| POST
RACE REPORT
April
10th, 2004 TOUGHEST
GUTBUSTER TO DATE
- record crowd, record temperatures, killer
course 
Racers
line up for the start of the GutBuster. Photo by Tony Austin.
FINAL
RESULTS (pdf) The
fourth annual Adidas GutBuster Trail Run moved to the other side of Mt. Tzouhalem
and was staged from the beautiful Providence Farm in the Cowichan Valley. The
change brought with it sunny skies and record setting temperatures in the 20s! A
total of 161 racers turned out and participated in either the 5km or 10km course.
Racers from as far as Australia, Banff, and Penticton were in town ready to bust-a-gut.
The new course designed by Sheron Chysler from the local CeeVacs Running Club
is being hailed by many regulars as the toughest GutBuster to date. The 10km course
featured over 500m of elevation gain with spectacular views of the Cowichan Valley.
In
a controversial finish, Ian Hallam was the first to cross the finish line with
a time of 56:13. However, due to an error by race management in not positioning
a course marshal in the correct spot, the two lead runners, Steve Osaduik and
Graham Cocksedge, made a wrong turn with less than 2km to go. In the meantime,
Ian Hallam and Stefan Jakobsen made the correct turn. Osaduik was able to catch
Jakobsen and crossed the finished line in second place. Jakobsen held onto third
and Cocksedge fourth. 
Steve Osaduik (103)
leads the pack off the start line. Ian Hallam (31) and Stefan Jakobsen (38) follow
closely. Photos by Tony Austin.
In
reviewing this unfortunate situation, Hallam and Osaduik were awarded a tie for
first place and Jakobsen and Cocksedge were given a tie for third place. Fairness
was the objective in changing the final results. "Mt.
Tzouhalem is covered with a maze of trails and roads and marking a course of this
magnitude can be very difficult," says Race Director, Bryan Tasaka. "Racers
are responsible for paying attention and going the right way, but in this case
it was our error and that is why we adjusted the final result." The
first female finisher and 10th overall was Australia's Nina Wright with a time
of 1:05:58. Duncan's Jodi Leeti was right behind Wright with a time of 1:07:01.
Another Aussie, Lisa Polizzi, finished third with a time of 1:07:32. 
Female
Open winners: Nina Wright, Jodi Leeti, and Lisa Polizzi. Photos by Tony Austin.
In
the masters male category, Gary Duncan, of Victoria was first with a time of 1:04:10;
Myron Knippshield, Duncan, finished second with a time of 1:05:27. Lyn Chorney
was third, 1:06:22. In
the masters female category, Laurie Kalf of Errington was first with a time of
1:18:44. Kathleen Petereit, Nanaimo, was second 1:20:58, and Jennifer Stewart,
Nanoose Bay, was third with a time of 1:27:41. 14
year old, Eric Timmons from Nanaimo was the first to finish the 5km course with
a time of 18:09. Ian Myerscough from Victoria was the top in the Male Master's
category with a time of 18:34. Jane Spenser from Crofton was the top female in
the open category with a time of 22:32 and Elisa Carlson from Langley was the
top in the female master's category with a time of 21:06. 
10
year old, Alexa Turcotte, raced the short course with her dad Terry in 32:27.
Photo by Tony Austin.
Winners
went home with great prize packages from our generous sponsors. All first place
winners won a new pair of Adidas Trail Response runners. Second place winners
won a $50 gift certificate to Frontrunners, and third place winners won either
a Hammer Gel or Flash-5 prize package. Notable
draw prizes included numerous pieces of Adidas technical clothing and runners,
race entries to the MOMAR and future GutBusters, and two night accommodation packages
at the Howard Johnson Hotel in Nanaimo or Victoria. Overall
it was a fantastic day and Providence Farm couldn't be a better staging venue
for the race. Lorne and his crew from Providence Farm put on an amazing BBQ. Great
crowd, sunny skies and nothing but 80's tunes on the stereo -- what an auspicious
start to the GutBuster series! | 
