Week in Review: July 26- August 1

(Coming down one of my favorite sections of our local trails)

26/07/2010: 8.5 miles (1:20) Took it pretty easy up at Headwaters with Meredith. Just cruised around with a couple nicely tempoed climbs. Not bad for a Monday run.

27/07/2010: off. Other events to attend to and simply could not squeeze in anything during the day. Would it not be easier if we just never had to work??

28/07/2010: 8.5 miles (1:30) Headed out on one of my more familiar routes. Looping through Bridle Path trail down over to Bottle Top. Had my parents dog with me on what was a hot morning so there were was a lengthy stop at the river.
PM: 9 miles (1:18) The customary evening outing with Meredith up at Headwaters. This has become our go-to area as of late because of the endless loops that it offers all within a fairly immediate vicinity. Tonight we cruised down a fantastic section of single track just off the Baden Powell that we both had not ventured down in some time. It was truly luxurious running.

29/07/2010: 10.5 miles (1:45) Out in the pm with the decided goal to run up Old Mountain Highway (aka. Old Grouse Mountain road). Meredith and I looped around Headwaters for a couple miles to warm up the legs and then began the climb. The temperature was perfect (shirtless) but not muggy and we were welcomed with some interesting company as a group of 30 or so mountain bikers all made their way up the same climb eventually hitting up the numerous singletrack that lead back down I am presuming. It was motivating to run next to these riders and fairly handily pass by them at a comfortable pace. It definitely pushed me to go a little harder then usual; but the legs felt good so I was OK with it. We defiantly pushed the descent as well, purely driven by the fact that I had dinner waiting for us back at our apartment. Food is always the strongest of motivations.

30/07/2010: 5 miles (1:18) Up and down the BCMC in the am. Tough to get going this morning but eventually found a stride. 47 min up and 31 down with a few miles tacked on at the end. Great way to start the day.

31/07/2010: 30 miles (6:22) Seeking a quick getaway, Meredith and I headed up to Whistler for our Saturday long run. Talking with a few friends it was suggested that we run the Comfortably Numb trail (25 km) which is described as a point-to-point "epic mountian bike trail" that should only be ridden by the "more advanced of riders". I had heard good things about the route and therefore, was more than willing to give it a shot. We left our apartment early and were on the trail by 9am. Starting at the North end of the trail we worked our way up the seemingly endless switchbacks and curvatures that embody most of the trail. This kept us well and distracted as you climb the surprising 1500 foot initial grunt. It was definitely technical running with no real sections that you could simply open it up and let'r go. The constant turns certainly prevented this. We eventually reached the end (Lost Lake) refilled our packs and made the return trip on the same route back to our car. We basically mimicked our initial 25km split "out" which was encouraging. Unfortunately, because it was now the heat of the day we ran out of water with approximately an hour left of running. This likely slowed us a bit, but we were still both moving pretty comfortably by the end and could not wait to get to the car where water was available. We then headed over to Capers, grabbed some grub and soaked in the nearest lake. By this time we could see a fairly ominous storm approaching and predictably, a massive hail storm hit us on the drive home (worst driving experience of my life). I was literally going 20 km/h on the highway because I could not see more than 20 feet ahead. Overall, a great day of running on some new trails.


(Retracing my steps on Saturday's run)


(Meredith Cruising on the return trip on Saturday's run)


(Fairly representative shot of the kinds of trail we enjoyed most of the day)


(A little dusty and dirty after 6+ hours of running dirt technical trail in racing flats)

01/08/2010: 8.5 miles (1:45) Recovery run after yesterday's effort. Things felt surprisingly good but wanted to take it concertedly easy.

Weekly totals: 80 miles/ 15:25 hours

(A video I shot on Saturday's run: loving the new GOPROHD HERO camera)

Photo Gallery- A taste of the week

(Heading down Bottle Top- added effects from the new camera)

The following is a series of shots from a 10+ hour day of running/ hiking that Meredith and I did on Saturday up at Manning Park helping out with the sweep of the Fat Dog 100.

(Soaking the legs in the river up at Lynn Headwaters on Sunday)

Knee Knacker 2010: Race Report

I had certain goals and expectations heading into this year’s Knee Knacker 50km. Further, I thought they were realistic and attainable based on the training I was able get done prior to the event. As such, I cannot help but describe this last weekend as largely a disappointment and likely one of my worst races to date.

It was simple, I wanted to improve on my 5:58:14 from last year. I had one of my best training blocks in some time and was feeling reared to go for this event. Honestly, in my head I was gunning for sub 5:45.

Something just did not feel right. It is almost unexplainable, but I had this peculiar feeling that I simply could not shake. It began the night before the race and continued for much of the evening. I had a hard time digesting any food and as a result, likely failed to take in sufficient calories for the following day. Nothing tasted good. In my head I blamed it on nerves (although I am not one to get nervous especially over such a relaxed event as the KK)... but perhaps there was something else at play. I went to bed early and was able to sleep surprisingly soundly until my alarm sounded at 3:40am. I went through the usual pre-race routine and was feeling much better than the previous night. I hitched a ride to the start with my girlfriend Meredith (who was also helping me out on the day... big thank you to her!!) and just milled around, ran a warm up mile or two and before I knew it we were off.

Having not done the start of the course in some time, I did not want to get caught up in the hype of the initial moments. Furthermore, I know full well that Black Mountain is one hell of an ascent and deserving of the most respect. So with that, I tried to find my pace during the early going; which is always a challenge with the rolling uphill and technical start. Notwithstanding, I found myself with some familiar faces somewhere in the top 20 as we worked are way up Black Mountain. At this point I was definitely working harder than I wanted to be. So with that, I eased off, and let a few of the people that I would normally pace off pass; knowing that I was unlikely to lose much ground going up BM and could easily make it up going down into Cleveland Dam.

I did not find my legs the entire climb and I was still struggling to find any flowing stride as I worked my way into Cypress bowl (1:40) where I switched out of my camelback and grabbed my handheld from my girlfriend. It felt much better to get out of my camelback and be running with my usual handheld and so, through the next section I finally felt as though I was running and starting to find a pace. I ended up passing a handful of people over the next section into Cleveland Dam but was cautious not to overdo it on the downhill. It was getting hot at this point and I found my stomach hitting an unsettled state.... unfortunately, a sign of things to come.

At Cleveland Dam Aid (2:50) I refilled my bottle, dunked my hat, lost the shirt, and was on my way up Nancy Green Way to the entrance of the Baden Powell. I knew this next stretch was going to be a challenge. I definitely lost my stride last year near this point and did not want that to happen again. I ended up pacing off a few guys who were moving at what I determined to be a comfortable pace. Near the entrance to Mosquito Creek however I started to gap them and was on my own once again. It is about at this point where my race seemed to take a turn for the worse.

The stomach issues that had been sporadically bothering me earlier in the race were now once again in full force. I tried to stay on top of my hydration and downed a few electrolytes (thinking the heat may have been getting to me). Unfortunately, this was to no avail and I soon found myself unable to consume any calories at all; as soon as I tried to down a gel, I would reflexively gag in a seemingly uncontrollable way. I tried to force it down with a good jug of water… nothing. So I gave up, but then the dry-heaves started and I knew that I was in rough shape. I definitely slowed down through this section as I was just trying to keep my focus and get myself to Lynn Headwaters Aid station where I would attempt to remedy this situation. However, things progressively got worse. By the time I reached the Headwaters Aid station I was a good 15 minutes behind my intended time and feeling dizzy and generally, in a crappy state. I switched to coke hoping I could find someway to get some calories into my system (I had not had a gel in over 2 hours and had only had two on the day to this point (4+ hours of running). The coke seemed to help for about 15 minutes but then I just felt bloated and was soon gagging back up the coke along with other remnants. I was running solo at this point which definitely did not help as I was in desperate need of motivation. I was hiking hills I would never in training and had to stop in a hands-on-the-knees pathetic position to prevent the gagging.

From here there is not much else to say. I was unable to get any solid calories into the system over the rest of the race. I yo-yoed between feeling like crap to thinking I was turning things around (these were brief and infrequent). Psychology I was not in a good state as I saw any hopes of finishing near my goal time slip away. Honestly, it was hard to have the motivation. But I managed to finish it off and roll my way down the familiar trail to Deep Cove crossing in 6:23, a good 30+ minutes off my goal time).

My family was there to greet me at the finish which was fantastic (although they could tell pretty quickly that I was not feeling great). I spent the next couple of hours trying to get any sort of food into my system. But the theme persisted and I simply could not stomach it. This lasted well into the evening where I developed more stomach pains and a general discomfort in my whole chest. It was not until later at around 9:00pm after many cold soaks in the shower and lots of fluid (thanks to my amazing girlfriend who attended to me as though I was her patient ;)) that I was finally able to eat a wrap (although 10 minutes later Meredith and I had to pull over the car as I thought I was going to lose it… thankfully it stayed down).

Needless to say, this was my first experience with such severe stomach reactions during a run. I have never had the complete inability to take down calories of any kind. I still find myself puzzled over the cause… likely a combination of things including the heat and falling behind early on hydration (?). I suppose it was just one of those days. On the positive side (got to find at least one) my legs felt great over the next few days. It was as though I had barely run at all (perhaps the training paid dividends in some way). But nevertheless, I definitely have come to the conclusion that I need to seriously reassess my general approach to nutrition during racing and training more generally. In retrospect, I was probably inadequately fuelling my body for many of the weeks I was training at the volume I was (explains a few of the low patches I had perhaps). This will certainly be one of my points of focus over the next month as I prepare for Where’s Waldo 100km at the end of August.

In the end the best I can do is learn from the experience and move forward.

Week in Review: June 28-July04

Ominous looking skies to the West near the top of Lynn Peak

28/06/2010: 9.5 miles (1:15) Out in the PM after work for an easy recovery run as is my customary routine after the weekend. Felt good the entire effort to the extent that I had to consciously tell myself to slow down on numerous occasions. I still ended up doing the run faster than I wanted but honestly I just listened to my body and went with it.

29/06/2010: 4 miles (1:40) Up and Down the BCMC with Meredith. Fun climb. It started to hail about half way down which surprisingly hurt as they pelted off our exposed neck, arms, and back.

30/06/2010: 9 miles (1:08) Headed out in the AM before work and did my customary run from my apartment to Lynn Headwaters and then returning. Overall, a fairly uneventful run with no major highs or lows. Body feels good.

01/07/2010: 10.5 miles (1:38) Had the day off work because it was Canada day!! Meredith and I ran from behind Park Royal up to the Suspension bridge and looped around that area for a while. It was pleasant running through the rolling yet forgiving terrain. PM: 6 miles (2:26) Closed the day with a hike up Lynn Peak to satisfy the vertical for the day.


Hanging out on top; the view to the Southeast from the top of Lynn Peak

02/07/2010: 9 miles (1:12) Replicated my run from Monday evening but felt about ten times worse. Had pretty crappy energy the whole time and then my stomach really started to give me grief. Got it done though and actually started to feel better by the last couple of miles; unfortunately, had to go to work by that point.

03/07/2010: 12 miles (2:00) Ran from my apartment down to Intrariver park, up to the Lynn Headwaters. From there, I followed the Baden Powell into Deep Cove, covering the last 1/3 of the Knee Knacker course. Compared to yesterday I felt much better and just settled into a nice rhythm for the effort. Meredith met me in Deep Cove. I soaked in the ocean and then we headed off to the Farmers market. Great day.


Meredith working her way up

04/07/2010: 12.5 miles (2:26) Ran a nice little loop with Meredith. Ended up covering a very similar route that I ran yesterday but instead looped down old buck after descending the first part of Baden Powell once cresting the Seymour Grind. Followed Bridle Path to Twin bridges finishing back at Lynn Headwaters where we started. Again, enjoyed a quick (because it was so f** cold) soak in the river. Unfortunately, GI issues plagued me for the majority of the run; just felt bloated the entire time and really could not get rid of it. O well, some days are just like that I suppose.

Miles: 74
Time: 12 hours

Overall I was really pleased with this week. The mileage was where I wanted it to be and I was able to keep all my runs at a relatively low distance. Despite a bit of GI issues, my body seemed to feel pretty good. I will likely take it easy this week (although the weather is improving which may be too tempting to resist; plus I hate tapering because it means I have to run less). Knee Knacker 50km is this Saturday and I would like to put in a solid effort for this race. It is a classic on the North Shore and one that always presents itself as a significant challenge. Last year I ran the race for the first time finishing with a 5:58 (15th. Obviously, I would like to improve in both respects and feel this is realistic given the complicating stomach issues I experienced last year that set me back a good 8 minutes.

Recently checking out my personal log, the last two months have been great for me in terms of training. I have kept injuries at bay and managed to log 667 miles over the past nine weeks (74.1 weekly avg) taking a sporadic 7 days off over the 63 day stretch. Moreover, I have fit in a nice training-block over the last 30 days only taking 1 day off. Cumulatively, this is definitely one of my best stretches of training and something I am actually quite proud of (given my injuries late last year). We will see if it pays off in terms of racing... Either way, just spending that much time running and being out on the trails and on my feet is satisfaction/ pleasure enough and truly what I extrapolate the most enjoyment from.

Running: Why we do it...

This week I had a nagging question that simply would not leave my mind. It is one that intermittently enters my head and inevitably so as I continue to log more and more miles/hours running. The question is simple: "why do I run?"

This question is so obviously straightforward but often causes me to engage in erratic forms of circular reasoning. I struggle to express the answer in a lot of ways. Perhaps because the answer is so personal; innately selfish and only "mine" that I just cannot find the adequate depth of language to really convey how I feel. Or, perhaps I actually believe that my response is inadequate in many ways to justify my attachment (read obsession) to the activity.

Whatever the reason, I have come to realize that despite running being such a personal experience, the consequences of it can affect those around me and attached to my life in significant ways. I was always aware of this fact but I think I failed to appreciate the potency and magnitude of its force. When one commits, at the minimum 10-15 hours a week engaging in any form of activity they are bound to be either taking away from or worse, neglecting other aspects of their life. When it comes to running, this represents just the raw minimum; when in fact one must also consider the countless extracurricular activities associated to running (eg. recovery, massage, stretching, blogging, etc). Furthermore, the emotional and physiological ups and downs that occur during a span of logging some 300+ miles a month is itself a strenuous component. In this way, it is as though everything else becomes dictated by the single activity of running.

At a personal level I have accepted these as par-the-course; but what I ignored was the implications they have on those around me and the affect they have on other more important aspects of my life. I suppose in this way it all comes down to perspective and priority. Do I love to run: absolutely. Do I need to run: on some level, I think I actually do. But if it meant losing other aspects of my life that truly make me the person I am (relationships, family, etc), the answer would be simple and the choice would be easy and running would certainly find itself down on the priority list.

Inspiring Stuff + Week in Review

Following this year’s Western States 100 from my laptop evoked nothing but pure inspiration. The dedication, commitment and personal triumphs that took place were many and brilliant. It is humbling to watch these top athletes put it all on the line and perform at such an unbelievably impressive level. I will not spell out any of the details of the race (if you are reading this I am sure you are a fan and thus, likely know them all anyways), but I wanted to note the stellar performances by those North of the border (Peter Watson, Nicola Gildersleeve, Gary Robbins and Tamsin Anstey).



Also, check out these post-race interviews from irunfar.com.

In comparison, my training this week seems like a walk in the park. Nonetheless, with a little less than two weeks until my next race (Knee Knacker 50km) I wanted to fit in one longer run (preferably on the course) while keeping the mileage reasonable and my body in a contented state. I was able to achieve these goals fairly well. Further, I fit in some solid climbing (as I have been the past 3 weeks) attempting to replicate the numerous climbs I will be confronted with on race day.

With that, here is my week in brief review:

21/06/2010: 10miles (1:25) 1000’ Took this run mostly as an easy recovery effort. I was feeling a little tired from NYC but my body felt solid the entire run. I basically just cruised around Lynn Headwaters on a beautiful evening.

22/06/2010: 4miles (1:00) Body felt good but decided on a casual hike/ run with Meredith.

23/06/2010: AM: 9miles (1:11) 800’ Headed out the door at 4:45 am to get in a satisfying effort before work. Tempoed from my appartment to Lynn Headwaters hitting the gate a few minutes over PR split without feeling like I was working too hard (good sign). Overall, a great way to start the day. PM: 6miles (1:28) 2500' Decided to summit Lynn Peak.... Could not resist as it was literally beckoning as I was heading home from work; 41:05 to the peak, 27:06 down. Casual but felt like I was working hard enough going up. Did bruise my ankle coming down on some loose rocks. However, the more I do this summit the more I love it.

24/06/2010: 4-5miles (1:00) Ran/ walked to Meredith's parents place for some delicious grub. Took the day extremely easy despite my legs continuing to feel good. Still need these days though.

25/06/2010: 9miles (1:16) 800’ Decided on one of my default AM runs. Starting at my apartment I work my way up Grand Blvd, through Loutette park, circle Bridgeman Park; then climb the 500 feet back up and head home. Nothing really eventful on this run, just felt ok. I did manage to startle a black bear down one of the ravines, no biggie. It's my fifth bear encounter in the past three weeks. I am coming to expect it.

26/06/2010: 22miles (5:20) 7100’ Started the day with a trip up/down the BCMC with Meredith. We then parted ways; I decided to run a large section of the Knee Knacker course from Grouse Mountain to the intersection of Old Buck and the Baden Powell. I then looped down to the Bridle path and worked my way home. Felt comfortable for most of the day and on all of the climbs. Ran out of water with about 50 minutes to go, so felt pretty bonky by the time I reached my apartment. I also only brought 4 gels... Could have used one more.

27/06/2010: 8 miles (1:40) 2000’ Went up Old Grouse Mountain road with Meredith; came down Secret Seven. Fun run despite the cold and wet weather.

Weekly totals:
73 miles
12:30 hours
14000’ of vertical

Update + NYC

(A representative photo of some of the awesome single track along the Appalachian Trail)

It has been some time now since I have updated this blog. Normally, I would be inclined to say that this is due to my proclivity to procrastinate. However, this time I would say that it is more a reflection of the times; we have now reached what I will call the ‘summer’ of the trail running season on the North Shore Mountains which means more hours dedicated to this activity. Naturally, it simply means more time outdoors as I seek to spend as much time as possible soaking in what are the few weeks of warmth and sunny skies we are typically privy to on the North Shore. It also means that some ‘peak’ races are just around the corner and therefore, perhaps a more regimented approach to training should coincide. However, on this latter point, I have taken a fairly different approach then last year and would like to expand a little further.

The majority of my training this year has been of the solo-nature. Certainly I am out for the odd endeavour with the tight-knit running community on the North Shore and the many people I have come to know quite well, but mostly I am on my own. This is also because my usual training partner (my girlfriend Meredith) has continued to be bothered by foot issues. Because of this I have found myself varying/ tailoring my training as I see fit with the moment; the rigidity of the two speed workouts for the week, hills on Thursday, long run Saturday, etc, that is so prevalent within the running community has lost its allure for me.

Interestingly, I still find myself following a ‘routine’ in many ways. But this, I would say, is because I enjoy the structure and my lifestyle to a certain extent requires it (9-5 job etc). Notwithstanding, the freedom to adapt my weeks to how my body is feeling has resulted in a much more enjoyable start to the high-time of the running season. Each week seems to bring with it a certain degree of spontaneity and change, which psychologically makes each week seem longer and more unique. This is a good thing indeed. Interestingly, this has not led to any form of decrease within my training volume. Quite to the contrary, I find myself logging some of the longer weekly/ monthly mileage of my life as I almost get caught up in my next run (obsessively perhaps?!). I must be careful with this and be sure not to neglect the necessity of recovery days or down weeks; if the past has taught me anything, it is the importance of this. However, as long as I continue to listen to my body I am sure things will go my way.

So, as it stands, I will keep moving with this proclivity because it is working for me right now, at this moment in time.


With that said, here is a very brief version of my last few weeks of running both in Vancouver and on the week-long trip I took to New York:

Week of 31-05-2010 to 06-06-2010: I took this week as a bit of a down week after logging 85 miles in the previous week. I ended up running approximately 60 miles/ 10 hours with two scheduled days off. To put it plainly, this was generally a shitty week for me. For whatever reason I lacked energy in all of my runs during the week; each seemed like a vast personal struggle where hills that I normally barely register were presenting themselves as serious obstacles. I spoke with Gary Robbins from NSA about this and the general lack of energy I seemed to be having. He immediately noted that a few other people had been experiencing the same over the past couple of weeks and thought it may have something to do with the less than stellar weather we had been having. I never even considered this and took solace in this suggestion. Perhaps he was on to something... By the time the weekend rolled around I felt much better and logged a 3 hours outing on Saturday with the people from Mountain Madness and a 4:30 hour effort on Sunday with some significant vertical. And, perhaps no coincidence, it rained for neither of my two weekend runs.


(Pre-run with Meredith on our Appalachian outing)

Week of 07-06-2010 to 13-06-2010: This was a good bounce back week of running for me after the pitiful start I had to last week. I was able to log 70 miles/ 10:30 hours of running with what I will call no significant long run (my longest effort was a 14 miler on Saturday before I had to catch a flight at noon that day). Moreover, I went up and down the BCMC twice including a full-fledged “reach the peak” from the ocean up Mosquito Creek, up BCMC and then returning back down to the base of Grouse on Thursday. I also ran every single day including a double on Tuesday. Compared to last week it was like night and day. My legs felt solid on nearly every effort and my energy levels were consistent for the week.


(Post-run with Meredith)


(not the best thing to encounter on the trails)

Week of 14-06-2010 to 20-06-2010: I was on vacation in New York with my girlfriend Meredith for the entire week, arriving on Saturday and returning the following Sunday. As such, running for the week would not be on the top of the priority list (in retrospect, who I am kidding, running always is near the top). Anyways, I ended up running about 60 miles for the week with a significant amount of that being of the pavement-bashing variety (blahh). Unfortunately, there were virtually NO trails where I was staying in New Jersey about 30 minutes outside of NYC. Furthermore, there were absolutely no mountains to be found. Because of this, Meredith and I ended up driving about an hour up state one day to Wawayanda State Park in desperate need of forests, mountains and trails. We ended up running a beautiful 16 miles stretch of the Appalachian Trial with some amazing single track. This was definitely a highlight for me; the varying terrain (from dense forest to open farmland where we were literally running five feet away from bulls/ cows) and close bear encounters (had to scare off two black bears that would not leave us alone) bolstered this and made it a memorable day. Other than that, it was mostly just a lot of road running in temperatures in the mid 80’s (good heat training if we ever get some in Vancouver). Followed by 4-6 hours worth of walking in the city each day (had to do something for training?!)needless to say, we were both wasted by the end of each day. But we would not have it any other way.


(a view of NYC as we depart one evening)

One last note, a quick shout out to all of the racers at this weeks Western States. Especially to the crew from the North Shore including Peter Watson, Nicola Gildersleeve, Gary Robbins and Tamsin Anstey who I know will just kill it and represent Canada.