Grouse Mountain to Mountain Highway, Return
| Welcome to another exciting season of Knee Knacker training. Off the top it's interesting to note: we had fewer people apply to run the race this year (about 275 vs about 325 last year) but we had double the number of die-hards out for our first training run of the season. Thirty people braved the not-so-bad weather and completed at least the Grouse to Mountain Highway section of the Baden Powell Trail and back. Curb Ivanic and I will be officially leading the runs this year again. We operate BC Trail Running Adventures and are happy to answer questions about conditioning, nutrition, and all Knee Knacker related issues for sure. Curb was showing off at the Vancouver Marathon today and will be out next weekend for some more serious running with our group. We will be meeting in the gravel parking lot for our Grouse runs as there is no need to pay for leaving your car in this area. All the paved areas are pay parking so watch out. There likely will be lots of spots available in the gravel lot as this is a large and extended area. Just keep driving in farther if you don't seem to see a spot. We had a variety of runners out, as usual. A small number of first timers for this section of trail but a large number of previously completed Knee Knacker types. Colin and Patricia burst out of the gates and took an interesting route past our turnaround point at Mountain Highway and went on through the Lynn Headwaters area and I believe returned back down the St. Georges Trail to the BP. If you can keep up with them you're in for some fun times. Let it be said there's always a challenge at the front of our training runs even though this is our "slow Sunday run". Other runners that came out today included my good friend Don (doing his first KKNSTR race this year), Bill Dagg (leading the Wednesday night runs), Sibylle Tinsel (the better half of Ean Jackson, ultra-running guru), Kelsy, Jeff and Casper (woof) Trigg (trail faithfuls and both involved in organising the race this year), and none other than Francine Hong (in charge of the banquet again this year) and her partner in crime Enzo Federico (our Knee Knacker godfather). There were other recognisable faces and one of these days I'll actually remember their names. Of course, everyone is welcome so bring a friend and be sure they have as much fun as we all do. My advice to the runners today was: warm up when starting, drink your water early and, most importantly, stick with someone else that knows they way if you don't know the route. All the sections we will be running have tricky parts and no doubt the new runners will be confused. We've been asked for maps of the trail but since the Baden Powell is such a long and complicated route, a map won't do too much to help the newbies. Find someone that knows the way and stick to their side. We'll do our best to give directions and pointers at the beginning of each weekly run. I reminded everyone that we need more high quality volunteers to sign up for race day. We have lots of jobs remaining to be filled including: aid stations, timers, marshals, photographers, a potato cooker, pre-sweepers, post-sweepers and a human pylon, among others. I am your volunteer coordinator so please contact me with questions or to volunteer. The run next week takes us from Grouse again but into Lynn Canyon Park for a 3 to 4 hour round trip. We'll be leaving sharp at 8:00 am if possible. I expect a large crowd so please arrive with time to spare so we can answer all questions. good luck with training and happy trails, |
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