Shaughnessy 8k - 3rd

Well, I won't say it was easy by any means. I knew going into this race it was going to be tough and it certainly didn't disappoint. I am basically 'racing into shape' and this was a step in the right direction. I went out at the start with David Jackson thinking he would be a good guy to key off of since we have run some similar times, and if I were going to run well it would be at roughly his pace. I had no idea that Ryan Mackenzie was in the race since I have never met him and didn't know what he looked like. So there was this running room guy hammering off the front and I was wondering what was going on until I asked David who it was. From about a mile in I realized I wasn't going to be able to stay with David so I just got my grind on and rode it out. I am pretty happy with the effort I put in since I am not strong on hills right now and was a bit worried about my calf and groin. The groin turned out to be just fine and we will see how the calf turns out, as of now they are both roasted, and I suspect some serious soreness over the next few days. The most important thing is that I got in a solid effort on a course that is not terribly easy, and I had fun. I am looking forward to the 10k next weekend now and hopefully can get a half workout in this week.

In other news, I ran twice up at sfu during class breaks last week and really enjoyed running on the trails, I am seriously feeling the trail racing itch so I am going to have to look around for one this summer for sure. Speaking of school, my schedule this semester is kick ass! And I am totally stoked for the summer of long weekends, running, relaxing and of course studying, good classes for the most part too! I think this downswing has more or less played itself out and I am excited for some more positive energy to flow. Happy trails!

Rookie

Well, things didn't go so well on the weekend, but it wasnt as though I was completely caught off guard. I didn't feel very good going into the race and it is partially because I made a couple of rookie mistakes like all the biking last wednesday, taking friday off completely, only going for a very short run on saturday after a few hours in the hot sun. When I went for a jog saturday evening to do a shake out, it felt like death, which wasnt entirely surprising. What was surprising was how strange my legs felt when the race started. I can't really describe it but they just felt funny and not like they wanted to run. I went out conservative and figured maybe things would feel better around 7 or 8k and that didn't really happen. Never the less at 7k I picked it up and went after Jim and Jason who I let go from the start. I managed to get up ahead of jason by 10k and ran with him until the turn around until it turned uphill and the wheels(what little I had) fell off. From that point on I just struggled home. I had resolved before the race that I would not drop out save for injury and the way I felt put this to a serious test. In the end I struggled home in just under 72mins which was entirly depressing but with a minor victory, in not dropping out, and by the guided realization that my groin did not bother me even a little bit. What did hurt were both my calves and hamstrings in a way that was foriegn to me and I can only assume is from the effects of the cycling. I guess I have to take the good with the bad, but one conclusion is that there is a good chance I may have to get into a half marathon sooner than Richard and I planned, to erase this memory.

So, on to next week. 8k! yow, that is slightly frightening. I suspect it will take me most of the week to heal up but I am going to have to get into some strides and drills and stuff to make sure I am good and loose and ready to do a fast paced race. I have no idea what to expect and wont really expect anything I suppose other than a lot of pain, it can't be worse than the 5k is going to feel at UBC the week after...

mmm...perogi

Seriously depleted. I'm not sure if I mentioned it earlier but I bought and old 10 speed bike from a pawn shop a few weeks ago, the front derailer(sp?) doesn't work so it is actually a 5 speed. So I have been riding around quite a bit. It is awesome. Even though it is a beater I can still get it going faster than a lot of people on their $1500 road bikes. The problem is that, as I tend to do with new things I am kind of over doing it, yesterday I rode from the westend all the way to SFU, went to class, bummed around, bussed to Coquitlam, did a short workout with Steve, then rode 30 odd km back to the westend. All this and I didn't really eat much that day, mainly because my guts are very particular and I didn't want to have to stop in the middle of the workout. So anyway, I was super depleted and dead by the end of the day, but it was great. I have always enjoyed going hard till you are tired then just continuing on, you know, when you get to that place where you just lock into an effort level and go, and don't realize how tired you are until you actually stop and it comes like a tidal wave. So anyway, that was my day yesterday and I didn't really replace the lost fuel as much as I should have and dragged my ass through the 10mile jog today after 5 straight hours of class. Now it is time to rest up for sunday's race.

By taking a mental survey of who is around and racing these days it seems unlikely that there will be much competition at the half this weekend, but that is also what I thought last fall when I went out for the half marathon that is part of the Royal Victoria Marathon, and sure enough Jim Finlayson and Jason Warick came out of the woodwork. I haven't talked to anyone but Jim does this race nearly every year so I wouldn't be terribly surprised to see him there, Todd Howard either, and David Jackson ran the Vancouver Half a couple of weeks ago so maybe he will come out. I think these guys are around the same fitness level as I am so it would be nice if they toed the line. I don't really have any expectations for this race since training has been pretty rough the last several weeks, and I dont really know what the course is like so I am just going to go out and run it hard and smart, trying not to get in over my head. It is also the first of a string of races i'll be doing; the remainder of the Timex series. Richard and I have decided on some shorter stuff which should be fun, if you call racing back to back to back to back fun! Luckily they are all local and the last one is in Kelowna where I haven't been in ages so that will be nice. Ok I feel like I am rambling here, so i'll post back with a race report and review of the new ST racers I recieved in the mail today!

Its like that...and thats the way it is

Well, I am still sick, the end is in sight but my 30min run today was utterly exhausting. With two weeks to go until the Ottawa Marathon it was decision making time yesterday. The marathon portion of training started off well when we did the 10miles medium, 10miles tempo, 2 miles easy, although the groin problems had already begun, but from there thing really just went off the rails. The groin did not heal and I started to get the breathing issues I had last year. I was willing to put up with this however, because I was still able to train well with the groin soreness, and I had seen the pharmacist and doctor and they concluded that it was not directly allergies causing my breathing problems but a return of some asthma problems I had as a child, which could again be helped by using ventalin. So I started working on getting the documentation and all that to submit to CCES. So in the meantime I missed a few workouts, but then I got sick and missed a few more workouts, and I am still sick. In sum, I have virtually missed 75% of the marathon specific portion of my training and so we have come to the conclusion that it isn't a reasonable expectation to put a good marathon together.

It certainly is unfortunate that I won't be able to go and compete at a high level in the marathon but unlike last year the dissapointment is not devastating. One of my major goals was to maintain a balance this spring between school, running and interpersonal relationships and i've done quite well I think. I may not be able to run a marathon but I have returned to a high level of fitness, i've achieved a 3.15 gpa this year, put a good effort into work, and maintained and developed relationships well. There is certainly a lot of improvement to be made of course. Another great conclusion of this marathon build is that I have moved from a mental space where I was seriously considering retiring from competitive running to wanting to continue, find new challenges and goals, and enjoy everything running has to offer from hard training to fun 'adventure runs,' road races to trail runs, and everything in between.

I'll post back soon after some planning and goal setting, but for now I am hoping to do the Oak Bay Half-Marathon in Victoria on May 24th. I may not be in marathon shape but i'll be rested and ready for a good half!

Vancouver Half - DNS

Fuck around. Bit of a tough morning here, an hour before the start of a race I am supposed to do, and feeling like shit. I woke up yesterday with a chest cold and was hopeful that race morning it wouldn't be much worse. At least I try to be optimistic. I woke up with fire in my throat and phlegm in my chest. At first I decided that I would still go to the race and start, do the first 5k and drop out, thinking somehow I owe it to the race organizers to at least start(what with the pre-race media stuff) but in the end I figure I won't be missed, and really my better judgement says to just stay home and sit this one out, and I would be willing to put money down that Richard would agree. I have a long standing policy not to run with a chest cold and today is not going to be an exception.

So what does this say for Ottawa? Well frankly, for now, nothing, but it is certainly a kick in the nuts after a dropping out of the second most important workout last sunday, and in general not feeling great. I decided earlier in the week that I was tired of feeling beat up, mentally and physically, from the workouts. Like they were bringing out any little pains and imbalances and making them big and hard to run efficiently and fluidly. So I just ran some easy/medium runs tuesday through friday with some decent volume and started feeling better towards the end of the week. The struggles continue.