Struggle

When my alarm went off this morning, I reset it for an hour later and told myself it was okay, I’d run after work. I laid there for 10 minutes – wide awake – and realized I actually really wanted to get up and do my run.

So I did.

I peeled myself out of bed, got dressed, slammed back some water and OJ, woke up a sleeping Rust-beast, strapped on the ol’ Garmin, and together, the Colonel (aka Rusty) and I happily headed out the door into the grey, rainy morning.

The feeling of wanting to get out of bed and run, of wanting to hit the hill and run 1min repeats over and over, has been a bit of a foreign feeling in recent weeks.

I don’t know why I find it hard to admit sometimes, but I’ve definitely been struggling with training lately. All the running, running, running, has been taking its toll on me.

It’s funny, because by the end of the 3 easy weeks post-marathon I was itching to get back at things. I wanted the structure and the hard workouts. I wanted to start building up for TRR and I couldn’t wait to really get going again.

Unfortunately, it seemed that as soon as the structure and hard work reappeared, my body wasn’t having it. I felt constantly tired and super heavy on every single run. Couple that with a lot of solo running and the doubts (and a bit of negative self-talk) started to creep in.

Thankfully, this past weekend (when I probably needed it most) I had two pretty great days of running and I could definitely start to feel a little spark of excitement reigniting in me.

So, you want to hear about the weekend? Well, okay...

Saturday morning Kirsten and I met up bright and early at Mt. Finlayson. We parked in Goldstream and headed up and over the mountain and into Gowlland Tod. We weren’t moving fast, but the conversation was flowing and the time and kms were ticking by. Before I knew it, we were back at the car and making plans for Sunday morning’s run.

Sunday we met up with a trail running group at Thetis. It was a small turnout for the group as a lot of their people were up doing the Kusam Klimb, but I think that actually made for a great (and less overwhelming) introduction. Not to mention, it was kind of nice to be able to actually chat with and meet the guys who were there.

Anyway, the plan was to run Stewart Mountain. Since Kirsten and I usually get lost when we are trying to run the Stewart Mountain loop, I think we were both kind of excited for this. We headed out with the group, and the leader promptly took a wrong turn and got us lost, haha. It was kind of hilariously awesome and definitely made Kirsten and I feel better about our constant wrong turns. Once back on track, we headed up Scafe Hill and Stewart Mountain and I made lots of mental notes about which turns to take and which turns to avoid. The time absolutely flew by and once again, before I knew it, we were back at the car.

The group was incredibly welcoming and a lot of fun and I look forward to running with them on many more Sundays in the future.

So, with that solid (and fun) weekend of running behind me and my desire to actually get out of bed and do my workout this morning, I’m hopeful that the heaviness and the struggle I’ve been feeling lately is on the way out.

I know there will still be plenty of days where my legs feel like lead and the warm bed seems more appealing than the early morning miles, but I think I’m on the right track.

Running. Running. Running.

Running. Running. Running...
Yep, that’s what I’ve been up to lately. Running. Up and down hills. On trails. Very. Hilly. Trails. I’m not going to lie, my body is tired.

I think I had this mindset of “I’ve done Ironman, I can do anything” when I agreed to do TRR with Kirsten, and while I still totally believe that, recently I’ve also definitely been realizing how hard a certain 6 days in the Colorado Rockies this August are really going to be. I’m slightly scared. Excited and still optimistic about the adventure that awaits, but yeah, pretty freakin’ scared none-the-less.

I ran just shy of 60k up and down hills in about 6.5hrs this Friday, Saturday and Sunday combined and my legs pretty much felt like they were going to fall off by Sunday night. Actually, that’s a bit of a lie ~ while Friday and Saturday’s runs were on hilly terrain, I did cheat and ran on nice flat trails on Sunday (even though I should have been hitting the hills).

My defiance of my training calendar was worth it though and while my Sunday run was flat and still uber-slow, it turned out to be a pretty fun one and a nice mental break.

Why was that you ask? Well, let me tell you…
Kirsten and Shane were racing the Victoria Triathlon at Elk Lake. I once again waffled about signing up for the sprint distance, but decided I didn’t feel like paying the big bucks to go out and give a half-assed effort (as I knew I would still have to be running long through the weekend) and really, I was being a big wuss and didn’t want to race on a super tired body. So, I spectated instead!

Shane did the sprint, and Kirsten was racing the half. I happily watched all the action with my Mom & Dad and once Shane was finished his race, I headed out on my run around the lakes (heading in the opposite direction of the racers).

The first few kms were pretty lonely, but soon enough the leader of the Olympic distance passed me, then the half leader, and then more and more athletes started to stream by. I think I cheered or clapped for every person (and some cheered and clapped back at me, which was awesome) and it was simply just a wonderful, happy distraction from my own running.

One other random non-running related note:
Last Wednesday the weather gods smiled on us, and Shane and I finally got to take part in the Learn to Ride clinic we had signed up for at the Velodrome.

It was great fun and once I got over my fear of the fixed gear bikes (whatever you do, don’t stop pedaling!), it was a blast. Who knew riding in circles could be so much fun? Okay, well maybe I did already know that - but it was definitely reaffirmed.

Also, highlight of the night: when the instructor told Shane I pedaled like a roadie and not like a triathlete. This made me oddly happy, haha.

That is all for now... Happy Trails!

GutBuster Duncan, Mt. Tzouhalem

I did my first official trail race this weekend. GutBuster Duncan at Mt. Tzouhalem.

The plan was for Kirsten and me to run it together and get a sense of what it will be like to run together at TRR later in the summer. That may sound strange, as we do run together fairly often, but I guess what I’m getting at is that it was a chance to run together in a race setting. That said, I had absolutely no expectation and didn’t really go into it with a “racing” mindset (oops, sorry Kirsten).

I’ve been doing a lot of running on hilly trails lately, with lots of big back to back days on the weekend. This is still somewhat new for me and while I am having fun with it and enjoying the newness of it all, I’m also quickly realizing that I kind of suck at trail running. I'm not super agile at this point in my trail running career, and well, I definitely spend a lot of time hiking up very steep hills cursing my cramping calves and wondering if it will get easier (which I know it will, I just want it to be easier NOW).

Anyway, the race. I knew I had to follow up Saturday’s GutBuster with a VERY hilly long run on Sunday, so perhaps that is why my mindset going into the race was more “have fun and just survive” than it was “race!!”

So yeah, was it fun? You bet – especially once we got to the top of the mountain and got to start our descent, haha.

We did a nice 30min warm up and although my calves were a bit tweaky and crampy during the warm up, I thought I had done enough that maybe they would be happy once we really got going.

Unfortunately, that was not the case. Things started okay, but at the first big climb, my calves felt like they were going to explode and so I had to start hiking (along with a lot of other people thankfully). Kirsten finds it easier to run, so she would trot on ahead and then wait for me.

I felt really bad and like I was holding her up, so did find myself getting slightly frustrated (not with Kirsten, but with myself and my body), but we eventually got into a nice rhythm and made it up to the summit together. The views were pretty amazing.

The back half of the race and the downhills were awesome – definitely my favourite part! I tucked in right behind Kirsten and I felt like we just flowed down the trails – even passing a few people on the way. We were moving quickly and pretty fluidly and it was a nice positive mental break from the frustrations I was feeling with my body on the climb up.

As we came out from the trails and raced toward the finish line Kirsten kept picking up the pace, telling me to go faster. I was feeling pretty maxed out but tried to surge to get beside her (or well, I’ll admit it – maybe I was trying to get in front of her), but she had my number and got the last step on me. Turned out our finishing time was exactly the same though and it resulted in a pretty good finish line photo. I was smiling, but I’m pretty sure I was also calling her a jerk as the photo was snapped.

Photo by Esrah Boulton: www.esrahboulton.com

Kirsten and I post-race with Torben.
Photo by Mom :) 

After a much needed sleep in on Sunday morning, Kirsten and I met up at Mt. Work and did a little hike/run-sploration around Gowlland Tod Park to round out the weekend. We made our way down to McKenzie Bight, up and around part of the Jocelyn loop (I think) and then up and down Mount Work.

I'll admit, at the start of the run, I was feeling really stiff in my joints and the uphills were feeling really tough (stupid calves, again). In short, I was struggling! I definitely had a few moments of thinking "I don't think I can do this” (the “this” in that statement being both that day’s run and TRR depending on the moment) but as the run wore on, I loosened up a bit and it slowly got better. By the end, I wasn't feeling too too bad. Don’t get me wrong, I was still fighting heavy tired legs, but was definitely in a better headspace.

Pretty views somehow make a tough run worth it.

So that was the weekend… and what I’m sure many weekends this summer will look like. I’ll keep plugging away on the trails and will hopefully start to see some gains. Perhaps I’ll get a little more nimble and quick, and perhaps my calves will stop hating me.



Off topic (kinda), in our journey to TRR this summer, Kirsten and I have decided to support Martin Parnell in his TransRockiesQuest 888 – a fundraising effort for Right to Play. Knowing how much our lives have been enriched with sport, it was an easy choice to try and raise some money for Right to Play. On top of that, every donation we receive will be matched by Right To Play partners 3 times!

For more information or if you'd like to donate, please check out our fundraising page here.

 

General Training Update

^Creative title eh?

Life has been ticking along.

Training post-marathon was very light, which was a nice mental and physical recharge. It was quite satisfying to include a bit of time to just go with the flow and do what my body felt and for the most part, I think I have recovered very well. Even my disgusting black toenail that looked like it might fall off in the days following the marathon has stayed put and seems to have re-bonded with my foot.

Because who doesn't love a good toe shot!
 

The only slow down to recovery has been a bit of a cold that struck me just in time for the Victoria Day long weekend. I spent about a week coughing up phlegm and slowly getting back to my normal healthy state. I suppose it was the best time for it though and am feeling really ready to jump back into things as training gets set to ramp back up again.

As for this past weekend, well, it was spent biking, cheering, and running.

On the biking front, Kirsten, Shane and I headed out for my longest ride so far this season. At just under 2hours, it wasn’t in fact that long of a ride, but it did include a decent amount of rain and a Malahat summit, so it wasn’t entirely easy. Once the rain stopped pelting down on us and I could see the roads through my sunglasses, it was actually pretty fun.

Side note: Shane and I have been watching a lot of cycling on TV lately, so most of our rides are punctuated with Shane “making a break” and me trying to (unsuccessfully) reel in the break. Sometimes I like to accuse him of being a doper (jokingly of course), because really, how else is it possible that he can climb hills so much better than me? On top of that, we spend a lot of time commentating our rides in our best excited British accents.

Chapeau Sir!

Favourite Giro Moment(s): Cav's awkward reception of podium kisses.
Looks so goofy and makes me smile every time I see it :)

As for cheering, well that happened at home in Shawnigan, and via text messaging with my folks in Ottawa.

This was the first year in many that I have not participated in the Shawnigan Triathlon. I waffled back and forth about entering in the weeks leading up to it, (as I always kind of like taking part in my “home race”) but when I came down with my cold the week before, I knew it wasn’t meant to be this year. So instead, we spent the morning cheering on one of Kirsten’s students as she participated in her very first tri as part of the BC High School Championships. It was a lot of fun and Jacqueline did awesome on her first go at swim-bike-run.



Jacqueline coming in for the big finish!

 

At the same time, my Dad was taking part in the Ottawa half marathon with his best buddy of 40-some-odd years, Jesper. I think we all (Kirsten, Shane, myself) wished we could have been there to cheer them on in person, but it was still fun getting updates from my Mom via text. I haven’t gotten the full scoop on how their race went yet, but I’m sure they had a blast doing it, and well, they got the best post-race snacks ever!

Jesper & Dad enjoying the most delicious post-race snacks ever ~ Beavertails!!!

After cheering all morning, Kirsten and I headed to Thetis with the intention of doing an 80-90min run on the Stewart Mountain race course. For the record, I have never run Stewart Mountain before and Kirsten has only done it once, so I tend to leave her in charge of the navigation. We have (unsuccessfully) attempted to find the course together before and well, Sunday turned out to be just that – another attempt.

We covered some big hills, some very rough single track (that were probably actually just deer trails), got a bit lost and had a lot of fun (for the most part) and yet we still did not get to the top of Stewart Mountain. I think it frustrates Kirsten more than me that we are so navigationally challenged, but one day, I would like to actually find the route and get to the top of Stewart Mountain too. Anyway, we ended up being out in the bush just shy of 2hrs, and by the end, my legs were beat! (in a good way of course).

Looking ahead to this weekend, well, guess what is on the agenda? Hills. Trails. Very Hilly Trails! 
Friday is repeats. Saturday is supposed to be VERY hilly, while Sunday is also supposed to be hilly, but you know, “slightly easier” hilly.

I imagine it’ll look a little something like this:



Four.

Today is four years since my PE.

On the first anniversary of my clot as I anxiously awaited the one year mark, I wrote “… I suppose what is most likely, is that there isn’t going to be any particular date or event, and one day I’m just not going to think about it so much anymore.”

Well, I can finally say that day has arrived – without me even realizing it.

On Tuesday a friend asked me how many years it had been and I was confused. I actually didn’t know what she was talking about at first. It was kind of an awesome feeling. That day finally came – the one where I “just don’t think about it so much anymore.”

Sure, I’m still hopped up on anticoagulants, but that is just part of life. It is my “normal” now. My INR remains mostly constant and I’m easily able to manage my diet and lifestyle, and because of that, I don’t have much worry. Life is good.

So, on that note, how about 4 random things to mark 4 years.

1) The Monday post-marathon my ankle blew up like a balloon. It hurt and was approaching cankle status for a day or two before it started to feel normal again.

On the Wednesday post-marathon, I had a massage and the wonderful Lysanne decided we’d test out a new little tape job. This wasn’t a tape job that was for support. Instead, the technique she applied was supposed to stimulate my lymphatic system (I think) to help reduce the swelling. She told me she understood the theory of it, but hadn’t really ever tried it, so didn’t know how well it would actually work. It was kind of a “can’t hurt to try” scenario I think.

Well… by Wednesday night the swelling in my ankle had started to come down and on Thursday morning, it looked like normal. For the first time in ages, my right ankle was actually the same size as my left ankle ~ shocking! (but cool).

So while I suppose it could just be timing and the fact that I wasn’t really running, I like to believe there might actually be a little something to the theory behind the tape.

2) Shane and I are going to be doing a ‘Learn to Ride’ and ‘Learn to Race’ clinic at the Velodrome this summer, which I am super excited about. There is just something about ripping around in circles on the track that is really really fun.

Anyway, we were supposed to do our ‘Learn to Ride’ clinic last night, but it got rained out. It was a bit of a bummer to cap off an already bummer day. So instead, (being the top notch athletes that we are), we ate frozen pizza (and salad!) for dinner. Shockingly, it was exactly what I needed and helped perk me back up.

3) Do you ever have one of those moments where you are talking to someone and you say something without really thinking it through, and then a few seconds/minutes later think “that was a complete lie” but you don’t really know how to back pedal, because of the time that has passed, so you just go with it and hope you never get called on it?

Yeah, I totally had one of those moments at the pool the other day.

I was talking to a guy I see there regularly, that also does triathlon. He knows I’m doing TRR this summer and asked how training was is going, etc. etc. (you know, the usual back and forth you tend to have with strangers who happen to have common interests).

He then asked how many miles I was running a week, to which I honestly replied that I didn't really know, as my training in largely based on time. So he asked how many hours I was running and I said "oh, about 12hours a week" thinking of my total training time over the week (including swims and bikes and yoga). He, of course, was like "wow, that's crazy, yadda, yadda, 12hours running, yadda… how’s your body handling all that, yadda, yadda, 12hours running is a lot...."

I then realized I had completely exaggerated (although, I wouldn’t doubt it if I got up to 12-13hours of running per week as the summer wears on), but didn’t want to be like “you know what, I totally just lied – I don’t actually run that much.” So I just kinda went with it.

So, to the guy in the IM Florida swim cap at the pool, if you ever read this, I totally lied. I don’t run that much… yet.

4) I’m currently reading the book “Drop Dead Healthy” by A.J. Jacobs and so far, am really enjoying it. It has made me want a treadmill desk. I really have nothing else to add at this point, but if you’ve never read any of his books, they are pretty fun and definitely an easy read. Worth (in my opinion at least) checking out.

That is all. Happy FOUR!

BMO Vancouver Marathon - Race Report

Things didn’t go quite as I had planned, expected, hoped, or imagined on Sunday at the Vancouver Marathon.

In fact, if you were to compare the actual race to the goals I had declared to the ol’ world wide web last Monday, you would probably think the day was a complete failure.

3:45 – Fail
Sub 4 – Fail
Negative Split – HAHAHAHAHAHA, obviously I was delusional when I thought that was a possibility, because, well, HUGE FAIL!

On the plus side, my 'no urgent bathroom breaks' goal was a big win!

Anyway, even though looking from the outside in, Sunday’s race could seem like a bit of a failure, I wasn’t as disappointed with myself as I thought I might be.

Sure, I came up pretty short on my goals and shortly after the finish line I probably declared I was done with the marathon distance forever, but then I found myself lying in bed last night thinking about the Victoria marathon in October and wondering if I was just crazy enough to do another one.
[Shane, who has officially sworn off the marathon, will be shaking his head, wondering how he ended up married to a crazy person when he reads that last sentence].

I definitely learned some valuable lessons on Sunday.
Lesson 1: A marathon is hard. If anyone every tries to tell you differently, they are a liar.
Lesson 2: 42.2km is a long long way. Like, it’s far. Really far.
Lesson 3: Things can be feeling awesome for 25k-30k, but things can also change very quickly.
Lesson 4: 10k at the end of a marathon can feel like a lifetime.
Lesson 5: When you pour copious amounts of water on your head to keep yourself cool, you’ll discover chaffing in all sorts of strange new places (hello butt crack!).

Okay, so I already knew all of those things and they aren’t really new lessons learned, but Sunday was a good reminder of these truths I suppose.

Also, while Sunday’s events definitely gave me a good scare and worried me a little for what is to come at TRR this August, it also got me really pumped to get off the roads and hit the trails.

Anyway, I’m rambling. Let’s get to the race report….

It started well, really well in fact.

I was incredibly nervous when I woke up and the nerves stuck with me right up until the gun went off. Thankfully, they didn’t get the best of me and I was able to take the first km or two pretty easy and settled into a nice rhythm.

I kept the 3:45 pace bunny in my sights and was feeling great. As I passed the 15km marker my watch was exactly – like, to the second – where it should have been.

I was feeling strong and happy and like this was going to be an awesome day.

I got a bit ahead of pace just before the half way mark, but I think that had a lot to do with that huge downhill out of UBC, so I was still feeling pretty good about my 'smart race, steady pace' goal.

That said, the downhill was tough. More so than I thought it would be. It definitely took a toll on my wonky ankle (which is the size of a baseball today), and I could feel a real hotspot on the outer edge of my foot that came back to haunt me a bit later (it turned out to be a nasty blood blister that somehow formed underneath a callous – weird, right?), but I was still feeling mostly good.

Anyway, I would say I felt pretty great up to about 25km and then it was just like my legs stopped wanting to turn over. At that point, I just reminded myself to keep running, and wasn't too worried about my pace slowing a bit. I actually still felt pretty good mentally at that point, but in reality the doubts were probably starting to settle in and plant the seeds for the struggle that was to come.

Just before 28k, I lost sight of the 3:45 pace bunny and gave in and walked for a moment up a little hill while I took a gel, but was able to get back to running again pretty quickly (although, much slower at that point).

My pace really started to fall as I climbed up the Burrard Bridge and the hotspot on my foot really started to get into my head. It felt like a dagger every time I stepped down and I was having a hard time ignoring it.

Not long after I got onto the seawall, the 3:50 pace bunny passed me. Seeing that stupid 3:50 sign trot by me like it was no big thing was a bit of a blow to the ego. I couldn’t deny it any longer – I now knew I was really falling off pace.

I tried to keep telling myself to “just keep running” and reminding myself that it was just a short run left and that 10k was no big deal, but unfortunately my walk breaks kept getting more and more frequent.

This might be a weird statement, but I wish I could say that I bonked or that I was hurt in some way, but I think mentally, I just gave in a bit. Don't get me wrong, everything on my body hurt (my hips and my ankle the most) and I got a really bad side stitch that I just couldn't get rid of, but I think that is probably just the way your body is going to feel after 30-35km of running eh?

Oh, and my ear – I got a really strange ear ache during this time. Like ear infection style throbbing. Anyone else ever experienced that? Tres strange.

But that’s beside the point. It was mental. I didn’t embrace the pain and instead, I let myself give in to it (which is kind of hard to admit).

Anyway, needless to say, the whole seawall was a struggle – both mentally and physically.

I had readjusted my goal time in my mind and now just wanted to get under 4hrs. It was less than 10k. I run 10k all the time! I actually still believed I was going to make it until about the 39k mark when the 4hr pace bunny passed me. I tried to stick with that group, but was fading hard and fast. I don’t know if you could call what I was doing running. A painful shuffle/hobble is more like it.

Those final few kms were ugly. I wanted to try and pick up the pace on the final stretch toward the finish line, but it didn’t happen. The very gradual false flat uphill kicked my butt. I think I was grimacing the whole way and am pretty sure I had my eyes closed for longer than I should have. But, you know, when I actually crossed the line, I didn’t care. I was done. I was happy to be done, and I actually didn’t feel like a failure.

I crossed the line in 4:06:21.
100/381 in my age group.
484/2145 female.
1486 overall.
I’ll take it.

p.s. The Vancouver Marathon course is beautiful (but tough). The volunteers and the spectators were awesome, and the weather was amazing (even if a bit hot). Also, it was hard ~ very hard. Have I mentioned that yet?

The Goal Post

Last Tuesday, the day after I wrote my last post, I went for a run. On pretty much the last step of my run, at the bottom of our [not-so-smooth] driveway, I landed funny and felt a weird poppy-crunchy sensation in my knee. It wasn’t an intense pain, but it kind of jolted me and really just felt ‘off’ (and continued to feel ‘off’ for the rest of the day and the day that followed).

I’m not going to lie - it freaked me out. A lot. So much so, that I didn’t tell anyone for a few days aside from Shane and Adam (and it took me a day and a half to send the "PANIC" email to him). I think I felt like if I didn’t admit it, it didn’t happen. Couple that with the typical anxiousness that comes with the taper and well, look out!

Maybe it was because the marathon is so close, or maybe it was because I realized I didn’t want to be fighting an injured knee all summer training for TRR, but I did something I know a lot of runners don’t do well (myself included), and I listened to my body. I trusted my gut and I rested. I skipped workouts that were planned for Wednesday and only did yoga on Thursday. I iced, I elevated. Yeah, I probably babied my knee more than I needed to, but I think it was the right thing to do.

By the time Friday morning hit, my knee was feeling significantly better – definitely less tender and less stiff. I could walk up and down the stairs without any weird sensations, and so, I went for a run. It took a bit to get warmed up, but once I did, I felt pretty good.

I followed that up on Saturday and Sunday with similar success. Decent runs without too much strange stuff happening in my knee… and so, I'm feeling cautiously optimistic.

Anyway, I know I need to be careful and not overdo things in the coming week, but I feel like maybe I’m actually learning. Learning how to listen to my body, learning how to not be so obsessed with “getting the workout done” and learning to just kinda go with the flow.

So, minor injury scare aside, I think it is time to make a note about some of my goals for this marathon.

Of course, I have time goals…
I would like to say my ‘A’ goal would be to run a BQ, which is 3:35:00 for my age group, but that is more of a dream than an actual goal. I think one day I will be able to do it, but at this time, I feel like it would probably take absolutely everything going perfectly, and well, rainbows shooting out of my butt or something magical (like a unicorn sighting?) to help propel me to the finish line in that time.

So, my real ‘A’ goal, and the one I have been training for, is a 3:45:00. I think it is doable. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t in any way think this will be easy, in fact, holding a 5:20/km pace for 42.2km will be very challenging for me, but I feel like I’ve trained well and it is achievable. I believe I can do it. Of course, even though I believe I can do it, I’d still appreciate everyone crossing their fingers for me and sending positive “speedy” vibes my way on race morning.

My ‘B’ goal would be sub 4. That is totally arbitrary and based on nothing other than the fact that I feel like I should be able to go sub 4 and well, it seems like a lot of first time marathoners aim for that mark. So yeah, that is that.

‘C’ goal is to finish. Although, you know, I don’t know if that is really a "goal", as I know I can finish a marathon. I guess I don’t need a ‘C’ time goal, do I? I guess, if the day turns out to be a "just finish" kinda day, my goal is to cross the finish line without feeling disappointed – to finish the race holding my head high and smiling.

My Non-time Goals are more pace related...
I would like to run a smart race. I want to run a nice even pace and not go out too fast. My goal is to be patient. My goal is to stay steady through 30k-35k and then, if I’m feeling good, try to pick up the pace a bit. I guess what I’m saying is I would like to negative split. I think a negative split is kind of like a unicorn sighting to a lot of newbie marathon runners and, well, I want to see what the negative splitting unicorn really looks like. 

Also, no urgent bathroom breaks please. My goal is to have all that business taken care of before the gun goes off. Good goal right?

So, these are my goals. My race number is 2016 if you'd like to follow along online or if you’ll be in Vancouver and want to yell nice things at me. I’ll be in black tights and a green shirt (haha, that totally narrows it down, doesn’t it).

Oh and one more goal... maybe a good race photo if I’m lucky. :)