This Week's Training - Winter Prep

Well hello everyone. I can’t believe that is will be December next week. And to top it off we are one month to Christmas tomorrow! Thankfully I have a full month until the last shopping day before that. Lots of time to get ready…

Brrr! Last weekend reminded me of an article that I wrote with a couple of other Calgary runners. My buddy Pete's rule number one of winter running. "When your eyelashes freeze together, stop!" Wise advice from a crazy friend. Still can’t figure out why he won’t try the www.beerbike.hu? I guess since he doesn’t hydrate like me would be the wise reason. See the attached article from my friends at http://impactmagazine.ca/. They always have great articles to refresh our minds. Thanks Elaine for the opportunity to share advice. I feel so Dear Abby.

Hey, the weather is better this weekend so we will try another trot from Max Bell and head north on the Nose Creek Pathway. Let’s check out the new science centre, a couple of golf courses, and if we go far enough, Green Gate Garden Centre should have great Christmas displays to lighten the pockets…See you at Max Bell for 9 am. If you don’t know where this is just email me or call my cell.

Are you all enjoying the transition from the high temperatures we had over the summer to the snow and cool of last weekend? A huge clap for those that braved the cold (and those that braved their treadmills)and finished their long training day last weekend. I had the pleasure of -31 wind chill for just over a half marathon with Jen who will be heading to Hawaii in a couple of weeks. She trooped it out for 31 km! One dirty ugly km for each negative degree. Thanks for the coffee at the end.

This reminds me of the excuse question I put forth last week. We had many replies, even some I could print, and I promised to share them here. So what I have:

-          ’my hair is too fabulous to go out in this wind’

-          ‘Not in for tomorrow, I'm gonna stay inside haha’ 

-          I forgot my shoes (this one is mine…how lame!)

-          I was up till 1 last night, so I'm now very tired

-          It's really cold

-          I have a treadmill now and a very strong dog who will want to run with me tomorrow

-          Carroll isn't going. (awww)

-          (edited version) I personally don't like not be able feel my joint working properly for first 30 minutes

Not bad, I expected more especially from the synonym names, if you know what I mean. I noticed that Joy never offered up any excuses? Strange…

This machine would definitely cut down on excuses!

I love telling first-timers that when they complete their goal they will have set a PR. It sounds so accomplished! I have two PR’s I am proud of, 22 samples of wine in Medoc over 26.2 miles and 6 beer over the same distance in Belgium. It is tough to attain these goals, but I am always willing to give my best effort!

IT'S A PR

A Light-hearted Look At Personal Records

Published June 9, 1997, in The Post-Standard.

By Dr Kamal Jabbour, Contributing Writer

According to the Oxford Dictionary of Running, a PR (pronounced pee arr), or personal record, is a runner's best time at a given distance. My PR at 800 meters is 2:26.6. This is the fastest I have ever run 800 meters. The PR is a beginner's best friend and a veteran's fondest memory.

When you change from jogger into runner by entering your first 5K race, you also run your first PR. It is the fastest you have ever run a 5K race. Subsequent 5K races may result in more PRs, as you develop confidence and speed. However, this initial streak of PRs eventually comes to an end. Improvement comes at greater pain, and PRs come fewer and far in between.

All is not lost. A renowned PR expert advises runners to diversify. When you can no longer improve at 5K, consider running a 2-miler or a 10K. Races are held at every imaginable distance from 50-meter sprints to TransAmerica ultra-marathons. Races at metric distances tend to be shorter than those at imperial distances. Enjoy the thrills of both the 1500 meters and the mile. Experience the unparalleled pain of the 400- meter dash. Wave to friends at the end of a 15K and a 10-miler.

By now, your PR portfolio has a dozen entries at different distances. Weekend after weekend, you cross the finish line looking good and you shout to the crowds: "IT'S A PR!" Alas, one day you run out of new distances, and you are unable to improve at any of them.

When you exhaust the various distances available in your area, it is time to travel. Combine the family vacation with a race at an unusual distance. New England is full of races at distances like 7 miles 131 yards and 2 feet.

Despite your best intentions, the day comes to consider more drastic measures. It is time to separate your PRs into categories. Keep separately a track 5K PR, a road 5K PR and a cross-country trail 5K PR. Divide your track PRs into an indoor track 5K PR and an outdoor track 5K PR. Further divide track PRs into fully automatic timing PRs and hand timed PRs. Similarly, divide your road PRs into a point-to-point course 5K PR, a loop course 5K PR and an out-and-back course 5K PR.

Do not forget that point-to-point courses can be level, uphill, downhill, or even wind-aided. Maintain a separate PR for each. On the subject of wind, the weather plays a significant role in road races. Therefore, maintain separate PRs for hot weather, cold weather, rainy weather and fair weather. Better yet, break your PR list into spring, summer, fall and winter PRs.

In fairness to race directors and course designers, we should recognize that no two road races are created equal. Therefore, consider maintaining a course PR for each race, which we will call a CPR.

Age is a good friend of runners. The wonderful invention of 5-year age groups permits us to compete against runners our age. It also gives us the opportunity to reset our PRs and start all over every five years. Now you can have a diapers PR, an elementary school PR, a middle school PR, a high school PR, a college PR, an open PR, a sub-masters PR, a masters PR, an AARP PR, a senior PR and a back-to-diapers PR. Life repeats itself. Anyway, to maintain scientific rigor, mathematicians go a step further and recommend maintaining single-age PRs that you can reset at every birthday.

Short of undergoing a sex-change operation and starting a new PR list in the opposite gender, you may consider combining running with another sport. There are run-bike duathlons, run-shoot biathlons, swim-bike-run triathlons, run-bike-canoe rowathons, and my favourite run-eat-sleep carboloadathons.

A treatise on PRs remains incomplete until PR's evil twin PW is recognized. PW (pronounced pee wee), or personal worst, refers to a runner's worst performance at a given distance. PWs are a lot easier to achieve than PRs, as evidenced by the baby boomers generation.

Kamal Jabbour drives a green minivan with license plate ITS A PR.

His 5K out-and-back flat-course wind-aided summer-season all-age

hand- timed PR is 19:32.8. His list of PRs can be found on The

Syracuse Running Page. His RUNNING Column appears in The Post-

Standard on Mondays.

Brrr, what is your excuse?

Yep, it arrived, first in Edmonton with a dump of snow and from what I hear some cold wind at -24C. Then we found this same wind and snow starting inconveniently at the start of last night’s training in Mission. Yep, winter running is here and we can’t avoid it! This weather also brings with it some of my favourite excuses. So today I have homework for the 300 or so of you that read (or delete) my weekly yada-yada. What is your best excuse for not ‘getting out there’?

I will share (without publishing the author) with you all next week. My personal favourite: “I threw my back out ironing my dress shirt”. Yep, true it was, but it wasn’t me. I rarely push aside the peer pressure and avoid running. Joy didn’t see this within our marriage vows and curses the cold mornings that I make her ‘share’ in the experience. That is love my friends, love that is…

This week is the big one for our friends off to Hawaii and the Honolulu marathon. Great, the last long training day for Jen, Stephanie, Leslie, Carrie, Linda, Minako, Rebecca, Marvin, and of course Ron. Only three weeks until your big day! Remember (not misspelled like last week) that your full experience of training will give you results in Honolulu. If this weekend does not go as planned due to weather you still have the other few months of training that will carry you to 42.2 (ish).

For those trotting the trails in Calgary tomorrow, we will meet at Eau Claire for 9 am. Jen will be running much earlier with her husband if there are any friends that wish to start MUCH earlier…see you all tomorrow.

Tomorrow also marks a fine day for many of our fellow trotters. Two of our Prague Half Marathon victim…err, trainees are hosting a singles auction. Joy has already called dibs on Travis and Tim. Should I be worried? There are also lots of auction items that don’t require awkward silence and worrying about first base, if you know what I mean ;-)

Check out these brave singles - http://www.innercityglam.blogspot.com/

Discount alert! Discount alert! Our friends at Strides Running are hosting their sixth annual (it’s been that long?) Friends and Family night on Tuesday November 22^nd. Check out www.stridesrunning.com or email jeanetterun@gmail.com and she can let you know the goods. For those of you out of Calgary I would bug her about shipping…just sayin’. See attachment for the details.

While you know I have a strong connection to the Arthritis Society, I do like to support some good friends and their own personal challenges. Our friend (and of course JIM alumna) Young-Mi is growing a beard for the month of Movember. Having spent a week in Athens with her I am not sure how she will pull this off. Perhaps more Ouzo shots??? I think that creates the hair of the dog though…

As most of you know, cancer has affected my family - first in 1995 when my Mother passed away from Ovarian Cancer.  Then, in 2001, my Grandmother passed away after a short but brave battle with jaw cancer. Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to work for a company that raised money for cancer research. Recently, I have been involved as a committee member with Ovarian Cancer Canada (Calgary) in promoting awareness and helping with their fundraising.

This year, I've decided to join my co-workers (who are all male) and join the team Sufferin Succa-Stache! for Movember, the month formerly known as November, which is dedicated to growing moustaches and raising awareness and funds for men's health issues; specifically prostate cancer. To show my support for the men in my life, I have signed up as a Mo Sista.  It's clear (well, let's HOPE it's clear) that I may not be able to grow a 'stache, but I can still do my part in helping to raise some money for the team! 

Did you know?
*On average men live 4-5 years less than women
*1 in 7 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime
* 25,500 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year in Canada

I invite you to support me by donating to me http://www.movember.com/m/2551046. You can even go old school and write a cheque payable to "Movember Canada", reference my name and Registration Number 2551046 and send it to:
Movember Canada, 119 Spadina Avenue, PO Box 65, Toronto, ON M5T 2T2

If you'd like to find out more about the type of work you'd be helping to fund by supporting Movember, take a look at the Programs We Fund section on the Movember website: http://ca.movember.com/about

Thank you in advance for supporting my efforts to change the face of men's health. All donations are tax deductible.-----

That is it from me…happy training!

A great day for Remembrance

Heidi-ho neighbor! What a lovely day in Calgary today. Chinook winds have blown in and warmed up the air. I smell shorts for a lovely trot this evening. For those not trotting please remember two things:

- our friends Afton & Janelle hosting a Bridgeland fundraiser while our friend Ashley is doing the same Airdrie way

- to Remember those that supported us tomorrow. My grandfather is one…

We had a very enjoyable Winterstart Race last weekend. 1500 friends enjoyed cool air with clear skies as the moon showed us the correct way up Tunnel Mountain. People say this was a hill, but in the dark who could tell? Not I said me…

The race always reminds me of Patrick. Yes Patrick enjoyed the race a little too much a few years back. He got back to his hotel room and got into bed. Groggy he got up and headed to the washroom in his underwear, cracked open the door and closed it behind him. The bad part is this was not the door to the washroom but to the hallway.

He sheepishly walked the hall to the concierge phone and called the front desk to admit he was locked out. They replied “that’s okay sir, just come to the door and we will get you a key.” He of course replied that he was ‘underdressed’, plus his hotel wing was separated from the front desk by a parking lot.

Ten minutes later and many guests stumbling home he was finally admitted back into the room. The lesson for me: It pays to leave the door open when you pee…ha, ha!

Patrick, we miss you all the way in PEI!

You have to love stories that ‘prove’ that some things bad are actually good…great!

http://www.realage.com/health-tips/more-good-reasons-to-eat-chocolate

Eat chocolate, die happy, and live longer. Sweet.

I used to talk before training about various topics, and I thought this week I would revisit one that always had positive replies (or so you let on). This topic was about seven ways to stay injury free.

First is to find a friendly surface.  While the sheet on your bed may seem like the right answer, we are talking more about pavement.  The surface that can be most damaging to us on the long days is the canted path.  When you are on the edge of the road it slopes to the side for drainage.  While good for the rain it is not so good for training.  We tend to put more stress on our hips and back with the one foot striking lower than the other.  If the road is your only option, train out and back on the same side.  This way there is a balance.  As well, we need to make sure hills are not too steep on our journey.  A path too steep up is one where you can’t get your heel on the ground.  Going down should be well controlled and not causing you to accelerate from gravity.  Heel pain can happen from impacting too hard from these down hills.

Second is to warm up and cool down.  We do a short walk to warm our bodies for the long day ahead.  Ideally we should get about 15 minutes of light warm-up before we get to our normal pace.  This will help get your body more flexible before we start the high intensity of the main training.  Our cool down would be similar.  We should not finish and then stop.  A walk for the same length as the start will help immeasurably in the reduction of soreness the next day.  Remember do as I say, not as I do!

Third is Stretching firmly but gently.  Our muscles are basically elastics.  They have the ability to stretch out and come back.  My personal opinion (not the bible!!!) is to stretch after the run to help the muscles resist tightening after training.   We all have suffered the stiffness after a long training day.  Stretching is there to slow the after affects of running and it increases performance.  When I was a competitive runner I would do a light 10 minute jog and then 15 minutes of stretching.  The muscles are more flexible from the warm-up and you will be able to stretch them further.  It did cut 10% off my times.  I gained ALL that time back now…

Four is keeping your training flexible.  You may find that some days you feel just awful and don’t feel like running.  Listen to your body!  It has its own internal doctor that can diagnose problems and recommend rest.  If you’ve been faithful to your plan, a day off will not affect the result.  Recover my friends, recover!

Five is to blend the training.  Do not have high intensity training on back-to-back days.  By having easy blended with hard days your body gets some stimulation and recovery to make training easier.  Training is about balance.

Six is spacing out your racing.  Doing your maximum in a race situation every weekend is not the best for performance.  We should have a plan for our schedule months in advance, blending training in with the odd race.  Not all of us are “Greg” and can do it all.  If you watch him in training he takes every day as a relaxed day.  No stress in his body!

And lastly number seven.  Keep track of your training.  Tracking your performance day in and out helps you discover the good and bad of you.  Our friend Kara had it right when she said we are a 10/80/10 group.  Ten percent of the time we have a great day, 80 percent is okay, and another ten is ‘I should have stayed in bed’ days.  By logging the training you can see what makes the good days good and the bad days bad.  For Kara the latter ten is all about Las Vegas.  Ask her about it.  Your log can also help with your nutrition needs while out on the trails.  What works and what does not.  The more information you track the better you will know your body and how to keep it functioning!

You are fed many pieces of info that promote the best way to do things.  We take these pieces and they form the puzzle that creates your training masterpiece.  Can you get the pieces together? Hmmm, why am I craving pizza?

All the best,

John

Winterstart and...

Well aren’t you all looking lovely today. Yep, this new computer technology that lets me see you through your monitor is fantastic. Well, except for the tacky pyjamas (should I be typing the Queen’s English or US?). Alright, kidding aside it is a wonder how the days are now shorter and the air is truly full of the cool of fall. Darn near chilly these days. About two months ago we were joined by our old friend Ken from India and he found the 8C temperature to be downright chilly. I can only imagine his fright with the frost on the car these last few days.

With the start of November comes the Winterstart Night Run this weekend in Banff. I always enjoy a race that has non-stop beer at the finish line and the odd hot tub hi-jinks to follow. No matter what you have heard, it wasn’t me. Really! Good luck to all those heading out to Banff to enjoy some good old fashioned night running with 1500 of your closest friends. If you couldn’t get in I would bet there are the odd bibs available at the Tech Shop for you to snap up and be official on race day. Whatever you do, don’t be a bandit. If you want to be a part of it without the bib, volunteer and you will get all the swag and the cool kids will like you better! So anyone coming up for the weekend?

Good luck as well to any of you heading off to New York for the big marathon Sunday. I know a couple of buddies there right now, but I will be very surprised to hear that Carrie and Tanya got up early and trotted 42.2! I think they are still hung over from the Anderson Cooper experience.

As for the usual Saturday trot, I will have the group meet inside the Eau Claire YMCA for the 9 am trip around our soon to be exposed new Peace Bridge. Jen is into her big run for Hawaii (34 km), as well there are the usual suspects in need of moral and emotional support. Come on down and say hello to your fellow trainees and share in the sweat. I will be enjoying two nights of Banff bliss so don’t wait for me!

Our JIM participants are holding a few events over the next couple of days. Please support them if you can. Pay it forward, so to speak! Yep, same day but with 50 volunteers raising money for JIM it does happen!

     

The Calgary Herald sometimes surprises me with some inspirational stories that need to be shared with the masses. Today they had a couple that really resonated with myself and hopefully YOU! I see it is written by Claire Young…our best Winterstart friend in Banff is also Claire Young…coincidence???

Calgarian Linh Huynh believes good fortune is meant to be shared.
So when she won $10,000 this year to make her dream of running a marathon in Antarctica come true, she chose to also grant a wish for a child who has come through her own marathon battle for health.

Julia Dureski, a seven year-old cancer survivor, recently had a chance to meet the woman who is funding a trip to Hawaii for the whole family through her $10,000 donation to the Children’s Wish Foundation. Huynh, 36, visited the family at their Riverbend home in southeast Calgary to learn more about the family she is helping.

The ESL instructor at Bow Valley College believes she has been blessed in her life — she was born in Saigon during the Vietnam War, and her family left during the exodus known as the Boat People. All 10 of her family members are safe in Canada, where she was raised, for which she’s grateful.

“Everything I wish for comes through,” she says. “My wish is that people hear this story and realize it is within everyone’s power to change another’s life.”

A year ago, Huynh was obese, according to her body mass index. The weight had crept up through the usual suspects — inattention to what she was eating and neglecting exercise. She decided to regain her health and spend a year “attempting the impossible.”

But what seemed impossible in the planning has proved achievable, from the 10-day solo bike trip along the pilgrim path in Spain to completing the Ironman triathlon in Penticton, B.C. Along the way, Huynh lost 40 pounds and won $5,000 in the weight-loss challenge healthyloser.com. Then, she won $10,000 from the CBC’S Xtreme Lean Adventure Challenge to fulfil her dream of running the Antarctic Ice marathon — a trip costing close to $14,000.

In her entry for the contest, she’d said she wanted to go to Antarctica to run a marathon “because its mere geographic location, combined with the physicality of the event, created a challenge that most humans would never dare to attempt. It was a physical and mental feat that would test my own limits and I hoped one day I would have the opportunity to rise to the challenge.”

Huynh plans to run a marathon on every continent; this will be her third.

After meeting the family, Huynh thinks the foundation couldn’t have picked a more deserving group of people to receive the wish.

At the age of five, Julia was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma, the most common soft-tissue tumour discovered in children.

“We took her to the doctor, and we thought she was suffering from a bad sinus infection,” Julia’s mother, Cheryl, said. It wasn’t until the tumour began to grow out of Julia’s nose that the cancer was diagnosed.

Surgery was never an option, as the tumour — the size of three BlackBerry phones stacked — was growing behind Julia’s left eye and threatened her sight. Instead, she had chemotherapy and radiation at the same time. She dropped from 45 to 32 pounds, underwent 43 weeks of chemotherapy and 28 days of radiation and missed 98.5 days of Grade 1.

“It was not a lot of fun,” Julia says, turning to hide her

face in her mother’s hug.

Julia is now blind in one eye, but the treatment preserved the vision in the other.

“The remainder of the tumour is left, about five per cent, but it isn’t growing. She’s in remission,” Cheryl says.

During her visit, Huynh learned how the family drew together to support Julia. At least one family member was with her for every treatment and hospital stay.

Cheryl, a bookkeeper, stopped working to care for Julia. Her father Gary, a cabinet maker, took four months off work because he lacked the concentration to safely work with power tools.

The illness affected her siblings, too. Emma, 20, reduced her psychology studies to a single class so she could help out. Teagan, 13, grew her hair out and donated it to make wigs. And the crisis was felt deeply by Shane, 12, who offered thanks at the Thanksgiving church service to the doctors and nurses who were keeping his sister alive.

“We’re so thankful that we’ve got the opportunity to go and celebrate Julia and her health together,” Cheryl says of the trip.

“The sun, sand, pool, snorkelling — she loves them. She’s a beach girl.”

Donations can be made to Huynh’s endeavour by going to the Children’s Wish Foundation home page at www.childrenswish.ca, selecting the Alberta and Northwest Territories from the chapter tab at left, clicking on the news and events tab, and scrolling down to find the Antarctic.

And of course with many of us getting ready for a marathon in either New York or Hawaii, or even races like Winterstart tomorrow, I think this is a good story to read…

MIKE BATES MIKE BATES IS A CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER AND TEACHES KINESIOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR. HE OWNS REFINE FITNESS STUDIO IN WINDSOR, ONT., BLOGS AT REFINEFITNESS.CA AND CAN BE REACHED AT MIKE@REFINEFITNESS.CA.

Running over mental obstacles

There is a great book by Bob Schwartz called I Run, Therefore I Am — Nuts! (humankinetics. com). What is great about it is that anyone who has spent any time running will relate to the stories he tells. It’s like a Seinfeld episode for runners. I would argue non-runners should read it as well, so they can get a better understanding of what is going through a runner’s head.

Many of these stories could easily relate to beginning exercisers, experienced exercisers and outdoor cyclists.

With fall marathon season in full swing, I thought it would be good to discuss some of the mental challenges runners face during a race and their training.

Many runners are chronically obsessive about their training and everything around it. Anything that throws them off their routine can cause some runners to be significantly affected before or during a race.

While it’s true that to run a five kilometre race, 10-km race, half marathon or full marathon, you need to put in a certain amount of training, the main obstacle most runners need to overcome is a mental one.

Running any distance is going to have pain associated with it. I’m not referring to physical pain that indicates an injury. It’s the pain associated with pushing yourself outside your comfort zone. The more runners do this during training, the more likely they’ll be successful during a race. A certain amount of pain is normal.

Runners competing in races this time of the year have most likely put in time on the pavement and/ or treadmill so the race won’t be too physically draining. This doesn’t mean the race will be easy. But if you have put in your mileage each week, your body should be ready.

Below you will find some common mental challenges you may encounter during the race and how to overcome them:

Everyone around me seems to be going so much faster, maybe I should try and keep up.

Ask yourself why you’re doing this. Are you running for you or to win your age group? For most, the accomplishment is simply finishing the race, so keeping up with others does not need to be a priority. If your goal is to finish in a certain time, then you most likely know where you should be at each mile or kilometre. Place your focus on your pace. By the end of the race most of the people you think are going so fast may actually finish behind you.

My legs are burning or they feel like they weigh 100 pounds.

Some people refer to this as “hitting the wall.” During a race many runners will experience this. This may mean walking for a couple of minutes. For some, this may be a sign they’re pushing themselves too hard. For others, it’s simply one obstacle during a race they need to fight through and when they do they will feel like they have their second wind.

There is no way I can finish. What have I got myself into?

Focus on finishing one kilometre at a time and don’t think about the total distance ahead. Remind yourself how important this goal is to you and how much time you have spent training. This race is the reward for all of your hard work.

Ah, it is great to be back to the long email…

Have a great weekend,

John

Running with you is exhausting!

Hello all. A very short note this week as my work has interrupted my leisure.  
Feeling like you need a challenging race for Halloween? Try out this one sent by April…
http://runforyourlives.com/

April also forwarded this article that I strongly believe is more true than we would like to admit. I too feel the changes when I get fatigued and start to run with my nose to the ground. Great for a dog but not so for a John.

When to End a Run to Avoid Injury: Runners Change Form When Running Exhausted
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101209113548.htm

April L Clay, R. Psych.
Bodymindmotion
Mental skills for sport and life
www.bodymindmotion.com
www.ridingoutofyourmind.com

You wanted less a novel? Well there is the Coles Notes!

Have a great weekend.

John

Jetlag Builds Character

Well hello again. I know you heard from me just on Monday, but I know you are all (well maybe a few of you) wondering what crazy paths John would like to lead you toward this weekend. This will be the start of our 9 am (cough, cough) WINTER running schedule. They say that this one is to be long and unbearable. Question to Big John and Marguerite in Australia: Will it be cold and wintery in Brisbane???

I was told the novel on Monday was a hard read. I type at a grade four level, act like a grade seven, and think like a Rhodes scholar. What spits out at the end of the mix is quite often blah-blah but I do hope you enjoy the read from top to bottom. Even War and Peace had a few extra pages in there.

This weekend looks to be a nice one, with some decent sunshine, crisp fall air, and the crunch of fallen leaves to soften our stride. Let’s enjoy the colours of fall with a return trip to Bowness Park. Yep, we were there only a couple of weeks ago, but Jen voted for it and she was the only vote! Feels like a typical election around here!

As we have a bunch of new people on the email this week, to let you know we will have options from 5 km to about 25 km depending on your pain threshold. I can make you sweat short or long…

If you are joining us, meet in Bowness Park next to the coffee and ice cream shop (the best combination?). Bowness Park is located on 48^th Avenue NW just west of 85^th Street. Don’t know how to find it? Call or email me….See you at 9 am next to the lagoon!

Our good friend Ally J is race director for her first ever event, the Robert Hamilton Memorial Run. It trots along the paths around Edworthy Park in the NW on  October 22nd starting at 8am. She is short on Volunteers and hoping you can support the race (this Is a 100% fundraising race for Mito Canada ) so any and all help is wanted / needed

Time of volunteering is 6:45- 11am at the latest. Ally can be reached at chooseenergyca@gmail.com or 403-400-4990.

REMEMBER! All of the events that we participate rely on volunteers to be successful. If you use the system, you have to support the system! Be a supportive and cheerful volunteer!

Yep, short and sweet. I can guarantee that you will be able to leave your computer now…but wait!

Every once in a while I need to pull out a story from a running buddy who gave a great read on the typical trot for our typical trotter. Nothing unusual even for the veterans.  I hope you enjoy as I did.  Thanks Carla for a great story that I get to rehash every once in a while. Makes me want to go back to Vegas! WOO HOO!!!

  

Well, I honestly didn't think I would finish. If you remember, I had asked you about my distance seeing as I had been sick and missed some crucial training days. I was so nervous I almost made myself sick the night before. 4am came too soon, and I couldn't decide how much water I was going to pack. I couldn't make up my mind whether or not I needed long sleeves. Should I eat one more oatmeal cookie? would it be better if I went back to bed? Maybe i should just run the half?

All told, my best run up to race day had been a slack 24k. I was feeling like the party guest who shows up in jeans, when everyone else was told to arrive ball-gown formal. I put my race in the hands of my physical health. I left my knees out of that little conversation I had with myself. I ate right. I over-hydrated. I needed all the help I could get (or so I thought).

The first 5 miles were excellent. I asked my group (Saskatoon) if we could stop for a pee-station. 8 minutes. not too bad. it happens. We got to the split where the halfers were turning back. If I was going to ditch out, now was the time to take a bow. Darryl, the trainer from Saskatoon, turned around to me and said "good luck". I said "I'm coming with you guys." Right around the corner was a kid with a bag of pretzels. My luck was turning?!

We started down Freemont and my family was there with cameras and flags. My grandpa was there, my hero. It was very cool. We were looking good.

We started running through residential areas. No pain, no tired legs. No blisters, no Advil. Just a love for what I was doing. Some good tunes, good conversation with my team-mates, some crazy women dressed in leopard mini-skirts were having a good time, stopping at every attraction to hoot and take pictures. They were great. A kid on his bike rode with us for a while, a man asked us if it was true that we didn't take our guns to the mall. Strange, yet all part of the scenery. I could see the strip again just past mile 20. no wall. I was pumped.

mile 22. the difference 2 miles can make when you've been running for 4 1/2 hours. I wanted to cry. nothing worked on my body anymore. but I was still sweating, so that was good. I stopped sweating one year when I ran Melissa's. that was bad.

Darryl kept me focused. without him, I'd still be sitting on the curb, somewhere north of Mandalay Bay praying for that kid on the bike to come back so I could pay him $20 for a pony ride. I DESPERATELY  didn't want to be left behind.  But I didn't stop. I plugged in a power song, straightened out and picked up the pace for my finishing photo and got the job done in 5:30:44.  My grandpa grabbed my hand the last 200m and I had nothing left to cry out. Without minimizing my wedding day and the birth of my son, it was the best thing I've ever done for myself. The girl who sold me those shoes is getting roses.

I know Darryl could had done that race in less than 3 hours. It meant a lot that he ran with us first-timers. we all crossed within a minute of each other.

John, I did it.

Carla

Makes me cry every time.

Have a great day,

John