More than 400 trail runners and gluttons for punishment capped off another season on the Grouse Grind with a race to the top of Mother Nature’s Stairmaster Saturday morning.
Alexandre Ricard of Squamish achieved the top result of the day during the 29th annual Grouse Grind Mountain Run, crossing the finish line with a time of 27 minutes and 38 seconds after climbing 2,830 stairs and running three kilometres to the top of Grouse.
West Kelowna’s Jordan Guenette landed in second place with a time of 28 minutes and seven seconds, followed by Andrew Barrington of Oban, U.K. who achieved third place with a time of 29 minutes and 17 seconds.
For the second year in a row, Madison Sands of Maple Ridge claimed first place in the women’s running category with a time of 31 minutes and 13 seconds. Second place was won by Shalaya Kipp of Vancouver, with a time of 33 minutes and 36 minutes, while Chessa Adsit-Morris of San Diego rounded out third place with a time of 34 minutes and 25 seconds.
Grouse Grind Mountain Run participants are encouraged to raise funds in support of BC Children’s hospital, according to a release from Grouse Mountain, which notes the ski resort will also be donating a portion of the proceeds of the run to the hospital as well.
“This annual event is a fantastic way to cap off the Grind season,” stated Grouse event manager Mallory Newman, in the release. “It also brings out a wonderful range of participants, from elite mountain runners to novice hikers, all cheering each other on as they conquer the challenge of Mother Nature’s Stairmaster.”
The release notes that it generally takes 60 minutes to complete the Grind, with novice hikers being encouraged to take 90 minutes to accomplish the task. The fastest time ever officially recorded for completing the Grind is in 25 minutes and one second.
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