Colin Dignum came within 32 seconds of making history at the 14th running of Canada’s Knarliest race. Colin, running his first Knee Knacker, finished in 4:45:43 while holding a twenty-seven minute lead over second place finisher Kevin Titus, also a first timer. Peter Findlay’s 1991 record time once again withstood a close test. Jacquie Trudeau led the women’s race from the beginning but had to hold off a strong surge in the last stage from second place finisher, Patricia Jensen. Both Jacquie and Patricia set personal records in their duel to the finish.
The discussion before the race was that this could be the year for new records, after all the last 7.5 miles of the course were much improved over the earlier years. For all the trail improvements toward the end, the earlier sections have become tougher. The erosion continues to add to the race’s knarly conditions. Sections, where the trail skirts Grouse Mountain, have become an endless running surface of roots interspersed with jagged rocks. Occasional small snow patches and some extra sticky black mud added to the diverse Knee Knackering trail conditions.
Due to Horseshoe Bay road and tollbooth revisions near the start, the trailhead parking lot was a construction zone. The lack of trailhead parking necessitated busing to the start. The piles of dirt and rock looked very comparable to some of the obstacles normally encountered in the first five miles to the top of 4,000 foot Black Mountain. The race directors missed a chance to route us through an initial scramble instead of the customary down and back up the highway off ramp, which is designed to spread the runners out before the start of the actual single track trail.
During the normal pre-race announcements, co-race director Enzo Federico was heard making announcements directed toward the trail, "Craig Moore, come on down." Most did not understand the meaning. Ten minutes before the 6am start, Craig and pacer appeared out of the dense woods. They had just run the course in reverse, starting from Deep Cove at 6 p.m. the previous night. A three-time finisher and co-organizer of the popular training runs, Craig knew the course well, even backwards. His goal was to do a double Knee Knacker. Running the knarly trail mostly in the night, this reverse transit had just taken 12 hours. Hoping to stay within the 10 hour cut-off for the race, Craig changed shirts, donned his race number and grabbed something to eat as he joined the runners heading up Black Mountain. Craig’s valiant fete was about to unravel. Part way up the initial steep climb, he realized he was too depleted from the night run to continue. A new standard had been attempted but for most, a single Knee Knackering passage will continue to be sufficient.
Knee Knackering aid stations, as always, were appropriately spaced, adequate and well staffed. The last aid station is at mile 27.5 and sends everyone off for the final jaunt to the finish. Then with a little over a mile remaining, the finish line announcements can be heard through the woods. However, the knarly trail still has one more chance to challenge the runners. Innumerable bridges (tired minds have trouble remembering the count) and several bumps (climbs) have to be navigated on tired legs before dropping out of the woods and the short run into Deep Cove’s beautiful Panorama Park and the finish.
Knee Knackering is a tough 30 miler, well organized and full of rewards. Each year there are a large percentage of first time entrants, who successfully complete the course due to the excellent race organized training runs. The process of entering the February lottery for a July race is well worth it. The race is a most rewarding experience involving Canada’s knarliest coastal forest trail and the challenge of avoiding being knackered.
Ron Nicholl
ronn@wolfenet.com