Author Archives: Administrator

According to the 5Peaks.com web site this 7.3 kilometer loop trail has 473 meters of elevation gain. Over the course of my 6 loops, that multiplies out to three kilometers of elevation gain. That’s 2838 meters or 9372 feet of elevation gain over the course of a marathon. Of the three previous road marathons I’ve done, my fastest time was 5:37 or so if I remember correctly. This one took me over 8 hours. But that is because it is so much harder than a road marathon. This was my first attempt to run my first ever trail Ultra (or any Ultra for that matter). Epic fail. I did not succeed in running all 7 loops. I only managed 6 loops. That is disappointing, however I am happy with the fact that I was able to finish at least a marathon. I am unhappy with my time, but hey – … Continue reading →

Although I have run 3 street marathons and countless half marathons, this is the farthest I have ever gone on a trail run. Over the last few years, I have decided that I am not that interested in road runs, although I will not rule that out in the future. I have fallen in love with trail running as it is so much more difficult than road running and consequently much, much more interesting and challenging. So over the last few years I have been running trails almost exclusively. The problem though, is that the trails I so love to run become impassable in the winter. So I have to train on the roads. However, this year I have a solution that may very well allow me to maintain my current level of fitness, and even improve it. I have a new road route planned out for the winter which … Continue reading →

The Canadian 5Peaks Trail Running Series is just getting better and better. Although it is across Canada, I only have experience with the Northern Alberta series. But I have heard similar praise from others who do have the experience in other provinces. The weather was perfect. It was totally sunny with a high that day of 26 degrees. Nevertheless when I got there for the 9:00 AM start (I got there at 7:30 AM), it was very cold. Most people there seemed to be aware that the day would turn hot enough soon enough because almost everyone choose to wear shorts and t-shirts. The race distances were 7.1 km for the Sports category which was one lap of the course. The 14.2 km Enduro distance was of course two laps, and my own half marathon distance was three laps. There was I think over 560 people who registered for that … Continue reading →

Hi all, thank you for your blog comments. I will try to be brief with some answers and an update. I am currently winding up a trip to Mt. St. Helens, Washington and am writing this from Spokane on my way home. I have not done any running but have done over almost two marathons worth of hiking to the summit of the mountain via Monitor Ridge, spent 4 hours underground walking through the Ape Cave lava tube, and many hikes on the trails including one to the base of Lewitt Falls, the closest one can get to the actual crater. As for barefoot running, those of you who have followed my journey will know that my training began on an indoor track and as can be expected was perfectly smooth and barrier free. I had a difficult time with almost crippling soreness to the calf muscles because of the … Continue reading →