Pilot Bay Trail Running Race May 6, 2012

Hopefully we will have a "normal" spring this year where our trails open up in mid-april and therefore can hold a spring trail running race. We tried last year, but spring came sometime around July!

The spring race is confirmed for May 6th. The race will be held at Pilot Bay Provincial Park in Crawford Bay, just across the Kootenay lake ferry.

There will be an approx. 10km and 22km race route. I ran the trails last year and they are amazing with lots of ups and downs and gorgeous views of the lake- you will be entertained! Both courses are ALL singletrack and very runnable. It's a great day to bring along the family too as there are wonderful trails along the lake to go for a small hike or picnic to keep busy.

If anyone is planning to get in shape for the awesome Kaslo Sufferfest in the fall this is the opportunity to get going!

All proceeds for this race will go to the Tipi Camp a non profit society who's mission statement says it all:

"The objective of the Guiding Hands Recreation Society is to educate people about the value of nature and outdoor recreation to teach individual responsibility for conservation, ecological awareness and sustainability"

I will post all the information you'll need by Mid April, but keep the date booked in your running plans as that wont change!....

If anyone has any questions, please fire me off an e-mail at randy@spearhead.ca

Winter Biking, Running and Spring Trail Running Race

You have to work real hard to shake off those Kootenay winter doldrums some of us face every December/January. So instead of giving in (for me that could be a lot of movies and going to bed at 8pm) I've found you just need to embrace it, be creative, there's always something fun waiting just around the corner or your imagination.
Snow biking is one way to have a great night out. The boys at NRG in Nelson (who are the distributor for these bikes made by Surly) graciously let me take their bikes for a spin. I have to say it was a great workout and an amazing amount of fun, especially on a bright moonlit night.
We rode for 3 1/2 hrs on a combination of rail trails, singletrack and logging roads for a fun 25km.
I just started to get back into running after a two month hiatus with some nice easy 1-2 hour runs around town mixing up different terrain to keep it fun and interesting. I do only have six weeks to get ready for a fun run in Nicaragua, if I am so inclined physically to challenge.
I figure a nice fun day out seeing 50km of Nicaraguan back country can't be that bad...that said, I am not a fan of the heat and humidity, especially the combination of them! The last time I experienced this, was only a couple a hundred kilometres to the south in Costa Rica at the 3 day LaRuta bike race- ouch did I suffer :( ....

Bill and I are looking to put on a spring trail race in Pilot Point, on the East Shore, probably the end of April. The trails there are amazing, with beautiful views of Kootenay Lake. Being low down at lake level, these trails usually open early in the season. I'll probably put some more info up in February, so check back then- but I am thinking of a shorter 8-10km route and a 15-20km one for those with a few km on the legs.