Race Update – July 3rd, 2023

Hello Knee Knacker Runners!

Wow! We are less than 5 days away from Knee Knacker 2023 and I hope everyone is doing well, that tapering is going great, and that you’re excited for the day. There’s lots of info in this email, and you can also check out our new-this-year Runners’ Guide. The 3 most important things are:

(1)    Be kind to volunteers

(2)    Pick up your race packet on Thursday evening

(3)    Race starts at 6:00 am, Sat, July 8^th – be sure to check in when you arrive.

Now for anyone who wants more details, grab your beverage of choice and settle in for all things Knee Knacker…

Volunteers – We love our volunteers!

We are fortunate to have the best volunteers. Really.  Please thank them! Please help them have a great day too! As a fully volunteer-run, not-for-profit organization, our Knee Knacker community is truly special. Thank you for this!

Packet Pickup

Packet Pickup is at our store sponsor, Forerunners in North Vancouver on Thursday, July 6^th 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm. There is a limited packet pickup on Friday, July 7^th 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm for those who are unable to pick up Thursday – please come Thursday if possible.

IF YOU DO NOT PICK UP YOUR PACKET ON THURSDAY OR FRIDAY, YOU WILL NOT BE IN THE RACE!

If you aren’t going to be able to participate in the race, please email me or if you pick up your race package, let the crew know then. This does NOT open up a spot for anyone else (we draw 272 names in the lottery for just over 200 people on the start line). Please also note entries cannot be transferred or sold.

Race Briefing

Race briefing will be held on Thursday, July 6^thfrom 7:00 pm – 7:45 pm at Forerunners. This is optional, but highly recommended for first timers and those who want to hear the latest and greatest updates. It’s also fun to see everyone and share in the excitement!

Course Conditions and Updates

The course is in great shape. It’s gnarly, rocky, rooty, sometimes frustrating, and Knee Knacker ready! There may have been some trail fairies out recently making our lives easier in the Cypress/Hollyburn stretch. For those of you who clambered over BIG trees with scratchy branches, let’s just say… there is a little bit less in your way now. There are 3 course updates to note, but before I get to the specifics, know that the course will be VERY well marked and if you have any questions, feel free to ask us (Glenn Pace!) at packet pickup.

(1)    Brother’s creek bridge – is closed. Our re-route will take the higher trail up and over with minimal difference in elevation and distance

(2)    Skyline drive – there is a short re-route just before the skyline drive aid station which will drop us down onto the driveway for a few hundred meters before popping back up to the trail. Again, minimal difference in elevation and distance

(3)    Quarry Rock – we’re BACK to the original finish! While the re-route from last year is a lovely trail, wherever possible, we opt to keep to ‘classic’ course and who doesn’t love the endless ups and downs and people cheering in the final 2+km.

This is a good time to thank all our partners and permitting bodies that we work with to put on our run. It’s no small feat to ensure we have all 16 permits in place each year.

Shuttle Bus and Start

We provide a free shuttle bus service from Panorama Park in Deep Cove to the start line and have secured parking at Cove Cliff School. Any parking option other than this will be very tricky, so please plan accordingly. Buses depart at 4:45, 4:50and 4:55 am. IF you have someone drop you off at the start, please ensure they do not try to park there. We need the very few parking spots available for North Shore Rescue and our race morning volunteers so please respect this. 

Note, thanks to Panorama Park’s caretaker, Jose, the bathrooms at the park will be open at 4:00 am. If you see Jose, please thank him! It’s worth taking advantage of these as the porta potties at the start line get busy quickly.

Race Morning Check In

When you arrive at the start, you must check in with our start-line crew. Safety is our #1 concern, and we need to know if you’re on course. If you don’t check in on race morning, you are not an official starter.

Drop Bags

After you check in, put your drop bag (any ‘reasonable’ sized bag labeled with your number) in the truck right behind the check-in tables. These will be transported to Cleveland Dam for you to use at the halfway point and then they’ll be transported to the finish line for pickup.

Cutoff Times

There are cutoff times at each of the major aid stations – Cypress, Cleveland, LSCR and the Finish. If you are concerned about these times, Greg White will be your best ally on race day and though he will be enforcing the cutoffs, he will also do his utmost to help you make good decisions along the way.

Aid Stations

There are plenty… 9 to be precise! We will have plenty of water and supplies however if you need anything in particular, make sure you take advantage of your drop bag that will be transported from the start to Cleveland Dam. A reminder for all of you speedsters and those from out of town… the stretch from the start to Black Mountain aid station is a long one and it will be hot and possibly humid even early in the morning. Black Mountain aid station volunteers need to haul all the supplies in, so we highly recommend starting with at LEAST a bottle (most people will have 1+ litres). As you fly through the aid stations, do take a moment to notice the special efforts the Captains and teams put in… you may find live music, costumes, home-baked goodies, water guns, Disney themes, freezies, cold bandanas or ??? 

Party-in-the-Park

We are very excited to be welcoming Deep Cove Pizza to our Party-in-the-Park this year! Every runner will receive tickets for 2 pieces of pizza and additional slices will be available for purchase at the park. We are also happy to have Bridge Brewing back as our beer sponsor.

Awards

Please stay to cheer on the final finishers if you can! We’ll start the awards ceremony as soon as possible after the final cutoff (around 4:30 pm). In addition to age group and overall winners, it’s important to us that we acknowledge every finisher, regardless of time. As we’ve done in recent years, we won’t be calling up all runners individually, but we will welcome all newbies to the Knee Knacker family by taking a ‘Cohort of 2023 Photo’.

Reducing Our Impact on the Environment

Each year we look carefully at how we can reduce our impact on the environment and ask for your help in this too. Following are some improvements:

• Cups – we are cup free. Please plan on using your handheld bottle, pack or a reusable cup
• Drop Bags – if you’d like to use a drop bag, please bring your own (reusable) bag on race morning.  Label it clearly with your number (and name if you wish) and use the guideline of a shoe box as a ‘reasonable’ size
• Garbage and Recycling – we’ve partnered with Green Coast Rubbish to allow us to have compost, recyclables and garbage sorted, to keep the park clean and to minimize our impact. Please help us with this! Please feel free to bring a cup and utensils to the party in the park

Sponsors

Please support them! Without our sponsors’ generous donations, our run wouldn’t be possible. THANK YOU, Sponsors!

North Shore Rescue

Is again partnering with us to lead our race day safety efforts. I can’t begin to tell you what these amazing folks do behind the scenes to keep us safe! There will be ~15 NSR volunteers for us on race day alone. If you get the urge, please consider donating. At a minimum, please thank them profusely when you see them!

Fundraising – It’s On!

We are grateful for the fundraising efforts that our community does in support of North Shore Rescue (NSR). Over the years, the Knee Knacker has raised/donated over $140,000 to various organizations and we believe so strongly in this that we allocate one GUARANTEED entry to the top fundraiser – this year, we have the one and only Barb Wilkins at the top of our leaderboard AGAIN raising a whopping $5275! I love the friendly banter and competition with our top fundraisers – this year’s total is already at $10,280.93! We will keep donation pages open until after Knee Knacker, in case you want to raise any additional funds! My sincere thanks to the following people: Alex Klein Gunnewiek, Barb Wilkins, Ben Hanke, Ben Partridge, Bernie Dalby, Graeme Budge, Hayley Neimy, Jessica Thompson, Jon Stack, Kara Hoffman, Kate Burrage, Marina Arnaud, Marisa Shearing, Matias McDonald, Maxime Lorrillere, Megan McCann, Sarah Manwaring and Sarah Wunderlich who all set up fundraising pages.

Volunteer Hours

If you haven’t already submitted your volunteer hours, please do this ASAP. The intention is to give back to our community in any way that resonates for you. This does not need to be trail or Knee Knacker related. Thank you for this!

Committee Thanks

I want to share my heartfelt thanks to our Committee members who do cartwheels and handstands behind the scenes to make the Knee Knacker what it is. We have been able to reduce the endless Zoom calls and meet in person several times this year – it’s been wonderful to re-connect. I am so grateful for this team who manages to balance full time jobs, family, friends, hobbies & all that life entails in addition to really significant time commitments with Knee Knacker. My continued & sincere thanks.

Please reach out to me anytime – I love hearing how you are and sharing the anticipation of the day.

See you soon!

Kelsy