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by Rumon Carter
I
needed a holiday. April exam period is typically bad enough, but this year - in
the middle of the academic abuse - our Frontrunners Nanaimo team lost the Snow
to Surf Adventure Relay for the 87th time in a row. Perhaps that's a slight exaggeration,
but it feels about right. I think the latest tally has us coming in second 7 out
of the 8 past years. There's a saying about bridesmaids. So
my wife, Aviva, and I packed our car full of dogs, running shoes, food and surf
boards and headed for our own version of Shangri-La. For us, heaven can be found
at the end of Highway 4: the stretch of exposed coastline between Tofino and Ucluelet.
On the drive up, we discussed our goals: · Dogs: roll in something
foul
· Aviva: perfect her frontside off-the-lip (surfing manoeuver)
· Me:
regain sanity
· All: preview the Edge 2 Edge Marathon and Half Marathon courses
So
far, halfway through the trip, the run courses look AMAZING and the dogs stink.
No promises on the rest. Today started with a dawn patrol
run along the Wild
Pacific Trail, one of Ucluelet's major tourist attractions and the marquee
section of the upcoming Edge 2 Edge Half Marathon. If running the half marathon
is going to be your first trip to Ucluelet's Ucluth Peninsula, I suggest you start
limbering up your neck, because you'll be hard-pressed not to put a kink in it
taking everything in along this spectacular trail. The entire half marathon course
is a treat, but the Wild Pacific Trail is going to take your breath away. Winding
its way through a coniferous forest tilted permanently landward by the buffeting
of incessant winter storms, the trail offers stunning views of the ocean from
every second turn. 
Mind
you, for a couple of reasons I would suggest saving your ogling for a post-race
walk: First, when you reach the trail you're about 3/4 of the way into the race
- just the time you'll want to be focusing on some strong final kilometers. And
second, though the trail is graded, safe and quick, it's made up of crushed rock
and therefore has the potential to be less forgiving than asphalt if you turn
off your mind. That said, runners planning to run in their road trainers can rest
assured: there's no need for trail shoes. On the other hand, I wouldn't choose
your flimsiest racing flats for this course. A good choice would be the new New
Balance 825 (which replaces the 833). Of course, as always, don't try anything
new on race day! Other than the Wild Pacific Trail,
the majority of the half marathon course is paved and undulating, much of it traveling
on a bicycle path. There is a short out-and-back along gravel road at 8k. The
final 2 kilometers run through Ucluelet along paved roads. After checking out
the entire course I'm really looking forward to this inaugural half marathon.
It's going to offer up a positive challenge along terrain impossible to find in
an urban racecourse - a great combination. After running
the Wild Pacific, we cruised back along Highway 4 towards Tofino, tracing the
marathon and relay route in reverse. Like the paved sections of the half marathon,
the road portion of the marathon affords uncambered, even footing along an undulating
route. This is no downtown marathon! The air is deliciously clean, there's little
sound other than the wind through the trees and, where you're not running along
tree-lined roads, the views of the ocean along Long Beach are stunning. Given
the majority of the route is treed, the infamous west coast winds won't be a factor,
and you'll just have to trust the evidence in the landscape that this place can
get positively violent when a storm rolls in during the winter. 
Perhaps
of more concern for marathon runners is the prospect of the newly-added run along
Chesterman Beach. If so, I hope this report puts your mind at ease. For,
after lunch and a bit of lazing in the sun (yes, it gets sunny up here!), we put
on a fresh set of running gear (Chihuahua included) and headed out for a second
run, this time to reconnaissance the new section of beach running along the marathon
course. The short version of my report is that you will find the sand along Chesterman
Beach little different from asphalt in terms of firmness and footing. I noticed
Bryan, the race organizer, accompanied one of his photos of the beach with a comment
that the sand makes for "minimal sinkage" - this is an understatement. Besides
three strides worth of loose sand as you run onto the beach, you will not sink.
Hopefully that's clear enough! 
Also,
you have no need to worry about sand in your shoes given how firmly it's packed
(again, the only exception to this being a 10 meter patch right at the start of
the beach). In years past, I have helped out with Tofino-based running retreats
and almost uniformly the high point of these weekends have been the runs along
Chesterman Beach. The hardest part will likely be retaining your focus…and making
sure not to trip over a bull kelp "whip" as your head is cranked to the right
looking out at the ocean! The upshot is that by the
time you're off Chesterman, you'll be wishing more of the race could go along
the beach. Not to worry, you'd be a jaded individual indeed to turn up your nose
at the rest of the course. In particular, the finish at the Ucluelet Harbour will
stand out not only as a welcome bookend to a memorable day, but also as a visual
jewel in its own right. 
For
us, our course previews complete, it was time to get our nutritional reward at
Breakers in Tofino (amazing food!) and settle in for the evening. It's proving
to be a short one; two runs, sun and fresh air are conspiring to drag down my
lids. So, before my head falls onto the keyboard, I'll sign off by wishing all
racers the best of luck on June 11th and will look forward to seeing you up here
in "my" west coast version of utopia. Rumon Carter
Transcend
Sport 
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