Catching up and Sulphur Springs 25k Race Report

When we had last met, I had just finished yet another failed Boston Qualifier Marathon attempt. Round three and it was NOT a charm. In hindsight, even though the weather was horrible, the course was not built for me either. That much downhill right at the beginning of a marathon trashed my quads and there wouldn't have been any way for me to recover, regardless of the wind (or lack there of). I have my "dinner plate" medal now, and it will be a long, long time before I attempt the 42.2k tour of Toronto during a May marathon again.

I took the rest of the month easy as I promised myself I would. I hopped back on Trainer Road and ran whenever I felt like it. Things worked to my favour in that I never really missed a long run as I was able to run with Emma one week and Sam the next.

Then, like all good friends do, I talked them into running the Sulphur Springs 25k trail race with me. ("talk into" may be a strong saying here. I said I wouldn't mind doing it and both Sam and Emma were keen to return to one of our fave race sites).

Ready to roll on #sulphursprings 25k. #runnersmakethebestfriends #thegibblers

A photo posted by Nicole (@macnic05) on May 28, 2016 at 4:22am PDT

We decided not to take ourselves too seriously and opted to play matchy-matchy as you do. Because if you look good, you feel good and you run better. Or something. Or at least you look good. ANY-way, turns out the rainbow socks were a huge hit on the day because I'm pretty sure we got no less than 76 compliments on them.

Which was good, because it was HOT. In fact, it was so hot that I took the race director's advice and soaked a buff and wore it around my neck. This strategy worked really well and my heart rate and heat never really got so high that I felt horrible. The girls suffered a bit more than me, but they are both training for a 70.3 to my "taken-er easy" so I likely had way more in the tank anyway.

Despite feeling good, keeping cool and hydrating perfectly, I still managed to fall twice in the last 7k. Only me! I didn't get hurt at all (just embarrassed) and as Robin says, its not a trail race without a fall or two.

The damage

Our shirts were awesome as well, with Sam and I wearing the Donut and Beer shirt respectively and Emma joining in on the fun with her, "Training for the Zombie Apocalypse" tank. We got a lot of good comments on those and I even got offered a beer at an aid station. Too bad it was a stout. If it had been any kind of lager, I'd be all in. HAHA.

While we had great plans to PB this course (sub 2:49), the super warm and humid weather meant it wasn't to be so we settled instead for a great run-walk thorough a beautiful place with a bunch of like-minded people. I'll be back to Sulphur again and soon. I really like this race.

Final time was 3:00:30 and 1001 laughs.

Woohoo! We finished..bit of a slog in the heat but a whole lot of fun with these ladies! #runnersmakethebestfriends

A photo posted by Nicole (@macnic05) on May 28, 2016 at 8:00am PDT

Chilly Half Marathon Race Report!

aka: TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK

This past Sunday was the 20th running of the Chilly Half Marathon in Burlington, Ontario. I had signed up right away after the race last year when the call was out for $50 registrations... or had I? 

So, it turns out, I HAD attempted to register, but my payment never went through. I ended up paying full price for the race. Good thing it was a good one! 

The plan was to go out with the 1:50 pace bunny and hold with them until the turn around 13.5k. From then, the thought was to pick it up if I was feeling good, or to stick with them until the end and then finish strong. This assumed a number of things: The pace bunny would be bang on pace (5:12/km), the weather would be good (no ice or snow or headwind), and that I'd actually, finally have a good race for the first time in over two and a half years.

Not too much to ask.

Flat macnic ready to roll on #halfmary 19!!! #chillyhalfmarathon #teamnuun #justrun #likeagirl

A photo posted by Nicole (@macnic05) on Mar 5, 2016 at 10:52am PST

I knew a few things going in: 1) Sam, Emma, Ivanka and I would start together, 2) I'd run with music, 3) I'd run this one for me and no one else (sorry Sam, Emma, and Ivanka). I was nervous going into this, my 19th half marathon and 49th (!!!) race. I wanted so, so, so badly to have a good race. One where I didn't shit the bed (literally or figuratively) as Sam says. I needed a race where my mind didn't break down on me either. To be honest, I knew in my heart of hearts that I could hold the damn pace - I'd been doing a lot of random 1 miles at this pace over my treadmill runs, but I didn't know if my mind could take it. Thus the music. Music is a huge mental help for me, something I needed to go back and remember. It was sad to not run and joke with Sam during the good parts as usual, but I'm confident she understood.

Let's roll! Half Marathon 19! Praying for a good feeling, #bqorbust paced run. #chillyhalfmarathon #teamnuun #justrun #likeagirl

A photo posted by Nicole (@macnic05) on Mar 6, 2016 at 4:29am PST

Race day dawned a bit colder than predicted. CRAP!!! Do I change my planned outfit? Will my sweet-ass PUMA Clash by Rhianna Tights hold up to the -1c? Maybe I should grab a heavier top? In the end, I stuck with what I had planned to wear, mainly because everything else was in the laundry and I wanted to wear those sweet, sweet tights, dammit. I ate my now typical pre-long run breakfast of plain oatmeal, made with water, topped with brown sugar and chased with a small apple juice. I tempted fate and had a small coffee. With the 10am start time, I figured I was good to go on the coffee. I grabbed a banana and some powerade to have while waiting. 

I met up with Sam and Ivanka right on cue at 8am and by 8:25 we were sitting in the theatre at the Performing Arts Centre waiting for the race to begin. Emma and her husband got there about 20 minutes later and we all checked bags, ate bananas, cued playlists and got race ready. 3 trips to the bathroom and two shoe removals for me (to warm up my feet!) and we were ready to hit the corrals.

Right away, we found the 1:50 pace bunnies. There were two! Both continuous! WooHoo! Then, they started talking about running at 5:16/km pace (wrong) and being told to race for gun time (wrong). Whatever, this race was for me - they'd be a good target and help to keep the pace in check for the first few KM. The gun went off and so did the bunnies and the five of us (Emma's husband started with us; poor guy was battling the end of a cold and it wasn't his day). The bunnies started quicker than 5:16 and even 5:12, but no worry. They were going for gun pace afterall and had about 45-60s to make up. I stayed right with them. Sam stayed right with me. Emma, Ivanka and Steve were all lost. 

I sang a few lyrics to Sam when good songs came through my playlist in the first 3k. I couldn't really hear her much, but it didn't matter. I was still taking the advice that Robin had provided before Ottawa last year and was conserving energy for running, not high-fiving and talking. After the turn, Sam said to me, "These guys [pace bunnies] are running too fast! We have to let them go." I agreed of course and tried to reel in the pace, but it was just one of those days where the pace came easy. 

5:08-5:10-5:08-5:08-5:05-5:08-5:06-5:07-5:07-5:12. 10k Total: 51:19 I'm not sure I've ever paced my own racing so well.

Smarter this time about what I needed to get through the race in terms of nutrition, I had decided to carry Powerade in my handheld. I also stopped at water stations and grabbed water quickly. I didn't take the time to walk through them in the first half and they had no effect on my overall pace. I coupled this with half a gel at 6k and the other half at 9k. Sam had been bugging me lately about nutrition and I figured that I would use this race to experiment a bit if nothing else. I continued to take water at each station and had a final and full GU gel at 14k. I felt great the entire time; my stomach did not complain once.

After 10k, the race gets interesting if you've run it before and know what to expect. You begin to anticipate the elites and faster runners coming at you as the course is an out and back. There isn't much spectator support running out east, but what I did notice this year was that the course, while basically flat, has enough small, small rollers to keep things interesting. Sometime before the turn, I realized that I had lost Sam at a water station. I figured she'd catch me eventually. I figured that if something bad had happened, she either 1) didn't tell me as she could see how in the zone I was, or 2) would have told me so I knew not to expect her. Sure enough, so caught me back up and told me promptly, "You're running way too fast! I've got a 4:40 here!" I reminded her that she would show a faster split as she was just running hard to catch me. That made sense to both of us (phew) and we continued on. I was so in the zone.

The turn around came and none too soon; I needed to get there for my mental game. It had been super strong thus far with nothing threatening it, but making the turn at 13.5k means that you can count down the rest of the race and force yourself to stay on pace dammit-its-only-eight-k-more. Sam's husband was at the turnaround and she dropped off her water bottle to him and I said "Hi." We saw Emma shortly after the turn (yay, looking good) and could still see the 1:50 guys ahead of us. They must have settled in to about a 5:05/km pace based on the gap. 

Right around here, we also came up to a kind of unofficial pace group. There was a clear leader (a tall blonde in a pink coat) and a clear group running with her. She was telling the group that they were perfectly on pace and that the plan was to hold on for these next 8k. Seeing her face and hearing her voice made me realize that it was Michelle. I asked her what the pace they were holding at was, "5:12-5:16" Perfect. We had enough time banked to hang with them. "Sam, let's stay with this group. This is Michelle. She's a track Super-Star."

Michelle, though smiling, was puzzled - "How do you... how do I...?" "Instagram" I managed to breath out. And then I left Sam and Michelle to chat about ages and BQs and I just followed. Ah, the beauty of a pacer running the speed they say and you just hanging on.

We had picked up a slight headwind after the turn, but it died down quickly (or I got used to it). I was happy to have my vest after hating my life with the tailwind on the way out (where I was super hot). My mental ability threatened starting at 16k, but I held firm. I WAS doing this today. I WAS not failing. I WOULDN'T let myself down. And so I ran. I took the final water station with a bit of a walk, but nothing lost - the KMs were still coming well within target, if not so even. 

5:07-5:08-5:15-5:08-5:13-5:12-5:11-5:08-5:07, Total 11-19k: 46:29

As we came up to the 20th kilometre, Sam began to separate from the pace group. She veered over to the north side of the road as I did. I was behind her, but clearly saw what she was doing. She was making sure she didn't lose me when I made my way over to hit the 20k route marker (Every half. Always). Cheerleader by OMI was blasting in my ears and Sam was in full on cheerleader mode. "Let's go, Let's go!! C'mon!!!" Oh God, Sam my legs are lead, but I'm going as fast as I can. I'm not going to stop. I AM going to do this. We are going sub 1:50. We have time. 

20 was my slowest kilometre of the bunch at 5:21. There was nothing here to slow me down... no hill or even slight rise, so I don't know why I slowed so much. I kept chasing Sam though. As always, I was chasing Sam to the end. 

Let's go!!! RUN!!! Let's GOOOOOO!!! Jackman Styles!!!! 

KM 21: 5:09

And I'm thinking 800m, 2x around the track.You got it, you got it. Saw Hi to Mari for me Sam. (Mari was at Brant and Lakeshore). 

I'm pushing and Sam goes (as she does, damn finish kick). I see Mari and give her my only high-five of this race because I'm hitting all God-damned goals today and I'm feeling amazing. I hit Brant and see the crowd. And I run straight down the middle, watching Sam finish 5 seconds ahead of me and I wave my arms up and down, "Make some noise crowd! Celebrate me!!!" I even pulled a Usain Bolt move (I was in PUMA after all). And I cross the finish line and Sam tackles me and I know, this is what I needed. These people, these friends, this work. This is why I race. And this, this is the road to BQ. I know it.

BOOM!!! Second fastest half EVER! #chillyhalfmarathon #teamnuun #instarunners #bqorbust #justrun #likeagirl

A photo posted by Nicole (@macnic05) on Mar 6, 2016 at 9:14am PST

Gun: 1:50:32

Chip: 1:49:20 

Place: 749/2233

Gender: 213/1159

F35-39: 32/156

Niagara Falls Half Marathon Race Report

Hello? Is this thing on?

I know, I haven't posted all summer. To be honest, the summer didn't work out as planned. I didn't bike, swim or run as much as I had hoped. I gained too much weight. I basically stopped caring so much about meeting any goals.

As such, by the time the Niagara Falls Half Marathon rolled around, I had one goal: PB the course.

Despite ONE long run of 20k (in JUNE!) and a few long runs of 18k, I was sure that this goal would be reached. The course is a beauty, straight, flat and I know it having run the race twice before.

Then, we woke up to heavy wind with gusts up to 50kph.

Sad Trombone

I picked up Sam and quickly headed down the highway enroute to meet Emma, her husband and Ivanka, all of whom were running the half. When I say I quickly headed down the highway, I'm not lying. Coming down the Skyway bridge, I notice an OPP car pull onto the road and began chanting, "not me, not me, not me..." It didn't help. So, if nothing else, I got my very first speeding ticket on the way to the race.

Sad Trombone

The best part of the day happened when we got to the Cowne Plaza and met up with Emma, Ivanka and Steve in Emma and Steve's hotel room (private bathrooms!). They ended up with a room with a bit of a view (kinda).

Okay, enough crapping and viewing, time to get on the bus and to the start line. One of the few things I don't like about this race is that because it starts at the 21.1k mark of the full marathon, they bus you to the start and you get there super early. then you sit around on the damp grass and second guess your outfit before pulling on a long sleeved shirt under your tank. Oh well. Time to line up and go.

The four of us started together (Steve set out at a faster pace). I ran with music on from the beginning because my goal was to run 5:27/km until the last 3k and then PB the course. I knew that all three gals were in better shape than that and would end up ahead of me. Plus, I just wanted a nice, introspective run. Nothing was really riding on this one, you know?

So, I turn on my music and Sweet Caroline comes on. Perfect. We take off and I've got the crowds around us "Ba-ba-baing" with me. HAHA. Then It Takes Two is the next song. I rap the first bit because.... who doesn't rap the first bit of that song? Ladies Love Cool James, yo!

Before long, I'm telling the gals to go on ahead, I'm on pace and don't want to get caught up with them. I pause at a water station, even though I had a cool new hand-held thing 

Things are going really, really well. Through 7k I held the pace or a bit faster: 5:27-5:12-5:11-5:28-5:18-5:33-5:27. SCREW you headwind! You're not getting the best of me today!

Then, things started to go down the toilet. I started to feel BLAH. I took a gel. Nope. I felt... not good. In the end, I stopped to use a portapotty in the 12th KM and from then on decided to have a good time with the run as there was no way I was getting a course PB in the relentless headwind that day. And so I did. I just had a good time. I enjoyed my diverse playlist. I sang along. I looked out over the Niagara River and enjoyed the view. I started doing 9s/1s run/walks because the wind was just relentless. It made it so much easier mentally to do that.

Of course, you know that means I hammed it up for all of the photographers! As the race used marathon photos, I decided not to pay for the photos (crazy high prices), so I'll just give you one:

In the end, I crossed the line in 2:02:31. Poop, headwind, great friends, great playlist. Its what its all about. It never hurts to see one of the wonders of the world either.

So, that's a wrap on an easy summer and half marathon 18. In the off season, I've taken on a new challenge, but I'll be back (promise). To discuss that.

Ottawa Marathon Race Report!

Regular readers of this blog will know that image and quote. I usually post it before each marathon strategy guide. This year, things have been busy and I haven't been posting as much, but I pulled out this image and Ted Corbitt quote on Instagram and Facebook and reminded myself that no matter what, there would be no quit on Sunday.

Turns out, it was a good thing to remind myself.

Pre-Race

Head over to Sam's brutally honest race report and you can see how we spent the pre-race. While she suffered from the heart burn on Friday night, I suffered from a horrible stomach ache which I attributed to the mass quantities of food I'd been stuffing in my face the past few days in the attempt to carb-load pre-race. Anyway, the alarm went at 5:15 Saturday morning and before I knew it, we were on the road to Pearson with Derek, Sam's husband dropping me at the door at T1 (and depriving me of a monorail trip!). Texting with Sam, we discovered that our flights would now leave Toronto and arrive at the same time in Ottawa and in fact I met her at her gate as there were no delays on my end (Air Canada FTW; pretty sure this is the first time anyone has every said THAT). We made our way to our hotel and over to the expo which was really overwhelming. It was just PACKED. We looked around a bit for deals, but to be honest, after scoring our free bags of chips and samples of peanut butter, we just wanted out of there.

 Over to Rideau Centre for a food court lunch (pizza would be smart! Carbs!), and a dollar store adventure for warm stuff as it was minus a bazillion and Kenny found us sitting on a bench, sipping power-aid waiting for a very enjoyable bus tour of the Marathon route. There was nervous excitement from everyone and assurances of at least one PB! (Sam's is 4:10 after all. Pffftt). The bus tour was excellent and really made me ever more confident in my ability for the next day. The route, simply put, is amazing.

Next, it was back to the hotel where we settled in for a bit before walking next store to pick up our pre-ordered Italian dinner. I had what I always have before a marathon: Pasta with a cream sauce and veggies, chicken and chocolate cake. Yes. Cake. It worked really well in 2013!

Off to bed, up at 330 to pee and up at 5am to throw on my shoes and coat and go across the street to Tim Horton's, which had a huge line up of runners and one very pleasant person working as fast as she could. Back to the room, quick breakfast, no poop.

This wasn't good.

Its time to go though and off we went to the start line.

The Race: KM 1-21.1. There goes every goal.

Coach Phaedra had emailed me on Wednesday or Thursday and asked me about my goals. I laid them out: A) BQ with a chance (3:38); B) 3:45, Sam BQ's but we both get a guaranteed entry to Chicago; C) Sub 3:51:31 which would me a PB for me (I was sure this one was in the bag). The bus tour had made me even more positive about the chances of hitting that BQ or at the very least the 3:45. As luck would have it, we entered the corrals right with the 3:40 pacer.

I've never been with so many people. I looked around and had a real fear that Sam and I would actually lose each other in this race because of the sheer amount of people. It was insane! We finally got on the move and over the line and I hit my watch right at the mat. Time to go.

I'm not sure who followed who, but at one point, I remember seeing Sam get through some holes and just following along. Things felt great despite starting on an incline and it was time to settle in. And settle in we did. I realized quickly that we were perfectly situated for our task ahead. We could see the 3:35 pace group ahead and had some good distance on the 3:40 group. I was planning on gels every 6k which would have been every other water station and my mental goal was to take the race those 6k at a time. Around 5k, I started looking for some friends in the masses of spectators (I have a load of fellow Wishes for Olivia fundraiser friends in Ottawa), but by 8k, I knew I had either missed them or they hadn't been able to make it out. By 9k things were NOT feeling good. I had taken my gel on schedule and it went down fine, but the fact that I hadn't been able to go to the washroom that morning came up in full force.

"Sam. I have to stop at the portopotty." And just like that, the A goal was gone.

I got in and out without losing any gels, phone, iPod shuffle or getting paper stuck to my shoe or anything and hit the course again. I began running and couldn't see Sam at all. I did see the 3:45 pace group which was excellent and I decided I'd hang with them. But my mind went like this:

- Did she leave me?
-She left me?!!!
-I guess I'll put on my music
-She wouldn't have left me!!!!
-Music?
-Even if she didn't leave me, how will I ever find he...

And then I saw her standing on the side of the road. Okay. Let's go. Robin had sent us a message pre-race and told us to conserve every last bit of energy. No talking. No high-fiving. Just running. Okay! No problem. We continued along just ahead of the 3:45 pace group and I was secure in making that goal. Things were good! Sam and I didn't talk about it but I knew that she felt it too. This day was going to end with some taste of victory, followed in quick succession by the taste of beer. The water stations were amazing (even though the cups were plastic) and the weather was absolutely perfect. Let me say that again. The weather was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. PERFECT.

Around 14k or so, I feel that familiar gurgle. NO. NONONO. My face crumples. Like a petulant child, I whine to Sam, "I have to go to the bathroom. AGAIN!!!" I have never, not ONCE been to the bathroom during a full or half marathon. NOT ONCE. Now? Now I'm going twice!!! In and out this time and there goes all the goals. They are simply gone. We can't catch even a 3:51:30 now. Not with this shitty stomach of mine.

Sam however sees the bright side. "I don't care! I'm going Sub-4. Let's have a great day and a good run." YES! Let's do that! I RIP the pace band from my arm and Sam laughs like a loon. Around 18k or so, we are in the thick of an industrial wasteland of government buildings and the air is as thick as butter. I am taking shallow breaths and just can't breathe so I ask Sam for a quick walk and we do. Then we hit a sponge station and relish in the delight of wet sponges. Man, that feels awesome. We are coming up on the half mark and pass a young man chatting on his cell phone (!). There is a bit of a hill to get the the half mats (where the sign says, Halfway Home), and we run up it, hit the mat and I immediately walk. HAHA (I know this because it's on video!). We hit the mat at 1:57:43. The four hours is ours.

4:58-5:03-5:02-5:08-5:03-5:14-4:58-5:20-5:03-6:21-5:19-5:19-5:10-5:45-7:11-5:14-5:14-5:50-6:13-5:15 -5:27

The Survival: KM 22-43.2. I'm not leaving you. WILSON.

Halfway home and the switch turns for me. I start feeling AMAZING! WOOHOO! J'aime Quebec!!! Seriously, I start trying to cheer in bastardized French. At one point, I notice volunteers sweeping up cups with hockey sticks and note, "C'est trop Canadien. L'hockey!!!" I even start thinking that we may negative split this sucker.

Turns out, right around the time I'm not making my OAC French teacher proud and dreaming of negative split glory, Sam begins to suffer. "My stomach feels horrible." Okay, okay. I tell her. Shit. What do we do? "Okay, maybe pop into the next portopotty. Take your time! Take some deep breaths and pretend you're in labour." While she does hit the next portopotty, I'm not sure that she took my advice too heart. I stopped right there though and updated the faithful on Facebook (as you do).

From then on it was about holding on. We walked through every water station. We enjoyed the views. Everyone was dressed really well, so I couldn't distract Sam with any horrific outfits either. Still, while I felt like a million bucks, Sam did not. At 32k, she asked for a walk break. It was her time for tears.

"You should just leave me. I'm ruining your race."
"HAHA. Oh ya. After you stuck out Chilly and Around the Bay with me, I'm just ready to say, Well, Fuck you! See ya at the hotel." I think she smiled a bit at that.

"I feel so horrible. I have terrible stomach pains and feel like I'm going to throw up."
With the wisdom of a seasoned pro, I insisted that was the way, "Just throw up then! Easy!" Sam takes a glace at her half eaten gel and decides to choke it back in the hopes that it will cause her to throw up. Nope.

"Look," I say, "Its a beautiful day and I don't mind a lovely 10k walk..." Sam looks at me horrified.

"We are NOT walking this in! That will take even longer!!!"

I decide, "Okay. Let's do 10 and 1s. Yes?" She nods. "Let's go." I look at my watch and we're off. I know what my job is now. Its to run slightly ahead. Its to watch the watch and raise  my hand every 10 minutes and to make sure that Sam doesn't stop drinking sips of water at each station. I notice that a very handsome man has caught us during our little walk break. He's wearing an IronMan visor. I note to Sam how lucky we are to run with him now as he's so hot. He kinda smiles. I stage whisper, "And I think he's an IronMan!"

"'Ave," hot 70.3-dude says in his hot Franco accent, "I only like de 'ave."

"Yeah," Sam deadpans, "Me too."

I keep up the chatter. I remind Sam of that time we rode 100k with Emma and how they groaned when I asked if they were ready to run a half marathon after 90k. When Sam tried to engage with me, I wouldn't let her. I have no problem talking non-stop for 10k. I watched the watch and counted down the 10 minutes, raised my hand and then counted down the 1 minute and we're off. After a few of these, Sam needs a longer break. No problem, but I'm keeping you to some semblance of order. We won't be walking all helter-skelter. After a two minute walk break, I propose 5/1s to Sam and she agrees that this strategy makes more sense. I try to get a sense of how hard I should be with her, "Do you want soft love or hard love?" HAHAHA. Sam doesn't answer. I take that as a vote to treat her gently. With water (and more sponges!) coming every 3k now, we end up hitting a walk through a station every second break, but I always make her run at least 3 minutes after so it all works out. I really have to watch myself and ensure I don't get too far ahead. Just as I'm thinking that, I look back and can't find Sam.

I start to slow and still can't see her. I turn full around and am about to stop when I see her. I'm not sure if I ran back or waited for her to catch me, but I was angry. "You don't do that! You TELL me when you need a break. I'm with you to the end. We are finishing this together and then we're going to drink a million beers and pass out in our hotel room." From then on, I was right by her side.

The last 10k is a blur of watch watching. My watch was ahead by 1km exactly and I tried to make some jokes about that as well (as both Robin and Patty were running at Sulphur that weekend). At some point, someone gives me two sponges so I hold one in my strap for later as I know that is the last sponge station (IronMan styles, I tell Sam). She used it too! We are close to downtown now and it is absolutely INSANE. Someone jumps in and its, Barb someone I've only heard about and whom I watched PB during the 10k the night before. HA. She offers us some food and then runs us in. She's speaking with Sam and then with me and I'm telling her it was shitty for me... then shitty for Sam and that's just the way it goes. Then, with about 3.5k left, I see my friends! YAYA! They are on both sides of the road but getting to the right is easier so I jump over and get a high five. How amazing is that!

We get past the 39k marker (or 40k on my watch!) and there is less than 3k to go. I note the time. Holy shit. We may just get Sam her PB after all. "There are less than 3k to go. We have 17 minutes to get you home. LET'S. FUCKING. GO!" And we take off again. Its mayhem. Barb is with us, Sam is with us. I look back when the five minutes are up and Sam needs the break. I take it. Screw the PB. Again, time to run. Five minutes are coming, "Sam, do you want it or not? About 1200m to go?" Sam wants to run through (Dammit, I'm not having the best day either!), so we run through. Before I know it, Barb is gone and the finish is in sight. I look down and grab Sam's arm. I drag her to the right to get a good photo (you can see us on the video taking a diagonal line, haha) and we finish this, the Ottawa Marathon.

5:53-5:36-5:11-5:41-5:35-7:10-5:59-6:05-6:06-6:50-5:39-6:56-6:11-6:27-6:07-6:43-6:18-6:58-6:06-6:06- 6:56-5:41-5:36 (last 200m)

 This race ended up as it was supposed to. As everyone knows, you can plan for everything but race day will dawn the way it will dawn. Sam and I came to Ottawa to run a marathon and we did just that. The way our bodies both reacted couldn't have been helped. We can only learn from it and grow stronger. While Sam has always been a friend and great training partner, there is something special about sharing a weekend and a race like this with someone. One day, when we are 70 (well, she'll be 75), we'll laugh when remembering this race.

Remember that dude on the phone for like, 10k?
Remember hot-'ave-IronMan?
Remember the dude who said, "Shit Happens?"
Remember how we walked 3k out of the way after the race to meet Maggie and Sarah for beers (yes, that freaking happened, we took a bus to the Rideau Centre)
Remember how every Starbucks closed at like 430pm?
Remember how impressed that tour guide was? That guy who took our photo the next day?

I still have that medal hanging up, its one of my favorites.

Mississauga Half Marathon Race Report!

When I decided to race the Marathon at Ottawa this year, I knew that meant that I wouldn't be able to race at Mississauga. I was sad because this would have been my fifth year in a row. It was my first half marathon in 2011; my first full marathon in 2012; and I had also run the marathon in 2013 and 2014. Then, I started thinking about it and figured I could still run the half and "just" run 10k before it for my last 32k long run before the taper for Ottawa. I convinced Sam that the plan was a good idea and so we signed up. Then, Coach Phaedra wrote a 36k final long run into the plan.

Well.

We ran a 15k "warm up."

Sam picked me up at 0510 and we drove to the start line at Square One and started our run at 0537. Right away, I knew that the final carb load meal of Burrito Boyz was likely not the best idea. The food was a perfect solution when Sam and I headed out to cheer on Phaedra and Emma the night before in the 10k race, but that morning, I wasn't so impressed. We stopped 1k in at the start line port-o-potties and made use of them and then continued around in a big loop to get the first part of the run in with little problem. I was... gassy and had to stop a few times and take a gamble to pass wind, but it all worked out. HAHA. We finished the run in great time and went back to Sam's car to change out tops before hitting the port-o-potties again. Let's just say the 15k loosened up anything that was left and I apologize for the next person who had to go into that one. We got into the corrals with 10 minutes to spare and managed to get a pre-race photo with Patty who was pacing the full marathon!

The Race: 1-10k (16-25k)

The race started as it always does... with a bit of a stall and a huge amount of people pushing around each other. Right away, I felt good. I was worried that the break between the two runs would have me feeling like a tin man, but I felt great. I had taken a GU right before the gun and I wonder if that could have been why. Anyway, Sam always seems to follow me as I find the holes and we did, finally settling in around the 2k mark. Around this time we were with two men, in their late 40s, early 50s and a group of people younger than us (so it seemed). Someone's watch kept beeping. It was seriously annoying as the watch was going off every 5-10 seconds. At one point one of the men accused me of the beeping watch and I was like, "Hell no! I barely know how to turn this thing on!!!" We chatted with these guys a bit and of course let them know that we were already over 17k in on the day and accepted the general, "Girlz be Krazy" looks and comments from the crowd. Things were light and easy.

Before we knew it, we were making the turn into UofT and I told Sam that things just seemed to be going by so fast. The splits weren't coming as good as they should and I was a gassy delight, but I felt good. A few days prior, I had lost a lot of hope on being able to string together a good marathon and Robin had sent me a great email, reminding me that there will be moments when things are hard. When my legs feel heavy and when basically everything just sucks. And she reminded me that all I had to do was to push through that because the suck won't last forever. Every time I started to feel poorly, I thought of that and pushed through and of course, Robin was right. I moved on and felt good again. I took a GU around 7 or 8k and we were walking through the water stations even though we each had a handheld. It was the first hot day so that was smart.

I'm clearly having a good run.

When we got out of UofT, my next milestone was getting to my friend Deirdre. She stands at Dundas and Mississauga Road and would again, for this, my fifth year of running and high fiving her. What a boost seeing Dee always is! After that, it was time for the one and only hill on this course. It seemed that we were running along For-Ev-Err getting to this hill and once it came, I pulled the chute. "Sam, let's walk." "Yep," said Sam, "Just a training run." No worries at all. Gave me a chance to fart a bit more and we did run up the very top where the people were cheering. HAHA.

5:19-5:16-5:15-5:03-5:13-5:29-5:09-5:50-5:09-5:19. Total time: 53:03. We had no pace bands for this race. The goal was to run it around race pace (5:08-5:10, but that didn't quite workout)

The work: 11-21.1k (26-36.35k)

After the hill, we hit the nice homes of Mississauga Road and settled in again. The water stations were every 4k this year and we went through all of them. I took my gels on schedule and went through 3 in total. We continued to tell ANYONE around us that we had pre-run 15k before the race. Yes, yes, we ARE badass. I continued to be gassy. I had some burps that would make a grown man proud. I held on to my mental game, repeating the advice that Robin had given to me and feeling slightly threatened by the fact that Phaedra said she'd be out biking the course. LOL.

Before we knew it, it was time to split from the full marathon. I told Sam that I was so, so happy not to be making the turn onto Indian Road. She agreed. The day was hot and it was already long. Did you know that we ran 15k before the race? Its true. We did. I had forgotten a lot of the kilometers between about 14-17k of the half route and they are actually all a blur for me. I remember that I walked through a station and refilled my handheld with two cups of water. I was feeling good about my water and gel intake if not the best from my pre-race dinner. HAHA. Before we knew it, we were about to cross Lakeshore and head into the park system and we saw Phaedra. WHAT a boost! I ran right over to her to give her a high-five, "Burrito Boyz. NOT a good idea!!!" "Nooooo!!!!" said Phaedra, but it was all smiles and laughs and good times. 5k left in this race, in this day!

Stolen from PK

Its into the park system and Sam and I are doing the count down. We are both not out of it enough so as NOT to grab the free gel at the gel station. HA. We run for a bit with a trio of ladies and chat with them about mutual admiration of outfits (Well, I started with a different top, because we ran 15k before the race). They passed us and ran along. Sam declared: "The novelty of this day has worn right off" and while I agreed, there were still race photographers to pimp to.

Finally, the 20k sign was coming up and I was making a detour to it (despite the confusion of the high school volunteers at that spot). I hit the sign and Sam did what Sam does and started to up the pace, "I just want to be done. 35k... so close." And so we ran in and earlier thoughts of jumping in the air of the finish line vanished as it was spied. Look at the focus on the end.

Dude in the yellow beat us by 0.3 seconds

And so we did what we do. We celebrated each other and a great race. A great training season. Great running friends and finally, the start of the taper.

Race done (did you know we ran 15k before the race?)!

Splits: 6:38-5:10-5:37-5:10-6:34-5:18-6:02-5:35-5:17-6:18-5:17-5:01 (350m). Total time: 1:57:46

Gun: 1:58:57
Chip: 1:57:42
Place: 676/2067
Gender: 214/1090
F30-39: 71/298

This is a 16:08 course record. I think I could do a whole lot better on this course and may have to pick it as a goal race in the near future. Now, its onwards with the taper and to Ottawa. Do I think the BQ will happen? Honestly, no. I think, with my mind in the perfect place, it will be close. Very close. And I may surprise myself. In the end though, I suspect there will be a PB and a big one at that.

But, you never know what will happen on race day.

2014: The round-up

Well, its safe to say that 2014 did not go as planned.

At all.

The big plan was to qualify to run the 2015 edition of the Boston Marathon. I got a big, fat fail on that one.

However, there were highlights for sure! Let's take a look, shall we?

JANUARY 

I started week six of marathon training and enjoyed a long run of 20.14 with the #burlingtonskirtbrigade and then some. One thing that I really relished in this year was the continuation of the friendships I've developed from DailyMile and Blogging. 

Group selfie!

We also left on our second Disney Cruise aboard the Fantasy. This time, we'd be joined my my BFF from highschool and her family. 

Waiting to board 

Disney owns a private island in the Bahamas (obvs) and while at port there, they hold a 5k race. A free race on a private island in the Bahamas? Yes please!

Skirt to represent, yo!

We are hoping to get to another Disney cruise in late 2015 or early 2016, but it will really depend on other travel plans for the first half of 2016 (BOSTON, PLEASE!!!)

I ended the month setting a 5 second PB at Robbie Burns in the freezing -24c temps. I didn't really try to PB this race and it wasn't until the very end that I realized that if I pushed, I'd have it and so I did. Sadly, Robbie Burns is not in the cards for 2015, but I have a feeling I'll be back in the next few years to really lay out what I can do on that course.

My custom race shirt makes its first appearance. 

FEBRUARY

Well, February brought a huge, huge month. 267k run in total. But it also brought the return of stupid-crazy Polar Vortex weather and stupid-stupid Plantar Fasciitis. But hey, Canada won a crapload of medals at the Olympics including the coveted hockey gold for both the men and women. I watched a lot of the Olympics in the early mornings while running on the treadmill at the gym. I ran a lot of treadmill miles this month.

There was one day that I got to run in the sun, but the run sucked. Thank you, PV and PF.

MARCH

Well, March brought the return of my two favorite winter races. The Chilly Half Marathon and the Around the Bay road race. 

Chilly was not going to be a PB effort for me, rather it would be a test to see if I could maintain BQ pace over a half marathon. Ideally, I would have gone out and run 5:06/km consistently, but my Evil PF was saying, "NO!" In the end, I decided that I'd run with Emma in an attempt to get her a PB of sub 1:51:24. With tough conditions (snow, slush, -20c), we pulled out a nice 5 second PB for her that day.

If I'm pacing you, you're always finishing first

So next up, after a few more weeks of peak training, PF treatment and not really hitting tempo paces was Around the Bay. I had decided to race it for the first time ever. The route had changed this year and it added in rollers in the first 10k which were difficult to say the least. And I was over dressed (as always!). However, somehow I pulled out a 10 minute 51 second PB. So, that was good. HA.

I"ll be back, ATB!

APRIL

Last month to give'r. Except, man. I was not feeling it. Ongoing PF and a 23 week plan just drained everything out of me. I put on a brave face and tried my best to conjure up a positive attitude, but in all honesty, it was all a big, fat lie. I was NOT feeling it at all. There were highlights, of course.

I was able to hit my fundraising goal for Wishes for Olivia and Make-A-Wish Canada. In total, I raised $3,705 for the fabulous cause. Now, don't worry if you missed contributing last year, you can surely contribute  again this year! (Get it in now for a final 2014 tax benefit!)

And Alasdair ran his first race at the 1k Good Friday Kids race. I also ran the 5k in perfect marathon pace (and my second of 3 runs for the day). Obviously we HAD to wear the custom race shirts.

Booking it

MAY

Marathon Day. Preceded by First Communion Day. I'm going to suggest right now, that there should be no hosting of a major life event the day before a major goal race. None. Even if it involves good food and company and dressing up. Nothing I could have done about the dates though. Instead, I enjoyed and the family looked good.

Marathon day brought stupid winds, breakdowns and no PBs or BQs. Instead, it involved character building, wind, great friends, a cute skirt and wind. To be honest, I'm not sure I would have finished if it hadn't have been for Peter. 

After the marathon, I took a week off. My PF flared big time. HUGE. I was a mess. However, more treatment, time on my mum-bike and a easy return to running and I was ready to conquer my first trail race - the 25k at Sulphur Springs.

Emma, me, Sam and Bridgett. Stock photo, right?

JUNE

In June, I started the month by returning to pacing. I ran the amazing Niagara Falls Women's Half Marathon, leading the 2:05 group and coming in at 2:04:54. I loved this race. LOVED. I've been in contact with the race director who read my blog post and will be back to pace in 2015 for SURE. LOVE!!!

OMG, I lurve this race!

Then the very next weekend (my third in a row for racing), I ran the Bread & Honey 5k. This is another traditional race for me and originally I had thought I'd attempt a PB and podium finish. However my stomach acted up so I paced my friend Kerry through her first post-baby race. 

Applauding Kerry's finish from behind.

Finally, I set the fall plan in place. The plan was supposed to set me up for my first ever Gran Fondo (80k) and a PB attempt at the Oakville Half Marathon in September. On yer (mum) bike!

JULY

Holy crap did I ever fall in love with cycling. Despite the fact that my mum-bike was the shittiest in our peloton while I was on group rides, it didn't matter. I got faster, I got better, it didn't hurt my Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF and man, there are planned stops for coffee and donuts. Cycling is a total win. WIN!

Kimberley, me, Emma, Sam

Sam, me, Irina, Emma

Photo Credit: Irina (mad cycling selfie skillz)

Running was running. 3 times a week. No speedwork. Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF and all that Jazz. But the CYCLING!!!!

AUGUST

I think by now, I knew that there would be no Fall PBs to be had. Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF wouldn't really go away and I was focusing on the bike and pace work to get ready to pace the 3hr gang at A Midsummer Night's Run. I had a fantastic time at that race and finished in 2:59:24! A huge redemption from 2013 where I was over time and I still managed the #runnerd photo at the end (obvs)

SEPTEMBER

Things hit the fan in September. My husband has surgery on September 5th to remove a rather large Dermatofibrosarcoma Protuberans from behind his knee. On the 7th, I took part in the Epic Tour as planned and it went well. It was hilly. Lots of hills. Holy crap, I thought Halton was flat. Its not. FYI. I'll be back for 110k in 2015 with a road bike.

Right after that, the focus switched to running. I had Oakville, Niagara Falls Half (pacer) and potentially Hamilton half to run along with the 25k at the Run for the Toad. My foot was feeling good! YA!

#seenonmyrun

On September 17th, my husband drove himself to the hospital with a heavy chest and the taste of blood in his mouth when he coughed. He was still on Oxy and got shit for driving, but kudos for paying attention to his body. In the morning, he was still waiting to get confirmation of what was wrong, so he told me to go to work. Around 1030, I got a text that he had a blood clot in his lung. Guess what guys? That shit can be fatal. 

Alls well that ends well anyway. Because he listened to the "not right" feeling he was having, Ken got to the hospital in time and a few nights there allowed them to treat the worst of it. He's been on blood thinners ever since, but he takes his last ones in January. He's already planning his first drink. 

The highlight of September was being in Windsor with my son for his first rep hockey tournament. It meant I had to miss Oakville and had my first DNS, but you've just gotta roll with life sometimes.

They won the whole damn thing

OCTOBER

Things settled down. Ken started to recover (at this point though, his life involved getting his leg dressing changed daily). We settled into school, work, hockey. Rinse and repeat. Don't hurry to grow up folks, its pretty much the same damn thing every day. 

Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF continued to stay away and I got in 163k with two quality and fun races: Run for the Toad 25k and the Niagara Falls International Half Marathon, where I was the 1:55 pacer. Both races were treats to run:

Getting ready to toss my long sleeved top, its that warm (TOAD)

This is what happens when you fall on the trail

Niagara could not have gone any better

I still continued to LOVE the bike and in fact, planed my first metric century ride with Emma and Sam for the Friday before Thanksgiving. What a beauty that was. 

NOVEMBER

I started this month with the very last race of the year. The Hamilton Half Marathon. The plan was to pace Emma to a sub 1:50 and end the 2014 season in glory. 

It didn't quite work out that way as I just didn't have the fitness to keep the pace after 12k and had to wish Emma well on her own. Instead, Sam and I finished together for the first time ever in an epic battle of best tights of the year (obvs, mine are)

Enhanced only by my sweat stains

In November, I decided to get a Coach for the 2015 season and put my hand out again to support Wishes for Olivia (donate by clicking the link). 

The month ended with Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF deciding to show up again and I took the reality seriously. Back to PT, back to massage, more rolling, more heat pads, more stretching. Despite this, paces continued to drop. I can now run a 5:30/km pace easy for at least 12k.

Emma and I also snuck in one last outdoor ride on the 8th, going for a short but lovely 36k around Milton and Burlington.

DECEMBER

I averaged 60-65 hours per week at work in this month, including one epic 17 hour day. I ran, I saw PT twice a week. I let my Evil-Stupid-Stupid-PF heal (heel? HAHA!). I caught a lung infection and took a 10 day hiatus from all activity. I got fat (whoops). Two weeks ago, I started running with more regularity and things have been okay.

I've found a new morning run partner in fellow hockey parent, Lindsay.

In the middle of all of that, we've had hockey

Baking

Christmas

Family time

My sister, mum and me

And an 8th birthday

I will finish the year with 1,150k on the bike in 53h41m39s and about 2,130k running in about 205h58m27s (I still have to get 10.57k in to hit that total). 

I raised $3,705 for Make-A-Wish Canada. 

I made new friends and was able to extend other friendships. 

We end the year with everyone healthy and happy. There is nothing more to ask for. 

Onward to 2015!