Airdrie Triathlon Review - Swim and Run!

I have been taking a cycling class this past month with Leaping Dog Racing, and knew one of the gals from the class would also be at this Triathlon.  I was happy to see her both on Saturday at the transition seminar, as well as on race morning.  Together we found our bib numbers, got our (unecessary) body marking done, and found a good spot in the gym (which was awesome because this eventually became the transition and we had a sweet spot close to the exit door).

Once settled in the gym, we waited for our turn to be called to head to the swim deck and get our timing chip.  I was in wave 3, and was originally scheduled to swim at 8:40.  Even with all the craziness of the morning, my swim wasn't too far off of that.  I was really excited to see my hubby and kids arrive shortly after 8:20 to watch me swim and transition from the mezzanine above.

Timing chip on, and some good advice from my swim mates came true.  I had originally placed myself in the 20+ swim category, but they advised me not to do that.  People would be doing backstroke, breaststroke, and I would get really frustrated.  As I stood on the swim deck watching, it was true.  There was even one gal who was doing a drill of side stroke to freestyle.  As I headed to the lane, the race director told me not to look so nervous - it was that obvious ha ha!  A quick wave to my people and I was in the water.

A slower swimmer was just exiting the water as I was doing my second length, and I had to tread water for a bit behind her as I couldn't pass.  This unfortunately screwed up my Garmin count and I didnt' realize until I was at the far end of the lane and it read 225m.  I'm REALLY bad about counting laps.  I just can't get it straight.  I had no idea if I was at 200 or at 250.  My friend got out of the water just before I did, and my time showed 18:40.  I either swam a minute faster than normal, or my count was out.  My watch showed 725m so I had no real way of knowing.  A review of my Garmin that night confirmed I only swam 700 rather than the 750m.  Out and into transition!

I had a strategy in place to get my winter run gear on.  I dried off as well as I could, tossed my wet run tank, and tried to get my run tights on.  That's a bit tricky lol.  I then realized that my socks were still in my cycling shoes, now secure in the truck.  Shoot.  Oh well.  Running shoes on without socks!  I was happy to see somehow my hubby captured that moment on camera.  I also decided to toss the idea of putting on my heart rate monitor.  Seemed like too much at the time.  Results don't show a transition time, as there was just one mat outside of the gym to show the start of the run.  So transition was lumped into our swim time.  My Garmin showed however that I transitioned in just over 3 minutes.  Given the race weather and needing to re-dress, totally ok with that.

The run.  Wow so much snow.  The ground was pretty slick going over a couple of bridges as the snow was heavy and wet and left a good slush on the ground.  I had taken a gel before the swim, and worked on a second one during the first lap of the run.  I ditched it about 1K in as I wasn't getting much of it in and my hands were cold.  My knee felt a little awkward but worked itself out, and from 3K to the finish I was comfortably able to push my tempo and finished just under 30 minutes.

Photo captured by Tri It Multisport

Photo line finish captured by Tri It Multisport

Overall, I placed halfway both in my division and for overall females.  Really happy with that!  There were 111 people who completed the Sprint, and I was in the mid 90's for the swim.  SO... not a fast swimmer, but I know that.  Gives me something to work on!

I was happy to see that Multisport Canada e-mailed out a discount for a future race, as well as another race stepped forward to also offer a discount on their Tri.  Now that I have a swim/run under my belt, I'm really looking forwad to completing my first Tri.  I e-mailed a race director last weekend and hope to hear soon if that Tri will become a reality in just a couple weeks!

Airdrie Tri turned Aquathon

Wow what an INTERESTING first "Triathlon"!

Race package pick up was on Friday night, and I left rather confused.  There was no bib for the run portion, and the package only had a unisex adult t-shirt and a couple magazines.  Why did we need to pick this up?  Turns out, we should have had our race number written on our package bag.  More on that in a bit when I talk about race morning.

Saturday afternoon I headed over to the pool location to attend the triathlon seminar.  This was fantastic being race specific.  It helped take away first time jitters knowing where we would exit the water, seeing what transition looked like, knowing the rules of how to properly rack our bike, and a little bit about where to mount our bikes and come back into transition for the run.  The word "snow" was mentioned a few times - what? wait?  SNOW is in the forecast??  Saturday was overcast and cold.  Not awesome for racing conditions, but it was at least dry.

I came home and organized my various piles that I would need.  I emptied out some large ziploc yarn bags (I smiled seeing my two passions cross paths - ha!), and thought about how I could keep everything dry, and keep myself warm.

Race morning I woke up at 6:15am and thought "let's get this party started!".  I came downstairs, saw rain/snow falling heavily and thought "is this a smart idea?".  I quickly changed my game plan a little bit, and grabbed a waterproof rain jacket for the bike, and decided I would fully change after the pool in the change room so I would be dry on the bike other than wet hair.  I loaded Ruby into the back of the wet truck and headed for the Tri.

Getting out of the truck I was quickly told the bike portion had been cancelled.  Rain had now turned to snow and it was 0 degrees Celcius.  A smart call by the race director, but this being my first Tri, there was a touch of disappointment as I took Ruby's front wheel off to securely lock her into the truck.  I started pulling things out of my ziploc bags to re-organize for a swim/run.

For all the changes race morning, the race directors handled it as quickly and as efficiently as truly possible.  We headed inside to find everyone confused and wondering what and where to go.  Finally someone arrived for body marking.  But wait?  Half of us did not know our race numbers!  We were told to head outside.  I found the race director who directed us to the original transition.  Snow was now falling heavily.  The lady in the tent instructed us we should have our numbers or we should get it inside.  As you're seeing, there was some confusion.  Apologies were also given that this was a mess up at package pick up.  Numbers received and back into the gym. Things got sorted, and transition was moved to a gym across from the pool exit.

The swim was supposed to start at 8am, and by shortly after that, the party was started and Olympic distance swimmers were entering the pool.

How did I do on my first Aquathon?  Tune in tomorrow!

BMO Vancouver Marathon Race Review

I've been home for a week now since running the BMO Marathon, and have already laced back up my shoes twice to run!

I was in the 4th corral.  They did a countdown for each corral to start.  I had batman in mine!

Vancouver was more than expected.  Both in scenery, and also on the course.  It was a TOUGH run.  I've been trying to think about what made the course so difficult - the rolling hills? The major climb at the 8K mark, or perhaps the heat?  A friend texted me an article where an elite runner was being interviewed and he described the course as "rough".  Two other BMO finishers I saw in Calgary on Saturday said that they run it every year but saw more "carnage" this year.  

My favorite section of the course

Putting the difficulty aside, I cut a whopping 21 minutes off my Calgary finish time from not quite a year ago.  I finished in 4:27 laying out EVERYTHING I had on the course.  Physically, mentally, and emotionally.  It is the first time I hit a mental wall at only 19K and cried after crossing the finish line.  When I hit the mental wall, my calf was starting to seize up, and I could feel my hip flexor tensing.  Thankfully it came and went over the course and wasn't persistent.  Initially I was going to run without my phone but I was glad I did.  It came in very handy at 21K to start texting my girlfriend and my hubby to get some much needed mental support.  At 39K I was pretty sure the seawall would never end.  I was running without headphones (probably not a repeat at another 42K event), so I turned on the tunes on my phone.  I figured it would either also help the rest of the runners around me, or encourage them to run faster ha ha.  We rocked it out to Pat Benatars "Hit it with your best shot" to help get us to the end.

Hello ocean! 

So what brought down my time by 21 minutes?

Calgary:  Sometimes I only got in 2 runs a week
Vancouver: I ran a minimum of 3 times a week, usually 4 times a week

Calgary: All my runs were at the same pace
Vancouver: I incorporated both speed and hill training

Calgary: Some runs only saw 3.5K as a distance
Vancouver: My runs were a minimum of 5K

Calgary: No mid week long run
Vancouver: I had a mid week long run of at least 10K that I did steady, no walk breaks

Big difference heh?  This past January when I laced up my shoes to train for Van, it was the first time I actually trained for a race since 2006.  Training shows results!!!

I really went into Van wanting to see a 4:20, given my long run pace would have brought me in to that.  But race day played some different elements.  I was reading back through old posts, and saw in 2014 I wanted to run a 4:30 marathon again.  It gave me perspective (as well as LOTS of perspective graciously and lovingly given from friends and family).  A week post I'm owning my 4:27 and am looking at my training and thinking on what I can do to tick furthur minutes and seconds off.

My parents are awesome cheerleaders.  I saw them 4 times on the course!  This was marathon #6 they've cheered for me at!

Realistically I know I can't add any more runs or distance to my week, as I need to strike a balance with my family.  But what I can add in is on days I had previously taken off, add in a day of core or yoga.  Both would be good for me and might be fun for my kids to do with me.  My next Marathon is this coming fall and will also involve some rolling hills.  I'll be adding more hill repeats into rotation!

So true.

Thanks Vancouver.  It was a fun, hard, heart opening challenge.  I came away from it wanting to try it again, just to see if I can conquer some of the mental walls I faced.  One year I'll be back (and hopefully sooner than another 11 year jag!)

Yes!

A great marathon finishes at a Starbucks ;)

#flatrunner (and Last Chance Half Race Review)

If you run (or even if you don't), and have an Instagram account, go check out the #flatrunner.  I stumbled across it one day and it gave me a chuckle.  It also serves as great inspiration for running costume possibilities!

Last Sunday I ran my last race of the year.  Saturday it was mid teens here, but with a warning Arctic air was coming and it would be our last day of Fall (er more like Summer really).  It was really hard going to bed Saturday night knowing we would wake up to Winter the next morning.  Even harder knowing I had a half marathon to run it in!

The race started at 10am, which

at first I thought would be great giving a chance to sleep in (har har with three kids), and have a bit of a relaxing morning without the usual crazy morning race prep.  I found 10:00 to be too late.  I was really ready to go by 9am.  I also  knew that the temp (with windchill) of -15C was going to continue to drop throughout the day.  Let's get this done!

All runners hunkered inside until we started shuffling out to the cold at 9:55.  As many races are going, this was a no headphone event.  Some still wear them, but as mentioned in my previous post, I'm trying to learn to do without.  Both my Nano and Ipod batteries were low, so it was an easy decision to leave them in the car.  I also left my phone behind (so no photos to share which is unfortunate as there were some great opportunities), but it was equally nice to disconnect.

I had moments where my elbows were freezing (around 7K), and then my hands (around 12K), and alot of time to think, partly about my running gear.  I have some FAVORITE pieces.  I've been running off and on now since 2002, and most of my pieces date back to those early days.  They have held up well, and some pieces I'm starting to replace, but trudging along on Sunday, I was sporting my favorites, and thought I'd share them.

Here's my flat runner, reconstructed after the race, with the help of my kids (leg position thanks to my son!).

My favorite pieces are:

Sugoi Speedster - really can't say enough about this top, and it's unfortunate to see it's impossible to purchase now.  It has mitts that fold down from the cuffs, and a hood you can flip up.  I can't count how many times during the race this past weekend that I flipped the hood up or down when I needed just that little bit more warmth.  And those mitts that flip out, BEST thing when my hands were frozen and needed one more layer.

Sugoi Midzero Bun Toaster - I'm pretty sure these are what mine are anyways.  They have wind protection which is awesome to keep my thighs and butt warm.  These are a must for me in the winter.

Compression socks - the ones pictured are from Lunatik athletiks.  I'm new to wearing compression socks on my longer runs, but these were great as an extra layer of warmth on the weekend.

Sugoi Wind Jacket - I'm not sure what this jacket is even called, that's how old it is, but it's phenomenal.  Has underarm zips, a big zip pocket on the back, and it keeps the wind out.  A good wind protection is essential.  I briefly checked out getting a new one, but can't part with this one yet.

Flip mitts - I love that they can be gloves, or mitts.  Easy to flip the cover back to grab a gel or snack, then flip the top back over for wind protection.

Other random bits shown here are a long bra tank, a toque from Lululemon, my Rudy Project sunglasses,  and Buff.

I decided while running I needed to treat myself after the run to some new gear, and quickly decided it would be a new Speedster.  Since that isn't available now I'm on the search for a great thermal layer.  Do you have a MUST in your wardrobe you would recommend?

Overall, this race was fantastic and I will most likely run it again.  Amazing cheering volunteers (some even with cowbells!), that made the colder weather feel warmer with their enthusiasm.  Aid stations were well stocked (and I took amusement in the fact that the gatorade was a slushie by kilometer 15).  The medals were nothing to rave about, but warm french toast, scrambled eggs, and fruit salad, were delicious to warm up with.

The race ran short with a final distance of 20.7K.  If the distance had been accurate this would have been a personal best for me of 2:03:14.  Unfortunately, the perfectionist in me just can't rationalize with that, given calculators tell me my finish of the actual distance would be closer to 2:05.  Still, I'm really happy with the finish given the weather conditions.  In 2014 I ran 5 half marathons, and each time have slowly chipped back my time.  My first half of the season was 2:15:14, and I have managed to chip off 12 minutes off of  that!

I'm glad I raced it, glad I'm finished it, and happy to have a bit of a break until marathon training starts up again in January.  Until then, going to keep warm and enjoy the upcoming Holiday season.

Running with the Dinosaurs

September 13th my family and I hit the road and headed to Drumheller, AB, a short hour and a half away.  Drumheller is known for its' Dinosaurs and Hoodoos. I had signed up to run the half marathon distance of the Dinosaur Run and have been excited for months about the opportunity to run in such a different and stunning landscape.  It was also the inagural year of the marathon, and I wanted to check it out and see what it was like for future possibilities.  Drumheller did not disappoint.

Race package pick up was small but easy to find. Lots of goodies included but non that stick out as WOW that's great I received that.  I am a big fan of the shirt though.  Fun athletic design, and also women specific sizing.

The race was started off by the mayor of Drumheller (!) and they had a moment of silence for the victims of 9/11 prior to the race start.

The entire race was on pathways - but I had no idea how extensive the pathway system was in Drumheller! All you need to do is follow Mile-a-saurus ha ha.

We ran a bit through town, over the bridge, then out towards the museum.  I was concerned the night before we would end up running the highway, but we took a turn off of it and ended up running along the pathway system.  The Tyrell museum was about at the halfway point.

The volunteers on this course were amazing.  Especially since we heard that the Tough Mudder race was out just the weekend before and these same volunteers had helped out with that as well.  For each turn of the course there were volunteers there to make sure we all stayed enroute.  Water stations were every 3K and at one near the finish they were all even dressed up as pirates!

This course is the first I have said I will do every single year.  Everything about it was that great.  And check out the medal!

I shaved an amazing 5 minutes off of my time from my half in July.  So super pumped about that.  Finished in 2:04 and change.

If you are looking for a race not far from Calgary, I would highly recommend you give this one a go.  And with all the dinosaurs around, it was just as much fun for the kids too :)

Calgary Women's Run Race Review

I decided to do this run only a couple of weeks ago, with a few goals in mind:

1.  Run one more race before I turn 35.
2.  I've been feeling my legs are getting faster and I wanted to see how fast I could run a 10K.
3.  I wanted to run the 10K straight.  No walk breaks!

Some things I loved about the run:

The website didn't leave you with alot of info, but a week before the race, a two page word document was e-mailed out to participants with everything you could possibly want to know.  The bonus for me, was I could pick up the kit on race morning.  This race was sandwiched into a busy weekend, so this option was perfect.

The race started at 9 am and I got to the start at 8:30.  It started at Shouldice Park in the NW of Calgary, so parking was really only available in the neighborhood.  It was already starting to fill up.  I found a spot just a short walk to the finish, and everything was set up and ready to go.  The race kit had a $25 off coupon for the Tech Shop attached to the bib, as well as a Luna Bar and a copy of the trail Impact Magazine.  I don't have a photo of it, but the highlight was a reusable bag, bright orange with blue polka dots.  It screamed fun :)

Some things I found surprising:

Before the race started, the race director asked everyone to bow their head and pray.  This was not a Christian organized race, it was put on by the Calgary Road Runners and Tech Shop.  She said if you didn't believe the same you could plug your ears and bow your head.

As we walked to the race start she stated no earbuds.  If you wore them you would be disqualified.  At the finish, she did disqualify three runners!

The race was to start at 9 and we were well on our way at 8:58.  I saw a few runners dashing to the start.

Prizers were listed as being given out at 10:45.  She was drawing names by 10am when some were still crossing the finish line or running the course.  It would be unfortunate if it was one of their names drawn and discarded for not being present.

General stuff:

The course had three water stations, and bananas and cookies at the finish.  None of the tables were manned at the end, and I saw a few frustrated runners finishing to find all the water gone.

I have also never seen a race with so many post race prizes.  There was hot yoga for a year valued at $1200, pedicures (I scored one!), free shoes, crafts for kids, free race entries to upcoming Fall events.  It was pretty crazy.

The course was well marked though and essentially flat.  I found I could turn my iphone on full blast, had my earbuds tucked into my sweater, and could still pace myself with tunes.  My brother has informed me he doesn't run with music at all anymore.  I'm not there yet, I'm pretty music dependant.  Maybe this is something I can work towards.

I felt strong during the run and finished in 53:05.  I was nervous as I was running and saw the pace per k as 5:24, then 5:22, but it felt good so I kept at it.  I'm really pleased and proud with the result.

As for running the race again?  The verdict is still out.

Police Half Marathon Race Review

On Sunday, April 28th, I ran in the Calgary Police Half Marathon.  I was scheduled to run 29K as prep for the marathon, and ho hummed about doing the half marathon as part of the distance.  The indecision was due to cost.  As a late registrant, they were asking $95.  Wow.  And if I had registered "early" it would have been $85.  I just couldn't stomach that cost.

But as race day approached, I started trolling Kijiji, and I found an ad posted by a gentleman asking $45 for his bib.  Yes!  I was pleased to see only one person had viewed the ad, and even more pleased when he responded it was still available.  $45 was a price I could accept for a distance of 21.1.  We met up on Friday to exchange the race number at package pick up.  And I can say, I'm really glad I didn't pay any more for this race.

It was great to run through the Weaslehead, and in a part of the city I normally don't see.  There were three aid stations for support offering water or gatorade, as well as the Police mascot, cops on horseback, and the highlight for me, bag pipers as we came up a steep hill out of the Weaslehead and into Lakeview.

Heading out over the reservoir.

BUT, for $95, runners received a nice, but small, medal, a technical race shirt, and THAT'S it.  My opinion, is it is NOT worth nearly $100.  That's just craziness.  I think I paid the same for my full marathon and will be getting much much more out of it (meaning obviously more course support due to distance, music on course etc.).

The back of the medal.  The front says FINISHER and the race distance.

I wouldn't sign up to do this race again, unless I found it for cheap.  The price simply doesn't make it worth it.  I have heard it has a loyal following though, and usually sells out.  Not this year.  Perhaps (and hopefully) price has something to do with that.

Heading into the Weaselhead.

Run wise, I arrived at the race start at 7 am, switched my race shirt to a new size, and managed to squeeze in 4.7K prior to the race start.  I looped the University where it started, which was awesome as I was able to figure out prior to the race, just what I should be wearing.  Loop 1 I added gloves.  Loop 2 I took off one jacket, and by loop 3 I was down to what I was comfortable in.

I finished the race in 2:13:07, holding a pace of 6:18 min/k.  The finish line, marked a total distance for me of about 26K.  I still had 3 more to go.  I just kept running after the finish line, knowing if I stopped I may not want to start back up.  I got 29.07k nailed yesterday, and I finished feeling GREAT.  I was really happy with shaving two minutes off my finish time from February, and happy I finished fast and strong.

I'm into the heavy miles now of training.  Next week 32, then 36 on Mothers Day weekend, then the taper will start as the marathon approaches.  As of today, 33 days to go!

Lavaman 5K Race Review

My family is home from a most wonderful time away in Kona Hawaii.  It was so good for our souls to get some much needed sunshine (and quiet time together to relax and play).  But the warm days of almost all 26 Celcius were amazing after such a long spell of cold winter.  We managed to get in alot of beach and pool time, and for myself, some wonderful runs.  I did two long runs while I was away which I'll do a post about in a little while, but I also did a 5K race in Waikoloa!

There are only wonderful things to say about this run.  It was well organized, alot of fun, and great support.  For a 5K there were two water stations!  We ran over lava, and down some beautiful palm tree lined streets.

Check out those hot pink shoes!

Even though it was at sunset, it was still really hot.  My first kilometer I ran at a pace of 5:40min/k.  I was pleased with this and hoped to maintain the pace.  I kept pushing and was surprised when I saw kilometer markings (my watch buzzes as each k passes) of 5:15min/k.  It has been a long time since I saw those numbers on my runs.  I felt good and after the 3K mark worked at maintaining that pace.  The hard work paid off.  I finished with an amazing finish time of 26:51.  Nine seconds under my hope of a 27 minute finish!

A wonderful bonus to this run was having my family there to support me.  Not only did I have my hubby and the kids, but also my parents at the finish line.  My eldest daughters face in the photo captures exactly how I felt post run!

We went to grab a bite to eat and watch some Hawaiian dancers.  On the way out we noticed alot of other runners wearing medals.  I asked a woman if they had been awarding age group medals and they were!  Prompting by my family had me ask the race director if I had placed.  I was astonished that I had!  2nd place!!!!!  At that point many of the remaining medals had been given out to the kids, but they had one in the box with a surfboard keychain on it which I happily took in lieu of the original medal :)  

My son holding my medal on our drive home.

This was a fantastic run.  If you ever end up in Kona and have a chance to do this race, or the Lavaman Triathlon that this is apart of, I would highly recommend it.  Now to find a race for April!

Race Review - Hypothermic Half Marathon!

When I woke Saturday morning, shockingly my phone home screen told me it was -38C outside.  Thankfully (it is all perspective), it was only -26C with windchill.  -14 without.  Maybe my phone was trying to do me a favor by shocking me with absurdity first, so that -26 seemed sane.

I bundled up as best you can bundle up in running gear with knee high compression socks, wind protected tights, more wind pants on top, an outdoor hoodie, plus arm warmers, and a wind jacket.  Not to mention a balaclava, running toque, and my hoodie on top of it all.  I was kind of warm.  The race started at Fort Calgary, and I was glad we did a loop around the building, before heading out to the river.  I stopped at my car and grabbed another set of mittens.  This looked a little absurd, given I was wearing mittens, and the knit pair I grabbed were gloves.  Looked like a blown up latex glove over my hand!  It took until 11K before I started warming up.

The race followed the river, out to the NW, then back towards downtown again, turning around at Edworthy Park.  From the get go, all of the kilometer markings were out, by about 1.2.  It turns out that first loop around the Fort wasn't necessary, as it gave us a finishing distance of 21.7 according to my Garmin.  Concensus along the route that everyone who was running with a GPS was ahead of the markings.  My younger brother was running in the afternoon, and I gave him the heads up about the first loop.  He and another front runner decided to skip it, and their total distance was 20.9.  Much closer to the 21.1K half marathon distance.

Cold weather aside, I wasn't much impressed with this race.  The registration cost was $65 for early bird, and $75 afterwards.  The website had no information about race route, course support, or results afterward (my brother e-mailed the race director to get them).  There was only one aid station which was at the 10K mark.  The brunch at the end also left something to be desired serving eggs, sausages, buns, fruit crisp, fruit salad, and potatoes.  Additional brunch tickets were going for $30.

Goodies provided to us in that cost were a pair of running gloves, a running toque, and the finishers medal.

I picked this race as I had run it in the past and thoroughly enjoyed it.  But the venue and organizers have changed, and I was left disappointed.  This just gives me the opportunity to try something new!

I ran the race in a finishing time of 2:15:14 which I'm really pleased about as I was aiming for a 2:15 finish.  When my watch clicked over 21.1 I was at 2:12.  I placed 9/40 in my age group, and 34/140 women.  72/216 total runners.

Next up - the Calgary Full Marathon - eep!  The kilometers start getting longer in two weeks time.  Nervous and excited!

MEC Race One Review

Yesterday my younger brother and I ran in the MEC Race 1 at Shouldice Park.  This race came at an amazing price of just $15 (half marathons are running around $90 here in our city!).  My brother thought this a good chance to check out just what a race of $15 is like - I'm glad I joined him for the experience.

We arrived to a really easy and fast check in.  Music playing, a great race start line (heck it was in snow, but it is January after all), a warm-up and an efficient start.  The 10K group headed out first, followed shortly after by the 5K runners.  The organizers were great about warning about the worst icy patches (we had some warm weather, followed by low temps, and most sidewalks and roads are pure ice).

I was pleasantly surprised at the 2.5K turnaround point to find an aid station with gatorade and water.  My only gripe has nothing to do with MEC, but rather general race etiquette.  Runners are pretty friendly folks.  We are competitive, but with ourselves.  Running is not generally a team sport.  Near the finish line, I love to push it and give the last kilometer a great kick.  A man in front of me, probably in his fifties, would not let me push past him.  Whenever I tried he would speed up or block me, almost coming to a complete stop at the finish line.  It was so infuriating.  Mostly also because being a man, and evidently not in my age group, it wouldn't have even been about trying to place higher than me in those categories.  As my brother pointed out, it is a $15 race and can pull runners that are just starting and have never raced before, and may not know general race etiquette.

That however, was my only negative of the entire run.  At the finish line they had gatorade, Clif bars, medals for the top finishers, and gift certificates to spend at MEC for those that placed.  They had the rest of their races outlined and I will be sure to do another one.  They even have a marathon coming in October!  Great cheap runs ahead :)

Timing wise I was really happy with my result.  I normally run during the week at a 5:55min/k pace, so focused on a finish time of 30 minutes.  When I was at about 3K I noticed that my overall pace was at 5:47min/k which I was really excited about.  I thought I'd see if I could kick it up a notch and lower that even more.  In the end I finished with a chip time of 27:59!!!!  That was an overall pace of 5:33min/k.  A great way to start off the running year!  My brother placed third overall for the men with a time of 20:32.  Incredible!

Here's an image posted on the MEC Flickr site of my brother and I visiting after the run :)