INGERSOLL HARVEST RUN 10K - Runpiker Series #6

Race reports are tough to write and post within a timely way when life and its priorities get in the way ... LOL! :)

This is my blog post from last year. I laughed when I reread it because think I wrote it too soon after the race ... I sound rather cranky in it! I still recall how terribly hot and humid it was that day, and how sluggish I felt running throughout this race. It wasn't much fun for me, but I did receive one of my favourite tech shirts to date so this was a bonus. :)

This year, I had better reasons for participating in this race. My former running partner was planning to be in the 5 km, and two DM friends were registered for the 10 km as well so I was anticipating it more as a social event rather than as a race. :)

But before I get much further with this recap. I just want to point out that this race was #35 for me. :) And I anticipate running my 40th race by the end of October. :) :) I think the number on my bib this time is a good omen ... my next race, Race #36, which is the Springbank Half Marathon, is going to be a good one. :)

So how did I do a year later?

*****

I'm going to call this a.k.a. The "Accidental PR" race! :)

Official Time

"On Your Mark, Get Set, Go!" Start

Chip Finish

10 km @1:06:04

Pace 6:37/km

Garmin Time

1:06:01

Pace 6:34/km

Not too bad with the Garmin and chip times - a difference of only 3 seconds? Wow! :)

My mom was visiting from Peterborough/Douro where she now lives so it was wonderful to have her come along with Ben and me to one of my out-of-town races. She was at one of my local London Honda Series races in the spring, the Downtown 5K, with my sister and two nieces to cheer me on, but this was her first Southwestern Ontario/Runpiker Series bystander race. :)

After picking up my bib/t-shirt/chip from pre-registration, I found my Jacquie, my race partner, in line at the washrooms. :) Similar to last year, the men's side of the public washroom was taken over by women by the time I arrived so I solidified this takeover by joining this particular line for old time's sake. :) We only had a few minutes to chat before we needed to get into line for the race. This is when I realized that I did not have my iShuffle ... CRAP !! I had forgotten my music at home! My morning prep for the race was out of sync with me paying attention to having others joining me today that I had left it plugged into my computer at home. CRAP !! I have never run a race before without music and now there was nothing I could do about it. I was about to find out what all the non-music-listening runners experience when running a race unplugged.

Just like last year, this race started at the bottom of an incline so runners were lining up on the actual incline, ready for take off. As we stood there waiting for the race to start, I kept looking around for Lauren and Lindsay, but without any luck. I found that both funny (peculiar) and funny (ha ha) because these races are not very large; it should be easier to find people. However, several hundred runners together waiting for a race to start actually all look very similar!

Jacquie's boyfriend ran over to us with his cell phone to take a quick photo - "Evelynne's mom wants a picture of the two of you at the start!", he exclaimed, once again proving that no matter how old you are or what you are doing, your mother will always want a picture of it. :)

Jacquie and I discussed our goals for the race today. She told me that she wanted to run a sub-30 5K today and I told her that my goal was to run my 10K at a steady and consistent 6:30/km pace. I told her not to run with me at the beginning because she needed to run 30 seconds/km faster than I intended so good luck!

Someone then yelled, "On your mark, get set, go!" So we did. :)

1 km = 6:25

What a difference not having music in my ears. I have never heard so much heavy breathing all around me at the same time - LOL! It did make me laugh a little to hear everyone's breathing change so dramatically with race start anticipation. Although my music is never loud enough to block out noise, I could listen in on conversations between partner runners more clearly. :) This was amusing as well.

2 km = 6:34

Ahead of me, I finally catch sight of Lyndsey in her purple skirt. :) She's well ahead of me and I'm glad that there will be somebody else at the finish line to cheer me in! I am not feeling the greatest; I am better than I have been in my last two dismal workouts, but I'm just not feeling it. I'm tell myself to give it until the 3 km mark before determining if this is going to be a good race or not.

3 km = 6:31

Okay, I am now getting into my groove. 6:30/km is beginning to feel comfortable so I focus of holding it right here. I am running with a large group of runners, but most of them turn left onto the 5 km route whereas I cross the road to follow the signs and volunteers for the 10 km route. Although I see runners ahead of me, the group is a lot sparser, and similar to last year again, we are heading toward the Cami car plant to run around it. I am running behind someone for a while, but she starts walking periodically so after pacing behind her for a while, I eventually pass her when she's walking again.

4 km = 6:29

Around the 4 km mark, where the second water station is set up, I see a runner waving toward incoming runners. I think to myself, "How sweet! It's nice of that runner to wave to her friend behind me." It's only when the runner starts running again that I clue in that it's Lyndsey waving and that she was waving to ME! CRAP! Now I feel bad for clueing into this after the fact, and I will have to apologize for not being the brightest person to pick up on this. :( I'm not accustomed to knowing people at these races who will wave to me - ha!

5 km = 6:39 (hill)

There's a long, steady incline hill in this section and it slows me a little. Soon after I reach the crest, the runner I passed earlier catches up to me. I start chatting with her when she runs alongside of me. :) I don't want to play this silent, competitive, yo-yoing with someone when it's just us in this section of the race. It's her first time running this race, and we chat about what the rest of the course will be like (the railroad tracks which had a TRAIN on it that stopped me during last year's race is around the next corner). Within a few minutes, she stops to walk; I do not see her again ... until I see the photos of me near the finish line later at home. :)

I'm making a point of this because I am the type of runner who never turns around to see who is behind me. It's just not something that I do. In fact, I personally find it odd when I see people ahead of me who consistently look over their shoulders to see who is behind them. I am only realizing now, after the fact when I see the photos, that she wasn't too far behind me for the rest of the race. This means I was the "Red Shirt Chick" to her throughout the race. :)

6 km = 6:31

Recently, one of my DM friends started a thread on running mantras with her friends, which I found very interesting. Most of the ones that were shared were very inspirational. However, lately, I find that the one I use the most is, "I am a machine" - LOL! Not very Oprah-esque, is it? :) I just find that when I am on my long runs, trying to stay at a steady, even pace, I start telling myself that I am a machine, not to deviate from my steady pace, to keep going unaffected by anything else. For some reason, it's working for me. At this point, I am feeling very, very good. I am strong and not at all tired; I am not even breathing heavily. My adherence to being a "6:30/km machine" is working after 6 km and I am proving to myself that I am in total control.

7 km = 6:46 (head wind)

Well, so much for all that "control" I thought I had!?!?! After turning the corner to head east toward the railway tracks, I run head first into wind. I didn't notice if before because the car factory did a good job of blocking it, but now it is blowing directly at me. It's been awhile since I have run in wind; I recall all the wind we had back in the spring, which proved a little challenging on my daily runs. For all my complaints about the intense summer heat and humidity, I had forgotten about the lack of spring and fall wind. :( Clearly, I am a machine that doesn't work as well in a head wind. :(

8 km = 6:53 (head wind)

This is such a sobering reminder ... all the months that I have spent running and 'enduring' in an effort to run a goal PR at my Niagara Falls HM this fall, but I have to keep in mind that the weather conditions may play a bigger impact on my goal more so than my preparation. This wind is making it tough for me to keep steady pace. I am aware that running along the Niagara River is susceptible to windy weather so if I encounter a head wind on October 23rd, I will have it for the duration of the race, making my race tougher. I need to mentally prepare myself for this possibility. I have been joking about rain all summer on that day, but I need to factor in wind as a possibility, too.

9 km = 6:30

It turns out that this route is exactly the same as last year's after all. There's the section on grass and on a short trail through a field to connect us to a subdivision street, which makes this 'unique.' :) I have crept up on Lindsay and we laugh and call out to each other; I continue to try to master control over myself by keeping at my intended pace.

We are on the last stretch when there is a steep up and down hill ahead; it's great to go down, but I recall the tough getting up part. :) In a move that makes my heart smile, Jacquie is there at the top of the hill, waiting for me, ready to pace me into the finish; she knew the hill is where every runner needs it the most. Awesome timing because we catch Lindsay in the valley and encourage her to keep pace with us up the hill. It is so much easier to run up a hill with someone pacing beside you than it is alone! I am pleased to see that at this point, I am laughing and chatting with Jacquie. I'm feeling good and this, for me, is the best of a race - still feeling good by the end of it albeit a little more tired. :)

10 km = 6:23

Jacquie stops pacing me at the parking lot where Kurt is waiting for her. Ben and Mom are off to the side near the finish line to cheer me in. All is good. :) And as I see the clock change to 1:06 as I am running up to it, I am very pleased because I have just PR'd (without music, I must add - go figure!) when it wasn't my main goal, but my average pace display is showing me that I have done a pretty darn good job of sticking to my intended pace throughout.

The best part of the race was meeting Lyndsey - officially! - after the race. It meant a lot to me to both meet her in person and the added bonus of running to the finish line with her! You are clearly a wonderful person and here's to future races together, my friend! :) :) We made the introductions to one another's mothers - woo hoo to cheering, picture-taking Moms! - and we checked to see if there are door prizes waiting (the hat you passed onto me to give to Ben went to the Goodwill yesterday, Lyndsey!).

Unfortunately, I didn't get to meet Lauren, but with her blistering speed that made her the 7th female overall to cross the finish line, and a third place finish for her age group, she was no doubt halfway home by the time I arrived at the finish line!! CONGRATULATIONS, LAUREN!! :)

Finally, to top my terrific race day off, when I checked the results for both 5K and 10K races online, I discovered that my friend, Jacquie, had WON for our age group in the 5K !!! And this meant a FIRST PLACE MEDAL. I called her to squeal with excitement over the phone and Miss Disbelieving laughed with shock that she had done so well! I emailed her the race director's email address and the next day, I received this photo from Kurt (he bought our Champion some flowers) with Jacquie's first ever running medal. :) It gave her the incentive to state that she would like to train between now and the end of October for the 10K race in ... NIAGARA FALLS (!!!) ... which makes that medal priceless. :) :)

An awesome race ... and a very different post from my post about last year's event - LOL! :)

I am off tomorrow and then I have an 11.5K on Tuesday. Week #11 begins ... my final week of the Strength Training phase. :)

DONNYBROOK DASH 10K - Runpiker Series #3

Last year, I participated in the 5K race. It was my third 5K race of 2010. I did not have a blog at the time; therefore, I have no written record of this race, but I do have my results:

June 6, 2010

5K @34:12

Pace 6:50/km

So how am I doing one year later?

*****

I am behind on my blog by almost a week ... the upcoming posts may explain a bit why, but for the sake of expediency, here is my post from DailyMile about the race, for those of you who read my blog, but are not following on the DailyMile ...

a.k.a. "I Felt Like a Bag of Toys" Run :(

Well, for the first time since I started comparing my 2011 runs to last year's, I ran at a slower pace. :(

June 5, 2011

10K @1:12:08

Gun start/Running mat finish with bib tag collection

However, when I consider all the factors that were working against me in this particular race, I don't think I did too badly! :)

From the DailyMile:

It was bound to happen and HEY, this WASN'T my goal 5K at Bayfield or my goal 1/2 marathon at Niagara Falls so I am okay with today's performance and result. If anything, similar to last weekend's RP race, I learned a lot so I can't call this a bad experience. Here's my best attempt to edit the ugly, the good, the bad, and the good ... I had a terrible bout of nausea before I left home for Dorchester and hoped it would pass by the time I arrived, but I ended up curled up in a ball in my vehicle between kit pick-up and start time. Instead of warming up, I spent time in the washroom (new and clean - a positive!). I kept telling myself that I might just have a good race still; that this wasn't necessarily an indication of a bad race. I started 'well', and even steadily passed multiple 5K runners on the quiet streets. The 10K runners went right at one point and we were then on a shaded trail (lovely) where I passed 2 runners, Pinky and Miss Purple. This distraction from my tummy was much needed and I started thinking that I would be okay within a few more km after all. After turning left onto a gravel road, I set my sights on catching up to Red Guy and Blue Guy. But this is when it got a little tougher, too, running challenging hills repeatedly on gravel in the hot sun and humidity. I was still on target by the 5K mark, but realized the second half was going to be much tougher. When we switched from gravel road to pavement, BOTH my left ankle and left achilles tendon felt very sensitive (not hurting, not aching, just making it known that they were not happy with the hilly gravel roads). I never did catch up to Red Guy ... instead, this race turned into a concentration of willpower ... willing myself forward when feeling so crappy in the merciless sun on such a hilly course with my old injury starting to act up. I kept thinking, if this were Niagara Falls, what would you do? How would you handle it? Maybe this is happening now so you can learn how to handle situations like this. I refused to look at my Garmin the whole race because I did not want my taskmaster telling me if I had a good pace when clearly the running conditions were sub-par for me today. And this is when the ball on my right foot started to hurt. You.have.got.to.be.kidding.me!! By the 8K mark, I reached a very steep hill and thought about my race next week ... so I stopped running and walked it. Again, at the 9K mark, another steep hill so I stopped to walk. And this is when a runner came up from behind me: "I've been trying to catch up to you this entire race!" he exclaimed, "You haven't stopped running for most of it!" I then realized that, hey, even with everything working against me today, I was actually someone else's 'Red Guy' (literally, as I was wearing my red tech-T)! I then caught up to him at the top of the hill when he started walking. In a shout-out to Terry's suggestion on DM last Sunday, I turned to this runner and asked him if he wanted to pace with me to the finish. Although I started feeling my usual adrenaline rush near the finish line, my new partner needed to walk a few more times so I decided to stay with him. We ran in together to cheers (very nice!) and as the one volunteer stepped toward me to collect my bib number first, I quickly stepped to the right behind my running partner so his was collected before mine. He then shook my hand firmly and thanked me enthusiastically for helping him to the finish line. Complete opposite ending from last week when I outright raced someone to the finish line, but just as satisfying. :) Even after a two hour nap this afternoon, I am still feel very blah. Not sure what is ailing me, but better today than next Sunday when I am going for a PR in a 5K !!! :) :) Race Week/taper week probably is coming at an ideal time. :)

DAIRY CAPITAL RUN 10K - Runpiker Series #2

Last year, I participated in the 5K race, and I had a lot of fun. :) This race set the tone and my enthusiasm for doing the rest of the Runpiker Series runs in 2010. It was my second race of the year. I have no blog record of running this race from last year, but I have my results:

May 2, 2010

5K @36:19

Pace 7:16/km

So how am I doing one year later?

*****

1:07:24 Official Posted Time

Pace 6:45/km

Gun Start/Chip Finish

8 seconds shy of my current PR! LOL!

Garmin Recording

10.22K @1:07:29

Pace 6:37/km

.22K @1:10

1:07:29 - 1:10 = 1:06:19? LOL!

Wow! What a day! So much to think about during and after the race ... so much that I learned today ...

To begin, it was nice and cool first thing in the morning, but it turned out to be quite warm and very humid during the race. It almost felt like an anomaly that I wasn't racing in the rain! :) Ben and the dogs came with me to Woodstock so this race was a family affair.

* * * * *

LEARNI NG #1 - You are never too old to run.

I saw an 88 year old woman cross the finish line in the 2K. Six people ran in after her. :) Everyone near the finish line clapped and cheered as she crossed the finish line because it was so inspirational to watch her in action. :)

* * * * *

After the 2K finished, the 5K race started (~10 minutes before the 10K) so I watched and cheered this nice size group of 308 runners and walkers start their race before I headed to my start line. There was a significant group of walkers with walking sticks and matching t-shirts at the tail end, which was unusual but great to see in the 5K. I then headed to my starting line.

Once again, my heart sank a little when I saw how small the 10K group was (131). It 'almost' gives me the impression that no one likes to run in these races unless s/he can run 10K in an hour or less ... but I know that I am never going to become one of 'those' runners unless I keep doing what I am doing so ... it is what it is. :) I wasn't there to compete against anyone but myself, and my goals for this run were different. Memory serves me well because I recalled from last year that there was a very long steady incline in the few km of this course so aiming for a PR was out. Instead, I had determined that this would be a free-for-all run. I wanted to see how well I could do in a 10K without going by the Garmin, instead running it by "feel," even if I ran out of fuel near the end. I set my Garmin for "Pace," "Time," and "Average Pace."

* * * * *

LEARNING #2: "Average Pace" works really well for me.

I would check my Garmin periodically to see how I was doing by the "Pace" window and there were some very wide variations ... 6:15, 7:45, 6:30, 7:10 ... but my "Average Pace" remained pretty much steady at 6:38 throughout the race. This helped me to not to get demoralized or panicky about a very slow pace, but to keep in mind that I was making up for it in the long term when running faster on the flat road and the downhill. I didn't slow myself down when I saw that my pace was sub-6:30; instead, I kept going with it to see how well I could do. Because my "Average Pace" remained steady, I trusted my running ability.

* * * * *

So it was the familiar swooooosh as 'it seemed' that everyone ran ahead of me. At one point, when I passed by a police car, I heard the officer start to direct traffic through. This gave me an indication that I might be last or that there was a gap between me and the next runner ... I didn't give it too much thought, but was something that I noticed. With 28 races, you would think I know better, but in this particular race, I did get caught up in the starting pace:

1 km - 6:24

In my defence, I had warmed up with a light jog so I was not running this 'cold' ... but it is too fast for me. It felt fine, but then we hit the steady incline:

2 km - 6:41

3 km - 6:41

Still a very fast pace for me, especially on an incline ... but hey, I was the one who decided to run by "feel" so I went with it. By this time, I was passing a lot of walkers. :) It helped boost my ego when needed out there. :)

4 km - 6:40

I spot a woman well ahead of me with a distinctive white running top with a blue stripe down the back in the middle. I noticed this shirt at the starting line and this shirt/runner would prove to be my personal 'rabbit' for the rest of the race.

There are multiple water stations and I have slowed once to use one of them them for cooler water. I am running with my water belt and due to the heat and humidity, I have already been using them frequently for small squirts of water to wet my dry mouth.

* * * * *

LEARNING #3: I am really smart to wear a water belt!

I want to make a note of this (again) in case something changes for me in the future, but I really do not understand how anyone can run in the weather without a water belt. I am carrying water and sipping at it when needed, but isn't the heat dehydrating everyone one else, too? I think there is only two of us wearing water belts.

5 km - 6:38

I am finishing the first loop and running faster because of the cheering noise from the crowd at the finish line for the 5K runners finishing. They have the fire truck hose spraying, too, which was soooo nice last year and I am already looking forward to it at the end of my second loop. I hear the announcer overt the loudspeaker advising the crowd that the first 10K runner has just entered the park. I think that he should announce that this runner will NOT be lapping me today! :) :) Woo hoo - I made it past the 5K mark before he runs into first place! :)

But now I have to do that bloody incline again. My pace going up them was not so enthusiastic:

6km - 6:51

7 km - 6:44

However, this is when I start to pass a few 10K runners. There are several runners walking up the hill and although my pace is excruciating slow, I am still passing them. One of them catches up to me and passes me again, but this is when I decide that I will skip the water stop, knowing that she will use it, and use it as my opportunity to pass. For some reason, the water station is in the valley so runners run down to it, stop for water, but the have to run up a hill. Sure enough, she stops, I pass, and she then tries to catch up to me on the hill, but it's too late; she has lost momentum and can't get up to speed on the hill. And I keep truckin' ...

8 km - 6:34

As I dip into the one side of the park, Ben and the dogs are there to greet me. This pic is Ben's viewpoint. I am a little nervous that the dogs will go nuts and try to run to me, but they are as good as gold. I ask Ben later, what did you do to make them behave so well? And he tells me, they didn't clue in it was you until you passed ... then they went pulled like crazy on the leashes to catch up to you! :) :)

This is when I notice that I am catching up to two more runners. Although I am very hot and tired, I am feeling very good because my average pace is holding steady, and I have no caught up to more runners who have been ahead of me the whole time. Both runners slow at the next water station and I do, too, because I need to throw some cool water on me, and within a few minutes, I have passed the two of them. :) :)

9 km - 6:53

I am slowing and starting to feel very sluggish in this one section of the race. I just felt a wave of tiredness and I am wondering if this is when I am going to hit a wall, or start slowing significantly before the finish ...

But as I round the corner, I see white shirt/blue stripe lady. My rabbit. :) I had lost sight of her through all the curves and turns we are making, but there she is. Without realizing it, I start to run faster. It is my goal to catch up to her. Just keep this pace steady, I tell myself. Don't go crazy, keep it here, and you will catch up.

And I did. :) My rabbit starts to walk with less than a km to go, and I pass her. I half expect her to start running and catch up to me, but I don't see her again. :)

10 km - 6:19

This is when I see several more runners ahead of me ... and they are walking.

* * * * *

LEARNING #4: I always have enough in reserve for the end.

29 races and regardless of how tired I feel, I have never walked before the finish line. :) One fringe benefit of being very conservative when it comes to pushing myself in a race?

* * * * *

At this time, I can see the curve before the finish line chute, and I am happily passing another runner who is walking. I see one last runner ahead of me. She has slowed to a walk, but I am pretty sure she will start running again before I reach her so as my last motivational milestone in this race, I decide that I will keep up to her pace to the finish to get me across the line.

Sure enough, just as I thought, she starts running again as soon as I am behind her. Good! I can follow her pace in ... except that it turns out that my pace is just a little bit faster ... we are so close to the finish - should I bother trying to pass her? And for a refreshing change, instead of being laid back and just finishing the race, I decide that yes, I do want to pass her. :) She ran the entire race well ahead of me, and I did a great job catching up so why not go for it?

So I did. :)

I pulled to the right and keeping my pace, I started to pass her. And then the unexpected and (for me) magical happened ... she started to run faster and started racing me to the finish. :) And somewhere internally, my inner competitive spirit suddenly appeared and I ran with everything that I had. I could hear people clapping and hooting because we were both gunning it!

.22 km - 5:19

Best pace: 3:38 (told you I was gunning it!) :)

* * * * *

LEARNING #5: Although I like to think of myself as very laid back, I can become very competitive when challenged!

* * * * *

When Ben found me walking and catching my breath, he exclaimed, "WOW, Sweety! You were really running at the end! Your arms were swinging and everything!" Thank goodness he caught my very funny photo finish in the pic above, eh? :) :)

And now to ingest even more humour into this ... when the race results were posted later in the afternoon, I realized that when the police officer had let the cars pass the barricade after I ran by that I really HAD been the last 10K runner! I ran from last place to 8th last place and I know this to be true because I counted all the people I passed along the way, and my count equals the number of runners posted on the results after my name - LOL! I had fought and battled my way eight places up!

Runner #123 out of 131 10K racers. :)

So here ends my tale of the Dairy Capital 10K run for 2011. Truly a great 'test' run. My sixth race of 2011; my 29th race total to date; the second time I have been to this event; and, my 10th 10K race total to date. it was fun, I learned a lot, Ben and my dogs were with me, and best of all ...

With that crazy 2 km incline (twice!) of 20 metres, I was only 9 seconds off my PR. :) :)

Rest on Monday; back to the track Tuesday. :)

AROUND THE SQUARE RUN 10K - Runpiker Series #1

If you happened to find this blog post while searching for your results from this race, click this link for Run Around the Square. Cheers!

****

For my friends who read my blog posts, thank you for your patience with my late posts as I try to catch up after a too busy week!

a.k.a "The Pancakes & Sausages Run"

I have used "The Drowned Rat Run" in my blog and on DailyMile too many times so I need a new moniker to differentiate this race from the others! :)

This is a new(er) race. The first one was held last year, and then added to the 2011 Runpiker Series, replacing the Embro Highland Games 10K. Because I have no blog record of running at this time last year, I checked my Garmin history for a past comparison ...

May 15, 2010

7.10K @55:01 with Wallace

Pace 7:44/km

This entry made me smile because it shows that I was adding mileage and that I was no longer walk/running by May of last year. A nice reminder as to how I was improving last year at this point in time ...

So how am I doing one year later?

*****

May 15, 2011

10K @1:08:11

Avg. Pace 6:49/km

Gun start/Bib tag finish

Garmin time: 1:07:23

Avg. Pace 6:44/km

I am pleased! :)

But before I write more in my post, the t-shirt's quote because it's a good one:

"I pass through this world but once.

Any good, therefore, that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any other human being, let me not, defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again."

~ Stephen Grellet

*****

This weekend's race was held in Goderich, ~ 1 hour 10 minutes north of London, and truly one of the prettiest towns in Ontario by Lake Huron. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy to appreciate Goderich's enviable lakeside location when it's grey, raining non-stop, and there's a chilly wind ... brrr! It is hard to believe I was just sweating in humid, August-esque temperature weather in the last few days because Spring's rain and coolness returned with vengeance here last night and today. Although I was happy not to run in humidity, today's pelting rain was a little more than I bargained for. :)

Ben and I drove up early this morning, 'me' with a bag of dry clothes I anticipated needing, and 'he' with a fishing rod and gear. :) Originally, he was coming with me to cheer me on, but when he reminisced about some nice fishing spot up there that he used to frequent, I urged him to go fishing instead. Better for him to be happy and wet fishing than miserable and wet cheering for me! This was intended as a fun run, not a PR race or a half marathon, so his absence from the sidelines was not a problem (except for anyone reading this blog because there are no photos to share!).

I am going to confess that my heart sank a bit when I reached the 10K registration table and realized that there was much fewer of us running this distance than the 5K. It was my experience all last summer at the Runpiker Series races that the smaller the pool of runners in a 10K, the faster the average pace; therefore, the greater likelihood of me finishing at the tail end - LOL! I recognize that someone has to be the last one to cross the finish line, and heck, it might as well be me because I am competing in these races against me ... it's just that it is a little sobering, coming from my exaltation with my new PR at the Forest City Road Race, only to run at a similar pace in another race without the comfort of being 'mid-pack.' <sigh> Something else to laugh/reminisce about someday, right?

~92 people lined up for the 10K and ~211 for the 5K at the start line (sold out at 350 so unfortunately, multiple runners said forget-about-it! when they saw the weather). We were wet, cold and ready to run in order to warm up! :) The race started in the town's old fashioned square, and did a loop of the town area back to near the start line where the 5Kers branched off to cross the finish line, and the 10Kers continued running for another loop. It was a gun start, and for the first time in years that I have experienced this, the run participants hand-wrote their names on the bottom tab of the bib when picking up race bibs so that these tabs could be collected by volunteers as we crossed the finish line ...

I have to hand it to all the volunteers and participants ... for such a lousy weather day, everyone was in amazing spirits. Similar to other Runpiker Series races I have been in before, the local feel to these community runs always makes it a great experience. The volunteers were soaked standing out there, but still managed to enthusiastically clap and cheers runners on.

There is not too much to tell in the vein of a storyline as this race was a basic and straightforward run for me. I stayed within a larger, stretched out group of people who were running a similar pace as me, mainly 5K runners, and I enjoyed my time running within a larger group of people because I was anticipating that once I started my second loop, I would be running on my own.

Learning #1 - I did something that worked for me so mental note (!!) ... I didn't want to wear my thinner running jacket because I knew it wouldn't do well in the rain. I decided I was fine running with one l/s and one s/s t-shirt similar to the FCRR 10K. I also wanted to run in shorts rather than running pants, which would just get soaked. I remembered that I had saved my souvenir plastic yellow rain poncho from my Niagara Falls Half Marathon (I didn't need it at the time). I brought it with me to this race and ran with it on for the first 6K. I certainly stood out wrapped in bright yellow plastic !! I found this great photo on another runner's blog to show you what I mean! I looked like that guy in the poncho in this photo. :) However, it actually worked very, very well for me. It kept me from getting soaked, it helped with the wicked wind we encountered in spots, and it provided me with slight warmth. The drawback was not being able to access my water belt easily, but given the weather, I wasn't reaching for water too frequently. I pulled it off and put it in the water station garbage at the 6K point, which was good timing because I did fine without it after this point.

Learning #2 - I am still not eating breakfast early enough. I felt "full"/sluggish with breakfast for the first loop of my run and had to tell myself to hang in there, that the feeling would subside during my run (it did). You would think that I have learned this lesson by now, but clearly I have not! :( I gambled, thinking a protein shake would not be as filling as a bowl of oatmeal. Wrong. I am still working out the kinks for this. However, it did make me smile to overhear two other runners at separate points telling their running mates that they could 'still feel breakfast' during the run so I was not the only one ... :)

Learning #3 - Instead of using the "Time" data field on my Garmin, I experimented with using the "Pace-Average" option. I wrote in my race prediction post this morning that my simple goal was to maintain a "6:40-ish" pace. This worked well for me. Instead of paying attention to my "current pace" and feeling compelled to adjust up or down accordingly, I ran by feeling and had a better idea of my pace overall with each passing km. I didn't look at it too much, and stuck with running at a pace that felt right for me in the moment. I only used it to make sure I was on track. I am going to do this again in the next race to see if this continues to work for me.

1 km - 6:33

2 km - 6:36

3 km - 6:45

4 km - 6:49 (very windy!)

5 km - 6:48

The route itself was terrific - all flat - and through nice neighbourhoods where some folks were brave and kind enough to stand out front, cheering runners on. If the day had been sunny, we would have had fantastic views of Lake Huron - it is worth doing this run again next year just for this. :) However, with the grey weather, the sky and lake essentially blended together, and provided us with an off-the-lake wind - wooo!

I passed 5K runners who were starting to walk, and I ran by a busy church (the lot was full) and then headed toward the square again. This is when I felt a slight urge to just stop running and call it a 5K for the day. Ha! Clearly the snipers I experienced earlier in the week during my training runs had left some buddies behind. :( Again, this was connected to a sense of dread around the loop again all by myself.

I ran into the square, went to the left, smiled and said thank you to the volunteers at this juncture who cheered me on, and continued my race.

Probably the best thing that happened to me was rounding the corner and seeing that I wasn't too far behind other 10K runners. I was no longer in a group, but I could see runners ahead, and this was good enough for me. And check out these splits! :)

6 km - 6:44

7 km - 6:44

8 km - 6:44

I could feel myself feeling more energetic and run stronger, but this is when I had to think about what to do. Do I run with this energetic wave that I hitting me, and risk running out of fuel at the end? Or do I bank on it being my pace for the rest of the run? I decided to hold myself at this even keel and not risk it.

And this is when the coolest part of the race occurred for me. The runners I could see in the distance? I caught up to them. :) Because I ran this very even pace and stayed the course, I gained on some runners and then I was part of a mini-pack again. I even passed a couple of runners, which simultaneously made me feel very good and a little guilty. LOL!

9 km - 6:56

Learning #4 - See this drop in pace? This is when I made the error of following the pace of a threesome in front of me. Rather than concentrating on my own feeling of pace (what I had been doing), I fell in behind them with their pace and stayed with it. Hindsight is 20/20 - maybe I should have double-checked my Garmin at this point as a motivator to run faster, but I think I was so happy just to have caught up from so far behind that I feel into a stay-with-the-group mentality! In the last km, I witnessed the one man's family cheering and jumping up and down with glee cheering him on - it was similar to hearing my nieces and nephew getting so excited. It was a heart-warming moment on such a dreary day. :)

10 km - 6:48

So I followed this group across the finish line. They were clearly excited with their time and success. I watched as the clock changed over to :08 as I ran by it, and felt very good about being less than a minute off from my PR. I honestly had not expected to do this "well" after a week of doing everything wrong in preparation for a race. :) And as you can see from this post, I actually learned a lot from this race as well, which is even more important.

So while wet, cold and tired, I headed to the square gazebo to collect my catered breakfast of pancakes with real maple syrup, sausages, fruit, muffins and croissants. How sweet to have this race catered with a real breakfast! I also stayed put with several other wet runners in the hope that I would win one of the draws, but no such luck today. I met Ben at our appointed time, changed into my dry clothes, and we were off toward home, enjoying our time together and going out for lunch for him. :)

I am taking tomorrow off as a rest day and then I will be back at the hill for my third and final hill workout on Tuesday. Happy weekend!

FOREST CITY ROAD RACE 10K - The Drowned Rat Race!

Continuing with my recent theme of historical reflection first ... this annual running event in London has become significant to me. I ran in the Gold's Gym 5K event one year ago (minus one day):

May 2, 2010

5K @36:19

Pace 7:16/km

It was my first race of the year and the first time I was ready to run a race "so early" in May. :) I was very proud about my accomplishment then. I promised myself after this race that I would run in the 10K event in 2011 ...

Now, by May 2011, my first race of the year was in February, and I have participated in three races in total before today. :)

Two out of three races are now accomplished (I wrote about this in a prior post). Part I (5K) and Part II (10K) are done. Next year's goal, Part III, is to run in the 2012 half marathon event, thus collecting a 'trifecta', in a sense, of medals and bibs from this one annual event as a reflection of my continued perseverance with and improvement in running. :)

*****

It wasn't raining when I woke up this morning, but it started drizzling lightly at ~8:25 a.m. When checking the Weather Network, the graph showed that the rain would hold off until noon. Ben told me not to trust it, and to prepare myself for being rained upon ... I decided what to wear accordingly, gathered my gear, and then we were off to Victoria Park.

It felt a little odd to arrive at the site just as a significant number of half marathoners were crossing the finish line. It was like arriving at a party late and wondering if you had misunderstood what time to arrive at. The last of the 5Kers were finishing, too, so I was part of the third and last wave of runners heading out into the city.

I had just finished my warm-up and found Ben to give him my extra clothes when the announcer over the loud speaker announced it was 9 minutes to start. I had no sooner peeled off my jacket and pants when the heavens opened up and it started to rain! Ben questioned my running without the jacket, but I assured him that my double shirt ensemble would suffice. I speculated about it being too windy for my baseball cap, but Ben insisted that I wear it because of the rain.

And it was really raining by this time.

I have never started a race in steady rain before; drizzle, yes, but rain like this - no. So many runners and spectators looked miserable as they stood waiting in the rain. I felt guilty having Ben there, standing there getting increasingly wet while assisting me at the start line.

The funny thing is, I was completely fine with it. I was thinking about how most of LSD runs in the last few weeks had been "Drowned Rat" runs and even a "Puddle Run." This was nothing! I felt very prepared and didn't mind standing there getting wet ... good omen #1 to feel calm and confident in these conditions. :)

Then we were off! I was so relieved to see that it wasn't a gun start/chip finish similar to last year's 5K race. As a group, we started/stopped twice as the runners in front funnelled over the starting mat. Just seeing a chip timer mat went a long way in making me feel better about today's time recording - good omen #2. :)

And it continued to rain ...

Unlike previous races, there wasn't a huge swooooosh of people passing me. There was a significant number of people still passing me as they jostled from behind for a clearer running lane upfront, but it wasn't a leave-me-in-the-dust-type of situation. I found a comfortable pace early on and stayed with it, knowing that a nice, gradual decline on Queen's Ave/Riverside Drive was coming soon. I was a little shocked when I checked my Garmin and saw that I was running just under a 6 min./km pace, but rather than getting panicky, I felt very good because it was comfortable. Although it was attributable to race-start adrenaline, I wasn't running 'all out' and I decided to let myself go with this flow. I kept saying repeatedly to myself, "This is my race; don't get caught up with other runners. Just run your own race because it's chip timed." My mantra for the first 2K. :)

1 km - 6:36

2 km - 6:31

And it's still raining!

A Shriner's volunteer laughingly offered a box of kleenex as we ran by him. Another runner and I joked as we passed the first Starbucks Coffee if just inhaling the caffeine fumes would give us added adrenaline.

A song by Crowded House started playing on my iPod - "Weather with You" ...

Do I lie like a lounge room lizard?

Or do I sing like a bird released?

Everywhere you go, always take the weather with you!

Everywhere you go, always take the weather!

This made me think about how "sunny" I was feeling inside while listening to this song. I was feeling so strong and steady. My shoulders were relaxed, my hands unclenched, my pace was steady, and this race was already feeling much better than my Run for Retina 10K three weeks ago. It was feeling a lot more like my Good Friday Downtown 5K run last week, which is exactly what I was aiming for ...

And while lost in these thoughts, I suddenly realized that I had just run halfway up the hill on Western Road, a hill that I thought might challenge me ... ha! How cool not to really notice a hill! Good omen #3.

3K - 6:48

And it continued to rain. Thank you, Ben, for insisting that I wear my baseball cap because you wouldn't believe the amount of water running off its rim in front of my face! Oy!

At this point, we were running into the UWO campus and a taxi cab severely cuts off a group of runners in front of me in order to turn into one of the student residences. :( As runners, even with these pylons and police officers and volunteers everywhere, we are still at risk out here on the roads in the rain with impatient drivers ...

4K - 6:56

I am just about to turn onto Philip Aziz Dr., a quieter university route away from traffic when an ambulance siren cries out nearby. We all start turning our heads and watching, wondering if an ambulance is about to run us over. It was very loud but it turned the other way just as I round the corner so all is good ...

Except that it is still raining!

It's nicer to be running on campus. It's quieter, safer, and picturesque, even in the rain. I am feeling very good, knowing that we are going to hit the halfway mark soon, but my energy level is still healthy and strong. I have been checking my Garmin every once in awhile and I like what I am seeing so I am trying to leave it alone (and protected from the rain) under my long sleeve.

5K - 6:33

For the first time, I look at my 'Time' data field on the Garmin and it says 34:00 and change. However, my 'Distance' data field is not in sync with the FCRR markers, and I am not sure which one to believe. I also start thinking that I am not going to look at my watch again because I am doing just fine on my own and I don't want this thing on my wrist dictating how I will feel today!

We then head into a neighbourhood just off campus and it has junk piles everywhere from all the Western students moving out. The moving cars are driven by impatient students and it's a little dicey. The amount of garbage is an extremely sad sign of waste. :( Fortunately, this was limited to Sunset Ave. only, and we are gone within minutes.

6K - 6:38

7K - 6:49

The route then took us onto the bike path leading into Gibbons Park. I have run this path many times before, and I know what is between here and the finish. I overtake other runners at this point, and then I have a very good laugh as literally 7 runners in front of me veer suddenly to the left to use the park's washroom facilities! It was a funny sight to see the path "open up" before me as a result of so many runners needing to pee! I pace another runner up the small, but steep hill and wow! That makes it easier! I turned to say thanks, but he has already slowed significantly so that his girlfriend can catch up to him.

And it continues to rain ...

I realize that a runner in front of me has a half marathon bib on. Her pace was slower than mine so I spoke to her as I passed her, cheering her on and congratulating her for sticking it out in this rain. We are almost there! Just a few more km to go!!

8K - 6:44

The Talbot St. hill is now ahead, the toughest part of the route. What a bummer to have it so close to the end. :( I take a peek at my Garmin and see that my pace is 6:30/km. I need to slow down a little because my reserves are lowering and I want to be able to tackle this hill. I remember Talbot St. from last year's 5K race. Ben had surprised us (I ran last year's event with a friend) by suddenly appearing beside the hill to cheer us on. We were elated to see him and energized by having someone there to applaud us! He later complimented us on how we were the only 5K runners he saw actually run up the hill. Ben noticed how most 5K runners around us had slowed down to a walk on the hill, but had been impressed by our efforts to tackle it. I just had to do it again ... !! :)

9K - 6:54 - Talbot Street hill is done and done!

And as you can see, I did it! I even smiled at the photographer with the big lens set up on runners on the hill as I ran it. :)

Yes, it's still raining!

This is when the best part of the race occurred for me. I had reached the top of the hill, and turned left toward Victoria Park. It was all flat running from here on out. As I am seeing the 9K marker ahead, the song I had purposely chosen for my playlist as a one hour indicator is playing on my iPod. I can feel a huge, goofy grin on my face that I can't stop - I am definitely within my PR zone! And my pace is picking up because I can see Victoria Park ahead!

As soon as I turned the corner south onto Wellington, the wind just blasted me. Although I had periodically felt it during my run, the lack of buildings and trees on Wellington seemed to create a funnel effect for the wind. Whoa, Nelly! It was a wee bit chilly while soaking wet to be feeling that wind! I swear it slowed me down - it was so strong. Fortunately, I had to turn the corner again and head west toward the finish line ... wind free. :)

10K - 6:19

The finish line was just ahead. The road was open on the left so I took this lane and started to boot it. I kept smiling and then I really smiled when I saw the clock ahead of me!

Garmin time: 1:06:44

Official FCRR time - 1:07:16 PR

1 minute 48 seconds faster than my previous record. :)

There were five ladies waiting to hand out medals as I crossed the mat. I was touched when they all cooed in unison at me - LOL! The one woman exclaimed that I had such a beautiful smile on my face as I crossed the finish line. It was a very kind thing for her to say when I knew perfectly well that it was my sideways, goofy grin that I was wearing on my face! I am sure that given the rain, there weren't too many smiling, either! I told them that I had just run my fastest time to date so I had something to feel very happy about. :)

And it was still raining, but it doesn't really matter any more at this point, does it?

Suddenly I felt a hip check from behind, and then I had a yellow, wagging fellow greeting me ecstatically. Angus had come to the park with us to keep Ben company during my race. It was wonderful to have Ben there for my PR, especially since I will be heading to my next few races outside of London alone. I have been on a natural high all day and hopefully, I can recall this 'high' through the next three weeks of hills and tempo runs for my goal 5K PR in June!

RUN FOR RETINA 10K RACE - Running Room London Event

First and foremost, how cool is it that I just ran my first 10K race of 2011?!?! In April?!?!

In 2009, it took me all summer and autumn to gradually build up to my first and only 10K race of the year - Oct. 30th @1:12.22

In 2010, it was July 1st before I attempted to run my first 10K race of the year. It was a tough race; I was second last with 1:14:00 - LOL! Regardless, I was pleased to be running this distance four months earlier than in the previous year. Four more 10K races followed this one, ending with my PR on Oct. 31st @1:09:45.

Now it is early April 2011 and I have my first 10K race already under my belt. Wow! :) :) :) I just want to appreciate this race regardless for this reason alone. :)

*****

Secondly, I want to address another historical milestone. I went for a run exactly one year ago. I walked/ran a 4.5K @36:21, a pace of 8:04/km with Kim. Again, this emphasizes the improvement I have made in one year. Today I more than doubled that distance and my pace was more than a minute faster. Keeping things in perspective!

And it is apropos that it was Kim who ran with me on this run, one year ago, because today, I attached his dog tags inside my water belt pocket to honour his life and running partnership.

*****

So finally, what this post is supposed to be about ... my race today! :)

Garmin time 10:06K @ 1:08:25

Chip time 10K @1:09:04

Pace 6:58/km

A new PR ... by 41 seconds !! LOL !! I have a new PR ... not by as much as I had hoped for, but a new PR nevertheless! :)

For me, it was an okay race. This is has nothing to do with the organizers or the race itself; it has everything to do with how I felt while running for over 1 hour. Unfortunately, I had an "off" week (late nights, upset routine, grieving Kim) so in keeping with it, today was an "off" running day, too. :( I do not think I was too far off the mark when I predicted a 6:30/km pace ... it just wasn't my day to prove it. Oh well! I still accomplished my goal by being in a 10K so early in the year (I am already establishing a new goal for next year - to run in the Really Chilly Road Race in the 10K), and I'll take my new PR with a shaved 41 seconds. :) :) I have a 10K race on May 1st, the Forest City Road Race, so we'll see what happens between today and the next 10K. :)

Race Notes:

- Best moment of the day - as a half marathoner ran into the last stretch, he was surrounded by three little boys who excitedly starting to pace him to the finish line. It was his body language in response to his cheerleading team that made me get all verklempt! :) Very touching, wonderful moment!

- I live within walking distance of Harris Park so it was great to be able to walk out the door as if I was going out for a regular run. I jogged slowly to warm up all along Riverside Drive. Instead of the 29 degree Celsius with humidity weather predicted earlier in the week, it was cloudy and cool 7 degrees Celsius. Last night, thunderstorms were predicted! We were very very lucky. With the cloud cover and coolish breeze, it was perfect for a run. No crazy heat, no rainstorm.

- I wore an old sweatshirt to keep warm and then tossed it beside a tent just before the race started. It was still there when I finished the race, but I purposely chose an old, worn one in case it went missing. I dressed properly for this race - a tech t-shirt and capris. There were a lot of runners wearing the new jackets, and sure enough, for the next hour while I ran, I watched as virtually all them had to stop to take off their jackets and tie them around their waists!

- I have never been "shouldered" so much in a race, as in a runner bumping me with his/her shoulder trying to pass. The start of the 10K was narrow (see the pictures in this post - this under-bridge pathway funnelled runners and this where the jostling started), and this particular event was sold out so it's understandable given these circumstances. However, I also noticed that it was most often done by women who were running with someone else ... as in, the runner refused to go in front of/go behind her partner, but just had to stay right beside her partner, even if it meant bumping me and other runners. Weird.

- I did not eat my breakfast early enough before the race. I am not blaming my sluggish run entirely on this, but I still think it had a significant, negative impact. I feel a little stupid about it, too, because I know better and I did wake up earlier this morning so I could eat in good time, but I still ended up puttering around, only eating 1 hour before start time. I am shaking my head at myself about this, but clearly it is a lesson I needed to re-learn before the rest of my planned runs this season. :)

- My new water belt spins around my waist! I did not want to put it on tighter because I was feeling the breakfast (ugh!), but I constantly had to adjust it. And guess how many times I used it for water? ZERO !! I drank water at one station and had e-load near the end. Learning!

So! Tomorrow I re-start Week #6 Road Work, and in 12 days, I have a 5K race, the second in the London Honda Series.

HALLOWEEN HAUNTING 10K - London Honda Series : A New PR on My One Year Anniversary :)

Halloween Haunting 10K

Chip 1:09:45

As I type the next day after the race, I am still on Cloud 9! :)

I want to start this post with my bib because of a little game I play. I always look for little signs and seemingly insignificant details and think of them as good omens. I have done this since I was a kid and it's just a Pollyanna kind of thing I still do. For example, last weekend, I ran 21K @the Niagara Falls International Marathon (Half Marathon). It was also my 21st race to date. I thought this was a good sign, running 21K as my 21st race (on a side note: It was also my 13th race of the year, but I have never been bothered by the #13 so this number just made me smile without feeling dread or an "oh oh!").

So, this past Saturday afternoon, when I pulled my bib out of the race kit bag at home, I looked at this number and showed it to Ben ... "See?" I said. "13 + 8 = 21. I am wearing on my chest tomorrow the number of km I ran last weekend and the number of races I have under my belt. It's a sign, sweetie! Tomorrow is going to be a great run!"

The following Sunday morning, when we arrived at Springbank Park, the 3K fun run was in its finishing stages. I always find it fun to see the number of people milling about, most of them with bibs on, at these events. It is a fun energy and has become a part of what I now consider an enjoyable way to spend a Sunday morning. :) It was even more fun at this event with the number of runners wearing costumes! Huge kudos to them for being such fun participants - I used my dog as an excuse not to dress up! :)

Ben stayed in the parking lot to "dress" Angus while I took off to pick up my chip because I was anxious to be at the starting line in decent time. We did not dress him specifically as anything. We just went to the dollar store and bought a red bow tie for around his neck and bumblebee wings on his back. $2 tops! Good enough. :)

This is when I learned, from the announcer on the loudspeaker, that our chips would start once we crossed the start line. I was so pleased to hear that because I knew right then that I would get an accurate reading of my time. Although I "felt" that perhaps I could set a new 10K PR today, I truly was downplaying it and not counting on it as I had Angus with me and my body was still tired from last week's HM.

Soon after Ben met me at the start line with Angus the bow-tied bumblebee, the starter gun sounded. It took a good minute for those of us at the back of the pack to get across the starting line. As I started to run in the first leg, I saw and felt the huge difference between last year and this year. Last year, in my first 10K, I watched as swoooosh! the majority of runners ran way ahead of me and virtually disappeared out of sight. With only 5K race experience, it was not something I expected and I felt both left behind and a little demoralized and as I did my best to stick to my pace. This year, because all the 5K runners started at the same time as the 10K runners, there was almost 600 people running together so I definitely did not feel alone! If anything, it was just a touch too crowded for a change (or more than I am used to on that park road). Everything was going great until the 1.5 km point. This is when Angus decided he needed to take a dump! All that time before the race, but he needed to go right then and there ... so off to the side we went while I waited for him to finish to pick it up with one of the baggies I was armed with in my pocket. :( Good-bye PR!

1km 6:35

2km 6:43

Just past the dam, we saw Ben taking pictures and Angus was very excited to see him. I think the dog was a little surprised that we kept running because he was whining as we ran up the hill past the 2K mark and kept looking back to see if Ben was following. :( A little irritating for me as I was trying to concentrate on both my pace and getting up the hill.

What I like about this point in the race course is that, as I am heading toward the hairpin turn past Storybook Gardens, I get to see all the runners pass me on their way to crossing the finish line point to mark the first 5K. I waved to my friend from the dog park, who is a Boston marathoner and a local learn-to-run coach. She was excited to see Angus at my side. I also saw my pace friend from last year's 10K running club, who is a wonderful running inspiration. :) It's great to see all the other runners as well, the serious, super fast place runners followed by the still fast, but costumed runners. After making the hairpin turn, I then can see if there is actually anybody running behind me!

3km 7:09

4km 6:54

Ben was back at the finish line, taking pictures of us again as Angus and I headed to the 5K mark. I watched as the majority of runners in my vicinity went to the left coral to finish their run as I headed right to keep running through. I heard someone call out, "Go dog go!" and it made me smile because I knew he was cheering Angus.

Once I cleared this area to begin my second loop, the route was definitely more empty of runners :) but there were numerous people in front of me setting the pace. I felt good and knew that the next few K would be my optimal time; it was the last few K where I would slow.

5km 6:59

6km 6:49

7km 7:05

Upon reaching a water station, I stopped to give Angus a cup of water and to have a drink myself. It felt like a long stop, but I am sure it was just a matter of seconds. I had to make sure my running partner was hydrated, too!

8km 7:14

By this time, the serious, super fast runners were now heading to overlap me and several other runners. These guys can run a 10K faster than I can run a 5K - so impressive! I was starting to feel just a little bit tired at this point, but knew I was not too far from the finish. I also looked at my Garmin and saw that I had completed 8K in just over 53 minutes so "if" this had been an 8K run, I had set a new PR by four minutes! :) :) I started calculating the math and thinking that I just might be in a position to set a new PR in the 10K for myself ...

9km 7:05

As I ran closer to the finish line, I could feel myself slowing a bit to conserve my energy for the little hill just before the finish line (which can feel like a big hill when your energy is spent!). This is when I saw my friend again, the learn-to-run coach, standing and ready to cheer me on. I smiled as I ran toward her and called out, "I think I might be setting a PR today ..." :) At that point, she started whooping and really cheering me on, telling me to run faster and pacing beside me for a short distance. This is what I really needed, and motivated by her enthusiastic cheering, I gunned it and ran as fast I could toward the finish, overtaking several runners along the way (Ben said later, wow! You were really running fast at the end there!). As I crossed the finish line, I saw the gun time of 1:10 on the race clock, and I knew then that I had done it! :) :) A new 10K PR for me!

10km 1:09:45

Angus was thrilled to see his master at the finish line waiting for him, and Ben was very enthusiastic about my result, knowing that this would make me very happy. After running multiple races solo, it makes such a difference to have someone there at the finish to congratulate you and cheer your success!

After my cool down and orange/banana munching [everything else had been devoured by the time I got to the tables :( ], we headed back to the vehicle to head home for a hot shower. I asked Ben to take a picture of me and my co-runner, hence the new photo as a header. :)

I am feeling great about this and will no doubt have some reflections after the fact later. Suffice it to say, it was a great run to have the weekend after completing my first half marathon in seven years. :)

PINERY PROVINCIAL PARK ROAD RACE 10K - Runpiker Series

1:12:13 (Garmin) 1:12:43 (Official time)

Pace 7:13 min/km

Wow, what a day! :)

First, I nearly got lost driving up north to Grand Bend and arrived much later than I wanted to, but managed to have enough time to grab my bib, check my bag, and use the porta-potty. :) I hate feeling rushed! :( They started the race 15 minutes later than advertised so I think they did this on purpose, knowing that the race location was unusual and out of the way for the majority of participants (just under 600).

Second, it was the only race where I have experienced runners jostling one another to get ahead. There were several "thread-the-needle" runners and I was surprised to see runners in front of me bump shoulders. Very odd to see at a country casual fun run. :(

Third, holy hills, Batman !%@#$! I knew that I would encounter "hillier" terrain at this race, but did not expect the roller coaster ride hills all the way to the 5K turnaround. This was, by far, the most challenging 10K route I have run. I am very PROUD to say that I ran up every hill (the majority of runners in my running pace zone were walking them). I pumped my arms, I leaned forward, and I focused on closer landmarks to detract from how far away from the top I was ... I couldn't believe how many times I had do that!! :) I was a little concerned with my pace because I knew I had all those hills on the way back to run up again, too.

However, it turns out that I didn't have to worry. I am extremely pleased with my pace. Between the race two weeks ago in Stratford and the race today, I feel very, very good about my upcoming half marathon. I didn't run today with the expectation of a new PR (good thing, too, because of all those damn hills!!), but I was still surprised to see how fast I was running inbetween all those hills. I ran "strong" today and except for slowing down at the water stations (to walk while I drank, my new thing after choking on water while trying to run), I was never sluggish at any time during the run.

So! Even though today was not a PR, I am still feeling very very enthusiastic about my performance today. I received a great black s/s tech shirt as swag and I also received a black l/s Runpiker Series shirt, which is quite nice, too. I did not win any of the great draws :( which include hotel and B&B stays nor did I win any door prizes, but oh well!

Runners got a free egg sandwich and coffee. I ate one and resisted temptation to fast food it on the way home so I could fill up on a protein shake at home. I am currently reading a lot about gluten (my mother and sister have discovered that they are gluten-sensitive), and I am considering a change to my daily diet to reduce the amount of gluten and corn syrup processed foods we use regularly, but no major changes until after the half marathon!

I am going to sleep well tonight !!!!!! :)

SIDE NOTE: My sister killed her last half marathon time today - last year 1:54; this year 1:46. She is elated and should be because that is a huge shaving off her time! It was wonderful to call her cell and talk to her about her race/my race while they were driving home from Toronto. She had a GREAT race day and 1:46 is phenomenal!

FESTIVAL CITY 10K - Runpiker Series - A NEW P.R !!!!!!!!

A big post for a big day !!!!!! :) :) :)

I am THRILLED beyond words. I set a new PR today AND "un"officially achieved a goal I set out for myself. My previous PR for a 10K was 1:12:22. I set it in my first 10K last October in the Halloween Haunting run. This year, I have been in two 10K races so far - Embro 1:14:08 and Ingersoll 1:14:13. I went to the race today hoping to crack 1:14 and crossing my fingers that I would crack 1:12 and set a new PR. The fact that I cracked 1:10 has had me on a huge runner's high all day !!!!!!! One of my favourite races to date!!!!

But back to the beginning ... Stratford is 45-60 minutes away from London so Ben and I decided to make a day of it by going for brunch with friends who live there after my race, which is an extra treat in itself - I really do love having my man with me at these runs! :) We parked at the famous main festival theatre, right by the water with all the ducks and swans, including a gorgeous black swan, before heading to pre-registration. Best swag bag to date with a great tech T, a little Shopper's Drug Mart bag filled with moisturizer, cookies, a SS water bottle and the usual advertisements. :) Off to the washroom, which is the best park washroom I have been in to date and was shocked by how wonderfully hot the the water was for washing hands. How pleasant for a change! Then I was off to the starting line. I noticed how most runners wore shorts and a long sleeved T for the run. I opted to stay in my track pants rather than change into shorts, and I kept my running jacket on over my tech T, but took my hoodie off because I was only using it to keep warm until the start. It was my first time in pants and my jacket of the season so this felt a little odd. We were then off!

It was a slow start as, surprisingly, the people in front of me were slower, almost walking, but eventually the crowd thinned out and "everyone" (so it seemed!) pulled ahead of me. I noticed my pace was faster than usual (but on target for an adrenaline-fueled start), but I kept myself in check. We ran around and down out of the park, and through the parking lot where we had parked earlier.

This is when I saw a sight that warmed my heart tremendously. I saw my Benny running across the soccer field to get to the sideline in time so he could see me again. I tell you, I really do know how lucky I am to have such a sweet soul in my life!! :) I am no fool! I grinned at him and ran up to give him a kiss and thanked him for making the effort. As I ran past, I could hear some women calling out to him, but could not make out what they said because I was wearing my iPod buds. When I asked him later about the exchange, he told me that a group of older women had laughingly told him that they could ALL use that kind of inspiration and he just grinned at them! :)

About one K into the race, I started having problems with my iPod. In hindsight, I think I pressed the voiceover button too hard and that it got stuck, but all I knew at that moment while I was running, when checking to make sure I had the right music on, the iPod went dead. I kept turning it on and off and trying to get it to work but it wouldn't. I ran for a little while, feeling panicky about not having my music to motivate me for over an hour and also feeling upset that something bad had happened to my new Shuffle! Some self-talk to calm down, a decision not to stop and walk with it, and voila, after giving the little thing a few minutes off, I turned it on again and it worked. Not a pleasant experience but I got through it.

Stratford is a very pretty city to run in, and I enjoyed the "tour" overall. This is one aspect of running that I am enjoying, seeing different towns and cities in Southwestern Ontario.

Once again, I had a runner yo-yo with me for ~1-1/2K. I did feel bad for him - he would run a few metres, and then stop to walk, repeat. He clearly had burned himself out at the beginning of the race because I encountered his burnout in the 4K-ish zone. My beef if how irritating it is to have someone like him set his sights on me as the person he does NOT want to have pass him. He continuously ran by me, and then start walking. Eventually my pace would catch up to his walking pace at which point he would zoom ahead. It was as if he made it his personal goal to keep ahead of me, which is fine, I guess, except I find it quite irritating, when I am trying to keep focused on my race, to have someone zip zip zip back and forth beside me. I told myself to be patient, and just keep at the pace I was running as this yo-yoing was happening before the race's halfway mark; therefore, he would be walking the rest of the race pretty soon. Sure enough, another 1/2K later, I ran past him and didn't see him again. :)

One of my biggest highlights of the race was seeing Ron. Ron is 70+ years old and has been at every Runpiker's run that I have. A very nice man who is a retired schoolteacher. We first noticed him in Woodstock, how steady and consistent his pace was, and how he blew us away by the middle of the race, always finishing multiple people ahead of us. He ran Embro in 1:06, a good 8 minutes faster than me. Well, when I realized it was him ahead of me (he has a distinctive cadence), I was thrilled. I was in the same running zone as Ron! Wouldn't it be cool to finish behind him? I was so proud of myself to think that my running had actually improved this much! I also got to thinking about how much my long runs HAVE helped because I would not be running just under 7:00 min/km on average if it hadn't been for my long runs. When I started to tell myself to slow down, to bring my pace back down to 7:30, I debated internally whether to let myself keep running at the faster pace because I had run 18K last weekend after all! Clearly I should have a little faith and be a little experimental by letting me run at the faster pace that I was clearly comfortable running! I am so pleased that I did! :)

And then a funny thing happened ... I noticed how I was creeping up behind Ron and a group of women who were running just ahead of Ron. I kept checking my Garmin and realized that I was the one keeping steady - it was Ron and the women who were slowing their pace! The closer I got, the more I realized that I was actually going to pass Ron! And I didn't want to do it! :( My goal was to follow him in, not pass! However, this was happening in the 7-8K zone and I had no choice, but to keep pace and pass him. I realized that his pace was off (comparatively to other races), and I had no choice. After smiling hello and passing the group of women on the hill, I was suddenly out there on my own with 2K to go ...

It was initially a bit of an odd feeling. I am accustomed to watching all the runners ahead of me, and now, here I was, successfully passing 12+ people and no one ahead of me to pass. I checked my watch again and suddenly realized that 1:10 was achievable. What a new amazing feeling!!!! I told myself to go for it and to keep my pace up so I could do it - this was my race to win! I kept chanting that to myself as a mantra.

Well, the last hill UP to the finish line was challenging and killed whatever cushion time I had left to make it in under 1:10, and it was great to see Benny again at the finish line cheering me on. He told me later was so impressed to see me just before the 1:10 mark when I had told him I would be crossing the finish line eventually after this time. :) I admit that I was feeling a little verklempt as I neared the finish line when I realized I had done it. :) :) :)

Now here's the thing ... do I count my actual time or the chip time? :) LOL !!!

Garmin 1:09:26

Chip (official race time) 1:10:19

My little beef with these smaller races is how the chip is not accurate except for those runners right at the starting line. Those of us who start further back because we are slower therefore have another 15-20 seconds to get across the start. In large city races, the chip turns "on" the moment the runner crosses the start line and then again at the finish line. However, in these smaller races, the start line is usually a ladder and a thin rope. EVERYBODY has the same start time. I tend to start my Garmin when I cross the start line so I get a more accurate reading (and usually I am within a metre as my Garmin km alerts beep as I pass the km markers along the route). Normally this is not an issue except in this race. I am officially 19 seconds slower than my ultimate 10K goal for the year, but in reality, I came in 30 seconds faster. How funny that I am obsessing over this, eh? LOL!!!

I am now understanding just a little better about why runners can get so fussy. 19 seconds ... "if" only I had started closer to the starting line ... "if" only I had run up that last hill faster ... "if" only I could have run up that one hill without zig zagging around the runners who suddenly stopped to walk in front of me ... "if" only I hadn't stopped to kiss Benny ... LOL !!!! How crazy is all that but I have a better understanding of it now - I don't want to be that kind of runner, but if a runner is within seconds/less than a minute off their goal, I can see how easy it is to become obsessed with all the run moments that slowed the runner down ... :)

So! Next Saturday - 20K. My final long run 2 weeks before Niagara Falls. The following Sunday - 10K @ The Pinery. I will decide during the race whether to run it to try to beat 1:10 or just to say "no biggie - just enjoy it" because less than 10 recovery days later, I am running my half marathon. And 7 days after the big big day, I have my last 10K of the year - a "rematch" of my very first 10K - the Halloween Haunting. I know for sure that I will be running with my dog, Angus. Ben has already mentioned it multiple times because last year, a woman ran with two dogs. Ben has wanted Angus in a race since. And at today's race, a runner ran with her dog, which inspired Ben to talk about it again. :) I would prefer going with Wallace, but it will mean so much more to Ben to see "his boy" running with his Lit'l Sweety ... :)

Cheers!