Let's Get 2023 Started Right - Pick and Shovel 10(.5)km Trail Race - 2023

 So other than some fun times at parkrun, the last time I raced and gave a good effort was way back in Oct at the Valley Harvest 10km road race.  Following that I had an opportunity to race the first ever All Out Racing 10km Trail race in November, but alas had to travel. From all accounts it was a great race. 

Come forward to January 2023 and race two for All Out Racing was here. The goal of All Out Racing is fun inclusive events. So often trail races are only Ultra Distance event, with even races in the 20km plus distance being tough for seasoned veterans. While we have had some fun shorter distance trail races locally, they certainly are not the norm, which often excludes runners that do not dedicate their lives to the woods and long weeks on their feet. 10km is a great opportunity for those that aren't normally "trail runners" to come on out and have some fun, whether they are roadies, weekend warriors or just new to running. 

The January race was called the Pick and Shovel Showdown and it included 2 races to choose from. All runners started together and did a 10(.5 ish) km race from start to finish. For some we gave it our all and called it a day, but for others their day was just getting started and the event then turned into an 8 hour endurance run. At this point runners would go back on course doing laps until the 8 hour mark. Most laps would win. If there was a tie, then the winner would be the one who did the first 10km race the fastest. Fun (if you like long). So this was a combo of endurance and speed, while laps style trail races are often mostly endurance based with the person last standing taking the win. 

Anyway, back to my race, the 10km one. 

So the day started with rain. Hold on, the day before started with rain and it did not stop (in fact it is still going on for a fourth day now). Luckily it wasn't cold rain, getting as high as 12C that day. For those doing the 10km, this was annoying but not the worst thing. It certainly sucked more for the endurance racers. 

I got up and got to the race venue early as I usually do and got checked it. Super easy process, the guys had everything well laid out and ready to go. I also had time to consider my race outfit as I basically filled my car with options. 

Over the next 1.5 hours the racers came through and picked up their kit and then we were beckoned outside for a race brief.

We all pretended to try and stay dry for those moments and then off to the start line, where we were not held long before we were off and running.

The course started on a gravel road which climbed quickly, then a fast decent to a turn onto a rough section of double track. This popped out onto a gravel road again before once more zipping into some single track. This was close to 0.5 km in length and plenty of time to get the field spread out, so the single track section didn't really bottle neck too badly.  The single track had huge puddles, the kind that eat your momentum. If your feet were not wet yet, they were now. 

I was running in the third position at this point and hanging with the top two runners. We popped out of the wood, ran across a small field and then onto the main loop.

MacDonald Sport Park (the name of the venue) is a fairly wide gravely / crusher dust trail system. It doesn't get a ton of maintenance and therefore the trail, while not technical, is quite rough with some roots and larger rocks. The hills often contain loose gavel as well. 

By the second kilometer, I was over taken and fell to fifth, with the top two guys kicking it up even further and pulling away.  I was then side by side with some other runners, going back and fourth with a few guys over the next kilometer. 

That first section of trail is predominantly down, which means we need to go back up. The far side of the loop is hills. Steep, short, power hills. I have run in here a lot, both solo and with canicross dogs. I know how to accept the hard pounding of the down hills and took advantage of that. With the mud, slippery rocks and deep puddles, I drew upon a lot of experience and pushed hard top pull away on the descents. Soon I was back into a solo fifth position with a small gap. 

This lasted for a bit but then Colleen Wilson pulled along side. Her climbing strength was awesome and we ran side by side through deep puddles and heavy mud and slippery rocks until about the 6th kilometer and which point she started to pull away. 

My goal was to worry about me though and what I had in the old man legs. As I started lap 2 I knew I had to take advantage of the downhill section to gain as much of a gap advantage as possible, so I held the effort.

My breathing training was coming into its won as well. I was getting good deep breaths and feeling as strong as I could, thanks to Gilles and O2Max for that.

I was able to keep Colleen in my view and a couple of other runners just slightly ahead until we started to go into the twisty hilly section. 

Finally, the big hills were done and I pulled back to the field area for a final time with some cheerful volunteers pushing me along. Only about 800m to go! 

This was now about me. I had glanced back and no one was in sight, and I knew I couldn't catch the runners ahead, but I wanted to run as strong as possible so pushed harder through the single track, the gravel road and then the double track sections, finally climbing up the road toward the finish until the sharp descent to the line. 

Cheering volunteers were there and the top 5 other finishers. A couple guys ahead went back out as they were doing laps at this point, while four of us caught our breath then went out for a nice cool down run and a chat. 

My official time was 45:40 and it was tough. It was definitely a course suited to strong cross country runners, able to dig through puddles and mud and short choppy hills. Four people ahead (at least) were people with decent or exceptional cross country records so it makes a lot of sense. 

I chose my On Running Cloudventure Peak and Darn Tough Nordic socks to keep my feet happy. Of my 8 pair of trail shoes then had a good level of aggression while still some comfort. And I always choose longer socks for trail running, especially in mud/water/snow with wool socks or wool blends being key for me. 

It was great chatting with many runners, chatting with fellow BLT Runners Nicole and Jacquelynn (really stepping out of their comfort zones on races like this).

So again a big shout out to AO Racing with Jason and Peter and the great group of volunteers. The race went off so well, and I look forward to future races with them, either running or helping out. If you are in Nova Scotia or willing to travel, add their races to your bucket list and follow them on Facebook and Instagram

https://www.facebook.com/allouttrailracing

https://www.instagram.com/allouttrailracing

Shout out to their event sponsors: Aerobics First, Sportwheels, 5K Cafe, On Running, Smartwool, Buff, and 3 Mile Outfitters.

2022 Year in Review

 Let's start 2023 with a quick look back at 2022. 

I'll start by saying that 2022 was kind of a recovery year in a way. After 2 years of hard running in virtual races, then an epic Fall of 2021 doing ultra distance events, my body was tired. Initially I had planned on training for a Spring 10 km race, but instead, as time ticked away, I knew what I really needed was to recover. 

Now, I also kept to my monthly goal of a 5K run under 18 minutes, and I made it all through 2022 with at least 1 fast run a month. It is nice to know that I can still summon a little speed, even when I am not at 100%. 

After some physio (thanks Anita at Beaverbank Physio), so massage therapy from Seaside Chiropractic, and of course the mighty Alan, my chiropractor also at Seaside, my recovery took a mere couple of months, and I was feeling decent again. 

So let's look at some of my highlights and get to it (with pictures!):

Parkrun started back up, and I was on the line from the first run. I ran with lots of friends, made new friends, and after a 2 year break, finally hot 50 official parkruns.

Parkrun also became the venue of my fastest official 5K event, and for those that know the Chain of Lakes parkrun course, it is a tough one. I ran a 17:11, knocking 8 seconds off my old 5K PB at age 48. 

That same day, I also hit my longest ever open water swim. It was a solo effort and as a non-swimmer, I was super happy to have achieved this over 1 hour swim. 

Though I was not at my peak in the Spring, I wanted a new challenge, so I took on the world of canicross. I was happy to have had so many friends that helped me out by loaning me dogs to run with. While, I had many great runs, I have to say my 14:50 min 4.6km run in Moncton with Loki was a thing of magic. 

I didn't enter many races this year other than parkrun but I did find some good results when I did.

First place at the Bridgewater Tire Trot. That is 3 years in a row (with a 2 year break of not being held).

Natal Day I did the Mile and ran a 5:06, followed by the 5.6 mile event the next day where I ran a 3:37 pace, which was what I wanted to be able to hold for 10km. I felt good after that run, so I knew that my 10 km goals were not too far away.

And finally I entered the Valley Harvest 10km race. Here I finished second overall (which is great enough) but also achieved a new PB in the 10km. Now this PB is hard to nail down. My official race time is 36:11 (my old PB was a virtual race in 36:15) but the course seemed to measure long (based on a lot of factors, but it seems consistent with all runners) and I crossed the 10km mark at 35:51. So either way, PB. I am happy. 

I took a trip to Moncton to meet up with Gilles at O2Max testing. Honestly, this was before I hit many of my fastest times, and before I did my VO2Max test with him, I was kind of in a funk. Part of it was a still recovering body, but also the idea that maybe I had maxed out my abilities. Gilles assured me, after my test, that I still had a lot to give. I began breathing training with him and even a few weeks of that really helped open up the air ways and by Fall my lungs were happy as ever. It was nice to find out my lung potential was no where near maxed out. So this is a journey I will continue on and see where it leads. 

I still managed to hit the trails as well, leading the Sportwheels Thursday night trail ride all Summer long. We ended the season with a 50Km ride from Hubbards to Chester and back. 

In all I ran 2463km, biked 2761 km, swam 27344m and hiked 306 km. 2022 wasn't too bad at all.