics and Diane manned the oasis aid station on the homeward leg. After Baldwin figured out his couch wasn’t going to be delivered that morning, he was too late to run the event, but at least he came out and helped with an aid station. Way to go buddy, next time look at the date on the delivery notice... haha.

Special huge thanks goes out to Francisco and his crew from TrailSidePhysio who came out on their mountain bikes to support the runners in the event of injury. It was nice that we didn’t need their help, but sure good piece of mind that they were there. What goes around comes around, so if you need some runners specific physio, chiro, massage therapy or any injury relief, give these guys a call (604-432-6319).

And finally… from me as the event organizer… thanks to all you runners that came out to support a brand new event. Without you, the event wouldn’t have happened. I’ve been asked by CFA for a minimum 3 year commitment when putting on an event, so I’m looking forward to seeing you all next spring again for the second Run to the Clouds event. If each of you bring out a friend, we will go for 50 runners in '07 OK?? Look for some slight course changes next year that will add a bit more “singletrack trail�? up top instead of the gravel access road. I have some good ideas already... Also this may change it enough to get it up to a 25 km route… another request from many runners. Anyway THANKS for helping me make this new event fun and successful.

Pete SS

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