Get In My Belly !!!

“GET IN MY BELLY!”
Many people everyday ask me what kind of food should you eat during an endurance event? What do you do when your stomach starts to eat itself? You most definitely need real food baby! The question is always finding the balance between the real food and the “state-of-the-art” energy foods and sport drinks. And getting it to your system before you come a human dredal spinning around and bonking. Liquid energy foods work really well for some people, but other times you need another option. One racer eats a whopping 36 power gels in a 6 hour, a single marathon!

I try to plan to eat real food at least every 5–7 hours to keep myself sane.
How? Well, try stuffing roasted salted potatoes in a zip lock bags or, like I recently tried at La Ruta de los Conquistadors was bags full of cooked rice and beans with a little bit of egg. Now I know what you’re thinking, gross! Look the body needs real food and it’s relatively easy to make and quick and they taste good. You can also gulp down cans of Ensure- I would suggest the high protein version. Which gives you 155 calories per can.

Tracey Higgs of Auntie em’s recommends for high endurance athletes “eat lots of fat, I am not saying you should eat sticks of butter, but foods that are high in fat and in high protein like almond butter and cheese.”


The best way I’ve found to get extra calories during race is a concoction I call “Rocket Fuel” by using a mixture of Endurox and a can of flat Red Bull in every water bottle and Hydration bladder. It has 120 calories per scoop, and a can of flat Red Bull has 112 calories and making it flat will be easier on your gut. And it DOES give you wings!
It hasn’t caused stomach problems other mixes have created for me. Adding your favorite electrolyte drink to some of the of the bottles will allow you to get those electrolyte your body needs without OD’ing on the gastric-upsetting sugary excess that seems to accompany most electrolyte drinks. Greg McDonnell a, Ironman triathlete said, “It (Rocket Full) tastes like a candy bar, but it really works”

Other real meals substitutes like on the racecourse include Cliff bars, almond butter sandwiches, dried fruit and nuts. Of courses, this is just what works for me. In the end you will need to do some experimenting during training to find out what works best for you. To avoid race disasters
Now, I ‘m starving, need to go eat some thing. But what else is new.

A True "pura vida" experince

When you race, sometimes misery and pleasure are transcendent. This is the story of La Ruta. La Ruta de los Conquistadors combined 300 km with 30, 000 vertical feet of climbing, 40 degree weather with 90 % humidity, traverse 1 continent and numerous eco- systems and throw into the mix Tropical storm which has been setting record mud slides and tsunami rain conditions in the country side.

Arguably the toughest mountain bike race in the world, With torrential rain coming down, I have a funny feeling that we will be wading through waist deep mud and wondering “ why in the world any human would want to race in these conditions?”

La Ruta will climb from sea levels on the Pacific side up and over volcanoes, cross many different eco systems. This brutal three-day race will test the best riders in the world. 582 riders will start and only 260 riders will see the finish line this year.


Day One: The Total Mud Pit, 119 km, 15, 000 of climbing

A Waken at 3 am, for the 5 am start of La Ruta. The early morning air was humid, thick, heavy and lethargic. Great day for race, as we lined up for the start.
Marla Streb gave myself some last minute guidance, “ Drink lots of water and Don’t go out to hard! It’s a three-day race, Munny!”
Today we would confront relentless challenges, double track sections of thick red mud clay that would add 20 lbs to your bike, knee deep river crossings. One local rider wearing nothing but a jean cut offs with no shirt and spd’s screwed into his sandals. Looked like the late great “Rabbit”, with his gray flowing beard. Lots of hike a bike, crashes and even more clay mud. Riding 15, 000 ft total climbing and 11 hours in the saddle, many of riders were forced out of the race after finishing first day suffering from exhaustion, heat stoke, dehydration and some not making the cut off time. Can it get worse?

Day two: The Day of Attrition, 80 km, 9, 000 feet of climbing

Starting from downtown San Jose and if rush hour traffic wasn’t hard to contented with, we would have to avoid one major crash and potholes the size of a cars. As we made our slow and ever so painful climb up to the top of Volcano Irazu, which sits just under
12,000 feet.
On one of the few little descents, I managed to loose my chain, and cable housing on one of many grapefruit size rocks that littered the coarse. Forcing me to run the last 12 km up hill with my bike on my back, before the long and rock-strewn 2000-meter descent, before a couple small hills before the Finish line in Turriabla. Many broken bones on this day and lost gear, attrition was high today. One rider end up not only breaking his wrist, but add insult to his injury would have his bike stolen by the first aid crew.

Day three: The “Easy “ day? 124km 6, 000 feet of climbing

The race finally started 45 minute late, in the morning heat (32 degrees) after we were told a train derailment had taken out one of the bridges we were supposed to cross. The coarse had to be rerouted and add 45 km extra on the road to go around the broken bridge. Charlotte Klien, a naturally talented mountain biker, was excited to learn of change in the route. “I never thought I would be happy to hear that we would spent more time on the road.”

We started the climbing as soon as we left the start line. After many sheer steep hot gravel roads, the route changed downhill quickly for only 2 km, before climbing repeatedly for hours. It was very curling, with 20 km to go we rode on the bumpy railroad tracks, over rotted out railway bridges and then the Caribbean beach. The race end right on the beach. What a great race.
A true test of the human spirit and a true adventure by its definition, not only for the racers, but also for the volunteer and fans.
We are all the better for having participated in the La Ruta, Pura Vida my friends!!!

Local riders gear up for La Ruta

Local riders gear up for La Ruta

By Andrew Mitchell

While most mountain bikers are getting ready to put their gear away for the winter, four local riders are preparing for a three-day race through the jungles of Costa Rica, from the Pacific to the Caribbean.

The race is considered among the toughest in the world. While La Ruta de los Conquistadores is only three days and mainly follows dirt roads and doubletrack, it’s also 318.4 kilometres long with 9,040 metres (29,700 feet) of climbing and descending. The first day has been described as pure hell with 4,526 metres of climbing over 114.1 km.

Factor in the heat, the humidity, and the fact that some roads turn to sticky clay in the rain (it’s hurricane season and it’s been raining the past seven weeks) and you can see why La Ruta is in the same league as the Trans Alp Challenge and TransRockies.

The four locals taking part in this year’s race, from Nov. 11 to 13, are Duncan Munro from Whistler, Hillary Harrison and Ryan Watts from Pemberton, and Charlotte Klein of Squamish.

Harrison is the only rider who has done the route before, growing up in Costa Rica with her parents. She won the women’s open category one year, and placed second to a friend the next.

She was hoping to be competitive again this year, but reigned in her expectations after being hit by a car while biking a few weeks ago. "After that I mellowed out, and my goal now is just to have fun with it," said Harrison, who also raced in the TransRockies this past August.

"It’s just a cool idea for a race, going from coast to coast like that, and you get to see so much. I saw more of the country than I did when I was living there," she said.

"The first day is the hardest day by far, there’s a lot of hike-a-bike and the climbs go on forever. The second day is a lot shorter, but still has a lot of climbing, but the last day is great, you actually finish right on the beach, on the Caribbean and there are people out there surfing and everyone is in such a great mood."

This year she’s taking her boyfriend Ryan Watts, who has done the Trans Alp Challenge a few times already. He has no idea what to expect, but he’s been told that the first day is pretty tough and to be afraid of the mud.

"I figured I was going to be down there so I might as well do it – it’s not every day you get an opportunity to ride from coast to coast in Coast Rica supported along the way," he said.

In the last month or so Watts has been in all of the big local races, including the Samurai of Singletrack and Cheakamus Challenge, and he still gets a lot of riding in out in Pemberton. Otherwise he thinks he’s about as ready as he can be.

"We’re going a week early, hopefully that helps me to get used to the humidity. Hopefully the rain stops… and I won’t have to carry the bike too much," he said. "I’d just really like to finish, I have no real expectations of placing anywhere – it’s a really strong field of competitors and teams, and Columbians and Costa Ricans who live at altitude and have the home field advantage."

Munro is the only sponsored rider heading to Costa Rica, with support from Gerber Knives and Tools, and his running sponsor Salomon.

He’s been training hard for almost two months, and has even taken a stationary bike into the sauna, wearing a down jacket and touque to get used to riding in the heat.

"It gets pretty gross, I’m not going to lie to you," he said.

Munro did a 20 km beach run in Rio de Janeiro as part of a Red Bull Giants of Rio relay team last year, and wasn’t prepared for the heat. He fell ill with dehydration and heat stroke, and was sick several times on his way to the finish line. "I’m not doing that again," he added.

In addition to the sauna, he’s also been putting in a lot of miles on a road bike recently to get used to distances involved.

But for all his preparation, Munro is just hoping to finish.

"This is my third mountain bike race ever, not including the Loonie races. Part of me is worried that I bit off more than I could chew, but I’ve been training well and I’m not expecting much. I just want to enjoy myself out there, ride at the back of the pack and have a good laugh."

Klein, who competed in the Cycling B.C. Marathon Series this year and the Nelson triple crown, is looking at La Ruta as an opportunity to train for the TransRockies next season.

Her goal is to "feel good" on the course, and she’s been going for a lot of long rides to get ready for the challenge.

"I don’t know if you can prepare for something like this without living there, so I’m just going to go out there and do it and have fun with it" she said, joking that she’s not going to follow Munro’s lead "and do something weird like biking in a sauna – nothing good can happen doing that."

The La Ruta race is attracting some of the world’s top riders this year, including NORBA champion Walker Ferguson. Harrison believes he will be the first non-Costa Rican to win the race.

You can follow La Ruta online at www.adventurerace.com.

Munny on the move and no sign of slowing down !!

Munny is on The Move…again!
Fresh off a first place finish in the grueling “24 Hours of Adrenaline” relay race in Whistler this September, Duncan Munroe aka. “Munny” is a man on the move. Racing as a member of Team Gerber Legendary Blades, Munny and his Navy Seal teammates tore it up for 24 hrs. and laid claim to the title of 24 hr Relay World Champions. This tops off a very busy year for “Munny” as he continues to gather more momentum and gain more experience in a wide range of disciplines that make up adventure racing.
So what drives athletes like “Munny” to push their limits to the absolute maximum through terrain that most people would try and avoid? “The challenge, the team dynamic, the diversity, the commitment, both physically and mentally, and the ability to potentially inspire other people to get out and do different activities,” says Munro. “It doesn’t even matter what it is really, I just want to help motivate people to find something that challenges them, gets them active because it is such a good feeling and so incredibly rewarding.” Having the opportunity to travel the world doing something he loves doesn’t hurt either. “ I have been very lucky to be able to travel and race in these amazing places that I probably would never have seen otherwise,” continues Munro.
Munro has his sights set on some lofty goals like winning the Kneeknacker which is one of the most difficult and punishing trail races in North America. In his first attempt this year he placed 9th. On the list of ultimate achivements, Munro wants to be the World Adventure Racing Champion someday. That said, he has already crossed one of the things off the list which was to work for the Whistler Fire Dept. Whistler Fire Depts. training, considered very progressive, compliments his adventure race training. “Whistler is a perfect training ground for adventure racing as the terrain is incredibly diverse, challenging and absolutely stunning,” says Munro.
With good results in races like the “Kneeknacker,” Red Bull’s, “Giants of Rio” and “ Red Bull Divide & Conquer” under his belt, what’s next? A very busy year by the sounds of it, with plans to race in “La Ruta de los Conquistadors” race in Costa Rica, rated one of the worlds toughest mountain bike races, Red Bull’s, “Capetownman” in South Africa in addition to this years “Giants of Rio” race in December to name a few.

Races & Results over the last 12 months
2nd place…September 23 , 2004 Lumpy’s Epic Trail run 12km, Pemberton BC
2nd place…September 28, 2004 Rubble Creek Classic trail race 35 km, Whistler BC
60th place…December 5, 2004 Red Bull -Giants of Rio , Canadian team , Rio de Janeiro
1st place ….February 3, 2005, The Grouse Mountain Snowshoe Classic, Vancouver, BC
2nd place …March 5TH, 2005, Mosquito Lake Trail Run, Pemberton BC.
14th place ...March, 6TH, 2005, 2nd Annual, Inn Sane Trail Race, Vancouver, BC.
5th place…. April 10, 2005, Squamish Thunder, 10 Mile Trail Race, Squamish, BC
16th place... May 29, 2005, Half Knacker, North Vancouver, BC
11th place... June 18, 2005, Red Bull - Divide and Conquer, Durango, CO
9th place… July 9TH , 2005, The Kneeknacker, North Vancouver, BC
2nd place ...August 20, 2005, 5 Peaks Trail Running Series, Whistler, BC
1st place …September 3-4, 2005, 24 Hrs. of Adrenaline World Championships, Whistler, BC.

Oh my sweet feet!!

My typical adventure race includes steep uphill climbs, river crossings, long treks off trail and miles upon km's of fast running on gravel roads and trails. I have experinced all kinds of terrain, the more dangerous the better! As such, the footwear built for trail running must drain water quickly when submerged, protect the foot from roots and rocks, run fast when the trail opens up and offer enough comfort and support for the long haul. When I wore these running on a local trail, the first thing I noticed was the breeze I felt coming through the shoes. Talk about breatheability! Not to mention when you have the occasional river crossing, the water drains out like a gutter has been built into the shoes. The traction and sole wear is exceptional as well. I'll be coming back to this shoe, it's a winner! You don't know ventilation until you've experienced the GCS Pro. The uppers are like a screened-in porch that help the water drain. But its real worth comes with every stride; on a warm fall day in the alpine of Whistler. I could feel air pumping across my feet. Delightful!
Bonus: The best one-yank-and-lock lace-tensioning system I've ever used.
Even if you never plan to do an adventure race, these shoes are worth a look. Backpackers, trail runners, and trekkers all are candidates for this genre of multitasking footwear.
After testing footwear from several companies on adventure races and dozens of trail races this summer, the one shoe I kept coming back to was the Salomon GSC Pro. The shoes drain water fast, breathe well, run smoothly and fit comfortable and snug on my foot.
http://www.salomonsports.com/)

RED BULL Gaints of Rio

Munro stoked for ‘Red Bull of Rio’



By Kim Thompson

Reporter

Whistlerite to run 20K on sand at Dec. 5 competition Duncan Munro feels like he won the lottery after having been selected to join an elite group of athletes at the upcoming Red Bull of Rio. As one of eight Canadians selected to take part in what is already being called the toughest athletic competition in the world, Munro was surprised to get the call to participate in the Dec. 5 event “I am blown away because this is a huge opportunity for myself. Red Bull Giants of Rio is bigger than any marathon I have been in,” Munro said. “I think it is an honour to represent Canada as a runner.” It is an all-expenses paid trip to compete against more than 80 teams from 30 nations. The race is anything but a nice afternoon on the beach, as four-man teams test physical limits. The day begins in the Atlantic Ocean, where swimmers must battle four kilometres of surf just off the Copacabana. Mountain bikers take over from there for a 40-kilometre route that winds through the narrow streets of Rio de Janeiro and finish on the 842-metre peak of Pedra Bonita. The next task involves hang gliding in a circle around the famous Jesus statue before landing on the beach of Ipanema, wind permitting. The last leg is tortuous, 20 km sand run on the beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana. The kicker is that Munro will be expected to run in mid-afternoon as temperatures peak in the mid-30s Celsius. He admits it won’t be pretty but said he has tailored his training to get ready for a couple hours of slogging through sand. Along with running at Meadow Park wearing full winter running gear, Munro has used his bathroom, steam, and a stationary bike in an attempt to simulate the expected red-hot Rio conditions. “In terms of sand training, I am heading down to Vancouver a couple of times to run along the beach,” Munro said. “I was tapering for the Haney to Harrison race at the time and my whole training program got scrapped when Rio came along.” Aside from long beach runs to convince his legs that sand running is easy, Munro created an intense, 21-day training cycle. It includes speed workouts, long runs, and plyometrics. The training does not end with physical feats as Munro checks the Red Bull website every day and has posted maps of Rio on his wall. As a result, Munro claims he is in the best shape of his life. “I try to visualize the first couple kilometres of my race where I will make my moves everyday,” Munro said. “I am mainly concerned about the humidity and pollution, but we will have a few days to get acclimatized.” Although estimating how long a 20 km sand slog will take is difficult, Munro said he hopes to finish in just under 90 minutes. Munro just started running seriously three years ago and attributes his success to an ability to listen to his body. Mainly a trail runner, Munro hopes the sand will help trail runners keep up with speedy road racers. “I think it is important to have a positive attitude and I don’t train unless I have a big grin plastered on my face,” Munro said. “The team manager told me that one of the reasons I was selected was of my ‘fun-hog’ attitude. It is about fun but I will be all business up until race day.” The competition is divided equally between amateur and professional teams and Munro said the depth of field is stunning. Munro is on the amateur Team East along with swimmer Shannon Bell, a Vancouver swim coach. Mathieu Toulouse of Quebec will mountain bike and Chris Muller of Calgary will hand glide around Jesus. Canada’s pro team, Team West, includes mountain biker Andreas Hestler, swimmer Dustin Hersee, and hang glider Dave Narona. The teams are flying to Rio on Dec. 1. While in Rio, Munro will be representing not only Canada but also his business, Whistler Running Experience. Along with his partner Scott Whalen, the two offer running tours, conduct weekly trail running clinics, hash runs, and help with races such as Cops for Cancer and Comfortably Numb. “Whistler is truly a running destination and our business is to show people why. When I see people running around the golf course, I think ‘If you only knew what is out there,’” Munro said. “Trail running is not for everyone but nothing gets your adrenaline going like a high alpine running experience.” While other runners trade shoes for cross-country skis, Whalen and Munro are forging ahead with a snowshoe running clinic to prepare for the Yeti Snowshoe Race in the spring. A few weeks after getting back from Rio, Munro plans to strap on snowshoes to teach a class in the sport at Meadow Park. “I think this magnitude of the Red Bull Giants might lead to other races which, in turn helps Whistler Running Experience,” Munro said. “I love the competition, but the sport has got to be fun to keep me interested.” For more information on the Red Bull Giants of Rio, log on to www.redbullgiantsofrio.com.

Despite rain, runners enjoy brisk workout on trails near Mount Currie



By Stephanie Hill

Reporter

Special to the QuestionOrganizers hailed the Mosquito Lake Wilderness Trail Run in Mount Currie as a huge success on the weekend. Despite rainy conditions, Sunday’s event attracted more than 40 runners and raised more than $300 for Pemberton Search and Rescue.Sean Wolfe, who lives near Mosquito Lake and does most of his training on the surrounding trails, placed first in the nine-kilometre trail run. Second place went to Duncan Munro, and Jen Tabernor finished third. Although it was a rainy day, the course conditions were good because the weather has been relatively dry lately, organizer Jeanette Helmer said. Afterward, everyone went to Krystyna’s café in Mount Currie for refreshments.“It was great. A big thank you to Krystyna,” Helmer said. “Events like this show people the wonderful trails, and a lot of people said that the event was so worthwhile just to see views and scenery,” she said.“Pemberton has a strong community of runners and walkers ,” Helmer added. “All the trails in Pemberton and very accessible, and are great to walk. However, it was a shame we didn’t see as many people as we would have liked due to the rain.”The next organized run in the Pemberton area is the Spud Run, which takes place July 1.Wolfe wins Mosquito Lake run “Trail running is a good alternative to more traditional racing,” Helmer said. “It’s a great way to see the different areas of Pemberton.”

5 Peaks trail run in Whistler!!

Ran in the Whistler 5 Peaks Trail Running Series on Aug. 20. Sport course — usually I'd do the longer Enduro, but I've changed up my training from long grunts to short sprints, and I've been spending a lot more time on the mountain bike recently. The sport course was only 5km, but with over a 1,000 vertical feet of climbing. I rolled an ankle just out of the start, but still managed to finish second with a time of 33:54 to another local runner, John Teitzel, who just kills 5k and 10k courses. He finished in 31:51 — not a great 5km time on the flats, but the run took place in the high alpine of Whistler Mountain and many sections were too steep to run up or down. Beautiful scenery, if you could take your eyes off the trail long enough to take it all in.

free flowing munny By Marla Streb

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

A Snapshot of the "Flow"
We weren't going “free-riding”, we were going “flow-riding”. We were in Whistler, Canada after all, eh?This is what my friend, Munny, told me moments before our ride. Munny is a fireman who invited me to stay with him during the Crankworx festival. My accommodations consisted of a tiny room in the firehouse in the center of Whistler village. Next to my bed was a pile of thick pants surrounding two heavy rubber boots. That was comforting because that's how my husband stores his outfits at home. Right on the floor.Across from my dorm room door was a shinny brass, slippery, 42 foot pole. Much to my terror, he made me slide down it as part of some sort of friend-of-a-firefighter initiation. I clung on the pole so tightly that my legs squeaked in protest and my belt ripped right out of its loops. This weekend I was racing the Crankworx Enduro Downhill. It's a huge event by North American standards, and in a town that satisfies every downhiller's fantasies. But what I really wanted to do was hit some of the famed “flow” trails that adorn all the mags. These trails that I hear are as much wooden as dirty. Munny informed me that we wouldn't be using cross country bikes; we'd need some 'all mountain' bikes. Obviously, we couldn't use downhill bikes, and free-ride bikes were out because there would be steep climbing. We couldn't wear lycra because the only people who wear lycra in Whistler are in the ballet. And there is no ballet there. I asked how these trails are classified. What are the criteria for “Flow”? And why are these not ”Free”? Evidentally this was not a simple question, because after three days interrogation, I never got a simple answer. But I did gather some clues.We had to drive to the Flow trails because afterall, the ones at Whistler were really just downhill trails (but the BEST I've ever ridden, I must say). Munny pointed out stunt after stunt that were visible from the car. The road-gapping, rock drop-offing, mind-boggling tests of the laws of physics were, I was told, “Free-Ride” stunts. And massive they were. We would have nothing to do with those. We were going “Flow-Riding”.Munny flowing...The trails we hit were works of beauty. I wanted to take pictures of every banked wooden bridge, every double-apexed turn to blind hip-jump, every genius roll-in to imbedded rock run-out. I felt that obliviously riding these trails was almost a waste. To simply let section after section go by under my tires without any kind of appreciation of this art created by Canadians was blasphemy. I wanted to Freeze the Flow.But we just kept on riding because I couldn't get my camera to work.
By Marla Streb

red bull divide and conquer

Mission Impossible
How does one go about assembling a "winning" team for an extreme adventure race like the Red Bull Divide & Conquer? How do I attract the top athletes in the world to do, and win, an event that's advertised as "four parts mountain sports relay, one part impossible?"I'm still finding out.Last year I was on an all-women's team of made up of Red Bull athletes from the different sports: trail running, kayaking, paragliding and mountain biking. But for this upcoming June 18th race in Durango, CO we decided to inject some testosterone to our team formula. And I think I've got some brave takers.Marla getting a reprieve from climbing at the 2004 Red Bull Divide and Conquer. Photo by Christina Pondella / Red Bull"Munny" from Canada was easy to enroll. He's from Canada afterall. Even rented a hyberbaric chamber to prepare for the altitude. He will be running the perilous seven miles of scree, a 4,000 ft climb from Silverton, CO up to Kendall Mountain. If she agrees to do this thing again, three-time world champion Kari Castle from will be returning to once again paraglide who knows how many thousands of feet down to Silverton. This is where world record holder Tao Berman will start kayaking 27 miles along the Animas River through some class V water. I'll be finishing up the last bit with a 27 mile, 7,000 ft, mountain bike climb to the Durango Mountain Resort. Just reminiscing about last year's event makes me shudder. For me, it was simply a vulgar ride. The initial climb is about 3,000 feet over the first four miles. Tears streamed down my face. I remember one point in my race where I realized, there's absolutely no air up here! It was probably around 10,000 feet. Birds were viciously flapping their wings, not getting a bite of lift in this near-vacuum. And I tried breathing really hard, too. Hours into the ride/hike-a-bike, when I figured I must be near the finish, some guys at a feed station urged me on by yelling, “Great job! You’re almost halfway there!”We finished up a respectable 11th out of 20 teams; we were the only all female team. This year I hope Ned Overend won't be returning. He posted the fastest mountain bike leg last year, shamed us all, and really made it apparent that I was the weak link. But I'll be sure not to let my new teammates find out about that. Mike Kloser fighting his way up a 3,000 ft climb at the 2004 Red Bull Divide and Conquer. Photo by Christina Pondella / Red Bull

Red Bull Divide & Conquer 2005

Munro masters ‘Divide and Conquer’



By Kim Thompson

Reporter

Local runner challenges limits in high-altitude Colorado eventWhistler’s Duncan Munro stretched the definition of trail running during his latest exploit at the Red Bull Divide and Conquer race in Durango, Colo. Munro was a member of the Rocky Mountain Oysters, a four-person team with the mission to complete the one-day mountain sports relay. The goal was to run, paraglide, kayak, and mountain bike to the finish line. At sunrise on June 18, Munro laced up his shoes and ran 7.5 miles up Kendall Mountain. The route started at an elevation of 9,300 feet and finished at 12,200 feet, with a total elevation gain of 4,125 feet. Munro held the lead for the first three kilometres of the race before altitude reared its ugly head. The course changed with steep pitches up shale slopes and glacial traverses. Each footstep was precious because there were no ropes to prevent a fatal tumble. “My lungs finally recovered a couple of days after getting back to Whistler,” Munro said. “P hysically and mentally, it was the hardest thing I have ever done. It went from trail running to mountaineering to speed climbing.”At the most heinous parts on the course, runners pulled themselves along a rope, but harnesses were not a part of the deal. Munro he scrambled the equivalent of a 5.6 rock climb without a rope. While running across a glacier, Munro could not help but think it was the greatest experience of his life.“Honestly, it was the best race of my life. Every ounce of my lungs begged me to stop and I had to dig deep. I thought about my friends, supporters and teammates,” Munro said. “I wore a mountain bike helmet and ran with the rope beside me. My pulse was 180 and it was like trying to breathe through a straw.”Although Munro slept in an altitude tent two weeks before the event, the effects were minimal, and runners with high-altitude experience passed Munro on the steep section. Munro finished well off pace with a time of 2 hours, 17 minutes, 4 seconds.Bernie Boettcher of Team Bull Riders won the running portion in 1:39:59. Regardless, Munro was stoked by the experience.“Twenty-four teams started the race but only 16 finished, so I am so proud of my teammates. The potential for the human spirit is immense and it shines at these events,” Munro said.Other members of the Rocky Mountain Oysters included kayaker Tao Berman, Marla Streb, a mountain bike legend, and Abe Laguna, a world-class paraglider. The team finished 11th overall in 9:22:44. Specialized/Riversports won in 7:37:34, Adventure Sport Magazine placed second in 7:45:16 and The Bull Riders placed third in 8:07:38.“Marla had a great race against some of the best guys in the world. These athletes are the best of the best, so you know where you sit on a world level,” Munro said.Although it seems mild in comparison, Munro’s next race is the Knee Knacker North Shore Trail Run. The 50-kilometre trail race is part of Munro’s training plan for his next epic adventure, the Kazakhstan 100 miler. He will b e running in difficult, high-altitude terrain, but Munro insists it is a great way to see the world.“A lot of times people ask me why I do these things and I tell them that people do a million amazing things everyday. Some learn to paint. I want to learn how to mentally and physically push my body to the limits.”