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Grouse Mountain Yeti Race Report - by Marc LeBlanc

There were a lot of racers lounging around the lodge at the top of Grouse mountain on Saturday morning, keeping warm while waiting for the race to begin. The promised sun did not arrive in time for the race, but there was 15 cm of fresh snow on the race course to make up for it. Around a 9:45, racers started trickling out of the warmth of the lodge over to the start line. There were two distances running in the race, a 5 km (ok, this was closer to 6 km), and a 10 k (which was really a little shy of 9 km). For both courses, the organizers planned a route that took us through beautiful terrain, and tested the boundaries of our cardio. Shortly after 10 am the race was underway, with 173 racers kicking up a mini snowstorm in their wake. I am not positive, but I believe we went through the Grizzly Bear habitat early in the race. I hope that our furry friends were asleep for the winter! The course then started heading up hill, and then up hill some more, and then when you thought it couldn’t go up hill any more, it went up hill some more! Everything looked wonderful covered in the fresh snow, and everyone seemed to be enjoying him or herself, despite the hard work of climbing this hill. After what seemed like a lifetime of climbing, it was time to descend. A very fast descend on a cat-track straight back to the finish line. Running flat-out downhill on snowshoes is challenging, but fun; and I like the looks you get from the folks not in the race watching you go by. It is a friendly smile, but in a “you’re insane” kind of way. However, after the race it was time to get on to the most important part of the race: The post race beer. The awards were held at Taylors Crossing in North Van, which was a great place to relax after the race, and watch as the fastest runners were honoured, and some lucky folks received some great swag from the door prizes. It was a fun day, and I am already looking forward to Yeti Cypress on March 8th!

Billy getting ready to rip it up!