Jackson Field Track

By: Matt Setlack

Location: Cold Lake South in between the RCMP Detachment, the Holiday Inn and Assumption High School.

Distance: 1/4 mile (402.336m) around the inside lane

Surface: 100% rubber track (mondo'ish surface)

Location of Jackson Field Track (click to enlarge)

This is one of the nicest tracks I have ever run on and it surprises me that few people know that it even exists. It is pretty much brand new having been built around 2012 or 2013, I believe. If you wanted to run on a track like this in a big city, you would have to book it in advance and pay to use it. Jackson Field Track in Cold Lake is free, open 24/7 and is never crowded.

Emily and Matt on Jackson Field Track

It is the perfect place to run fast. If you're looking for an amazing place to do intervals or even a longer tempo run with very consistent pacing, Jackson Field Track is the place to go.

Shovelling snow off the track in the spring is also a way to warm-up.

Warm-up: As a warm-up, I typically run to the track from Tri-City Estates, which takes about 20 minutes. I you prefer to drive to the track, there is ample free parking all around the track. You could warm-up on the track or on the gravel Ironhorse Trail. There is also a gravel/dirt track one block west you could warm up on.

Using an orange cone as an aiming point.

Washrooms: During the spring and summer, there is usually a porta-potty (portable toilet) located right at Jackson Field. Otherwise, you can run to McDonalds, Subway or the Library (I believe the Holiday Inn also has a washroom).

Looking west towards the dirt track just past the RCMP Detachment.

Distance: I have personally measured the very inside line of Jackson Field Track with a wheel and the distance was 402.336m (1/4 mile). I have no idea why the designer/builder would create a 1/4 mile track when the universal standard is 400m. I would be very curious to know. When I am doing km repeats here, I usually start at the 200m line, walk 6 or so paces forward and place a cone on the ground. From this cone to the start line plus two more laps around the track is approximately 1,000m. (I also have a Jones Counter if anyone would like to borrow it.)

This is the 200m mark

Interval Workout Examples: I always do 20 minutes warm-up and 20 minutes warm-down. Here are some of the faster sessions that I like to do: 

1. 6 minutes, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 with 60 seconds easy run recovery. Start at tempo-pace in first three and work to interval-pace in last three
2. 8 x 1km @ 10k pace with 60 seconds easy recovery (I usually do 200m easy recovery to get back to my start point)
3. 8 to 10 of 60/40 seconds @ interval/easy-pace. I usually do this one a few days before a race just to get the fast leg turnover.

Advice: I like to bring along orange cones to place on the start line and 200m line because I find it helpful to have an object to aim for when I'm running. If I'm warming up/down on the track, I usually run around the track CCW and then do the session CW (the standard direction).

Stay tuned for Matt's Favourite Local Run #3! 

Countryside Trail Run

By: Matt Setlack

Start/End Location: I usually start/end this run in Tri-City Estates but you can also start/end it at the Tim Horton's near Staples/Canadian Tire or the Cold Lake Provincial Park (shorter version).

Distance: Approximately 20km (Cold Lake Provincial Park Outside Loop is 6km)

Surface: 95% trail, 5% road

This is a really quiet and relaxing trail to run on. There are no motorized vehicles around except for the occasional ATV. It is one of my favourite trails in the area. The route described here is only one of many different possible trail options.  

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Map for Countryside Trail Run (click map to enlarge) 

Route Description

Starting at the Tri-City Tim Horton's, run east towards the Museum and then turn left (north) when you are at an opening in the trees about half way there. Go through the opening past a muddy depression and veer to the right (NNE) on a ATV trail.

Turn left here (at the muddy ATV trail)

Once you leave the road and go through the opening in the trees, you should see something similar to the trail below.

Follow the ATV trail

Keep following the main trail (there are A LOT of ATV trails in this area).

Take the left trail and head for the green field

Keep running in generally a NE direction. Cross up and over a gravel/dirt road and back down into a green farmers field. Keep following the trail through the field. This field is perfect for doing cross-country interval sessions (as is the adjacent field to the north).

Typical trail conditions

You will get to a 4-way trail intersection (about 300m ahead of where the above photo was taken). The right (south) goes to toward the Museum. The straight option (east) goes towards the African Lake bike trail (not recommended). The left option (north) is the direction you want to go.

This is the trail intersection. Go left (north) here.

You will run up a slight incline on a trail through a farmers field and eventually get to row of trees/bushes that separates the fields.

View looking over your left shoulder (west). What you will see during the Countryside Trail Run

Go through the opening and take an immediate right (east) turn. You will then get to a muddy depression (it's always muddy here), which you will have to go around it. The muddy depression is you crossing over the African Lake bike trail (not recommended). Keep heading east through the muddy depression and into another field.

Typical running conditions for the Countryside Trail Run

You will eventually see the back of some houses on your left. Keep them on your left side until you get to 16 Ave / Township Rd 633, at which point you run up onto this road/highway and follow it east until you get to the Cold Lake Provincial Park (CLPP). Take the first left after you get into the park and you will pass by a couple of parking lots and a washroom. You can do the CLPP loop in any direction but I like to run CW (the lakeshore is always on my left). Once you get back to the CLPP parking lot, you can turn around and follow your trail back to Tim Horton's in Tri-City.  

Running on the Cold Lake Provincial Park Outside Loop Trail

This trail is perfect for:

Training for cross country (XC) races because the surface of the terrain and rolling hills is exactly what you can expect in an XC race.

Alternate OptionS

There are MANY ATV trails in the fields between Tri-City and the Cold Lake Provincial Park. There are a lot of good fields where you could do a interval session if you bring your flats or spikes along. The ground is nice and soft especially after a light rain.

Matt running at the CLPP just north of the parking lot

If you don't want to run to the Cold Lake Provincial Park from Tri-City, you could drive to the park and park in the parking lot. Then do the "Cold Lake Provincial Park Outside Loop", which is approximately 6km. The trail is extremely nice and very well maintained. The park attendants keep the trail clear all year around. Typically within a few days of a tree falling over the trail, it is removed. Very impressive!

"CL PP Around The Outside" Segment Map

As shown in Strava segment entitled "CL PP Around The Outside", the fastest time that this 6km trail segment has been run in is 22:34. If anyone runs this segment faster than this, I will buy them a beer.

Stay tuned for Matt's Favourite Local Run #2!