I'm looking for some advice on accommodations for Western States this year. I'm heading down to pace a friend and am looking for names of places/hotels I might be able to stay. (My runner is supposed to be helping out with this, but I haven't got any specifics yet, so am doing a bit of leg work on my own).

A couple of years ago, in preparation for the Vancouver 100 (V100), Tim Wiens and I went on a recon mission from the 1/2 way point on the V100 route (start of the Knee Knacker race) over Black Mountain and down to Cleveland Dam to check out the "trail" (read "snow") conditions -- see Bill and Tim's Excellent Adventure.

Given the current snow conditions on the local mountains (considerably more than during our first Adventure), I know that more than a couple of us are interested in knowing what lays in store for this year.

What: A 68K or 42M training run on the STORMY course starting and ending at Powerhouse Aid Station.

You have got to love this one!

Report: The Sixth running of the North Shore 6- Hour Enduro was a success. We were very lucky with the weather as the anticipated rain held off. However it was cold for those in the gazebo (Wade and Danielle). In all 18 people ran at least 1 lap of the course. Once again Randy Hunter's record of 8 laps in 5:39 is safe, and possibly untouchable. Mark Lesack picked up his second victory at the Enduro by running 7 laps in 5:22. Good to see some new faces, hope you enjoyed the event. Special thanks to Kintec for their support. Danille from Kintec came out to aid the runners and keep a frozen Wade (time keeper) company.
Around ten of us showed up at the pub, everyone received a prize (Thanks to our sponsors Kintech and Trailrunner Magazine!). Now the bad news. My camera did not work. I'm disappointed because I have a group photo from each year.

Photos: To Andy's dismay, his camera was not cooperating. If you have any images of the day, please upload to Flickr.com, add to the CFA Flickr group and tag with Enduro2008 NorthShoreEnduro2008 NorthShoreEnduro and ClubFatAssEvents.

What: Join our sponsor and Business Member, Kintec, and Club Fat Ass for a 45 minute run (optional) followed by a seminar on an foot injuries. There will be pizza, a prize or two and lots of opportunity for questions and answers.

This session is free and you do not need to be a member of Club Fat Ass to attend. Pre- registration is required.

New this year, one member each month will be put in the limelight to showcase their formidable selves! Nominate yourself or a fellow club member and you may get to strut your stuff! All you have to do is fill out your online profile (sign-in to see this) complete with answers to some fun questions (don't worry, this is very easy and nothing outlandishly revealing). This is a great opportunity to get to know your fellow club members. There are over 200 of us after all!

Jeff Hunt and Rob Wall ran the trail in 11 hours. We now have a first day PR. This note was posted on the PIH Chatline bt Jeff. "We made it. It took a little longer than expected - exactly 11 hours. The beaches were totally non-runnable, and we got lost once. Overall difficulty is definitely harder than the JdF, but slightly easier than the WCT. No injuries. All is good. I will post a full report with tonnes of pictures in the next couple of days."

So it's 5:32am and I'm huddling in the handicapped stall at Rodeo Beach for warmth because the normal race start of 5:40am is being delayed because there is a humungous lineup of cars still trying to find parking so Miwok runners can check in. This is a little weird for me cause I thought the race limit was only 250. Unbeknownst to me, the RD had let and additional 100 runners off the waiting list on the condition that they would all carpool. Judging by the overflowed parking lots, this was not the case.

Congrats to Shay, Vanessa, Angus and John who kicked some serious butt and came home with the hardware in the 15th annual Marathon Shuffle in Powell River, BC this past weekend!

Here's an article on the Marathon Shuffle from the Powell River Peak.

This ~35K run is one of the most fun, low key events I've ever participated in.  It's in a beautiful part of the world and the people of Powell River really take care of you.