Hamilton Road 2 Hope Marathon Race Report

Another year, another marathon, because life is too short not to go for more. The rest is between my shrink and I. Just that I haven't seen a shrink in many years, so I had to convince my coach that I needed to run this distance even after finishing a 70.3 triathlon instead. He didn't think it was a good idea because I am now officially training for the Ironman and I cannot afford any boo-boo's, but hopefully after this race he's accepted the fact that I may be an alien and that I'll survive outside of Area 51. Not only I had one of the best days in my life, but I also came out of it unscathed, without a single chaffing mark or blister. I even have all my toenails. Who am I?

Training wise, coach had to be creative and increase my mileage conservatively, while putting me in the best position mentally to run the distance. This is what my last month before the race looked like. I missed about 5% of workouts that he had scheduled (not on this page), but I tried to follow his plan the best I could and remain in tune with my body and not hesitate to take a day off when I didn't feel recovered.

Volume wise, it was nothing extraordinary, and certainly not your regular marathon training program with 20+ mile long runs and 40+ miles a week totals. Heck, I didn't even run more than 3 times a week, but I put all my energy in the LSDs, with some tempo thrown in the middle for extra fun (not!). I ran at least a half-marathon distance 5 weekends in a row, with very little taper in the end. And it worked.

Many of my friends were going to race as well, either in the full marathon (Carol, Mandy) or the half (Sam, Nicole, Patty, Emma, Amy). It was going to be a party! I knew that with such a company, I'd have enough inspiration surrounding me for weeks. Carol decided to spend the day before the race in Hamilton and I booked a hotel room as well, just minutes away from the finish line. This ended being the best decision ever. She and her mom came to pick me and my older son up around noon on Saturday. Roughly one hour later we arrived at the expo, but we only spent about 1h there as it was wet and cold and we needed to stay off our feet.

First tent: pick up bag, bib and chip.

Second tent: pick up tshirt and spend your money

I ended buying a Sugoi winter jacket because I had been looking for one for a long long time and I was glad to see it so heavily discounted. Then we stopped for a quick lunch and a cup of tea before heading for the hotel to unpack, rest and rewind.

Teenage sitcoms are the best for falling asleep

No name on the bib? Come'on!

The hours went by fast, then it was time for dinner. We went out to East Side Mario's where I had a generous plate of "make your own pasta" (fettucine and shrimp for me) and shared a slice of strawberry cheesecake with my son. It was satisfying to say the least.

Back to the hotel again, I prepared my stuff for the race: gels, puffer for my asthma, water and pickle juice bottles, fuel belt, bib, socks, gloves, buff, insulated tights, wool tshirt and Sugoi outer layer. The only big unknown, which plagued my brain for over a month, were the shoes. I had brought two pairs with me: a new pair of trustworthy Adidas Glide 2 (one of the three pairs that I had bought 2 years ago) and my new love affair, the K Swiss K-Onas in which I had trained most of the year and which quickly became the most comfortable pair of shoes that I owned. The Adidas were known to give me some blisters on the inside of my feet, but not a handicap for the marathon, while the K Swiss always left my feet impeccable, but I had never tried them on distances longer than 24km. Also, the K Swiss were much lighter than the Adidas, with a smaller heel drop as well. Were they going to kill my joints and calves over 42.2km? That was a risk I had yet to make my mind on.

We switched off the lights at 10:45pm and made sure that alarm clock was set on the iPhone (which was going to magically change time by itself at 2pm). I slept pretty well until 4:30am, then I tossed and turned until 6am, feeling more rested than anxious, thanks to the extra hour. Got up 2 minutes before the alarm and got ready for the 6:45am departure with Carol and her mom. Made myself a sandwich with butter and a few turkey slices and ate a banana. Put another banana in my throw away sweater's pocket and off I went. Just 30 seconds before getting out the door I put on my K Swiss shoes and decided not to over-think my last minute choice.

We were dropped at the starting line in some sort of recreation center with a full sized gymnasium and a few baseball fields around. We made our way inside the building and started looking for familiar faces. Eventually I found the #burlingtonskirtbrigade and Nicole who was sticking out like the one sane person out of the bunch. No offense, ladies, but skirts in -7C? Cuckoo, all of you! I love you anyway, but don't mind me if I call you the #burlingtonskirtasylum from now on.

From left to right: Amy, Emma, me, Sam, Patty and Nicole.

I'm pretty sure I don't know anyone else in here

We exchanged hugs and took a few pics, then we all went on a mission to find port-a-potties with no lineups. But guess what, no such luck. Carol and I ended sharing some bushes, which pretty much sealed our best friends for life status. (Psst, her bum is whiter than mine!)

As the starting time was fast approaching, I followed with some dynamic stretches and did a few accelerations and ABCs (not in the bushes!!), then joined the crowd for the national anthem. I placed myself just ahead of the 4:15 pacer, hoping for a final time between a 4:10 and 4:30. The magic pace for a 4:10 was 5:55min/km and I was hoping to stay on track for at least 30km, then adjust my expectations depending on how my body would feel. However, even a 1 min PR would have satisfied me if things were to turn sour.

A quick countdown and at 8am sharp the race started. There were some rollers right off the bat and I wasn't quite sure what my pace was since at km 1, the 4:15 pacer passed us. It seemed to me that I was going a bit fast, but I could not understand why the pacer was going even faster. I noticed that the first km was actually at 1.1km on my watch and realized that I was not going to rely much on my overall pace if the GPS was all over the map. So I eventually decided to hit the lap button whenever I'd run past a km marker and do a mental calculation to make sure I wasn't going slower than 6min/km. At least I knew that I could rely on my 6 multiplication table. Isn't school wonderful? Stick with it, kids, you never know when your GPS is going to fail you.

The view along Ridge road for the first 8km was absolutely spectacular. The sky was so clear, you could see Toronto and the whole GTA. I could not get enough of these sights and kept telling myself how this course was as beautiful as the County Half, minus the rain. I was in heaven.

The heart rate was a bit too high for my taste though. In high zone 4 (170+ bpm), I needed to bring it down a little. Hitting the lap button regularly helped, and I finally settled in a pace that seemed to gravitate around 5:55 as planned. Mandy caught up with us and for a moment I imagined us three crossing the finish line together in 4:10, just like we dreamed.

Carol in Mandy are in tune

Shortly after km 8, my phone shut down by itself. Right away I thought it died of cold, so I didn't even bother to resuscitate it. Alas it meant the end of the pictures for me. Pace was nice and steady, heart rate was coming down a little. I was running relaxed and enjoying every moment.

I ate my first gel between km 5-6 and drank a bit of water. I decided not to stop or take drinks at the aid stations unless really necessary. We made another turn after 10km, this time running along some corn fields. Still quiet and peaceful, I was keeping an eye on my pace, another on my heart rate. All systems a-ok! Around km 12 I took out my first homemade cereal bar and I ate it all (I made them smaller than usual though). Carol made a run to the bushes for a pee break and I slowed down a little, hoping that she'd catch up. 5 minutes later, there she was! Mandy had taken off and she looked pretty strong, so I wasn't even sure that I'd see her again that day.

Three kilometers later I hit my lap button as usual and noticed that the pace had dropped into the 6:05min/km. I told Carol that if we wanted to stay on 5:55 pace, we needed to speed up a little. We had done the first 10km in under 1h, I wanted to stay on track for the next 10, and the next. I pulled away just slightly, but I could still see Carol over my shoulder. I thought I'd need to pee sometime later as well, so I imagined that we'd lap each other a few times until the end. By km 18, I was hungry again. I ate another gel and downed it with some water. I think I took my first sip of energy drink at that water station because I heard someone saying Gatorade. Gatorade my ass, it was Honey Maxx. Some kids knew what they were talking about, others were totally off track. Anyway, I decided to stay away from the mystery drinks and stick with my own liquids.

I also ate an orange slice and that felt sooooo good, I wanted to run back and grab a handful! But then the Red Hill Valley Parkway (aka the death-to-your-knees downhill) came, I was way too happy to care. The whole time I wanted to stretch my arms out and yell "I'm the queen of the world"!! I made sure I ran in the middle of the road to make it my OWN.  I was also on my own from then on.

Thankfully a photographer was there to capture the moment. I believe I can fly... In the middle of this euphoria, I drank half of my pickle juice. My legs were a bit achy and the last thing I wanted to see was a cramp to take me down. I was having a great time on that highway, but I knew that all good times had to come to an end and eventually a ramp took me out of this rollercoaster and onto the city streets again.

But not for long, because to my surprise, the next part of the course was on a trail with a very nasty downhill and some weird bricks that made me go ouch ouch ouch, followed by a hill steeper than the stairmaster and the same weird bricks. To make sure I was not going to leave an ankle in the dirt, I walked those few steps up. I don't think anyone ran there, unless they had Achilles of steel. In retrospective, these were the only steps I walked during this marathon. I still cannot believe it. We were approaching the 30km marker and just after passing this funky bridge, I looked at my watch and got really excited to see that I was still on track and that I had just beaten my 30km PR by over 5 minutes with a time of 2:59.

As I approached the lake shore path, I started hearing the waves and got thankful again for being able to run without music and enjoy the nature's sounds instead. It was really amazing, not a single negative thought had crossed my mind until then. I ran on. I could see marathoners coming back already, which meant that they were only 2-3km away from the finish. Add another 10 for me. I noticed this funny guy in a Mario costume up on a bench and I started laughing. I had no idea that I was looking at Marlene who was there to cheer on her hubby! 

Soon enough, the path split and we were taken away from the beautiful sight of the lake and onto a residential area. Oh well, it was time to eat again. But first, the pickle juice. I finished my bottle, then let my stomach settle a little. A km later, the 4:15 pacer passed me and I knew that I was now running my regular long run pace of 6:15min/km and that I had to say bye bye to dream goal of 4:10. No biggie, I was feeling strong, no aches anywhere and the waves were just around the corner. I ate my last gel at km 35 and went back to drinking water.

Not long afterwards I returned on the "happy" path with the soothing waves. I was in la-la land and the idea of jumping in the lake for an ice bath after crossing the finish lane was a powerful mind numbing drug. I kept on running, but I never had to go to the dark corners of my brain. I saw the 40km sign and I remembered an Instagram picture that said that I was close. You bet!! I found enough energy to speed up and run the last 2km strong, bursting into a loud cheer across the finish line.

I DID IT!! I beat my PR by 18 minutes and finished in 4:17:19. This whole day was just perfect, what a treat!! Now I can rest and embrace the off season. Was it worth it? Absolutely! I had another chance to measure myself against the marathon distance and I am extremely happy that I raced smart and not unnecessarily aggressive, got my nutrition in at the right times and even adjusted my footing to fight stitches the few times they tried getting the best of me. Finally, after 2 bad marathons, I could fully enjoy the experience again. I don't promise that the next will be as pleasant as this one, but one thing for sure, I will try to keep my smile until I cross the finish line.

Geekery below:

Many many thanks to my coach David Jenkin who always comes up with the smartest training plans, that fit me perfectly and keep me injury free. One more PR to make you proud!!

Also, a million thanks to my husband Zin, my most dedicated cheerleader, who put up with me throughout the year and especially in the last weeks of this training cycle - we both know it wasn't easy! To my son Yanis who came with me to the race and cheered me on, and gave me his jacket when I was freezing cold. Love you, my son!

To Carol's mom who drove us around and invited us for dinner. You made our weekend so much easier!! Thank you for your generosity!

Last but not least, my friends online and in real life who share this passion with me and who provided me with a constant dose of inspiration to take me through the best and worst times this year. To many more PRs, BQs, high fives and running skirts - or not. You know who you are - Thank you!!!

2013 Around the Bay 30K Race Report

It is here!! It is here!! Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for... the first race of the year for Riri & Zin! Tadaaaaa.... (spoiler alert)

Not so fast, my friends!
First, a bit of recap. This was the third time that I was making the trip to Hamilton for the "Oldest Race in North America", in its 119th anniversary this year, and still "older than Boston". By the way, this ain't gonna change any time soon, so deal with it. The two previous times I run it I was part of a two-person relay and covered the full distance, but never at once. This year, I trained hard and went there hungry for a PR. Since I had never run in a 30K race before, my only  reference times were my 30k splits at the marathons completed last year, so the time to beat was 3h13 from Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.

After struggling with different paces in my head, I met with my new coach earlier in the week and we discussed strategy. He told me that he wasn't comfortable with me racing it all out because it's not my A race and I could get injured and jeopardize my training for Ironman Muskoka 70.3, but after agreeing on the fact that a 3h10 time would make me happy and that most likely it would not kill me, we decided that I was going to run it as following (all by feel, no peeking at the watch!) :

• First 5k easy
• Next 10k fast (race pace)
• Last 15k easy

I figured that my 10k race pace was going to be somewhere around 5:30min/km, but the easy pace, anywhere in the 6-7min/km range. I went to sleep with the peace of mind that I was going to follow a plan and not do whatever was going to cross my adrenaline-fueled brain. That's a first!

So, on Saturday we went to the Expo to pick up our race kits, and oh, the miracle, we didn't buy anything! We got there early enough to win a flashy orange tech cap from Running Room, but other than that, there was nothing there that we really needed. I took a picture of the empty Copps Coliseum though because it was free.

Went back home and spent the rest of the day driving around, to downtown Toronto to pick up some prints and to Value Village where I bought throw away clothes for the following morning. In the evening we carb loaded with our traditional homemade lasagna. I may or may not have had some ice cream too.

The next day, alarm clock went off at 6am. After a quick shower and a breakfast, we managed to leave the house at 7am. We felt confident that we'd get to Hamilton early enough to find parking, unlike last year when we circled the downtown area for an hour before finding a spot. And just as expected, we quickly found free street parking, just half a mile from Copps Coliseum.

We went to Tim's for coffee and a pee break, then to the Coliseum where we had planned to meet with Nicole, Sam and the rest of the online gang. I did recognize a few faces, but was a bit too shy to talk to everyone. Shook a few hands and forgot most of the names (sorry, small brain), but felt right at home among them happy people in bright shirts and running tights.

By the way, I know that people say that it's bad juju to wear the race t-shirt, but I've never done otherwise, so I was glowing in the hot pink one that hey gave to the women racers this year. For bottoms I was wearing my long Sugoi tights, and those too were a no brainer given the near-zero temperatures advertised by my weather app. I also chose to go with my buff instead of a hat, and no gloves.

With 15 minutes to the start time, we made our move towards the grey corral, for those without qualifying times. That's when we saw Lou and Paul from the Barefoot and Minimalist Runners Facebook Group and I admired both the fashion statement and Lou's perfectly shaved legs.

We looked around us, a sea of people ahead, a sea of people behind. 

And us two goofs in the middle, with sun in our eyes and a mean attitude...fail!

I don't think we even heard the countdown because all of a sudden we started moving and eventually I saw the starting mat. I ditched my sweater and dug my phone out to start Runkeeper, then off we went. Here, try to spot us, we crossed the starting line about 7 minutes in.

Zin said he was going to "warm up" with me for about 2km, then go on his own, but he only lasted for about 2 minutes beside me, then... he was gone! I am really glad he did because I wasn't going all that fast and he really wanted to go after a 2h30 PR.

I decided to run my own race, not even mingle with the massive groups of people following the pacers. I had a plan to follow after all. Soon enough Nicole and her friends passed me and we both vowed to never listen to the weather reports again as she was peeling off her jacket and I was wishing I didn't wear a wool layer under my top. The first 5k went by really fast and then came my time to speed up and complete my tempo workout of the day. Just before reaching the train "situation" I passed Nicole again and zoomed my way ahead dodging people one by one. I knew they were all going to pass me back again, so I didn't have any hard feelings ahead of time, I was on a mission and that was the most important, not to die before the 15k mat.

The bridge could not come soon enough, because a fast 10k split is still a lot of energy to leave on the pavement. I took in Clif shot blocks at 4k and 10k, mixed in with some water and Endura by Metagenics (as a sports drink, I couldn't recommend it enough, there is only good stuff in it).

There it is, the 15k relay exchange point which also meant that I was done...with the fast feet, because the race was only starting.

We are over the hump, I heard some people say, but the humps were actually yet to come! Notorious for its hilly second half, including the infamous Valley Inn road, Around the Bay is not the race where you can bank time. You'd better conserve your energy, otherwise the hills are going to eat you alive. Thankfully I knew I had trained for them and they were not going to last forever. My goal was now to get over each and every ones of them with a smile, and onto the last downhill stretch to the Finish line. Slow and steady...

Nicole and the gang passed me again, they were just ahead of the 2:55 pacer, and they looked like they were going for it!! This little energizer bunny knew to have fun out there! I took notice and it definitely motivated me to keep up the pace and enjoy myself. There seemed to be one hill per km, so I tried to take advantage as much as I could of the downhills and get back to my relaxed state in between. Still no Zin in sight, so I started thinking that he may have already finished, which was probably true, and that was also giving me wings. So proud of my hubbs for going strong!

Eventually I approached Heartbreak Hill, and I started hearing Queen's "We will rock you" blasting off someone's boom box. I can't remember if it was an official ATB tent or a kind Hamiltonian's setup, but it  MADE MY DAY (thank you!!!). It was right at the top of the hill before Valley Inn road, yep, just before it goes down hard to only go back up again. I started singing and yelling at people, "this is it, guys", let's do this!" We will, we will, ROCK YOU!! I felt like a boulder rolling down the hill, then powering up and passing those who decided to walk it, telling them, it's only 400m, folks! Keep going!! (for my American friends, that's a quarter of a mile). I was a talking boulder, alriiight (cuckoo!).

Anyway, made it up and then... breathe... almost done! Last 3k. Longest 3k ever... I really wanted it to be over, I had enough fun for the day. I was hoping to see the grim reaper so I can laugh in his face and then sprint to the finish line. I finally saw him and took out my camera, then snapped the picture below. I realized there was an official ATB photog right there if you wanted a more professional "near death" experience, but I decided to skip.

Unfortunately I was also dealing with a side stitch, so there was no way I could have smiled for the camera. I walked for about 30 seconds, hoping it would go away, but then the pain started traveling around my entire lower abdomen and I said, to hell with it!! This too shall pass... I saw a Toronto Triathlon Festival t-shirt passing me and it brought back my smile. Later I realized these two were Alex Flint and Marvelous Martha. I passed them again and onto the final km, I was waiting for the photo op before launching myself down the ramp into Copps Coliseum. I wanted to give the guy a mean double devil horns sign, but in the end my hands decided to do something completely alien. Triple horns. Oh well, I'm such a noob. Can't control legs and fingers at the same time.

Passed a few more people and sprinted my way across the finish mat with a huge sigh of relief. I was done, and DONE!! Legs seized up, I could barely walk, I wanted food and my medal and as coach suggested, to "get out of there before I catch a bug". Walked my way up to meet Zin, had a bite and waited for my legs to cooperate again, then I drove us back home where I had an ice bath, then cuddled with my heating blankie and caught up with the rest of the universe via my favorite social networks.

My first 30k is in the books!! 3h05 chip time, a 8min PR over my fastest 30k marathon split. I am really, really happy with the result, and even happier that I managed to execute this race exactly as planned. Zin also beat his fastest of the fastest times and finished the race in 2h31, earning himself the name of SuperZin. I am impressed! If he continues like this he may end up in Boston before we finish an Ironman (the pressure's on!).

Last but not least, here's the techie view for those who like numbers and pretty graphs.

Alright, next!

Around the Bay 30K Road Race Report

Better late than never, right? Well, it's been 2 days only, but they felt more like a week. Let's get this report started!

Sunday morning alarm clock went off at 6:45am and something had been telling me that it would be too late as Hamiliton is about a 65km/45min drive away. We had some apple pie and banana bread with Nutella for breakfast (we love our homemade baked goods, shut up) then drove to the nearest Tim Hortons for coffee on our way to Hamilton. Without surprise, once we got there, all parking lots were full. We were just 30min away from the race start and I was getting increasingly panicked because I had nowhere to park the car. I thought about leaving it at a bank or a coffee shop, but overzealous vigilantes were roaming around, ready to jump on any opportunity to see cars towed. So much fun, right! Anyway, I told hubbs (name is Zin) to walk to the starting line, it was more important for him to get there on time than for me, only that I needed to get in the bus that would take me to the half point and the deadline to catch one of those was 9:15am, 15 min before the start! I let him go then I went circling once more and wheeee, found one last spot in a school's parking lot. I managed to run down close to the starting line and jump in the last bus, good luck sign for was yet to come.

The gun went off while our bus was on its way to the mid-point and from that moment on I started following hubbs with Runkeeper Live, which was way too cool for anyone around me. At the half point I tried my best to stay relaxed and warm while keeping on eye on Runkeeper Live and taking bathroom breaks. I saw Reid Coolsaet, one of our two Canadian marathoners competing at the Olympic Games this summer, and Kibet, the guy who was ahead of him at that point, zooming by, and snapped of photo of each. Here they are:

Go, Reid, go!

Reid ended up winning the race in 1h33, pretty much twice faster than us mortals. Read his race report here. I didn't see Kibet anywhere in the standings.

As to hubbs, he started with a pace of 5:04min/km and I was afraid that'd be a bit too fast for him, but he ended by staying strong on this pace for over 10km, then slightly slowing down to finish his 15km split in 1h27 and an overall pace of 5:47min/km (including the transition time). The chip transition must have taken us about a minute to a minute and a half, then off I went, a bit apprehensive to run on the lift bridge, but thankfully preoccupied with my fuel belt that had detached, my earbuds' cord tangled around me and the Runkeeper app that refused to start for about 1km in the run. I managed to get everything back in working order and eventually started concentrating on the run. Another km down and my Runkeeper tells me that I'm doing a 5:45 pace and I went whaaaa?? Runkeeper must have bonked again. Waited for another km and the pace didn't change. Damn!! I must be really going that fast then, but how is it possible, I am not breathing harder and my legs are flying. Alright... keep doing what you're doing and stop thinking.

(I'm not the only one to find this course scenic, the girl in front just took a photo as well)

Then the rolling hills started up and down, up and down, hands in the air, smile for the camera!! Lots of people on the roads to cheer us on, beautiful weather, this run was already awesome from the start, if only I could keep the awesome strong until the end despite all the elevation's ups and downs.  Like a rollercoaster ride, this one was a lot of fun until I reached "heartbreak hill". Again, I didn't think twice, I attacked the beast and told myself - you shall not stop, you can do this, it's just 400m, this will be over in a blink. And indeed, without much pain, but with 30m of altitude gain, I made it to the top then worked on my breathing for a little while so I didn't have to think too much again.

Here's the Valley Inn Road, aka "heartbreak hill", the climb starts on the right and ends at the top left where the train tracks are. There was one man collapsed on the bridge just ahead of us, I hope he's ok.

Met the "reaper" (a guy in costume, he must be famous by now) on my way back to the city, but didn't stop for a photo because it would have been tempting the devil too much. I stayed focused, then on the last 3k I picked up the pace and with a grin from ear to ear, arrived at Copps Coliseum and let a scream out as I was crossing the finish line in 1:26:54, my best time ever by 18 minutes since last year's run on the same course!! Our total time was 2:54:40, under 3h!! Woooo hoooooo!!

I don't have a photo of me finishing, but here's one from the chute while making my way towards the "food and medals" area.

After meeting with hubbs, we had someone snap this picture of us then we drove back home and relaxed for the rest of the day. We even sneaked in a long walk for coffee in the afternoon because it seems to be working well for when you're hungry and you don't necessarily want to eat a cow. What a great day this was!! I hope to share this experience again with my Zin. All I know for sure, is that I married a runner!! Who knew? To the infinity and beyooooond!!