Snowshoe Classic 6K at Grouse Mountain

It was a last minute decision to do this race. I was a little hesitant to do this race just because it was moved to later in the season and because the race was in the evening. Regardless of this, I wanted to do it because I did the same race last year. The course was made harder and longer (6K distance). Running at night was definitely a different experience. Even though the course was marked with little flags it was still hard to see at night. A few people in the front of the pack went off course. I almost did the same as I was running down a hill. The snow was good because Grouse got about 10cm of new snow over the last few days. I enjoyed the race and was happy with the result of my performance. Ethan and Evelyn came with me and they did some sleigh riding and skating. Evelyn was my photographer for the night. I will post the pictures up on facebook. Despite the windy conditions, the view from the peak was breathtaking and beautiful. Thanks to a clear night.

Here is the result of the race: I came in 30th/62 overall, 10th/29 in females and 3rd/6 in my age group with a time of 1hr 2mins.

Tea Time

Everyone knows tea is beneficial to one's health. So recently, I have been drinking more tea. I have so many different types of tea sitting at home that I feel like I own a teashop...hehe. Ray and I discovered this neat tea place last Friday after a heavy dinner at Posh Hotpot which just opened not too long ago on W. Broadway. On our way home after dinner, I felt like going for tea so Ray suggested to try Main St. to see if there were any tea places. Sure enough, there was one called Shaktea Tea Lounge. Interesting name though. I love tea so much that I got my girlfriends together for tea at Shaktea located on Main St and 21st Ave. I thought it would be nice to get together for tea instead of dinner. It was nice for a change. It seemed like everyone enjoyed their tea. Last time I had "Premium Rosebud" tea and tonight I went for "Rooibos Chai" tea. Both times they were good! My friends had "Tropical Punch Green" tea, "Honeybush" tea, "Coconut Chai" tea and "Almond Milk" tea. The tea I had gave me a soothing and calming effect :) I would highly recommend this tea lounge and I am even thinking of making it as a hangout spot for me.

St. Patrick's Day 5K Run

Well, well, well...one quick in and out race. Love it! I loved it more especially because the race started later at 10am and because the weather was just perfect for racing. I prefer a later start time for racing just because the weather is always nicer later in the day. I know what some of you are thinking. You might be thinking that I want to sleep in. Ah..."NO". I still get up early to get ready for the race. Anyway, this race was a fast and scenic 5K loop in Stanley Park and also a very well organized race by Running Room. It was a great party for the post race with lots of food and refreshments. Yeah, I will do it again next year. I heard that the number of participants was up by 300 from last year. Wow...what a great turn-out!! I feel so privileged to race with the elites or "ringers" (what they are usually referred to). The best of the best were out competing with each other in this race. Speedy and super-fast times for 5K. It was just as fast as a car, well...not quite...hehe

Here are the result: I finished with a personal best time of 26:06 mins ranking as 199th/675 overall, 66th/418 for females and 53rd/297 in my age group. Ray, on the other hand, finished at an incredible time of 18:53mins which placed him at 39th/675 overall, 36th/259 for males and 31st/173 in his age group.

Yeti Snowshoe Series Finale / National Championships at Cypress

Finally, the Yeti snowshoe series came to an end at Cypress today. There were quite a lot of people that came out and participated in this series finale / national championship. It was a bonus for all the racers to get wonderful sunny weather. It sure was a great way to end the season. The snow was still pretty good in this late of the winter season. I had a great time out there and got a personal best by 4 mins. That goes the same for Ray who PB'd by 2 mins. He came first with the second person coming in just 10 seconds behind him. Results will be posted as soon as it is on the website. Even though this snowshoe series has been great, there were a few shortfalls with the organization. First and foremost, they should hire a timing company to time the race, NOT just doing a manual timing. There were a few times that they didn't even know that the first 5K'er came in because of the 10K'ers doing the second loop therefore confusing everyone. Then they screwed up the finish times and the ranks. They could not generate the series points for the 10K'ers at the awards ceremony which disappointed some people. Poor timing system. Secondly, they should be honouring the 5K participants not just the 10K's. I know the longer the distance, the better it seems for the race to bring out all the "Elites" but I strongly believe that whoever pays for a race should be treated the same as the others. They should do the series points for the 5K'ers too. This is how I feel from these snowshoe races. Hopefully they will make changes for next year's series!!

Update (Mar 10/08): Here are the official results. Ray came in 1st/84 overall and 1st/16 in his age group with a time of 30:37 mins. I was placed at 60th/84 overall and 20th/30 in my age group with a time of 48:33 mins.