Many Lives in a Day

My first 100-miler was like dying, coming back to life, dying again and being reborn

By Michal Kapral

The setting sun casts a red-orange glow behind the trees as I round a corner of the trail. A deer appears in the brush to my right, standing still as I approach, then bounding next to me for a few metres before pausing again. I wave at the animal and continue up one of the course’s many hills. I’m on my sixth of eight 20-km loops of the Sulphur Springs 100-Mile Trail Race in Hamilton’s Dundas Valley Conservation Area, and I’m ready to begin my first experience trail running at night. I feel an overwhelming sense of awe. Then darkness falls. Czech running legend Emil Zátopek said the marathon is like experiencing another life. My first 100-mile ultra was like living multiple lives—dying, coming back to life, dying again and being…

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Canadian Running (Digital) - 1 Issue, Trail Special 2024

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