| While most of the Toronto
Penguins opted for the half-marathon, I (Maryanna Lewyckyj) tackled the
full marathon route on Oct. 14.
First of all, I'd like to
apologize for not attending the get-together at Joe Badali's on Oct. 13
(I'd already purchased a ticket to the marathon pasta dinner well before
the Penguin rendezvous was arranged). I also had to take a pass on the
post half-marathon brunch (I'd agreed to drive a co-worker home after the
marathon).
I would have liked to have
seen Kelly, Carlene, Helen and David cross the finish line and hang out
with all the Penguins afterwards, particularly out-of-towners Carlene,
Kathryn and David, who I haven't really met. But circumstances (and race
start times) dictated otherwise.
Anyhow, it was my first marathon
since turning 40 last year, and my first marathon in six years. I won't
bore you with all the technical details, but I had hoped to finish between
4:15 and 4:30 and posted a chip time of 4:24.56. That's within two minutes
of my best ever marathon (run when I was 36), but I was a little disappointed
not to crack the 10-minute mile barrier, especially since I'd run the Scotiabank
half-marathon in 2:01 (albeit under ideal conditions and on a flat course).
Predictably, I'm still a
little sore, but I'll probably try for an easy run tomorrow.
Anyhow, here are some of
my marathon musings.
GLUTTONS FOR PUNISHMENT:
I rode the bus back to Mel Lastman Square with two very hard-core runners.
One was a woman in her forties who had run a 100-MILE race three weeks
earlier. The other was a 36-year-old man who'd run the Waterfront Marathon
on Sept. 23, finished the Oct. 14 CIM in 3:58 and was planning to run the
Oct. 21 Niagara Marathon. Ouch!!!
SALT FOR THE WOUNDS:
By the way, the woman ultra-marathoner recommends Epsom salts in a hot
bath (as hot as you can stand) following a long run to alleviate lactic
acid buildup and the associated soreness. I'm also a big fan of Epsom salt
soaks and though I toss in a whole 2 kg. package (hey, it's only $2.49,
a small price for pain relief), the ultra-marathoner says you only need
about half that amount.
HILL HUMOUR: Did anyone
else notice the guy at the top of Hogg's Hollow Hill with the sign "IT'S
ONLY A SPEED BUMP". If that hill was any bigger, I'd want to hire a Sherpa
guide. I have it on good authority that Hogg's Hollow makes Boston's fable
"Heartbreak Hill" look puny by comparison.
TRASH TALK: Like some
other marathoners, I cobbled together a makeshift jacket from garage bags
to keep me warm at the start line before the marathon. However, some eccentric
types (maybe the Novopharm gang?) used Biohazard bags as their disposable
warm-up coverups.
WRAP RIPOFF: As a
slower runner, you often get shortchanged at the finish line. I even missed
out on getting a medal once after a half-marathon because the organizers
simply ran out. (Nor was a medal ever mailed). At the CIM, by the time
I hit the finish line, they'd run out of those great Mylar blankets that
are not only a wonderful race souvenir, but also handy to keep in your
car in case of emergencies.
THE BETTER HALF HALF:
Obviously, men like "going all the way" more than women. While women outnumbered
men in the half-marathon, the full marathon had more than double the number
of men compared to women participants.
WATERFOWL WEATHER:
Maybe organizers should pay me NOT to enter a marathon. I've only run three
of them and two of them have been in the rain. Fortunately -- like a true
penguin -- I've discovered that body fat is an important insulator when
the weather turns foul.
EYE-CATCHING PLUMAGE:
Kudos again to Glenn Gabriel for the great Penguin shirts. They helped
me spot Kathryn, Kelly, Carlene and David before the race, and I think
the shirt helped Leisha spot me when I was coming down Davenport. Even
the odd stranger shouted "Waddle On" or just generic Penguin encouragement.
You can't help but root for a Peguin.
THE PENGUIN AND THE HARE:
I drove to the marathon start with a co-worker who needed a lift because
his car wasn't running. It was his first marathon and he hoped to finish
in 3:30 (based on a 1:30 half marathon). I was concerned because I figured
he'd have to wait 45 minutes to an hour for me to cross the line and I
knew that wouldn't be any fun in the rain. Anyhow, I passed him at about
the 30 km. mark and he looked pretty rough. As I turned out, I finished
in a chip time of 4:24.56 while he finished in a chip time of 4:33 and
change. Sometimes it pays to be fitter rather than faster.
Race report from Helen...
Date: Mon Oct 15, 2001
Subject: Race Report
I had a wonderful time yesterday
at the CIM 1/2 marathon. After hearing for days that it was going
to pour rain, it was a pleasant surprise to wake up to almost blue skies.
I drove to Yonge and Sheppard and the first thing I noticed, getting out
of the car, was the wind. Yikes! Coming straight from the south up
Yonge Street. I worried that this would be a problem in the race,
but now that I think of it, I didn't notice any wind while running.
I went and checked my bag
and then jogged up the street to Finch and then back to the Start Line.
Everything was feeling okay so I figured I was good to run. I searched
out the pace bunny I wanted but never found one. Next thing I knew
- we were racing. As I looked down the street and saw the CN Tower so very
far away it just amazed me that we were all going to run that far! I loved
running by the Marathon start line and having the runners waiting there
cheer us on. That was wonderful motivation.
So, my biggest fear was the
Hogg's Hollow Hill. All 700 meters of it. Luckily it was very early
and I was well warmed up when I approached it. I just focused on the top
and shortened my stride - and in the end I think it was easier than I thought
it would be. At the top a bunch of us high fived each other!
that was a nice touch. To me this hill was just as much of an accomplishment
as running a 1/2 marathon!
I really liked the crowd
support along Yonge street, especially at the turn to Rosedale Valley.
The 3 or 4K down thru that ravine was the nicest part of the race for me.
Very scenic. I also, for the first time, decided to see the impact of a
power gel. WOW! Choked one down at the 1:05 mark and instant energy.
Next time I will try one at 45 mins and another around 1:30 to see if I
feel stronger at the finish.
Now, the trip west on Front
Street was brutal. Not very nice scenery, the rain was coming down
heavier and the road was grated up. YUCK! I was worried about stumbling
on the road and falling down.
University Avenue seemed
to go on forever. My thighs were like lead. However, coming around
the corner at the top of Queen's Park and seeing that finish line was heaven.
I even had enough umph left to sprint on in for a personal best of 1:57:13.
Unfortunately the woman in front of me crossed the finish line and collapsed.
She was fine, but it was a bit scary. I liked getting a rose, but
think that 1/2 a medal is a bit cheesy.
I went and iced my IT band
that was bugging me and got some Advil from the medical tent. I headed
over to the finish line to cheer some people on and I also wanted to see
the first Marathoner come in. And sure enough there he was, running
like a race horse, comes thru the finish and within 10 feet is talking
to the media, hardly out of breath!
I enjoyed the lunch with
fellow Penguins and it was nice to finally meet Carlene. We compared
our training plans and goals and I look forward to seeing her again at
Around the Bay next year. (Nice to meet someone who is as anal about training
as I am!)
This morning as I enjoy my
coffee I must admit my body feels a bit beaten up. Maybe running
two 1/2 marathons and a 5K race in a 21 day period isn't the wisest move.
However, I have always been one of those nut cases that seems to take things
to the extreme. Hopefully next season I will have matured a little and
will have the sense to know that I don't need to run every race I can find.
All the best to everyone
and I look forward to the reports from others!
Helen
Race report from Kathryn...
Date: Mon Oct 15, 2001
Subject: Kathryn Bagged the Race/CIM Report
Hi Friends,
Earlier in the week, I figured
that I would not be well enough to run on Sunday. But Saturday I
decided to give it a shot, just to see what happened.
So, I got to enjoy the excitement
of portapotty lines and a noisy start and running with my dear Kelly, Kelly,
Kelly (don't you guys remember Cheers?). I so wished Jacquie (she makes
the world brighter wherever she is) had been there with us, but she made
some good choices and decided this was not to be her first big race.
There was great music, lots of DRUMS, beautiful police officers and even
some gorgeous firefighters.
Kelly and I had the privilege
of sharing the road with some MS Striders, runners who were relaying a
buddy in a wheelchair to victory in the half. It was inspiring.
Initially, I thought I just
might pull the rabbit out of the hat and complete the half. But,
after an hour of fairly pleasant running (the first hour is the hard part
for me), my legs got real heavy and wobbly (a new experience for me) and
I felt weak and dizzy. I downed a power gel, but knew I was in trouble.
It was not a hard decision to bag the race ... I even felt good about it
'cause I had come out, given it a good try despite nagging health problems,
and listened to what my body was saying. Interestingly, the Resting Heart
Rate for the previous two weeks had been up significantly and I think that
reflected the fatigue symptoms.
The rest of the Toronto Penguins
ran on to glory. Helen, Carlene, Kelly and David all ran fine races.
It was wonderful to share their joy and celebrate with them. What a wonderfully
diverse group.
For me, a psychological pall
stills hangs over all experiences since September 11; however, it felt
good to get out and say yes to life by running down part of the LONGEST
street in the WORLD -- Yonge Street -- on a warm, misty, moisty morning
in one of the world's nicest cities... Toronto the Good.
So, I looking over my plans
for the next few months and figuring out my next goal. Will be in
Iowa next month for the mudslinger special. So I am going to hit the trails
this week.
Still feeling a bit tired,
Kathryn
Above: Toronto Penguin
Kelly is only 200 metres from the finish line of the CIM half-marathon.
Check out her feet; the camera can't keep up with her speed!
Race report from Kelly...
Date: Mon Oct 15, 2001
Subject: First post baby 1/2 Marathon
Hi all!
Yesterday I ran my first
half marathon since March of 2000. At that time I did a 30K Round the Bay
run in Ontario as a training run for the Vermont Marathon. I soon after
discovered I was pregnant with Nathan and didn't run the Vermont Marathon
(just a leg of the relay with some excellent Penguins!)
During my pregnancy I did
keep up my running until about 7 months where it was just too uncomfortable.
I missed running terribly and had a hard time ever imagining that I could
ever run again. I have very clear memories of cheering on Toronto Penguin
Maureen last October when she did her first Marathon and tears just streaming
down my face as I watched everyone run by - feeling sorry my big fat self!
(Hormones!) It took me 4 years to get off my butt after my daughter was
born...
 |
It's been a
long journey to get back into running and I confess that I haven't been
as consistent as I would like. The weekly Toronto runs help but it's too
easy to come up with an excuse to bail. Then Kathryn Lye started talking
about doing her comeback 1/2 Marathon I jumped at the chance to train with
that sassy lassy and reap the benefits of her level headed experience.
We tried whenever possible to do our long runs together and at the same
time had some wonderful runs! Jacquie (newbie Penguin) joined us and contemplated
doing the 1/2 also. All in all we trained following a tried and true
method, but I was worried... old fears resurfaced... I am still carrying
baby weight... yadda yadda...
Well I had an excellent run
- it went exactly how it was supposed to! Kathryn sensibly left me and
got on the subway around the 9K mark. Shortly after the rain started. I
picked up the pace and had a wonderful run! I feel great today, my quads
are a tad sore but no fatigue at all.... I AM BACK TOO LIZZIE! What a great
feeling! |
| Above:
Half-marathoner Kelly holds a happy Nathan at the post-CIM lunch at Swiss
Chalet. |
|
Now for the next goal! HMMMMM.....
Kelly in Toronto - with a
biggg smile!
Carlene from Kanata shows
off her kick at the Canadian International Half-Marathon, finishing in
2:10.10.
Race report
from Carlene...
Date: Mon Oct 15, 2001
In my last journal I signed
off by asking for Penguin prayers on race day. Well… I'm happy to
say they were received loud and clear. Thank-you to everyone for
sending them my way. I had a great race and set a new PR. However…
let's start at the beginning…
Friday I drove down to Toronto
in a torrential downpour. I felt like Noah sailing my ark however,
instead of 40 days and nights of rain I had over 400 km of it. (Turns
out I was blessed with this experience again Sunday during my return trip.)
I spent Friday night at my sister's place stayed up too late talking to
her.
Saturday I got up and ran
15 minutes as instructed by Jane (my coach). This was just long enough
to get warmed up and work some kinks out but not to get tired. After
that I headed downtown to the host hotel to meet up with the Penguins.
We had a loose plan to meet there around noon. I got lost on the
way there and was a bit frazzled by the time I arrived. Penguins
David Gegear and Kathryn Lye managed to find me and then we spent the afternoon
getting our packets, talking with Jeff Galloway and shopping. Glenn Gabriel
joined us for dinner at a FABULOUS Italian restaurant and later we were
joined by Tracy Gilliam and his friend who were on the way home from an
Argos (football) game.
(Shortly thereafter the next
table was filled by extremely beautiful women who turned out to be the
Argos cheerleaders. If we could book them for the Penguin conference
we would. I'm sure it would increase registration significantly.
However, I really don't think we could afford them.)
My coach had suggested that
my goal time for this race should be 2:11. When she emailed that
to me I read and re-read the message and generally cowered in fear.
I really couldn't wrap my mind around that time. My 1/2 marathon
personal best time was 2:26:29 (May 2000). That race was a 12 minute
improvement over my first 1/2 marathon the year before. Dropping
another huge amount off my 1/2 marathon just didn't seem possible.
I spent a lot of time pre-race trying to grasp that number and convince
myself that it was possible. Let me tell you - training my mind was
harder than training my body.
Sunday morning Kathryn, Kelly,
David and I took the shuttle buses from the host hotel to the start area,
checked bags and did the porta-john line. Then we began to walk towards
the start. Turns out we were still walking to the start line and
the race was about to start. Kelly, Kathryn and David suggested I
run along ahead so that I could get in place. (I was on the wrong
side of the timing mat at this point.) So I ran ahead, and squeezed
on to the course.
My plan for the race was
to line up with the 2:10 pace bunny and see how things went. I managed
to get into the crowd behind the 2:15 bunny but figured I could try and
catch the 2:10 bunny as the crowd thinned out. Then we were off.
People kept telling me this race was flat. They lied. I never
did catch the 2:10 bunny but I strove mightily to keep the 2:15 group behind
me. I ran the entire race by HR and know that I was in the low-190's
for some of the hills early on in the race. Somewhere around 10 or
11 K I was really discouraged and feeling really fatigued. I began
drinking Powerade in addition to water. This helped a bit.
It also began to rain which made me feel a bit cooler.
During the second half of
the race my overall goal was to keep my heartrate around 180 (or above).
I am pleased to say I managed this. Towards the end of the race it
was really hard seeing the people walking back with medals. Finally
I heard the bell and began to look for Glenn. Got cheered for, had
my photo taken by Glenn and then was off to finish my race. Imagine
my surprise when I rounded the final corner and finally saw the finishline
clock and realized that - if I kicked I could finish in sub-2:11 clock
time. Finished, hit my watch and then I saw the 2:10 pace bunny.
I had finally caught him (he was 2 minutes early).
I collected my rose, medal,
food, etc and then wandered back to join Glenn and cheer for more runners.
Soon David was waddling towards us and then Kelly. I don't know where
I found the energy but I ran back down the course and ran with her for
a bit and she looked so fabulous. It was wonderful. My final
time and new PR is 2:10:10 (chip time) - an improvement of 16.5 minutes.
WOO HOO! What a wonderful pay-off for all my hardwork trying to follow
Jane's wonderful training schedules.
After the race Kathryn (who
DNS and dropped out somewhere along the way) sweetly drove me back to the
hotel, waited while I got changed into dry clothes and then drove me to
lunch with the Toronto Penguins. We had a great time at lunch and
I have to say I had such a wonderful weekend. Thank-you so much for
being such wonderful hosts and for supporting me. In particular I'd
like to send huge Penguin flipper hugs out to Glenn, Kathryn and David
who went above and beyond the call of duty before, during and after the
race. Thanks for reading and sending those Penguin prayers my way
today.
Carlene
Still grinning in Kanata
Race report from Jacquie...
Date: Wed Oct 17, 2001
Subject: On The Sidelines
We talked about running the
1/2 for a while before I seriously started training for it. Then I committed
and we ran and trained as per our schedule. I was doing pretty well and
feeling good. Then life happened. I couldn't keep up with training, I couldn't
make Tuesday night runs and then there was that ass-kicking that Tom Longboat
gave me at the Island.
It was a tough decision,
but we (Kelly, Kathryn and I) knew that I wasn't ready. I had to give up
the idea of running this 1/2. I was in a bit of a funk for a week after,
but got over it assuring myself that I would get back into the groove and
be running again soon. But as soon as I got to Queen's Park Subway and
saw the runners, a strange feeling came over me.
At first I didn't know what
it was, but I noticed that my mood had changed. The place was alive and
the air was electric, full of energy. People were cheering as the runners
grimaced, on their last stretch of the race. I followed the runners and
was happy to find the Penguins fairly easily. Glenn had his bell. David
and Carlene had already come in looking good and feeling happy (the strange
feeling got stronger) and Kelly's family was happily waiting for her to
appear. And she did. Running gracefully as if she had just started. We
watched her run to the finish line and cheered as loud as we could.
While we waited for her to
come back around to us, we cheered others in and that strange feeling turned
to cement and settled in my chest and stomach and then I realized what
it was. Jealousy. I was wishing that I was not a spectator but a participant.
I didn't want to just be cheering, I wanted to add to the power and the
strength that each runner was giving off with each step they took towards
the finish line.
I mentioned my feelings to
more than one Penguin and as always, Penguins came through with shining
advice and support. I know that it isn't impossible for me get hyped for
a race and have to back out for reasons within or out of my control and
that I am not the only person that this has happened to. Hearing this helped
me to stop feeling sorry for myself, get some
trouble-shooting ideas and
get on with business... the penguin business of celebrating our successful
runners and enjoying the fellowship that always comes when a bunch of us
penguin-like folk meet up. Congratulations to all who ran! |
— Photo courtesy Toronto Sun/Ernest Doroszuk