RoadRunners SS240k Relay Team Pictures

5 Peaks Trail Running Series - Terra Cotta

Okay so August 7th was another exciting installment of the 5 Peaks Trail Running Series & I was going to be Cindy Marcelli for the run! I was some excited! It was a 12.4 k trail race & the most I had done was the 10k at Muskoka rocks the Sunday before.

I had my daughter Chelsea volunteer at the race as well so we could go together and share the day. It was slightly over cast - but it was going to be a brilliant day. As I followed Terry from Barrie down the highway then over hill and dale, through a wrong turn we finally ended up at the race 10 minutes before it was due to start. We got our bibs & chips with 6 minutes to spare. ACK! Under pressure.
Again Barrie was representing! I can't get over the amount of Barrie runners that seem to go to every race in the area & then further a field as well.
Rickymac, Trixiemac, Cynthia Osbourne, Chris Batagglia, Terry from Barrie, Sandra, Kelly H, Greg, Stephen, Kellie M & myself. Plus a few familiar faces from races gone by.

The race goes off in waves. I let the first wave go, then the second wave and I decided to go on the 3rd wave - just cuz. And off I went. Around the field, through the stone path and down towards the wooded trails. Man they weren't kidding when they said it was tough. There were more exposed roots then on a bleached blonde! Rocks, roots, rough patches ... it was abound with challenges. I kept telling myself it wasn't a race, it was a run. Just a Saturday morning trail run for fun, no need to get my knickers in a knot about "finishing" in a certain spot, finishing was enough. Though I would feel horrible if I made Cindy come in last or worse yet not at all. I so didn't want to DNF.

So I over took gingerly, shouted out " on your left " and moved by several runners, down a nice hill, across a gravel path & then heading towards the pavillion where you turn back on yourself for about 200 metres and then into the woods again. I had spied Tracy and hoped I could catch up to her. I did around the 4 k mark. She was right in front of me about 50 metres so I passed a few more folks to siddle up right behind her, we chatted for a while, but Tracy was suffering from her boat race nights. So I toddled on ahead & up up up the big hill, popped out of the woods around to field and over to the start / finish line to the left of the inflatable and on to the next loop. I grabbed a cup of water from my daughter that was manning the water station, her cheering me on was awesome! I really needed that. Off again toward the woods & to finish the race, I mean technically I was over half way by that point.
I was still feeling okay. I was pushing it slightly when I could. I was following a couple of runners but as hard as I tried to catch up to them, I just didn't have the legs for it. I rounded the 8 k mark and felt a bit of fatigue starting to settle on me. So I slowed my pace down - there was no need to get tired on a trail run and then fall over, down or on something. I am at best, an accident waiting to happen, so I took extreme caution here.
By the 10 k mark I was talking myself into a good finish, there was the big uphill, I could do that. But instead of walking it like I should have done, I ran it. I believe that's were I tore my calf muscle slightly again. *sighs*
I couldn't believe how silly I was! It's not a bad one, but I can feel it now just the same. As the last kilometre was looming ahead I kept telling myself that I didn't want fall over the finish line. So I'd better smarten up and get my poop on a scoop! I crossed with a time of 1:34. All things considering, not too bad. I didn't let Cindy down & she wasn't the last one across the finish line.
Woohoo!

One of our runners Greg McKinnon got a podium place in the sport race - 6K. Well done Greg! Congrats on the excellent showing!

Then TfB, Sandra, Kelly H, Chelsea & I headed out of town after the awards and door prizes for a nibble to eat. We ended up at a lovely little eating establishment called Cheeks in Bolton. That was a tastey treat! Especially when my daughter bought it for me. WOOHOO!!

Then some how I managed to miss the turning towards King City and ended having to get on the 400 from Finch Ave. Don't ask. I have NO idea.

And lastly just a shout out to 5 Peaks for their contribution towards the Runners Gift Basket we sold raffle tickets for. They provided us with a 5 peaks running series hat & steel water bottle as well as a Powerade reuseable bag. Thanks!!! We really appreciate it.

Muskoka Rocks 10 K

Well fellow runners, I'm a tad bit behind in my blogging! I know ! I know! Who knew there were OTHER things in my life to take up my blogging time!

As you know, when we last left our heroine she was suffering from tendonitis which, according to all reports, would leave her sidelined for 6 weeks. No running for her! None. Zero, zip, zilch, nada, buttkiss! It was a dark time for our heroine: a dark time indeed, filled with doubt, pain, depression & anxiety. However salvation came in the form of her bicycle. And so our story begins again...

Having promised Tracymac that I would be a group leader for her 10k clinic it was a bit of a bummer to be side lined with this friggin tendonitis. ( I say that with all the respect in the world cuz it really HURT !!) Being very staunch about my commitments, I had to figure out a way to keep on helping. Then it dawned on me: I have a bicycle, I can ride my bike with my runners and work with them that way! WOW~~~ I loved that idea. Until the first night of hill training. I was determined not to ride in granny gear for the Wednesday night hill training & what a work out! And my bike is a mountain bike - about 27 pounds - huge tires. *sighs* so it was great for the quads & glutes. Yikes!

So my RMT said no running until August & I had agreed to that & I meant it. Muskoka Rocks which was out goal race was August 1st. That's August to me. Right? So I kept up my long bike rides & hill training and tempo rides with the group & all the while said a little uhmna to the universe to help me be ready.
I tried a small run the week before and got 560 meters under my belt. I had to turn around less than 300 meters into the run, I could feel my foot flaring up. This did not bode well for August 1st & Muskoka Rocks. But I kept a positive attitude as best as I could and kept saying my little uhmna.

So the morning of arrived & off I went with my partner in many crimes of late, Cindy Marcelli. We packed in our racing bags & our golf bags, I mean if the weather's good why not get 9 in? Right?! So off we headed for Minett, Ontario, punched in the rough address to my Magellan & headed off in a northerly direction. With a little bit of difficulty I located the Peninsula Rec Centr, the start/finish line , then found parking and found Rickiemac & our race kits. Our tech shirts were marvellous - the back of it had written on it THE HARDEST 10K in CANADA - (or something like that... ) I just about fainted. Awesome!! Can't wait!

Found the rest of the 10K clinic folks & got some pre race pictures & got ready for the start. Found one Mr Jim Tuttle wandering about the grounds & beckoned him over. The facility we were at didn't allow the runners to use any of the amenities so off to the portopotties we went. I think there were 6 of them, so by the time everyone had arrived the line up was stretched down the road. Race Directors: how about a few extra next year?

So the race plan was to stick with Cindy who was coaching first timer Britney through the race. Nice and slow. No heroics! No running hell bent for leather. Just a slow and steady plod after all it was going to be hilly. So I was going to walk what hills I had to as to not aggravate my calf issue either. It was going to be a SMART run.

After some shuffling of the runners we were all ready to begin the race - PART WAY UP A FRIGGING HILL!! Really? Seriously? Fine, fine, fine. It can't get much worse that that. Can it. Well they were right, it was a hilly run. I started the race with Cindy & Britney - we were at a very comfy 7:22 pace. I was confident in the fact I would manage just jimdandy with that pace. As we headed for the first water station, which was advertised to be at the 2k mark, but really closer to 2.75 k (but who's taking note of things such as that) I felt a bit of a hop to my step & headed off to test my "wings" so to speak. There were some incredibly large hills. The one at 3k that was going down was nice, but the fact you know you are running up it at the 6k mark made it a bit daunting.
The rest were rolling hills and I could talk my way through them. I walked when I felt I had to. I kept to my 10 & 1's. Steady. Steady. Steady. I got to the BIG HILL and although I had passed one runner only, I had another one in my sights. He wasn't that far ahead of me & I dislike him with all my might, but the hill was bigger. I had to walk it, there was no way I was willing to throw 6 weeks of recovery down the drain for 300 meters. I would gain on him then he'd take off running. Ohhh... that was soooooooo annoying! ACK!! Then I passed another runner who was struggling as well, but it wasn't THE fellow. It wasn't the same feeling. By this point I was running 300 meters and walking about 100 meters. I was TOAST! So much for the cardio fitness on the bike rides. BLECH.
I came up the final hill and started passing the 5k walkers that were still out on the course. By now all of the other 10 k clinic members had finished. I passed them on the way to the turn around. Heckled Aiden McGee as he came speeding by me on his return leg and by the way he came in 1st in his age group. I like to think my positive remarks to him helped spur him on to his amazing finish. AHAH.

I tried to finish strong. I still have Kevin O's voice in my head from time to time. " finish strong" aackk.. ALRIGHT!! ALRIGHT!!. And I picked it up. I was looking at the finishing time and saw 59:xx on the digital timer & I went faster & faster. I couldn't believe the time! Could it be true? could I be under one hour for a 10k? Yeah, not so much! I was looking at the 5k clock. My time was 1:10. Not bad for a first run back on the most difficult course in Canada!
I'd take that for sure.

Afterwards we stayed to watch Aiden be presented with his award, he's a terrific runner for all of his 14 years. Darren Collins was there as well & placed 6th over all and 2nd in his age group. Well done gentlemen! Well done.

I would definitely go back again! It's a great course, definitely tough, but definitely worth the drive to Minett.

CHOCOLATE RACE Volunteers Needed!!!

Hi Everyone,

We could still use some volunteers at the upcoming Chocolate Race in Port Dalhousie (near St. Catharine's) on August 29th. Those of you that are running the race may know of someone - perhaps a family member or friend - that would like to come and cheer you on from the best seat in the house..right on the course! If you are injured and are not running anyway c'mon down and be a part of a great event! Also a great opportunity for students to get their volunteer time for school so bring them out! They'll have a great time and get some hours signed off too!

Please reply by email as soon as possible to let me know if you can help out or if you know of someone that could (spouse, friend, family, teen aged kids). The race is actually THIS SUNDAY so I need my numbers firmed up ASAP.
Time Commitment - Sunday August 29th 8:30am to 12:30pm (only 4 hours!!)

Where - Port Dalhousie ON (next to St. Catharine's ON...it is GORGEOUS there!)

Why - to be a part of one of the BEST races on the circuit. RD is Diane of Dirty Girls fame..if you ran her race this month then you know she puts on a great one!

Accommodations - if you don't want to drive down from Barrie on Sunday morning we have FREE accommodations at my friends place 15 mins from the start. There is enough sleeping room for close to 20 inside and tons of acreage to pitch a tent if you prefer.

What's in it for YOU? - Free entrance to the chocolate after party (free chocolate !! ) and a Free beverage at a local establishment (think beer, wine or chocolate martini, chocolate milk for those under 19 :) ) These items are only being offered to Barrie volunteers to say a HUGE thanks for coming down to help out.

What's in it for ME? - having the confidence that the volunteers I have on course are doing an awesome job and knowing that we have a great and supportive running community!

Many have said they will assist, NOW is the time to commit...pretty please! This involves directing the runners on the course, cheering (we do it best in Barrie) and supporting those that you know participating in the event.

I am in need of a minimum of 16 bodies for the course marshaling. If I get more than I need (how awesome would THAT be), we can look at pairing people together...

If you can respond by email today it would be sooo appreciated! Hoping to count on your support. It is going to be a GREAT day!

Thanks so much!
Catherine

cath.harding@gmail.com

Simcoe Shores, an Old Guys Perspective

Well what a weekend. While it is a little early to know all the results and lack of sleep makes, at least myself a little sleepy. It seems that the Barrie RoadRunners were very successful at the first annual Simcoe Shores 240k relay. With I believe 8 teams out of the total of 41 teams that showed up we were well represented. BKB, Barrie Dashers, Faster than a 93 Civic, RoadRunners 2, The Heat waves, Barrie Packers, the Sole Sisters and us the RoadRunners Oldguys.
The festivities or race start began at 7:30 am on Saturday morning with the first wave heading out from the waterfront in downtown Barrie, the second wave including the Oldguys started at 9 am. The fast third wave started at 10:30. Our team included Darren Collins, Bill Lovett, Oliver Owens, Brendan Kavanagh, Theo Bosch, Roger Ison and Keith Lascelles. Our first runner was the speedy Darren Collins who started tucked in behind the leader for the first 6 or 7k before passing him on the rail trail at the 5th/6th side road. Darren came in comfortably in first place for wave 2, in our first leg, handing off to Theo. Theo had been battling a few injuries and other than a short run on the previous wednesday hadn't run for a couple of weeks, so this would be interesting. Theo ran strong and steady on his leg to the fifth line of Oro and up towards Bass lake Road at the Hand off Theo was in second place and let Brendan take over. Despite telling him to take it nice and easy, Brendan tore up what was a very difficult hilly leg and left a large gap between himself and second. Bill took over next and kept a strong a steady pace on rollign hills passing first wave runners who had started 90 minutes ahead of us. Bill passed on to Keith who immediatley had a couple of huge climbs to tackle, which would be a test for his injuries that had turned the year of running into a challenge. Keith tackled the hills and forced himself to do 10 and 1's to lessen the impact on the sore achilles and hamstrings issues. As Keith finished his left achilles twinged a bit and after finishing thought that, that might be it for the weekend, with only one leg done. Oliver took over from here to the end of the first stage and brought us in tied for first in our wave. 4 hours and 41 minutes. It turns out that only 3 teams from the final wave beat our time too, so we were fourth overall at this point. A 2 hour break took place in Orillia at this point.
The second stage from Orillia to Midland would round out the daylight hours and Started with Roger, who found the humidity tough on a very hilly leg. Darren took over next and chased a very fast runner from the Velocity team from Orillia, keeping us with in 5 minutes. One of the performances of the weekend for our team was next to come with Brendan taking over 5 minutes behind the front runners in our wave, on a very scenic and flat trail leg he caught the lead team with in 5k and built a sizable lead as he came into Coldwater and passed off to Bill again. Bill contiued at a steady pace as he passed many first wave teams, but try as he might he couldn't catch James Rooney at the leg end. James showed some true grit to fend him off at the finish, good job James! Theo had, like Keith decided to miss a leg to see how the injuries were fairing and Oliver had stepped up to run to Victoria Harbour. The humidity at this point was very thick and dusk was approaching. Another good run from Oliver borught into the exchange and Roger ran to finish our 2nd stage in Midland in the twilight hours. We were the third team in overall. but still had changed positions overall or in our age category. At this time both Theo and Keith withdrew due to injury. Another break ensued for about an hour and a half, before the next waves got started at 9:30, 10:00 and 10:30pm. We started at 10 and Brendan ran hard against another tough runner in the dark. This would be a test for a lot of runners as most had never run trails in the dark, lights were a must and some found out cheaper lights just don't cut it. The trails were pitch black and very hard to see the footing, regardless Brendan ran well and passed over to Darren who quickly took over first place again running into Wyevale. Another leg by Oliver followed which would take us into Wasaga Beach into the early hours of Sunday morning. While supporting Oliver along the route on Floss Rd 11 just coming into the Beach we noticed a electric moped being driven eratically in Olivers direction so we tunred round to warn Oliver and another support vehicle down the road. The moped then tried to run oliver off the road turned around and came back, we then confronted and stopped the moped. Some very "stoned" individual with no helmet either. A text from Theo revealed that they ahd talked to the OPP at another turn who had actually stopped the moped earlier and let him go on home???? Olivers run continued rather uneventfully, althought the humidity seemed to be talking its toll. Roger followed on to due battle with drunks downtown in Wasaga as the bars were letting out. No problems but somewhat entertaining. Meanwhile the rest of the team headed to the next stage end to set up up a tent and try and get some sleep (not very successfully). More to come...

Part Two
While some of the team were making an attempt to sleep, Roger, finished his leg into the Sportspark with support from Theo and Brendan. A couple of hours laying around or walking around chatting to some of the other teams. A four o'clock wake up call and we were shuffling around getting ready and packing back up for Stage 4. Darren started the first leg off and to the west end of Wasaga Beach, up against a couple of formidable runners. Darren ran comfortably hard and finished the leg in 2nd place right behind the first place runner still in the dark. Oliver would take over for the 2nd leg and he blew out of the exchange zone with a sense of purpose. "Oliver, slow down, you've got a long way to go", Oliver was chasing a much faster runner and soon could only see a red flashing light in the distance. But Oliver is a strong and steady runner and maintained his steady pace. About halfway throught the leg, he was starting to get a little disillusioned and even offered to drop for the good of the team, but we would here nothing of it. We are a team and unless he was injured he was going to finish as a team. At one point Oliver asked if there was anyone behind him that we ccould see, we lied and said there was no one in sight. Actually we could see a light in the distance. We told him afterwards! Daylight was starting to show throught the clouds at this point and after a much longer leg than he thought, rounding a corner he saw the exchange zone and almost wet himself with delight. He was almost done for the race.
Bill would take over for what would be advertised as the toughest leg of the whole race up the mountain, or the escarpment. After he took off we followed, but had to make a pit stop for Brendan when we came upon an portable toilet about 1k from the exchange zone, WTF. After a long time waiting we took off after Bill, but couldn't follow to support as the road was closed to vehicles. At least it was supposed to be as some went through anyway. We found the alternate route and met up with Theo and Roger at the next exchange zone. At the top of a large hill we waited and thought we would be a long while. Some of the fast wave runners came through as we waited, but then we saw Dawn Hamel from the Velocity Team powering up the hill in first place for our wave. 55 years old and she was running up the hill like it was flat, amazing run. But shortly after Dawn came in, we saw Bill. He finished making up 5 minutes on the leaders in only 9k. Another amazing performance. Before Bill arrived we had a team discussion about Roger doing the next leg as apparently it was tougher than the level 5 leg that Bill was doing. But the following legs would be all downhill and Roger doesn't like downhill running, so off he went. And wow, Roger stormed up the hills, one after the next and passed the lead runner. The hills kept coming and Roger kept attakcing them, with a few walks thrown in. The rain had settled in and Roger was in heaven, loving the wet conditions. It also got very foggy as we finally pulled in to the second last exchange. Brendan was itching to go and off he went and the leg was definitly downhill and Brendan was loving it (he would pay for it on Monday). The Irish Flash was flying down the hills, but with about 2k to go he started to feel it and you could see his form break down a bit. He ran on galantly and came into the exchnage zone he looked relieved to pass on to Darren to run the last 5.2k. We soon realized that with only 5.2k, to run and Darren running it, we better get moving to the finish or Darren would be there before us. Darren finished the 5.2k in only 19 minutes. At about 9:30 Sunday morning we finshed, third place overall and second in our age group. We knew we were doing well, but we didn't think we could oull that off. After brekkie, we met up with some of the other Barrie teams finishing. A good day/night was had by all and Barrie teams did extremely well most placing in the various awards. Congrats to all. Thanks to all the volunteers, and support crews out there. hopefully we'll get some pictures up soon. And I'm sure we'll all be back next year, some of us may even be healthy enough to actually run.

Races from 10K to 240K this weekend

Lots of races happening this weekend for Barrie RoadRunners. The Island Girl 10K and Midsummers Night Run 15K/30K in Toronto are a couple of races with BRR participating in. Of course the other big Race is the Simcoe Shores 240K Relay. There are quite a few teams from Barrie participating in this Ultra distance relay which starts in Barrie Saturday and finishes in Collingwood on Sunday. Many have been training at all times of the day and night for this one to get used to the schedule. It looks like perfect weather so far for all the events. Good luck and enjoy your race.

The Last Iroquois Trail Test

If anyone is looking for a great trail race to do on August 21st, the 10th and FINAL ever Iroquois trail test 30k is taking place north of Burlington. Put on by the Burlington Runners, they have decided that this will be the last one.

Dirty Girls and 5 peaks today

A lot of Barrie RoadRunners are running trails this weekend! With the 5 peaks series continuing in Terra Cotta, near Orangville and the Dirty Girls series of races at Mansfield. The Dirty Girls races include a 30k race and 6, 12 and 24 hr events.
Good luck to all.