To close out racing season, I had the choice of doing this 5 Peaks Race, or maybe another SwimRun at Lake Sassamat. The latter was tempting from a multisport adventure point of view, but we have a lot of loyalty and history with 5 Peaks as a family, so we opted for the former.
I found they had added a hiker’s division, which let’s people enjoy the marked, marshalled course without regard to timing or competition. So for the first time, my wife would be participating in the event, instead of just cheerleading – I desperately wanted her to be able to enjoy herself, so I went out and bought some poles from Mountain Equipment Co-op. I was also running in a brand new pair of Salomon SpeedCross that I was excited about.
The Lightning Kid would be running the 3 km timed kids run.
The race was sponsored by RunGo, a Canadian developed runners’ app. My wife and I downloaded it and used it to see each other’s progress. The race courses were also pre-loaded so that you could get turn-by-turn directions. Unfortunately, when installing I denied it the recommended permissions because I’m cautious about these kinds of things, and that ruined its ability to track my progress during the race. I’ll be doing a full post about RunGo in the near future.
My race started (even with me seeding myself in the 3rd wave) before either of them made it back, but I did see them during my first few hundred metres. It started with going up some of the ski slopes, but quickly turned into very narrow forest trails that demanded a walking pace at best. While I started at the back, during the initial climb my ‘slow but steady wins the race’ approach allowed me to pass a few people for a while.
Once I got into the middle parts of the course, I was delighted by finding little ponds and lakes – I had to stop for selfies, and I wasn’t the only one.
Not my best work. I didn’t take multiple tries.
There were times I had to slow down to yield to hikers that were there for the day; the race course was not closed to the public. The volunteers were always super friendly and cheerful, which makes for a nice day out even when you start to get tired.
Courtesy of @javelinomedia
When I got directed onto the road, I knew I was nearly done. I figured I’d just follow it into the parking lot and descend to the finish line – Nope! There was another bushwhacky climb before I was able to see the Lightning Kid who loves to accompany me across the finish line.
So my first Enduro course was a success; I noted there was a ‘Grit’ 14 km distance – maybe that’ll be my goal for next year.
Having done the Cultus Lake Triathlonfor 3 yearsin a row, I wanted to try (tri) something different this year, and I’ve never done a triathlon in salt water, so enter the Vancouver Triathlon, which took place on Labour Day. The logistics of getting to Stanley Park in Vancouver added some stress to the race experience – the drive was over 2 hours from Abbotsford, and after I had my bike dropped off and race kit picked up, we wanted to spend the late afternoon shopping and having dinner. Unfortunately, I parked in an underground lot (last year my car was broken into when parking above ground) that closed at 7PM on Sundays (stores were open till 8PM at least to say nothing of restaurants in the area). I had no way to get in and get my car and had to call Garda security, wait for 2 hours (without being provided with an ETA for the first hour) and pay $60 CASH to have a guard let me in so I could drive home. Not a great start.
We woke at 4AM to drive back to Stanley Park – the race guide said the parking lots’ access wouldn’t be available after 6:30AM. While I got there very early (my wave would be the last to start), I got one of the best parking spots which made it easy to shuttle back and forth to the car for any items I needed. I got body marked, received my timing chip, and set up my transition area well before the final athlete briefing, though I did notice that the swim course was missing some buoy markers during that period. They were late getting them set up, but the first wave didn’t start much more than 5 minutes late.
I had plenty of time to change and get my wetsuit on before my wave (the Sprint Distance Open) – nearly 2 hours- and while I was glad I had chosen to stay comfortable in street clothes during the drive and set-up, I began to get nervous feeling like the only racer who wasn’t in his wetsuit yet. I should mention it was cold enough (more on that shortly) to be a wetsuit-mandatory race, and apparently some racers didn’t have wetsuits and were forced to scramble to borrow one.
Swim
My wave was called and we headed into the water. Lots of people get in the water for some warm-up strokes prior to the race, but I’ve always figured I’d rather save all my energy for the race. If I had been part of the warm-up swim camp maybe I wouldn’t have been so shocked by the cold. I do cold plunges, so I was a little surprised to be surprised. My feet got numb, my face and hands hurt as I started to swim.
Of course I was fine once I got going. The course was a simple triangle, and the ocean water was actually fairly calm. I think the one time I swallowed some water was more from other swimmers splashing than naturally occurring waves. In spite of my lack of ocean experience, I felt like I was keeping a good pace. Having a late wave meant going out at a lower tide, and there was some walking up the beach involved to make it to the swim exit – that involved dodging some barnacles which I had been warned about, but it wasn’t a serious obstacle. I got high-fives from my sons at the swim exit – and booked my best swim time in 4 years. Swim time: 17:24.
Transition 1
Bottom line: I struggled to get my wetsuit off due to the timing chip – I couldn’t get that leg cuff over the bulge of the chip and strap. I ended up putting the suit back on halfway up my leg, taking off the chip, then stripping it off. I think we’re loath to take off the chip because if you forget it in a moment of distraction (putting on shoes or helmet) there goes your race. I’ve had occasions where this same thing has happened, and others where I was able to pull the wetsuit off easily. If I’m going to learn a lesson here, it might be to take off the timing chip and make it part of the overall transition routine to put it back on immediately. This was my slowest transition in the last 4 years. T1 time: 05:22.
Bike
We had 2 laps around Stanley Park using the entirety of the roads. This felt a little unusual – it’s nice that there were never any cars to contend with, but it meant that the riders were all over the roads. I think the etiquette of staying on the right, not drafting (staying 12m back from the leading edge of the front wheel of the next bike), and passing on the left should still be observed in this race (which was specified as a non-drafting event). For the most part, it was fine – faster riders called out ‘on your left’ plenty of times, but there were some incidents like a rider on the far left who seemed to be trying to work out a calf cramp or other discomfort by shaking out their leg, or a rider who fought off my passing attempt (not illegal, just a bit weird to do when they were up on the hoods at more of a cruising pace until I called ‘on your left’). I don’t think there were any marshalls on motorcycles or anything to monitor these kinds of issues. The roads were bad in some patches, and riding over speed bumps (they were pretty mild bumps, but still) were all extra challenges.
I had thought the bike course was going to be pretty flat, but there was one major climb that seemed to go on forever. I think I tackled the early parts of it too aggressively at first, and ran out of gas nearer to the top. The nice part about a looped course is that the second time around I was able to be a lot smarter about hills.
As I approached the exit of the course after completing my second lap, I geared down to a lighter gear, and my chain came off. I had to laugh because I was coming off a downhill with plenty of momentum and wanting to rest my legs for the run anyway. While there’s never a good time to have your chain come off, if it’s going to happen, this was the best time.
I wasn’t able to find any photos of me from the race photographer unfortunately.
Bike Time: 00:48:05 (my second best time in 4 years)
Transition 2
I hadn’t left my shoes untied in preparation. Untying then re-tying probably cost me around 30 seconds. T2 time: 03:19 (second worst in the last 4 years).
Run
I headed out of transition at a clip I was happy with, and my legs felt strong. For a little while at least – though the overcast weather kept things temperate, and the ocean scenery was beautiful, the run course felt long somehow. I began to slow my pace a little. I had noticed no kilometre markers on the bike course, but they would have been really handy here. There was no lack of aid stations, and I didn’t partake of electrolytes or water at every opportunity but suffice to say I had what I needed. I took a carb gel early on during the run. We shared the seawall path with runners heading back after the turn-around and anyone else who wanted to stroll it, but I didn’t find traffic to be a problem. The turn-around was under the bridge to Granville Island, and I saw some interesting skyscrapers as I approached. My pace began to pick up when I knew I was on my way to the finish and more than halfway done running. Unfortunately, my choice to put on my wetsuit well before the last minute meant I had to take a bladder break which cost me time. During the last couple of kilometres I chatted with another dad named Mitch, who was doing his first triathlon – he seemed to be wearing a Hawaiian shirt, but he explained to me it was actually a cycling jersey (complete with pockets) that he got as a Father’s day gift from his daughter. It was very cool. When we knew we were close to the end, we bid each other farewell, but not before I engaged in what is becoming a tradition – explaining the German concept of Endspurt. Mitch showed me better than I could have shown him by beating me handily, but I had the Lightning Kid join me in the last few metres before the finish line so I crossed it with a smile on my face.
Run Time: 35:17 Total Time: 01:49:28. Second-best personal time in BC (first being Cultus 2023).
I definitely liked the glamour of doing a Triathlon in the big city and swimming in the ocean, but the extra logistics involved might make me choose another event next year. I am hoping to grow my endurance to the point where I tackle the Standard/Olympic distance, and it ought to be theoretically possible to do this event weekend and Cultus Lake in the same year. We’ll see…
One of my big motivators for buying a bike for the cottage was when I saw signs throughout Huntsville advertising a ‘Tour De Muskoka’ – this ended up being a fundraiser for the Huntsville Hospital Foundation. Rides of 93km, 54km and a gravel ride of 53km were offered, and I waffled between the latter 2 options. I’m far from an expert gravel rider, so maybe the road 54km would have been better – it also had slightly less hill climbing. On the other hand, a gravel bike is what I had, so a gravel ride is what I should do, right? The ride was intended to be friendly and open to riders of different levels (though I did sign a waiver attesting to the fact that I was ‘fit’), so I opted for the gravel ride.
The ride started in the Deerhurst parking lot, and we got a coupon for a free coffee from the in-house cafe. That put me in an encouraging mood. The ride leaders made fairly informal announcements, but we did get a police escort from the OPP along the majoro roads where significant car traffic could be expected. The 93km riders left first, then the other 2 groups left more or less together, since the first 15km or so of their routes were common to both.
The ride to and along Highway 60 was pleasant and sociable, and riders chatted amongst each other, getting to know one another. Things began to spread out on hills as riders had different fitness levels and climbing abilities, and different tolerances for high-speed downhill descents. I noted those descents, knowing they’d be big climbs on the way back.
The police officer held traffic for riders to turn left off Highway 60 to Limberlost road, and after a few kilometers along that road, the rider regrouped for head-counts, and to split the road riders from the gravel riders. We gravel riders wished them well, while bragging that we’d have more fun. Someone compared the divide to skiers versus snowboarders; I’m not sure I agree, especially because I think it would put me in the snowboard group.
At the entrance to the Limberlost Park, we got another stop to regroup and have the particulars of the more complicated sections of the ride. I had tried to scout it out during a brick workout a few days earlier and screwed that up. They apparently put up signs the next day, so I was better off this time. We did loops around Lee Lake and Peeler Lake, and for the former loop, I did stop another rider from accidentally repeating it.
It was a beautiful day, and on more than one occasion I noted the sunshine sparkling on the water of the lakes we rode past. There were also several huge Inukshuks that had been built. I didn’t stop to take pictures because I noticed I was one of the slower riders and I was self-conscious about keeping people waiting. There were some hills that were not only steep but with very, very loose gravel, so dismounting became the wisest option, and frankly, there were times it seemed like it would be faster.
I had noticed that I was at the 27km mark at the far end of the Lee Lake loop, with the Peeler Lake loop still ahead of me. I began to figure that unless there was a short-cut out of the park after Peeler Lake, I wasn’t really near half-way done. I had heard a comment that the Strava route they provided didn’t start at Deerhurst the way we did but rather about 5km into the entire course; at the time I was trying to tune out any discouraging thoughts or information.
The group leader told me after the Peeler Lake Loop that he’d be heading back to Deerhurst without stopping. I was tired and slow, but confident I could make it on my own. Luckily there were 2 other slower riders who waited for me at some of the intersections – shout out to Frank and Leslie! I’m also grateful to the volunteer who manned the aid station even when I figured she would have packed up – she even gave me some banana bread!
I got check-up texts from my wife offering to pick me up, since I wasn’t making my original estimate of a 3 hour ride, but I was determined to finish. The climbs on Highway 60 were as bad as I feared, but I just kept slowly grinding away the distance.
When your family is there to cheer you to the finish, it always feels like a hero’s welcome.
In the end, the ride ended up being 65km long. It was for a good cause, but I didn’t want to look at a bike again for the better part of a week.
