Adventure Race

#happydays Icebreaker Adventure Run

The Sisters competed in Don’t Get Lost’s Icebreaker Adventure Run down at Chedoke Golf Club in Hamilton this weekend. This event is the end of year event for the ARK group (Adventure Running Kids) as well as a warm up for the Snowshoe Raid in January. The turnout was great, lots of kids and adults participating. We both say we wish we would have known about this sport when our kids were young, we would have been out there with them.

We are ready to go!

We are ready to go!

Chedoke Golf club is a rolling little place at the base of the escarpment, so there were actually two levels to this event. We chose not to climb the escarpment and just find the controls along the base of the escarpment and around the golf course. That didn’t mean we didn’t get some great bushwhacking in or climbing, but we did get some nice running in across the golf course. With a few slips and falls we still managed to collect 430 pts that put us finishing right in the middle of our division.

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Arthur the Stray Dog

You can kind of look at this story in two ways, but I think it turned out great. Way to go Team Peak Performance!

 

 

 

Update: Team Peak Performance has started the Arthur Foundation to help other stray dogs have better lives. Check it out.

http://www.teampeakpeeformance.se/arthur

 

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#happydays The Tarp

The Tarp
Volunteering is very rewarding. Pretty well everyone who volunteers knows that. It’s the feeling that you have made a difference that makes you go back and do it again. We have really enjoyed every event we have volunteered at.

We are a little selfish when we volunteer at races. We do it because we are a little jealous of the people who are competing. We just want to be a part of the fun of being there. A great perk is when the competitors thank us for being there. After all, most of these events would be hard to put on without volunteers.

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We know we are appreciated by the groups we volunteer for. Take a look at the slide show below to see the lengths Heather at Storm the ‘Scarpment went to make sure we stayed dry during the event. We were howling with laughter! Thank you Heather!

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It’s pretty easy to volunteer at races. On most race website there is a volunteer link or just shoot the race director an email. You will enjoy the reward>

Here is a link to Phil the Photographers photos of Storm the ‘Scarpment

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Storm the ‘Scarpment

Storm the ‘Scarpment

Cold and rain didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the participants at the race today. We were a little cold and damp volunteering but watching the efforts of everyone competing was worth the chills.

All smiles!

Here we are all smiles!

The rain made the trails slick and muddy for the run and ride but that just added to the fun.

On the trail

On the trail

We just might take on this course next year, hopefully in the sun! Have a look at a few photos we took of the day!

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Volunteering at Storm the ‘Scarpment

Volunteering at Storm the ‘Scarpment

Tomorrow Glenis and I along with photographer Phil are volunteering at Storm the ‘Scarpment. The event is held a Kelso Quarry (at the top of Glen Eden Ski Hill at Kelso Conservation Area in Milton) and involves doing as many loops of an eleven kilometer course as you can in 8 hours. During each loop you will run, ride and paddle. The easy part is that it is a marked course, other than that, nothing is easy about this race.

Kelso Quarry Park

Kelso Quarry Park

This is an adventure race put on by Storm Events and like most adventure races there are teams. The solo and teams of two work together on each loop they choose to do. There are also teams of 2 and teams of 4 who compete as a tag team with two runners on the course at time. They get a little break between each loop they do. It should be fun to watch the competitors during this event and how they plan out their day.

All smiles in the canoe!

All smiles in the canoe!

The Blister Sister did this event a few years ago. It was tough. We managed to get three loops in before we decided we would run out of time if we did a fourth. We did have a blast doing it. Glenis got dumped in the lake a few times at the canoe transition because I was laughing too hard to steady the boat. We stumbled around the quarry over the obstacles, hiking ourselves over the walls and crawling on our bellies under the netting. The scariest part was the biking portion. Flying down the ski hill was one of the scariest things I have done. Glenis threw caution to the wind and was a kamikaze on the downhill almost taking out some of the maintenance men on the ski lift. It was a awesome day!

Hitting the wall!

Hitting the wall!

Oh Yea, we came in second in the team of two females category!

Enjoying our 2nd place win!

Enjoying our 2nd place win!

 

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#100happydays Day 73 Bugs on the bathroom wall.

#100happydays Day 73 Bugs on the bathroom wall.

When I was camping earlier this month, a midnight trip to the loo found me face to face with this bug on the bathroom wall.

This little fellow was just hanging around. At 1 in the morning, he looked pretty darn big!

This little fellow was just hanging around. At 1 in the morning, he looked pretty darn big!

The bathroom was full of creepy crawlies, banging against the light and scurrying up the wall. This particular creature looks like a harvestman. Did you know that a harvestman or daddy long legs isn’t a spider even though it is from the arachnids family as are scorpions, mites and ticks? A spider has two body parts but this fellow only has one.

I found this on the Henderson State University website:

Harvestmen essentially have an oval body without the separation. They also do not produce silk or a web. They are not true spiders. Venom produced by spiders helps them in their role as predators, but harvestmen do not need venom because they are scavengers. They feed by searching over the ground or over plants for small insects, eggs, or dead material (either plant or animal). For protection, harvestmen can produce defensive chemicals that taste and smell bad. The Harvestman, or Grand-daddy Longlegs Is Not a Spider

You might be wondering why this is part of #100happydays, after all no one wants to run into a yucky bug unexpectedly. Well, with all the running in the woods, all the bushwhacking and swamp stomping Glenis and I have done, although we don’t like being surprised by them, we have pretty much given up on being squeamish about bugs. Isn’t that’s something to be happy about.

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#100happydays Day 72 The Rockstar

#100happydays Day 72 The Rockstar

Another great day volunteering! You might have read before that the Rockstar is our favorite adventure race and it still is! Today we were stationed at CP31, the stand-up paddleboard station. As with all but a couple of mandatory check points, CP31 was optional. Teams came to us either on foot or by canoe and one racer in the team was required to stand-up paddle board through a course about 30-40 meters long. During the paddle they were required to pick up a flag from a floating buoy and bring it back to us before they could punch the CP completed.

Paddle boards

Paddle boards

Everyone who did it said it was challenging. Considering they had just ridden their bikes 25K and then either run or hopped in a canoe to get to us, their wobbly legs were put to the test. Many of them told us their feet cramped just trying to grip the board

Sorting out canoes

Sorting out canoes

It was great to see all the young kids out who were participating in the 4 hour race. These 10-12 year olds really put their parents to the test. Those who tried the stand-up paddleboard were great.

A younster waiting for her Dad to paddle in.

A youngster waiting for her Dad to paddle in.

After 7 hours at our station we had about 50 teams go through, had a lot of laughs and got some great photos. Phil, the photographer, stood in the water up to his waist for the entire time anyone was on the course. He must have been out there at least 6 hours. We did take a little break during a lull in the middle of the afternoon to attempt a game of beach volley ball. We are not Olympic contenders. You will be able to see Phil’s photos on philjarvis.ca in a few days.

Phil the Photographer

Phil the Photographer

As usual, Bark Lake’s staff pulled together an excellent dinner for all the racers and volunteers. No, yogurt cups and bananas here, it was lasagna with salad and ice cream Sundays for desert. After dinner we gave race director Sean a hug and said good bye to all our friends to leave the racers to enjoy their evening. They all stepped outside their comfort zones today and deserved the great after party.

The Blister Sisters

The Blister Sisters

Explaining the course

Explaining the course

It really is a beautiful place to paddle.

It really is a beautiful place to paddle.

 

Click HERE to see more of my pictures from the day.

Categories: #100HappDays, Adventure Race, Running Free Newmarket | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

#100happydays Day 71 Packing up for the Rockstar

#100happydays Day 71 Packing up for the Rockstar

A lot of things happened today, but the packing up for the Rockstar was the most fun! We are going with a fun beach theme, even though the weather tomorrow isn’t idea for the beach.

Packing up for the Rockstar

Packing up for the Rockstar

My hubby and I stopped into the dollar store for a few props they it was off to Glenis’s for the last minute pick up of signage and seating. Tomorrow morning should be a quick pack-up and off we go to our next volunteer gig at the best adventure race in Ontario! Stay tuned for pictures!

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#100happydays Day 67 The next thing.

#100happydays Day 67 The next thing.

So are you wondering what we are up to next? This weekend we are excited to be volunteering at the Rockstar Adventure race at Bark Lake. The Rockstar is the ultimate fun adventure race. While we are disappointed that we can’t participate, volunteering is the next best thing. Stay tune for a race report on Sunday!

That's us on the home page of the Rockstar website.

That’s us on the home page of the Rockstar website.

Here is a little video our photographer Phil compiled of one of our visits to the Rockstar. It is the best way to spend a day on the trails, on the lake and in the forest.

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#100happydays Day 64 The Moose

#100happydays Day 64 the Moose

Glenis and I haven’t run across any moose during any of our adventures. I think we are laughing too much and we scare they away. Once I though I was following the foot prints of another racer until I cam upon a pile of moose dung and I realized I wasn’t following a person! Another reason to laugh!

One of the cool things I saw on my recent camping trip to Algonquin was a moose swimming across Rock Lake. It was a pretty impressive thing to see.

moose crossing rock lake

The moose swimming Rock Lake. My little camera was pushed to the limit trying to get a close up. But you can tell it’s not a beaver. Very cool. I don’t think I will see this again.

I had decided to take a little run down a trail that started at the camp and ran along an old railroad bed between a beaver pond and Rock Lake. I was hoping to see a beaver but I did notice that I wasn’t the only one on the trail; either a large deer or a small moose had walked there before me. When I decided to turn about I heard a scuffle in the brush on the lake side of the trail but I didn’t think too much about it because chipmunks can sound huge when you are alone in the forest. As I turned onto the little beach and look back towards where I had ran I noticed what at first I though was a beaver swimming the lake. However then the ears flopped and they were huge compared to a beavers I realized I was watching a moose. I figured I must have spooked him into the water and away he/she went. I stood there for 15 minutes watching the effort and strength of this moose swim across Rock Lake.

rockakepanoramic

This is the view of Rock Lake from atop of the Booth’s Rock Trail. Algonquin has a wonderful history.

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