Birch Bay 30km Race Report... following the Moment of Truth

So.... remember how I was a little anxious about the Birch Bay 30km just two days ago? Well, the day has passed, and now it's time to reflect and learn. The day started at the ungodly hour of 4:45am. The plan was to get up at 5am, prep, and then leave the house at 5:30, so we would make it to the border by 6:30. That part was accomplished, which allowed me to check in for my race bag by 6:40am. I was really impressed how well organized this event was, with tons of friendly volunteers and roarin' to go by 7am. It worked out well, as it allowed us lots of time to go to the one area that I wasn't familiar with on the course, Semiahmoo Parkway, and see what the turnaround was like. I have to admit that I was a little nostalgic. After all, this was the same course where I first qualified for Boston last year, and it was nice to revisit, as my prep race before Boston. It really felt full circle. We drove to the turnaround, and proceeded UP the hill to follow the course back to the start line. The interesting thing about this race was that it was a completely new distance for me. It's a little more serious than the half (that additional 9km does do a kick in the pants), but not as dramatic a distance as the marathon. I probably should have tapered to some degree, but the only thing I did was not run on Thursday and Friday. My legs were still sore and tired from last Sunday's 32km Pancake Run, and I had been experiencing hip and achilles issues all week. Greg also took over my eating plan, so I have been subsiding on 1200 calories a day, which left me feeling a little hungry. The race itself started as one mass start, for all of the 5km, 15km and 30km participants. Interesting approach, and the one thing I had to remind myself was that the volume of people would decrease as we moved through the different stages. My strategy was to go out conservative, then push it a bit more during the mid stage and then try to negative split the last third if possible. I had a couple of friends who were also doing the race. My friend Grace was planning on running a similar pace to me, and so I chose to run behind her for the first 7km-ish before we moved onto the hills section. Once we moved onto the hills, I tried to be consistent in my pacing, and really pay attention to my heart race and breathing. This time of year seems to aggravate my asthma, so I was trying to make sure that I stayed comfortable. After all, it was 9km uphill gradual climb, settle out with a downhill for the turnaround and then 9km downhill. Around 13km I started to have a tough time with the breathing, so at an aid station, I took a cup of water after taking a gel, to bring the heart rate down from 165bpm to 159bpm. Those 6 beats can really make a difference between gasping and coping. I had to stop again at 20km with another glass of water, choked momentarily, and then a woman who was running right behind me, took off, and I couldn't catch her again. By the time I was coming to the last 5km, I was really starting to feel it, and I really wanted to stop, as the heart rate was averaging around 163bpm. But I pushed through and wanted to prove to myself that I am meeting my Boston training goals, and this race would prove it. The race has at the last 150 meters, a small hill that is about 8% grade. Bit of a kicker when you are trying to gut it out. The woman who had passed me earlier, had to walk it, and I pushed myself to keep running and almost catch her. She finished just ahead of me, but I was really happy with the result. So.... these are the stats: Time was 2:35:30, goal was 2:35 - Mission Accomplished! Pace 5:11/km Overall placing, 20th, 7th woman, and 3rd in the Women's 35-39 Age Category. I came home with another shiny new medal, a pretty 3rd place ribbon, and a big smile on the face. The only other thing I came home with, was wicked stomach cramping, puking and upset tummy. Something tells me I may have the flu. But I will work through it, because this means I am officially tapering for the Boston Marathon. On a side note, I was thrilled for my friends who did this race. It looks like everyone achieved what they set out to do which is always great to hear. Good on ya guys, way to rock it!

Moment of Truth

So here it is, Friday night, and doing what I would normally do when there is a hockey game on... sit on the computer and obsess about running. However, today I have a good reason to obsess, as I am running the Birch Bay 30km in the morning.

I have to admit that I am a little nervous about this race. I`ve never done a race of this distance before, and it feels a little foreign to be honest. It`s not like the standard half marathon, and definitely not a full. But I think where the nervous hints of trepidation lies, is that I am treating this as my MOMENT OF TRUTH run.

I had a few friends suggest to me to do this run as my last long run before Boston as a benchmark for what I should aim for as a pace for Boston. Really when you think about it, when training for a race, you have a fairly good idea of what pace to do, but there still is the question mark of whether you are as trained as you think you are.

This bit of anxiety stems from my February. I had a rockin race at the First Half half marathon, and achieved a new PB- 1:43:42. I am quite happy with how that came together. However, immediately following, I came down with a seriously nasty cold that lasted for two solid weeks. And once I decided I was well enough (loosely put), I ran 32km in the big snowfall last week. (Okay, so I decided to be completely stubborn and stupid, it happens!). Running in the snow in North Van & West Van was great, there were no issues, and due to padded district budgets, there was heaps of snow removed and salt = no snow on the roads. However, bliss came to an end when I encountered slush at Dundarave, which became a test of balance for about 5km. Needless to say, I finished my run in more of a clamshell position due to the hip flexors packing it in. So my February dampened my confidence and instilled the speck of fear for tomorrow. ´(Like my long story short.)

I am looking forward to getting out to Birch Bay again. After all, it`s where I first qualifed for Boston, and the views were spectacular out there, looking to the North Shore mountains. Following the race, we will do a bit of shopping before heading home to relax.

On a separate note, we are confirmed for our glam hotel in Boston. We are staying at the Ames Hotel, which will be a 1-mile stagger from the finish line. I am really starting to get excited about our upcoming trip and doing the race. Yay! Did I mention it is now only 23 days away...

Highs and Lows

For some very odd reason, I have always liked Thursdays. Perhaps it's the final stretch of the week, one more sleep until sleep in territory, or that I was born on a Thursday. I dunno, but for some reason, I like them.

Today happened to be one of those days where I wasn't quite enjoying it. The past few days have left me tired both mentally and physically, and I am trying to get in the right mental game for my upcoming 30km road race, the Birch Bay 30km.

One of the challenges I have been dealing with, is dealing with friends. Bless Facebook, for the opportunity to connect with friends, keep up to date on happenings, and catch a glimpse of what other people face in a day. Through facebook, I have been keeping tabs on a couple of friends. Two in particular, as they both have been dealing with their own struggles. The first friend, K, is dealing with breast cancer. She just underwent another surgery to hopefully clear the last of the cancerous tumours and rid her of this horrible disease. K, like usual, has had the most amazing attitude. Nothing stops this woman from making the absolute most out of life, and it's pretty obvious that cancer isn't going to stop her. She's pretty darn incredible, and I have to say that I feel blessed that I know her as a wonderful friend. So I am rooting for her as she heals from surgery on Tuesday.

A second friend, Miss E, was someone from my running days. She has had a tough time in recent years, and is currently in a position where she is now homeless and struggles to deal with addiction. The only support it seems that I can offer, is messages of support and encouragement, and telling her not to give up.

When dealing with circumstances such as what my friends have endured, it really puts things into perspective. We all get "lifed", but it's how you deal with those issues, that make you who you are. Sometimes when you think that you can't fathom anything worse, the universe dishes another blow. But then, you turn a corner, and it changes completely. And it's pretty incredible to see how you can go from a deep valley, to a spectacular vista.

So through it all, be nice to yourself in those valleys, for the beautiful view at the top will be absolutely worth it.

Boston Approaching!

So today I received a special little email from the folks at the Boston Athletic Association. I have to admit, every time I receive an update from them, my heart goes a flutter. How could it not with something like the Boston Marathon?

I am told that I can expect to receive my race documents so I can pick up my race package. I am starting to get really excited about going to Boston, and have created a tentative list of things to do and see while there. In fact, the list includes:

• Pick up race gear



• Buy Finisher’s Gear after the race!



• Go to see the Boston Red Sox!



• Visit Harvard University



• Patriot’s Day celebrations



• Faneuil Hall Quincy Marketplace. (Originally built in 1826 as a meat and green grocery hall, it now contains over 100 shops, cafés and restaurants).



• Go for a great dinner in North End, full of Italian restaurants



• RunBoston running tour (http://www.runboston.org/)



• Outlet mall- Kittery in New Hampshire (1hr north of Boston, and 1 mile of outlets)



• Wrentham Premium outlet mall

There is no sales tax on clothes under US$175 and only a 6.25% sales tax otherwise. Can you tell, I am excited??? Shopping in the states, yay!!!

In other news, I have been working on my plan for the upcoming Birch Bay 30km on Saturday. I have to admit, I am not sure what the best strategy should be going in. I have nicknamed this race "The Moment of Truth." It will certainly reveal how well the training has really gone. But also, it will give me one last big run before I begin taper for Boston.

Have I mentioned shopping following Birch Bay too? ;-)

2 Seconds per mile...

Apparently, that's what it equates to when you lose 1lb... two seconds per pound per mile.

Although I swear I have been pretty darn good in eating and tracking these days, the weight has not been coming off as part of the Boston training. It's gotten to be a bit frustrating really. So my lovely husband sat me down last night for a "talk." He's willing to prepare all my meals for me for the next 3.5 weeks, around 1200cals, as long as I stick to it. I was a little blown away by his proposal, and so of course, I agreed. It won't be easy, but clearly, I have the best husband ever.

My hip flexors, gastroc and all sorts of other ligaments and tendons are super duper tight these days. Made the trip to the chiro this evening a little tense and interesting. I have been given the instructions to take the Stick to it, and roll out the knots. And then return in 1 week, after my Birch Bay 30km.

Just goes to show that I like to keep things interesting. Besides, what would training be like if it were completely injury-free?

The Hamster Wheel

Ever have one of those days when you come home from work, feeling a little exhausted and like you didn't get anything done? A day where you may have just felt you were running on a hamster wheel? Well, that's me, at 6:29pm, fresh home from work.



My company hired a new president six months ago who was "sales driven." This in turn, has created a whole new focus on building business and growing our existing accounts, rah, rah, rah. You catch my drift. Anyhow, there are just some days where I come home more exhausted than when I woke up.

But thank goodness it's my designated rest day! And to celebrate the occassion, I wore my brand new compression socks to work today, and made no apologies. I am such a trigeek! Hee!

In the meantime, I will see how long it takes before the hubby comes home, which should be anytime. Perhaps I should go see if we have any food for dinner.

Bossy Bessie from Broadway

So today was a special day. Not only being officially the first day of Spring (yay!), but was also the coveted "Pancake Run", held by the Denman Running Room here in Vancouver. This is a long-standing tradition during the course of training for the Vancouver Marathon, where the different Running Rooms in the lower mainland converge to Denman, and have the opportunity to run part of the Vancouver Marathon course. It is always an interesting day, as you have the opportunity to catch up with some old friends, as well as run with people from all corners of the lower mainland.

I came to the event with an agenda, and frankly, I will not apologize. Primarily, it was to make it clear from the very beginning, that I was going to focus on pace and not participate in a 32km hammerfest. For many, this is the first crack at the longest distance in the program, and the longest they have ever run. For me, it was an opportunity to get one of my biggest workouts, without being completely blown apart because the pace was too fast.

I recognized within the first 300m that I had to speak up and fast or else it would have been too fast a pace. There were others who jumped in and backed me up to focus on working together to ensure that we maintained the 5:45/km pace. I have to admit that my old bossy ways surfaced, and quite frankly, it was like a visit from a good old friend. Hehe.

Things went well. In fact, I think it was one of the best runs I've had this training schedule, largely due to the fact that we were consistent in our pace. The weather was awesome and I didn't forget any nutrition, so things were great. No chafing as well. In all, it was a 20-miler success story.

Following the run, I put on the fancy-dancy new compression socks. I feel so.... compressed. We'll see if all this hype of 25% faster recovery is factual, or a bunch of ballyhoo. I will keep you posted.

So I am off to get cleaned up, do much of nothing, and then Chinese Food with Aunty Anne! Ciao!