My life on the run!

Philly Marathon 2010 - Race Review

The alarm went off as scheduled at 4:45 am on Sunday morning. We had a breakfast of oatmeal squares, grapes and coffee and donned our matching cheetah running skirts before heading off to the starting area which is in front of the Art Museum (the famous Rocky stairs). My only gripe about this race is that it was a little disorganized at the start. They did not have the corral markings up until about 15 minutes before the race so people were just gathering. There was no music or pre-race hype. They sung the National Anthem then started announcing to line up in your corrals. Anyway, the gun went off at about 7 am and the Elites were off. I was in the 5th corral otherwise known as the “Purple” corral which made it up to the starting area around 7:22 am. The Full and Half marathon start together and had 24,000 runners so it took a little while to get everyone running.

From that point on this race is an A+ all the way! The scenery, the crowds are second to none. My race plan was to stick to a 6 min/km pace and run with Liz the entire first half. She was running her very first half marathon and I really wanted to run with her. I had hoped to run this pace for at least 28 – 30 km before I started slowing down (which I knew would happen).
Mile 1-5 was pretty crowded. Liz and I were all over the place trying to get into a groove. At this point we are running through the historic downtown area. Mile 6 -7 we run down Chestnut through the Italian Market – and boy is it a party! The spectators are lined up 2-3 people deep cheering like crazy. I felt like Rocky, which is often heard playing from boom boxes.

Mile 7 we passed by Drexel University and all the frat houses are alive and pumping music. The “lively” frat boys are out and cheering with passion and still drinking beer from last night’s party. The next mile you run through the University of Pennsylvania cheer zone near the famous Wawa – they weren’t quite as loud as Drexel but a close second.

Mile 8.5 – the Philadelphia Zoo and the first hill…ugh! Scenic yes…all I saw was hill.

Miles 9 – 11 was run through Fairmount Park, the crowds were still great, the music was there….but again…more “rolling hills”.

Mile 12 – 13 – along Kelly Drive is scenic however the roadway is very slanted and the knees and quads were starting to feel it. I was trying to talk to Liz as she at this point was minutes from finishing her very first half. I was also trying to prepare myself for the second half of this journey that I would have to take alone. At the 13 mile point we said our good-bye’s, congrats and high fives as Liz headed off to her finish line and I headed out back along Kelly drive and the beautiful boat house row alone. I clocked a 2:05:04 at 21 KM.

Mile 13 – 19 you run up Kelly drive, past Laurel Hill, Over East Falls Bridge and up Main St in Manayunk, however the down side is that the entire time I am running out….there are runners already running back towards the finish which can wreak havoc with your confidence. Luckily there were lots of cheer zones with no shortage of people yelling my name and encouraging me to continue on. At Mile 18 there is a beer tent where they hand out little ‘dixie cup’ shots of beer! This of course is not part of the race…just a lively crowd of race supporters that take it upon themselves to purchase a few kegs of beer to hand out to the runners! Only in Philly I tell you!!! Although I didn’t drink any, it sure made me laugh and carried me through that portion of the race.

The turn around point is rather tight, but at this point the race is spread out enough that it was not an issue for me.

Mile 19 which is about 30 km…up until this point had been doing very well. I did 30 km in 3:02:51 which is actually a PB for me too. However I was starting to struggle and knew I was going to need some walking breaks. The entire way back down Kelly Drive through Miles 20 – 25 were pretty tough for me. Your brain plays pretty bad tricks on you….from feeling elated to feeling like why the hell did I ever sign up for this craziness! My quads were seizing up…but more so my knees were killing me (I blame that on the hills). Luckily again there was no shortage of strangers along the route calling out my name…cheering me on…telling me “I can do it”. So…I plodded along.

Before starting this race I had dreams of ‘smashing’ my previous personal best time however, somewhere along those last few miles it occurred to me that I had already kicked some Philly butt. I had come back stronger and healthier then I ever had been and was able to race with my “BFF” in a great city. I finished this race in 4:32:04 a mere 7 seconds faster then my previous PB but with a brand new sense of peace…AND of course with renewed commitment to finding my inner speed demon.

For anyone still here and actually reading this, Thank you.

Philadelphia Marathon - November 21, 2010

Well it has been a while since I have updated this blog...I guess I am not really the 'blogging' type. With facebook, work, kids and running...my computer time is becoming more and more limited. However I thought I would quickly update this to reflect that I did in fact, register for the Philadelphia Marthon with hopes of redeeming myself in this grueling race called "the marathon".

I set myself up on a training program and it has been going fairly well. A few missed runs and some illness, but nothing too detrimental. I have done 2 long runs of 32 km each and I am still around to tell the tale - however I am having serious doubts about adding another 10.2 km to that distance. I have also heard that the Philly race course has 2 hills (one at mile 10 and one at mile 20) so the marathon anxiety is starting already.

I still have 2 weeks before I have to taper, so I am going to do a 35 km run next week and then another one between 32-35 km - then taper for 2 weeks before the race. If nothing else, it should help me mentally. Then - I will have to leave the rest up to the 'running Gods'!!!

There comes a point during my long runs...usually around the 28-30 km mark where I start to question my sanity...why am I doing this? is it really worth it? Upon further reflection I began to realize that marathoning is just as much of a mental exercise as it is a physical one. So over the next month as I prepare to head off to Philly I am going to 'try' and take some time to mentally get myself ready for this race (whatever that means!) but I read that in the John Stanton book LOL! I know I am a nutso, OCD type A runner and will probably drive everyone around me crazy incessantly talking about running...but that's just me!

42.2 km review....

I am now 1 week post Mississauga Marathon so I guess it is time for a recap.  Short story is I completed the marathon upright and smiling, however with legs (quads) that were rock solid and hardly moving.  Finishing (chip) time was 4:42:52.  So that is 10 minutes slower then my best marathon time in 2007.

It was a fantastic race and I felt pretty awesome throughout the entire race.  I was actually doing really well for the first half finishing in 2:04 and even good up to the 30 km mark - that is when it fell apart.  My quads were seizing up and cramping and I was forced to walk a lot and stop to stretch them out.  This is totally reflective in the fact that my longest 'long run' was 30 km and I only did that once.  So - it goes to show you that you can't cheat in your training or it will show on race day.  But...sometimes life just gets in the way and it is impossible to get the proper training in.  All in all I am very happy with the race all things considered.

However - I am even more determined to run a 4:15 marathon...with the proper training of course! And have been trying to see how I could fit in another full marathon this year.  This is what I have come up with:

Acura 10 miler - July 11
Scotiabank Half Marathon - September 26
Philadelphia Marathon - November 21

I am working on setting up a training schedule for the Half that carries on to train for the full in November. If I can stick to the scheudle and get the training runs in, and of course stay injury free, I feel like a 4:15 is totally within my grasp.

37 Days...where did the time go???

Well I am supposed to be running 42.2 km in 37 days and my training has been non-existent.  Sure I have "run" but I have not been "training".  I have not done a long run in ages and am feeling awful about it.

March is always a hard month - we have 3 birthdays, march break (which means a week of entertaining the kids) and then Easter (read: ate too many chocolate eggs!!!).  I have baked cakes and cupcakes, ate pizza and just pretty much struggled to get out just to get in a few km's at a time.

So...now what to do.  I am not giving up...I am way too stubborn for that! But running a full marathon in 37 days will not be pretty...and I will have to lower my time expectations.  I think at this point I am just going to focus on getting out for some key runs to get my mileage up and just plan to cross the finish line up right and smiling.

Scotiabank stays - Toronto Goodlife will be a Spring race!

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/768307--toronto-marathons-make-peace-goodlife-moves-to-spring

Was there really any question about this???  I don't think so - but it is nice to see that an 'agreement' was made between all the parties. Starting 2011 Scotiabank will be the only fall marathon in Toronto and the Toronto Goodlife Marathon will switch to a date in May.  I hope this will not cause problems for the Mississauga Marathon which also runs in May - but I doubt it as Mississauga has a pretty good following.

"the City of Toronto will put its marketing muscle behind the half-marathon of GoodLife, which is billed as a fun event, and the full marathon of the Scotiabank, a competitive race that draws international running stars and raises an equal amount for charity."

"Brookes said he is delighted and grateful and expects the move to make each marathon bigger, more successful and a stronger magnet for runners and tourists....Alone in September, the waterfront marathon now has an ambitious five-year plan to increase its competitors to 10,000, from fewer than 3,700 last year, and move to the top tier of marathons with Chicago, New York and Boston."

I am really looking forward to a truly spectacular Toronto Waterfront Marathon that will be considered on par with the top 5 international marathons.....I guess I better stick with this running thing :-)

Scotiabank vs Toronto Marathon....

So - it appears that the City of Toronto is finally realizing that 2 marathons held in Toronto a mere 3 weeks apart is a silly idea!  They are giving the race organizers 2 more weeks to hammer it out.  The most reasonable option IMO would be to move the smaller marathon (Toronto Good Life) to the spring, however they will not go quietly! 

Personally, I love Scotiabank - the large crowds, the draw of the elite race, the fast / flat race course that runs along the waterfront...I think it has the potential to became a world class Marathon.  Of course Torontonians will have to become a little more 'runner friendly' and embrace the few hours of road closures on a Sunday morning.  I think that is a small price to pay for bringing in so many tourists dollars for the city AND the 2.3 Million raised for local charities....common...this is a no brainer!


http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/02/02/toronto-marathons-council563.html

Council is giving the organizers of two Toronto marathons a couple of weeks to come up with a scenario in which both races can continue to be held in future years. That offer comes despite a report released by city staff late January found that the marathons were held too close to each other and recommended that one of them be eliminated next year.

The city's public works and infrastructure committee heard from supporters of each marathon on Tuesday. After their presentations, Coun. Gord Perks said their organizers will have to agree on a revised schedule in which the races are spread further apart. Failure to do so could mean the city will put out a call for proposals from other bidders to run just one marathon — possibly pushing both current races out of the picture altogether.