Kevin Lionais

This Is Your Race

By InnerVoice

August 25^th, 2017

It is going to be so rad

I’ve been many different things over my life so far, always willing to take a risk and try something out. I wasn’t particularly good at any of those things, though. I’ve always worked with and for small businesses - I’m an entrepreneur at heart. Through the successes and failures of working in small business I’ve certainly seen and learned a lot. I love the idea of starting something new and fresh, of pursuing a new idea, doing it better than anyone else. Right now I’m taking the leap to start my own business. Hella Running is my project, which focuses on multi-day mountain running adventures. Our first event is this September in the South Chilcotins of BC, taking guest on a four-day all-inclusive, hut-to-hut, 50km running adventure. There’s nothing like this around. We will be taking guests up to an alpine lake via float-plane, then running for three days through the backcountry to return to the beautiful Tyax Resort. It is going to be so rad.

I don’t think long distance running is so much different than being an entrepreneur. It's about pursuing an idea, whether that may be a 50-mile race or putting the time in for training - it’s working towards a goal. It’s about having the hunger to pursue and the relentlessness to continue on, ever when things get hairy. As an entrepreneur you really have to take things as they come, stick to your goal but accommodate changes. It’s not easy and it’s risky. I like it!

Running has put me at peace

I wasn’t ever close to being an athlete. In my teens and twenties I was a sailor. I worked on charter sail boats, racing dinghies, fixed keel regattas and helping friends build boats. Anything that was sailing, that was it for me. I was also working too much and living in excess in lots of different ways. I wasn’t really healthy. I smoked, I drank and didn’t put much effort into my mind or body. Then I had a real meltdown in 2012 - I was suffering from chronic migraines brought on by stress. Back pain would follow. I was irritable, snappy and not really fun to be around. I lashed out at those around me, my self-confidence was low and I was confused by so many things in life. At the crux of the meltdown I dropped everything in my life: work, my girlfriend, my city and I left everything. I started off with a trip back home to Cape Breton Island to connect with family, then New York to visit one of my best friends, and then I got lost on Cortes Island back here in BC. It was exactly what I needed, to hit the reset button.

Living up on Cortes was real slow and easy. I was helping some friends with their newborn son aboard the sailboat they lived on. Over the summer months I got immersed in the community. One of my favourite things each week was playing pick-up soccer with friends behind the school. I hadn’t played soccer in years and my skills sucked, not to mention that I couldn’t keep up with everyone. To train for the games, I started running around the southern part of the island on the days we weren’t playing. I quickly realized that I much preferred the running than chasing the ball around a field.

When I returned to Vancouver, my friend Keighty Gallagher was starting up a run club - Tight Club Run Crew. I used to visit the bar she worked at way too much and she convinced me to come out and run with them. It was only a few months after that I ran my first 5km. The afternoon after finishing that race I signed up for a half-marathon. Then came the trail running and I was set free.

Running has put me at peace with myself. It has become an outlet for untapped energy that was previously just making me a nervous and anxious wreck. I’m a calmer, more focused person since letting running into my life. It also helps fulfil one of my fundamental life goals which is to be outside for an hour every day. I love the outdoors, whether it’s been sailing, hiking, road cycling or now running, there’s nowhere else I’d really prefer to be than outside.

“I think bad training and race days are excellent. Not in the moment, that sucks and bringing yourself out of that place can be tough. I think the only way out is to evaluate your situation, accept it and then make a plan to best suit you.”

my chosen family

I’m very lucky to call Vancouver home, the network of runners and athletes here is nothing short of amazing. My run crew, Tight Club Run Crew, has been my rock since day one. The funny thing is that I’m the only competitive runner of the group. We’re a social group and we just love to run and hang out. They really balance out my training with our Tuesday night social run where we go out for an easy cruise, shoot the shit and relax - it’s perfect.

They’re my chosen family. My trail running crew and homies, Fraser Street Run Crew, are nothing but high caliber runners who have supported me on just about every race I’ve done on the road (like away from home, not road racing). These guys have hearts of gold and are inspiration to get out there and push onwards.

My most recent accomplishment was completing the Squamish 50-miler, which was not easy, but it was an unforgettable race with some of the most dedicated racers and volunteers. Everyone should do this one.

i have lots to learn

When I started running I didn’t know a thing about fueling and nutrition. I mean it’s still a freaking curve-ball every other race it seems. Between gels and liquid carbs, running for hours on end and often in brutal heat, it’s just a recipe for disaster. I’ve becoming better at fueling during competition but I still feel I have lots learn. In my last race my stomach did me in for a couple hours, and I thought I had things dialed. Nope.

Learning how your body breaks down different sugars and calories in endurance settings isn’t my go-to thing to read about, but it comes with the territory and I need to invest in that in order to up my game. It’s fascinating that you can really go down a rabbit hole trying to get to the best info out there.

there will always be pain

I like the suffering. I like running up mountains with my heart pumping and my legs throbbing. I try to embrace the suffering like an old friend from university. I want to get to know the pain and cherish my time with it. I want to have a beer with the pain afterwards. I enjoy being alone with my pain. And strangely enough I want to learn where I’ll break. I’ve wavered but I have not broken yet in competition. I weirdly look forward to that day. It will be a really good lesson. Until then, I take the suffering with me in just about every competitive effort. It doesn’t matter the distance, there will always be pain.

When I am in the thick of it, whether I’m having a good race or really in the pain cave, I’m often thinking “this is your race.” This mantra allows me to strip down everything around me to remain focused on my running. I zone into the terrain ahead of me, my form and effort. My inner voice has a tremendous stubbornness to slog on and turn things into the positives when I’m feeling down. I always have the ability to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I reflect on all the training I have done and think about how that’s gotten me to where I am now.

me and channy

My partner Chantelle has been at just about every major race I’ve done. Seeing her at the aid stations can completely turn my day around. I know it’s not easy for her either, seeing me out there suffering. But there hasn’t been a time where coming into an aid station and seeing her hasn’t put a big stupid smile on my face, sometimes tears later on in an effort. This year at Chuckanut 50k, she couldn’t make it due to her work schedule, but on race day she jumped on the first bus from Vancouver to Bellingham so she could surprise me at the finish line. It was the best feeling ever coming across the finish line and seeing her there.

There has definitely be strains on my relationship with my partner, I’ve missed friends and family’s weddings and funerals. I’m sure most of my co-workers have some sort of disdain about how much time I book off to compete, however, there’s a flipside to that too. These people see you working towards something and there’s some real support behind that. I feel when you commit to competing and training like so many of us do, true friends will always be there to support. And that makes getting through it something very special that I wouldn’t trade for anything.

“I’m very grateful for every day I have on the trails. Running is such a gift and I’m amazed all the time that I have the ability and opportunity to do what I do in this sport. It’s freaking incredible - that I have the ability to run over mountains and through the forest, pretty much any time I want to.”

make it unforgettable

If I were to pass on some advice from my experience it would be to make a plan and talk things through but if things go sideways learn to roll with it. As I get deeper and deeper into starting up my own business, this couldn’t ring more true. Not everything is going to turn out as planned and the more I work on Hella Running, the more flexible I have to be with taking each week with open eyes and willingness to flex with the changes.

If you have a strong vision - you’ll get there in the end. Running is exactly the same way - you’re going to reach the summit but sometimes you have to slow down on the ascent in order to top out. Working on Hella Running has been easy because it’s a passion project but that’s not to say it’s without it’s own challenges. My determination to make it work, make it awesome and truly an unforgettable experience really takes a page from the ultra-running handbook for sure.

i'm intrigued by my limits

I never knew how resilient I actually am, I feel like I’m an accidental athlete most of the time. I started running, I tried a couple races, I did ok but then quickly decided to own it all. I dove in head-first and started eating 50k trail races for breakfast. I’m intrigued by the limits of my body and mind. Where can I push those boundaries? I know now that I have a strong fortitude and love exploring that breaking point. I never knew I could push it so far - I guess I’m still excited to explore that more.

I’m incredibly stubborn and meticulous, which I never knew would translate so well into becoming an athlete. Planning and training for ultra races really gets me off. I love that stuff. Planning routes, what to minimally pack and my attack plan - it’s addictive.