Not a training run - a fun run5.36K @ 38:03
Avg. Pace 7:06 min /km
LOL! Where to begin with today's experience ...
Last night, I went to the local Running Room (we have one in London) to pick up my t-shirt and number. I made the mistake of heading downtown London on a Friday afternoon and paid the price by being stuck in traffic for a good hour ... but peanuts compared to Toronto and Vancouver, right? :) I was a little surprised when all I received was the l/s t-shirt that I paid an additional $15 for (it was not included in the entry fee) and my number - 5823. I was then told that when I crossed the finish line, I would be given a goodie bag, and that refreshments would be available after the run at Joe Kool's (a renowned local London restaurant/bar). Fair enough! This is when I learned that the run was also 5X around the park. I was caught off guard by this news. I had expected that the run would be similar to the Forest City Road Race 5K in which runners ran all the way around downtown. Running five times around Victoria Park did not seem too fun to me at this point. :( But hey, it's all about attitude and I signed up for a FUN RUN, not an organized race.
This morning, Wallace and I walked downtown together to Victoria Park to join the many festive people who had also signed up. This is when I have to make an observation about London runners. When I participated in the London Honda Series and the Runpiker Series (all supported by Runner's Choice), I became accustomed to seeing the same runners. There are always "new-to-me" runners, as in the locals who only come out for that particular race, but similar to me, there are a significant number of runners who are faithful and show up to virtually every race in the series. I am bringing this up because I didn't recognize a soul today! Nadda! I had to wonder if this was a reflection of the two major running stores in town - Runner's Choice and the Running Room. Or is this truly a reflection of the difference between fun runs and organized chip runs? Was it all Running Room people I was seeing today? I would have to say that by the number of people wearing the iconic Running Room jacket in a variety of colours, it was! :)
Anyway, Wallace and I enjoyed running together around the park. It was not easy because the sidewalks were covered with snow and in order to pass other people, runners had to run in the deeper snow on the side. I felt nervous about not having some spikes on the bottom of my shoes, but when I looked around, I noticed that most runners did not have them either. It was a true mix of people; some very serious runners, plenty of novice runners, and quite a few group runners (people who came together to participate in it). I applaud everyone who came out to support the Salvation Army!
However, at approximately the 3K mark, I really started to notice my achilles tendon again. It was feeling sore. And for the first time, I started to run "differently" so that I wasn't putting as much pressure on it. This has me concerned. I still finished the run because it wasn't "bad" enough for me to stop, but it was the worst it has been so far and this makes me very nervous. Apparently, this is an injury that takes a significant amount of time to heal from ... it is not one that a runner wants to mess with ... I am thinking that I need to R.I.C.E. my tendon and give myself a few days off from running. The current forecast for this week is that my area is expecting a winter storm so I may be forced off the roads for a few days anyway. This is probably a "good" thing. If there is bad winter weather heading this way, it probably is a blessing in disguise - TWO significant reasons (not excuses!) forcing me to stay put in order to rest my achilles so that it doesn't become worse. :(
No comments:
Post a Comment