Tobermorry Trail Marthon

Ok, slightly behind on my race reports, which really is what this blog has become for the three people who still read POSTDINK. Not very motivated to do much of any thing lately, I blame night shift and my phone for sucking my soul. I am have to have Maya take it away from me, or at least have limits on social media, one can only refresh facebook/ Instagram/ Twiter so many times. I would ask Luke but he loves me too much.

Anyways while this cake is cooking, I thought I would write this post.

Signed up for the Tobermory trail Marathon soon after it opened, well as soon as I read it was 60% sold out. Signed up really before I realised it was two weeks before Chicago... thus no one race got my full attention. Preparation leading up was less then ideal. I am not really a runner who does well in the heat, and this summer happened to be rather warm, thus I just didn't run, or if I did it was for shorter distances then required. Oh well last year was the year for dedicated training regardless of the weather, this summer was for a bit more sitting by the water. Seriously I had a month after dirty girls with weeks less then 20k.

The difference between this race and other trail races I have participated in the past is that the race organisers wanted it to be run fast. As in there were cut off times. On the surface they look rather generous 3hours to be at 21.1k, and 6hours total. seems easy for a Boston qualifier right? Umm nope, not if the race is Tobermory to Cypress Lake and back on the Bruce trail. Have you ever gone to the grotto and climbed around the rocks?? Imagine racing it.  Thus my race plan was run like hell for the first half and be conservative on the way back , and try not to break an ankle for the entire thing,

The race field was limited by I think fear, many people took the race organisers urging to drop down to the half or form a team if they felt they would not make cut offs. I was stubborn and went ahead solo.

Perfect race conditions, not so perfect were my preparations. key running equipment was not brought, and what is available at 8pm in Tobermory... very little.

Went out at my own comfortably hard pace on the easy sections, any road or flat and I was running sub 5min/k. Once I hit Little cove and I started having to climb with ropes and my hands, combined with large boulders and I was down to 9:30min/km. Then there was rock beaches, which is understandable why one would go slower, however for much of the race it was the rocky footing that made for slow going. Made it to the half way mark at 2:34.  For the actual climbing around the grotto I was 14:23/km. Followed by 10kilmetres of 10min/km. at this point I said screw it and took a few selfies. Do not get me wrong, I was taking it cautious but still it was hard going, even that slow. I realised towards the end that I may not make the cut off for the marathon and started working but still could only manage 7:30/km.

On the way out saw the half marathoners coming, even saw the lead men for the marathon coming back but on the way back I was all by myself. Sure there are some self righteous runners who do not run with music, but I have ADD I need music or at least people to talk to. I was all by myself out there- the race organiser's even encouraged people to bring a phone so even thought the rules in bold letters said no headphones, I only half broke the rules I kept one headphone in. And here is the crazy thing, I was completely aware of what was going on all around me at all times. I was prepared to be DQ but I am old so I do not care about stuff like that anymore.

Finaly made it back into town, saw Luke and Ever, and was pretty happy to have him run in the finish line with me... except I looked back and saw a female hot on my heels. I literally shivered Ever out of the way and sprinted 400metres to the finish line, all along wondering where in the heck that girl came from..... yah so she was in the relay. Opps.

In the end, I was the end, last official finisher of the marathon and even then I didn't make the cut off. Ended up  being 6:05 , and that was good enough for third female overall. I know I could have run this faster, perhaps I will try again, or perhaps I will do the half, or perhaps I will let somebody else try.

Dirty Girls

This wasn't really a A race, or a B race, or even a C race. It was just kinda a date on the calendar. I did no specific ingraining, I guess I tapered a bit, but really that does not matter in ultra running.

So why do the race... cause why not??

My brother from another mother, Matt  had decided he wanted to do 24hours this summer, so of course he didn't train and we both show up ready for a beating.

The plan was that we camp Friday night, Saturday night. I run all day Saturday and then sleep the night so somebody safe can drive home on Sunday morning.

Surprisingly we were one of the last to arrive Friday night around 8ish, surprisingly I slept well, and unfortunately as predicted the weather as predicted was not favorable to runners, it was hot, hot, hot even at 6:30 in the morning when we woke up.

One of the closest bed to start line situations ever. Lined up near the back and off we went. Bottle necked in the beginning. No point in going out fast but kinda a pain to get suck right at the beginning behind people in a conga line. I am inpatient and clasutiphic, long established.  Recall little about doing what each lap, just random thoughts...

• Had to change a sock on the second lap so lubed feet. Only one blister as a result
• Ate samosa, V8 juice, and red berry things. Salt tabs every lap, a few magnesium pills, x1 Fruit3, x1 endurance tap. H2o, 500mls ish every 4k. A few potatoes. Some fruit mixed in.
• Carried a plastic baggy, the same one and at every aid station filled it. People thought it was amazing. Had my own bottle at the aid stations and just filled it every lap. I am to weak to carry a bottle and I thought my backpack would be to hot.
• There is alot of dust and dirt at dirty girls. There are no showers. Apparently there was a creak somewhere but my car was trapped behind the start line. Also there was a cold hose. I would have paid at least $20 for a shower when I was done, waited until the next morning when I got home to wash. I was a dirty girl all night.
• I really liked it when I had new people to chat with, i like meeting new people. Matt tried running with me but he was to fast (WTF)and i would make him go ahead but then he would wait for me at aid stations, eventually  learned he just had to go.
• It is a 8k course, I liked the kilometers between 4-6k the best. There is a really big hill that most people just walk but I have learned that i am a really slow walker and I waste so much time walking, thus I mostly just walk the short steep stuff and run the longer gradual hills.
• I have a serious problem with chafing, as in I now have permanent scars. Thus, as an experiment I bought a cheap but somewhat supportive/ tight sports bra from Walmart. I figured I have tried everything else, why not this... no chafing.
• Started out with road asics, my feet started hurting so changed to my road hokas.Feet stopped hurting.
• Coming into the race i did have a A goal of 70k. When I heard the weather report of the insane heat, I figured, whatever, because really what did it matter. I was watching my garmin for the first 20ish km then i stopped looking at the total km and started looking at the time. People would ask what lap I was on, or I would try to figure it out and really I had no clue. At one point I told matt I only had two more laps left in me. Then I did those laps and I had tons of time left so I went out for a last one. Actually ended up doing the last one faster then expected, and when I got to the finish line I had 69.84km so I sprinted a bit more just so I would have 70k on the watch and felt perfectly happy being done. According to the results it is 72k. Looking at the results I would have had to run another loop and more to catch the next person in my age catagoy and that was not happening so I am all good with 3/ 9 female, 5/19 overall.

Pelee Island Half Marathon

Apparently, this race is a bucket list race for a friend, and apparently she made the rest of us sign up the hour it opened as this race is a sell out in hours, but that was almost a year ago so I do not really remember.

Anyways, by no means was this race a goal race.No specific trainning was done, and infact I have been in a bit of a lull since the marathon. So this race was a 'see how you feel on race day' kinda race.

Complicated race logistics. This race is five hours away and involves a ferry trip. Luke came along for giggles. Thinking of ferry prices for the Chi-chimon I did not book a trip for the car, instead planned to ride our bikes around. In reality, it is very reasonable, and quite frankly biking everywhere while carring all your earlthy good on the island is not fabulous so, my advice is book a ferry. Stayed on the island in a old house and we ended up calling it Tri club summer camp. There was bunk beds, and dish duty, and even a person in charge- otherwise known as the person who stayed sober.

The race started at a very respectable 10am, problem was it was already hot, hot, hot. Occasionally  there was a breeze but my first task at every aid station was to cool down.  and dump water on myself.
Had a good warmup riding to the finish line then walking back to the start and some ABCs. For some reason this race completely intimidated me, all the females looked fit and fast. Seriously, i actually needed a pep talk to calm down, not that I was racing to win, I just wanted a respectable finish, I was thinking top 10 overall would be reasonable.


Lined up, did not want to be super aggressive in my position, but I could have been a tad up there. Settled in, figured sub 4:50 kms would be good. Did the first in 4:39 opps. Just picked people off until 12k, and then there were very few to pick off. Had to then just focus on pushing myself, usually like having a rabbit to follow. Was not easy, related to the heat, and it hurt. Saw Luke around 19k and told him that his wife was about to die, managed to hold it until the end, even did my last full km at 4:38.
Averaged 4:44km for a 1:40:26 time, which really sucked cause I wanted sub 1:39:39 as I am making a bit of an effort to be fast again. Ended up 5th female which kinda sucked as there was no age group awards, just top three. I would have been third in my age group.   18th male/ female overall so not bad. Could not catch 4th female, she ended up being about 35 seconds ahead, but really that is better as I would have been really mad about being so close to podium and not actually being on the podium. So I guess I really didn't need to worry about any of those fast and fit girls.


The finish line involves a catered dinner and bottomless cup of wine, well until they run out, which is OK if you are a sea gull like me, I just went around to empty tables and drank left over wine. As a result it was a rather interesting bicycle ride back to tri club summer camp.


Overall tremendously fun event, but perhaps a one and doner.

Goodlife Toronto FULL

When athletic types get together, irreverently a measuring stick of sorts gets pulled out.
Whats your longest distance?
Have you done an ironman?
Whats your marathon PB?
Have you done Boston?

And shamefaced I had to say 3:49, and no never qualified. And for a while I was OK with that. Then a friend qualified and registered and I realized I was jealous and maybe I did want to run Boston. Thankfully 2016 was an El Nino year and the winter was good for training.
I started following this plan, however, I just could not hack it. The distances were too demanding and it was really hard to get the speed work in while the snow was covering the sidewalks, and I got sick. About two weeks of low energy, no appetite, so I adjusted and started following the Mcmillian plan on strava. Thus I did a hybrid of both. Which meant I ran alot more then I had since 2011, and thanks to segments on strava, I ran fast.

Going into to race, I felt prepared. A few niggles here and there. Followed a taper. Legs felt ok. Could have dropped a few pounds, but that is the story of my life.
Weather forecast was not good, but whatever, I could deal with rain and wind.
Stayed at the start line at the Novotel which has seen better days. Race started at 7:30, Went down stairs at 7, found a friend and chatted, realized I needed to have another poop and went back to the hotel at 7:15 and still had lots of time on the start line in the rain in my garbage bag.

Prior to the race I looked at the course map a bit, knew roughly where it went and the elevation changed anticipated. Honestly though, I admit I do look around to much. I look down and watch my feet so I do not trip on Toronto rough roads. I did look around on the Young street section, downtown, and a long downhill section. Mostly I just watched my splits.. until 16k  at which time they were gone so I just kept an eye on the pace bands I had and the basic stop watch feature on my expensive garmin.
At around 35k, my belly got a little sore and I stopped to pee in a bush and found satellites again, which is when I needed them the most.
I think  pace fell off around 30k, which is when I hit the Lakeshore. I pushed and struggled but the kilometers flew by. The wind was tough, and honestly I did not want to do this again or else I would have gave up at 38k and walked it in. As it was I walked up a hill and made a stranger promise me that I would run when I got to her. I knew my math was OK and I would finish around 3:35 as long as I kept at that pace which was why I needed my garmin to make sure I would not go slower then 5:30.

 A+ + goal was sub 3:25
A+ goal was sub 3:30
A goal was 3:35
And there was no not getting my goal as I had to much invested in qualifying for Boston Marathon. Regular massage all through the winter, hotel, food etc.
Crossed the line at 3:35:45, which I am very OK with. It was hard to be estatactic at the finish line due to hypothermia setting in, and in my group of four friends attempting to qualify only  two of us achived it, but the two who worked the hardest did not.

It is sinking in that I did this, and I get to go to Boston and buy a Boston jacket which I have always lusted after.
BUT in my head I and wishing I did a sub 3:30. I got in via lottery for Chicago Marathon this year and initially though I would just cruise to a finish, now I want to race it. I want to do some trail races this year as well so we will see how that goes. Recovered nicely, except for chafing. It is bad, really really bad. I think I may scar, thus I can get rid of my dinner plate metal and just have that as a reminder of the day I qualified for Boston.

Funny Girl

Occasionally we are able to have normal conversations with the girl child and occasionally she says funny things. 

For example, maya has re named cul- du sacks potato sacs just cause she thinks they look like potato sacs. 

Also in a very important discussion on what our magical powers would be if we had magical powers maya stated that hers would be the ability to poop money. She is not sure if she wants the feases to come in Canadian or American funds. 

Around the Bay

Lets review.....

2015- 2:48:04- Gastro

2014-2:34:40- Whatever

2013-2:38:42- Ran with a friend and sang songs.
2012- 2:54:51- Paced a friend to sub three.
2011- 2:25:20- Raced.
2010- 2:37:04- Tried to race- crashed.
2009- 2:31:27- First timers luck.

Thus this is the eight instalment in a row of ATB.... the short of it..

2016- Chip- 2:28:57, Gun - 2:29:49

I went into this race with no expectations other than to see where I was at. My plan was to run as i felt comfortable. If  I wasn't doing well back off, if I felt fine, just keep doing what I was doing. I planned to take the first kilometre at above 5:15 and avoid running like a crazy person though the crowds. It helped this year there was self seeding corrals. As usual lined up with Matt, and hoped we would stay together for as long as possible. Did not hear the gun go off but we started to move forward so I started my watch and just started running. All good until about 4k when I look at my watch and I had lost satellites, and they were not to be found again. No amount of turning my watch on and off would have them return. I would have loved to have my data from this race. In the end I just asked people around me what pace we were running at, and if they had gun time.  Apparently it was windy, didn't really notice as I tended to run behind bigger people. It was a colder year but I was fine in what I chose to wear. The water in the cups was partially frozen.  Ate my usual three things, peed on lakeshore drive behind a trailer when I realised i could not hold it any longer. Around 26k realised that if I worked hard I could likely get a silver medal if I slipped across the line before 2:30gun. I really wish I had the data for the last kilometre cause I was flying. Some spectator's cut in front and screamed 'Move'. Some men were kinda in the way as I went around the bend into the stadium and I told them I was under a deadline and they needed to get through. In the end I had 10seconds to spare. If I would have had my garmin providing splits or even the time,  I am sure it would have not been cut so close.

My second best ATB time, similar to 2011 my mileage for the winter was quite high. Although this year feel easy, vs in 2011 I know I was hurting and it was stressful. Mind you that time was three minutes faster which would have been harder.

Very OK with another silver metal for my collection, very pleased with where I am at.

Cost analysis:

Hotel: 50, Meals 44, Registration 80(ish), Fuel during race 6

$ per kilometre- $6.00

2015 in Written Word

Have tried to be very good about keeping my list up to date with Goodreads. Have also tried to read more and ignore the draw of facebook, twiter, instagram, and strava. Of which, when ever I take a photo of the girl child she makes me swear not to post to. I think she has forgotten about this blog, but really so has everybody else. Blogs are very 2007.

Legends of the Tour
Graphic novel I purchased as a prize for the triathlon club banquet. Very detail rich, for true fans of the tour. I am more of a passing fancy of that's cool kind of fan. Fun none the less before I gave it away.

Invisibility
Sounds like a good  teen fiction novel, the type I like with a bit of science fiction mostly set in reality, but can not recall to much. Teen boy invisible. If you like the type why not?

Fallen World Series
Civilization as we know it as fallen due to some new super bug.  When Luke and I talk of apocalypse scenarios this is the one where he thinks I do not stand a chance cause I am at ground zero cause I work in a hospital but my rebuttal is I have a fantastic immune system cause I am exposed to bugs all the time, guess time will tell. Books were ok, nothing fantastic.

A bunch of pretty things I did not buy
Little volume on consumerism, not leading a life devoted to it etc. Kinda like preaching to the faithful choir of which, apart for sporting goods and good  shoes and bras I feel I am the leader of.

The Silent Sister
Story of murder and a fathers implausible efforts to cover it up. Good story, well written but I think the truth would have been an easier life to live. Worth the read.

Tina's Mouth: An Existential Comic Diary
I usually read graphic novels in one sitting, which may be the reason why I do not recall this one at all. It also may be due to the fact if I am sitting for extended periods of time I also like to drink wine.

Touch
Under genre for this author is the listing urban magic, which is exactly how I see this novel. Love the concept, the finer plot points were a bore but the details were the gem of this novel.

Digging For America
Saw a friend reading this and when I went to the library the next day I got it was well. Pleasant.

Bittersweet
I think that a common theme for 2015 might be 'but I just can not remember', which is  is related to my utter fatigue and lack of brain cells related to ironman training. Seriously, I may have lost some IQ points  this summer. Read some reviews about this book and it kind of came back, but I think I might be mixing up some elements of the plot with another novel. In any event, I do remember the lack of empathy I had towards the heroine.

Unbecoming
I do remember this book which is a victory in itself, so it was somewhat good. However since I read it, I have not thought of it, which is not a good sign. Middle America to Europe heist story.

Eat the Document
Two people commit a crime in the 1960s then assume different lives. Flash forward 30 years and fall out ensues.

The Mountain Story
I did not expect to like this novel, started slow but found I really ended up not being what I expected. Good read.

The Library at Mount Char
The jacket sounded fantastic, however as I got deeper and deeper into the novel it became clear the novel was much more science fiction then I usually read, however I was intrigued by the story. I did skip some gory details but could not put it down. Very much wanted to know how it ended.

Roller Girl
Graphic novel about how we age,  we change and the all amazingness of roller derby which is my new favorite sport to watch and not actually do cause I like all my bones not broken.

The Undertakers Daughter
Fantastic design and title for this non fiction volume of horrible writing. There are a few gems of 'short stories' but overall I did not care about your family, I only cared about the stories.

Finding Audrey
Nothing wrong with this young adult book focusing on recovery from an anxiety disorder. Problem is I do not care about your anxiety disorder and advise you to get over it. Yes I am jaded and hard.

In the Unlikely Event
Who doesn't love Judy Blume, even if it is not her best work, although I think I read somewhere it will be her last work as she does not like the pressure of deadlines and is in her 70's.  I am in the middle of reading Ever the fudge books right now.

The Boston Girl
A fan of the author, story of rags to riches main character was a tad too predictable.

The Girl on the Train
This book had a lot of hype and honestly I did not expect it to live up to it, however it was like an onion with many layers slowly being revealed. Fantastic. Go read it already.

Our Endless Numbered Days
I believe I picked it up due to the fantastic title. Chilly and creepy - was not expecting the end, as in had to re read it to believe that is what I was reading. Goosebumps.

Kitchens of the Great Midwest
A book of food, and cooking and growing and local eating. What is not to love? Made me tremendously hungry, should have come with a companion  cookbook.

How to Fall in Love
Cecelia Aherns books are so sweet and cute and I love them to bits and pieces. Often there is something fantastical but this one is pure romance and sweetness.

Silo Series- Wool, Shift and Dust
We started this series as an audio book for the long drive to Mt Trembant this summer. When we returned I had to get the books ordered from the library and accidently read them out of order... but interestingly it still worked. The premise is that mankind as well know it has been reduced to a life lived in silos. The amazing thing to me was all my stupid details that I think about that makes the story not possible were eventually answered and made the story in the vague sense possible. Very good reads if you like the end of world genre.

D.U.F.F
I listened to this book driving to North Carolina and loved it. The story was obviously more involved in the book, and actually completely different, however with the pg13 rating of the movie I figured it would be fine for Maya and I to listen to together. hmmm not so much. She listened here and there but mostly I was thankful she had other audio plans for the trip as it was not so much pg11.

A Curious Tale of the IN- Between
Luke brought this book home because the main character's last name is Bellamy. I needed something to read one night so picked it up. Apparently it is a series which I hate to find out once I have started to read the book. I try to only read series in which all the books have been released. Girl can see ghosts and has a trusty side kick. This can be a miss.

Day Shift
And this is the reason I only read books in a series if the entire series is out, because one book a year is painful!! Charlene Harris is kinda like a bag of chips mixed in with peanut M&Ms. Savor every bite of the deliciousness.

The year I met you
Was expecting a book of romance, but was actually a love story of friendship. Sweet.

The Accident Season
So the premise is good, the middle was too wordy and I was expecting better. Too much mumbo gumbo science fiction, but is a irritating way. Skimmed a lot hoping to get a good part, or even a part that could make sense. Just felt like the ends didn't tie together. Wondered how it could have gotten published.

Paper Towns
Maya wanted to watch the movie and beat me down until I was weak and agreed. Then I read the book. Typical young adult , do not know why everybody is getting so excited.

Other editions

Enlarge cover

 

Totals

This year marks the end of five years of written training journals. To be honest, I stopped mid year in favor of training peaks and strava. Moving forward I plan on only using strava to track my data. Currently just have a free account but may upgrade to premium. Training peaks was just used to communicate with my coach for ironman training.
My written journals were nothing fancy- just the day, type of activity and distance. Occasionally I would write trail or treadmill to account for lower numbers. I usually noted first outdoor ride and swim of the year. Occasionally wrote if a particular day was a race and if I did well or not. I never track activities I do with the kids, even if it is longer distances cause I figue I am not working as I would for training. Occasionally I may track core activities like body rock, yoga, and skiing. Just on a monthly not yearly basis. Moving forward with Strava I will likely track.

I was particularly interested this year to see how much more training I did to be able to complete IronmanS.  Note the S- as in more than one.

2010
Swim-76 200metres
Bike-1124km
Run-1877km

2011
Swim-93 800
Bike-631.49
Run-2189.62

2012
Swim-63 400
Bike-2043.59
Run-1789.13

2013
Swim-60 100
Bike-3132.58
Run-1394.67

2014
Swim-81 750
Bike-3303.61
Run-1127.42

2015
Swim-119 000
Bike-4837.3
Run-1555.54