A trail race on top of Whistler mountain! Why not I though? Stepping out from the Gondola and into the cold, thin air I knew this trail race was not going to be a walk in the park. Despite the deceptively sounding Enduro event which was a distance of only 10.6km. The course started and finished in the upper alpine area near The Round House Lodge.
The race organisers promised some steep climbs, sharp descents and craggy wilderness trails. With the trails rocky and technical in some sections and passing through patches of snow. Wow, did I underestimate how tough this run was going to be. The profile showed a number of steep climbs with a total ascent of 760m with the largest climb occurring around the 7km mark. The first climb - in the first kilometre- looked innocuous on the profile. Boy was I mistaken. My lungs left like they were being scraped by a wire brush trying to get enough air into my body. As I tried to keep moving uphill my heart was pounding like a drum against my ears. This was supposed to be the easy climb. The descent was even harder - dusty, steep and very slippery. Hard on the knees constantly braking to stop myself from falling. I soon started to regret my foolish decision. When I could stop wheezing and look around me, the scenery was stunning. Snow covered mountain peaks with a steep green valley dropping away and a line of runners snaking their way ahead of me through flower covered alpine meadows. 
The last climb on the course was nothing short of murderous. This was followed by what appeared to be an almost vertical descent in sections, through shale and rocky scree material which brought a few people undone. The male winner finished the run in a record setting 53:29 and the first female in 68:34. Hammer finished in 82:10 and I was home in 96:52, finishing in the middle of the field. 
Very pleased to stop and get some air into what remained of my lungs. I was even happier and very surprised to find that I won my age group. Who would have thought?
To say I ran, is an exaggeration. It was so cold and so steep at the start that my lungs hurt and I was forced to walk until we reached the very European setting of the Lake Agnes teahouse. From here we wound our way around to the toe of the glacier with the morning sun peaking out from behind the mountain. 
Brilliant being high up in the mountains feeling like you were there alone. 
On the trail to the glacier above the tree-line we were startled by a high pitch whistle and thinking that maybe we were not alone, we proceeded on. Surpised to see that the sound was being made by a hoary marmot sunning itself on a rock by the trail, its shiny coat glistenning in the morning sun. 
Above the tree line we were beset by thousands of hungry mozzies which made us turn back quickly. 
With such stunning surroundings the running seemed effortless. A total of 3 hours running on a trail in a truly stunning setting. No words can adequately describe the grandeur of the landscape encapsulated by the Lake its surrounds. It is a tourist attraction that exceeds all expectations.
We were standing on top of Mt Pyramid having run the trail from the campground to the top of the mountain early in the morning. It was an easy 100 minutes run on single file track mostly until close to the top of the mountain where the ascent was along a narrow trail with switchbacks and steep dropoffs. 
Glorious view from the top and beautiful to watch the sunrise burn off the mist below. Legs tight from the weekend run but otherwise nice to be back in the land of the running.
We watched the start of the 100mile race on Saturday when a small field of 23 took off at 10am for two loops of the course. Being surrounded by fit and ready runners induced mild anxiety as I thought about the amount of training that these runners must have done before attempting this event. I lined up on Sunday with about 90 others for the 6 am start. About half were doing the 50 mile solo run and the rest were doing the relay in teams of up to 7 runners. 
Our relay exchange was going to be at Quest University at 35.5 km and Hammer drew the short straw and was to run the second leg at 44.5km. The first 5 km was fairly flat, then there was about 15km of gradual climbing before a longish downhill and then a short uphill to the exchange. Unfortunately for Hammer the bigger hills were in the second half of the course. 
The starters gun was fired and we were off. I was soon very relieved to discover that my body remembered what to do: one foot in front of the other, relax, breathe, look up enjoy the scenery and then just keep repeating. I found my rhythm and arrived at the first checkpoint at 9km in 47 minutes feeling fresh. The first checkpoint had an espresso machine - nice, but no time to stop for coffee. 
The day was overcast and cool but as soon as we got in amongst the trees it was surprisingly warm and very humid. The distance to the next checkpoint was only 6km but it was a more technical, single file track. The field had stretched out and I ran most of this section on the way to Alice Lake with one other runner in front me - she just started her leg of the relay was relieved that she was not alone in the woods - she was worried about the bears and the mountain cougars and she was a local. Made me feel better - I thought my fear of bears was irrational. The woods were lush and green - huge, towering moss covered trees and ferns and other dense shrubs forming the lower understory. I arrived at checkpoint 2 in 43 minutes - 15kms in 90 minutes so far so good. The next leg went on for eternity as my lack of preparation and the difficult nature of the trail combined to almost bring me to a halt. My lower calves and feet were starting to cramp and I was reduced to walking breaks to relieve the cramping. I fell off a tree log which was bridging a section of the trail as my feet would just not do what my head was asking of them. Then to make thinkgs worse I was stung by a wasp. I knew it was going to be ugly from here and it was still a long way to the exchange. I took a salt stick and just moved forward doing a run/walk routine. The downhill section of the trail proved to be even more difficult as it was slippery, dusty and fairly steep in sections. This section seemed to go on for ever as I kept being overtaken by quite a few people who would quickly disappear out of view. I knew I was not lost as the course was very well marked, and from experience I knew that all things do come to an end. So I remembered to look up every now and then and take in the glorious silence of being 'alone in the woods'. 
Eventually the salt stick kicked in and I could start running again, arriving at Checkpoint 3 at 10.5km in 90 minutes - a total of 25km in 3 hours and only 10km to go. This last leg took me 80 minutes - I covered a total of 35.5km in 4hrs and 20 minutes and then it was Hammers turn. He had a good first half and like me found the descents more difficult especially as he had to run Nine Mile Hill up and then down. He did finish taking around 6hrs and 35minutes to complete his 44.5km leg. 
Fantastic atmosphere at the finish with family and friends turning out for the BBQ which was provided during the presentation of awards. We felt lucky to have had the privilege of participating in this friendly and extremely well organised event - on a gnarly trail which really did "test our metal".