Survival of the Fittest 18km
SOTF is a grueling trail race in Squamish BC put on by Coast Mountain Trail Races. It’s 18km of technical trails with 1050meters / 3400 feet of climbing and descending. There are no flat steps in this race, you’re either going up or down, and it hurts the whole way. This race always gets some of the best local trail runners out for a season opener, and this year didn’t disappoint. 18km sounds long, but compared to my usual ultra distances of 50km – 100miles it’s basically a sprint.
This was my first race back to the trails after BMO marathon only a month ago, and I had no idea if my climbing legs would be back. As it turns out, the answer was no, flat road running does not equate to strong climbing!
My goal for this race was just to see where I’m at and enjoy the party. It was also my son’s trail racing debut so that was my focus! He is 2.5 years old and ran the 1km rids race. He giggled the whole time and ran the whole thing. There were some big kids in the race but he came first in the 2 year old division!
I suffered for 1hr:58mins and came in 6th overall female which I was happy with in such a competitive race and not having my trail fitness back yet. Next stop is Buckin Hell 50km in 7 weeks which has 2400 meters of climbing, so I’ll be spending my weekends going up and down the Gingell stairs and climbing as many North Shore mountains as I can!
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