So much for that.

My plan was to devote the year to faster, shorter races, since I was having trouble finding big enough chunks of time to devote to half or full marathon training.  Guess what?  Short race training gets boring quicker.

We ran Erica's Wish in Mississauga August 11 for the third time and there were indeed cupcakes, but I went for the bag of chips instead.  Yum.  Came in at 28:42.  Not a PR.  I'm blaming the loose gravel portion for slowing me down.

September was busy.  The Energizer Night Race in Sunnybrook Park is a favourite.  Registering comes with a headlamp. Phil did the 10k but I did the 5k.  My Garmin conked out two minutes before the start of the race, so I had to run this one naked, which was a first.  I had no clue how far I was unless I happened to see the marker.  It's similar to how I drive now with GPS -- doggedly following instructions and having no knowledge about where I am or how to get home from an unfamiliar area.  Brainless!  That's me.  So I concentrated on keeping my breathing steady instead of counting down the meters like I usually do.  It also helped that I was right near an irritating couple who dressed as bride and groom since it was their 14th wedding anniversary.  I think they told every single runner in the race and photobombed every picture they could.  But what was really annoying is that they beat me, though I came in at 28:04 trying to catch them.  Still not a PR, but it was only last year I was happy to just be under 30:00.

Some people chose to run with fluorescent tube lights instead.

The very next morning, we ran the B&O Yorkville 5k.  This had been my PR before this year's awesome Pride Run and, as we had so many Team Beaverhausen folks running, I thought I might improve that, but was about 13 seconds shy coming in at 27:47.  Being in Yorkville, this run provides very well for its racers -- a flat downtown course, chi chi snacks with espresso post race and indoor Hazelton Lanes washrooms or porta potties, your choice.  An area real estate agent even picked up the tab for pictures so they were free!  I like the way rich people think.  It starts and ends right in front of a huge Nike store, and every year I'm astounded that they're not open for business during the race.

September 21 we did the Oasis Zoo Run.  I did the 10k with Phil and some friends of ours who are new to racing.  Poured rain the whole time and I'm convinced they added some hills at the end.  Again this race, I somehow missed seeing most of the animals, except a large group of flamingos (flamingoes? flaminga? flamingi?)  I had hoped to finally break the hour mark, but no such luck.  Came in at 1:02:06, a full 5 minutes faster than last time I ran it three or four years ago. So there's that.

Oh, and guess who won?

'Nuff said.

So to squash the boredom a little, I signed up for the Road to Hope half marathon in Hamilton coming up on Sunday.  I've run this one twice before, but had never really prepared for it.  It's actually a good race, not too crowded and with a large downhill portion.  My long runs have been going well, so I'm optimistic I'll get a PR, barring catastrophe. Fingers crossed!

The Silver Lining to Getting Old

Phil, Tim and I ran the Dawn at the Don 5k in Sunnybrook Park yesterday.  It wasn't sizzling hot at the 8:00am start, but the sun was very strong and I couldn't keep the decent pace I started with.  No PR for me, but I did have a first -- I placed!  Woot!  3rd in my age group.  Woot!  And Phil won his category by a very wide margin.

Gotta like getting old and running small races.  I'd do this one again too.  It's the only time I've run this venue that the narrow paths weren't horribly overcrowded.   They had an 8k option too, but 5k was plenty.

Next stop is Erica's Wish in Mississauga in August.  We were planning to run the Toronto International 10 miler/5k (formerly the Acura), but it was cancelled this year due to construction.  I've done Erica's Wish twice and seem to remember a cupcake table... 

Where does the time go?

Lost my mojo for blogging for a while, but am pumped now.  I decided that I simply didn't have the time or interest in training for longer races any more.  Needing to put aside an hour or two every single time I ran led to not going at all, which led to misery at the races. So I've pretty much dropped all but the 5k, and I really am training for them.  Thirty minute training runs are much more doable and, compared to a half marathon, I just don't have to run as far!

And lots has been happening -- at our practice we finally finished renovations and moved into our new space, which we're loving.

The shopping and deciding was fun for a while, but if I ever
have to enter another lighting store, I might lose it.

Phil was working like a dog on a business book about his specialty -- organizational change -- and was published in March this year.  So proud.  There's been a whirlwind of speaking engagements, interviews, reviews, projects, etc.  You can read all about it at his blog Making Change.

The first shipment had just arrived, and he
was colour coordinated!

I got back into the running swing of things in March with the Achilles St. Patrick's Day 5k.  I took almost 32 minutes to run it (see earlier reference to not running at all), and have run five others since then with improvement each time (except let's not talk about the Harry's Spring Run Off as that hill is just stupid).  The most fabulous was yesterday's Pride and Remembrance Run.  So fun and a huge PR for me down to 27:35.  Still a lot of room for improvement, but it's great to be able to see progress for a change.

I'm still doing bootcamp twice weekly, then I do 10 x 400m intervals at the lake on Sundays, unless there's a race, hills on Wednesdays and at least 2 other easy 5k runs around the neighbourhood.  Nothing takes more than an hour.

With Phil, Mel, Steve and better-than-a-mascot
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.  So cool.
 

 

Team Beaverhausen 2013.  The only thing missing in this race
is medals, so I made some for the team this year.

 I have been sporadically keeping up with my bloglist and hopefully some of my favourites who have also been silent will make a comeback too!

Right.  I have a blog.  And I am still running...ha!   Something had to give as work ramped up, but now that some fresh young things have joined the practice and taken work off my plate, I'll have a bit more time to get this in.

 Since my last post, I ran the Midsummer Night race last August and truly hated it.  It was cool to see Cynthia again and to meet Samantha, but it was all downhill after that.  Phil did the 30k and hated it too.  I think it's the area I don't like running in. I get all light headed when I'm east of Yonge Street.

 

I liked the Energizer Night 10k race, even though it was east too.  And rock star Phil placed in his age group.  Woot! 

We did Scotiabank in October again.  I managed a one minute PR or something and Phil ran his first marathon on wounded legs.  Oh and both Reid Coolsaet and his friend Eric Gillis qualified for the 2012 Olympics at that race.

I loved him when...I'm such a hipster.

There was no way I was going to get close enough for a picture with all the media swarming them, especially since I finished the half 10 minutes + after they finished the full.  Or was there a way?

 

The Hamilton Road to Hope half was in there somewhere too, and I definitely did better than the previous year, but not as well as I hoped.  And not a PR.

I had my first experience with running a repeat race slower than the first time at the Egg Nog Jog up in who-knows-where in December.  The weather was 100% better the second time, but my running just wasn't up to par.  I accosted Mark and his lovely wife, Mrs Mark, in the tent before the race, before I was all discouraged.

Come spring time things were looking up a bit.  The Harry's Spring Run-Off 8k in High Park went better than the previous year. I still wasn't able to run all the way up the killer hill at the end, but knowing that the finish line was right at the top, I sprinted the last half of it and passed a whole buncha people.  Then spent 20 minutes thinking I was going to hurl.



Still hurting.



Lots and lots of missed races followed due to those darn babies not respecting my schedule and insisting on being born when they wanted to be.  So selfish.

But I did manage to get in my first marathon -- the Goodlife Toronto in May, down Yonge Street and along Lakeshore.  I joined my local Running Room clinic in January, since it is only three blocks from my house.  I had never had a good experience shopping there, but was hopeful. As it turns out, it was an equally unhelpful experience running with them; it was certainly not the group for a first timer.  There was one other woman who ran at my pace, otherwise I just would have not shown up again.  Five or six Boston marathon contenders and us. You guys just go on ahead then and we'll do our own thing.  For $69.99 plus tax.  I did like the training plan, though, and it got me through. 



Almost right -- this is last year's.  I'll take a large medal please.



My goal was to finish under 5 hours and I blew that outta the park with a 4:58:20!  Yes, I was really hoping for more under-5-hourness than that, but whatever.  I felt remarkably okay when it was over, even managed to drive Phil's car home as his legs were all cramped up after running A 20 MINUTE PR, but then I developed stomach issues in the late afternoon that lasted for a day and a half.  Not sure what that was.  Could it have been the chocolate milk with added protein they were handing out at the end?  Probably wouldn't have lasted so long if it was only that.

And I'm ready to do another one next year, if only the training didn't take so much time.  We'll see how it goes. 



Post-Sporting Life with Mel and Steve. We're not really in a parking lot.
We were in Mimico, facing Lake Ontario, drinking very good coffee. Nice.



 The Sporting Life 10k was the next weekend.  I was still chasing my under one hour 10k goal -- finished in 1:00:04.  Heartbreaking.  There was a jam up at the end as I was trying to sprint in.  An ambulance had just arrived to resuscitate a girl who collapsed near the finish line.  She was reportedly okay once they got her heart restarted, but again, so selfish.  I think I might have got it done 5 seconds faster without that, but I guess we'll just never know.

Phil won ANOTHER age group prize at the Run for Vaughan 10k, which was raced in and around Canada's Wonderland in May.  He's just getting faster and faster.  Fun race, but no PR for me. 

And that catches us up.  We were signed up for the Runway Run at the airport again, but went a day late!  Oops.  Who puts a race on a Saturday?

Pride and Remembrance, that's who!  It's coming up this weekend and it is my favourite.  Three-peat!  Please root for Team Beaverhausen, even though Phil will be missing in action.

Acura 10 Miler Race Report

I believe the last post says all that needs to be said about this race.  Too exciting.  However, I should probably have some record of what else happened.

We ran this very flat downtown T.O. race last year and it was the worst run ever.  Way too many bad things converged and I took over 2 hours to finish.  I had never run that slow, even in training runs, so I was miserable. 

This year, it was not as hot or sunny (though it was a bit muggy) and I wasn't an emotional cesspool. I was looking out for several celebrities like Jessica from Mommy Running Through, and commenter Dawn, who was running the 5k.  I didn't see them, unfortunately, but did snag a pick with cute-as-a-button Cynthia from Cynthia's Adventures.

We should not have been in the same corral
-- she is way faster than me.

Not often your race award is
a picture of yourself.



Oh, and did I mention I saw Reid Coolsaet?  And that he won again with a time of 48:24? And that he came within 9 seconds of beating the course record?  And that he set that course record last year, before our relationship started?

I managed a PR of 1:46:02 and I do believe I can do better next year.  I had a great sprint at the end, telling me I should have pushed harder for the previous 9.9 miles.

Phil also had a PR of 1:20:47 (19th in his age group of a gazillion) -- crazy fast if you ask me. 

Next up is the Midsummer's Night Run tomorrow.  I had signed up for the 30k ages ago, but was just too busy at work to train for it, so dropped down to a much more manageable 15k.  My PR for that distance is 1:37:01 at the Bread & Honey and I'm hoping to come in a couple of minutes faster since there are no hills.  Phil is doing the 30k, a new race distance for him, in preparation for his first marathon in October.  Go Phil! And good luck to Jessica, Cynthia, Laura and Samantha tomorrow too!

Edit:  I'm so behind in blog reading -- add Robin and Marlene to the list! Who else don't I know about?  Reid Coolsaet?  This could be quite the blogger-meet-op!  I'll be wearing pink and sending Phil off at the 30k.  Good luck!

Shamelessly Up Close and Personal

Erica's Wish 10k Race Report

This was another repeat race in Erindale Park in Mississauga.  Mostly flat on fine gravel except for one behemoth hill at the 4k mark.  This year, I was ready for it, meaning I planned my Gatorade break to walk up the thing.  Just being realistic. 

I really like this race.  It's quite small -- just 134 in the 10k, more in the 5k, and there's a 1k to start that kids and some of the survivors of osteosarcoma, including Erica herself, finish to great applause.  Very touching.

An ultra cool DJ led the warm-up exercises.

Others chose to prepare in different ways.

Soaked!

It was pouring rain for most of the race, but it was really quite refreshing.  Last year, it was super hot, so anything was better.  Huge lakes formed along the trail, but mostly runners just plowed through.

And though it wasn't a 10K PR for either of us, both Phil and I significantly improved over last year -- me by 6m28s for 1:04:29 and Phil by over 4 minutes at 48:xx.  I still believe I will break 1:00 for a 10k this year.

In other fabulous news, I'm hoping for another up-close-and-personal with my boyfriend, Reid Coolsaet next weekend at the Acura 10 miler.  He recently announced he would defend his 2010 title, and his friend/competitor Eric Gillis will be running too, so it should be a great race.