Next stop ... Boylston Street

It's taken about five years and eight marathons ... but it has finally come to fruition.

I'll be running the Boston Marathon as a runner who met the qualification standard.

Like me, many people have this on their so-called 'bucket list' of races - and so I'm humbled and honoured to have finally made it onto the list of 2016 entrants.  On Monday April 18 I'll be lining up with 29999 other athletes in Hopkinton, MA to tackle the 120th edition of the world's oldest annual marathon.

One does not get here without a plan - and nor does one step up to it without one.  The numerous seasons of training schedules are now in the books, so it's time to define my goals for this event.  As I'm often inclined to do I've set three 'levels' of goals:

• 'A' goal - relish the people/atmosphere/experience
• 'B' goal - relish the people/atmosphere/experience
• 'C' goal - relish the people/atmosphere/experience.

Thank you to all of you who have cheered, challenged, encouraged and enabled me to get to this point.  I hope that after all of your investments and mine I can hit one of my goals for this historic marathon weekend.

#GOlikeneverbefore #haveafastday #RunNinjaRun

Next stop ... Boylston Street

ain't no mountain high enough ...

it's almost time to get crazy.

with less than two weeks to go until The North Face Endurance Challenge Series GORE-TEX® 50 Mile trail race i'm into full-on fat-loading and taper mode.  so far for 2015 i've logged over 2800km in workouts, a good proportion of that i would consider as build-up for this ultramarathon.  i've gotten in my interval work, long runs, hill sprints (up and down), and time trials.  aside from a few short-lived knee issues i've managed to stay injury-free and post several encouraging race times that lead me to believe that i'm in good shape to be able to complete this event upright.

which means that it's now also time to start thinking about goal-setting.

i've said from the outset that since this is an entirely new distance test for me that my #1 objective in this race is simply to survive it.  however, to be fair that goal was originally considered against the context of my experience running 56km in the 2014 limberlost challenge where i felt like i was trudging through the valley of the shadow of death.  now, having finished my 50k at sulphur springs in a much more encouraging time i feel like i want to be a bit more ambitious (without being presumptuous).

so once again with the intention of having the small circle of people who read this blog hold me accountable, here are my three goal levels:

• 'A' goal - finish within top 10 for my age-group
• 'B' goal - finish in between 8:30-9:00 hours
• 'C' goal - finish and stay out of the medical staff tent.

there you have it!  for now i'm going to be eagerly watching the weather forecast to see just what kind of ambient conditions we'll be facing that day and trying to nail down just which pieces of gear i'll be using.  i know for certain that i'll be wearing the skechers GORun Ultra 2 and using my nathan quickdraw elite handheld and princeton tec remix headlamp, but it's still up in the air whether or not i'll be wearing the original SPIbelt or a bottle-less ultimate direction AK 2.0 race vest to carry nutrition.

and there are still spots available if you're interested - register online and don't forget to use the promo code D30PVON15 for a 15% discount on any race distance!

ain't no mountain high enough ...

an ode to getting old

though the dawn still breaks
and the roads remain open
and the will still presses on

there's a toll that time takes
on aging muscle and bone
and weathering skin that once shone.

all the focus on running form,
cadence, training plans,
lactate threshold and nutrition

only weather so much of the storm,
when injury and circumstance
hinder goals from coming to fruition.

 ... and you can already tell that i'm not much of a poet.

this ode comes to you courtesy of my preparation for this week's running of the sulphur springs 50k trail race - and one ailing knee.

it could be that once again i've not given myself enough time post-marathon to recover properly.  after all, i did put out a PB effort just over four weeks ago - and i thought that taking a full five out of the seven following days off from running would provide me with sufficient rest to ease back into training for this ultra distance event.  but just about 10 days ago (following the MEC barrie race two) i began experiencing resting (as in during my sleep) pain on the anterior side of my right kneecap that would effectively lock my leg in position.  it was discernibly swollen and sore to the touch, but with some self-administered massage/rolling i was able to continue training through it.

this week i strung together two off days in the hopes of getting it primed for a solid race effort this weekend, but it still seems to be on the edge of getting funky.  i know that in terms of my year-at-a-glance planning i'd mapped out this race as more of a preparatory/training event in advance of the north face endurance challenge series 50 miler this july, but the competitive side of me says that i have more of a shot at doing well in the 50k distance - that and my main goal for the 50 miler is just to survive it.

i'm going to give it the best of what i've got in ancaster on saturday - fat loading is done, several weeks of ultra training are in the bank, and now its time to lay out my goals so that any of you who read this post can hold me somewhat accountable to them:

• 'A' goal - finish top 10 for my age-group
• 'B' goal - finish top 25 overall
• 'C' goal - finish with a sub 5-hour time.

there you have it - i'm eager to see how this race turns out for a number of reasons.  i feel like i learned a lot from jim and my experience at the limberlost challenge 56k last year, particularly in the area of nutrition.  i'm also still riding the momentum of my marathon PB.  what'll be most interesting is how my knee holds up and the fact that i'm not particularly familiar with the sulphur springs course (unless it traverses some of the same terrain that we took during the raid the hammer adventure race last fall).  it will also be great to see a number of friends who will also be at sulphur springs to tackle various distances from the 100 miler to the 10k, including my running pals rolf, dave, kathleen, steen, ashley, amanda, robin, 'fast bill' and steve.

time to kick up some dust - or eat some!

#getyourmilesin  #GOlikeneverbefore

an ode to getting old

the best laid plans

it's race week once again!

it's boston marathon monday - which means that i'm glued to my tv and just about every social media outlet providing updates and live coverage of the race.  there are numerous friends that i'm following who are competing at this iconic marathon today, including (and here's my shout-out!):

• erin barrie (of the barrie roadrunners) - bib #16673
• sherman lam (of team running free) - bib #5681
• vicar li (a fellow skechers performance canada brand ambassador) - bib #2957
• stefan albinsson (a salming brand ambassador) - bib #4596
• sage canaday (elite ultramarathoner) - bib #28

the london marathon will be run this weekend as well - another world marathon major, and one of the most exciting races of the year for me.  they consistently put together one of the most competitive fields available, which means fast paces and awesome rivalries.

but for me, my focus will be on sunday's waterloo marathon - my first big race of the 2015 season, and an event that i've never run before.

to this point i've had a great series of months in training, following the Hansons Marathon Method.  i've tried to incorporate some new elements into my preparation for this race, including a tempo-finish long run, and fat-loading as part of my taper.

time to for at least one more new thing to try before reaching the starting line - and that's to post my goals.

like many runners who invest months (if not years) of focus before putting their legs to the test, i have the tendency to second-guess my ability and readiness.  as such, in the past i've kept my cards close to my chest and not shared broadly what i hope to accomplish in any given run. 

but you know what - i wanted to freshen things up for myself this year, so here goes nothing.

as is often recommended i have set three goal levels (as there are so many things that can happen over the course of 26.2 miles):

• 'A' goal - finish in the top 3 for my age-group
• 'B' goal - finish with a 3:10 time or better
• 'C' goal - run a negative-split.

this is big step for me - i'm confident of my conditioning, that i've exercised sufficient mental discipline to see my training plan through, and now it's just about believing that i'm as good as i can be.  just recently i read an older article about the frame of mind that sets many elite athletes apart - they carry an unshakeable sense that they're entirely capable of winning the races that they enter.  and since running (especially distance running) is arguably more mental than physical - my friend and running sensei jim repeatedly reminds me that 'running is 90% psychological and the other 10% is in your head' - i believe that i'm ready to rock the waterloo marathon.

to all of you who have shared your support on facebook, twitter, dailymile, strava and by email - not to mention those who have logged miles with me in training - thank you so very much.  i promise to make you proud!

#GOlikeneverbefore

the best laid plans

not this year ... or ever?

i found out yesterday that i was not accepted into the 2015 Boston Marathon field.

 

i'll admit that i was more disappointed than i thought that i would be ... ever since attaining my Boston qualifying time i said that regardless of whether or not i make it to the start line in hopkinton that i would be satisfied knowing that i'd met their standard.  and i would say that from an intellectual standpoint that perspective remains true.

 

maybe it was the lag time between achieving my BQ and actually having the opportunity to register that left me with the space to imagine/envision actually being there.  perhaps it was the fact that they had more spots open to qualified runners than in 2012 that gave me a faint sense of hope.  either way it wound up that i had actually put eggs in the basket that was not in my grasp yet - and thus the letdown blow.

 

numerous people have expressed their own form of 'condolence' or encouragement upon hearing about my status as a non-entrant, all of which i appreciate.  some have said that they are confident that i can better even my currently posted marathon PR time; others have pointed out what i'd already known, that should i aim for the 2016 Boston Marathon i will move up to the next age category for which the qualification time will be 3:25:00.

 

the question that remains for me is 'do i?'.

 

achieving my BQ time of 3:14:43 was the result of focused physical training, but also the product of unfocused psychological training.

 

i didn't set my sights on qualifying for Boston.

 

for several years now i'd been pushing to hit that mark, and falling short.  in fact at this time last year i ended up running the worst marathon that i'd run since my first one - i seemed to moving backwards instead of forwards.  in light of that, i decided that i'd put too much pressure on myself to attain this high level of athletic performance and that i needed to back off. 

 

focus on something else ... like running my first ultra.

 

and as part of my training, i would run a marathon.  the result was a BQ time.

 

so i've decided to play another game of reverse psychology, or at least goal management.  i've removed 'running in the Boston Marathon' from my list of ambitions.

 

maybe i'm just not meant to get there.

 

maybe i am.

 

either way, i'm not going to put energy into thinking about what it might be like or when it will happen. 

 

for now it's back to the drawing board - and focusing on putting one foot in front of the other.

 

(only faster)

 

#GOlikeneverbefore

not this year ... or ever?

what doesn't kill you

since i started this running thing (back in the spring of 2009) i've really not let anything slow me down. from the treadmill to the road, there have been numerous goals that have kept me getting out of bed and lacing up the shoes:

• run non-stop through the entire album version of paradise by the dashboard light
• finish a half-marathon
• run a sub-1:30 half-marathon
• finish a full marathon
• run a sub-4:00 marathon
• run a sub-3:30 marathon
• qualify for boston (sub-3:15 marathon)

so far i've managed to hit all the marks except for the last one, and i hope to put a strikethrough line across it before the dawn of 2014.

in order to realize those aspirations, there's been some dogged determination injected as everyone gets obstacles thrown into their way.  those challenges can range from the mundane to the serious to the wild and wacky - i've seen most varieties in my own journey.  here are just some of the things that i've dealt with in trying to make sure that i was able to stick to my schedule/training plan:

• snowstorms that have downed hydro lines and forced major road closures
• colds
• flu
• pneumonia (note:  powering through this probably wasn't the smartest idea)
• being chased (for several kilometres) by stray dogs in rural romania

the strays in romania come in all shapes and sizes
• getting lost while running through the streets of detroit
• recurring bouts of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
• mysterious knee pain
• grade 1 quad strains
• exercise-induced asthma
• the normal rigmarole of kids' schedules, work projects
• the abnormal rigmarole of working nine straight 15+ hour workdays helping to oversee the 1000+ volunteers of The Rogers Cup.

certainly in the grand scheme of things my list doesn't even compare to those who have to overcome diseases like cancer, or the demands of caring for dependents who have special needs, or dealing with special physical demands (like the coach i worked with this year, rick ball).

i suppose that the bottom line is that there are always excuses readily available as to why i (and why you) could choose not to run.  and i recognize that there are times that discretion is the better part of valour.  but i'm always inspired by the stories of people who choose the path less travelled, who stare down the forces that oppose them and manage to find a better version of themselves emerging from the struggle.

what wages against you to keep you from running or exercising?  

what doesn't kill you

the method to the madness

my friend and running partner/inspiration trevor morgan has just written a great piece about the lessons that he's learned in and through running.  not just a great athlete, but a great writer as well - make sure you check this out!  http://renaissancenow.ca/2013/09/02/reaching-goals/

the method to the madness