Mission Possible Half Marathon race report

Encouraged by the Rattle me bones 5k I decided to make one last threw of the dice and started training for another half-marathon taking place three weeks later. Not much time to train following the 5k, but training went well with two circa 50-mile weeks that included good stuff such as 3 x 2 miles (5:47, 6:03, 6:02), a 15-mile run, a 10-mile progression (8:18, 7:30, 11, 02, 6:50, 35, 21, 08, 5:56), a 6-mile tempo in the cold (6:09, 03, 00, 00, 5:59, 54) and a 8-mile tempo, semi-fast to fast: 6:17, 15, 14, 10, 07, 08, 01, 01. 

The race was on November 18 and Ottawa was bracing for winter, which presented a wardrobe problem of how to dress for speed without turning into an icicle. A trial run the day before decided shorts were a no go, my knees were really hurting from the cold (I find that in general any temperature about zero degrees works for shorts). Unfortunately the race start was 9 am, I supposed it could have been earlier and worse, but it almost guaranteed just below zero temperatures.

The race was held at a golf course outside Ottawa and the race director did not lie when he said “there are no hills but there are no flat sections either.” Yet I remained optimistic this could just be the day I ran sub 1:19 given that the results from last year indicated many of the top runners had ran PRs of 1 or 2 minutes. It was later revealed that the course of last year had been about 0.25 miles short explaining these results. Regardless, there was also the added incentive that Dylan Wykes, who finished 20^th in the Olympic marathon, was going to be presenting the awards afterwards. I also believe he initially thought of racing but figured it was no point after seeing my name amongst the starters. I had done my own research and was pretty sure at least two runners would beat me and then there were two others who I was very much looking forward to racing again, last time being the Alterna ultimate race 10k in June. That time, I had pushed the pace early on only to falter at the halfway point and finished a disappointing one minute or so behind them, so this time I was determined not to let that happen and hoping for 3^rd place. 

It was a chilly morning; I made an attempt at warming-up, but it didn’t really warm me up. Perhaps it would have been better to warm-up indoors like some of the others? The start was delayed by about 10 min so everyone headed back inside the club house. The waiting is the hardest part, right? Made it back out and managed to get really close to the front of the starters, of which there were about 150. With such a small field I managed to get a good start… it’s been a while. Yet, four guys ran ahead, while I was part of a small chasing group of interchanging runners cruising along at around 6 min mile pace. Indeed, it was a rolling course along the paved paths of the golf course.  It made for a strange sensation of having to hold back during the short down-hills then pushing during the short up-hills that followed.

During the second mile I felt very comfortable and caught two of the guys who had pulled ahead early. This spurred me on, and I decided to keep it up and the others of the group decided to let me go. I was a bit surprised since I was still running at 6:05 pace. The two guys ahead of me were considerable further afield but I could spot them, occasionally among the trees. If this was an up and down course, it was also a windy route with plenty of turns. Overall, it made for running at an erratic pace, varying at every turn; I’m not sure if this was good or bad, but it was definitively different.  At one point, however, I was almost certain I had taken a wrong turn, only for the guy ahead to re-appear in the distance by the course. 

Winding course, two laps, don't get lost. Yellow star = start and finish

At the end of the third mile I reached an aid station and I was assured I was in third place and only 200 m behind second place. Not that I needed encouragement at this stage, but it was nice to hear, although I suppose being 200 m behind this early could be a bad thing. I kept at it but running in no-man’s land was becoming increasingly difficult. I kept glancing over my shoulder but the chasers weren’t very close, neither were those ahead… I sensed trouble. Then there were Canada geese blocking the road, slowing me down, and I passing over a creaking bridge that seemed like it could have broken. Now my mind was playing tricks on me. I suddenly was feeling like I couldn’t keep my pace up, which had been 6:07 on average, but mile four was 6:13 and I could tell I was slowing down, grrr.. I was mad: I had made the mistake I didn’t want to make, and started too fast, however, I should be able to run this fast without problems normally. I realized it was mentally too difficult to run on my own, so I decided there was no point in delaying the inevitable and I let the chaser catch up with me soon thereafter. There were two of them, exactly the two guys I had raced and been beaten by in June. I let them pass, almost jogging and decided to tag along on their heels. It was a bit difficult initially but it had to be done and I didn’t let them go even though they had the momentum. I wasn’t feeling so fresh, probably the worst I’ve felt so early in a race, but I got stuck in and tag along. Strangely how just following someone can make it seem so much easier.. 

So the next couple of miles were 6:15, 11, 22 then we reached the approximate half-way mark and people were commenting on us being a good looking group, which of course I’m sure everyone involved was aiming for…We pretty much tagged along at the same pace from then on, but then at one juncture I had this feeling I should let go and a let a small gap develop between me and the two others; luckily I felt mentally and physically strong enough to tell myself not to let go and closed it soon thereafter. I told myself to just bring it to 10 miles and I’d almost be there, and then anything could happen. Just like that we were entering mile 10 and we were, much to the delight of the on-lookers, still a “good-looking group.” OK, so I started thinking of what to do next, and settled for hanging on and trying to out-sprint the others near the finish.

 So one of the guys had been leading our small group since mile 5 and I have to say I felt a bit sorry for him. I thought the middle guy was going to make a move, and all of a sudden he did, with about 1.5 miles to go, sprinting ahead of the other runner who did not take chase. Now I was left with a choice: to follow or not to follow. Although I hesitated momentarily, the choice was easy – follow. Ha, I’m sure he was a bit surprised I did. I was right on his heels, while the guy who previously had been 3^rd could not follow. Then we came up to an intersection and the guy was asking me something about which way to  go. I stuttered I wasn’t sure, because I wasn’t sure. I’m sure it was just a veteran move to tell how fresh I was. With the guidance of the amazing volunteers we made the right and obvious turn. Now I was angry, I wasn’t going to let this guy beat me. I knew I had it in me. I made a move with about one kilometer left I pulled up alongside of him, but for some reason hesitated to move ahead. Then I glanced over the hills and noticed the finishing line, which seemed so far away, and I just buckled mentally. The other guy picked it up and moved ahead and I couldn’t follow. I kept at but for some reason just didn’t have it, I wasn’t going to catch him. Then I became aware the other guy was closing in on me. But in the end I had done enough to hold him off, finishing in 4^th place. I knew we hadn’t been running at record breaking speed but when I saw my time of 1:21 something, initially I wasn’t pleased, not completely crap came to my mind. In hindsight, it was a tough course, and everyone ran about 2 minutes slower than their latest times so it wasn’t that big of a deal, so in summary: a good effort given the conditions.

A nice brunch followed at the club house. I was trying to strike conversation with a local runner whom I’d like to learn from, but seeing that I was quite exhausted and me not being that talkative to begin with, I think me asking him about his training pretty much came across as a police interrogation.. Then were the awards, and Dylan Wykes speaking which was nice. His message was basically “Olle, keep running, challenge yourself, dreams come true, do your best and wear more than one pair of shoes for training”. What wasn’t so nice was the fact that everyone in the top 5, apart from me, received a price from him and had a photo taken, because either they had finished 1st in the race, their age-group or second in the race. Duh! Tough but fair, as my dad would have put it. What I deserved now was some rest…

1. A. Roberts    1:17:37
2. S. Anderson  1:18:09
3. J-F. Fillion    1:21:33
4. O. de Bruin  1:21:46
5. G. Riggs       1:21:58
6. S. de Wit      1:25:45

Rattle me bones race report

At the end of October there was the Rattle me bones race (AKA “the skeleton race” in French), which is becoming somewhat of a tradition for us - it was the 3^rd year in a row Anais participated, well done!  This is a fun race where a lot of people dress up Halloween-style and race. Although there is a certain satisfaction in beating Santa and the grim reaper, next time, can someone please dress up as Josain Bolt so I get to race him? Not only is this a fun race, it is in support of the hospital and this year was particularly special as the race was in honor of our friend Meagan, who was hit by a vehicle and badly injured a year ago. Amazingly, she has recovered through hard work, determination and the help of the hospital and rehabilitation centre to run in this year’s 10k race –wow! The race is also one of the most competitive in the area - this year’s winner of the 10k ran sub 30 min! And, this year’s winner was not me… of course only because I had decided to run the 5k instead..;)

The race was three weeks after the Fall colours half and after that I had a pretty good 5-day running week in unseasonably cold weather (but only for a lowly total of 32 miles), which I followed with a 29-mile week (although mostly due to a 15-mile run from Kanata), and then we went on vacation to Cape cod. The last day by the sea was sunny and about 20^oC and I went for a run, after which I just had to jump in the ocean for a dip..it was lovely! Unfortunately, I became sick the next day, but I attribute that to travelling and eating at McDonald’s rather than the ice-cold swim-session. 

So I entered the race with a cold, having run only once in a week, and thus without any expectations other than simply cruising along and, even if I wasn’t 100%, surely still beating my PB of 18:35 for the 5k from May 2011. Once on site, my competitive spirit got the better of me..it was go-time, time to kick ass, at least try, even if it was cold, near zero and I was freezing because my only clean running shirt was sleeve-less… Unfortunately, I’m still shy about lining up right at the front of races, even though I ought to, but I got reasonably close to the front of the pack at the start. Everyone runs fast at the start, but most falter within half a mile; yet, it was difficult to believe how far ahead the leaders were already, and how did I get so caught up in the masses? It really underlined the importance of a fast start at the shorter distances, or perhaps the people in the lead pack were really that much faster than me? Time would tell; I was determined to run my own race and ready to try and catch up with those ahead. 

There were still a few people around me and I allowed myself to get a feel for the course by speeding up, slowing down and speeding up once again, leading to me racing and shaking off a number of runners and then catching and passing a small number of runners around the 1 mile mark. The first mile clocked at 5:36, I was pleased and getting into the race. The next half-a-mile was somewhat downhill, which seemed to make me run faster at the same intensity. During a stretch here I got a good look at the lead group of about 5 people, maybe more, which were about 200-300 m ahead. I thought I better conserve some energy for the last mile or so. I remember coming into a corner fast and almost slipping because of wet leafs, staying on my feet and turning the corner heading back towards the finish and the final mile. The 2^nd mile had been 5:37, even pacing again. 

Watch out! Warning for everyone's wearing arm warmers: Someone's about to getcha..

Following the corner it was somewhat up-hill and I lost a bit of pace. I recall seeing so many runners were heading down the road in the opposite direction.  I tried to look for Anais but didn’t see her.  Then I passed a runner and set my sights on a couple of stragglers from the lead group. I turned the corner onto Ring road and sped up to about 5:20 in an attempt to catch the others two ahead. I knew the finish was nearby but I don’t think Ring road ever seemed longer. The other runners were still about 4-5 meters ahead of me, my legs were burning, but I told myself I could do this, just push that little bit harder or you’ll regret it. Not that it would matter for time, but for finishing positions, so just push push push I told myself as we passed the Ottawa hospital and its delivery room. Then something strange happened. A van pulled up next to the three of us and someone appeared to be coaching one of the others, then this guy jumped out of the moving van and proceeded to run along with almost like a hare I suppose. I passed the other runner and then the next and really thought I had got the better of both, but I also could hear the “coach’s” encouragements and the next thing I knew the other guy had sprinted passed me. At this point my pace was just below 4 min/mile and I couldn’t go any faster and settled or 6^th place, finishing with a chip time of 17:25.4, a PR by over a minute.

The sprint (with coach in middle). I was actually just dancing by looks of it.

 I was delighted with my time, pleased I had pushed hard in the end despite of the pain, and the sprint to the finish was simply awesome. Of course, I would have liked to have clocked a time somewhat closer towards sub 17, but all things considered this was a good performance in my book. To top it off, although I had been outsprinted in the end,  because he had started ahead of me, the chip time of the 5^th placed finisher was 17:25.8, so technically I finished 5^th and out-sprinted him, ha!  I won 1^st place in my age-group and was awarded with 6 pairs of Mizuno winter running socks, exactly what I wanted! Of course, I couldn’t help but thinking that if I had run just a bit faster, well 15 s to be precise, I could have been part of the official awards ceremony for the top 3 finishers.

After watching the ceremony, we headed to Meagan’s place for a delightful post-race brunch, including sparkling wine. Although I was quite tired, it sure makes a large difference in tiredness running a 5k from a half-marathon, or even a 10 k, after which I’m like a wreck. I felt ok, and brunch was great, many thanks!

1. K. Day 16:21
2. C. Vervloet 17:09
3. A. Walia 17:11
4. D. Woods 17:20
5. B.R. Bonisteel 17:25
6. O. de Bruin 17:25
7. S. Andjelic 17:30
8. A. Dupuis 17:38

Arrrrrgh!

Gold, silver, bronze

The Army half left me wishing for more so I signed up for the Ottawa Fall colours half marathon in the pittoresque village of Cumberland. I felt disappointed with how the Army race had unfolded mainly because I had trained hard and the result just hadn’t been there (although in hindsight I had only trained hard for a few weeks, but even that is time-consuming, the sacrificies…). As this race was only two weeks removed from the Army run there was no real time available for any improvements, but I was happy to be able to extend training for another two weeks particularly because I was really enjoying my running at this time. An unexpected inspiration had been my iPod (I normally don’t run with music) as the colder, darker nights required some added inspiration to keep me going, and what better way than to hear Young Jeezy informing me what he’s got in store for those haters? 

 Following the Ottawa army run I managed a 80 km week and I kept going strong into the week of the Fall colours half with most runs starting slowly then progressively going faster spurred on by gangsta rap, which is quite dangerous, literally, since 6:30/mile became my easy pace on a regular basis, and thus, leading to the inevitable: on the Wednesday the week of the race I had scheduled a 5-mile tempo run, but I had to cut it short and declared myself in need of rest, which turned into three days of no running immediately preceding the race. All of this pretty much went in line with my strategy for the race: I took myself out of the running before the running had even begun, by saying, realistically, I had no chance of running 1:19…No, don’t even think about it.. So, no pressure then. Just to make things even more interesting (read difficult), the race was the day after a grand wedding in Montreal (note to self: Do not attend wedding before a race, particularly not one where the waiter keeps on serving wine by default). To make things just a bit harder, the course is described as challenging and several people have commented on it “not being a PR course” due to its many hills…. Regardless, it was time to match every course!

Indeed, I was secretly excited for this race: it doubled as the official Ontario Masters Half-Marathon Championships! I had no idea what to expect of a Masters championship, but being able to compete for best of Ontario anything sounded pretty cool to me, and it was promised a $250 win bonus would be awarded if the course record of 1:19:23 be broken. Not without of reach, but I was sure many a Master runner had the same idea in mind, so although I was capable of running that fast surely many others were to run faster. Now you’re probably thinking “Olle, there is no way you’re a Masters runner”…and you might be right, however, the rules state anyone over 30 is allowed to compete, and the rules are the rules. Henceforth…

Focused just after the start

When we got to Cumberland traffic was log-jammed. We were barely moving – disaster - I was going to miss the start! 15 minutes before the start, I jumped out of the car and made a dash for the starting area. As I made my way there, on a cold morning like this, other overly-dressed runners were commenting on my short shorts, I always enjoy when they are complimented... I might haven been a bit cold then, but even at 8 degrees in sunshine you are going to get hot when running. Scrambling to get my bib on, I located the starting area, but because Cumberland is 30 minutes away from Ottawa and I had warmed-up by drinking coffee earlier I was now in need of the washroom. Of course, the line-up was huge, no chance. I fiddled around the starting area and squeezed in to the mass of people semi-close to the front runners somewhat self-conscious of the fact others now behind me had been lining up for a while in the cold.  Suddenly, the count-down had started then ended and we were off, me cold but focused. 

As is inevitable when you’re a bit further back in the starting group, I set off at fast pace. It just didn’t seem that fast given that everyone else around me was also running around 5:40/mile pace. Soon things settle down, and while others drifted off pace, I was closing in on the lead runners…Well, apart from one guy wearing fluorescent arm warmers, who was way ahead of everyone else - was he simply an official showing the way? After about 2 mile we reached the first hill.. it was a good climb, but I relished it and gained ground on the others ahead. In fact, there I caught up with a couple of runners and we were now a small group of three. The lead guy was pushing hard during some segments but I was right on his back. This is great, let’s race! Suddenly, another runner come up from behind and pulled ahead. I sized the opportunity to get away from the others by following him in his tracks, but soon it became evident he was running too fast for me. At least I had created a gap to the others behind. 

Not a flat affair. Course elevation map according to my GPS watch (green, not precisely accurate, but you get the idea), my pace shown in blue

After the climb, there was some down-hill running, and my average pace after 3 miles was 6:03, right on target. I turned a corner and a slow, gradual ascend started. I looked at my watch and the pace was now a disappointing 6:20-25. I tried to push a bit harder but my pace remained unchanged. What was happening? Had I really hit the wall this early in the race? Was racing the others so early on a fatal mistake? Was I really in this bad of a shape? Mile 4 was a disappointing 6:20. Mind you, it was steady uphill and the wind was there in my face as the landscape changed from beautiful fall coloured woodland to open farmland. I was still in good shape position-wise and thought I’m just going to keep at it and see how far it gets me no matter my finishing time, however, it did come across my mind as to what I was doing out here racing in rural Cumberland on a cold autumn day like this…Well, the Championships, of course!  Additionally, about this time I really felt the need to make a pit-stop to pee. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that the guy behind me was only trailing by a few seconds. No time to stop, better keep going.

I had brought my iPod with me in case things got tough, and I considered using it now, but then I noticed Anais among a small crowd of on-lookers cheering me on and it was exactly what the doctor had ordered, I picked up the pace, mile 5 was 6:09, much better! I knew things were going to be uphill for a couple of miles at this stage and I was ready. When I turned a corner and headed towards the top of a hill I also changed my stride. I felt like I had been stabbing my feet into the ground, perhaps I was leaning forward too much? Instead, now, I became much lighter on my feet. I kept going uphill realizing that even if I wasn’t going faster now, at least it felt easier. Going uphill slowed me to a 6^th mile of 6:17.

The course was an out-and-back affair and right before the turn-around-point it was all downhill. Here, the two guys ahead of me came back the other way. At the halfway point was also a port-a-potty, but I was in the zone now and felt if I could hold it this long I could hold it longer. So, instead I turned around and headed back uphill. Senorski, the top Swede at Lidingoloppet, recommended a strategy to power-through with your legs when running uphill without using your arms, and I put this to the test by letting my arms fall down my side instead of swinging hard..it worked very well, mile 7 was 6:09.

 I felt fast and became energized seeing all the other runners heading in the opposite direction, and the guy who had been chasing me was now well distanced behind me. Several runners offered me their support in form of encouragements and I have to say it helped, now I was flying back downhill: mile 8 was a speedy 5:55! Then I passed by Anais for a second time and I think possibly I looked in better shape this time around. No longer going downhill, mile 9 was 6:02. Next I hit the slow stretch that had almost broken my spirit during mile 4, and guess what, going the opposite direction was much easier!  Mile 10 was a ridiculously fast 5:54. I realized if I kept this up, I was on pace for sub 1:19, I couldn’t believe it!

At the finish

There was still uphill running ahead and I knew it was only going to get harder from this point on, but when I turned another corner towards the hills I just wasn’t slowing down!  Was this really going to happen? I told myself, “ it’s too bad there are only 3 miles to go, this is so much fun”!  I turned another corner and glanced at my pace watch and noticed it read 5:47 min/mile pace, faaast, but then disaster struck…I had almost slipped once and also stepped into a hole on the side if the road earlier in the race, nearly spraining my anle, but neither could stop me. What could though, was a Rottweiler and some other barking dog unleashed on the side of the road! Qualifying for New York is going to mean nothing if I’m all chewed up and these guys looked angry and moving towards me, I had to stop. I crossed to the other side of the road and walked through someone’s yard. The dogs were out of sight and I had lost time, but worst of all I lost my momentum. I picked it up again, and mile 10 was still a fast 6:05, but now I was angry! I plugged along but suddenly felt less energized, if relieved to have escaped the dogs…

A bit more of uphill followed before cruising down the long hill towards downtown Cumberland; here, it felt like there was just too far to go, 1.5 miles. Mile 12 passed in 6:03 and I believe my average pace was around 6:05/mile. A miracle was needed for me to bring this down to 6:02, particularly as even small hills were slowing me now and I lost my pace. I could hear the announcer at the finish, but nothing really energized me. Even as I entered the finishing grounds and saw my watch surprisingly show a time of only 1:17 I just wasn’t feeling up to it anymore, I was barely moving.

 Once inside the museum grounds the course took a detour and I navigated past 10 k runners and made it over the finishing line in 1:20:31 in 3^rd place. The final mile was tough today, I lost about 30 seconds there. I’ve been training to not drink during my long runs (because I always choke on the water and can’t breathe) and I declined all drinks offered to me; perhaps it wasn’t the smartest choice. I may try to use energy bars next time around. Of course there will be a next time around, perhaps as soon as in November.

Sporting my three medals, and other prizes: one sports bag, one ice cold pain relief gel, one warming rub pain relief applicator, and my favourite: the strain relief cooling spray! I always wanted one. How appropriate for a Master's championship!

So I once again fell short of my time-goal, this time with a bit more, 90 seconds, but when you think about it, that is about 400 meters of half-marathon running, not much! Indeed, I was very happy with my race given the difficult terrain. Icing on the cake, I won a gold medal in the Ontario Masters Half-Marathon championships and received a silver medal (2^nd place in my age group in the race) and as 3^rd place runner overall I received some pretty swell gifts, best of all, a really nice New Balance sports bag! Trifecta: Gold, Silver, Bronze!

Army run Half Marathon race report

On September 23^rd I competed in the Ottawa Army Run half marathon. Now you may ask, “what‘s a guy who avoided serving military service participating in an army run?” Well, not only is this race arguably the biggest half marathon in Ottawa, but it’s also in support of those injured at war, so a great cause to run. Additionally, who wouldn’t be eager to measure themself against the best and fittest of the Canadian armed forces, well, at least of those able to attend?

 In May, I had run a 1:19:35 half on a similar course around Ottawa and this time around I would have the support of my own parents visiting from Sweden and Anais’ recently relocated parents cheering me on towards reaching my goal of breaking 1:19. However, training for the event hadn’t been ideal with me missing just over a week due to a hamstring injury a month before the race. Therefore, much of the preparation was crammed into three weeks, far from ideal, but included a really good 10-mile tempo run a week before the race, which instilled belief 1:19 would be a possibility, but at best a toss-up.  Of course, I was hoping that I would have a “break-through” race and be able to race at a faster pace than ever, but when that has happened in the past there has always been pointers along the way suggesting its possibility and I hadn’t seen any of those so.. I felt ok about my chances and knew that on a bad day I would probably still be able to run around 1:21-22. 

Last time around (in the Ottawa half in May), I had almost missed the start of the race as I was standing in line for the washroom but there was no chance of that happening this time around as we were able to change at Anais’ work located a stone-throw from the start of the race. As I warmed-up outside her office I noticed a huge crowd had gathered at the starting area so I alerted Anais and company that we better head over. Good luck kisses exchanged, I ran ahead into an area of chaos where people were desperately scrambling to get to their allocated starting area through a single entrance in the fence behind a seating area and no one was moving. I was way back in the field, disaster! With three minutes to go to the start I made the decision to turn and run around the thousands of people lined up and try to enter through the opposite side of the starting area, success! Almost noone was trying to enter from the other side so I found myself unbelievably close to the front of the line. And thanks to the nice guy who pointed out an opening in the fence I didn’t have to jump it either. Booooooooooom, the cannon goes off and the race is on! Apart from a guy jogging right in front of me the start went exceptionally well and we entered my favorite part of the course: after a quick sprint uphill on Elgin we turned left in front of the parliament with plenty of crowd support and from here down Wellington to Lebreton it is smooth sailing downhill. The 1^st mile was 5:56 - I was passing others and I felt good. Reaching the barren area of Lebreton flats, the strength of the wind became unpleasantly apparent and I had to push to stay on pace. As I didn’t want to use up too much energy early on, I settled into a decent pace just over goal pace (my goal was 6:02) and I was still catching runners; one in particular I felt bad for was holding on to his taped up hamstring... I told myself to be happy I was able to race today and carried on. 

The wind was gusting and I found myself running undesirably slow around 6:10. I was in no-man’s land, a sitting duck for the enemy the wind to fire at! I needed shelter. There was a group of runners about 100 meters ahead but catching up would mean a significant effort I wasn’t willing to make this early on in the race. The 2^nd mile was 6:05. Mile 3 was pretty much the same, gusting wind combined with some inclines made things uncomfortable. Then I spotted the lead group coming back the other way down the parkway, so I figured the turn-around-point was coming up, and what a relief it was! The 3^rd mile was 6:06, but I had had to push to avoid falling further behind my target and I was mad now! Right then I was caught up with for the first time. “Where did he come from”? Probably caught up with the masses at the start I suppose. Sporting the shirt of a regiment I let him proceed ahead. Mile 4 was a completely different story with the wind in my back. There was another incline on the parkway but it was easy to stay on pace; however, I still felt like I had expanded too much energy to be this early in the race because of the wind. An amazing amount of runners were heading towards the turnaround point on the other side of the road, I just couldn’t believe how many there were, and then I heard one of them cheering me on and I waved back; it was my Anais.  Mile 4 was 5:58, and back on track!

Thumbs up if you're tired

Mile 5 involves turning into Gatineau and passing the war museum with its tanks and aircraft - were there to be a surprise obstacle course heading over the bridge into Quebec perhaps? Land mines? Previously, last year in this race and in the May race, I have always felt good at this part of the course and so too this time, but then surprisingly another runner caught up with me! This one looked like a retired Navy seal, nice! At least he was dressed the part and sporting silver hair. Since he wasn’t running out of range I was intent on not letting him pull ahead. Reaching Gatineau there is a hill and we caught several runners here; mile 5 was 5:59. When we passed a couple of amputees competing in the injured soldier race, we cheered them on. The navy seal pulled a head, but in the hills of Gatineau I felt fast and returned the favour. Downhill I was fast, and I pulled ahead, but there are a few tight corners and mile 6 passed in 6:01. I gathered some strength for the bridge back into Ottawa, but I was breathing a little too hard for my liking now. Reaching the bridge, a guy dressed in orange joined us and there were now three of us. I was pleased the bridge didn’t slow me like it had in the May half, and as we re-connected with downtown Ottawa the support of the onlookers gave me goose bumps and helped carry me up the hill leading back into Ottawa. I didn’t notice at the time, but the first 10k was around 37:30 and exactly where I wanted to be. I was delighted to spot the all-star support of the group consisting of my parents and Anais sister and parents by the National gallery; I waved and smiled. I had told them I would be there at 9:40am and I was right on! Here, we turned a corner and headed downhill and out of the downtown core towards Rockliffe park. Mile 7 had passed in 6:00 but I was starting to feel the hint of a side pinch. “Just bring it to mile 9, then your almost there”, I thought.  

To conserve energy for the miles ahead, I let my foot off the gas a bit during the 8th mile and allowed the others pulled a head. By the Rideau falls there was a huge gust of wind, but because this stretch was mainly downhill it still clock fast at 6:02 with average pace now at 6:00. The funniest thing occurred here at a water station when a woman yelled “only half way to go now”…Thanks, but not true!  During the next mile I caught a couple of runners, including the navy seal, but it also covered some smaller hills and my pace dropped to 6:09. I then spotted the 14 km sign and it was a real sucker punch: I had done all this hard work up to this point already and there was still 1/3^rd to go!? Being in mile 9 sounded much better than 14 km out of 21! Here, the seal tried to surge ahead during a downhill stretch, but I responded once more..”This is it, it’s time to go”! I picked it up a bit to 5:50 pace and pulled a head. I saw some familiar faces and felt strong, “I can do this”!  Then I returned back over the falls and there was the wind again, and a hill… A water station was coming up, did I need a drink? Last second I decided to grab one but it was awkward and I lost my stride and the water tasted like it was from a war zone. Mile 10 was 6:01 and right on target, but I had slowed down the last part of it.  I was catching another runner, but as we closed in on downtown and turned a corner, a gust of wind made him appear to be moving in slow motion, yet, I wasn’t  getting any closer..In fact, the entire part through downtown seemed uphill and into the wind. Someone yelled “great form, looking strong”; I thought, “liar”.  It was tough now, I just didn’t seem to be able to go any faster than 6:15.  Near the end of mile 11, which passed in 6:14, the parents were there to cheer me on again; however, this time I couldn’t afford a wave…With their encouragements I tried picking it up once more, but I was soon back into the 6:15 rut.

Runner 11935 has a 1:19:35 half marathon PR

 Along the canal, the cheering turned scarcer and the wind picked up when turning the corner along Colonel By towards Pretoria bridge. The cheering actually turned pretty loud once more around this point, that is when the navy seal caught up with me again… I finally reached the bridge and got out of the wind but there were only negative thoughts now, such as “Never again a half”… I laugh at it now, but I was in pain and unable to go any faster. The navy seal had pulled ahead and I knew I had missed my target of 1:19. I probably could have pushed a bit harder here, but I knew the seconds of difference wasn’t going to make any meaningful difference. I closed in on the finish and saw the timer counting up towards 1:20. I sprinted all I had the last few 100 m and made it just under in 1:19:56 and 20th place. I was greeted by parents after the finish line, me disappointed but still feeling good.

I really wanted to run sub 1:19, but sometimes you just can’t will yourself to reaching goals. Then again, I question how much I really wanted to run faster in the end: I most certainly could have pushed harder and through the pain the last mile but knowing my goal (of sub 1:19) was out of reach I saw no point of doing that. Evidence is the pictures of me near the finish - I look tired, but not dying tired. When you don’t meet your goal you have to feel disappointed, no matter knowing that achieving the goal would only have brought you to 17^th place rather than 20^th..I lost about 40 seconds over the last 3 miles, a classic half marathon “collapse”. I was only 20 seconds slower than my fastest half, so pretty much the same really, and not at all entirely sucky.   Today, I feel like I made the right decision not to break myself as training since the race has proceeded exceptionally well, while after the half in May I needed a break. I suppose not meeting my time spurred me on to keep training hard, and it’s been going well, so well I signed up to compete in the Ontario Half Marathon Masters Championships ! But that story deserves its own post. Thanks again everyone for supporting me during the army run!