I’ve long been an advocate that the year should start in September.

Three reasons why?  

1. It’s the start of the school year.
2. It serves as a reset in the entire year for many at work after a summer of fun.
3. Unequivocally, it kickstarts the best time of the year (sorry Christmas).

But this time around, THIS TIME AROUND, I am ending my year in September.

Maybe that’s the same thing?

When Sophia Laukli decided to end her season after Sierre Zinal, in mid-August, I said that it was one of the bravest moves of the entire year in trail.

Three reasons why?

1. Sophia’s paid to do a thing.
2. Sophia’s done that thing at the highest level.
3. Sophia’s widely regarded as one of the best at that thing, and now has to sit on the sidelines as others competing for her Golden Trail crown garner all the attention and acclaim.

Watch out for Camille Herron editing this Wikipedia entry.

For her to say that she needs to prioritize her body in order to continue doing that thing at a high level, is something worth commending over and over.  

For all matters, Sophia’s had an exceptional year. She won Eiger 50K, placed fourth at Mont Blanc, and secured top ten at Sierre Zinal. But for someone who is undoubtedly in the Mount Rushmore of Sub-Ultra and Short-Trail right now, you can see why she would be disappointed, and perhaps more easily come to the realization that it may be time for a break, ahead of her skiing season in the Winter.

To me, Sophia’s decision came across as one made with intelligence and poise, foregoing the sponsorship money that comes with racing to prioritize her own health and recovery. In doing so, she’s potentially giving herself a better chance of securing that sponsorship money and all the glory that comes with racing at the highest level in the future; as opposed to continuing to push through a cycle that’s just not working.

For me, my decision, I think, comes with less intelligence and poise, and more out of necessity.

Admittedly, it comes after a calamity of decisions since April to continuously try and get fit for the next race. I structured my races to be five weeks apart from one another – April-September, and after finding myself injured right before the first one, never got going.

I surprised myself at Sulphur and carried over some significant fitness into Harricana to have two results that I am incredibly proud of this year. But I don’t believe I was able to perform to the level that I wanted at QMT, Squamish or Gorge – battling a mix of injuries (mid-race for QMT) and time off running.

For me, my decision, I think, comes as a decision that’s been made for me.

In trying to push the timelines to get fit again, I’ve been pushing my knee to places it’s never been before (literally). So on Wednesday, I made the decision to drop-out of the National Championships at Defi des Couleurs, and the Bromont 55K.

If I continue to have these races on the calendar, I’m continuously going to try to run when my body’s simply not ready. The only way the injury is going to go away, is if I take a page out of the Sophia Laukli book, and end my season now – in September.  

The cycle of constantly trying to get fit for another race led me down a bad path not only in terms of my knee, but in terms of being the person that I want to be inside of this sport.

I’ve re-developed the addiction to the sport that served as reasons for why it took me from 2019-2023 to run a race again after university. I thought I had gotten past the point of pushing through injuries. I thought I had developed better habits around taking time off. I thought I had developed better habits around training through stress.

But at a baseline level, I literally ran on days where it felt uncomfortable to walk.

It’s time to develop better habits again, and the only thing that is going to do that is a reset. I’ve had no more than a week off at a time since starting to run again at the start of 2023, and evidently, it’s time for a break.

When Sophia made her decision in mid-August, as I ran through quad pain on my first run back from Squamish, I reflected upon the bravery of her decision, thinking it was something I couldn’t muster up the courage to do myself.

Now, it’s time to make the decision for myself, and end my year in September.

As I said as the footnote in my Harricana post, you won’t see an uninjured me any time soon. But alongside a new coach helping me to have better habits toward 2025, you will see an uninjured me at Black Canyon. I’m going to make sure of it.

In the meantime, I am immesnely proud of this year in trail despite it not being the dream year I may have hoped for.

Three reasons why?

1. I completed five historic North American races, with one win and one second-place finish.
2. I developed into a smarter trail runner, claiming positive results through smart racing rather than all-out injury-busting racing.
3. I made so many new friends this year on the trails, and I hope for those friendships to continue for years to come.

It might not be the year I imagined, but I’ve had a great year in the sport, and I can’t wait to accomplish even more next year.

Thanks to XACT Nutrition for being by my side through it all, and friends like Tanis Bolton for helping to make this year memorable and cure my many injuries.

Thank you to the shocking amount of you who have read my work this year, and I will literally see you soon.