Coveted Trifecta Tribe member for 2015! Going for Double Trifecta with the Canadian events!
My US Spartan Race schedule has come to an end. I completed the Temecula Super and Sprint in January, and two weeks ago I participated in the epic Montana Founder’s Beast! I am so fortunate that I was able to travel to California in the early part of the year for 2/3 of my Trifecta, and being so close to beautiful Big Fork, Montana, is always helpful when the Montana series occurs each year. US Spartan Races occur all year long, all over the country. I could be flying to New York, Ohio, Idaho, Colorado….The choices are endless. I unfortunately do not have the funds to be able to travel across the USA and participate in all these fantastic options. However, I am fortunate that the Western Canada Spartan Race series is right in my backyard!
The Spartan Race Canada series began a few weeks ago with a Super & Sprint in Montreal. Other race sites for the Eastern Spartan Races include Halifax, Ottawa, Quebec City, and Toronto. I have yet to make it to an Eastern Spartan Race, but hope to someday. The Western Spartan Race series begins in June with the Vancouver Sprint. The provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Manitoba all have confirmed events for 2015, with a Saskatchewan race also being in the works. With living in southern Alberta, I have the ability to drive just a few short hours to many of these events!
Sun Peaks Sprint Finishers in 2013
When I started doing Spartan Races in 2013, I completed my first trifecta by doing Western Canada Spartan Races. My first ever Canadian race was the Calgary Spartan Sprint, which is held right close to downtown Calgary at a local BMX course. I knew after doing this event that the Canadian Spartan Races were the real deal! Canadian events offer the same experience that the USA events have. Some of the same great obstacles are always included—rope climb, monkey bars, spear throw, sandbag carry, barbed wire crawl, traverse wall. But depending on the event, unique obstacles are added! Because of the course makeup in Calgary, there are TONS of mud pits. I’d go out on a limb and say this is the dirtiest course I have ever done! You also get the same great finisher t-shirts and some incredible bling!
Fun in the Calgary Mud in 2014!
While Calgary is held every August, the events that round out the Western Canada Spartan Race series happen in September. I first did the Red Deer Super, Sun Peaks Beast and Sun Peaks Sprint in September of 2013. I am heading out to the same areas again this year, but mixing it up a bit. In Red Deer, I will be participating in the Super on Saturday and the new-to-me Sprint on Sunday. Then a few short weeks later I will be capping off my Spartan Race year by making the drive out to beautiful Sun Peaks, BC, where I will participate in the Ultra Beast-26.2 miles of Spartan craziness! I love that the events have been adding enhancements each year, with different distances and new courses being offered. This makes these races very repeatable, as you won’t do the same thing twice!
Fire Jumping in Red Deer, 2013
Slip Wall in Red Deer Spartan Race, 2013
Yes-Snow may fall during a Western Canada Spartan Race! Sun Peaks Beast, 2013
My first Spartan Race Trifecta from 2013!
I encourage anyone in Canada who has thought about doing an obstacle course race to look up the the Spartan Race closest to you. Spartan Race, in my opinion, puts on the best obstacle course race in not just America, but Canada as well! I am so sure of this, that I am going to offer my readers a chance to win an entry for any Western Canada Spartan Race in 2015! The fine folks at Spartan Race Media Canada are making this giveaway possible! I will have this giveaway open for a week. You can gain entries for it by entering in my Rafflecopter giveaway at the bottom of this post! You are able to register for the giveaway until it closes on June 3rd. And if you already know you are going to be registering for a few Spartan Race Canada events, use the discount code AROO15 for 15% off your next race entry!
If you are interested in entering the FREE giveaway for an entry to any WESTERN CANADA SPARTAN RACE please follow the link below to my RAFFLECOPTER giveaway page. You can enter for free there!
Click HERE to enter for your chance to win a FREE Western Canada Spartan Race entry for 2015!
Vancouver Marathon Race Recap Part 1….Before the Big Event
I registered for the BMO Vancouver Marathon back in about November. I was feeling really frustrated and defeated after my summer marathons (Calgary & Edmonton) as I didn’t come close to qualifying for Boston. I ran 3:46.22 and 3:44.59, respectively, at both of these events….well off the qualifying standard of 3:35.00. So when I decided to give my Boston qualifying attempt one more shot, I wanted to pick a race I hadn’t done before. And a race that was known for being a good course for qualifying. It was suggested to me by many people that Vancouver was the course for me. Sea level, rolling downhills, late Spring, spectator support, large city….I registered, booked a flight, and started thinking about my training.
I have mentioned before I had Dean Johnson create a training calendar for me. It was a 16 week training plan, which he took into account my previous fitness achievements and levels. Each day had set paces I needed to achieve and unique workouts. Dean went above and beyond and updated my training plan to reflect the success I was having in half marathon and 10 km distances in late winter/early spring. This training plan held me accountable, as I kept a log of how each workout went in a Google Doc, and it really pushed me above and beyond what I thought I was capable of. 
So here comes May 1st. The day I travel to Vancouver. I was nervous, anxious, excited, scared….basically a pile of emotions. I had been training specifically for this event for 16 weeks, but as I drove to the Calgary airport, it occurred to me that I really have been training for this since my first half marathon in May 2004. I wrote about that half marathon here, as it was a race I ran in a daze….it was less than a week after my dad passed away unexpectantly from a heart attack. I have been running long distances ever since.
So this race was important. I have been committed to running long distances for now over 11 years. Some years were low, some have been high. The past two years have been a steady high, with breaking personal records, getting podium at local races, and feeling like I am in the best shape of my life. It was also low when I didn’t get that coveted Boston qualifying time. I was out on this run to prove to myself I was worthy of running in Boston.
The expo was held in Downtown Vancouver at the convention centre next to the Olympic torch. I had stayed with my good friends Alex & Tim in Burnaby the night before, and they were nice enough to drop me off down at my hotel for the night, which was near the expo. This hotel wasn’t originally in the plans, but my cousin Erin is too nice and booked me a room. She would be staying there too! I wandered over to the expo, and this is when I first started getting the chills….the expo was right on the water, it was a gorgeous, crisp and clear day, and the energy was high. Packet pickup was extremely fast, and before I knew it I was on the merchandise floor. There were not tons of vendors, but enough things to look at. I bought a Run Van tanktop, which I know I will wear lots in the summer, and some more Nuun tabs from their vendor table. Included in our race package (which was a drawstring backpack) was a commemorative shirt (which I really liked….a short-sleeved charcoal grey tech shirt), our race bib, and a transit ticket for the race morning.
I ended up going back to the hotel to nap in the afternoon, as I didn’t sleep well the night before and was a bit worn from all my travelling. Actually, before the nap I ordered pasta for lunch via room service. Eating that in bed while watching HGTV was fantastic. I was wide awake then when Erin and her friend Rob were ready to go get food for supper. We went to this sweet market nearby and bought sandwiches and salads, headed to Stanley Park, and had a picnic. The weather was gorgeous and this was a very relaxing way to spend the evening. We were back at the hotel somewhere around 7:30, which gave me tons of time to wind down and get prepared for the big event in the morning. I even was able to head to bed by 10 pm and slept great! Now I just needed the following Sunday to be the best run of my life……
Husband Guest Post 2 – The Night Before Vancouver
Andrea watches a lot, A LOT, of shitty reality television (note – all reality television is shitty, but her shows are generally, the worst of the worst). The thing that drives me most insane about these shows is when one of the characters (usually a dumb blonde or no-longer-relevant actor) talks to the camera, and says something preposterously overdramatic and entirely untrue like “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life” or “I’ve never wanted anything so bad in my life”.
Now I understand it’s TV, and that drama sells. But it’s bullshit. Complete bullshit. In generations past, before reality TV, I think these grandiose statements were actually meaningful. Those phrases were reserved for the few times in life that actually mattered. So for the people in the world that actually do something of great merit, I find it insulting towards them for people clinging to their 10 minutes of fame on TV to try to bolster their appeal with this fake drama.
For Andrea’s sake, and for the sake of everybody that truly puts their heart and soul into something they love, let’s appreciate the following statement for what it’s worth, and not just take it at face value:
Andrea has never worked this hard towards something in her entire life.
That’s not just words. She has walked the walk.
She changed her diet (among many things, she gave up ramen noodles… RAMEN F-ING NOODLES!!!). She changed her step and stride (she went to a foot doctor specializing in athletes). She signed up for every race possible (and won most of the local ones). She hired a trainer to write her a training schedule (with the goal of 3:35 in mind, and the training difficulty was increased concurrently with her time improvements). And more than anything, Andrea stuck to her training schedule and ran. It was, and still is, unbelievable. I honestly can’t imagine putting in the persistence, time and effort that Andrea puts into her running. I don’t even think it’s fair for me to attempt to describe it, because I don’t know that level of grueling commitment. It’s every damn day. She runs, at an insane pace (usually at 7 minutes/mile… for comparison, I ran a 10 mile race at an average of 11 minutes/mile and that was giving it everything I have). While she never does a full marathon distance during her training, it’s not uncommon for her to run 15 miles. And then, after 15 miles, she just goes about her day, like that 15 mile run was just a 15 minute walk with the dog. That might be the craziest part to me about her training. She’ll run these super-long distances, and then still want to walk downtown for dinner, or walk the beagle to the dog park.
So I am proud of my wife, and of all her accomplishments. She has pushed herself beyond what I thought was possible. A hobby has become an obsession, and her pace and race times reflect her hard work.
So my dear… Go. Get it done. You can do it, you’ve proved it to yourself. You put in the time, you put in the work. You owe it to yourself. I love you, I’m with you, and he’s watching. This is how you remember.
Dan
Medicine Hat “Rattler Run” 10km 2015-Race Recap
On Saturday, April 25th, 2015, I participated in the Medicine Hat College Rattler Run 10km. This is the second time I have ran this event, the first being in 2013. Back in 2013, I set a personal best of 48:39. I remember being so elated at that moment of setting this time, and being able to place 1st in my division. Since then, I have been able to bring my 10 km time down to a 43:47 at the Moonlight Run in Lethbridge this past March. I was anxious to run this race in Medicine Hat, as I was familiar with the course, and hoping for another personal best.
This day also held importance to me going into the race as the 11th anniversary of my dad’s passing. When I registered for the event a few weeks prior, I knew it was fitting to be running a race on this day. I would have him in my mind all day and be running this race in memory of him. I stated on my Facebook page the day prior to the event how the event’s motto is “I Run for Me” and to promote healthy and active lifestyles for everyone. My dad lived a healthy and active lifestyle and was a fitness role model for myself, and while I would be running this race for ME, I was more so going to be running this race for HIM.
Medicine Hat is about 1 hour and 45 minutes away from where I live in Lethbridge. I have driven this distance before for races, usually to Calgary though, but the unique thing about this race is that the start time is 11 am. I could sleep ‘in’ to a normal time, and still do the drive and make it to race packet pickup and warmup with plenty of time to spare. I made it to Medicine Hat College at around 10 am. Packet pickup was a breeze and it was of course great to see Randy and the crew from Racepro working the timing! I also had enough time to do a good warmup, so I headed out for a 2 mile warmup at an 8:34 average pace.
The events offered on race day were the 10 km, the 5 km and the 3 km distances. The 10 km would begin first, with the 3 km following shortly thereafter, and finishing with the 5 km runners. I was getting anxious at about 10 minutes prior to race start so I just milled around aimlessly outside doing skips and high knees. When the announcer called for the 10 km runners to assemble, about 5 minutes before start, I headed right up to the front to get in good position. I actually ended up standing next to a local runner from the Lethbridge area (Taber to be exact) Billie-Jo. She recognized me and then I immediately recognized her. It was great to chat before the race start and she left me with the words to “Go chase those boys!”
We were off and I headed out with the mindset of trying to get a 6:45-6:50 pace per mile. With my interval running I had been doing lately, I knew this was possible….if I was on flat surfaces, with no hills and no wind. I held a 1st place female position for the first mile, which took us over an overpass and onto the trail system. The trail system is VERY curvy and lots of ups and downs! The “Ups” were never that steep, and the “Downs” weren’t either, but there was enough of them to really get you! At mile 1, a female runner passed me. OK, I thought….since I was not in Lethbridge, I did not know who this runner was, so I really had no idea what she was capable of. I kept her in my sight for the next mile and I was able to overtake her by the end of mile 2. I kept telling myself to never look back, and to only wait until the turnaround to see how close she really was. I could hear her breathing pattern initially, and then when I couldn’t hear her breathing I knew I was far enough ahead, for now. I just would keep on trucking. I ran mile 1 in 6:34 and mile 2 in 7:08. I did not like that 7:08.
The turnaround was near mile 2.5 and I was still in the lead. 2nd place female was not far behind, but there was a pretty good gap between me and three. Since this next portion was just heading back on the same route, I knew what was coming ahead. It was motivating running towards other runners and seeing people I recognized from Lethbridge races. I ran miles 3 and 4 in 7:01 and 6:52.
By this time, we were back to the overpass, and instead of heading back where we started, we looped around the backside of the college. This was a very sparse area of the course, with no spectators and no other runners heading past you in the opposite direction. I knew I just needed to keep pace. There was an aboriginal gentleman who I was running behind the whole race who I caught up to, and stayed about a few steps ahead. His cadence was the same as mine, so I decided to keep with him. The crazy thing about this man, though, was he was running the event in SANDALS! Very thin sandals with a strap around the heel and then through the toes. I don’t know if he normally trains barefoot, or just always with sandals, but it was a sight to see!
I was able to keep pace for mile 5 and then I knew I wanted to kick it in for the last mile. We were heading towards people finishing the 5 km and would be hooking up with them for the final straightaway. Seeing more runners ahead motivated me and I was able to push hard for that last mile. I also never looked behind me to see where that 2nd place female was, which I will never know if that was a good thing or a bad thing….but it doesn’t really matter….because I finished ahead of her in a time of 41:30! My final two miles had been 7:03 and 6:45….it was just what I needed! I stopped shortly after the finish line and was shaking, grabbing my quads….I turned around and saw female #2 finish right after me. She was right on my tail! Turns out, my chip time only beat hers by 9 seconds! Gun time was only 12 seconds! I thought she was farther back, but apparently not. I had won the female division in the 10 km—-a first for me!
I was so excited about this win but I knew I needed to keep moving so I didn’t tighten up. I ran a 2 mile cool down at an 8:55 average pace to total my mileage to 10 miles that day. Heading back in to the college, a nice spread of post-race refreshments were set up. I immediately zeroed in on the chocolate milk and bananas! I had brought clothes to change in to, as I didn’t want to be sitting in disgusting race clothes during awards and more importantly, my drive back to Lethbridge. They held the awards in the College cafeteria, which was a great setting for the 10 km awards (which were last) but it seemed a bit crowded for the 3 km and 5 km awards, as there were a TON of young kids there and their families. It emptied out quite a bit for the 10 km awards, which made it nice for us runners, as before it was too hard to hear or see what was going on.
I sat with the Lethbridge contingency of us who were out at the race, which was nice since a few of us were called up for awards….so we had a cheering section! I first went up when they called for the 26-35 age group for women (I know, weird age groupings!) and then again at the end when they announced overall in each gender. This was my “Olympian” moment I guess, as I have never earned a 1st female overall in such a large event…I think this is my third 1st female overall ever, with the last two being from smaller 5 km races. I am also really proud that my time was a personal best….not just by a little, but by a lot. So I know personally I worked as hard as I could! If I had been able to get 1st overall with a time slower than my personal best, I wouldn’t have honestly have been as proud. Another sweet thing was the prize money—-$200!!! That cash is coming with me this weekend when I fly to Vancouver for my main event!
Would I do this event again? YES. It is extremely well organized and well worth the commute to Medicine Hat. If you are looking for a competitive 10 km, this seems to be a good one, for both the male and female divisions. This is also a unique event in that the whole family really can participate….if one parent wants to do the 10km, an older kid do the 5 km, and the other parent and small child do the 3 km, that would totally work. The registration was also very reasonable. The early bird pricing for race registration was $20 for race registration, and the late registration (after April 7th) was $30. You could also pay with cash day of for $40. This was the same price for ALL RACE DISTANCES! This did not include a shirt, however-a shirt would have cost an additional $15. The Rattler Run was in its 35th year, and I totalled the finishers in the 10km, 5km, and 3 km by looking at the Racepro.ca website- there were 754 participants. This race reminds me much of Lethbridge’s own “Moonlight Run” in that it is a “tradition.” Albeit, smaller in scale, but still recognized in the community, appreciated, and thriving. This was a great event for myself, not just because of my personal accomplishment, but because of the significance that the date April 25th holds. That date does not need to be a sad day; it needs to be celebrated. And I am more than grateful that I could celebrate by doing something my dad would have been proud to watch me do.
Coaldale Family Fun Run 5km 2015-Recap
This past weekend I participated in a local 5km race, the Coaldale Family Fun Run. It is the fifth year of this event being run, and my second year in a row participating. Originally, I was planning on running most of my Saturday workout before e event, and then ending with the 5km. I had a 14 mile long run to do, with the last 6 at my goal pace for my marathon, or faster. As it got closer to the day of the event, I knew I didn’t want to be trying to race a 5km after already doing 11 miles. So, I decided to reorder my workout, still get the 14 miles in, but do it in reverse. I would do a warmup and cool down at marathon race pace in Coaldale, push as much as I could during the race, and then finish the workout when back in Lethbridge.
My last timed 5km race had been in November, and I wanted to see if I could beat that personal best. I ran the Mustache Dache in a 21:07 back in Milwaukee, which broke my 5km personal best that I had held since I was 18. Now, I don’t train for racing in 5km races,but I know that I have been doing more speed work than ever this winter and spring as I train for the Vancouver Marathon. So it would have to count for something?
The race was slated to start at 10am. I arrived at around 9:20, which gave me more than enough time to pick up my race bib, do a 1.75 mile warmup, and meet up with four of my Waterton to Glacier buddies-Julia, Emma, Danny and Ryan. I even snapped this photo of Julia, Emma and Ryan doing their warmup down the rural road we would be heading down during the last mile of the race. This shows the terrain and road conditions we would face for about 85% of the course.
I got lined up with a few minutes to spare. My race plan-push hard the first mile and hold on. I really had no other strategy. The temperature was ideal, so I knew I would be comfortable. I was a bit worried about the muddy mix of gravel and sand and dirt we would be running on, as I remembered from last year that my feet feeling like sandbags. The race began and a bunch of us plowed over the kids who were lined up in front. Ok, I know it is a Family Fun Run, but I mean, I was out to make a statement….so I didn’t feel bad dodging through children.
I found myself in a comfortable position right away, and I knew I was the lead female. I wasn’t going to look over my shoulder at all during the race, and just wait until the turnaround point near mile two. At that point I’d be able to see how close any other women were and tackle the last mile. My first mile was a fast 6:13. I was feeling good though, and it wasn’t too muddy. I needed to weave a bit on the rural Range Road to find the least mucky spots, but it helped with my shoes not getting full of junk. Mile two was slower (I knew it would be because I wasn’t trying to necessarily get even splits) with a 6:36. This was past the turnaround and up a slight hill. It was also straight into the wind. I started feeling sluggish here, and I saw the second female probably 30-45 seconds behind me. If I bonked on the last mile she would catch me. The last mile was a solid straightaway to Coaldale Christian School. It was wet on this portion and I made a mistake of stepping in a pile of mud and gravel, so for a few seconds I had rocks and mud flying from under my shoes. I was able to hold my position and finish as the first female! I finished my last mile in 6:57, and finished the race in a 20:42! I beat my previous personal best by 25 seconds!
I did a cool down and milled around until awards, which were held in the gym. The race organizers did a great job at having lots of post race refreshments—-more than I would expect for a 5km! They do a great job at recognizing the kids who participated, as each kid gets a finisher ribbon, and they do 5 year age group awards for under 19. So lots of kids get recognized this way. They even gave a prize to the youngest runner—I think it was a Toys R Us gift card. I know I would have been stoked about that if I was a kid! They got to the adult awards and each of us in our Waterton to Glacier group medalled! Ryan got 3rd overall and 2nd in his age group, Danny got 1st in his age group, and Julia & Emma earned 3rd and 1st in theirs, respectively. Along with my gold medal for 1st in the 30-39 female category, I was also awarded a $50 gift certificate to Runners Soul!
I was really excited to be able to run this race at the pace that I did. I even was able to do the rest of my workout later that day all within my training pace required, so I did total 14 miles! While 5km races aren’t my focus, they are still fun to do every once in a while! I know the next one I do I will be aiming for a 20:30 or faster. I know my training has helped lots, as this was not only a personal best, but I beat my time from last years’ event by over two minutes. Last year, I ran a 22:59. Seeing that improvement is what is most important to me. Up next is a 10km in Medicine Hat (Saturday) and then the big one….Vancouver Marathon is now just two weeks away….
Milwaukee Recap and Training Countdown
Three weeks to go until the BMO Vancouver Marathon! My last few weeks have gone well, but I knew I had some crucial training runs coming up that needed to go well, as to boost my confidence. Also, take into account I went home last week to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and this has historically led to me sluffing off on training. I only skipled (whoops) one day on my plan, so I am pretty proud. I had slept in too late before a friend picked me up for the morning, afternoon and evening of activities, and by the time I got back home I was wiped. What crazy activities did we do? Well, went and got my bridesmaid dress for her wedding fit, and then we went to Potawatomi Casino downtown to play bingo for three hours. We used to do this back when we weren’t yet 21, as 18 year olds can access the bingo hall at the casino, just not the casino floor. I think the best part of it was just laughing at all the crazies around. Best person we saw was a lady on the smoking side (glass wall separation) walking around with a surgical mask covering her face.
Other Milwaukee-Related activities I partook in was watching the Badgers NCAA Final basketball game at the bar I used to work at. They lost. Then my mom, cousin and her husband went to Miller Park to watch the Brewers second game of the season. They lost too. But all was a lot of fun! One of my last nights my mom and I spent a day and night in Milwaukee doing the Lakefront Brewery Tour, eating at some awesome local places, shopping, and then painting at Splash Studio.
Now, I didn’t just eat, drink and watch sports. I did run. I really did! I even found one trail in the Franklin Woods that I honestly had never ran on before in my life. It was super pretty!
It was also actually a lot of fun to do my runs back on the bike trail near my moms house. It is really an awesome trail. For the training runs that I did it worked quite well. My best run was on Thursday morning when I did 5 miles at my Tempo Run pace. I needed to be between 6:54-7:10 minutes per mile. I was thinking “how the hell am I going to do this solo?” I was going to get up real early to do this run but there had been thunder lightning, hail, rain, downpours, everything all night. It was still raining pretty heavy. I checked the radar and ther was going to be about an hour or so window at around 8:45 with no thunderstorms so I waited and headed out then.While it started thundering in the distance at mile 4, there was no lightning (just a steady rain), but this caused the trail to be empty! You never see this trail empty. Anyway, I head out unsure what I would be able to do, but I made it back home doing better than I could have ever hoped for! I did my 5 miles in 35:18, with each mile being 6:52, 7:03, 7:19 (you can see this as the out and back point on the map where I had to do a turnaround), 7:03 and 7:01. I felt like a million bucks when I got home!
So the running in Milwaukee went well, but I wasn’t home free yet, what I was nervously awaiting in my Lethbridge home was my 20 miler run to do on Sunday. After a week of making poor food and drink choices not conducive to a good training plans, and after a day of traveling….I needed to muster out 20 miles at a pace between 7:48-9:04 per mile. The weather was quite windy, but the temperature was ideal. I headed out optimistic and knew I wanted to push myself. The route Runners Soul had planned for our club run today was awesome. Only one big hill and the wind was fortunately at our back heading up it, Running down the hill into softball valley first was more challenging, as it was the slowest downhill I have ever run! Wind was pushing your body backward almost, and the water treatment plant sewage was wafting right in your face. I managed to complete my 20 miles in 2:42:42 with an average pace of 8:08 an mile! I am training for an 8:00 minute mile, so I am right where I need to be! My fastest two miles were actually mile 3 and mile 20, each at a 7:48 and 7:49, respectively. My slowest were mile 8 and 11, where I had an 8:29 (wind!) and 8:30 (hill!). Being able to hold it together strong the latter half of this training run was my big concern, so the fact that I could makes me so excited for Vancouver….just three short weeks away!
Digital Running “Time of the Season” Challenge
When I was training for the 2014 Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World, I was introduced to Digital Running. The website offers a place for other runners to meet and participate in team relays, share information, training plans, and more. You can also register and participate in online challenges. In 2013, I registered for the Hat Trick and Grand Slam Challenge, which were completed at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend where I ran a 5km, 10km, half marathon and full marathon. I also registered for the Interstate Challenge where I needed to complete an event in both Canada and USA.
Since I am a bling addict, I registered in March 2014 for the “Time of the Season” challenge. For a full year, I needed to log an event of 5km or longer, at least one per month. Each event would be verified, and once I completed three months in a row, I would earn a pie piece towards a giant medal.
Tricky part was finding a chip-timed event nearby once the weather got cold. I could not find a chip-timed event in December, only local fun run 5km events. I still did those events (Santa Shuffle and Resolution Run 5km) but they wouldn’t be officially counted. Luckily, a one-time “free pass” was issued if you couldn’t get a timed event in.
My final event for this challenge was the Hyptothermic Half in Calgary, Alberta. It was tough to find a February event in Alberta, but I am glad I did as this event was where I ran my 1:35 half personal best! Soon, after logging this event on my member page, the final piece of my “medal” came.
Virtual races and challenges aren’t something I always sign up for, and they aren’t for everyone. But when I found something fun like this, which encouraged me to compete in events each month for a full year, I couldn’t pass it up!
Weekly Recap-6 Weeks to Go
i headed into this week of training a bit nervous, as I had been sick the week before. I really wanted this week to go well, as I needed my confidence in my ability to run a 3:30 full marathon to be strong again. Here’s how the week went:
Sunday
My first run in three days. It was a 55 minute run in the coulees and felt awesome. I was still a tad sick so I was very pleased.
Monday
5.5 miles in 46:25. 8:15, 8:35, 8:35, 8:40 and 8:19. Did my last half mile in 3:58. Was feeling great!
Tuesday
Fartleks training today. Did 15 of 1 minute hard and 1 minute jog. Got 3.92 miles in and felt solid. I had been having a stressful couple days at work so this was a great feeling.
Wednesday
I didn’t follow Wednesday training plans exactly as I run with my track kids. This was a great workout nonetheless, as I got the kids to do a speed workout at Chinook Lake and then I finished it with my own 3 miles at my newly prescribed pace (Coach redid my pace ranges on Tuesday night since I have been doing a lot better in races this year). Totaled 7.64 miles over a total time of 65 minutes.
Thursday
An epic speed workout! I was nervous as my new pace times had me needing to run 3-5 miles of intervals in 6:54-7:10 per mile. I really didn’t know if I could do this alone, so my friend Bob joined me. We did a mile warmup and then busted out 3 miles of intervals. 6:57, 7:02 and 7:00! I was ecstatic!
Friday
Rest!
Saturday
The week was going great, and today was the icing on the cake. Did a 16 miler with the last six miles at my marathon goal pace. Did the first 10 all within my easy pace requirements, and then the last six came in. I was starting to get mentally beat and was nervous I wouldn’t be able to get pace. But I overcame and did it. Ran my last 6 in 8:04, 8:03, 7:57, 7:47, 7:49, and 7:54. My goal pace is 8:00 so this was fantastic! I ran all 16 miles in a total time of 2 hours and 12 minutes. And most importantly, I felt strong at the finish.
I have six weeks left until I put it all out there in Vancouver and attempt my Boston Qualifying run. I am feeling stronger and faster than ever before. I cannot wait to!
Spending a Week Sidelined with Sickness
Last week, I was riding on Cloud 9 after my Moonlight Run 10km success. I went into my Sunday training run (60-90 minutes easy) and did 63 solid minutes and 7.37 miles, this was epic considering I had ran the Moonlight Run less than 24 hours before! I decided to use Monday as my rest day (could have been rest, cross train, or 45-60 minutes easy) as my throat was starting to feel a bit sore. I was figuring it would pass. But, come Tuesday, all hell broke loose.
Finding Success in Speed Training
I have been slacking on new blog posts. And it sucks. I had known I wanted to write a new post all week, had an idea on Thursday after my run, and now it is 9:39 pm on Friday and I’m trying to begin it….all while binge-watching House of Cards Season 3 with my husband.
Je Me Souviens-To Infinity & Beyond! 