A Race in the Park :o)

For once, I guess I knew what to expect at the 5 Peaks Trail Race at Fish Creek Park – a magnificent course with plenty of technical single track trails, incorporating as many ups and downs as possible, and definitely the “wow!” factor in terms of “are we really in the middle of a city that is home to over a million people?!”

I’ve spent many hours running around Fish Creek since my move overseas last year, but even I was not aware of the hidden gems that course director and friend, Alan Lam, came up with. Fish Creek really is his backyard, and I take my hat off to Alan for the choice of course which certainly showed Fish Creek at its best.

I’d decided to do the race to see how I faired off-road, particularly with some major trail races coming up, and whilst I knew it wouldn’t be the greatest “race sharpener” for a road marathon next weekend, it certainly wouldn’t do me any harm getting a good hours run in under race conditions.

The course was originally meant to have been around 14km, but Fish Creek was hit by the floods back in June, resulting in some last minute changes that increased the distance to around 16km. I didn’t particularly mind as the longer the better for me, and I was kind of hoping that the distance would be in my favour rather than racing a shorter 10k.

Rocky Streams in Fish Creek Park
(Course photographer's photo with thanks)

It was a beautiful morning for the race and with a kids race and the choice of either the “Sport” distance of around 10km, or the “Enduro” distance of 16km, there were quite a few folks about and the atmosphere was buzzing.

The Enduro race started at 9.30am, and as we lined up on the start line, I reluctantly found myself on the front row, with everybody else holding back. I noticed a few speedy looking ladies that appeared to be fresh out of uni, and whilst looks can be deceiving, I was once again proved correct when they shot off at the gun, never to be seen again for the whole duration of the race.

The first couple of km followed bike paths and I was well aware that I was lying in 3^rd place in the ladies race. With no sight of any other lady, I settled into my rhythm of working hard, staying relaxed and running strong. The start was fast for me – a 4.13km split, but we soon hit the trails and I needed to concentrate harder to avoid falling flat on my face which meant my pace slowing to something more reasonable.

Some of the guys that tagged along :o)
Thanks to course photographer

I don’t recall the exact course, but what I do remember is overgrown, narrow and twisty paths with the odd tree trunk and various other obstacles thrown in for good measure. There were some sharp and quite steep inclines that tested the lungs and legs, followed by some fantastic downhill running through wooded areas that involved dodging tree stumps and roots, rocks on the path and even a stream crossing, and all the time, eyes focused on the trail ahead and hoping not to trip over. There were also some muddy sections despite it being a hot summer’s day, and a beautiful narrow path that climbed to the top of a hill overlooking the lush green valley below that was truly beautiful. I was not alone in my admiration - despite the puffing and panting, several other runners nearby commented on how awesome this was.

Eventually, I found myself running with a group of chaps, although on the uphills they moved ahead of me only for me to catch them again on downhills where I didn't hold back and just let the hills take me, whilst some of the the guys tentatively picked their way through the undergrowth.

Grassy hills, and a race on my hands
(thanks to course photographer)

Around the midway point, as we climbed up a grassy hillside, I became aware of somebody in an orange cap not far behind me.

Instinct told me it was another lady on my tail, and to some degree I was disappointed. I so desperately wanted to finish in the top 3 at this stage, but she was running like a true trail runner and I could tell she was much stronger with far more experience. For a short while, she just sat behind me, but as we started to head for home, we hit a climb that forced several of us to start walking, heads down with hands on knees, whilst orange cap lady powered up the hill not fazed whatsoever. She opened up a small gap over me and as we hit the summit of the hill and were greeted with a downhill section, I figured I needed to just keep her in my sights and then maybe, just maybe, I could catch her in the last 2km when we were back on the paved bike paths.

Technical woodland trails 
(think this might
be one of Alan's photos!)

The downhill headed into the trees, and as the path twisted and turned sharply amongst the tree branches, I lost sight of orange cap lady but knew she couldn’t be too far ahead. Being a confident downhill runner, I continued to push hard and as we reached the bottom and the trail opened up, I could see her about 200 yards ahead, now running with the group of men that had kept me company earlier. 

By now, there was around 3km still to go, and my mind was telling me it was all or nothing – I had to give chase. 5 minutes later, the gap had shortened, but whilst my legs were burning, I was still feeling pretty good. The other lady was still going well, but she did look to be tiring a little which gave me a psychological boost and a burst of speed. Before I knew it, I had closed the gap further, then I was on her shoulder, and then I’d gone past. I began to think that maybe I had gone too soon, but just tried to relax and focus on working hard. I didn’t dare look at my watch as I knew I was going at a crazy pace for me – my whole body was telling me that! – so much so that I started to overtake the guys I had been running with. I knew I couldn’t falter – if I did, no doubt orange cap lady would soon catch me – but the car park and the finish gantry seemed to take forever to appear.

At last, I finally saw the finish and as I crossed the line, I was so chuffed to be 3^rd lady and 9^th overall, running 76 minutes for 16km on a tough multi-terrain course. I was happy and relieved that I’d had the confidence to just go for at the end – it was a fantastic feeling and I was buzzing on the adrenalin. Having checked my watch, I had done the last 2km in less than 7 ½ minutes, and boy did I know it!

Me and my furry babies at the finish after collecting prize
for 3rd lady

Having received my medal and prize (which was a lovely long-sleeved fleece lined Salomon running top :o)  ) and reflected on the race, I really can’t express how much I enjoyed both the course and the event, and indeed the racing. The last 5 Peaks race I did was at the Canada Olympic Park in early 2012 where I struggled with being new to Calgary - I finished way down the field and was 10^th lady. I never expected to even make the top 3 at Fish Creek this time - I love the trails, but so does everybody else in this neck of the woods and they're all damn fine runners too! - but I’m so glad that my competitive spirit resurfaced and the run gave me a boost of confidence for my forthcoming races. Edmonton Marathon is next weekend, but the real testers will follow in September and October – it seems so far away, but it’ll soon come round, and boy am I looking forward to the challenge!