We caught up with Ultimate rookie Rachael Drost after Monday’s Stage 2.

Although the number of rookies is small – they make up 31% of 2017 Ultimate runners – they are vital to the event and Rachael is a great example of the energy that new participants bring to the week and the community.

Rachel is having “a hoot” so far this week, and it’s not hard to see why. Besides crushing her own expectations so far, Rachel is also a great example of one of the common paths to ENDURrun – through volunteering. Rachael first got involved with ENDURrun as a key volunteer in 2016. She got hooked on the event’s camaraderie and returned in 2017 as an Ultimate competitor. She also brought along her running group – The Running Rarebits – to compete as a Relay and to volunteer all week, and the seeds are already planted. We won’t be surprised to see her and some of her teammates in the Ultimate competition in future years 😉

Rachel, who also fundraised $1,100 for FeedFive through the ENDURrun’s Charity of Choice program, is tackling Stage 3 as her team’s relay runner. Best of luck for the rest of the week, Rachael!

If you’re on the fence about ENDURrun for you, consider taking a morning to volunteer at a Stage this year. It gives you great access to the stories like these that will keep you coming back! 

For our next mini-profile, we don’t have to look farther than Stage 1 winner Vicki Zandbergen for an exceptional story.

As the all-time record holder for Run Waterloo event finishes (117), Vicki was recognized as member number 4 earlier this year. This extensive career has also contributed to other ENDURrun records, including the longest current streak of Ultimate finishes (6). Vicki can tie the record for most consecutive Ultimate finishes next Sunday (7), but set a new record in Stage 1: the longest wait (in Ultimate Stages finished) before earning the Gold Jersey (43)!

Vicki has coveted this Jersey for years, and it’s amazing to see this come together in her seventh Ultimate attempt. Vicki is the twenty-second member of the Golden Club. But the week is long, and two runners – Catherine and Val – are within 95 seconds of the lead after the first Stage!

Congrats to @VicZanRan for earning her first Event (Stage) Winner badge today!! https://t.co/GFlC753owR pic.twitter.com/lmkutr5PJX

— Run Waterloo Results (@RW_Results) August 14, 2017

Rob Brouillette is back in ENDURrun 2017. He’s happy to chat about it, but you wouldn’t know that from his social media profiles.

The one and only #ENDURrob is usually a prolific user of social media, but has gone dark for the past 6 weeks, including to Strava. Since we haven’t had any updates about his training and preparations, we took the opportunity to check in with him at the pre-race meeting.

He says he’s back, ready to roll, and looking to improve on his times from 2015 and 2016. His absence from all things social media has simply been due to focus on his training. Rob even hopes to challenge both the second fastest time ever (Charles Bedley, 2003) and the 10-hour benchmark. He has two years of experience to rely on, plus some solid times this spring, including a sub-2:30 marathon this May in Mississauga.

Only Bob Jackman and Jackie Jackman have accomplished the “three-peat” of three consecutive Ultimate championships (both from 2008-2010). Rob has the rare opportunity to do so now in 2017. It starts today.

As you probably know, there has been and continues to be a lot of construction in the village of Conestogo. This will affect access to the village as well as four of the courses. Here is what you need to know:

Access
1. Construction can change daily. Leave lots of time before arriving to Conestogo for Stages 1, 2, 6 and 7. Below are our recommendations, which cannot be guaranteed.

2. The best advice for out-of-town guests is to arrive in Conestogo via Sawmill Road from Highway 85, and park at either Conestogo Public School or on Weberlyn Crescent, and to walk over to Conestogo Park. This is the most reliable way to access both the Schmidt Residence and Conestogo Park. There is limited parking at Conestogo Park.

3.  … keep reading in the 2017 ENDURrun Info Booklet [PDF]

This booklet also addresses rule changes, such as the introduction of Dollar Pacers and the elimination of bicycle pacers.

As we approach our fifteenth year in 2017, I’m reflecting on how much I’ve learned from ENDURrunners over the years. This year, we are going to to collect and share that information – the stories, the strategy, and the advice.

Today I want to talk about something I hear from you, time and time again, in one form or another: “I wish I had trained more.”

For this, my best advice is simple: sign up early, especially if you are an Ultimate rookie.

Registering for ENDURrun is a big decision. I can’t stress enough how important it is to have that decision made before your winter training blocks. There is a huge psychological difference between putting money on the line and having the attitude, ‘I want to do it, but I’ll see how it goes.’ Completing the ENDURrun is an accomplishment regardless, but for many ENDURrunners, this training commitment is a determining factor in their own goal setting process.

The best case scenario for your first ENDURrun is to train for an entire year. If your personality needs goals to work towards, strengthen that incentive by making the commitment now. Ideally, nobody toes the Stage 1 start line next year undertrained. If your conditioning isn’t where you want it to be, you will need to adjust your goals during the week. If registering now helps you to achieve more, then I absolutely recommend that you do it today.

To encourage you to register today, we have an early bird promo code good for $50 off the $400 base cost for Ultimate. Join the ENDURrunners facebook group for the code. It expires at midnight tonight.

I don’t want you to sign up if you won’t train. But if you want to train, this is the best favour you can do yourself. Anecdotally, if you register now, you reap the rewards in your training.

These are just a few photos of the faces of 2016 One Tough Runners. This early bird program is one of the most powerful tools I have to help you achieve this goal. (This applies to ENDURrun veterans, too!)