Cochrane resident Doug Howson is passionate about ultramarathons and overcame heavy smoke and extreme temperatures to place 6th in the male solo category of the Canadian Death Race this summer.

It isn't his first time in the gruelling 125-km marathon in Grande Cache, AB. It challenges racers to endure 17,000 ft. of elevation change across three mountain summits with one major river crossing in a 24-hour window. There are male and female solo and team events.

In 2012, his wife volunteered him to run one of the five legs for a team raising funds for muscular dystrophy 

"It was a bit of a shock," says Howson. "I didn't really know anything about training or nutrition, and it really kicked my ass. Afterward, I said I would never run something like that again."

But it was too late. He was hooked.

"The next year I ran leg 4, which is a little longer and a little harder, and then the year after that I decided to give it a swing and run it solo."

His first year as a soloist saw him clock in at 22 1/2 hours. His best time since then is 14:30.

He now regularly places in the top six and has finished as high as second.

Howson has respect for anyone who even attempts the race.

"I can tell you, the back-of-the-pack runners suffer a lot more, and I have such respect for the people out there barely making the cut-offs. I think it's something that goes somewhat unrecognized."

He says no two races are the same, even for an experienced Death Racer.

In one of the earlier races, before Howson's time, it snowed heavily. Quite the opposite happened this year. 

"It was really hot. The temperatures hit 36 in certain spots, but it was mostly the smoke from the fires in B.C. It was really, really smokey, and when you got above the treeline, it really affected your breathing. It was encouraging to get up and down the mountains as quickly as possible.

"It was an incredibly hard day. I was experiencing full body cramps coming down Grande Mountain and I still had 80k left. When you experience problems early on in that long of a race and still rally and put something together, it's something you look back on and can be really proud of."

He came at just under 16 hours. 

"The placement is all relevant as to who shows up. For me, it's more about the times you put up, the conditions, and factors you overcome."

Howson has competed in several other ultramarathons over the years.

In 2018, he won the Sinister Triple with the best-combined score in three of the toughest ultramarathons in Canada: Death Race, Sinister Seven, and the Black Spur Ultra.

"Anyone who finishes the triple is incredible because I found with the training you have to build an aerobic base before Sinister Seven. Afterward, you're just recovering, racing, recovering, racing." 

"There's a real temptation to get back into a training block because you have 3 1/2-4 weeks. I think you're better served to just make sure you're coming in to as fresh as you can be."

He likely won't attempt that feat again because it consumes your entire summer.

"It's a really emerging sport. I find that all the track stars and roadrunners have kind of transitioned over into the trail world, which is great. With that, there's a lot of races now. Back in the day, there were maybe half a dozen races that you could sign up for in a year. Now there are more races than you could possibly do."

In 2019, he ran the Fat Dog 120 mile trail race in the Cascades Mountains, with a vertical gain of over 8,000 metres.

"It's just epic."

He chose the Death Race to be his only race this year after 2020 was a wash. 

"I love the challenge of it. I love Grande Cache. It's kind of where my running started, so it has a bit of a nostalgic factor to it as well. I'd like to go back there again."

He'll enter a few races next season, but his major focus will be to compete in the EPNE ultramarathon in France.

"One of the things that I love about this sport is that people strive for something a lot of people think is impossible. I think a lot of people sell themselves short on what they can do. They have a lot more in them than they realize."