This was the inaugural running of this race, celebrating the Bruce Trail and its white markers or blazes on trees along the way. A grassroots event with just under 60 participants, the race itself had no markers apart from the original Bruce Trail blazes. Though clearly marked in most places, many of us did still manage to get lost at one point at a weakly marked road crossing, costing us a bit of time and around 0.5km extra in distance. This was also a point-to-point race, meaning that a couple of buses picked us up and dropped us on the trail head from which we ran back to the park.
The course itself was comprised of stunning, pristine woods with twisting creeks and featuring one of Ontario’s last old-growth forests. Much of the mid section course floor was uneven ancient Canadian Shield rock formations. Everyone had to be extra careful through these sections as a fall could be serious. I almost turned my ankle once or twice. The most unique part was where we found ourselves moving through the "Hole in the Wall" - a cavelike rock structure, and then climbed up and out on a wooden ladder on the other side.
It was a warm day, with temps around 27 feeling like 31 degrees Celsius. The woods were cooler though and later on it rained briefly, which was a relief though it made the rocks a bit slippery in spots. The rocks really sapped your energy over time.
I made my way through the pack and only realized we were doing well when at around the halfway mark, someone mentioned the two ladies I was running with were the first and second place females! That’s when we began to dig in a bit more. It was marketed as a 25k race (there was also a 50k that began an hour ahead of us), however our actual distance was closer to 27.5k. The aid stations were wonderful with fresh fruit, PB&J sandwiches, snacks and electrolyte drink refills. The volunteers were fantastic.
At one point we caught up with one of the lead pack guys who had painful ankle cramps. I offered a couple of xtra strength Advil painkillers that he happily took.
We all just booked it through to the final stretch and made it through to the finish line. I got 7th place overall and the two ladies right behind both retained their 1st and 2nd female places. Huge props to both of them. Our injured friend came in 8th overall which was just amazing considering he was hobbling the last 3k. I’ve never placed top 10 in any race and I’m not sure I ever will again. It really was an adventure!
The Globe Trot Race Report