Enter 2021 ... !

 After spending a few days in Jasper just before Christmas whilst I completed "The Snow Queen Ultra", it was nice to get home and have a few quiet and relaxing days with Andy and the pups. We didn't do much at all - just a few nice walks and some gentle runs, and it was nice to wind down for a few days.

New Year's Eve was also a quiet affair - we've never really had anybody around over the festive period so the provincial Covid restrictions didn't really impact on us - and it was just Andy and I sitting around the firepit in the backyard, drinking a couple of beers before ringing in the new year.

family time on New Year's Eve

I'm sure many of us entered 2021 with caution but also a sense of optimism having been through what we had last year, and whilst there is hope on the horizon thanks to the vaccine, things definitely won't change overnight and I've already resigned myself to the fact that things will still continue in a similar vein, at least for the first couple of months.

Thankfully I started the new year off on a positive footing by completing the Half Ass 25km in Edmonton. This event is held every year in January along with the Fat Ass 50k, and whilst not a race, it does have a small nominal fee to cover an aid station, and also encourages donations towards "Strides for Strokes". The 2021 was a virtual event, and I completed the 25k with a couple of socially distanced friends on New Year's Day.

It was a great day for running with mild temperatures, but that milder weather did bring out the crowds, and I had never seen the river valley trails so busy. I admit to getting a little frustrated at the sheer number of people out and about, but as the sun went down and people started to head home, things got much, much quieter and I found that I was enjoying things much, much more.

Sunset on New Year's Day as we completed the Half Ass 25k

I posted a video to my YouTube channel from the day (link here if you fancy watching) and it's safe to say that we still had lots of fun, finishing the course in around 2 hours 40 minutes.

That same week, I was also informed that I had been chosen as an ambassador for Team HoldtheCarbs for the 2021 racing season. HoldtheCarbs (https://holdthecarbs.ca/) is owned by Canadian 24 and 48 hour record holder Viktoria Brown, who is also the Hungarian National Triathlon Champion for 2020. I was fortunate to meet Viktoria at Big's Backyard Ultra World Championships back in October last year, when we both represented Team Canada. Her dedication and commitment to training and competition really inspired me, and I am so happy to be on the HoldtheCarbs team, along with several other inspiring athletes.

Team HoldtheCarbs .. more to come soon!

With the new year came a new focus on race plans for the year, although for me personally, they mirror last year's given that I rolled over my entry for pretty much every race I had entered. My race plans thus far for 2021 include:

* Frozen Ass 50km in February

* Hill of a Race 6 hour event in April

* Survivorfest 24 hour track race in June

* Canadian Death Race 125km in August

* Grizzly Ultra 50km in October

These are all of course dependent on the pandemic situation but we are all hopeful that things will go ahead this year, albeit with a different approach to what we have been accustomed to.

I did feel that the year is already quite full for racing, but there is a possibility that I may head to Phoenix in December to take part in the Across the Years multi-day event, either 72 hours or the 6 day event, in the hope of chasing some Canadian records. Whether this happens or not really does depend on how the above races go this year, but given that this year may be the year that I finally get my Canadian citizenship, I thought it would be a great way to celebrate things by aiming for some national records.

So whilst we still wait to see how the year pans out, I've already started being far more disciplined in my approach to training. I've had some pretty good training sessions already this past couple of weeks, and assuming I can avoid injury and stay well, I feel like my fitness is heading in the right direction again. I have also started to work on my strength again. It's been a couple of years since I've done structured strength training, and I have had niggles on and off since. I'm trying to get into the routine of doing sessions twice weekly and so far, so good.

In other news, I am still trying to find work but I'm not having much luck so in between job searches and applications, I am trying to build on my YouTube channel. I'm not naive to think that it will rocket overnight, and I am willing to be patient whilst it grows. I'm just enjoying coming up with ideas and making and editing videos for the moment, and learning new things as I go along. 

I'm also currently researching to see if some business ideas I have would work, with a view to setting up my own business by the spring. This is a really scary concept and I have no idea how things will go, but I would much rather be self-employed and try to earn an income, rather than wait around for that call that will finally invite me to interview.

So there you have it. I have lots of plans for 2021, both personally and professionally, and I'm hopeful that positive things will eventually come out of it all. Of course, I will be spending lots of time with the pups, taking them on lots of runs and walks, and hiking both locally and further afield. The pups make me happy and give me a purpose to get up in the morning whilst I don't have a job to go to, and for that I am truly grateful.