Gunner Shaw - Race Report

When I lined up to tackle the snow and ice covered trails around Thetis Lake on the weekend, I really didn’t know much about Gunner Shaw or the 26th Annual Memorial 10K Cross Country Classic that I was about to take part in (aside from a few stories about the massive puddles and the "lakeside" finish line). So, today, before writing this report, I figured I would do a little reading.

What I learned…
Gunner Shaw sounds like he was a pretty neat person, whose friends and family obviously loved him immensely. I imagine he would be proud of the event they have created to honour and remember him. [Visit here for some good articles from the Prairie Inn Harriers website].

I also learned that this is one tough race! (Although, I guess technically, I learned that on the weekend).


So, on to the race report.

The short version... I struggled!

The Long version... Well, it was a beautiful (but chilly) day and a really fun event that I will definitely do again (especially since they had to cut out the puddles this year due to the fact that they were shear ice that would have sliced and diced us), but I can’t say I necessarily felt that way at every point during the race. The trails were covered in a combination of snow, ice and slush which made finding a good footing for a novice trail runner like myself a bit of a challenge.

As the race began, and Kirsten and Tyler quickly escaped from my sight, I tried to settle into a rhythm with the 500 or so other runners jostling for space around me. Off the roadway and onto the trails, I heard a woman exclaim “well, the easy part is over now!” and you know, I think she was right.

As I climbed the first big hill, the pace slowed to a walk – this was not necessarily of my own choosing, but well, if the person at the front was walking, everyone was walking. I will admit though, aside from nearly (and inadvertently) planting my face in the butt of the guy in front of me, I did enjoy the little walk break.

From there, I held a decent pace for a while, but eventually started noticing a lot more people whipping past me. Up and down, over the rocks and through some pretty thick mud, I trudged along. My stomach started growling horribly about 35-40 minutes in and my quads trembled slightly. I seemed to be holding my body in a rather tense position the whole race, trying not to slip on the snow, which made for an awkward gait and I think tired me out - both mentally and physically.

As I approached the last three hills before the finish, I could hear the roars from the spectators on the beach and knew what laid ahead… the big splash in the lake!

I must say, I think my shining moment of the day was my run through the lake (all those tri practices, entering and exiting the water really paid off, haha). I didn’t get too soaked and even managed to gain a bit of ground on the woman in front of me (granted, I think she may have face planted in the water).

So, yeah, I struggled… but would I do it again? You bet.