My First Ultra

The visit to Niagara was based on a family road-trip, with an aside to take on my first ultramarathon.

I was relying on the recent marathon in Ottawa to get me through the distance without any race-specific training.  With only an extra 8km (5 miles), the 50km distance is often referred to as a gateway (or “baby”) ultra. 

The course was an out & back along the scenic Riverside Trail from Niagara-on-the-Lake to the brink of the famous Horseshoe Falls. The forecast was hot, with potential thunderstorms that didn’t materialize.

My target was to finish in less than 5 hours, but my main goal was to enjoy the run and finish with enough energy to continue sightseeing in the afternoon!

At the start line the conditions were overcast but already warm.  The vibe was relaxed, and it was particularly great to be in the company of around 20 runners from my local club.

Photo: Vincent Young

With my longest ever run ahead of me and a bottleneck at the start, I began with a couple of easy km to get warmed up and allow the field to spread.

As I got into my stride the sun started to come through, and by about the 10km mark it was getting really hot. This was also where the main hill on the route occurred with a steady climb from 11-13km.

The scenery was a great distraction, with some beautiful heritage trails and views of the river. After the climb the route follows the gorge and it was fascinating to see the vultures spiralling above, and the sparkling blue, green water below.

I reached the American Falls just after 9am and the tourist traffic was already starting to get busy.  I joined them admiring the view and taking a few photos! Pushing on through the refreshing mist to the turnaround point at the Horseshoe Falls, it was surreal dodging around coach loads of people who were oblivious to an event taking place, making the occasional cheers even more appreciated.

Peace and quiet reigned back along the Niagara Parkway, although the temperature was still climbing. At the 30km water station I paused to fill my hydration pack with ice and to put sunscreen on my neck and shoulders (but not enough to stop my shoulders blistering).  As I moved out I could feel my left knee beginning to struggle and my pace started slipping.

After catching me on the Ottawa Marathon, once again Tony caught me walking around the 32km mark!  We fell into step together and it was nice to have some distracting conversation.

For the next few km we moved along steadily, but I had to focus on short term objectives – just pushing on to the next landmark or water station. By 40km I was barely hanging on to Tony, and around 42/43km I started to drop back.

There isn’t anything ‘baby’ about those last 8km. I got through them on a mix of running, shuffling and walking – with less and less running.  My final distraction from my knees and feet was the mental arithmetic on my pace… I calculated my buffer slipping away and the 5 hour mark was looming.

With a last burst I was able to cross the finish line in 28^th place,

with a gun time of 4 hrs 59 mins,

and a chip time of 4 hrs 58m 27s.

The post-race was fantastic, with the family joining me at the finish – and free beer and pizza for runners, it was great to sit back and swap race stories. Despite some sunburn and aching knees I was happy to feel strong enough to visit the falls with my family that afternoon – but definitely with a new perspective.

Results and photos online: https://niagarafallsmarathon.com/june-17-niagara-ultra/