Race Report: BMO Vancouver Marathon 2014

Chip Time - 3:04:17
Overall - 110/4933
M 45-49 - 9/369
M - 97/2816
Shoes - Brooks Pure Connect 2

Even though I officially BQ'd (Boston Qualified) last year, this race is a breakthrough for me. My BQ was actually somewhat anticlimactic as Greg pointed out some time after BMO last year that I would be a year older in 2014 and thus meet the 45-49 3:25 qualifying time.

I had high hopes for this race, having had some great results in other distances this year, as well as it being my home course. A couple of weeks out, just as we were heading into taper mode, I managed to strain my hamstring. This made for one of my more grumpy tapers. It wasn't terrible but enough to be uncomfortable. I got to Treloar Physio right away for a few sessions and it settled down a bit. My 16km a week out was a still little achey and sore so I took the Wednesday 10k off. By Friday I did an 8k shake out run that was hot/muggy and my leg still wasn't feeling great.

I slept in late on Saturday morning but, not surprisingly had a terrible sleep on Saturday night. To top it off I started to feel a scratchiness in my throat on the Saturday before the race, which I wrote-off to taper-hypochondria.

The weather was super clear and getting warm in the week leading up but the forecast showed it cooling with rain for race day. As nice as the weather was for last year's race, it was the hottest on record and definitely slowed everyone down.

The rain started in earnest on Saturday night and I could hear it pouring throughout my restless sleep. Careful what you wish for.

Leah dropped me off at the starting line around 7:30am in the pouring rain. I had my garbage bag over me and sought out the covered spaces near the buildings. The rain seemed to slow to a drizzle about 15 minutes before the start so I shed my garbage bag and extra t-shirt… had a gel, and as we started moving to the front in our corals again the rain came pouring down.

Not long and then we were off. My feet were wet and I was a little chilled getting moving. I saw the 3:15 pace bunny just ahead as we were heading up Cambie and kept close. He was moving much quicker than a 3:15 pace but it was good to have a group around to start as I was warming up.

I eased into my pace (a little quick) and, surprisingly, after the week of taper doldrums and worry I was starting to feel pretty good. We turned on to 49th and I tried to be aware not to get caught up in the momentum. I knew I was going to get some speed heading down 49th and held myself back as best as possible. At around 7 or 8k I overheard a guy I was following ask if those around him were aiming for 3:05 as well. hmm? Maybe.

I took my first gel at 7k shortly before Camosun and felt great as I got to the hill. I knew I had a bit of padding time from the run down 49th so pulled back a bit and didn't try to overdo the hill. (I was a little disappointed the local radio station wasn't playing Highway to Hell on repeat this year). Another bit of a climb on Imperial and left onto 16th. I decided to take another gel at 12k, 5k past the first one, and kept up a schedule of a gel every 5k for the rest of the race. (I mixed up my gels this year to keep it interesting, 2 Vega, 3 PowerGel, 2 Hammer Gel plus an extra PowerGel they gave out on course).

Race Report: MEC Race Series 10k - Race Three

Chip Time - 37:49

Overall - 5 / 246

M - 5 / 124
Shoes - Brooks Pure Connect 2 

I’m not gonna lie, I’m surprised by this finish time. I knew I had a personal best in me going in to the race, and was pretty confident a sub-40 would be possible, but a sub-38 was wayyy beyond where I thought I could push myself. (My previous “official” PB being last year’s 42:36 Longest Day 10k).

Woke up to an absolutely amazing morning on Saturday, had my breakfast and ran an easy 6km down to the start line at Devonian Park (Denman & Georgia). It was nice to get there about 25 minutes early and just enjoy the sunshine. Everyone was in a good mood and lots of great energy from the mingling runners (around 300 10k racers and just over 100 5k racers).

This had to be the most “shy” race start I’ve ever taken part in. When they called the 10k runners up and asked that those looking for a competitive time come up front, I was surprised to find myself standing at the start line with Stephen Lamb and a few others tentatively wandering up. Usually, especially in self-seeding races, you can’t even get to the start line and get stuck trying to get around slower runners in the first few hundred meters. (Noticeably absent were the speedy blue VFAC shirts).

Heading for finish line - Photo by Leah

The race start was delayed by 5 minutes, but soon enough we were speeding out on to the path towards the park. I definitely went out fast, more of a 5k pace of 3:37, and could feel it. I knew I wanted to stay sub-4 minute but that was a little crazy. I made a point of pulling back, thinking a 3:50 was my best case race pace (based on my recent 5k race time).

I knew I was doing OK when at 5k I could still see Stephen in the distance.

Fortunately a couple of runners had gone out ahead of me pretty strong and I tried to keep them in sight for a target. I got past a couple more that went out quickly but started to fade just before 5k, and then worked my way up to catch up to the other two runners working in close pace to where I was. I hung on to them for the next few km’s, noting we were still holding a strong sub-4 pace.

My thought process was something like “Wow, this pace is too fast, if I can hang on until 5k I can pull back and still make a PB…”… “yep, this is tough, I’m at 6k now, if I can hang on until 7 I could just walk a PB in…” …“holy crap, I’m at 8k and pulling ahead…” “…9k, one km to go, I hope those guys behind me don’t have anything left cuz I sure don’t…”

Just before 8k I found myself able to surge ahead. At this point I wasn’t doing the math but knew I would be coming in at a really solid time. (My watch was only set to Pace and Distance, no Time Elapsed). There was the only modest hill just over the stone bridge heading to the 9k marker on the East side of the lagoon. It was a little tough that late in the race.

I pushed as hard as I could up the path along Georgia to the sharp left turn just before the finish… high-fived Leah on the sprint in and looked at the clock in amazement.

It still surprises me how much different training is from race day. I can feel like I’m giving it 110% on a tempo Wednesday, and yet come race day I can usually still find that next gear. I’m also glad that my training is teaching me to trust my instincts and not be a slave to the watch. I would’ve pulled myself way back had I gone with what I assumed I could do.

It was an excellent prep race for the fast approaching BMO Vancouver Marathon.

The MEC Race Series is well organized and inexpensive. Lots of fun. I'm sure I'll do more.
http://events.mec.ca/event/12335/mec-vancouver-race-four-5k10k-half-marathon

Race Report: St. Patrick's Day 5k | Vancouver

Garmin splits

Chip Time - 18:38

Mile Time - 05:57
Overall - 96 / 1,715
Div M45-49 - 3 / 52
Shoes - Brooks Pure Connect 2 (Green, of course)

St Patrick’s 5km was my first official 5km race. I’ve done a few 5km “time trials” along False Creek in my marathon clinics (and last year managed to get just under 20 minutes). I’ve been running well and seeing some good progress on my tempo runs but I was curious to see what I could pull off. I figured I might try a stretch goal of sub-19 and see what happens. 

Sunday started rainy as I ran the 7km’s from VCC down to the start line at Stanley Park. It was about 15 minutes from race time as I got finished up at bag check and I followed the crowd over to the start line on Pipeline Road. There was quite a crowd already but I managed to spot Jan up close to the front near the Elite corral.

It wasn’t too long until the Maserati pace car revved up and we were counting down.

There was a good crowd to start but fortunately the road was wide enough and it thinned out pretty quickly. The downhill section to start really gets you moving quickly and I did a 3:39 first km.  I’m not used to seeing a mile marker but snuck in under 6 minutes. Second kilometer I knocked down another 3:39 and still feeling pretty good, though the course started to undulate a bit more. 3^rd kilometer was still a respectable 3:45. I think I could’ve pushed the 4^th kilometer a bit more but there was a downhill section that I found almost as tough as the climbing section, especially at that speed. Just heading into the 5^th km I actually spotted Jan ahead and tried mightily to find more in my legs to chase him down. Unfortunately the last km is mostly climbing and it was a tough slog.

I crossed the finish line, chip time, in 18:38, which was much better than I expected. I definitely think the extra mileage I’m running, with the challenging Wednesday tempos and hill work are all adding up well.  

All in all a really fun race with lots of great costumes and energy! Unfortunately I couldn’t stick around for the green beer afterwards.

[update] Check out James' race report here: http://james.wanless.info/2014/03/24/2014-st-patricks-day-5k

Elevation

Race Report: First Half Half Marathon 2014

Chip Time - 1:28:15 [PB]
Overall - 143 / 1,927
Div M45-49 - 19 / 126

Men - 121 / 875
Shoes - Brooks Pure Flow 2

Unexpected entry. Unexpected weather. Unexpected result.

I missed the original sign-up when First Half Half Marathon sold out (as usual) in the fall so wasn’t even sure I was going to run it. Fortunately I’ve been feeling good and Andrea’s entry came available for me to buy a couple weeks prior.

Leading up to the race weather reports were not looking good for Sunday morning. Wind and rain were being called for and I was psychologically preparing for a chilly start, if not a stormy race, especially near the water. (Fortunately I had just purchased my Mizuno sleeves when I picked up my race package from Forerunners!)

Last year I ran my PB of 1:33:45 at the First Half. With my decent Seattle Marathon finish in December and some playing about on the McMillan Calculator I figured I could beat that time, maybe by a couple of minutes. I printed off a visualization I keep at my desk and I had a 4:15/km (1:30 finish) pace as best case scenario and a 4:21/km (1:32 finish) as a more realistic goal. Training had been going great, getting lots of miles and speed was definitely improving.

I ran from my place about 4k to the Roundhouse for my warm-up and was feeling ready to roll. A few minutes visiting with all the running buds, warming-up, last-minute gel and water and we were out to the start line.

Turns out race morning wasn’t raining, and by race start it was actually starting to clear a bit. Only concern now seemed to be how windy it would be around the park.

Unlike last year, I made sure I was in the crowd and up closer to the front by race time. I figured I would go out fairly strong and moderate once I got a feel for it. A 4:06 on the first km and I was a little concerned, quicker than even my best case 4:15/km race pace. Ah well, see how I feel at 2km, a 4:09…   reign it in a bit, Dawg. There’s a small incline leading up into KM3 which brought me down to a 4:24 which seemed reasonable at the time.

I kept clicking off the sub-4:15 km’s and, feeling great, and throwing caution to the wind, decided to see if I could hold on to it. Hell, this wasn’t my goal race so if it fell apart at least I gave it a shot!

Nice to see Rob volunteering around the 8km mark and he snapped this “way too happy” photo.

At 10k I had a quick look at my watch and realized I’d just PB’d my 10k race time by about 12 seconds (42:24). Hmm? How will the second half of this race play out?

At halfway I was still feeling great and holding on to my pace. It was good to even start dropping a few runners as we headed around the West side of the sea wall. I managed to find a couple groups along the way that I would draft behind to avoid the wind and then get past and find the next group.

2nd Beach Pool and Greg 2.0’s smiling face and high-five kept me going heading in to the gravel path around Lost Lagoon. I was surprised to find myself knocking down a 4:02, 4:04 and 4:01(19k) this late in the race and still feeling good.

The last few km’s have the only significant hills but their pretty short. I dropped down to a 4:18 for that last km, before hitting the really enjoyable downhill along David Lam Park to the finish line. I knew I was racing well and in the last few km figured I could hit the 1:30 mark but I was genuinely surprised to come in at a 1:28!

Nice to see so many friends out running and get a chance to visit while chowing down on the plentiful post-race food that First Half puts out every year.

All in all, a really great day for a fun race. Kudos to the volunteers, organizers and sponsors who make it possible!

Photo by Greg Herringer on flickr

Immortalized - Forerunners fridge magnet

What’s Up for 2014? (or Six Loose Plans Masquerading as Goals for 2014)

It's the second week of January and I’m still not 100% sure what my goals are for 2014. I’ve had several ideas swirling around my brain but I’ve not taken the time to catalog and prioritize them. There are no shortage of blogs posts this time of year extolling the latest productivity techniques and ways to accomplish goals, but one theme runs throughout and that is that you need to be clear about your intentions, write them down, and make a plan.

So with that in mind, here are some thoughts and loose plans for 2014.

1. Training – Trials of Miles 
Most of my non-running friends probably think I run too much already, but truly, in order to run faster you do need to consistently run more. I’ll be doing 5 – 6 days a week, primarily Zone 1 with hills, fartleks and track work thrown in. I’m also going to work on more core and strength.

2. Leading another marathon clinic out of Running Room
Starting January 16th I’ll be heading up my third Marathon Clinic out of the Running Room. A 16 week training program leading up to Vancouver International Marathon (for newbies and experienced alike). Join us!

3. Ultras - Run My First 50 Miler 
I was tossing this one around for a 2014 goal since last summer. It’s a little bit bigger time commitment and I’ll need to find myself on more trails. I’d like to find one that’s not overly technical for my first. The Siskiyou Out Back in Oregon (July) might fit the bill. Their 50km was my first ultra distance trail race in 2012 and it was beautiful country and mostly well-groomed trails. There’s also the Meet Your Maker 50 in Whistler (September) which is closer to home but, from what I understand, much more technical.  I should probably run at least one more 50k prior to attempting the 50 miler but I’m still not sure where and when I’ll fit that in. Chuckanut appears to be sold out in March but I’ll keep myself on the waiting list.

2013 Running Re-cap

Overall mileage: 2525 kms 

(compared to 1983 kms in 2012)

Hard to believe another year has passed. Last year at this time I hadn’t even lead a marathon clinic and now I’m heading into leading my third. Looking back on my previous year-end posts feels like a lifetime away. I feel really good about the year that was. I’m starting to hit my stride and, I think, finally have a good base to improve upon now. 

I started 2013 with a personalized training plan from Jason at StrengthRunning.com, and this was definitely a big factor in my running progress for the year. His plan included active stretching and strength exercises that I (mostly) incorporated into my daily routines and as such I was able to avoid losing training time to any serious injuries. It also got me in the habit of adding more miles in general, at easy pace. 

Leading the marathon clinic out of the Broadway Running Room in 2013 was a first, and a lot of fun. It’s a fair bit of prep work but overall once you get the routes planned, speakers booked and pace leaders sorted you can show up and enjoy the ride. It’s really exciting and satisfying working with so many motivated people and watching everyone’s progress. 

In 2011 I ran 6 races [2 marathons]

In 2012 I had 9 races booked and ran 8 [2 marathons, 1 50k]

In 2013 I had 10 races booked and ran 9 [3 marathons, 1 50k]

In 2013 I set 3 personal bests (marathon, half marathon and 10k), setting a marathon PB in May, and then besting that again in December.

Race Report: Seattle Marathon 2013

Garmin Splits

Chip Time - 3:19:09 [PB]
Overall - 126 / 2,124
Div M40-44 - 22 / 168
Shoes - Brooks Pure Flow 2

All things considered, Seattle was a pretty good race and I’m really happy that I beat my primary goal time of 3:20 going in to the race. That being said, after debriefing and gathering my info, I basically hit the wall pretty hard shortly after the Madison Hill at 34k. So even though it was a great result, it wasn’t necessarily my best race.

A week before the race Barry (having run a crazy 5 marathons, a 50k ultra AND an IronMan this year already) kindly offered to pace me for Seattle.  He wasn’t feeling recovered enough to push a sub-3 and was going to be in town with the family anyway, so I lucked into a top-notch pacer at the last minute. I knew I had pretty high expectations of myself in this race having missed Victoria Marathon as my goal autumn race but this actually made a little nervous, knowing I absolutely had to be accountable now.

I ran what I felt was a strong 3:24 at Vancouver Marathon in the spring, even with the hot weather, and after having my V02 Max and lactate threshold test done by PEAK Centre had a great summer session of solid Zone 1 training. I also ran the Dingle Marathon in early September, as a fun race where I held myself back to enjoy the views, with the intention of it being a lead up to Victoria a month later. I did better than expected, a 3:27, without suffering much, even with a 2km climb at the 34k mark.

Because of my injury a week before Victoria Marathon I ended up not running for close to 5 weeks through October. I hadn’t intended to run Seattle Marathon but I left it as a last-minute backup option depending on how training was going through November. Turns out I ran my second highest mileage month in November and was feeling pretty strong to run Seattle.

Barry found out from Jan that my stretch goal was a 3:15 and without much convincing I decided to give it a try. (I knew it would be easier to fall back off a 3:15 pace than to try and make up time from a 3:20 if I was feeling it).  (Being that I’m 44 I was really hoping I could nail a BQ in the 40-44 category before I bumped up to 45 in January).

The weather report leading up to the race was looking pretty soggy and cool so it was as bit of a surprise to have a dry, mild (12C) day but LOTS of wind on race morning.

I was a little slow dropping off my race bag so Barry and I had to rush a bit to get to the 3:15 pacer as the anthem was being sung.

We headed out along 5th Ave and settled into a comfortable pace with the 3:15 group. Feeling good, it wasn’t long before we dropped them. The writing was on the wall for the type of race it would be as we started hitting the strong headwinds climbing the overpass, and then as they continued as crosswinds along the freeway heading to the first tunnel. It felt great to get in the tunnel away from the wind for a bit and I was surprised how warm it was.

Next up was the floating bridge out-and-back and we could clearly see the whitecaps on the lake as we headed out. I used Barry as my wind block where possible but the wind was pretty unpredictable, gusting from the sides. It was even worse after the turnaround, having to hold on to my hat and hang on when the gusts felt like they were going to throw me off the bridge. :)

Once we finally got to the other side and headed down I felt so good to no longer be fighting the wind that Barry had to reign me in a bit. We headed along Lake Washington Blvd towards Seward Park. About halfway around the park we hit the halfway point of the race, about minute ahead schedule for a 3:15 pace.  The rest of the run along Lake Washington felt good and we continued to stay ahead of pace. The pace was feeling good and I wasn’t suffering.

It wasn’t until we reached 34km, the infamous Madison hill climb, that I started to struggle. Once over the top I managed a 4:26 km on the downhill but Interlaken Blvd. for the next few km’s took it’s toll as I quickly started to lose steam with the rolling end of the course. I think the 3:15 pacer passed us (alone)  at around 36km? Barry suggested another gel at this point, which I should have done, but a gel had opened in my pocket and I couldn’t fight with the other one to get it out of the sticky mess so I didn’t.

My worst kilometre was, fortunately, the last, but it was over a minute slower than my average race pace (5:46). Barry was an awesome pacer and urged me on, even to shuffle if I had to. (which I definitely was as we were heading into the last stretch towards the finish.

It felt fantastic to finally get up the small incline to the stadium and cross the field to the finish. I hadn’t been following my time so it was great to see that I would come in at a solid 3:19.

The Debrief: It definitely helped to have a pacer. I could focus on running and not be stressing on looking at my watch as much. It also helped that he could reign me in a bit at times. I probably could’ve fueled and hydrated a bit more early on. I did get water at every station but usually only a sip and I only took Gatorade once, I think. The extra energy taken to fight the wind took it’s toll throughout. Still, on a hilly course and a windy day, pretty chuffed to finish as well as I did.

Proof indeed.