The Most Difficult Highschool Course in Ontario

[F.T]

Through my five years of highschool running, I've heard many stories about the complexity of the many courses spread over the 17? OFSAA regions that divide Onatrio. So, I thought it would be a cool idea to find out what the most difficult/ easiest courses are in each region.


I have certianly not seen every course in Ontario and I therefore have not run them all, however a course which I have run is the GBSSA course located in duntroon. This course is located in the middle of nowhere and is meant for nordic skiing, not fall running. This trail is entirly composed of steep, unforgiving inclines with slippery muddy trails, mostly due to the elementary school kids who tear up the trails the day before, every year. So in my opinion, the GBSSA runners have the best/most difficult course in Ontario.


Feel free to critique

[pq]

Just re-phrasing to put things in the proper perspective:

Oct 6, 2009 11:56:40 GMT -5 F.T said:

... the GBSSA course located in duntroon. .... This trail is entirly composed of steep, unforgiving inclines with slippery muddy trails, mostly due to the elementary school kids who tear up the trails the day before, every year. ... GBSSA runners have the best course in Ontario.

Cross country is meant to be hilly, muddy, tough and gloriously fun.

[skuja]

I always had a hard time with Calculus.

[krs1]

Saugeen (CWOSSA) was always difficult, especially after a good rain.

[Eldridge]

not hardest or easiest, but i always enjoyed the cossa course out in quinte. all back in forests, no repetitive looping, good hills, good flats, good scenery

[G Nicol]

I couldnt agree more with the origional post, Duntroon haunts mt dreams...

www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=515807877&v=info&ref=name#/group.php?gid=39568297755

[firecramp]

Heart Lake in Brampton is a pretty tough course. Senior boys loop gets hit by a shit load of hills

[journeyman]

Chicopee was pretty rough, from what I remember. Also, OFSAA 1994, wherever that was, Niagara somewhere, I think?

Favourite all-time has to be Boyd though. 12 times (5x Carter, 5xTDCAA, 1xOFSAA, 1x(not-so) triumphant return at Bruce's Twosome in 2000). I could still probably run that course with my eyes closed. Grade 10 year was the last year they made the seniors run through the river. Luckily we were deep in junior that year (92), and thin in senior, so I got to run with the big boys and do a little river crossing.

[tbrown]

the most difficult course is clearly heartlake

[livefree]

toughest course i've ran is heart lake... most fun course is umm... ohss the one we had for ofsaa thunder bay 3 years ago.. it wasnt like a bomb course but the atmosphere around it was pretty. nice.

[tundra]

I always thought Chicopee was tough and 1986 OFSAA in North Bay was a bitch too.

Anything west of London(Sarnia-Windsor corridor is table top flat).

[smith]

I'm not sure which course it was or even what year, but I remember my coach telling me horror stories of one year at Ofsaa XC when it was run at a ski hill.

Apparently the only kid who didn't have to stop and walk was the guy who won senior boys.

Maybe some of the older guys can help me out with this.

[spencer3]

i'll add to the heartlake vote. I believe i counted like 17 hills, most of the very steep some pretty long... and after a good rain it gets real sloppy aswell... i seem to recall falling more than once

[JJOSEPH]

the most difficult coarse i have ran on is heartlake
crazyy coarse, hills everywhere including the legendary hill 'rambo'

[oldbones]

Go North my friends to find real XC:

1. Algonquin Barons XC Invitational: At least the course I used to run on was in a gravel/aggregate open mine like landscape including 45degree hills (up and down in knee high sand)

2. Matawa Ski Hill: You got it ... you run up the hill and down again ...then run another 5 to 8 km afterwards.

3. Timmins Theriault Invitational: Hard hilly course.

4. Laurentian University XC Invitational (behind Sudbury Track facilities): There is no flat section ... up and down almost the entire way ...

5. Not in Ontario and not true XC (more mountain running) however the Vancouver Grouse Grind is a killer race!

[runfree]

agreed on barons but i cant say that the one in timmins is hard only like 4 hills

[firstorlast]

Heart Lake.

[emantsal]

Let me add one more vote for Heart Lake. It's simply unreal compared to other courses I've run.

[Eldridge]

renfrew wasnt overly bad. really wet course. and as for slow, check snr boys. lechebo won by like 2minutes over karanja and woods. it was a good year, even if you look deeper into results

[tracktrashtalker]

Hornets Nest

[ess92]

Another vote for Heart Lake. The course is terrible when it is muddy and the senior boys are on single/double "lane" trails for at least 3km.

[jerks]

Ancaster course from OFSAA 94?
Heart Lake and Chicopee also rank up there

[distancemedley]

Heart Lake Conservation Area is definitely the toughest, anyone who has ran up rambo or down and up that bowl knows what i'm talking about.

[cmoyer]

I agree that heart lake is the most difficult...but the Lossa course has the roller coaster which is preety tough and Mt. Trinity is also very difficult.

[westdale]

Chicopee and the course that Smith was referring to may have been Horseshoe Valley in 92? The start was straight up a ski hill and then a narrow right turn at the top. If you didn't get through in the first 10 you had to walk. I was caught on the inside and basically was standing still for what seemed like 30 sec.

[Eldridge]

trinity is NOT a hard course. its 400-600m short per race and golf course flat except ONE hill. its a massive/painful hill, but a hill doesnt make a hard course

agreed, lossa is a hard course. TERRIBLE course mind you, but rough on the body

[spartan]

One of the toughest XC courses was put together for the GBSSA at Collingwood Blue Mountain back in the mid 1970's (75 or 76?). In fact the course was reduced (modified) for OFSSA that same year due to the hilly terrain. I believe Dave Peckham won Sr Boys that year.

[F.T]

Oct 6, 2009 13:55:06 GMT -5 smith said:

I'm not sure which course it was or even what year, but I remember my coach telling me horror stories of one year at Ofsaa XC when it was run at a ski hill.

Apparently the only kid who didn't have to stop and walk was the guy who won senior boys.

Maybe some of the older guys can help me out with this.

In talking to the coach of collingwood collegiate a few years back, he talked about ofsaa once being run at blue mountain, which is also a national alpine skiing course, so i agree this would be a difficult course.

P.S I re-worded the first post just for you pq

[livefree]

im looking for the heart lake results for 2005 if anyone can help me that would be great

[tree]

Oct 6, 2009 14:33:11 GMT -5 oldbones said:

4. Laurentian University XC Invitational (behind Sudbury Track facilities): There is no flat section ... up and down almost the entire way ...

Is that the gully, shed, and wall loop? If so, it's not that bad .. I used to do my long runs on it .

I always thought Baron's was ridiculous though. The mud, the rocky and difficult terrain, the hidden roots, the steep declines, the huge hills, and the fact that everytime I have raced it we started at 3km pace makes it one of my favourite courses from highschool. I absolutely loved that meet.