ENDURrun 2018, Stage 7: Marathon

Stage 7, the final stage of the ENDURrun, is a two loop course, starting at the same location as Stage 1. It is mostly rural roads, and can get pretty darn lonely as the already small field spreads out a fair bit over 26.2 miles (42.2 km).

As I mentioned in the last post, I needed to run 3:29:15 or faster in this 7th and final stage for my relay team to set an all-female team relay record. I also could not be beaten by Aidan by more than 36 minutes for my team to retain our third place overall position in this year's race.

Gillian needed to get a long run in, so she signed up as a pacer and joined me for 25 km. She ran the first loop (we passed through the half at 1:41:53) plus a bit with me, then turned around to finish up her run and watch all of the finishers come in at the end of their marathons. After she left... I was all alone and man did the miles drag. There weren't really any spectators out, so it was just at the aid stations where I could see people and get some sort of distraction from the running. I slowed down in the same section as every other year... 2nd loop, going uphill from Bridge onto Woolwich, until getting onto University, then picked it back up to normal pace for the rest.

I finished the marathon in 3:24:59, so our H+P Women's A team now holds the record for an all female team. I also finished 3rd woman, and 3rd Ultimate female for the week.

Final standings after all 7 stages:

Men
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Christian
4 Nick
5 Dave

Women
1 Val
2 Robyn
3 Me
4 Rebecca
5 Lumi

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 6: 10K time trial

Today was the second to last stage of ENDURrun 2018, the 10K time trial.

In this stage, the runners start one minute apart, from slowest to fastest, just like the 15K on Monday.
As the shortest stage of the week, stage 6 doesn't tend to affect the overall standings a lot so I didn't want to run it too hard and risk hurting my marathon, but also don't want to run it too easy and potentially give up time to another runner.

I continued the trend (and "goal") of "slower than last year, faster than two years ago. Last year, I finished in 41:15, two years ago, 45:12. Today, I finished in the stage in 43:49.

I finished 4th ultimate female on the stage today, so I actually did give up a bit of time, but it was only 3 seconds. I am 3rd ultimate female in the cumulative, going into the marathon tomorrow. 

I am not just running the marathon for myself tomorrow, I am also the relay runner for the H+P Women's A team, who is chasing a record for an all women's team. In order to get the record, I have to run 3:29:15 or faster tomorrow. Fingers crossed, I make that happen! I'll certainly try my best.

Standings after Stage 6:

Men
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Christian
4 Nick
5 Dave

Women
1 Val
2 Robyn
3 Me
4 Rebecca
5 Lumi

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 5: Chicopee Ski Hill, 16 miles (25.6 km)

It was a wet and humid morning.
It rained a bunch last night and this morning, it rained a little during, but mostly it was just super humid.

My shoes were drenched by the end of the first lap, all I wanted to do for a good chunk of the race was dive into a pool, even though my clothes felt like I had just gotten OUT of a pool.

I gave myself a few non-time goals for today: (1) stay upright, (2) run every single step up the ski hill, (3) finish no worse than 3rd ultimate female. All three of these were accomplished.

As per the theme of this week, I ran slower than last year, but faster than 2 years ago. I finished the stage in 2:43:03, 3rd ultimate female.

No change in my place today, but there was a swap for first and second. There was a change in third for the guys.

Standings after stage 5 are:

Men
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Christian
4 Nick
5 Dave

Women
1 Val
2 Robyn
3 Me
4 Rebecca
5 Lumi

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 4: 10 mile hilly road

Last night, was my least favourite stage of the ENDURrun, the 10 mile hilly run. I don't actually hate the course, but I'm not a giant fan of evening races. It's just odd all day, not really knowing what to do with yourself, rather than just getting up in the morning and getting ready to race.

During the day, I lounged a lot, and not a lot else. I headed to the race start around 4:40pm and arrived just under an hour before race start. I ran a short warmup with Gill and got ready to head down for the walk to the start line, which is at the bottom of a hill.

I gave myself a very wide range goal of "slower than last year, faster than 2 years ago" so I had an 8 minute window for a goal time since last year I ran 1:11 and two years ago was 1:19.

I started out running with Val and Stefan for a bit, but it spread out after a few km.

I ran pretty evenly last night, with my second half about 20 seconds faster than the first half. I finished in 1:15:06, right smack in the middle of my last two years, so I'm happy with that. I felt better than I ever remember feeling in other years. I finished 3rd for the ultimate women again, 4th including relay and guest runners, as my friend (and teammate) Gill ran 1:08:14, winning for the women!

After the race was over, I changed into dry clothes and got settled with my chair to enjoy the post-race feast with the others. Thursday night is a good one, food wise (they all are, but I look forward to the tuna melts at this one!), and this was no exception. I enjoyed my food and the company and sat there until it was dark, and we all disbursed home: another great day/evening at the ENDURrun.

Men after stage 4:
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Dave
4 Nick
5 Christian

Women after stage 4:
1 Robyn
2 Val
3 Me
4 Rebecca
5 Lumi

Early in the race

The final hill to the finish

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 3: 30K

Yesterday was the first of the bigger stages of the ENDURrun. It was the 30 km cross country stage at Bechtel Park in Waterloo, a 5km loop with grass, road, hills, and trails, run 6 times.

My back was feeling much better, so I was cautiously optimistic for this one.

As I started running, I felt good, and was actually in race mode mentally for the first time in a long time. Unfortunately, that didn't last the whole race. I fell out of race mode in the fourth loop. It suddenly got really hot mid-stage, but I'm not using that as an excuse, the drop in pace was all me.
I did still increase my lead over 4th place, which was my main goal going into this stage, so I'm happy enough with it. Hopefully one of these days I'll get back into (and be able to stay in) mental race mode.

First 3 laps were pretty consistent and solid:
(1) 24:11, (2) 24:14, (3) 24:16

The second half looks like a different race all together:
(4) 25:05, (5) 25:42, (6) 25:42

I finished in 2:29:10, which is again my second fastest time on this course (the theme so far this week). I also broke my streak of improving on this stage every year, but I knew that was going to happen. I hadn't put in the work to be at last year's level of fitness.

Standings after Stage 3:

Men
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Dave
4 Nick
5 Christian

Women
1 Robyn
2 Val
3 Me
4 Rebecca
5 Lisa

Last night, was sushi night, a tradition for the last 5 or 6 years, then a few of us went out for a beer afterward; it was both a fun and delicious evening.

Tonight is the 10 miler on a hilly road at 6pm, my least favourite stage, but at least it's a shorter one. Hopefully it's not super hot.

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 2: 15K TT

Today's stage was a 15km out and back where the runners start 1 minute apart in reverse of the finishing order from Stage 1. It's a fairly long time from the first runner's start to the last, but the runners finish in close succession.

I finished the stage in 1:05:03 today, moving into 3rd place female. 
There were no changes in the gold jerseys today, but there were changes in the top 5.

After Stage 2:

Men
1 Rob
2 Aidan
3 Dave
4 Nick
5 Christian

Women
1 Robyn
2 Valery
3 Vicki (me)
4 Lisa
5 Rebecca

The back held up better than expected today, it definitely wasn't perfect, but I thought it would be worse, so I'm happy about that.

It felt more tight/stiff than sore today, and didn't really get any worse. It seemed to limit my pace to around half marathon pace, but I could hold that for the most part, so I was OK with that. I'm hoping it wasn't just that it was a shorter stage today and that maybe just maybe it's getting better.

Tomorrow will be a real test of how things are feeling. It's a 30K rolling course, so if the back isn't happy, it's going to feel like a very very long day.

Photo by Reza

ENDURrun 2018, Stage 1: Half Marathon

It's 6:05am: I'm drinking coffee and eating some apple & cinnamon bread type thing with a bit of peanut butter. The race starts in one hour and fifty five minutes. Am I ready? Who knows. As ready as I'll ever be, I guess. Time is up.

***

Well... the race happened. It did not go as planned. It started out fine, but that didn't last. And it didn't last for a very frustrating reason. The second loop (the course is a ~13K loop followed by an ~8K loop), my back started bothering me. I had slept on the GO train on Friday morning and when I woke up and moved, I had pain in my back, something that has never really happened to me before. For the most part, I wasn't really having any issues with this, but when I'd lean over, occasionally I'd feel it in the same spot. I felt this this morning when I leaned over to spit after brushing my teeth, so I knew it was still there, but didn't really expect it to bug me when running, because I was fine yesterday. Mind you, I only ran a few km yesterday. So... this back issue crept up and I did not have much fun. I slowed down somewhat... just wanting to get to the finish line where I knew I could be treated by either a massage therapist or a chiropractor who were offering their services for the week (KW Health Connection). Colin worked on me for a bit, so hopefully things will be better tomorrow.

Funny thing is, I actually had a lingering leg thing for a few months, which I thought would be the issue. I never expected a back thing! I guess it's not really funny... but yeah.

So... finish time today was 1:34:57. I am currently 4th female. 55 seconds back from 3rd.

Rob and Robyn were awarded the gold jerseys today and will have the privilege to wear them and start last in the time trial tomorrow. 

Leaderboards so far:

Men:

1 Rob Brouillette

2 Dave Harmsworth

3 Aidan Rutherford

4 Nick Burt

5 Conner Krofchick

Women:
1 Robyn Collins
2 Valery Hobson
3 Lisa Leskien
4 Vicki Zandbergen (me)
5 Rebecca Kruisselbrink

(Full results can be found here)

Tomorrow is the 15K time trial, where we start 1 minute apart. My scheduled start time is 8:48am, so I'm looking forward to sleeping slightly later tomorrow morning.

March through July

Suddenly, it's ENDURrun time! So... I guess a down and dirty quick catch-up post is in order.
I'll just list the races I've run and results/place, etc.

Chilly Half Marathon, March 4, 2018
Finish time: 1:30:58
Place: 47th female

Around the Bay 30K, March 25, 2018
I ran this one as an attempt to run goal marathon pace. It was a windy first half and I was already tired when I hit the hills. I fell off pace a bit, but not too badly.
Finish time: 2:17:00
Place: 31st female

ENDURrace 5K, April 14, 2018 

Cancelled race

ENDURrace 5K + 8K double, April 21, 2018

Since the weather was crazy on the 14th with an ice storm, the 5K was cancelled, but they were lucky enough to be able to reschedule the race to 2 hours before the 8K making a very interesting (and fun!) double race evening. Myself and a couple of teammates took this as a good opportunity to run a long run with the two races as tempos. My plan: run the 5K at 10K pace and the 8K at half marathon pace and get in around 30K for the evening. It went pretty much according to plan and felt good.

5K: 20:36, 5th female
8K: 34:20, 4th female

Mississauga Marathon, May 6, 2018
Here's what I wrote as my Strava description:
3:17:14 
"Fun" with "lovely" blisters. That's not normal for me. Also, recurrence of the vision issues that I haven't had since I got the ol' blood sorted out a couple years ago. I'm happy with the end result, all things considered.

Interesting thing about that marathon. I was so not into it. The week leading up to it, I wasn't excited about it... and training had actually gone well, I just wasn't feeling the race. I don't know why. Even race morning, I just didn't care about it. This was the start of my blah, non-motivated training for the rest of the spring and summer.

Oh, I forgot to mention place. I was 11th female.

Baden 7 Miler - Hill race, May 19, 2018
I had never done this race before, but had been intrigued in the past. The course is an out and back, uphill first half, downhill second half, with the mid-point at the top of a steep climb.

Just about at the turn-around

I finished this one in 49:46, coming in first female. 

Waterloo 10K Classic, June 17, 2018
It was HOT and humid.
This one quickly turned into a half marathon paced run.
Finish time: 43:59
Place: 5th female

Summit700, July 14, 2018
Half marathon on a ski hill. Lots of climbing, lots of single track, lots of fun.
And... 3 falls.
Finish time: 2:38:19
Place: 2nd female

February

I know February isn't quite over yet... but it's close, and I don't expect anything major to happen in the next 3 days.

So.... February. What happened? I "raced" a couple of times. Quotes because they were more workouts than races, but they were in a race environment, which I like to do in February, so that once March rolls around, I'm (hopefully) ready both physically and mentally for real races.

What races did I run, you ask? Well... let me tell you.

February Race #1: Dion Winter Goose Chase (snowshoe race)
It's a 7ish km race in the trails at Shade's Mills Conservation Area in Cambridge. This was the second year of the race, and as the name implies... there's chasing of a "goose" involved. The "Goose" and "Gander" are the male and female winners from the previous year. Last year was the inaugural year, so there were no previous winners. Lisa (the RD) asked me if I would run as Gander (although due to misprint, I was the Goose and the guy was the Gander). I finished 2nd female last year, but as of the week of the race, this year's Goose was injured and unable to make the race. Lisa emailed me and asked if I would again fill in as Gander. Of course, I would. So... I was once again running with a literal target on my back.

I started 2nd row, so that I'd be in front of all the other women, since they were supposed to chase me. At the gun, I ran hard... I ran hard for I don't know how long.... a km or two... and then I was passed by a woman and was happy to be passed. This was my first snowshoe run of the season and it was NOT feeling good! Note to self.... make sure to run AT LEAST one run in snowshoes before attempting to race in them. So.. I was passed. I was now in 2nd female position. Then I was passed again. I was also fine with this, but was not going to let anyone kick me out of top 3, so I kept on keeping on. The snowshoes started to feel normal about half way through the race. The final 3 km felt pretty good and I passed one guy. I finished the race in 3rd female in a time a little slower than last year, but the course was not the same... Actually, I'm not sure if the distance was, either.

After the race, there was a bonfire at the finish area, pancakes and coffee inside, and then awards.

I ended up leaving with a pint glass full of Clif products (this was the registration gift), and two mugs also filled with Clif products (one was my prize for 3rd and the other was a draw prize), and a pair of gloves (pre-registration draw prize). It was a great way to spend the morning and I'd recommend this race to anyone.

February Race #2: Re-Fridgee-Eighter 8 Mile
I'm pretty sure I've done this race each and every year since I started running.... now I need to check and confirm that "fact" to ensure that I'm not making shit up... but I don't recall ever missing a year. It wasn't always the same distance (there's an 8K and an 8 mile), but I believe I've always been at the event.

Alright. I've checked. 2007 & 2008, I ran the 8K, my very first race ever was in the fall of 2006, so... so far it looks like I am correct. I will continue to look. 2014 was also 8K, but 2009-2013 and 2015-2018 were all the 8 mile distance. I was not mistaken! Yay!!

OK... back to the event. This one, I generally run as a tempo around half marathon pace. It's a good test of fitness in generally less than ideal weather conditions. This year was no exception weather-wise. There was some snow-cover, some slush, and then freezing rain for at least half of the race. Singlets were frozen solid at the end of the race, watch faces were covered in a layer of bumpy ice. It's "character building" or something.

Anyway.... I felt zero pressure for this race, since I wasn't intending to truly race it and also since the weather forecast was crap. I lined up at the start near some people who I knew would be running around the same pace as me and off we went. I stuck with Jan for the first few km, but he started running slightly quicker than I wanted to, so off he went, then after the turn at 4ish km, Emily caught up to me and we ran together for the rest of the race. We ended up reeling in Jan and finishing just in front of him in a finish gun time of 56:08, and were surprised to find out we finished 4th and 5th female. We were chatting most of the time we were running. It was a great half marathon effort training run!

Next up... Chilly Half Marathon next weekend. I'll try to write something shortly after that... but no guarantees. We all know I suck at posting. ;)

2017 Stats

While I've already done a bit of a year in review post for 2017, I didn't really include many stats. Well, I guess this calls for another post!

A few basic running stats pulled from Strava (may not be entirely accurate, but close enough):

• Distance: 2,550.7 mi (4105 km)
• Time: 361h 58m
• Elevation Gain: 106,316 ft

Comparing those to 2016, distance and time are very similar, but elevation gain increased by almost 40,000 feet! I definitely made elevation gain a focus from late spring into summer last year. Hopefully I can increase that number a bit more this year.

2017 Races:

• Distances raced: 1 mile (x1), 5K (x2), 10K (x1), 8 miles (x1), 15K (x1), 10 miles (x1), half marathon (x3, but one was part of a training run), 16 miles (x1), 30K (x1), marathon (x4), 50K (x2), and 50 miles (x1)
• Distances with new PRs (PBs): all of the above, except the 30K and 50 mile, although the 30K was not road, so it was a new trail/XC 30K PR. (it was a good year!)

That's enough for today...  but that doesn't mean I'll post more tomorrow. :)

Stay warm, everyone (it's freaking cold outside!).

Happy New Year!

2017: a year in review

I thought I'd do the Instagram #bestnine thing, but not actually post it on Instagram. The blog seems like a better place for it.

I was hoping to somehow be creative with this post, but I'm pretty sure this will just end up being a regular recap of 2017. That's how you grab a reader's attention! 

I had set some ambitious goals for myself for 2017. I knew I was going to have to work hard, and I was ready to do it. The goals were as follows: 

• Sub-1:35 half marathon
• sub-3:20 marathon
• sub-4:10 50K (road)
• sub-13:00 ENDURrun
• sub-20 5K
• 7:30 50 miler

The order I listed the goals is also the order that I intended to achieve them. The races I had lined up for these goals were (click the links for the full write ups):

• Chilly Half Marathon (March) - it was a cold day, but was pretty much perfect racing weather for a late winter race. The roads were clear and dry and it wasn't overly windy. I had a great race here and finished in 1:32:01. 
• Boston Marathon (April) - it was a HOT day! There was no good race result this day as I went into survival mode early when I stopped sweating. I still had a fun time away with the club, and we were all able to laugh about our horrible races. 
• Niagara Ultra 50K (June) - another HOT day... and an injured toe going into the race... not a good combination. I ended up doing a lot of walking in the second half and hanging out at aid stations chatting with the volunteers a bit while I drank lots and lots of fluids. It was one of the hottest races I've ever run. I finished this one in 4:53, my second slowest 50K. 
• ENDURrun (August) - I had a better week than I ever would have imagined! It was such an incredibly rewarding experience to take chances and try things that I wouldn't have normally thought I was capable of. I finished the week in 12:33:56, in a very close race, with 2nd place female only 6:38 back after a week of racing.
• Fall Classic 5K (October) - Humid and warm day, but a downhill course, so the weather didn't affect things too much. I guess a cool, dry day would have produced even FASTER times. I'm certainly not complaining about anything with this race. I ran my first sub-20 and it was by a lot! I ran 19:11, which I would put an * next to due to the gradual downhill of the course, and call it more of a 19:30ish equivalent, but either way... I was definitely happy with that result! Now I just need to do it on a more honest course. :)
• JFK 50 Miler (November) - It was cold rain for a big chunk of the race. It didn't go as I had hoped, but it did go a lot better than last year. I finished the race in 8:09:10.  

Did I achieve all of the goals? No. 

Did I achieve most of them? Yes! 

I achieved all of the non-ultra goals, but the marathon didn't happen at Boston, I actually ran my first sub-3:20 marathon on the final stage of The ENDURrun (3:16:55).

Although I did not achieve the 50K and 50 mile goals, I did actually run a new 50K PR in the fall at Run for the Toad trail 50K, 4:22. 

Moving on to 2018...

Do I attempt the ultra goals since I missed them last year? I don't think so. That's not the plan at this point, anyway. I want to take this year to focus on marathons and shorter distances, but we'll see how the year unfolds. 

Happy new year to you all!