Squamish athlete and business owner Shaun Stephens-Whale says he didn’t have a “perfect" Squamish50 race but his performance in the 50-kilometre trail run on Sunday was close enough to perfect to earn him first place.
Considered one of the most gruelling events of the year in the "outdoor recreation capital of the world," the Squamish50 wrapped up another weekend of trail running on Aug. 17.
"One of the few to ever break 4 hours and 40 minutes," announced race founder and organizer Gary Robbins, when awarding Stephens-Whale his first place medal.
For the 13th annual event, runners had to battle heavy rain on Saturday, but faced dry and cool temperatures on Sunday.
Stephens-Whale, who is originally from Roberts Creek, said while he won, and the conditions were “ideal” on Sunday, at one point, he ended up on all fours vomiting up his breakfast.
He had lost valuable time, but pulled himself together mentally and physically and managed to come in top spot, with a time of 4:39:52.
The well-known local tower runner and one of the owners of The Ninja Gym has now run the 50k and the 50-mile races twice each.
He credits his consistent training with helping him come first.
As a first-time business owner, he said learning “work-life balance” this past year has been a challenge, but he was able to “learn to adapt," to entrepreneurial pressures—like making rent each month while offering quality programming— giving him enough time to train.
This year, The Ninja Gym partnered with Squamish50 to have an activity centre set up at the finish line for those waiting to see someone cross.
Asked what makes the Squamish50 the increasingly popular race series unique, Stephens-Whale credited its founders and organizers Gary Robbins and Geoff Langford with doing a “fantastic job” building up the race weekend in the lead-up to it.
He called that anticipation an “under-valued” aspect of such events.
Robbins’ fame helps too, he said, noting some runners likely participated just to meet the ultra-marathoner who is known in Squamish for his race victories and as founding the Squamish50, but to others as the subject of the 2018 Where Dreams Go to Die, documentary, that followed his attempts at the 160-kilometre Barkley Marathons in Tennessee.
The event organizers of The Squamish50 also keep the energy of the race up with great aid stations and enthusiastic volunteers, Stephens-Whale added.
For anyone who has been inspired to sign up for next year’s Squamish50, Stephens-Whale advised they make it a “fun goal.”
The 23K race is an inclusive run that would make a good first goal, he said.
“Start out by running around the block,” he advised.
Squamish50 Results
50 Mile — Men
- Alexandre Campbell of North Vancouver took first place out of 237 runners, finishing in 7:39:26 (gun time).
- Ivan Shvetsov of Port Coquitlam came second in 8:14:20.
- Eric Thompson of Vancouver claimed bronze with a time of 8:19:16.
50 Mile — Women
- Juliane Fisette of Rimouski, Q.C, topped the women’s field of 88, with a time of 9:28:13.
- Jennie Labrie of North Vancouver placed second in 9:35:10.
- Gemma Isaac, also of North Vancouver, took bronze with a time of 9:38:24.
50K — Men
- Squamish and Roberts Creek native Shaun Stephens-Whale won the race out of 336 runners, clocking in at 4:39:52.
- Marcus Ribi of Vancouver followed in second at 4:47:00.
- Ryan Goodwin of North Vancouver finished third in 4:54:24.
50K — Women
- Jade Belzbert of Langley Township placed first among 181 women, with a time of 5:08:59.
- Sophie Yates of Vancouver came second in 6:00:17.
- Sandra Kilmartin of Squamish rounded out the podium at 6:05:03.
50/50 — Men (Both the 50 Mile and 50K)
- Alexandre Campbell topped the field of 78 finishers, completing both races in a combined time of 12:45:44.
- Squamish’s John Dean earned silver with 13:55:30.
- Seth Wealing of Golden, Colorado, took third place in 14:36:39.
50/50 — Women
- Jennie Labrie of North Vancouver won gold against 24 other women who completed both races, finishing in 16:14:16.
- North Vancouver’s Gemma Isaac secured second in 16:33:36.
- Squamish’s Nicole Gillette claimed bronze with a time of 17:58:14.
23K — Men
- Hometown runner Jessie McAuley took gold out of 218 runners, finishing in 1:44:14.
- Michael Wood of Winnipeg came second in 1:46:13.
- Anton Kuipers of Victoria placed third in 1:49:34.
23K — Women
- Carol-Ann Rolle of Chilliwack won the women’s race out of 263, with a time of 1:58:40.
- Andrea Burley of North Vancouver came second in 2:06:23.
- Haley Hughes finished third in 2:10:44.
See the full list of finalists on the Squamish50 website.
