Tales of Trails, Mountains and Rocky Roads

Back in January, I was selected to represent Great Britain at the European 24 Hour Championships but about a month later, we found out that we would be making the move back to Canada. Having already done 2 international moves, I was well aware of the stress and chaos that accompanied these things and by the end of March, I had made the decision to withdraw from the GB team. I just felt that I wouldn't be able to give running my full attention which meant I wouldn't be at my best for an international race. Although I had withdrawn from the team, I still wanted to do an ultra around about the same time as I needed a focus to ensure my running didn't take much of a back seat. I knew that the Blackfoot Ultra took place in May and being the same weekend as the Europeans, it fitted perfectly with my plans - I could still follow the same schedule but without the same pressure, and it really didn't matter if I missed some of my key sessions as I would be competing for myse...

It's hard to believe that 6 years ago, I would happily have called myself a road runner and would have had no hesitation going to races with the sole aim of running as fast as I could. It would be a test of strength and speed endurance and I'd feel confident knowing that I could cope with the pace which could be anything between 5.30 and 6.30 minute miling which used to feel "comfortable". These days I dread the thought of having to run fast, even for just a mile, but I know that speed work is a huge benefit to my overall running goals, whether long or short, road or trail. When moving back to Canada, I was hopeful that I would continue to be coached by Adam. His plans over the past 18 months have been the perfect fit for me and I can say for sure that I've had a good streak of races where I've achieved or even exceeded my own expectations under his guidance. I wanted to keep that continuity and hopefully have some good race results here too - it'...

Those that know me well will know that I have 2 passions in life – my dogs and my running – combine the two, and I am completely in my element! That’s why last weekend was probably the best I’ve had in a while. A couple of months ago, I became aware of a Canicross event that was to be held in Canmore, and all proceeds would go towards the Canadian Coalition for Sled Dogs. For those that don’t know, Canicross is a big thing in the UK and across Europe. As the name implies, it involves trail running with dogs and it can be competitive with championship events held throughout the year with distances ranging from a short couple of miles to 10km or more. Whilst I used to run with my old boys Sam and Leo when living in the UK, I never competed with them, and when Wilson arrived on the scene, he was just a young puppy that wasn’t physically mature enough to run at the time. We then moved to Canada when he was just 12 months old and whilst I started to run with him whilst living in Calga...