SUMMER NIGHT 5K - London Honda Series #4

History Review

2003 - 34:07

2009 - 35:35

2010 - 36:11 Last year's blog post

Now that my blog is a year old, a significant number of my race report posts will be starting with a link to the previous year's race report post. How cool is that? :)

So "if" you clicked on the link above, you will have at least the background story on my previous three races before reading this post. :)

So what's happening with my running one year later?

*****

Official Time - 32:12

6:17/km

Gun start/Chip finish

Garmin Time - 31:24

6:17/km

#338 out of 448

14/28 Age/Gender Group

25 DNF

This was Race #33 total-to-date for me. :)

This was my 16th 5K race. :)

And before I begin my race report, I have to play my usual race bib game:

17-7 = 10

10 / 2 = 5 ... my favourite number :)

So I achieved the conservative goal I set - sub-33. And I achieved a secret goal I had ... to cross the finish line before a particular runner!

I was happy to have my mom visiting from out of town so I was spoiled for this race - I actually had two people in attendance to cheer me on (Mom and Ben). I also met up with my racing partner (RP), who was there with her new 'friend' to cheer her on. :)

It was hot and muggy, just as expected, but not as severe as last year (lucky considering the record high temperatures being set in Ontario in the past week following this race). After setting my mom up in the shade in a lawn chair on the sidelines, I took off for my warm-up run. Like several others, I had my 'sweat on' prior to the beginning of the race. :)

I found my RP at the start line, met her friend :), and then we didn't have too much time to chat before the gun went off. RP told me originally that she had wanted to run a sub-30 for this race, but she had missed several runs recently and was not feeling it in this heat. I told her to go for it if she found her legs, but not to count me in - I was in this race for fun, I was not going to overexert myself in this heat/humidity, but I would do the best that I could pacing her. I was willing myself to go with the flow for fun on this one.

And then we were off! This photo is a pic of us waving to Ben and Mom near the start, happy little campers before becoming hot, sweaty and tired! :)

Overall, I really enjoyed this race. I know the course, it's short and sweet, with some challenges, and it has a fun atmosphere. However, this is the first year I can recall finding the course a little too cramped/busy for the number of runners. Either this race has increased in popularity or I was running in a more popular pacing/speed group than in previous years. Does that make sense? :)

The surprising, happy news that I can report from this race is that I think I could have run it faster had it not been as crowded on the path as it was. Perhaps it's best that I didn't as I probably would have been very bummed about just missing a sub-30 - LOL!

A great part of the race - running in union/pace with RP. Having a pacing partner is a wonderful, wonderful thing! :) RP and I ended up running in unison together, sometimes one in front of the other rather than beside each other. It was the only way to pass people when we were able to. We ran together for most of the race - she moved further ahead of me in the last km by running uphill faster when I urged her onward. I am now strongly considering joining a half marathon group next spring because I see how a regular group would probably encourage me to push/improve my pace more.

An irritating part of the race - the runner with the jogging stroller. Let me make it *perfectly* clear that I love runners with baby jogging strollers. I have nothing but admiration for them - what a tough workout! There are always a few of them in the races I run, and it's fun to see parents switch with one another while running a race together. Unfortunately, because this race was mainly on running paths and not on the open road, having a stroller in it proved to be an incredible problem. An additional complication was that this particular mother/runner was very aggressive. She was making runners in front of her turn around in surprise, thus making them jump out of her way with little room to spare. A couple of times, she and her stroller ran onto the opposite side of the path in front of the fastest runners who were returning to the start/finish line. RP, who was just ahead of me, turned around several times to look at me with a, "are you seeing what I'm seeing?!?!?" look. I empathize with how challenging it was for the mother/runner out there, but I wasn't impressed with how more challenging she made the race path for the rest of the runners around her. RP later told me derived some satisfaction by racing her to the finish line and crossing before her. :) I just wished she would have been more laid back and enjoyed this race for fun; her body language indicated that she wasn't. :(

I wrote at the start of this post about my secret goal, about running faster than a particular runner. She is someone who participates in most of the same races that I do, and her times are always slightly faster than mine. She is usually just ahead of me in points in the London Honda Series. At the last race, the Go the Distance 8K, I watched as she passed me when I was pacing with other runners instead of racing to the finish. A bit of a bummer when I realized after the fact that this had cost me 2 points - LOL! Anyway, I saw her running ahead of me through the section of the race when it was proving difficult to pass. I actually was thinking of just pacing behind her the whole way and then passing her at the finish. :) However, RP was keeping us at a faster pace so when she passed my target runner, I decided to follow suit and then hoped that I would not see my secret goal runner then pass me again before the finish line! (she didn't). :)

A tough section of this race is that the last km, which is essentially all uphill and once runners reach the top, we turn left for the last quarter km to the finish line. The pic to the left shows me heading toward the finish after running from the corner/hill. I'm cruising at this point. I'm hot, sweaty, tired, and happy to see the end approaching. Ben and Mom are standing up with their cameras, taking pics and waving. I'm smiling and waving back. Woo hoo! Almost there!

It's just after I pass Mom and Ben that I suddenly catch a glimpse of a runner to my left. I didn't realize I had someone in my left blind spot until she decides she wants to pass me. She has made me her goal to beat at the end! :) It's a funny thing what an action like that can do. I had the same instinctual reaction as I did at the Dairy Capital 10K - I just went zooooom and took off speeding! I didn't catch her in my sights again. It was exciting for me to experience that racing rush at the end. I really ought to thank this person because she's the reason I PB'ed in this race and when I checked the official race results, I really did beat my secret goal runner, but only by 10 seconds (I wasn't sure that I truly had because of the chip timing). I laughed when I saw the above photo Ben took because he captured the moment before this runner started to race me. :)

Everyone met up on the other side of the finish line when RP and I compared thoughts on the race, and shared the details with the others. I gave her friend my free beer and burger coupons so that the two of them could enjoy a free dinner together before Ben, Mom and I took off. It's the least I could do for RP because she's responsible for pushing my running pace in this race.

I am cancelling my 8K with striders tomorrow, and taking a rest day. I then have a 16K LSD on Sunday (hence why I am not going to push it with an additional 8K tomorrow).

GO THE DISTANCE RUN 8K - London Honda Series #3

BIB GAME: 19 + 1 = 20

20 is divisible by "5", my favourite number. :)

91 - 1 = 90

90 is divisible by "5", my favourite number. :)

*****

In 2009, I participated in the 3K Fun Run. This is when the Go the Distance event was still held downtown London on a Sunday morning race before it was changed to an evening race.

3K was pretty much all I could handle at that time!! :) :) My results?

June 2009

21:50

Pace 7:17/km

Last year, I participated again in this event, but it was my first 8K race. I was very proud of myself at the time for being able to run in the 8K instead of the 3K. It didn't matter that I ended up not enjoying this race at all because of the hot and humid weather and because I had not run it wisely - I still did it!

Out of the two 8K races I ran last year, this race was my fastest/PR, which is not a fair comparison with one being a road race and the other, a hilly trail race. I do not have a blog record, but this was my result:

June 6, 2010

8K @57:47

Pace 7:04/km

So how am I doing one year later? :)

*****

Official Time

8K @54:46

Pace 6:51/km

Gun start / Chip Finish

Garmin Time

8K @53:40

Pace 6:43/km

SOCKS were the swag this year, and IMO, they are very, very cool! I love my race tech shirts collection, but these socks receive two thumbs up from me! :) Sorry about my cheap camera pics ... or is it the photographer's lack of skills? :(

Sorry this post is late, but the gorgeous weather here enticed me to spend my day outside for most of it instead of being inside in front of a computer. I think (hope) you understand. :)

I achieved my goal of running under 55 minutes with 14 seconds to spare, according to the chip time. When I saw the weather forecast, I knew that the humdity, combined with a late day run, was not to my benefit. I'm an early morning run gal, and I love running in cooler weather. Therefore, I set my goal conservatively, and as you will see, I kept my run conservative, too.

Ben dropped me off on campus. I told him not to come to this event, and that bringing me to campus was all I needed from him this time. I could have walked, but I didn't want to arrive hot and sweaty ... I was going to be this way throughout my run so I wanted a little more time staying fresh. :) I picked up my chip and sat in the shade with other runners, waiting for the 3K to end and the 8K to start. I found my old running partner again so we sat in the shade together, discussing our Bayfield race last week, reminiscing about this same event last year, catching up on each other's news, and then deciding to pace each other in this race. I usually warm up before a race, but I decided not to bother for this one. I was feeling very casual about it and I decided that using the first 2K of this race as my warm-up was good enough for me.

Similar to last year, it's hard not to run faster in the TD Waterhouse Stadium. Check out my first km:

1 km - 6:35

So much for "warm-up," eh? Well, it felt good. I didn't feel like I was overdoing it and it was nice to keep pace with a solid group of people around the track before we exited and headed out onto the University of Western Ontario campus. At the 1 km marker, we were following a runner who decided that she would "jump" over the 1 km sign ... only she missed and ran into it, making a huge noise and nearly tripping herself. She looked sheepishly back at us as she continued to run. As dumb of a move as I think this was, I actually felt very bad for her because I knew we would be running past her soon and that it would be tougher for her to run the remaining 7K after embarrassing (and possibly injuring) herself this way.

2 km - 6:37

I discussed with my running partner before the starting gun to be patient, that we would start passing a lot of runners in the first 2K because they would run out too fast to keep up with the others. She told me after the race how she kept thinking about this, and then how delighted she was when, as we had our cadence synced for several km, we passed multiple runners. I didn't count, but we did "well" with our passing. :)

3 km - 6:43

There were several things I truly enjoyed about this race. One was knowing the course ahead of time so we knew exactly where all the inclines and downhills were. Another was having someone to pace with, which clearly was pushing me in a good way. I also felt relaxed and back to my 'norm' of just having fun being in a race, knowing that I was going to PR regardless so just go with the flow. :) I too k the time to thank race marshals/volunteers as I ran passed and even joked with some of them who were putting extra effort into cheering all of us on.

4 km - 6:48

I was trying to slow down somewhat because I didn't trust the 6:30-ish pace, not on a hot and humid night, so I felt better taking the speed down a notch. We were running well and enjoying the park scenery so there was no need to push it ...

5 km - 6:31

Sweet downhill section of the run. :)

6 km - 6:55

This is when I lost my running partner and the heat started getting to me a little. My partner wanted to run faster at the 6K mark, and I told her to go for it. Later, she told me that she had made an error, that she had meant to run faster at the 7K mark, and that her pace had significantly slowed in the homestretch when she was spent. I knew she had wanted to push it, but after my 5K race/PR last week and taking the time off this week to enjoy a break between training sessions, I really, really just wanted to coast at an easy pace.

I had the energy to pass a number of walking runners on a steeper incline. I literally ran up it past several people. One of the race marshals yelled out, "Number 191 !! GOOD GAME !!" I smiled and gave her the thumbs up.

7 km - 6:53

This is when I passed a runner I had been catching up to for a few km. She was slowing down and as you can see from my pace, so was I ... but not enough so that I couldn't pass her. Just after the 7km mark, she came up from behind me and passed me. I could hear her breathing and could see she was struggling, but I was still smiling and thanking volunteers, and after checking my Garmin again, I decided to coast it in because I was clearly under time from last year.

I saw this same runner start walking again and I was going to run past her a second time, but in the spirit of my Donnybrook Dash run, I slowed beside her and asked if she would like to pace it in with me. She picked up her pace and we started to run together. I knew she didn't have the energy to chat so I said a few encouraging words ... "we are almost there ... maybe 200m tops." We approached another runner who was walking so I turned to her and said, "we're pacing in together - join us!" So she did. :) I swear I felt a little like a Mother Hen with a runner under each 'wing' as we closed in on the stadium. The second runner said she had started walking because she really needed to pee! I laughed and told her that the faster she ran in, the faster she could go pee! She then decided to run faster. :)

8 km - 6:43

As my original "chick" and I approached the stadium entrance, she asked me wearily if we had to run around the track again, I told her, no, that the finish line was literally straight ahead, less than a minute to go. As soon as we were in the stadium and on the homestretch , I said, "Let's go! We can do it! We are there!" And we ran in together as I waved and smiled at a few people I know who were cheering us in. :) After we crossed the finish line together, I turned to this runner, shook her hand, and congratulated her on a great run. She thanked me genuinely for running with her.

I met up with my old running partner, and we found leftover water and watermelon together. We then had a good time discussing the race in detail. :)

And guess what? I won a door prize! #188 was called, but this runner was no longer there so they asked for the nearest number ... which was me. :) I now have a red and black London Honda Series gym bag. :) And the sweetest, sweetest part about it was that, as I was heading back to my spot after picking up my door prize, the runner I had run in with ran up to me and said, "Way to go, Coach! You deserve it." Doesn't that make you do, "awwwwwww." What a sweetheart!

I forgot to include in my blog post for Bayfield last week that I won a door prize there, too! I was happy to receive something special on the day I became a member of the "5K in <30" club. I won a cosmetic bag filled with Crabtree and Evelyn hand cream, lotion and shower gel. :)

As for POINTS ... they have not been officially posted yet, but I strongly suspect that I just jumped from 17th place to 6th place, if my figuring is correct. :) I was last in my age and gender group - 12th out 12 women. However this still earns me 9 points and it is a double points event. Therefore, 18 points added to my current 18 points knocks me into the top 10. :) I just might be a contender this year. :)

Half Marathon training begins tomorrow ... and Mondays are now officially OFF/REST DAYS so how's that for starting training! :) :)

MCFARLAN ROWLANDS DOWNTOWN 5K RACE - London Honda Series #2

Before I begin this post, another running history reflection. :) Get accustomed to this theme in future posts because, now that I have more than a "year's worth" of runs recorded, I intend to celebrate, "that was then; this is now" ...

Exactly one year ago on this day, I ran 3K @23:21, at a pace of 7:47. I am very proud of this pace and mileage from 2010 because I found the courage to put myself out there. Regardless of my fitness level at the time, my lower mileage ability, my slower pace, my heavier body, I still tied on my running shoes and went for a run. And I just kept telling myself, this is going to improve! I will get better at this! And now, here I am, a year later, posting the following 5K race report. :) I just want to appreciate the significance of this before continuing with my update ... :)

*****

5K @31:55

Avg. Pace 6:23/km

Gun start/Chip finish

As you can see, there's a reason why I'm posting my 'cartoon happy girl jumping in the air!' Today I accomplished all the goals I established in yesterday's post:

1. I ran this 5K race. Period. Just to be able to run in it after missing it last year is a great achievement. :)

2. I beat my Really Chilly Road Race 5K from February. Woo hoo!

3. I beat my fastest 5K time from 2010. Another woo hoo!

I expected to go to my race alone today. I don't "make" my partner attend all my races with me. He's not a runner, but he's there for me whenever I ask him. As a result, I am accustomed to being at a significant number of races on my own. I expected this again today because Ben had plans; he has committed to being there for me at the Forest City Road Race 10K next weekend, and this is good enough for me! :)

Because it is the Easter long weekend, my family is in town staying with us (my mother, sister, brother-in-law and three kids). However, they are usually busy visiting with other family members when here so I assumed they would have plans during my race ... it was a last minute surprise for me today when they decided to re-arrange their schedule so that all the female family members would be there to cheer me on - girl power !! :)

Because my family had to scramble a little to make it to the race, Ben dropped me off at Victoria Park so I could mentally and physically warm-up for the race on my own. He asked before leaving what I was really wanting to achieve today, and I told him 'sub-33'. He laughed and said he was betting on me to run 32:15. :)

According to the posted race results, 589 people completed today's race and 58 DNF'd (did not finish). It was very crowded at the start line and unfortunately for a gun start, I was quite far back from the starting line. :( Running around the first corner of Victoria Park was a little challenging as most of us had to stop and wait for the runners in front to funnel through safety barriers before we were able to pick up the pace again. This was the only time in the race when the numbers affected my pace as the starting mass thinned out within the first 2km.

As always, it was very challenging to have so many people swoosh by me and pull ahead without being caught up in the speed and adrenaline rush, but I used my Garmin to watch my pace and to hold it. I chose to run this particular race without any pace splits in mind. I just wanted to run it as it unfolded to see how I felt in this specific race situation. I wanted to go by 'feel' and then carry the lessons into next weekend's race.

1st km - 6:22/km

2nd km - 6:32/km

This was a 2.5K loop x 2 race so we looped around the finish line in order to start the second and final leg of our run. It was here that I experienced two of the best moments of the race. The first was when I looked to my left and noticed two amazing little girls with signs cheering. They looked very familiar to me and then I looked up and saw their mother. It was Shawna L., my DailyMile friend, who was there with her family cheering the runners. It was wonderful to see them and without fail, it always, always feels great to have someone there cheering me on! As I passed them and rounded the NW corner of Victoria Park again, I looked right and saw waving 'Fairy Barbie' dolls in the air ...

... and this is my reaction to seeing another two amazing little girls cheering! It was so great to see my family on the sidewalk whooping and clapping. :) :) I think all of this support accounts for a faster split!:

3km - 6:12/km

I usually do not enjoy 2 X 1 loop races as much, but in today's case, I did not mind it as much because it helped me to know what the last few km were going to be like ... and because it was a shorter race! :) :) I only checked my Garmin a few more times to see how I was doing. I felt very steady and consistently strong. It was great to feel this steady strength throughout the race without any periods of sluggishness or tiredness.

4km - 6:26/km

I pretty much knew by this time that I could push myself a little more. By nature, I am more conservative when running, reserving energy until the end, and as a result, I end up sprinting toward the finish. As I rounded the SW corner into the final straight stretch, I started pushing my pace just a little more, gradually getting a little bit faster and faster. It was a rewarding feeling being able to pass a significant number of slowing runners as I closed in.

This is when I could finally see the clock: 31:15. I then felt really really motivated to run much faster! I ran as fast as I could ...

5km - 5:52

This pace average says it all. This is the first time that I have seen 5:52 appear in any one of my splits. I didn't just crack my 7 min/km pace average, I cracked the 6 min/km pace zone, too, if only for just one km. I've been doing the happy dance all day whenever I think of that number! Oh happy day! :) Because one km at that pace soon becomes two, then three ... :) :)

A final, lovely moment occurred at the finish line. As I crossed over the mat, the owner of Runners' Choice and the organizer of this event, Paul, was there to congratulate all runners as they finished. Not only is he simply the nicest man in the world, but he exclaimed, "Evelynne! That has to be a new PR for you the way you ran in!" which made me grin as I told him yes (no need to explain PRs from 2003!). Sooooooo rewarding to see that someone else is noticing. :)

As you can tell from this post compared to my last race post, it was a very different day for me. I ran the pace average I had hoped/expected I could run, I felt good the whole time, and of course, it truly helped to have two different groups cheering. :)

I hope this is a sign of even bigger and better things to come! :)

Tomorrow - 13K LSD

Next week: Week #8 Road Work, my final week.

Sunday, May 1 - Forest City Road Race 10K

REALLY CHILLY ROAD RACE 5K - London Honda Series #1

35:40 Chip Time

35:36 Garmin Time

Wow wow wow! What a morning!

I went on my own to the race so there was no one to take pictures of me. However, here's a pic of my new shirt and my number/chip (there is a chip crazy-glued to the back of this bib - ingenious!).

First and foremost, I am really really proud of myself for running a race in February! :) :) :) Last year at this time, I only ran once during the month of February, and it took some work until I was able to run my first 5K later in May. I am tickled pink that this year, I have started running in local races months earlier. Accomplishment #1!

Second, I am so pleased at having a decent 5K race for me! My average pace earlier this week during my return-to-running workouts did not give me the indication that I could run a 7:09 pace. I was aiming for under 7:30 and was very excited to see a pace closer to 7:00 come naturally to me. For someone who had 10+ weeks off from running from an injury and from being buried in snow, this is great! Accomplishment #2!

Third, I turned on my right ankle in the parking lot just before the race, but I was still able to run - I must have had a lucky horseshoe on me. :) Such a stupid thing - I left the Agriplex on my way to the start line and suddenly, where I stepped in the snow, gave way and I turned my ankle painfully. A horrible horrible moment. I went to this race by myself so I was alone when it happened, and all I could think about was nonononononono, please don't tell me I have hurt myself and can't run! It really hurt, too! I kept walking with it to see how bad it was and noticed that I didn't limp. The initial pain subsided as I kept walking toward the start line. I would not have run on it if it kept hurting, but oddly enough, my ankle was fine all through the run except for one time on the course when I felt a slight twinge of it. Very odd, but I am very grateful. I continue to walk just fine, but can still feel a tenderness in the area. I have turned on that ankle so many times in my life ...

As for the run itself, it was great to have main roads and streets cordoned off for us with pylons so we could run on wet pavement. The course itself was once around for the 5K and twice for the 10K so I was happy not to run the same path twice. :) There was the usual swoosh of people running faster than me at the beginning, and I caught myself running faster than I should at the start, but I reigned myself in and settled at a "race pace" within the first 2K. It was very cool to see how the race finished inside the Agriplex (we ran under an overpass and right into the building), and as always, my local Runner's Choice did an excellent job of organizing the event. This particular run was on the east side of the city and near some of the factories (Kellogg's, McCormick's). I am not sure which one was processing a chocolate-flavoured processed food, but there was the smell of chocolate in the air while we ran down Dundas Street - a nice distraction from the running! I did not stick around long after the race as time today did not permit, but it was great to see the greater number of people participated in the 10K than in the 5K (I want to be one of them next year!).

Most memorable moment: I was passed by several super fast 10K runners on their first loop (it made me think, that must be an ego boost, running past someone who started a little more than 10 minutes before you!). They helped me run a little faster because I couldn't help, but pick up the pace thanks to their suction draft - LOL! As nice as it is to have all the volunteers along the way encourage me (I alway say thank you or smile at them when they clap or cheer), I was surprised and touched the most by one of the 10K runners who suddenly turned to me as he passed and enthusiastically said, "Good job!". His tone was clearly genuine and kind (not condescending) and I responded with an enthusiastic "Thank you!" back to him before he left me in his dust. :) As I sit here in the afterglow of my run, this is what I remember the most from the race. Thank you, Anonymous Nice Guy!

1K 6:59

2K 7:14

3K 7:04

4K 7:05

5K 6:41