Boundary Bay Marathon, 2013

It was 8:15am. 15 minutes until the start of the race.
I put in my earbuds and headed out for one last warmup jog. The catchy piano intro started playing from Hall Of Fame by The Script:

"You can be the greatest, you can be the best.
You can be the King Kong banging on your chest..."

I might have banged on my chest too. I felt a rush of energy flow through me as I flew down the gravel path heading away from the start/finish line. As I turned back towards my car the song played my favourite verse:

"You can go the distance. You can run the mile (or 26 miles).
You can run straight through hell with a smile.
You could be the hero. You could get the gold.
Breaking all the records they thought never could be broke."

It was going to be a great race. I was envisioning coming back down that very same path in exactly 3 hours, seeing the finish line and knowing the race was over.

With 5 minutes to go I lined up at the start line, anxiously waiting for the race to begin. The sun was shining, and it felt surprisingly warm. I suddenly realized I was hopelessly overdressed. I rushed over to my bag (which was sitting 20 feet away - one benefit of small races!) and quickly stripped off my long sleeve shirt and tossed my gloves and toque. Back in the start line I chatted with a few runners, including my friends Mike Janes (who was amazingly running his 4th marathon this year!) and Les Disher. A girl next to me asked how many marathons I'd done - "a few" - and what time I hoped to run this one in - "I'm not sure, around 3 hours maybe. I'm just going to try and keep up with this guy" (pointing to the tall guy in a black shirt and toque, who I overheard was called Ivo and who I recognized as being the winner of this race from 2 years ago).

As the race started we all headed up the gravel path weaving through Boundary Bay Park. There was also a half marathon, 10K, and 5K race all starting at the same time, so I made sure to be right near the front so I wouldn't get held up. But as expected quite a few people zipped passed me. There were maybe 20 people in front on me when I hit the 1 km mark at exactly 5 minutes. Wait, what?!? My plan had been to take the first 5K nice and easy at 4:15/km pace. I glanced down at my watch and was relieved, but also a bit worried to see that it read 1.2 km. Okay, the markers must be off. Don't worry. But naturally I was wondering how accurate my watch was! The pace felt really easy, but I didn't want to lose 45 seconds right away.

When I reached where I knew the 2 km marker should be my watched beeped and it read 4:19. The actual marker was 200 m still ahead, right at 2.2 km. So obviously the markers were all going to be offset by 200 meters. This is why GPS watches are crucial. I decided to ignore the markers, and just trust my watch. The third km went by in 4:15, then the next two in 4:10. I took my first gel just before 5K at the first water station. My 5K time was 21 minutes flat (4:12 pace). By now all the 5K and 10K runners had already turned back, so it was just the half and full marathoners. I could only see a few runners a long way ahead.

The next 5K I settled into my goal pace of 4:05/km (4:07, 4:06, 4:05, 4:10, 4:05) reaching the 10K mark at 41:35 (second 5K was 20:35). The perfectly flat course (despite being hard packed gravel) really made it easy to maintain a consistent pace. There was a slight wind was in my face, but that meant it would be at my back in the second half. I had already taken my second gel before 10K as well - I was trying to get in some carbs much earlier in the race this time.

After the 10K, the half marathon runners turned around and headed back to the finish. I think there were 4 of them ahead of me - 2 guys and 2 girls. When I passed the 2nd aid station at 10.55K I asked "How many runners are ahead?" - "Just one!" he yelled back. Sweet. It was a 2 man battle, me and Ivo. But I couldn't even see him! Despite the course being right on the water and very straight, Ivo had gone out hard and was already way ahead. Every now and then I would catch a glimpse of the lead cyclist because he was wearing a reflective orange vest that was easier to spot. "He'll fade" I repeated to myself, "he went out too hard".

The next 10K went by very smoothly and uneventfully. I stayed relaxed but focused, and enjoyed myself - smiling at spectators and random walkers. Amusingly one spectator cheered me on around 15K saying "Go catch him!" to which I replied "I will!". It probably sounded a little arrogant, but I felt strong and just had that feeling. At 18K I took my third gel.

That second 10K took 40:29 (20:20/20:09 for 5K splits). The pace had increased slightly as each kilometer was run between 4:02 and 4:06 per km, until the 20th one which was 3:58! I knew my brother and his wife would be cheering me on at 20K, so I think my pace picked up in anticipation. It was definitely a big boost to see them. I yelled to my brother "That was the easiest 20K I've ever run!". As I headed around the loop at Mud Bay Park towards the turn around I couldn't see Ivo or the lead cyclist at all, which seemed weird. I knew he was far in front, but if he was so far in front then why wasn't he coming back towards me yet? Finally on the last corner before the turn around I saw him coming back. I mumbled something like "good job" as we passed and glanced at my watch (~1:25:50). When I got to the turn around my watch read 1:26:52, so I guessed that he was about 2 minutes ahead (~500 m). I had been aiming to run the first half in 1:26-1:27, so this was a very positive first half. In fact it was the fastest first half of a marathon I'd ever run!

When I passed my brother and his wife the second time (around 22.5K) he jogged with me and I said "next time you see me I might be in the lead!". Or not. I had increased my pace to 3:56, 3:57, but Ivo probably increased his too. I could rarely see him and the cyclist in the distance, and I didn't seem to be gaining at all. The kilometers flew by now, and they were definitely getting more difficult. I took my 4th gel at 25K, and held on to that same pace - running that 5K in 20:08.

After 25K I knew my brother was going to be cheering me on at 31K, so I decided to try and pick up the pace a bit more to see if I could gain some ground on Ivo. On the long straight stretches I could see him up ahead, and the distance between us was closing very slowly. The 5K from 25 to 30 was my fastest yet in 19:58 (and 3rd 10K in 40:06), wooohooo! When I passed by my #1 cheering squad at 31K my brother yelled "you're gaining, you're way closer to him now!". I tossed him my empty handheld water bottle (10oz) which I had been carrying up to this point. It felt really good to be free of it. I had taken my 5th and last gel, and only had a few honey stringer energy chews to last me the rest of the way (I ate two every 2 km until 40K).

This is where the race begins I said to myself. The inevitable fade is bound to happen soon, so stay strong, stay focused. You only have to run 10K more. Ever. Gotta love the logic of a tired brain!

It was around this point in the race when I realized how pain free the race had been so far. I had already run 32K at a great pace, and nothing hurt! Well that is unusual. But I'm sure the next 10K will suck, right?

Luckily (and similar to the North Olympic Discovery Marathon in 2011) I was in 2nd place and had the leader in my sights. This really helped me stay focused and keep pushing. I was definitely gaining ground on Ivo now. I felt like I could have passed him around 34K, but instead I let myself ease back slightly to conserve some energy. I wanted to overtake him "dramatically" - not slowly inch past him. I could tell he was fading now, as looked tired - he would run the long way around a corner instead of hugging the inside corner. The 5K from 30 to 35 was 20:03.

When I was about 20 meters behind Ivo at 36K I picked up my pace and zipped by, saying something like "Great work Ivo, keep pushing man, get that PR!". The lead cyclist sped up to match my pace and off we went. I tried to make a bit of conversation with the cyclist, but he tended to stay about 10 meters ahead of me. At this point I realized again how good my body felt. Shouldn't I be suffering by now? But amazingly nothing hurt, and I was running faster than I had all race. I dropped my fastest kilometers so far - 3:55, 3:51, 3:57. I had this big goofy smile on my face and was just ecstatic to be out racing on such a beautiful day. I felt tears come to my eyes as I envisioned crossing the finish line. Not yet I thought, still 3K to go. Anything can happen.

When I passed 39K I glanced behind and saw that I had a big lead now. The 5K from 35 to 40 took 19 minutes and 42 seconds. Unbelievable. I have often visualized running the final 10K of a marathon in under 40 minutes. Well today could be that day. The final 2 kilometers were back in Boundary Bay Park on the winding gravel trail. I continued to pick up the pace, causing the lead cyclist to speed up as well. The final kilometer was my fastest in 3:50, and the final 10K took 39:30. Once again I felt overwhelmed with emotion, and fought off tears as I could see the finish line up ahead. Hearing my brother yelling "He's gaining on you, he's right behind!!!" I sprinted all out, crossing the line in 2:51:08. A new personal best by almost 9 minutes (was 2:59:45), a course record (previously 2:59), and amazingly almost a 3 minute negative split (1:26:52/1:24:27). I had fully expected to fade a few minutes and run 2:56.

The rest of the afternoon was awesome. Family friends had made it to the finish line just in time to see me cross the line, and so we all hung out for an hour in the glorious sunshine, and then had a nice lunch together before I headed back to Victoria. Unfortunately Mike didn't have a good race as he has been battling an abdominal injury and had to pull out after half way. Les on the other hand ran a very strong race finishing 4th overall in 3:07 with nearly even splits.

Post race my right hip was a bit sore, and I had a raw spot on my left baby toe. But otherwise the body felt fine. And interestingly I felt fine the next few days too. No DOMS on the quads, and I was back running 2 days later. Perhaps the softer surface and the flat course took less of a toll on my body then previous marathons?

I would highly recommend this race to anyone wanting to run a fast marathon. It was well organized, has a nice friendly small race feel.
Obviously being in November and on the water (no protection) means that the weather can be a big factor. The gravel didn't seem to be an issue. It is mostly hard packed (as long as you stay in the tire tracks) and didn't cause any discomfort. About 4 km is on pavement, and 4 km on softer gravel (at the start/finish). A few things to consider if you are planning on running this race - prepare for all weather conditions! And consider carrying water. There aren't many aid stations (5, 10, 14, 21, 28, 31), so it's hard to get in enough liquid. I carried a handheld 10oz water bottle which I swapped out at half way for a full one.

Garmin Activity, Full race results.
Note that there was a glitch with the timing system, and all the times were shifted 40 seconds faster. I suspect the glitch only affected the half marathon (since they were the ones who complained).

Abbotsford Run For Water 10K, 2013

I was over in Vancouver last weekend (May 26th) for the Abbotsford Run For Water 10K race. There is also a 5K, Half and Full Marathon as well, which attracted almost 5000 runners to come out and race in the rain. The forecast was decent, but ironically it was very very wet... plenty of water for everyone!

Before the race started I ran into Paul O'Callaghan, also from Victoria, who was doing the race announcing. It was great to see a friendly face as I didn't think I knew anyone else from Victoria who was racing. Plus I love the energy he brings to the job!

In my pre-race scouting I knew that last year's winner Yue-Ching (in 34:48) was registered to race again, but I was excited to find out that I had narrowly beaten him at the Sun Run by 9 seconds (35:18 to 35:27). If no one else faster showed up, perhaps I had a chance to battle for the win!

Before the race started I was disappointed to see that Yue-Ching hadn't picked up his race package... perhaps he didn't like the rain? But that didn't last long because at the start line he appeared right beside me wearing a different bib number (in the white singlet in the middle). Apparently they couldn't find his at the race expo!
We had a nice chat, and joked around with another runner Jin (on the left in the USA tank top) who turned out to be a friend of his, and looked pretty ripped.

When the race started I was in the small lead pack of 5 or 6 runners. By the time we had looped back to the starting street (Bevan Ave) at 3K, the lead pack was just 3 runners - me, Yue-Ching and Jin. The pace was comfortable at around 3:37/km, and we were talking and joking around. Jin looked behind and announced that the top 3 places were now decided (us), and he would happily take 1st. Soon after he put in a small surge and I jokingly yelled "I see the race tactics have started!". He replied with "Well you see I've been training with the Kenyans, and that's how we do it".

Around 4K Jin yelled back at Yue-Ching (who was hanging behind us by a few steps, and wasn't joining in our friendly banter) - "Yue-Ching - why so out of breath?". I think that may have been a mistake, because soon after Yue-Ching blew by the two of us and quickly opened up a 50m lead as we ran away from the start along McDougall Ave. Jin turned to me and said "Uh oh, I think the race is over". We both picked up our pace and tried to gain some ground back. The course goes gradually downhill at this point until the turnaround (at 6.5K), and we didn't gain an inch despite dropping our pace to 3:16 from 5K to 6K. At this point Jin pulled away from me and I let him go, reassuring myself that I would be fresher for the uphill on the way back.

Around 6.5K there was a sign warning us that the turnaround was ahead, and then 100m later another larger sign saying "10K Turnaround". But the volunteer at that sign was busy directing a car out of the way, and wasn't ready for us. So unfortunately Yue-Ching who was leading kept running past the turnaround (maybe 50-70m?), and Jin also went too far. When I got there a few seconds later and ran past (blindly following the leaders) the volunteer yelled "10K turn around is back here guys!". I immediately turned around, as did the other two, and suddenly I was in the lead! But for some reason it didn't feel right taking advantage of their mistake, so I slowed my pace slightly and let them catch me. In no time both of them went flying past with Yue-Ching quickly re-gaining a similar sized lead as before - maybe 50-100m. Hmm, perhaps I shouldn't have slowed!

As we climbed up the steeper uphill section I pulled even with Jin, and with 2K to go it flattened out so put in a surge to try and gain some ground. It didn't work, but it did cause Jin to fall off the back. The runners going the other direction were very vocal cheering for us, it was pretty cool.
The finish line was visible from a long way off, and I was still way behind Yue-Ching. I knew at 500m I had to start going otherwise the race was over. The spectators (despite the rain) were amazing at cheering for me, yelling "You can catch him!".

So I started sprinting with about 400m to go. When I was right behind him with 200m to go and gaining fast I thought perhaps I might actually do it, but when I pulled along side he glanced over at me and then easily shifted gears, pulling ahead. I had no response and he crossed the line 2 seconds ahead of my time of 35:40. Part of me is annoyed I didn't try to catch him earlier, but the more rational part of me knows that he deserved to win and was the faster runner on the day. Plus it was my second fastest 10K ever, and considering the conditions I am very happy with my time. My half way splits were really solid too - about 17:55 on the way out, and 17:45 on the way back - so another strong negative split race!

Full results here.


Here is an amazing video of the race highlights and some neat scenes of Africa. My finishing fade out is at 1:45.

Envision Financial Run for Water 2013 Race Day Video from Run for Water.

In the other races, the marathon was won by David Palermo in 2:35 (who I believe dropped out of Vancouver/BMO part way, so a good result), just edging out Ryan Prachnau in 2:37. I heard that Jason Loutit was running, but I didn't see him finish so maybe he dropped out. Mike Janes had a great marathon too, finishing in 14th overall in a time of 3:06:02. That is nice redemption for him after having bad luck at BMO a few weeks ago.

The half marathon was won by David Jackson again, easily cruising to victory in a time of 1:10:53. This was his 4th race in 6 weekends, and he said he plans on racing Whistler next weekend too! Care Nelson also had a great race in a strong women's field, placing 2nd in 1:22:40.

The 5K (which is called a competitive "fun run") was run through the trails around Mill Lake Park. I don't think there were any runners from Victoria, but did have some fast times for a windy course with 3 people finishing between 17-18 minutes.

Overall it was a very well organized event, lots of good food after the race (yogurt with granola on top!), a nice finisher's medal, and nice shirt/hat/socks in the race package. And the atmosphere was great too, especially considering the inclement weather.

Sun Run Recap

The Sun Run on April 21st was near perfect conditions. A little gusty perhaps, but not too cold and not too warm.

Leading up to the race I was feeling great - I was very satisfied with my training, especially my speed work. I did have a nagging left toe problem (seismoiditis) but I figured it wouldn't affect my race. I was well tapered, and feeling good.

The morning of the race I followed my usual routine - wake up 3 hours before the race and go for a very easy 15 minute shakeout run. I didn't really feel like running around the streets of Vancouver yet, so I ran on the treadmill at the hotel. It worked out okay despite my dislike of treadmills!

After the run I gobbled down my usual pre-race breakfast of a small bowl of yogurt, fruit and granola. Then proceeded to crank up some tunes and get pumped up! Luckily no one got to see my horrible dance moves except for my wife.

The race starts at a very reasonable time of 9am. I headed out the door at 8:25, and as soon as I started my warmup I had this sudden burst of energy and excitement. "Oh yes, I feel fast today!". A few laps around Nelson Park and then headed over to the start line. It's a nice setup - the start is on West Georgia Street (very wide, probably 4-6 lanes?) - and the first kilometer of the race course is open to seeded runners for warmup. Did a few sprints, chatted with some friends, and then it was time to get serious. I purposely waited as long as possible before moving in behind the start line to be as near the front as I could. I figure I was probably about 4th or 5th row back.

The gun went off, and away we went. The first kilometer is very fast - it's straight and mostly downhill which really lets the lead runners get off to a fast start. It was congested but not too bad at all. I tried to make the most of the downhill without getting my breathing up too much, and passed the first marker in 3:16, perfect! The second kilometer has a couple corners and a slight uphill in it and ended up being slightly slower at 3:39, but still nicely on pace and feeling good. The next two kilometers are flat and relatively straight and the goal was to maintain a 3:30 pace: 3:30, 3:34, close enough. Just before 5K there is a short and nasty hill up Hornby before going over the Burrard Street Bridge (which is also an uphill but not as steep).

I knew my friend Jonathan would be waiting at the bottom of the hill, and sure enough there he was! Perfect placement because it really helped propel me up the hill. I also knew that my wife would be waiting at the top of the hill, so I had to be smiling :) Here is a photo from the bottom of Hornby. Interestingly the guy in green and the girl in orange both finished right with me. Both of them pulled ahead after this photo but I just caught them right at the line (although the green shirt beat me even though we had the same time, and of course he is in my age group!).

The 5K was slightly slower as expected (3:43) due to the climb, but my 5K time of 17:47 was right on target for my goal of 35:30. I clawed my way up the Burrard Street Bridge telling myself that there is a nice long gradual downhill on the other side. The next few kilometers were a little bit of a blur but the pace was good: 3:33, 3:31, and 3:27. I had some more friends waiting at 8K and it really helped to keep me going. Somewhere around this point I glanced down at my watch and saw that my pace was 3:31/km... and had visions of going sub 35 minutes (3:30 pace)! But I quickly realized that my Garmin watch is never that accurate, and so in a 10K race I usually run around 50m more (10 more seconds), so I figured I was on pace for 35:20.

Right around 9K there is a short and unpleasant uphill on to the Cambie Street Bridge, and this was when the race really started to hurt. That kilometer was slow at 3:36, but luckily by then all the hard work was done. I held on along the bridge knowing my wife would be cheering at the end of the bridge, and put in one final push down the off ramp and a decent sprint to the finish, crossing the line in a time of 35:18. As the photos show, I was quite happy with that result! 50 seconds faster than my previous PR at last year's TC10K. It is also my highest ever points - 770!

Splits:
3:16, 3:39, 3:30, 3:34, 3:43 (17:47)
3:33, 3:31, 3:27, 3:36, 3:32 (17:31)

Here is my garmin activity for the race, and full race results.

After the race I met up with my wife and brother (who also ran the race) and we walked back along the course to the 8K marker. It was incredible to see the sea of runners as far as the eye could see. We relaxed in the warm sun at a friends place, and then walked over to Granville Island for some lunch. My legs felt pretty good overall. Slight soreness in my right knee but otherwise fine. We stayed another night in Vancouver to relax and enjoy ourselves before heading back to the island on Monday.

The last 2 photos are copyrighted (in case you couldn't tell) and belong to Marathon Fotos, from this website:
http://www.marathon-photos.com/scripts/event.py?new_search=1&event=Sports%2FSTCA%2F2013%2FVancouver%20Sun%20Run&match=123.

2013 Update - Pre Sun Run

It's hard to believe my last post was almost a year ago! Running has been going well: no major setbacks, lots of decent training, and a few personal bests along the way.

The first 4 months of each year are always busy with the Island Race Series and the TC10K. This year I decided to add a race that I've never done before: the Sun Run. The Sun Run is a huge race that attracts thousands of runners. The race organizers cap it at 50,000 runners making it Canada's largest road race. This year it is my goal race!

Last fall I read a book called Running With The Buffaloes, which chronicles a 3 month training block of the Colorado University men's cross country team (the Buffaloes) as they gear up for the NCAA 10K Championship. It was an interesting and easy to read book which includes lots of different workouts and helps explain why we do certain workouts. And to see the benefits and downsides of pushing yourself to the limit.

After finishing the book I thought it would be fun and beneficial to replicate the workouts in the order they were done in the book as closely as possible leading up to the Sun Run. The only differences were that I wasn't going to be running 100 miles per week like the guys in the book do, and I would be running a lot slower.

I've entered all the specific workouts into a spreadsheet and shared it in case anyone else wants to follow them: Workouts from the book.

Each week follows a basic format of 4 hard workouts (Tues, Wed, Fri, Sun) and 3 easy or rest days. The hard workouts each week include one long run, one medium long run, and one or two intervals, fartleks or tempo runs.

The training is divided up into 5 stages (modified from Lydiard's teachings) which start after the usual base building phase:

Period A	6 weeks	Ascend to full volume: no intervals, tempos, races, etc
Period B	5 weeks	Aerobic short specificity: work done at goal race pace, with full recoveries on intervals (non-anaerobic)
Period C	6 weeks	Aerobic long specificity: longer intervals, still no anaerobic. Longer fartleks, mile repeats, long tempos (10 milers).
Period D	3 weeks	Anaerobic specificity: short fast intervals with very little recovery. Wed/Sun long runs decrease by 10-25% in distance, same speed.
Period E	2 weeks	Anaerobic speed: sprinting and intervals at faster than race pace.

As part of my training I included 3 Island Races: the Pioneer 8K in January, and Bazan Bay 5K and Comox Half Marathon in March. Partly because they are my favorites, and partly because they are in the Timex Road Race Series. By doing the Sun Run and TC10K in April gives me the minimum required 5 races.

All 3 island races went very well. In each race I ran a negative split and achieved a personal best. At Pioneer I finally broke my old record of 29:03 from 2008 with a time of 28:39. At Bazan Bay 5K I improved by 20 seconds from last year, finishing in 17:01 (my highest race points ever - 764!). Comox was 1:20:29 (70 seconds faster than 2011 RVHM) which wasn't quite the sub 80 minute time I was hoping for but a back injury and lack of long runs were probably to blame!

Last weekend I did one final tune-up race before the Sun Run (which is this Sunday, April 21st) - the inaugural Bob Reid Magical Mile. It was an out-and-back course on the Galloping Goose which had a slight uphill on the way out and a downhill on the way back. It was a fun event which featured some very fast runners and lots of prize money, for them! I placed 4th out of 6 in my 30-39 age group with a decent time of 5:07.

The Sun Run should be an interesting race with it's downhill start, the steep climb over the Burrard Street Bridge (at 5K), and of course the other 40,000 runners!

Here's a look at the route and elevation (click for a larger version):


After the Sun Run there is not much time to recover - exactly one week after it is the TC10K on April 28th!