The last race of my 2018 season was The Beav, a 50K ultra-marathon held at Hilton Falls Conservation Area near Milton, ON (https://raceroster.com/events/2018/15698/the-beav). I had been considering running an ultra for some time now, and I finally decided to build up to this event steadily through the summer. This was my first season trail racing and I had selected a few Five Peaks courses to help me train for this ultra running event - Rattlesnake Point enduro, Albion Hills half and Mansfield half (http://www.5peaks.com/ontario/). I felt I was improving all season long, finding my trail running legs, and even managed a podium finish at Albion Hills (3rd female OA).
Besides the Five Peaks races, I went out to Hilton Falls several times in the fall to train on the actual course that we would be racing on. Being familiar with the course brings me confidence and also a feeling of comfort like I’m running on home turf, so to speak. On a practical note, I always like to know where all the port-a-potties are on the course! On a more natural note, I visited the waterfalls many times over the last few months. Its one of my fav spots on the Bruce Trail and always worth a visit.
On to race morning...
Although this is considered a fall race, Nov 10 felt much more like winter that morning. I left downtown Toronto where it had previously been raining, but as I drove North and West road conditions grew more treacherous. There was one car accident on the 427 SB, and I counted three separate accidents on the 401 WB between Mississauga and Milton where ice covered the road. Still fall on the calendar, many motorists were caught off guard and had either slid into ditches or the back end of another car. I had to slow down significantly and adapt to the conditions. Pretty much a good indicator of how the trail conditions were going to be that day as well!
The windchill was bitter in the parking lot and after picking up my kit I decided to sit in my car until it was time for the pre-race meeting at 8:50am. According to my car thermometer, the air temp was -3C but the windchill felt more like -10C, ugh.
I just wanted to get moving, because I know I’ll warm up once I run up the first hill, starting on the Philip Gosling Side Trail which connects the Bruce Trail with the rest of the Conservation Area from the parking lot. Sitting around was not enjoyable, it never is. Finally 9am rolled around and all the 50K runners were off! (25K runners went at 9:30, and 10K runners at 10am).
I wasn’t sure what the trail conditions were going to look like with this wintery weather mix. I knew the 50K course consisted of two 25K laps of mixed single technical track (the Bruce Trail) and wide groomed trails (Hilton Falls Conservation Area). I knew there were going to be spots with mixtures of ice/snow/mud/wet leaves, so part of my racing strategy was to run my first 25K lap conservatively, and make a judgement call at the halfway point as to how to race the second 25K lap. The wider sections of the conservation area I ran a faster pace (5:30/km), but on the narrower single track of the Bruce Trail I had to slow it down (7:30/km). There were lots of slick rocks that forced me to walk at many points.
(Above photos courtesy of Sue Sitki)
When I reached the top loop of the course about 12-13km into the first lap I asked the course marshall what position I was in, she told me I was the 5th woman to pass. I was good with that (I believe there were 100 people registered for the 50K, a third of them women).
I hadn’t really started to race yet. Honestly, the bigger struggle at this point was with my trail bag water supply. The long straw/hose that supplied water from the reservoir bag had begun to freeze and after 20K into the run, despite my taking a sip every 5min to keep the water moving. I couldn’t pull anymore water from the bag, it was dead weight. I decided I was going to have to drop the bag completely at the halfway point aid station and depend solely on the aid station drinks. Fortunately there were aid stations every 5-7km on the course with EcoCups filled with water, Skratch or coke which was more than enough for me.
The aid stations were quite awesome actually:
Aid station 1 - Running Rarebits Run Club - This aid station featured s’mores which they made on the campfire next to the waterfall.
Aid station 2 - Russell’s Roost - where I grabbed handfuls of potato chips and electrolytes.
Aid station 3 (Start/Finish) - Tanker’s Canteen - run by Tanker & crew, who happen to brew the best hot chocolate.
Runners would pass each station twice per loop. Perfectly well placed and stocked!
After dropping my frozen bag at Tanker’s Canteen (remembering to stuff a couple of my GU roctane energy gels in my pockets before ditching the bag completely), I grabbed a handful of pretzels and washed them down with some Skratch mix. I was now ready to head back out for my final 25K lap. I felt happy, lighter and refreshed. Before leaving I asked what my current position was. Apparently two of the women ahead of me had decided to drop out after 25K, which boosted me up to third place. I was going to race the last lap, to see if I could make up even more ground. A lot can happen during 50K, and it was getting exciting now seeing how things were unfolding. Bad weather doesn’t seem to phase me as much as it does other people. Perhaps growing up in Newfoundland I was used to cold, wet, windy and miserable weather in general. Either way, it seems to work for me on race days. I’ve learned to suffer in my life, both mentally and physically. As it turns out, it makes me a good ultra runner.
I ran the second 25k more aggressively. I ran alongside some people that I knew for short stretches (Eric D’Arcy from the 5 Peaks trail series, Ryan Rogers along the technical section of the Bruce, Sam who worked in the greenhouse...you know who you are) and I enjoyed a nice chat with each of them, but I was out to close the gap between 2nd and 3rd spot so I opened up my stride and promised them we’d continue our chat post-race. I opened up and off I went.
I eventually caught up with the woman in front of me holding second place on the last 10k of the course, just after leaving Russell’s Roost aid station for the last time. I caught up with her as she slowed down for the technical section of the Bruce Trail. We both had to walk it, it was treacherous at many points. We started chatting, her name was Sarah, she wore a bright yellow jacket, and was good trail company. Sure we were racing, but we’re also a trail running community and we chatted about all sorts of things while navigating that challenging 3km stretch of Bruce. Like me, she had dropped her bag at the 25k point and we were both looking forward to hitting that Running Rarebits aid station for a final hydration stop on course.
When we reached the aid station I decided to make my strategic move. Sarah was asking for coke but I just grabbed the first glass I found - water, electrolytes, coke - whatever I didn’t care. I only had 5K left, I wasn’t wasting time on special needs. I gulped 2 mouthfuls down of whatever I grabbed (I think it was just water) and that was it. I probably only spent 15 seconds there, and I was off again. That move bought me perhaps a minute ahead of Sarah, and I was now in second place. I knew that Tanya Wharton was ahead by a long shot as I hadn’t seen her in awhile (that woman is so fast!) so overtaking her wasn’t realistic in my mind. I knew what she could do from the Mansfield half we raced back in October at the Five Peaks season finale. I just wanted to hang on to second place at this point. With 5km left I opened up on the wide section of the Red Oak trail and tried to put as much distance between me and Sarah as I could. Every few minutes I’d glance over my shoulder and I’d see a flash of yellow and I knew I had to keep the heat on. Now I was racing, and I loved it!
Turning left off the wide Red Oak trail of the conservation area, the final 2k stretch of the Philip Gosling side trail was narrower and more technical. I wanted to keep a fast pace, but I had to be more careful on this section due to rocks and roots. There was one 500m stretch in particular that was pure mud and super slippery after the ice had melted and hundreds of feet had tread over. Luckily only some minor slipping and sliding, no major spills and I kept it together for the home stretch through the field, over the bridge and through the finishers chute.
I finished in second place (5:16:34), with Sarah less than a minute behind me (5:17:19) in third. Tanya Wharton was the first female to cross the line exactly 30min ahead of me (4:46:34). Kudos to her for an incredible pace on a tough course. I have so much respect for these ladies for pushing ourselves so hard, but still being class acts. I made sure to stop and chat with both Tanya and Sarah after the race and they were super friendly and I hope to meet them on the trails again. Maybe in warmer conditions, as so many people left soon after their race was over. Not many lingering around after this event in the bitter wind.
Everybody I met on the trail that day was so great. Old and new friends, as well as the awesome volunteers at the aid stations. A big thank you goes out to Tanker who personally brought me hot chocolate after the race (you get cold really quickly after you stop running!). Sue Sitki was out on the trail and took most of these photos - thank you Sue! And last, but definitely not least, a great big thank you goes out to the Happy Trails Racing team, Jeff Rowthorn and Heather Borsellino for organizing such a fantastic event. I love my unique ceramic beaver medallion and the warm race hoodie. I hope to be back next year to do it all again! I can say that I have definitely enjoyed my first ultra running event and I’m planning more of these for 2019. But first, I’m off to MEC to buy myself an insulated water hose cover before my next long run!
