This weekend marked my last big weekend of training before Diez Vista 50k in just under two weeks.

Saturday, I joined a group of another 70 or so runners in Squamish for the first of several Squamish 50 Orientation Runs. I’m not running SQ50 this year, but the orientation runs are always a great way to meet some new faces and to hang out with old friends. I tried to keep the pace in check though for the 21 km and 2.5 hours or so, knowing that the big event for the weekend was still to come. After all, Sunday was to be my first trail race of the year, the Cap Crusher 8k, part of the Coast Mountain Trail Series and said to be “the toughest 8km trail race in Canada” with 500m of gain (which would translate to a 3000m 50k).

The final race of the season in the 5 Peaks Trail Running Series took place this weekend at Buntzen Reservoir Recreation Area. The 13 km Enduro course loops around the lake and includes the Diez Vistas trail – a rugged route with 10 (normally) beautiful viewpoints.

This was one of my first trail races last year and, after several thousand kms on the trails and some 100,000+ metres of climbing, I was hoping for not just an improvement but maybe a shot at a podium finish within my division. I also had a not-so-great result at 5 Peaks Cypress this summer when I missed a turn and went off course – just a little. So this was redemption time!

Since running Waldo 100k last month, I had been focusing mostly on shorter, faster running on similarly technical terrain in preparation for the race. This included lots of ‘Zone 2’ running, along with a few days at the track, but nothing over 2 hours which felt very unusual. I had also since raced a leg of the Meet Your Maker Relay as sort of a test of my fitness.

I ran the course itself three times in the weeks leading up to the race which starts with a lung busting climb to the ridge, a slippery scramble along the top, and some gnarly steep descents before a fast finish along rolling double track. The cumulative elevation gain is only 880 metres but I wanted to learn exactly where and when to push on race day and to eliminate any chance of going off course.

The Meet Your Maker 50 Miler claimed to be an “absolutely stunning course, up, down and through the Whistler Valley” and it certainly did not disappoint.

The course is actually 53.46 miles (84.04 km) with 3,736 m of elevation gain and loss, and it can be run as either a solo or as a relay of up to 7 runners. The race was only started in 2012 but saw a pretty big jump in popularity this year, with many runners returning for a 2nd attempt after having been beat by the fairly aggressive cut-off times.

I knew quite a few people from the local trail running community who were running the solo and as always was feeling like I was missing out. But having just run Waldo 100k last month, I thought I’d be best to just go up to spectate and possibly crew instead. When a last-minute opportunity to run the relay with Team Salomon Flight Crew presented itself I figured it would be a perfect way to get involved.

It’s pitch black as we line-up at 5 am under the gondola in front of the Willamette Pass Ski Lodge, 70 miles east of Eugene, Oregon. With headlamps ready, we say our good-byes and, at the sound of the horn, begin to climb directly up the ski run.

The Waldo 100k is a loop-type course, starting at an elevation of 5,120′ and climbing up several mountains including Fuji, The Twins, and Maiden Peak before returning to the ski area for a total of 11,000′ in elevation gain (and equal loss). The race is considered the most prestigious in the state and has included many of the biggest names in Oregonian ultrarunning such as Tim Olson, Hal Koerner, and Ian Sharman. Registration sold out this year in less than 40 minutes.

“Up for doing a bit of running in San Diego in June?”

I had quite a few big training runs on the schedule leading up to my first 100 km race, the Waldo 100k later this summer, so when two friends asked if I’d crew and pace at the San Diego 100 miler, it sounded like a great excuse for a vacation.

My friends Hozumi and Jeremy, both much more experienced and talented runners, have been really great in mentoring me over the past year as I transitioned from road to trail and in training for longer distances, so I was happy to help.