What a beautiful day for a race. The weather could not have been much better for the 7:30 am start on May 16, 2010. The sun was shining, there was a gentle breeze in the air, and as I arrived at 6:45am there was still a chill in the air. The energy in the air was electric.
I was unable to locate any of my running friends after getting ready for the race, so I decided to position myself near a pace bunny with my original goal time in range. I cautiously approached this race, as I had no idea if I was going to even finish after training for several months but was quite excited to be part of the almost 7000 people preparing for the start.
A few days before, I was seriously concerned I would not be able to run this race as I was sporting a knee problem which bothered me in different areas for almost a month now. After running the Mississauga half trial about a month ago, I took part in a run a few days later which caused my right knee to tighten up quite significantly. To make a long story short, I ended up aggravating my troubled knee during my speed training which led to IT band issues. This issue started 2 weeks before the race and seemed to be lingering and impacting my joy when running. A week before, I ran for only 20 minutes before it tightened up enough to know I needed to walk home. What a bummer to approach such a beautiful course with that on my mind! I cut down my running and only maintained my spinning classes to keep my cardio up for the final week.
I had some A.R.T. on Friday morning on the area where the IT band meets the knee (only two days before the race). This led me to feel a sharp pinch in my right knee as I walked towards the end of the day and it even stretched into Saturday. Suffice to say this was a major concern. I only hoped that there was enough time to let it settle as the area where I had the problem with was finally diagnosed, treated and on the way to recovery. I went for a successful, but brief, 25 minute test run on Saturday night to see if I should even bother going to the starting line. It really felt good to be running again, and I was happy to be wearing a new pair of Adidas Adizero Boston running shoes so I could test them out.
So as I approached my starting point amid thousands of people, my race focus switched from hitting my original goal of a 100 minute finish to running in a way that would allow me to finish the race. The gun that signaled the start of the race was startling but I was ready to run. To follow the review, I have created a map of the course based on the data from by GPS for anyone interested in seeing the full map.
I was also excited to be able to try out my new running headphones. My new shoes felt so good I also decided to run in my new shoes. I was reluctant to do this as I never like to do anything new on race day, but I decided that my old shoes were a small part of my knee problem and I was worried they would tear open on the course (due to a 3 inch holes on both sides of the shoes).
As I ran along the path towards Burnhamthorpe Rd everything felt really good. I started off at a comfortable pace to be able to allow my body to warm up nicely, and before I knew it I was 2K into the race and feeling great! I was excited at the ease in which I was able to run at my previously planned and trained for pace of 4:45 min/km. My breathing was easy and I had a really nice moment of clarity while taking it all in. I relaxed into the race and was really having a lot of fun.
My knee started acting up a bit around the 3km mark, but I slowed down a bit and focused on stepping in such a way to minimize the impact. That passed quickly and before I knew it I was crossing the Credit River bridge. I took a bit of extra time to enjoy the view due to my change in plans, and I was excited to see the time on the clock was on pace for my negative split pace band. I remember wondering if perhaps I might be able to hit my target pace after all? I was not pulling with my hamstrings as much as usual to lessen the IT band knee requirements and I was purposefully putting more load on my quads to carry my body.
As I passed the second bridge and rounded the corner onto Mississauga Road, I was excited to be heading into the course with some very beautiful, mature trees all now green and full of life. The course was slightly different in parts from my trial run. One part, in particular, was at end end of the loop within the Erindale campus which went up a hill instead of down a different hill. Ironically, it also provided one of the lessons that had me thinking about how one’s mind state impacts a big part our reaction to what we face. I very much enjoyed knowing the course well due to my knee situation, but a little unknown is not always a bad thing.
As I headed up an unplanned incline, there was a woman waiting for a corporate relay teammate to arrive on the course, chatting with her friends. Unfortunately, I did not notice her until the last moment so I had to change my pace and direction to get around her. As I was so focused on keeping my comfortable pace, I muttered some unskillful comment about her getting off the course. In retrospect this was a good opportunity for right action but I missed it this time. However, later in the course I was presented with another opportunity of this nature and that time I did not pass it by.
Once the Erindale campus was behind me, the next stretch of road was mostly downhill until around the 10k mark. It was getting hotter as the race progressed , and so at each water station I took a cup of water and splashed it over my head and face; boy did that feel amazing! I also quickly gulped down a half-filled cup of Gatorade to keep well hydrated. I had been warned that my knee would get progressively worse the more dehydrated I got, so I really focused on maintaining my fluid levels to make sure this would not be an issue. This seemed to work really well and the water stations were fantastic on this race.
I saw another runner with the Vibram five fingers, aka “Gorilla Feet” — as my running buddy Andre called them — gracefully pass by me. He was running at a much faster pace and was stepping with a silent efficiency that I have been working towards. Once the only real hill was past me, I knew I was in a good place: it was the first time in the race where I started to think I was able finish without a major struggle. There were increasingly more spectators cheering as I worked into the second half of the race and I enjoyed sharing a few high-fives along the way.
The lake was glistening and bright along the lake-shore portion of the run. Compared to the first half of the course, this portion was equally brilliant with the clear blue sky end enlightening sun. Once I hit the 16K mark, I entered the the last stage of my race plan – just 5k more to go and I would be at the finish. I was thinking it really was a beautiful way to enjoy a warm spring morning, and I was excited to be coming to one of the nicest parts.
Within the park, my second opportunity for skillful action appeared in front of me. I very briefly saw an very large worm that just started to cross the asphalt path. I knew in a few moments that it would be dead. As an avid gardener and a person who has a great respect for all living beings, I stopped my run and moved the “daddy” worm into the safety of the grass. In an instant, I decided to not let indifference slip into my daily practice. For me, running in its essence is a celebration of life. What better way to celebrate this?
The lake passed by very quickly and with only 3k to go I decided to start using my hamstrings more; for the majority of the run I was trying to limit the pulling with my hamstrings as that seems to put more stress on my knee. My energy levels were very strong and I was speeding up with very little increase in effort. I felt that I could go faster, but I forced myself to keep my pace at around 4:30 min/km to end comfortably.I finished with a nice sprint at the end and the highest heart rate reading for the course for a few brief seconds (176bpm).
The last 1k went by in a flash. The finish line “tunnel” seemed quite long with many people cheering on both sides. I was just soaking in all the energy as I finished with a sprint with my breath and legs still strong. I was excited to be finished and I started enjoying the after race festivities with some food and a nice massage. This was my most enjoyable half marathon I have run and I finished just above my planned time with a chip time of 1:40:40 and an average heart rate of 165bpm for the course.
The course was beautiful.
The weather was fantastic!
I look forward to many more good runs like this…
For those people looking for their results, please see the Mississauga 2010 Half 1/2 Marathon results.
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