| When Mark Cunningham, a LT in the Canadian Forces Navy, sent me an email out of the blue asking if I would like to run with a relay team he was forming to run the Cabot Trail Relay my first response was "But of course!". As my two year tour here with the CF draws to a close what better way to end it than to travel to the Maritimes and compete. |
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This was my first trip to the Nova Scotia. After arriving in Halifax and checking into base billeting I got my bearings on the town by a run from the Naval Base across town to Point Pleasant Park--a magnificent stand of old growth forest preserved right next to Halifax. It rained almost constantly--as it would much of the weekend. Surprisingly little during the race itself, though. |
| It rained all day on Friday and into the night. The forecast was for
more of the same. By Saturday morning however the rain had stopped and
only patches of fog and a slight drizzle remained.
An LT with the Canadian Forces Navy, Joyce Switzer, led off for our team, "The Ottawa Ice Storm Survivors". Joyce is a highly competitive runner who has competed with the CF national team. |
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Joyce started off conservatively, but with her experience and even
pace moved up steadily from sixth place to nearly third. The third place
runner held her off only with a desperate sprint at the end, and Joyce
demolished the former women's course record for leg one by over five minutes!
Next up in the "Tour de France" style stage relay race was her husband, Don Switzer. |