The Sulphur Springs Trail Race is definitely one of the most popular races in Ontario, located in Ancaster (a one-hour drive from Toronto). It is the oldest trail race in Ontario, having started in 1992. Additionally, people who finish the 100K and 100-miler under 18 hours and 30 hours respectively can earn Western States Endurance Run (WSER) lottery ballots, which makes Sulphur Springs the first and only qualifying race in Ontario. Altogether, this makes the Sulphur Springs Trail Race the most unique and prestigious race in Ontario.
The race course consists of 20K loops, with a mixture of gravel and mud. Although there are a couple of steep hills for about 500 meters, most of the course is flat and fairly runnable. This year, we were pretty lucky to have a relatively dry course compared to last year’s wet and muddy conditions.
Because the race uses the same 20K loop, your personal items, supplements, and gear can be placed near the finish line, which is much more accessible compared to a point-to-point race. This also offers a huge advantage for carrying the items you need for each loop and leaving the rest in your tent. Many runners and supporters actually set up a tent as their “homebase”; some even slept there the night before the race to earn some sleeping time. By the time you finish your second or third loop, you’ll become really familiar with the course, knowing where the hills or technical sections are and being prepared for them. This also gives a huge advantage for newer trail runners, as they will know exactly what to expect next.
At the start/finish line, it was like a mini-party or expo, with many run clubs, brands, and even podcast influencers setting up a lot of tents there, some giving out free samples, gear, and stickers. There was also a DJ, playing upbeat music to hype the runners and supporters up. This gave me the extra motivation to cross the loop every time, looking forward to getting the energy from the tents and seeing my friends who came to the race to support me.
For families and friends who spectate the race, they are easily able to locate and support you at the finish line. With the tracking website, it also updates the split time whenever you cross the timing mat.
You’ll constantly be bumping into other runners, others passing you, or you passing others, and running towards oncoming runners, as some parts of the course are a two-way road. Therefore, the course is never quiet or alone, as it’s shared with runners tackling other distances. Besides, I think there’s something special within the trail and ultra-running community that doesn’t happen often in the road running community. The most heard phrases during the race are all encouraging, including “Keep it up,” “Good job,” and so on, which I probably heard about a thousand times, even from runners I’d never met before. This friendly and motivating energy is what makes the trail community great. Additionally, most ultra/trail runners don’t really necessarily pursue a time goal, but rather the milestone of accomplishing the distance. They are really willing to have a quick conversation while conquering the distance together.
Throughout the course, there are many photographers taking pictures of the runners. These are available online for you to download for free, and the image quality is exceptionally well done too.
There are four aid stations: one at the start/finish line and the rest spread out equally throughout the course. They provide more solid food rather than the gels you often see on road races, like salted chips, pretzels, sandwiches, and bananas. For drinks, they provide soda pops, electrolyte drinks, and water.
For the 100-miler runners, they have an exclusive tent that serves freshly-made pizza and other hot food at the start/finish line, giving them an extra boost to finish this distance.
Another thing worth noting is the accessibility of the trail in terms of getting injured runners back to the medic tent. As some parts of the race are wide enough for a utility vehicle to pass through, they are able to send injured runners to help a lot safer and faster.
Overall, I can’t express how much I enjoyed running the Sulphur Springs Trail Race, which also marked a really special place in my heart, as it was my first 100K ultra-race. I had wanted to become an ultra-runner after learning there’s a fun idea called ‘ultra-running.’ Before the race started, members from our local running group, We Run North York, had already given out encouraging words. And some members even came all the way to the course to cheer and even pace us. Last but not least, there were people cheering particularly for me, shouting, ‘Go Team Running Free,’ as I was wearing a sharp Team Running Free shirt and arm sleeve. I really felt proud as a representative of Team Running Free, and truly appreciated how many people cheered me on.
