2010 - Vancouver 100

5 June 2010 - Starter Photo in Deep Cove

(standing) Ryan, Chad, Ken, Kirsten, Des, Jackie, Karl, Wade, Randy, Carolyn, Eileen, Laddie, Kamren, Jonathon, John, (kneeling) Bill, Mike

Elaine and Tara setting off at Nelson Creek at about 5:45 am.

Report: 

I'm rather fond of the Vancouver 100. This being the fifth year of the 100km event, plus one year as The Double 96km, it has become the new focal point for my running year. And I have the best seat in the house getting to know everyone and help them understand the event as much as possible before it starts. There were people from all over: Edmonton, Victoria, Burnaby, Maple Ridge, Vancouver and North Vancouver. And it seems to be taking on a life of it's own I must say.

A few unique things happened this year too. The weather was uniquely wonderful: cool, no rain after many rainy days, and not too hot during the afternoon. And in spite of a heavy snowfall on the tops of the local mountains in the early spring, the snow has been melting fast and furiously lately resulting in a reasonably quick course: although there was still tons of water and even a good helping of mud to be found on event day.

We also had several people in two different groups start early in the day from the western end at Nelson Canyon Park. This was a first, not to mention that Eileen completed her first 50km hike and her first contiguous crossing of the Baden Powell Trail. And, along with BP veterans Neil and Carolyn, Heather did her very first full BP traverse in preparation for the upcoming Knee Knacker. I'm sure it will be a piece of cake for her now. Did I mention that Eileen also upheld a uniquely CFA tradition? Her and her hiking buddy did a couple of loop-d-loops on Hollyburn Mountain to add a few km's here and there.

Speaking of which, as I sat at the 3/4 mark later on with Sibylle, Olivia and others, the biggest topic of discussion coming from the runners was how many people were wandering all over Black Mountain and other points west of the Dam. I'm not really surprised about that but I am sorry to hear so much time was spent on custom sections rather than on the monster course that is long enough already. If I heard right, just before the halfway mark, Ryan took himself all the way down to the very bottom of the BP Trail before figuring out he needed to go through to the Whyte Lake trail and down to the parking lot where crews were waiting. I wish I could give you extra credit for that Ryan but I'm afraid it's not an unusual situation for this event.

Speaking of which, I must say that you don't really get what you pay for. The Vancouver 100 is billed as a double crossing of the Baden Powel Trail. But what it really is, is a few minutes of road running, followed by the BP Trail that has had some major changes to it lately, then just before turning around there is a bit of really nice trail through old growth forest, then a turn around and back up that nice bit and on to the BP again for a direct trip back to Deep Cove as long as you don't get lost (again). And to top it off ya gotta run down the road in the Cove at the end and tag the fire hydrant at the parking lot. That isn't exactly a double BP but it is all that and more - and pretty darn close to 100km that way too.

And another thing: what about the bit around Lynn Headwaters? Wade, and I think Mike also, pointed out that the BP goes over the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge and down the road as opposed to over the pipeline bridge and down the Varley Trail. Okay, so the route instructions aren't exactly complete for this event but I am willing to accept either method of getting through Lynn Valley. I'm used to the Varley route but the precise BP route is a touch shorter I suppose. If you're out for the course record it matters. If you're out to fill your boots then you might like the longer value version.

It's hard to tell how much of an effect the weather had on participant turnout but it may have helped our two new course record holders burn up the course. How do you beat a mild 11C at 5:00 am, heavy cloud turning to light cloud through the day, no rain, all turning to perfectly average temperatures during the day of about 17c with quite easy to find sunshine? I'm sure all the runners didn't mind a bit. Of course it gave the out-of -towners more reason to glow about the course and the day without knowing how much rain we've put up with in training the last few months since the Olympics ended.

We were also uniquely connected this year. Besides the Club Fat Ass website, we were able to use the CFA page on Facebook and use Twitter. Not that I live in the dark ages or anything but Saturday marked my first foray into Tweeting. And once Sibylle helped me out with it I couldn't be stopped. How great was that and so cool that it was showing instantly on the CFA website. Thanks to everyone for staying in touch and letting me know when you were finished.

What wasn't unique this year was the silence we experienced at the start line and the intrigue by crew members of what was yet to come. All eyes and ears were focused on the run briefing as runners began to unleash their energy in the last moments before starting. When it's 100km that is about to be taken on, the readiness level is only dampened by the early hour of the morning, but, the focus is ultra clear. And I could tell that the few crew members that were there were more than ready and willing to watch the runners take on the pain and determination of the day.

As for the run itself, it went pretty smoothly. I must thank all the crews and pacers for taking very good care of their runners. As we all know, without crew on a run of this size we have nothing. And the pacers may have gotten more than they bargained for, especially Mirabelle, as Ryan charged on through the second half testing her speed and endurance. I think Ryan said that 50km was twice the distance that Mirabelle had ever done before and yet she stuck with it as Ryan raced for a strong finish toward Deep Cove with an ever-faster pace. And, since Ryan Conroy is now the fastest finisher on the 100km course, I have declared him the course record holder. That's an amazing accomplishment for sure. As is the run put in by the new woman's course record holder, Carolyn Goluza. In fact we had two women, Jackie Muir included, that beat the previous women's record. Very nice.

It was great seeing the V100 regulars out there, Karl, John, Mike, Ean, Sibylle, Baldwin, Bill, Jess, Chad, Kirsten, Neil, David, Des, Laddie, and all the others. Thanks to all of you for supporting this event and making it special for me.

A personal thanks to my Saturday night running buddies that did the last quarter with me from Cleveland Dam to Deep Cove starting around 7:30 pm. It was a bit tough for Baldwin as he had munched his ankle earlier, but, it was easy for veteran Jess, and fun for Liza and night-newbie Kelly, and a pleasure for me finally getting a chance to run after being mellow and patient since getting up at 4:00 am.

So, I wonder who it will be next year? Are you ready for the hardest 100km trail run anywhere?

Craig

Photos should be uploaded to Flickr, added to the CFA Flickr group and tagged with Vancouver1002010 Vancouver100 ClubFatAssEvents ClubFatAssEvents2010.  All photos tagged properly and added to the CFA Flickr pool will automatically appear in the slideshow below:

Video:  Below is a video from the morning hours on the trail east of Mosquito Creek.

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Results: Ryan took an early and determined lead with Kamren, Des and Mike in hot pursuit. It's a picture perfect day with cool temperatures but just right for running a nice long tough one. Looking for a high finisher rate today. Chad is running with Kirsten who looks like the woman to beat today: fast, happy and seemingly fresh at their first pass through Cleveland Dam. Some runners were quiet when I saw them at the first quarter check point, and yet others were alive with joy. And as usual John Machray was setting the pace for discussion and was surrounded by four young short groupies (grandchildren) and his wife Linda at Cleveland Dam: a nice boost to John's endless energy. Neil, Carolyn and Heather started their run from Nelson Canyon at about 9:15 am. Latecomer Bagger Crerar advised he will be doing the same with an afternoon start. It's never too late in the day to get in on the Vancouver 100!  

Thanks everybody who participated in my little Twitter experiment.  The #Vancouver100 updates fed live to our website (see the feed below) were well received even by folks who had never set eyes on Twitter.... Sibylle

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