Training Log Archive: STORM

While it wasn't how I had planned it, this was actually to be my first solo race of the year (and only the second race I've done of any kind since November!) Training had been consistent and going really well from December through to April, but 3 events in 6 weeks since the middle of May have totally thrown everything off, and I had no idea going into Creemore how well my base training would serve me. As I looked around at all the super-fit-looking people around me at the start line (including Bash - looking lean and mean!), I had some serious race jitters as the gun went off...

Bash had told me that the views from the high points of this race were truly spectacular (and they were), and friends had mentioned beforehand that the post-race lounging in the Mad River with pizza and kegs of Creemore made this the best finish line experience of any race in Ontario (and I wholeheartedly agree). One thing that I didn't care for though was the simultaneous start for the 25 and 50k racers, which (for me anyway), makes it really difficult to judge who to pace yourself against. I marked one racer (who I internally nicknamed "red shirt guy") at around the mid-way point of the first 25km loop as a 50k-er who I would want to keep in my sights. I pushed harder than I should have, but I couldn't reel him in until the end of the lap, where a quick burst on the sweet singletrack put me just behind him. Mission accomplished for Loop 1...

Sure enough, as soon as we crossed the line, red shirt guy pulled off to the side - clearly indicating his completion of the 25km race. $ht! Now I've overextended myself at a 25km pace with a full lap to go. I dropped my packvest in the transition zone (horrible, horrible idea to wear a packvest on a scorcher like today), and took off into the trails, hoping that I could maintain at least some level of consistency in my pace without someone in front of me. However, when I hit the first lengthy stretch of road, it suddenly occurred to me that there wasn't ANYONE in front of me, nor was there anyone behind me. Could this be? I restrained myself from asking the volunteers at the first few aid stations how far ahead the next racer was in front, until curiosity got the better of me...

"Dude, you're the first one that's been here for a long time."

Holy cr@p! Off I went, now facing peak heat with some big climbs ahead. Started to really feel the brutal temperature at around the 41km mark, but recovered by walking some hills and forcing myself to down some food and Endurolytes. By the time I hit the final 5km I knew I had it locked, and picked up the pace through the last stretch of trail leading back to the host site - happy to finally be off the sun-beaten roads. Soon as I hit the finish, it was straight to the river which runs immediately behind the RD's property to lay down in the knee-deep flowing water, where I literally could have stayed for hours. Forget fancy resorts or extravagant finish line set-ups - absolutely nothing beats the opportunity to sit in the sun on a camp chair submerged in a running river with a cold beer in the cup-holder. Absolutely perfect...

C • Congrats on the Win! 10

Awesome day of mountain biking and running around Stony Lake with Heather B. Started the day from Warsaw Caves and headed northward to hit the awesome ATV trail networks north of the lake (a la the former Stony Lake Tri), follwed by a quick jaunt on foot into High Falls. Very embarrassed to have found two Storm the Trent markers from the last Warsaw race back in 2008 - not good.

18km road run

18km road run