Life in St. Catherines

Just spent 4 days at a house in a secret location, somewhere near Niagara-on-the-Lake.  Actually, the title contains a strong hint...

We try to visit NOTL 3 - 4 times per year, but they are usually short visits as the cost of accommodations is rather steep.  They usually want an arm and/or a leg, which can cramp your running.  In this case, we stayed at the house of friends (thanks Henri and Dirty Di!), who were away at some secret location near Creemore...

Taking a mini-vacation in southern Ontario in early November is akin to playing Russian roulette.  You are taking a big chance with the weather!  This extended weekend turned out to be glorious fall weather.  Lee Anne and I took advantage of it by running along the paved Niagara trail.  The trail, made famous by the Niagara Ultra Race, runs for about 50K from NOTL to Fort Erie, passing through Queenston and Niagara falls.  Large trees, big houses, views of the Niagara river and wineries make it a wonderful route for a training run.

After a DNF at Run for the Toad, I dropped my mileage considerably, for about 4 weeks.  This week's total was 40K, without significant pain, which is a bright spot in an otherwise dismal year.  Although I was not able to complete an ultra this year, I am already toying with signing up for the Frosty Trail Run, a 3 and 6 hour trail race on January 21, 2012, near Waterloo.  Organized by Patrick Campbell of the Horror Hill Race fame, the FTR might be a good gauge of how your 2012 training is progressing.  I might even be able to put a tick beside the "U" goal early!

Well, the short vacation draws to an end.  Back to work tomorrow, but looking forward to running trails in the dark.  It is actually quite invigorating to run with head gear, trying to gauge how far away you are from the howling coyotes and whether it would be wise to pick up the pace a tad.