Happy Go Lucky

Will you kindly indulge me in being a bit pleased with myself for a moment? It doesn't happen often..

I was also pleased with the lovely sunshine over the weekend.

I had mentioned last week that I'd got a couple of bits of good news lately, both of which had been rather surprising. I'm sure the suspense has been non-existent, but nevertheless I'm ready for the big reveals.

The first piece of news I've actually been sitting on for awhile, because I almost couldn't believe it until I had the proof in my hands.

That free hat cost me 337km of racing between April 29th and October 28th

Somehow a lot of the big guns - by which I mean the incredibly fast and talented ladies who usually dominate the OUTRace Ultra Series - were off racing other things this year, so I managed 2nd place woman under 40. I was even more stunned when I looked at the final standings and saw that I'd managed to place in the top 5 women overall!

Not by much, but there I am.

For someone who really has no clue of what they're doing and just tries to truck along as best they can, it's a huge honour to see my name among such ass-kicking women. It almost makes me feel like I may have some business out there after all..

Nah, not really - but I still have fun.

It's a nice cherry on the top of a fairly successful 2017. Not only did I make all of my racing goals, I actually managed to place in at least the top 3 of my age group in 5 out of the 8 events I ran this year.

Even if everyone else was gone by the time I finished so they could announce the awards..
(True story)

This means 2018 is going to have its work cut out for it in order to top all that. However, the other piece of news I got just last week should help out with that a lot..

Say whaaaaaaa?

I was invited by the kind folks at Happy Trails Racing to act as one of the handful of ambassadors for their growing race series in the 2018 season. With the wonderful experience I had at their inaugural event - the Sticks n'Stones Race this past October - and knowing the incredible passion of the Race Director and Race Coordinator for both trail running and philanthropy, I couldn't possibly say no! I'd already registered for the first event in the new year; an indoor track race in January called Stride Inside that will benefit Women's Shelters Canada, partly because I'm a sucker for punishment (having said I'd never do another indoor track race) but mostly because I know that Jeff and Heather will be sure to nail down every last detail to make it a fantastic experience. The excellent cause that will benefit is the icing on the cake!

Like the gorgeous sunset over the Grand River at the end of Sunday's run.

I look forward to racing or volunteering at as many of Happy Trails Racing's future events as possible, as these two continue to bring more depth and variety to the Ontario trail and ultrarunning scene while selflessly working to support worthy causes. I'm honored to have a tiny part in that, and encourage you to check out some of the unique races they have planned!

Which come with some awesome swag, too!

So I'm cruising on a bit of an ultrarunning high right now, and have great hopes for the season to come.

'til next time, you awesome people - Happy Trails!