Pascal Egli鈥檚 first foray on the Squamish trails turned out to be a successful one on Saturday (May 31).
The Switzerland native posted the top time in the second annual Survival of the Fittest (SOTF) trail race and established a new time in the 18-kilometre distance with a time of 1:27:29.
Egli led from start to finish and said the conditions in the trails near Quest University were excellent.
鈥淚 was a bit careful a first but I started at my own pace and if I鈥檓 leading then that鈥檚 good,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 really happy and I really loved the course. It was a really steep descent and it鈥檚 quite technical 鈥� I really enjoyed it.鈥�
Earlier this year, Egli placed 28th in the Vancouver Sun Run but he鈥檒l be returning to Europe next week when he concludes his studies at U小蓝视频. He added that he plans to compete in the European Mountain Running Championships in July and several other mountain running events in Europe.
Right behind Egli was Squamish resident Silas Wiefelspuett, who clocked in at 1:31:45. Vancouver鈥檚 Graeme Wilson placed third with a time of 1:32:42.
For the females, North Vancouver鈥檚 Sam Drove became the first women to crack the two-hour barrier in the 18 km distance and set a new record of 1:48:31. Drove beat out North Vancouver鈥檚 Shauna Connaughton (2:00:54) and Squamish鈥檚 Spring McClurg (2:03:07).
It was a repeat from 2013 in the 13 km race, as Vancouver鈥檚 Anne-Marie Madden posted the top time and broke her own record set last year with a run of 1:11:52. Madden beat out Australia native Craig Fitzsimon by 71 seconds to secure the win.
The race saw a total of 123 competitors hit the course, well up from last year鈥檚 totals of 42.
The SOTF is the second race in the Coast Mountain Trail Series (CMTS) that also features runs in North Vancouver and Whistler. The series returns to Squamish on August 23, with the 23 km race of the annual Squamish 50 trail run being the fourth race in the series.
The CMTS returns to Squamish on Sept. 21 with the brand new Sky Pilot trail run that occurs on the new trails opened up by the Sea to Sky Gondola.
For complete results from the SOTF, visit www.coastmountaintrailseries.com/survival-of-the-fittest.html.
