Road to Seek the Peak
Week 1: Morikke Espenhain
Posted by Julia Grant April 5, 2016
Each week we’ll be featuring posts from special guests designed to help get you ready for the big day. From nutrition and training tips, to motivational stories – each post will have valuable info to support your journey, all the way to the Peak!
When I began to think about participating in Seek the Peak (STP) last year I considered a few things: I can already run 16 km - check! I can climb the Grind – it’s exhausting but manageable. I can climb up to the Peak and back down, no problem. But when I started thinking about combining all those parts together… it just seemed crazy! So I decided to join the STP training clinic and “think” about doing the actual race. After many weeks of training (up and down many hills) I finally committed to the 4,100 ft climb. But, as the run drew closer I realized I needed additional support so I reached out to my closest friends and family to be my cheering squad on race day, to help bring me through the finish line.
On race day I awoke to a glorious, sunny day. Feeling somewhat anxious and jittery I powered up with a good breakfast and headed for the start. The flats of Ambleside were filled with nervous and excited racers, each with their own reason for taking on this challenge. I was still in the process of defining my own reason for racing but I’d didn’t have much time to think about; it was go time.
As I started off through the balloon archway I felt good; really good. So good in fact, that I forgot my plan to power-walk the Nancy Greene Way section of the race. Instead I ran it. It was tough and seemed to go on forever but, I had practiced it many times during training so I knew I could do it. When I entered the Grind section I was tired but still feeling good and slightly ahead of my predicted time. As I started climbing however, things began to change. Not even 5 minutes up those steps and I started to think; I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this any more. But I knew I had to get to the top since going down would be worse, and I couldn’t let down my family and friends waiting at the top. I decided somewhere around the one quarter mark that I would just get through the Grind and then quit. Then I started thinking about my Mom. She died 7 years ago from a rare form of cancer in her gallbladder. I thought about how she never quit. In fact, she never even complained about the pain and struggle she had to endure for an entire year, instead putting on a brave face and tackling her own grind the best she could. So many people are battling cancer and here I am, healthy and strong, participating in this race to help with that fight. It was a humbling thought – one that inspired me to keep climbing.
I made it to the top of the Grind filled with renewed hope and a new goal. I was not going to quit, instead I was going to try to beat the time I had set in my head. So off I ran on very wobbly legs to tackle the Peak. Up and down I went; at this point, longing to see the finish line. As I rounded the final corner, there were my friends and family cheering me on. Their hoots and holler’s gave me the last bit of energy I needed to sprint across the finish line and into the waiting arms of my husband and my Dad. I remember looking up at my Dad and saying, “that was for Mom”. I could see the tears of sadness, remembrance and pride in his eyes. My reason for running had become clear out on the course – it was for my Mom and for all the people who battling cancer. They gave me the strength to keep going.
Now, every time I lace up my runners to hit the trails and roads of North Vancouver, I hope to get better and stronger. This is my hope for all those battling cancer. I hope that they too will get better and stronger, ready to seek their next peak.
Morikke Espenhain
