|
Wanderers Travel to Northern Woods For
Ultra
 The
Wissahickon Wanderers ventured into the land of Paul Bunyan
to test their ultra muscles in early September. The legendary
lumberjack would have been impressed with some of the performances
turned in by the Wanderers at the Haliburton Forest ultra
competition, which featured 50k, 50 mile and 100 mile
races.
Here were some of the highlights:
-- Snake Bite bagging her first
ultra in the 50k competition. It wasn’t easy considering
that Rock Steady forgot to pack her running
shoes for the trip.
Click here to
view the photo gallery.
-- Crash Takata continuing
his ultra running rampage this summer by stepping up to the
50-mile level. He looked a little worse for wear at the end
of 50 miles and his customary smile at the finish line ws
not quite as strong as usual.
-- Linda Hodkin for producing
a pair of running shoes for Snake at 5 in the morning and
winning all sorts of Wanderer public service awards in the
process.
-- The Purple Piper, who was
knocked out of action with an injured knee, for piping home
the competitors as they reached the finish line. Hearing the
pipes gave many runners the courage to persevere knowing that
the end was not far away.
Click here to
view the photo gallery.
About 150 ultra runners traveled to the northern
woods about three hours drive north of Toronto for the competition.
Also respresenting the Wanderers were Ultra Woman
Cyn Vavasour, Irish Joe Cleary,
and Rock Steady. Canadian Ultra strongman
Mike Gillespie caught the eye of Wanderer
recruiters, and he and his wife Linda Hodkin
are being offered long term Wanderer contracts.
The race course was made up of logging roads
and gnarly, twisting hiking trails which circled a number
of gorgeous northern lakes. There were also lots of hills.
All 150 runners started in the early morning darkness and
fog. The race started before dawn with chilly temperatures,
but the weather was just about perfect as the day progressed.
Click here to
view the photo gallery.
After finishing their races, the Wanderers watched
in awe as the 100-milers plied their trade. The 100-mile race
consisted of two loops of the course. The winner did not cross
the finish line until about 2 in the morning, and most of
the competitors took more than 24 hours of straight running
and walking to finish the race. The hardest work for these
long distance fanatics was during the evening while the Wanderers
were back in their cabins asleep.
The results of the race as of press time were
not available. However, all Wanderers beat the cut-off time.
Whatever their times, Mike and Crash were impressive out on
the course. Irish Joe and Linda got lost out on the 50-mile
course and ended up improvising their own 50-k course. Snake
Bite, Ultra Woman and Rock Steady just got the job done.
Click here to
view the photo gallery.
The support from volunteers was hard to believe
with some volunteers staying out for 30 hours to provide food
and assistance at the aid stations. The Haliburton is due
to become a fixture on the Wanderers’ running calendar.
< additional
news stories
|
