Christmas carnage: Brave New Brunswickers undertake outdoor endurance test before Christmas

Dedicated runners and joggers participate in Christmas Carnage. (Source: Facebook/Sufferance Series)

During the holidays, many people take the time to get intimately reacquainted with their couch, turkey dinners, chocolates, Christmas TV specials and other assorted creature comforts. Aside from a few potentially stressful family engagements, the last few weeks of December are typically a period of rest and relaxation.

Jos Eijkelestam is far from typical.

Instead of curling up by a fireplace with a warm cup of cocoa, Eijkelestam will be running outdoors come rain, shine or snow, before leaping into a chilly lake. And he’s encouraging other New Brunswickers to join him.

“I like to see myself as a trail runner,” he said. “There is something about trail runners, they like to challenge themselves in a way road runners might not. Trail runners seek out nature, they’re looking for the woods and wild and mountains.

“Trails are never paved, it’s always rocks and roots. A long trail is automatically a bit of suffering but there’s joy to be had in that suffering.”

“Suffering” is a key word for Eijkelestam, as he launched the “Sufferance Series” in New Brunswick roughly five years ago. The program organizes several runs and hikes in various parks across the province in the dead of winter. There is no registration fee and no big parade at the finish line; people do it simply for the thrill and the challenge.

“You’re out there with like-minded people and you all have this drive to be out in nature and combine your sport with other people,” he said. “The dirtier you get, the better. It almost sounds masochistic.

“It started with one event I organized in the month of January. It was four hours of going up and down the main trail in Odell Park (in Fredericton). People were slogging through the snow and that’s part of the suffering.”

Jos Eijkelestam is the organizer of the Sufferance Series. (Source: Facebook/Sufferance Series)

This month, Eijkelestam, who also organizes “Dutch Viking” events, has put together “Christmas Carnage” at Killarney Lake Park in Fredericton on Dec. 21. Participants will jog around the lake in continuous loops for four hours, although they don’t have to run for the entire time.

“People can decide to leave whenever they want,” Eijkelestam said. “See how long you can last. I take my breaks during events. There are a bunch of people out there who keep on going and those people amaze me.

“The fun thing about these loops is that people go further than they thought they could, they see they can do more than they thought.”

The Christmas Carnage event will be held at Killarney Lake Park in Fredericton. (Source: Facebook/Sufferance Series)

During last year’s “Christmas Carnage,” Eijkelestam spotted a man who cut a hole in the ice covering Killarney Lake and jumped into the water for a polar bear dip. After he finished the run, Eijkelestam and some other participants decided to follow suit.

“It was my first one,” he said. “Afterwards your legs hurt from the cold water. It wasn’t even that bad.”

Christmas Carnage concludes with a polar bear dip. (Source: Facebook/Sufferance Series)

Eijkelestam said the polar bear dip will return as the finale to this year’s event. He encourages all participants to wear warm clothes and to bring food and water to sustain themselves during the loop.

“It’s not a race,” he said. “I like organizing and people having fun and enjoying themselves. The more the merrier.”

“Christmas Carnage” kicks off at 10 a.m. on Dec. 21.

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