Wow! Capes 100 in Nova
Scotia. I resisted the temptation of
registering for an epic day of vomiting, dehydration, nausea and disappointment
in myself – the usual result of ultra distance running for me over the past
several years. Instead, I registered as
a volunteer. I am not even sure where to
begin. It was the most inspiring and fulfilling
journey I have had at any running event.
To try and articulate what the weekend meant to me and potentially
others, I decided I would try to capture it with a race report. Those that have used my race reports know
they can get a bit detailed and lengthy.
Get a pot of coffee or gather up your remaining caffeinated gels and caffeine
tablets and get comfortable.
First off – Hats off to Jodi and Karine Isenor, Laurie Currie, his wife
and daughters for organizing an immensely successful WORLD CLASS ultra event
that was off the charts! I am going to
lump Chad and Tania McNamara in this category as well because they were run off
their feet all weekend. Great seeing you
all and catching up when we could.
Thanks for the beer Chad!
I am not a podium runner but I have been to many, many trail and ultrarunning events over the past decade. Capes 100, in its first year of existence,
was on par with major events that have been in existence for 20 – 25 years. Think about that for a minute. That was possible because Jodi and Karine have
not only been tearing up major events all over the planet for the past decade,
but they have also been directing smaller local events. When I say smaller, I don’t mean by registration
numbers, I mean by moving parts. If you
have ever run or crewed for a major running event – stop and think for a minute
how hard on the head it is to pack and prepare for that experience based on
what you need when you are running, when are not running, directions, maps,
night running, day running, drop bags, weather, logistics. Now imagine you have to host and be
responsible for 300 + runners in 4 different events in a remote part of the
world. Head spinning!
The drive alone to ‘The Farm’ – race HQ was worth the price of
admission. I have only run the Cape Chignecto
loop once in sheets of rain – I drove in the dark with pounding rain, it was
fogged in and cloudy and I left in the dark.
This time I was able to see one of the most beautiful places on the planet
that most people don’t even know is there.
Yes - even people that live in Nova Scotia. At the race briefing, it was asked who has
not been here before – the vast majority of the room raised their hand.
When I arrived at The Farm to check in, 2 things captured my
attention: This was the perfect race
HQ. A giant garage/barn as home base, a
huge field for tenting, the start finish was right there. Laurie Currie and his family are wonderful
people, amazing hosts and have a beautiful property. More on them later. Secondly, my head was spinning, realizing all
of the moving parts that were in flight:
drop bags, registration, swag, aid station supplies, etc, etc, etc. Heck, there was even a mobile shower unit on
site. Not to mention Frozen Ed Furtaw of
Barkley Marathon fame (21 time participant – first finisher in 1988) that had
travelled from Arizona to be part of the event. He donated and personalized a book for one
lucky winner as well as ran the 50 km event after recovering from prostate
cancer treatments earlier in the year and he is not a young man! I had the pleasure of a brief conversation
with him. Inspirational to say the
least.
After I checked in, parked my roving home for the weekend, poured a beer
and chatted with so many old and new friends from the running community, it was
time to go to the dinner. I should
mention as a volunteer, I didn’t expect to get a cool hat and T-shirt along
with my meal ticket – but I was certainly happy I did ☺ They are awesome! The pre-race meal … BEST LASAGNA IN THE WORLD! The meal was catered by The Wild Caraway, a
wonderful local restaurant that I definitely have to get to again very
soon. Before slapping the huge portion
on my plate they recommended using 2 hands so the paper plate would not fold -
certainly no need for seconds. It was
complimented with roll, salad and brownie which were all exceptional.
The race briefing of course started at exactly 7PM (Jodi is always on
time) followed by question and answer. One
question and answer stood out.
Runner: ‘Will there be wild life?” Jodi: ‘No,
we caged up all the animals for the weekend’ .
Bahahahaha!
After dinner, runners were off to prep and try to sleep, I was able to
catch up with old friends and help organize and prepare for the big day. It was nice to not worry about my drop bags,
my pack, my plan, I was able to have a few beer, chill out and chat with
running friends and volunteers I had not seen for years. It was nice to catch up with Jodi, Karine, Chad,
Tania, Colin Busby, Bruno, Nat Couture and others as things quieted down. I was able to compile
a list of things to do in the morning before heading out to an aid station for
the day.
Off to bed, I was super comfortable sleeping in my van with a rollout
and sleeping bag. Perfect temperature,
surely I would sleep since my mind was not racing about running the next
day. Nope, not a wink of sleep. Before I knew it headlamps and runners were
up at 4:45 so I gathered up what I needed and headed to The Farm. Tania made me the most exquisite cup of
coffee, fabulous cinnamon buns and muffins were there for the volunteers, I wished
luck to every and any runner I could find in the pack and bang the gun (literal
shot gun) was off and so were the runners.
I helped around HQ as questions came in, gathered and loaded up aid
station supplies checked off the items I had compiled on my to-do list. Had some more coffee with Chad as we had a
bit of quiet time before it was time to head to my aid station for the day.
I think I won the lottery on Aid Stations (Arch Gulch Cabin 63 km): Not only was the view and cabin fantastic, but
so were the other volunteers. I had the
pleasure of spending the day with Laurie Currie’s 2 daughters (Maddie and
Jessica) and a local lady (Linda Black) – pardon me if I have names wrong or
mixed up, I am terrible with names. Not
only were they super friendly, organized and hard working, but Jessica was a
nurse (medical professional for sure) and had worked summers at Cape Chignecto Park and
they all knew the back roads and Park better than the wildlife.
I was under the impression my van could drive to this location which was
laughable – that is when I discovered Maddie could drive professionally on the
Raleigh car circuit. I questioned my manhood
from the backseat as she suggested I leave my minivan where the gravel ended
and proceeded to give me a lesson on precisely what trucks are meant for and
how to drive the backroads of the region.
Wow can she drive. I later
mentioned this to her dad Laurie and he chuckled and said she had been doing
that since she was 10!
We arrived early since the runners seemed to be tearing up the ATV,
beach and logging road portions. We
ended up waiting anxiously quite a while for the first runners through. The climb up that Eatonville ‘road’ took its
toll as well as the technical and hilly park trail climbs. It was a fantastic Aid Station due to its
location. Not only did it get hot at
this time of day but 63 km is far enough that it is getting pretty tough
sledding for both 100 mile and 100 km runners.
We also discovered quickly that it was a very tough 11 km from the
previous Big Bald Aid Station (52 km) to our Aid Station. In fact, some runners claimed it was up to 16
km (in reality I’m sure it felt that way), but seriously it was taking runners
on average a couple hours to get there.
Very few runners arrived with liquid indicating that were very tired and
needed loads of fluid, food and EVERYTHING.
We were very popular and runners were very glad to see us. I am not going to get into specifics with the
condition of any runner – those are their stories to tell. But I was inspired by the condition of a few
of the runners that arrived in bad shape and were able to pull it together to
get to the finish.
NOTE: Runners, please, please
tell your stories, take the time to put it into words while the details and
emotions are fresh in your mind. The
more detail the better as it will not only inspire others but it will prove to
be invaluable data for future participants of the race as well as the directors to see what worked and what needs
tweaking for next year. Please do this
as soon as possible. I know you are
busy, but it’s valuable information in so many ways. Luc Leblanc told me he wanted to run 100
miles based on a report I had written a long time ago. Not only flattering but he went on to finish
this race and is an amazing person and runner.
More on him later.
I can say it was unbelievably inspiring, uplifting, interesting, pleasurable
and a million other adjectives to describe having the privilege of getting to
interface with every single runner on the course that was doing the 100 km or
100 mile events. Wow! You get to see it all. I have volunteered before, but not in an
event of this magnitude and in this way.
We helped runners from 11 AM to 8:30 PM.
If you have never done this before, you need to. And I don’t mean tuck it away for some other
day. Make it a priority. You will thank yourself over and over. Do it next opportunity you get.
After we closed our Aid Station, and I was given a second lesson on how
trucks work - we made our way out the Park with Maddie at the wheel. I would still be in there trying to get out
even with the truck. My van would’ve
been in pieces.
We arrived back at The Farm with news there had been some lead changes
in the 100 miler and that it would be a couple hours before the leader
arrived. I cheered on 100 km runners
arriving and helped where I could with 100 milers on their way through to the final
out and back. I wanted to get a quick
update on some of the runners from family and crews. I quickly learned Heidi
McLellan had won the 100km event, Krista Koval had won the 50km event, Rene
Julien placed 3rd in the 50km event, Jean Sebastian Levesque placed
2nd in the 100km, Ron Cormier got his 50 km done and Annie Pellerin
was in from her 100 km as well – Wow! There
were a couple more Moncton runners as well Julien Gallant and Nicolas Landry that
finished the 50 km distance. I can
remember when I seemed to be the only ‘trail guy’ shuffling around
Moncton. Someone mentioned to me on the
weekend that everyone seemed to be from Moncton – pure awesomeness!
I had missed Jean Marc Boudreau and Derek Lounder come through, but was
super happy to hear Derek had paired up with Anthony Fromm and they were moving
well. I got to see Colin McQuade – he had
sprung back to life and had paired up with Patrick Lacelle. This was great news as Pat, Derek, Duane,
Jean Marc and Colin did not have pacers for the last 60km. Soon after Luc Leblanc and Duane Olsen
arrived looking fresh, strong and jovial.
Things were looking great!
Since every healthy trail runner in the Maritimes was running this
event, everyone was looking for a pacer. It wasn’t an easy decision for me to pick a
runner to pace. Derek Lounder my usual dance
partner was now a seasoned vet who teaches me about running and dropped me last
year in a pacing effort as he went on to place 2nd at Riverlands
100. The other first time 100 mile runners
were speedsters that I thought would probably drop me as well. I made the decision to pace a steady quiet
runner named Luc Leblanc. Luc has
steadily been making his way to this distance for a few years. He has made an amazing transformation
physically from power lifting and heavy frame to being half the size he was
before. I didn’t commit to doing so until the week of the race since I was afraid
something might come up and I would let him down. I knew if you thought you had a pacer and it
fell through that would not put you in a good place mentally prior to a
race. I wasn’t wavering I was just afraid
life or health or something might get in the way. I had hinted at it a few times and wasn’t
even going to tell him 100% until he arrived on race day, but I happened to be
walking one evening on race week with my wife down the Northwest bike trail and
met up with Luc and his wife. I let him
know that when he got to 130 km I would run the rest with him. I was worried 60 km might be a stretch for me
and I wanted to be solid in case things went south.
The Farm being the HQ was well staffed and stocked so I decided time
would be well spent trying to get my first hours of sleep of the weekend before
heading into night 2 without sleep. I
didn’t want to let Luc down but realistically at this point the condition he
was in and being paired up with Duane – he didn’t look like he would need me at
all. However, in these events, things
can change minute to minute – you just never know. Best to be ready.
I laid down to sleep a couple hours, but every time I dozed off a runner
would come through and the cheers kept me awake. I wanted to get up and cheer too. I readied my pack, buttoned up the plaid
shirt and went to see the finishes, crew and help where I could until it was
time to meet Luc. It was cool to see the
Steve Reeves (paced by local speedster Chester Dana) finish in under 20 hours for
the win. I felt I did my part when I
passed him a beer as he took a chair and blanket ☺
It was finally time, after watching runners all day, to head out for a
little run myself. I was excited to get
on the course and get Luc to the finish.
When I got to the turnaround I heard Derek was now teamed with Jean Marc
Boudreau and had been over 5 hours to get there from The Farm so I figured
Duane and Luc would be a while yet. We
watched and cheered as other runners made the turn. Anthony Fromm came along with a bit of a 100
mile stare but quickly got down to business and listed off what he needed. I attended to some trench spots on his feet
and winced at some blisters he had already patched. I think I tortured him trying to get his
shoes on swelled feet with those blisters … my apologies. He had a pacer so off he went to finish. I was happy nobody was alone out there.
Colin McQuade came along alone with a dead headlamp and we learned Pat
had fallen behind. His wife also had a
text that he needed to evaluate finishing at all. I didn’t want to hear any of that. With Luc and Duane still on their way there
was no use twiddling my thumbs, off I went to see if I could find Pat. It was nice being alone in the woods in the
dark for a bit as things had been so busy all day – very peaceful. I soon noticed a headlamp and found Pat
moving well. He said he had come out of
that dark place he was in and we headed back to the turnaround. I was glad to see him doing well. So far everyone I know was moving well and
looking to finish.
We crewed Pat up and he was ready to go, I didn’t want to see him alone
again so I left with him and would pace him out until we ran into Luc who was
hopefully still with Duane. Sure enough
a few kilometers out we found Duane and Luc still together in great spirits and
moving well. Wow! I hated to let Pat go alone but as I mentioned
before things can change quickly at these distances, especially at night. I had committed to Luc so we bid farewell to
Pat and headed back to the turn yet again – lol.
As Luc and Duane got what they needed at the turn, I heard a voice at the
aid station call my name – an old friend Jack whom I hadn’t seen at least 5
years was there volunteering. What a
treat! We told a few old stories and it
was time to go. In a way, I felt like I
was intruding on the comradery that had developed since kilometer 40 between
Luc and Duane, but I thought I should still tag along for insurance and there
is always strength in numbers. And selfishly
- I love running at night ;)
Time passed quickly (for me at least) as we moved along through the
night. I was shocked that I wasn’t
sleepy yet as I had not slept a wink since Thursday night, it was now Sunday
morning. Come to think of it I would not
have remembered the Colin’s aid station (approx. 140 km) if I hadn’t seen the
warm smiling faces of Andrew Titus and Katherine Walker. Soon it was light and as we chatted the
scenery became incredible, there were vast fields of wild flowers flowing down
the hill. You could see the Capes and
the ocean – what a spectacularly beautiful course. I was a bit sorry I hadn’t seen the rest. As we started descending a large climb, I
noticed a runner sitting on the side of the road. I hoped they weren’t in serious medical
trouble. As we got closer I realized it
was Patrick who had been ahead of us from earlier. He said he was ok and that he had just had a
nap. I thought perfect, now he is with
us and not alone, we can all ride together to the finish.
I quickly realized his quads were trashed and trembling and his eyes
didn’t look right. Duane and Luc were
putting a gap on us but I couldn’t leave him with his legs and head in that
state. I was immediately torn, I had
committed to pace Luc but Pat was alone in a bad way. I weighted my options: I knew the way Luc and Duane were moving and
the spirits they were in, they didn’t need me.
I also knew if indeed one of them went south, I would bump into
them. I also know that Pat is fast and had
already pushed through some lows – he might come around and we catch up to them
again. There was no conversation
required, I knew Luc would understand – ultra trail runners are a unique
selfless breed. I decided I had to stay
and help Pat.
This is where the story becomes Pat’s story and I certainly hope he will
tell it because it will inspire. All I
can say is that he suffered greatly mentally and physically for almost 8 hours
to get to that finish line. He may also not
realize how close he may have been to hypothermia if that cold rain continued
for another hour. He earned my deepest
respect and I feel grateful for having shared the experience. I can say that Pat’s and my watch differed on
distance and it was confusing and frustrating for him about how far we had to
the finish. I had not seen the course
yet so it was hard for me to know. When
we finally did hit the elusive magical car he was looking for, I was overcome
with tears for him. He managed a painful
run down the shoot of cheering fans to the finish. I was a mess emotionally for quite a while, I
tried to hide away a bit because of this, hopefully I didn’t snub anyone. I had just composed myself when several
runners and crew came to personally tell me I had made a difference in their
run. I am tearing up again as I write
this. It meant so much to hear that.
As many of you know, these past several years the distance I can run
without getting very sick has been shrinking more and more. At first, I found it difficult to even be at
these events because I miss it so much - the alcoholic at a party kind of
thing. I want you all to know this
experience has breathed new life into me knowing that I can get even more out
of volunteering, pacing supporting than actually participating.
I am so glad you all met your goals, tested new limits, pushed though
lows and experienced change – these events do change you.
In summary,
Luc Leblanc, I am so glad you have one of those buckles. I would’ve bet my life on you finishing. You are the only runner I know that doesn’t
get those crazy lows even during 100 miles.
It’s your determination and positivity that will not allow it. I think it rubbed off on Duane – I have never
seen him so positive and you can’t argue with the result. ☺ I apologize for hanging behind but I knew you
were going to finish and had company along the way. I knew in there was any chance you did, I
would be right behind you to lend an hand.
It was a pleasure to meet your wife and her sister. They were worried about being a good crew –
if I were you I would worry about them getting snatched up by another runner in
need ;) Once again thank you for the
wonderful albeit unnecessary gift – I am going to have one of those beer this
evening.
I have only met Laurie Currie a couple times and shared few words until
this weekend. He treated me like we were
high school buddies. His family was so
kind and hospitable. It was a great to
meet them. Laurie is an incredible runner
and in his own right. They
all worked so hard and were so generous in making this event happen. Thank you for sharing your land and
farm. I am sure we will cross paths
again.
Jodi and Karine I truly hope you continue to put on this event, it is
world class. It sold out very quickly
this year, once word gets out from those that participated in any aspect this
year – you will need a lottery. Thank
you as always for being amazing hosts and working so hard to provide events and
experiences for others. Your race
directing skills are second to none.
Thank you for allowing me to be a small part of this big machine. It was the most inspiring experience I have
had at event.
One thing is for certain as well – Moncton Trail Running is alive and
growing. Wow! Unless I am mistaken, every runner from
Moncton and area achieved or surpassed their goals this weekend. I didn’t want to leave The Farm without
seeing the last 2 regional runners come through the Finish to ice the
cake. Kevin Leblanc came in guided by
Octave Leblanc so then I was waiting for Derek MacIntyre paced by Brandon
Garston before I left and they both made it.
No words. What a group! As I mentioned, I recall being the only ultra
and trail guy shuffling around Moncton – not anymore! Now, we have full tables at the biggest events
the region has to offer!
Hats off to all the countless volunteers who gave their weekend to
support others. One constant I heard all
weekend – the volunteers and aid stations were awesome!
Thanks to my family for giving me the weekend to give a little back to a
sport I have taken from for so long. I
really appreciate it. I love you so much
more than I can ever articulate.
Full Results:
