Hair of the Dog 9k,New Years Day,2010,Noon,
http://www.balmybeachcanoe.com/
Talk about a fitting title for a New Years Day run! It will cure you or kill you,and if the run doesn’t kill you there’s always the polar bear dip in Lake Ontario afterwards
that is braved each year by a handful of hearty souls.The $25 registration,staring at 10:30am, is a great deal to start the year,followed by a warm lunch served inside the Balmy Beach Club.
Did I mention that the bar is open and doing a brisk trade??There’s that hair of the dog you were looking for.
The race is 9k of boardwalk and bike path starting at the Balmy Beach Club at the foot of Beech Ave. heading out to the gates of Tommy Thompson Park at the Leslie St.spit.The turnaround features the one aid station,where it is rumoured that Scnapps is one of the choices!
I was involved in a six way sruggle for the lead at the turnaround and though one of the six tried to broker a group stop,the 2 young lads from Neil McNeil High School weren’t having it!In fact it was at this point that they ramped up the pace followed by renowned chiro Bill Wells.I faded to fourth quickly but held this spot to the finish,claiming the W in my age group which awarded me a running store gift pack(re-gift) and a free entry to the WIN Marathon!!Not bad for a little local race.The theme of the awards seemed to be re-gifting,and some very not bad at all.
All in all a great way to start the New Year,though the weather can reek havoc on this mostly lakefront course,and the footing can be sketchy,so trail shoes are a good bet.
Cheers
