It's my party and I'll bike, run and swim if I want to! :)

Since starting my journey to become fit, I've used my birthday to hit new milestones of fitness.

In 2012, I ran my first ever half-marathon distance (in a training run).

In 2013, I ran my longest distance ever (at the time) in the Midsummer Night's Run 30k.

So, when it came time to decide what to do for my 36th birthday, I was a bit at a loss. I couldn't run a new milestone (Right now, a full marathon is as far as I expect to run at any one time. Not interested in running ultras).

And then my friend Kim (from Two Years to Kona and Our Fresh Kitchen) suggested the Toronto Island Lake Swim on my actual birthday (Sunday, August 17th). The race on the island had 3 distances, including a 3.8km one (that's the distance you swim in a full ironman). I've never swam 3800m in one go before - and the most I've swum in the lake was around 3200m. I'd once done a 2-swim day that was 3950 total, but that was split into two sessions (one lake, one pool) several hours apart.

So there I had it. My longest swim ever and it would be in open water!

But that's not all. Given I was training for Barrelman, I still needed to get my long run and ride in. Well, months ago at the Mississauga Marathon, I purchased entry into the Midsummer Night's Run at a low rate (they were also giving away extra shirts) on Saturday, August 16th at 6pm. So I was already planning to do that. But then my friend Emma (from Running in Tune) offered to give me a grand tour of the region around Burlington (i.e. take me on a long ride out of the city!) that day. So my birthday weekend became an epic training weekend, including:

• Saturday morning: 90k hilly training ride
• Saturday night: 15k Midsummer Night's Run
• Sunday morning: 3.8k Toronto Island Swim Race

Now, one of the best parts about having Coach Mark is that I asked him whether I was nuts for doing all of this. Of course, his answer was "Go for it." In fact, he was great - giving me a good nutrition strategy to use - especially between the ride and the run. I think it made a huge difference!

So, how did the weekend go?

Training Ride

I got up pretty early on Saturday morning to make the GO train out to Appleby...but it wasn't too early that I couldn't nab a coffee to drink en route (priorities!). The forecast was talking about rain, but luck was in our favour. All we got was a handful of drops...so no complaints from me!

Now, Emma had warned me that the route was going to have some hills. "No problem," I figured. Hills are good, right?

What I didn't realize was that my occasional hills and the hills out at Angus Glen are nothing compared to the Halton Hills. The entire first half of the route was very rolling...and added to that was some excellent wind (crazy wind!). I couldn't believe how slow I was (meanwhile Emma proved to me she'd have no problems killing a duathlon since she's so strong on the bike!).

But - the hills were on beautiful and mostly silent roads. I loved riding out there. Also, I learned that some of the area we were riding in would be a part of the PwC Epic Tour - which means I'll be facing these hills one more time before Barrelman! Yikes!

I needed proof we did it, so here's a picture of Emma and I about 2/3 of the way through I think.

Midsummer Night's Run - 15k

After the awesome ride with Emma, I caught the GO train home, making sure to eat/drink on the way according to Coach Mark's guidelines. It started to pour just as I left the subway station near my house, so I did have to ride one block in a downpour. I'll take that over an entire ride in one!

I got home around 4:30pm, which gave me just enough time to relax for a little bit (and drink more fluids) before having to catch a bus down to the Midsummer Night's Run. Thankfully, the rain only lasted the 30 minutes I was in my house. The rain was done by the time I had to leave. Excellent timing, don't you think?

I really had no idea how this race was going to go. Last year it was on the island and I did the 30k option. I tripped on the boardwalk and ended up going a fair bit slower than I had been hoping for. So I had no expectations of this race, even though it was back in the Beaches (making it very convenient for me!). Given my 90k ride, I figured I'd at least get a nice 15k delayed brick, even if I went slow.

I got to the race very close to the start, but wasn't too worried. Had enough time to drop my gear bag and hit a porta-pottie. I did have an argument about what to wear (it was windy and cool) - but I rightly remembered that I ran Mississauga in shorts and a tank and that day was much colder...so I went with my standard race outfit and left my long-sleeved top in my bag. Wise decision that's for sure!

Much to my surprise, the race went incredibly well. I was told to run it without looking at my watch, which I did - and maybe that helped because it meant I had no expectations. The fact it was cool also helped. It's always easier to run when the weather is cool (and not that humid).

My final time was 1:16:54 (pace 5:08 per km) - which landed me 29/245 in my age group, 63/730 of all women and 201/1047 overall. Fantastic results on any day, but given what I did that morning, I was shocked I did so well. It was a nice confidence booster for Barrelman, even with the several hours of rest in between the bike and the run!

Crossed the finish line and saw a few of my friends before heading back home for more food and a good night's sleep. I think I was in bed by 10pm.

Toronto Island Swim Race 

The next morning, I took a cab down to the Ferry docks for the Toronto Island Lake Swim. Now, I was a bit worried about water temperature - but I remembered something Coach Mark had said before the Toronto Triathlon...which was dump a thermos of warm water inside my wetsuit before I got in. So I did. And despite getting funny looks, the water really helped because it meant the warmer water stayed close to my skin and made it easier to acclimatize to the cold water during my warm-up!

A bunch of friends came out to the island too...swimming in the 3.8k with me were my friends Hector and Kim (who had done Ironman Canada just weeks before) and my friend Lori.

Here we are (Lori, me, Hector and Kim)

Other friends - Brenda, Linda-Kay and Carole came to watch and cheer! Kind of awesome of them! :)

The swim was surprisingly good. It was a 3 loop course, which made it more manageable to think about. There were a lot of swimmers (and the waves didn't correspond with anything so I caught up with the slower folks from the first wave pretty quickly) so I took an outside line for the first lap. A little too far outside in hindsight...but c'est la vie.

The first loop was pretty nice but over the course of the next two the water got a bit more rolling and choppy. Thankfully I've practiced in that so it didn't throw me off. I did find I would get the odd chill at times when the sun ducked behind a cloud, but overall the temperature wasn't nearly what I'd been led to expect. I think it ended up being around 16 degrees - which is not terrible for Lake Ontario.

I think my last loop was actually my best since I knew I was definitely going to be able to finish. Came out of the water feeling pretty good and thrilled at my new swim distance milestone!

My watch said I swam 4k in 1:23:55 (and I stopped it late), but my official time was 1:24:46. Apparently, they timed everyone from the first wave start and didn't adjust for the people in the second wave. Annoying, but that's the way it goes. Either way, I was really happy with my time! It was better than I was expecting that is for sure.

I was a bit surprised to be a bit topsy-turvy when I got out of the water, but a nice volunteer suggested I sit down - which I did. That's when my friends found me. Here I am with Linda-Kay and Hector (who finished a good 20 or more minutes faster. Speedy!).



It only took me a few minutes to get my bearings and then I had enough time to quickly change into dry (and warm) clothes so I could see Lori finish.

Once we were all done, we settled down to have some wonderful peach sharlotka coffee birthday cake that Kim made (after my friends convinced the live band to play Happy Birthday for me).

 The cake was absolutely delicious. Thankfully, she posted the recipe on Our Fresh Kitchen!

Here I am with the cake (with Carole in the background!). Interestingly, it looks like I am holding the full cake, but we'd already eaten half...talk about deceiving photo. But wow, that cake was amazing! Thank you Kim!!!

Much to my surprise, my friend Brenda actually made a photo/video montage of the Toronto Island Lake Swim, including the birthday song. She posted it on YouTube, so I can share it with you too!

Success!

So my epic birthday weekend was a wild success. Couldn't have had a better time, that's for sure. So great I got to share two days with so many friends. Thank you to everyone who helped make the weekend awesome!

And as a side note (in case you think all I do is train)...after the Toronto Island Lake Swim, I went out for an incredible birthday dinner with my friend Wendy - where I didn't worry for a single second about how much I ate or drank! I also went out the following weekend with more friends, since several were out of town on my actual birthday.

A visit to K-town - and my longest tri yet!

A while back, I heard about the K-town Triathlon in Kingston, Ontario. Now part of the MultiSport Canada series (the same group that will be putting on Barrelman in September) - it has two races. The one that drew my attention was the Long Course Tri.

Kingston's long course triathlon is a unique distance - partway between an Olympic and a half ironman. The swim is half ironman distance (2 km). The bike is 56.2km (compared to 40k for the Oly and 90k for the HIM). The Run is 15k (compared to 10 for the Oly and 21.1 for the HIM). It's the only race of it's kind in Ontario, that's for sure.

But doing K-town wasn't on my radar until I learned about Via Rail's Bike Train. The bike train is a summer initiative that allows you to check your bike (as is - no boxing!) on certain trains. One of the trains is Kingston/Montreal. When I realized that, I decided to give it a try (sorry) over the long weekend so I could go do my longest triathlon yet - a perfect prep race for Barrelman!

Pre-race

I got to Kingston two days in advance of the race because it made the most sense given the Via Rail schedule (there is only 1 bike train a day per direction). This was great because it gave me time to check out Kingston on top of doing the race.

On the Friday I arrived, I took a look at the waterfront, where the transition area was going to be (right in front of City Hall).

I also took a walk to look at the Causeway Bridge because the race website mentioned the need for a lot of caution while going over it. The bridge has a grate floor and lifts up when boats need to go through. I actually got to watch this while I was there checking it out!

 

 



On Saturday, I got up really early so I could go ride part of the bike course. During my hour long ride, I rode about 25k, including riding over the bridge and then up and down a fair number of hills. I admit, I was a bit surprised by how hilly Kingston was - mostly because I'd never been there before. Still - I had a nice ride and figured I'd be good to go on race day!

 

After making it back to my hotel (the Sheraton Four Points - about 5 minutes from transition), I grabbed a shower and then headed out for some shopping and sightseeing. One of my targets: Fort Henry. Now, the Fort was a few km away, but I walked there anyways. The fort itself was up on a hill (of course) overlooking Kingston.

 

 

 

On the other side, you could see what I believe is Wolf Island (but I could be wrong!). I loved the towers!

 

I wandered all around the Fort until I was exhausted and then sat back and watched some marching and weapons drills. They fired one of the big cannon (called a gun on a Fort) - and anyone that knows me knows how much I like cannon. They also fired a lot of muskets, including some neat group firing practice. I really enjoyed that - it went far beyond anything I'd seen before.

 

 

Before making the walk back to downtown, I stopped for a beer and watched some sailing practice. It was a nice way to spend a day!



 

Once I got back to my hotel, I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing - only popping out for a quick bite to eat.

 

Race Day!

 

I woke up on race day and almost had a panic attack - my windows were all fogged up! But when I got closer I realized that was just the humidity fogging up the windows: no rain. Thank goodness!

 

With my hotel so close to transition and the race not starting until 8am, I had tons of time to get ready. I wasn't hungry, so I went out for my quick warm-up ride before eating a Honey Stinger Waffle for Breakfast (whatever works, right?) and setting up my transition area.

 

I got to chatting with a couple of girls whose bikes were racked nearby. Both of them were also doing their longest triathlon yet - and one was doing it in advance of Barrelman. So I wasn't the only one with that idea. As we put on our wetsuits, we were watching people start to get in the water. I had my normal pre-race gel and then wandered over to the dock. I wasn't worried...until someone said, "Wow, there are a lot of red caps in the water!" I had been told I was in the second wave, so this brought my head up very quickly.

 

The race start was a good 50-100m out in the water. Since no one on the dock knew the wave order, I just jumped in and swam out. Good thing too because apparently they changed the start order and I was now in the first wave. My swim out to the start gave me a decent (if short) swim warm up...just in time for the gun to go off! Phew! Fortunately, that water was actually beautiful - so it was very easy to swim in.

 

The swim itself was a weird parallelogram (probably the first time I've used that word since high school math class) - but I felt like I got into a decent rhythm pretty quickly. The buoys were well placed on the way out - although on the way back there could've been an extra one or two. Thankfully I had enough stuff in the background to sight off of.

 

According to the race, I finished the swim in 40:24 - but that included T1. My watch said I finished the swim in 37:30 - which means my transition time was around 3 minutes (I have slow transitions, I know). I was really happy with that swim time though!

 

Hilarity ensues: The bike

 

The bike was a bit of a rolling disaster - but only in a funny way. Nothing irreparable! About a kilometre into the bike I realized my watch was still in swim mode. Argh. I apparently failed to put it in multi-sport mode when I started so I had to reset it. I tried to do this on the go, but it was just way too complicated. Not wanting a repeat of TTF (where I couldn't see my speed/cadence the whole time) - I stopped for a minute and fixed my watch. After all, my coach really wanted me to pay attention to my cadence - and the whole race was meant to be a practice for Barrelman. I figured it was worth it. And I was right: best 30 seconds I've ever spent.

 

Of course, another 15 minutes or so after fixing my watch (about 10k into the course now) - I realized I had to go pee - I mean I really had to go. So much so I spent the next 15k thinking about how quickly I could get in and out of a porta-pottie at the turnaround. I am sure I'd read that there would be one.

 

And then I got to the turnaround. There was nothing! Oh no, I thought. I spent the second half of the course spending more time holding it in than I did worrying about my pace. In fact, there were several times I stood in my saddle just to give my bladder a break (this is so ridiculously funny in hindsight). And of course, the whole way I was thinking, No wonder people pee on the bike! But that was not an option for me.

 

And before you ask, I didn't see any convenient bushes or trees. Well, there were lots, but I would've had to wade through a lot of grass and weeds to get there. With my luck, it would've been poison ivy. So I held it. And held it. And held it some more.

 

Meanwhile my Camel-bak experiment (a way to drink on the bike) was a fail for this race because I daren't try and take even a sip of water. Also, I didn't quite have it fitted properly, so it slid a bit over to my left.

 

So there I was riding up and down hills, slightly lop-sided, in desperate need to pee.

 

56.2km has never felt so long.

 

Despite this comedy of errors, I made it back to transition (and to a porta-pottie) without any incidents. I admit, I was not smiling when I got off my bike. All I could think about was how badly I needed to go - and that I just needed to make it a few more steps!

 

 

 

 I finished the bike in 2:04:20. I was hoping to break 2 hours, but given my entertaining mishaps, no complaints. I learned a lot for Barrelman!

 

Almost home: the Run!

 

After taking my long-awaited pit stop, I headed out on the run course...just as the winner of the race - Cedric Boily - crossed the finish line. I actually got to see him just as I was headed out. He did the race in 2h47 minutes. Wow!

 

The run course was surprisingly hilly but there were a lot of aid stations, which broke it up nicely. I found the course very scenic and enjoyed the waterfront views and getting to run by Kingston Penitentiary. Fascinating building (just like you see in the movies) but kind of creepy too. Don't need to see that from the inside, that's for sure!

 

I forgot to have a gel in T1, so as soon as I was on the run I had a couple of shot blocks. I also started sipping from my water bottle. Given it was a decently hot and humid day, the fact I had only had two tiny sips of water so far in the race was no doubt a bad thing. This is why I like my handheld. I didn't have to guzzle water - I could sip it on the go. Worked like a charm.

 

At every aid station, I topped off my water (I drank a ton) - I was surprised at how nice and cold it was! And then, at pretty much all of the stations on the back half of the course, I also dumped a cup of water on my head. I was broiling by the end.

 

In terms of the run itself - I got into a decent pace and kept it up for much of the 15k (it obviously shifted on the hills). I had a sore muscle in my side from my lopsided Camel-bak (only used on the bike!) but I don't think that slowed me down too much. All in all, I finished the run in 1:27:02. A decent run on a hot/humid day - and I enjoyed most of it, which was nice!

 

Crossed the finish line in 4:14:34 (10/15 in my AG). Yes, I definitely was smiling as I crossed the finish line. It was an awkward smile - but a smile!

 

What I Learned

K-Town was an amazing triathlon to do. It was a beautiful race venue with amazing volunteers (Thank you to any who might be reading this!). It also was long enough to really give me a taste of what I'm in for at Barrelman. Specific lessons learned, included:

• Check, double check, and triple check your wave start.
• If you have a Garmin 910 - to put the watch in multi-sport mode - you need to hit Enter on the screen BEFORE you hit start. I really need to knock this one into my head.
• If you're wearing a Camel-bak on the bike, fit is crucial. You don't want it to sit lopsided.
• Sometimes it's worth stopping for 30 seconds in a longer race to fix/adjust an issue rather to spend hours being annoyed by it.
• Double check if there are porta-potties on the bike course. Having to go is the most distracting thing ever. If you think you might need to go - go in T1! (For those of you that pee on the bike - well, I guess you don't have this problem. Personally - barring an incident, I am NOT going there ever. I am not fast enough that a minute or two in the loo is ever going to be an issue).
• A visor (Got mine through the Toronto Triathlon Club) is actually great to wear on a hot and long run course....leaves room for you to dump water on your head at every aid station!).
• Don't forget to smile and thank the volunteers on the course!

Thanks!

Seriously MultiSportCanada? The K-town medal was AWESOME (gorgeous design!) and the finisher's hat to go with the shirt was a nice surprise! Thanks for a great race!

And thanks always to my coach - Mark Linseman (of Loaring Personal Coaching) who continues to help me get better at swimming, biking and running - and at doing triathlons. He also manages to put up with my long-winded training reports every day. Seriously, even in Training Peaks, I have zero ability to be "brief."

Toronto Triathlon Festival - Fun Times in Fun Weather

Thinking back - and it's hard to remember the Toronto Triathlon Festival - despite the fact it was less than a month ago (although I am cutting it close with this race report!).

This wasn't the race I was expecting it to be. Coming off of an incredible time at Motor City, I expected to get a PR on this course - since I've had so much more training. But life doesn't always work the way you think it will. Instead of a PR, the race reminded me why I race: because I love it. Even when the weather isn't the greatest, I still can have an awesome time! Even going slow, even being afraid - I can still be awesome.

Be Awesome Today. That was the word of the day at TTF I think. And I came through with flying colours.

So how did the weekend go? Well, it was an adventure - including way more than just a race!

Volunteering - LPC Club Ambassador, TTC Booth, Pan Am Test Race

In the two days leading up to race day, I don't think I sat down very much. I volunteered a lot because I had some awesome opportunities - and I figured why not? TTF was a practice race for Barrelman - not an A race, so I figured some volunteering would just make the weekend more fun. And I did have a blast. Friday and Saturday were gorgeous making it easy to do stuff and volunteer!

As the teamLPC Club Ambassador for Triathlon Ontario for the race, I wanted to be at the expo as much as possible to talk with people about the benefits of joining the triathlon community and to hand out TO membership cards. I figured the registration would be the best time to meet people and to chat with them....much easier than trying to do it on race day - while racing! :)

And I was right - I spent Friday and Saturday afternoon outside the expo tent, catching people as they went from the ultra-long race briefing (which I could've given by the time I went to a briefing as a race participant) to the place where they got their shirts and race bags.

I found people generally more than happy to chat - especially the people doing their first race, some of whom were asking me for advice or making nervous comments (which I could definitely relate to)...like:

Do I really need a wetsuit? Heck yes. Lake Ontario is cold!

How bad will the swim start be? Not as bad as you think. If you're nervous - stay near the back, count to 10 after the gun goes off and then get going.

I'm going to come in last: Don't worry about your time - just focus on being awesome!

It was actually kind of nice talking to these folks - because this was me not very long ago (like last year at TTF!) and to hopefully give them the encouragement other people have give - and continue to give - me!

All in all, this was great and I must have talked to at least 500 people over the course of the two days.

Volunteering - Toronto Triathlon Club Booth

Far be it from me to volunteer on behalf of only one of my triathlon clubs - so I volunteered for a session at the TTC booth as well - talking about the club, training, and various perks of being a member (like all the group training and seminar/workshops). The folks in the TTC have helped me an incredible amount over the past year and a half - offering encouragement, advice and friendship. Needless to say, talking about the club for a few hours was easy! I also got to get one of the club visors (which I wore in Kingston to great effect!)

Volunteering - Pan Am Test Race

On top of the rest of my awesome volunteering gigs, I also helped with the Pan Am Test Race on Saturday morning. Got up ridiculously early to walk to a friend's house where I caught a ride down (strangely, my scenic route there involved passing a 24h Tim Hortons...).

My volunteering role turned out to be an athlete chaperone for drug testing....which was actually quite fascinating. It was a pretty easy task, involving a lot of time watching/cheering for people while waiting for the women to finish their race. After that, I needed to notify/escort one of the athletes around before she got tested. Interesting process that's taken very seriously. I liked getting that interesting peek at the world of young elite athletes!

Oh yes, I did a race too!

When I woke up on Sunday, I was relieved to see no rain! It stayed dry while I got to the race site and set up my transition area...and then, while I was inside a porta-pottie, it began to POUR! I admit, it was the only time I actually wanted to spend more time in one of those!

Putting on my wetsuit was a hilarious feat given it was sopping wet. Wow. Try putting on a wet wetsuit...I dare you! But, I got it on and managed to get down to the swim start.

Here we are all geared up! Go TTC!

The start was a little delayed, but only by 5-10 minutes. My wave was the second last to go I think. Here we are getting ready to jump in the water (we started in the water). That's me in the middle looking like I am praying. In reality, I was just psyching myself up to get into the cold water...which actually wasn't too bad since I was already soaking wet. A good use for that torrential rain earlier!

I actually had a great swim. Other than the fact the course could've used more markers - I swam pretty straight (I think) and felt fast. I finished 5th in my Age Group in 28:50 I admit, that seemed really slow in hindsight (only 3 seconds faster than last year), but I heard later that the course was long by 100-200m. If that's true, then I actually had a spectacular swim!

As an aside, who would've guessed swimming would be my best (in comparison to others in my AG) of the three triathlon sports?

It wasn't raining when I got back to transition after the swim - although it took me a little extra time because all my bike gear was soaked, even though it had been in a plastic bag!

Got on my bike, very happy because it wasn't raining!

Ha. No, I was not intentionally giving anyone the finger! Apparently I need to rethink my hand position on the bike!

There were no photographers on the bike course, which is probably good because they might have caught me without a smile on my face. It was wet and there were a lot of standing puddles, which made for a very nervous Jana!

But the truth is - in hindsight - I actually had a great ride up to Eglinton (that was the uphill part) - managing quite a good pace ~30k/mh for much of the way. Not that I knew this because my watch was in the wrong mode so I couldn't see anything! Argh. So I rode with no pace or cadence or anything...all I got to see was my time. Oops. Really need to figure out my watch!

So there I was feeling decently...and then I hit the turnaround. The downhill back from Eglinton should've been the easy part, but there was a fierce wind - and it started to rain. Just what I wanted!

I gave myself permission to ride at whatever speed I needed to in order to feel in control (which apparently was very slow...but at least I couldn't see my speed!). I also sang a lot to myself to ease my nerves. At one point I was riding into the wind and rain and it crossed my mind that a few years ago, I never would've dreamed I'd be riding on the DVP in the rain in a triathlon. That made me smile - and I knew that even though I was nervous, I wouldn't have chosen to be anywhere else at the time!

My final time was quite slow (20th in my AG): 1:25:23 - a few minutes slower than last year. That's okay with me though. I felt good for getting practice riding in less than fantastic weather - and for not crashing!

Got back to T2 where I had another slightly long transition before heading out onto the run course!

I wasn't smiling yet - but I was focused!

The run itself was pretty good. I was feeling great for being on solid ground (it's like a reward after the bike)!

I managed a pretty consistent pace the whole time, which was great. It wasn't quite as fast as I thought I could do, but given the bike - I was very happy with it! My run time was 51:58 (14th in my AG) - a couple of minutes faster than last year (avg. pace of 5:12 per km).

And then I was in the final stretch...

I crossed the finish line in 2:51:51 (13/27 in my AG) - about 2 minutes slower than last year, and a good 15 minutes slower than Motor City a few years ago. What a difference perfect weather (and Michigan's ultra-flat loop course) make!

When it comes to this race, I was pleased with how I did. I had my first chance to bike in a race in crappy conditions (although not as crappy as the Sprint racers - many of whom had to bike through a torrential downpour) - which proved to me that I could do it, even if I wasn't doing it fast. That's a big deal because there's no saying what the weather is going to be like in September for Barrelman!

A Note on Recovery

I was toast after this race for a solid week, much to my surprise. After racing Kingston (the next report I need to write) - I realized that much of that exhaustion probably had less to do with racing and more to do with the standing for hours and hours I did in the days prior to TTF. But in my mind, volunteering was well worth it because I had a lot of fun. And that's what this is all about - having fun and being awesome!

Motor City Triathlon - Fabulous Day on Belle Isle! :)

As a Christmas present, my parents gave me the race entry for a triathlon (awesome, right?).

Since it was their gift, I wanted to pick a race close to home so they could come watch. I also wanted to do several Olympic distance races this year in prep for the Niagara Falls Barrelman in September (which will be my first half-iron distance triathlon).

After looking around, I found the perfect race on Belle Isle: the Michigan Motor City Triathlon on Sunday, June 14, 2014 - Father's Day. I liked this race because it was early in the season, only 20 minutes away from Windsor - even though the race was in the US - and included an easy bike course (the Olympic was 4 loops of Belle Isle). I wasn't expecting much time wise, especially since it was 6 weeks after the Mississauga Marathon. I just figured it would be a great practice race - and a good excuse to be home for Father's Day.

Turns out - the race was exceptional across the board. I'd do it again in a heartbeat! :)

Training

After some recovery from Mississauga, my coach got me back into a normal training routine - with less focus on running, more focus on biking and about the same focus on swimming. I was actually surprised by how quick I seemed to recover from the marathon - much faster than back in September, when it took me a good month before I felt very good while running. I wonder if not running at all the first week after the race made the difference, or was it just that I was training more overall between swim, bike and run? Probably both!

My biggest worry going into Motor City was my lack of open water swimming this year. Prior to race week, I hadn't been in open water since the end of last August (the Toronto Island Sprint triathlon). In Florida, our one planned open water swim was washed out by the weather.

But, the weather was on my side and I was able to go for a quick open water swim the day before the race. I went swimming at Sandpoint Beach in Windsor. Since I was on my own (although my mom came to watch, she wasn't swimming), I stuck to where the lifeguards were. Not a big area - but big enough for my first practice, with water that had a good current to practice against.

It was a rough practice, but I found out the water was warmer than I expected. Actually quite pleasant come to think of it. I practiced some starts, and also did some swimming both with and against the current. I was happily surprised to find it wasn't as hard as my first swim last year...apparently the work I did in open water last summer, along with the fact I've been swimming a lot more this year in the pool, made a difference.

Also went for a quick bike ride along the waterfront, before packing it in the for the night.

Race Day!

Got up around 5am on race day and was out of the hotel (we stayed in Windsor so I could be a bit closer to Belle Isle) before 6am. After a stop at Tim Horton's (priorities!), my parents and I took the tunnel to the US and then drove to Belle Isle (about 15-20 min max). Was shocked how quiet the tunnel was...but given how early it was on a Sunday morning, I guess I shouldn't have been.

Got to Belle Isle to find a really well set up race venue. Got my race packet, and then set up T2 (the bike to run transition) - which seemed pretty empty since all I had to lay out here were my running shoes, water bottle and a packet of shot blocks.

After that, I rode my bike down to T1 so I could set up my bike gear. One wrench in my normal plan was the need to get everything into my bag during T1 so it could be transported to the finish, so I tried to keep things easy here: bike shoes, helmet, sunglasses and a different pack of shot blocks. I can't drink on the bike at the moment (unless I stop) so I kept my bike bottle by my shoes so I'd remember to have a long drink before I left T1.

As an aside, I liked that the race had two transition zones. I've never done a race like that - and with Niagara Falls also having two, I figured the practice would be good for me!

After setting up my gear and having a bit of a panic when I couldn't find the swim cap they gave me at registration (it turned out to be in the pocket of my warm-up pants). I spent some time sorting out the swim course.

Despite the water on the Windsor side being just a little rough the day before - race day was perfect. The water was close to glassy. I knew there was a fair bit of current on the far side of the course (going with the swimmers fortunately) so I was a bit uncertain about that part, but overall the course seemed relatively easy.

After making sure I knew the logistics of the course, I got my wetsuit on and had a gel. Since I didn't feel like eating my breakfast (I did have a bagel - but didn't eat it) - I figured I better have something. A couple of shot blocks and a Chocolate GU was what I went with. Worked pretty well and didn't bother my stomach.

After the race meeting, the two men's Olympic waves started. Then it was time for the women...all 38 of us! (most women there seemed to be doing the sprint distance). But first we had to wade out to the start. Given the water was chilly, they decided on an in-water start rather than the beach start I had prepared for. I was good with that since it gave me more time to warm up and get acclimatized to the water. Also, it meant I could just start swimming, as opposed to trying to dolphin dive. :laugh::

I'm the one in the black wetsuit with the orange cap!

The Swim

The water was chilly at the start (colder than the day before), but not as cold as TTF was last year. I started a little too far to the right, but it actually gave me a good line of sight to the turnaround buoy. It also let me swim on an angle so I didn't get the sun right in my face. I had tinted goggles, but the sun was so bright the tinting didn't do much.

Somewhere on the first 500m, my left goggle decided to leak. This made it a pain in the neck since the buoys were on the left the entire time. I tried to adjust my goggles a few times at the first turnaround, but nothing really helped. Thankfully, the water was pretty calm, so I eventually tried to ignore it and just focus on looking out of my right eye.

At that first turnaround, I started coming up on men from the wave before. Was a bit surprised by that.

The next 750m or so was in the opposite direction - and with the current of the river. I ended up a bit far over from the buoys than I thought, but in hindsight, I think that just gave me better access to the current. Although at the time, I felt like I had really screwed up the line I chose to swim - since it seemed to take forever to cut back toward the line of buoys once I got to the next turning point.

For the 750m, it felt like I was practically on my own. I attributed it mostly to swimming a slightly outside course, but it also seems like I was one of the better swimmers in the women's wave. I think the fast women were WAY ahead, but the rest were behind me.

Around the time I cut back toward the last turn buoy I felt a couple of folks drafting, with myself and a guy changing spots a couple of times when we turned.

The last part of the route was almost impossible to navigate. The sun was right in my face...and while I could make out the swim exit when I sighted, I couldn't see the turn flags which were set up in the water that we had to swim through before turning in toward the beach. I actually stopped completely at one point to try and figure out if I was on course, but with and without my goggles, I couldn't see. The guy near me also stopped. We both asked if the other could see it, but neither of us could.

Kind of hilarious in hindsight, although it made the fact I couldn't see out of my left goggle a somewhat moot point.

Swam forward and hoped for the best. Turned out that this time, I was right on course. I finally saw the flags when I was about two feet from them...straight ahead and centred. Lucky me!

I swam my way right into the beach and the big Finis arch, until the water was only a few inches deep. Pretty good swimming I think - and a lot faster than running. I lost the guy on the swim into the beach, probably because I made it closer to shore swimming than he did.

Came out of the water with no clue as to my time since I didn't have a watch on. Saw my family, but I guess I surprised them since they didn't get pictures:

Aside: I later found out that I finished the swim in 26:18 - 1:46 per 100m - two minutes faster than my first Olympic Distance swim at TTF last year. I am sure most of that speed was thanks to the forgiveness of the current since I don't actually think I swam very well, especially not with trying to fix my goggles and trying to find the finish! But hey, I'll take it.

Rank on the swim: 8/38 women, 2/7 in my AG.

Transition 1

Got my wetsuit off no problem (although I learned when I got home that I somehow managed to lose my goggles...grr.) and shoved it into my bag. Got my helmet and glasses on, then my socks and shoes (I can't stand the idea of not wearing socks). Ate a couple of shot blocks, had some swigs of water, started my watch (it was mounted on my bike) and got going.

Time: 2:25...one of my faster transitions, but I think I could've been faster without having to shove things in a bag! :)

The Bike

Ran my bike out of T1. This was my first race on my road bike (I decided to race on my new-to-me road bike this year since I still can't change my gears on my triathlon bike). I admit...I loved it. I knew from doing the Ride for Heart that I could go fast (for me) on this bike, but I still wasn't expecting to do as well as I did here. I am sure some of that was the flat course and the fact I had a chance to get a feel for the course by the end (4 loops remember), but it was also the fact I could change gears!

Here's me at the start (red shirt):

Then on the second lap:

And on the fourth:

It was a great race for my parents and my brother (who surprised me by coming out to watch!) since there were lots of chances to see me: 4 times on the bike and twice on the run. Really - think about this race if you have anyone coming to watch!

And then it was time to head into T2:

 Overall, I had a fantastic bike - my best by far. I think I was a good 9 minutes faster than at TTF last year. Kind of amazing. What a difference. Guess I have learned something this past year.

Rank on the bike: 14/38 woman, 3/7 in my AG.

Transition 2

Got my bike racked and was into my running shoes pretty quick. The big time waster here was getting my watch off my bike...but even that wasn't too bad.

Time: 1:31

The Run

Grabbed my water bottle and the pack of shot blocks and headed out on the run.

No, I did not stop to use the loo...although I did fumble a bit trying to get my watch on.

The run course was two loops of the interior of the island - with some of the running on sidewalks and some on the road.  The sidewalks were a bit cracked up, but that wasn't too much of an issue. The big challenge was that it was getting warm by this point and most of the run course was not shaded.

I was really glad to have my handheld water bottle because I drank almost the entire thing over the course of 10k. I also ate a couple of shot blocks.

Toward the end of the first lap, I had the highlight of my race when a race official asked me if I was the lead female. Ha! I thanked them, but said I was still on my first lap. But nice to know that I was looking good enough to be mistaken for the race leader (who was a girl from the University of Michigan, who finished the race a good 25 minutes ahead of me).

Here I am approaching the end the first loop. I actually heard the race announcer mention my name as I passed near the finish line on my way out for the second lap. Kind of awesome to have race announcers actually pointing out people, even mid-way through their race.

The second loop went pretty well, although I was getting really hot by that point. I wasn't going as fast as I'd been aiming for - but I did manage a good steady pace.

And then I reached the finishing chute:

...and got within sight of the finish line.

When I saw the time - I was shocked. I thought I'd done pretty well, but not just how well. I wasn't sure what my actual finish time was, since the clock was according to the men's start and I didn't track my swim time, but I knew it was a massive Olympic Distance PR no matter what.

Needless to say, I was definitely smiling when I crossed the finish line! I know, aren't I always?

Run rank: 9/38 women and 2/7 in my AG

The Finish

Instead of medals, the finish line finisher's token was a metal cup. That was different and I quite liked the idea of it since it's something I can actually use (although I do like medals). They also gave out one size fits all reusable warming jackets which might come in handy if I ever need to do a cooler race. I certainly didn't need it after this race! (I also got a nice race t-shirt in the race kit.)

After grabbing a drink, my parents and I sat around  and waited around until the awards ceremony (my brother had to head out - but thrilled he came to watch. I wasn't expecting it! Every time he yelled at me to go faster, I tried!). They didn't have the finish times posted, but I figured I had a shot at getting a place in my age group since there weren't too many women in the race.

...and sure enough, I came in 2nd in my Age Group with a time of 2:35:39! My reward: A medal! I was thrilled. :)

I also came in 10/38 women...which has been giving my dad the greatest pleasure. I keep having to try and not laugh too hard when he tells people I finished in the top 10. He makes it sound like there were 2000 people racing. ::laugh:: Oh, parents. Got to love them. But I can tell how proud they are, regardless of my time. Just the fact they came out to watch meant a lot to me! Couldn't have done this race without them!

 

 

Final Thoughts

Really, other than a kind of hilarious swim, I had a terrific race. I was honestly shocked by my final time. It was a PR over my first Olympic Distance race by around 14 minutes (I finished TTF in 2:49:36). And the best part was I improved across the board: I was 2.5 minutes quicker on the swim, 9 minutes faster on the bike, and 2 minutes faster on the run. For a race I was thinking was just going to be a good way to start the year...this race turned out to be fantastic.  Great course. Great volunteers. Great experience.  I'd highly recommend this race to anyone!

Special thanks to Coach Mark of Loaring Personal Coaching, since I am certain he's a big reason why I did so well. Can't believe how much I've improved in just the 6 months I've been training with him. Kind of amazing. Thanks Coach!

Next up? Toronto Triathlon Festival - Olympic Distance on July 13th!

Long-awaited Mississauga Marathon Race Report~!

With my first triathlon of the season just a few days away, I realized I should get my act together and write up a race report from the Mississauga Marathon! It was either do it now, or do it never! I chose to do it now (finally).

Training

As you know, I enlisted the help of Coach Mark (of Loaring Personal Coaching) to help me this year because I wanted to train for both this race and for the Niagara Falls Barrelman half iron triathlon in September.

As a result, training was a lot different from when I trained for Run for Heroes with the Beaches Running Room.

First off, I kept up a lot of swimming and bike sessions throughout this marathon build (usually 2-3 weekly sessions of each). Last summer, after the Toronto Triathlon Festival, I think I road my bike once before the Toronto Island triathlon...and went swimming a couple of times. This meant I didn't need to run as much. I think my biggest week this time around was ~55km of running, compared to ~77 for the build to Run for Heroes. But the week I did 55k of running, I also did 2h15min of biking and 2h30 minutes of swimming, plus 1h20 of strength/core stability work.

So, do I think that was enough running? Well, I did feel much more prepared than for my first marathon. My longest run this time around was 35k, which was several more km than my first marathon training schedule. Also, my runs this time were very focused (and fit to me). I did track work on Tuesdays, some steady/tempo work on Thursdays (with hills at times), and very well thought out long runs (mix of easy, time at MP runs, course simulation runs, etc).

I admit, it felt weird to be running less than the first time...but the swims and bikes took the place of the recovery runs - so I think it made sense. Also, it meant I could do more - and be training for triathlon at the same time, which was the whole point! I didn't want to lose bike/swim fitness (if you can call my biking skills an ability) while training for this race.

I also had a week at the LPC Florida Triathlon Camp during March - just six weeks out from Mississauga. This was actually great since it let me get an almost recovery week from running (my long run was only 20k that week) while also getting a much needed dose of intensive cycling and swimming. I loved it.

In April, I did one prep race - the Yonge St. 10k, where I beat my PB on the same course last year (46:29 compared to 48:40 last year), along with my 5k PB (22:56, compared to 23:17). I did this without looking at my watch after the first 1k, since my coach was trying to teach me how to run on feel.

Yes, the YS10k is a net downhill course - but that's why I only compared it to last year's results. Overall, I cut more than 2 minutes off the same race compared to last year...that made me feel very good about my prospects going into this marathon.

Overall - I'd rate training for this marathon as an A. I was pretty good when it came to getting my sessions done. I believe I only missed a few workouts during the training period - and only 1 long run (very early in the schedule).

Logistics

Given I picked a race that was out in the middle of nowhere (when you don't drive...Mississauga is the middle of nowhere) - and I was doing the race on my own, I decided to book a night at the race hotel (Novotel Mississauga) to make my life easier. Best decision I ever made.

I took the Go Train out to Port Credit for packet pick-up on the Saturday, and then took the bus directly from Port Credit to Square One (the race start - where the Novotel is) right after. Worked like a charm. I also learned that if you take the Go Train, you can use Mississauga Transit for 75 cents! How awesome is that?

Race kit pick-up was in Port Credit Memorial Arena. I found that very easy - and the race bags were stuffed to the brim with free stuff (some of which I collected at the expo). I even got some free cat food and plant food - but I've used all of those since - which I find speaks to the usefulness of it!

I found it odd that the race shirt was the same whether you did the full, the half marathon, or the 10k (I was spoiled given Run for Heroes had such awesome distance-specific race shirts). But given I did the full - that didn't matter at all. The shirt itself was a simple tech t-shirt in light blue for the women (photo below came from the Mississauga Marathon). I did love that I got a choice of round or V-neck (I took the V-neck) - and it fit well, which is nice. I've worn it to run since - so it'll definitely get well-used!

I felt really good the night before the race and actually slept really well. To be honest, after Run for Heroes - I knew I could run a marathon, so I wasn't really nervous about this one. I felt good, wasn't sick, and felt well trained, so I knew there was nothing more I could do. That probably translated into an excellent night of sleep - even if the "night" was only 5 hours long.

Race Plan

I wanted this race to be the marathon where I could see what I could do. Originally, that was going to be Run for Heroes - but then I got a stomach bug that kept me on the couch the week of the race and had me on the start line having not properly eaten all week. By 10k into that race, I knew my only goal was going to be "Have fun and finish smiling". Which I did! See - here's the proof.

But I still needed a tentative plan...and that started with not going out too fast because Mississauga is a very fast course in the first half.

In particular - my goal was NOT to get to 8k faster than 40 minutes...and to reach the half-way mark around 1:48-1:49. That would, if all went well, put me in a good position to finish in 3:39:59 - 3:49:59.

Race Morning

Race morning dawned cold and very windy - but it wasn't raining, which was a bit of a miracle given they'd been predicting rain for days beforehand. Mind you, the wind was strong: 30-40km/h, with gusts up around 60km/h or something crazy.

I felt amazing though. In fact, I felt so good - it made me realize just how wrong I felt the morning of Run for Heroes.  At Run for Heroes, I was excited, but I didn't have the same energy or pep in my step I had in Mississauga. In hindsight, I now know just how sick I was for that race...because now I know what I should have felt like after tapering for a few weeks.

Seriously - I felt incredibly ready and raring to go the morning of Mississauga. I couldn't have felt any better.

I wore track pants and a ski jacket out to the start because it was a good mile or so walk from the hotel. When I realized the truck accepting gear bags wasn't too busy, I kept my warm clothes on as long as I possibly could. After that, I stripped down to my running shorts, tank top and arm warmers. I also brought fuzzy socks to wear over my hands. I'd debated wearing a long-sleeved shirt - but knew I'd probably get too warm for that and didn't want to have to take off a shirt mid-race.

I was going to meet up with some friends from Daily Mile...but didn't realize the Running Room had two entrances until I went to use the portos (Which had a perfect view of the main entrance to the RR) before the race started (d'oh) - so missed out on that.

Made it to the actual start with 10 minutes to spare (too windy to get there much earlier). There wasn't a 3:40 pacer, so I just tried to find a spot somewhere in the middle third of the crowd. I have no idea what was said at the beginning of the race - but I did catch when the race started! :)

The Race

First off...if you want a fast half marathon...Mississauga is the place for you! Oh my goodness, the first half of this race was speedy. I knew this going in and had to reign myself in from not going to fast.

The first third was mostly flat, with some nice long easy downhill stretches. The roads were well paved and I had lots of opportunities to run behind other runners to cut some of the wind. I was blasted at times by gusts, but it didn't feel so bad in the beginning.

Around the 4k mark, I tossed off my socks (the ones on my hands) at an aid station. Good-bye fuzzy socks!

I ate a shot block around 5k, then had a gel at around 10k. Was running perfectly at this point. I reached the half-way mark a few seconds under my target - 1:47:48, ( a new PB by over 2 minutes) and still felt awesome.

And then, the really weird stuff started. This is the point where I was running into a headwind (and the half marathoners had turned off 7-8km previously making it less easy to shelter behind other people). I was quite excited about the turnaround because the wind should have been at my back for the last part of the race.

Ya, right. I reached the turnaround, turned and ran about 10 more steps before I realized I was headed.into an even fiercer headwind! Seriously.

Here is a picture just after I turned. I was smiling (like usual), but if I'm honest, my expression was also saying, "What the heck? This wind should be behind me now!"

Of course, my attitude was still great. After all, can't do anything about the wind. I just put my head down (figuratively) and kept running (and smiling!). I started to bleed time, but I made it to 30-still on an excellent pace (I crossed the 30k mark around 2:36:30).

Around 30 or 32k, there was an inflatable wall at the top of a crazy hill. Kind of hilarious, but it was fun to run under. Not long after the wall (if I remember correctly), my friend Ken shouted out from the side of the road. He lived nearby and mentioned that he'd keep an eye out and try and cheer! So great to see a familiar face. It made a difference right when I needed it.

Then came the challenging part of the course: beautiful waterfront trail, yet very rolling with a million turns, not to mention insane wind. Thank goodness for the view, because I was not going fast at all by this point. I felt like I was running with someone pulling me backwards (like the resistance running I've done in my sessions with Trainer Chris). No matter how fast I thought I was going...I wasn't! ::laugh::

Fortunately, this is when the photographers were out in force. So despite my speed - I had lots of evidence that I was still smiling.

See, here I am going over a bridge...

And here I am running on the waterfront path...

And here I am getting closer to the end...

Around 41k, my friend Pranada was on the sidelines cheering really loudly. She'd trekked out from Toronto just to be there to cheer a bunch of us on at the end. And boy, did we all need it. Thanks Pranada!!!

Then, I was just a hundred meters from the end!

 

 ...and then just a few feet away!

I crossed the finish line in 3:50:56, just under 25 minutes faster than Run for Heroes. I was over the moon. I was utterly exhausted. But, most importantly, I was still smiling!

Final Thoughts

 

The truth is, I don't think I could've had a better race. I was well tapered and feeling awesome. My nutrition was spot on (3 gels, 3 shot-blocks). I ran the first half of the race right on my target paces. Really, the only thing that didn't work out for me was the wind - and I had no control over that.

 

I honestly feel like this was the best race I could've run on this given day - and I was absolutely thrilled with my results. Of course, that doesn't mean I don't want to do even better. As soon as I finished this race, I started to wonder which marathon I should do next!

 

Not that I'm going to make a decision right away. Right now, my attention needs to turn to triathlon - and getting ready for the Barrelman in September. Once that's done, I can set my big goals for 2015!

 

Until then, I'll say that the Mississauga Marathon, despite the wind, was amazing. I'd highly recommend the race. The organization was amazing. The aid stations (every 2k) were well stocked and championed by some amazing volunteers (thank you all!). It was honestly a fabulous experience. I'd certainly do Mississauga again - although next time I might do the half, just to see how fast I can go on that front half of the course!

 

Thanks again to Coach Mark for all the guidance and support - Couldn't have done it without you!