We lined up at the start a couple minutes before the start, the weather was ok at that time. It was about -3 celsius (27F), the wind was about 20km/h (12-13 mph) and there was some light snow falling from the sky. So the horn blew and off we were.

I felt pretty good from the get go. There was quite a few ice patches in the first half of the lap but at that point that didn't bother me. As I warmed up, so did my glasses and the snow started sticking to them and I had to clean them every so often... annoyance. I found my friend of the day after about 2k. We chatted on and off for a good part of the race. When I hit the aid station for the first time I had a nice surprise, two actually. The cups were made of hard plastic which meant we couldn't squeeze them to drink and there was some slush in the water as well. I finished the first lap (7k) in 33:40 which made me happy, I was right on target. Maybe a tiny bit fast but whatever.

As we started the second lap, the snow and wind were picking up. The snow was slowly accumulating on the road as well which made things harder. After 40min or so, I picked my gel in my pocket only to realize that my friend was doing the exact same thing... that was both our first "gel date" ever! :) We were alone, for a good part of the lap until a group of 7-8 people passed us. Very close to the end of the lap, we hit a tight turn and my right foot just slipped from under me and I ended on my side. The hip and knee took the biggest part of the impact. We closed the second lap in 35:06 which was still ok but I didn't care at that point.

About a minute after the crash, I said goodbye to my friend Marlene. I couldn't keep up, the crash sent the HR through the roof and I was almost hyperventilating. At that point I briefly though about dropping out but I opted to take the next k to assess things. My gloves were soaked wet but I managed to get the breathing under control and the leg didn't feel awful so I kept on going. At that point, the wind and snow were still picking up. About two k after the crash, some fighting spirit came back... and my hands were getting colder and colder. I tried to stay in touch with everyone that passed me but it's like the legs wouldn't fire up, I couldn't stay with any of them and everything was getting stiffer and stiffer. It was like my body, ??because of the wet hands?? , went from "race mode" to "hypothermia prevention mode". On the last 2-3 k, even though I was trying to push the pace, I was barely breathing heavy. I got to the finish line in 1:47:08 with a 38:22 third lap. Marlene finished two minutes ahead of me.

Of course, a half hour after we were done the sun was shining again. The hip is ok, maybe I'll have a little bruise tomorrow. On the other hand, the knee has a nice bump and a bit of road rash. I'd gladly share a picture but my digital camera died a few weeks ago.

I fell short of my expectations on this one. My goal was 1:42 / 1:43 under moderately tough conditions. Sure weather was tougher than expected but I am wondering what it would have been if I didn't crash.


Not fall! Use the Yak Trax. I should have had more water but my body kind of didn't want it.

No need for that, I was damn cold at the finish line. Never in my life was a glass of hot water so attractive. I had two big plates of the lunch they had for us, t'was goooood.


The crash, the weather and probably some other stuff I am forgetting.