Training Log Archive: bensmith

10min warmup
25min steadily increasing tempo (5:00/km to 4:00/km)
8min warmdown

C • Training! 1

Little recovery run around the neighbourhood.

11min warmup
10x 90s (with 60s rest) in Pacific Spirit
12min cooldown

Paces for the 10 reps:
3:40
3:32
3:39
3:32
3:42
3:33
3:40
3:39
3:34
3:15

There was a slight uphill on the odd reps, which seems to make a few seconds difference. I still had legs left at the end, so could have gone a bit harder. But this was supposed to be at "5k pace or a bit faster", and there's no way I could run 3:15 for 5k!

Beauty run down to Jericho, along the beach to Pacific Spirit, then through the forest and back along 16th. So sunny! So clear! So pretty!

Up BCMC. Snow from ~450m level.

I don't understand snow on the North Shore.

I decided to do a low elevation run, thinking I'd avoid the worst of it. Drove to Rice Lake (200m) and there was virtually no snow around. I was pleased.

I ran down Homestead Trail to Firsherman's Trail, and headed north. At 100m, there was a bit of snow. The trail gradually climbs back up to 200m, and now there's 6 inches of crusty crap I'm having to posthole through.

Went up Hydraulic Connector to Seymour Valley Trailway, which is paved, and which I thought maybe would have been plowed. Nope. 4 more km of crusty snow. Eventually I got to a bit where a truck had driven down, and could run in the tyre track. 11km into the run I got back to Rice Lake, and all the snow disappeared again. I guess there's a misleading microclimate there?

I ran around the southern section of the Rice Lake map, taking all the indistinct trails that aren't on the orienteering map. I'll use the GPS track to add them to the map this evening.


I'm sure this was a lovely run, but I was mostly looking 2ft in front of me all the time to make sure I didn't break an ankle. Dogs aren't allowed on the Fisherman's Trail, so it was very quiet. I only saw two other groups the whole time (who both initially thought I was a bear; the second group were even scrambling for their bear spray when I scampered by!). The end of the trail is at the "mid valley viewpoint", which is in a big clearing and has great views of Dog Mountain, Suicide Bluffs and the three peaks of Seymour.

It looks like you can extend this loop further north (to Seymour Lake/Dam) for an easy and flat 26km. Perhaps one to do in the summer.

C • Sunshine 1

Last-minute freebie for Cypress. Somehow the bottom of Horizon was both icy and slushy. The rest of the mountain was just icy. We should have done xc instead...