I don’t throw the word “epic” around much but I’ll be using it with liberty in this post. Everything about the Mad Trapper Bushtakah Snowshoe Night Race/I2P Fundraiser was epic…

The drive. The people. The vibe. The deep soft white snow. The field. The last climb. The potato chips. The brownies. The chilli. The conversations. The stories. The grins. The alpaca. The I2P fundraising.

All of these elements can be summed up with one so very 2013 word – epic. Oh and to top it off – it was a good fun night.

With weather that was not favourable to driving but very good for snowshoe running, a hardy group made their way to the Mad Trapper Ark for a very good night of running around in the snow. As usual, Mike set a very challenging course (I actually found this one more difficult than the Hilly Course), my favourite aspects being the downhills and the run through the field. I must say that hill at the end definitely cracked me – but in a good way!

As always these events are really so much more than about the race… Sure we all want to go out and run our hardest and some folks are even aiming for the win – but it seems to me that people are really getting more than just a race from these events. It is about community and support – the chatter in the Ark after the race was all about congratulating one another and really just coming together for some fun. Yes, the winners are acknowledged but the people who get the biggest cheers and attention are those that did the race for the first time.

It is this atmosphere that keeps me coming out. The race last night really felt like a giant “group hug”. Even more so when people generously opened their wallets to bid on auction items to raise money for Impossible 2 Possible (I2P).

So yes, it was an epic night. Good people. Super atmosphere. Excellent community spirit. Lots of smiling faces. (And my favourite potato chips – ripple au gratin…)

(If you’re interested in checking out the course profile and all of my fascinating Strava statistics, check out my Facebook page.)

The next group hug… I mean Mad Trapper Snowshoe Race is on February 22. Make sure you come out – there will be lots of good stuff (brownies, potato chips, running, smiling, huffing and puffing) – all on an epic level.