The numbers tell the tale of what Steve Staves and a group of other Prince George ultramarathoners are in for this weekend at The North Face Canadian Death Race in Grande Cache, Alta.
125 kilometres through rugged mountain terrain on single track trails, with loose rock hazards and river crossings.
17,000 feet of elevation change.
24 hours to complete the course or be disqualified.
One Death Race medallion to pay the ferryman to take racers across the raging Smoky River. Losing it leads to instant disqualification.
Zero is the number of times Staves, as well as Aaron Bond and Reid Roberts, have attempted the Death Race.
The fear factor will no doubt be heightened on race day Saturday for Staves, a 43-year-old self-employed computer service and support specialist. He decided to change his lifestyle and take up running three years ago after he suffered a near heart attack carrying his three-year-old son up a stairway. He's since lost 70 pounds and last year ran the Vancouver Marathon.
"I knew I wasn't eating healthy and I wasn't doing any physical activity so I changed my eating habits and started running and found I really enjoy trail running," said Staves. "My knees were getting beat up by running on the roads so I decided to try trail running last year in May and that's when I ran across Jeff [Hunter] and Reid and by the end of the year they convinced me I've run enough to try the Death Race."
The hardcore soloists -- Staves, Roberts and Bond -- have been leaning on the ultramarathon expertise of Hunter, who finished fifth overall in the 2011 Death Race, improving on his 10th place result in 2010. Hunter prescribed the workout schedules for the other three, which call for at least 350 km of running each month.
Hunter, 37, has also been sharing his knowledge on hydration and nutrition and what runners need to put into their bodies in training and before, during and after races. He's passed on to the other runners what he's learned about eating and drinking too much, how that can make you sick during a race, how to use fat as a fuel, and how much training is needed to get in shape for a race without overdoing it and getting injured.
"Nutrition is so important in ultra running and if you aren't paying attention to that, don't even bother running, said Staves. "You could end up dead with hyponatremia, when you drink too much water and your electrolytes in your body are not balanced so your liver shuts down and kidneys can't process thing properly."
The 200-pound Staves doesn't plan on letting the Death Race live up to its name. Every 15 minutes during the race, whether he's thirsty or not, he'll be swallowing nutrition products that contain protein, sodium, potassium dissolved in his water bottle and will also have electrolyte tablets he'll take every half-hour. He will carry four litres of liquid mixtures and his energy gels and tablets in his backpack, a cell phone equipped with a GPS, a headlamp, a 120-decibel marine whistle for scaring off wildlife, and poles for tackling the steepest hills. He's been training with the full weight of his backpack since January.
Staves runs often in the Pidherny trails area off North Nechako Road and at Otway Nordic Centre and the Cranbrook Hill Greenway Trail. He successfully completed the 82-km Dick Voneugen Fun Run trail run in May, which was a sign he's doing the right things in training.
"I don't have any time aspirations about the Death Race, I just want to see if I can actually do it, 125K is not a small feat," said Staves. "I just view it as one fun challenge."
n At least three teams of Prince George athletes are entered in the Death Race. The Go-Go Girls (Nicole Ridshaug, Cindy Hartford, and Robin Kaplan) are regulars in the race. Also representing Prince George are Sticks and Berries (Darcy Rihtamo, Nancy Pilon, Mike Booth, Luke Veeken) and To Hades With Haste (Gwen Preston, Gord Cross, Alena Charleston, Kevin Charleston).
n On July 6, Hunter, Roberts, Bond, Jeff Mulligan and two Vancouver runners completed an 80 km self-guided run in the south Chilcotin west of Lillooet, which started with a floatplane drop at Taseko Lake and ended 13 hours later at Tyaughton Lake after traversing 12 peaks.
