In this year's Sporting Life 10K race down Yonge Street, I could see that Mariana has completed the transformation from being a person who runs to a runner. I could see it in her confidence and excitement at the Starting Line. I could sense it in her strong strides down Yonge Street and her final surge toward the Finish Line. It was manifest in her smile at the Finish Line -- a grin that said that she could easily and happily have run another 5K. I don't think that I ever doubted that Mariana could become a runner. I just never realized that she would become a runner in such a bad ass fashion.
But I am getting ahead of myself in this post. Let me return to the race itself. The Sporting Life 10K is another Canada Running Series event. It attracts approximately 15,000 runners. Part of the pleasure of running the Sporting Life 10K is the route: a good portion of the race is run on Yonge Street. As a runner, it is great fun to run down Yonge Street with thousands of other runners. Note the word "down". The race runs down Yonge Street, so part of the race is downhill. Yes, we know that running downhill is not as easy as it sounds. It is hard on your quads and knees. But still, it feels easier than running UPhill and it certainly is easier psychologically!
A glimpse of the throngs of runners streaming down Yonge Street. It's great fun to take over Yonge Street, even if only for an hour or so.
The race began at 8am. The Go Girls arranged to meet at a familiar, though slightly unsettling, landmark: Trull's Funeral Home, a few blocks north of the Start Line. There were a few anxious moments for Mariana and Nana since I was rather late in arriving due to delays down at the CNE grounds where I left my car (so that the car would be waiting for us at the end of the race). Of course, it did not help that I forgot to turn on my mobile phone. When Mariana and Nana attempted to call me to determine where I was (and to confirm that I was NOT still sleeping!), there was no answer. Thankfully, the Go Girls are accustomed to my less than stellar use of my mobile phone and they did not panic.
Eventually, I did arrive and we began to make our way to the appropriate start corrals (after a final stop at the Port-a-Potties, of course--it's a running tradition!). We did take some photos for the "Before" part of our race collection. The line-up to use the Port-a-Potties provided the opportunity to get in our pre-race photo shoot.
Mariana and I, preparing to kick some butt down Yonge Street.
Mariana and Nana, looking decidedly relieved that I had finally arrived.
Nana, looking like a seasoned pro, and me (T), looking like a goof. You know, the usual.
This is a photo of the back of the shirt I wore for the race. The shirt is actually a cycling jersey which I choose to wear because it has extra pockets in the back. I was planning to wear a running vest, which also has pockets. But Dave the Cat peed on my running jacket and my running vest the night before the race, a fact that I did not discover until I arrived home at 11:30pm. So I moved to Plan "B": a Snoopy cycling jersey. But the message is appropriate, isn't it? "Get Going, Snoopy!" As it turns out, I would need to remind myself of that message periodically during the race...
For the most part, the race went well for the Go Girls. The weather was quite good for racing: it was cloudy and relatively cool, though humid. Runners in the race were assigned to colour-coded corrals based on their expected finish time and the race began in waves, with different corrals starting at different times. It was not long before we were off! Here is where our experience of the race begins to diverge, with some of the Go Girls enjoying themselves as they virtually floated down Yonge Street while others (okay, me) struggled to continue running. Both Mariana and Nana report having great races. Having personally witnessed Mariana's race, I can confirm that she had a great race with a strong finish. I'm not even sure she broke a sweat. She finished with a chip time of 55:57.4, shattering our previous 10K run time of approximately 1hour 10minutes set in the Nike 10K race we did last October. Mariana would have finished faster if certain other runners (me) had been able to maintain pace.
Nana reports that she felt good throughout the race. When she hit the 8K mark, she realized that she was having an excellent race and determined that she would finish strong. Nana tore up the road in those last 2Ks. She completed the race in 1:08:53.7, breaking her race goal of 1:10:00.
As for me, well, it was not pretty. Or at least, it did not feel pretty. I did not have a particularly good race. In addition to having a poor night of sleep prior to the race, I was also dehydrated. (Note to self: do NOT drink wine the night prior to a race!) I bonked. I cramped. It was ugly. But Mariana pulled me through this race. She shared her water with me. (I lost my water bottle early in the race.) She stayed with me even though I was running at a slower pace. This is what it means to be part of a team: we stick together and drag each other across the finish line! I finished a few seconds behind Mariana, with a time of 56:00.1.
The juxtaposition of Mariana's and my race experience highlights some lessons in terms of race preparation. Mariana did everything right: she carb loaded; she avoided booze the night before the race; she was hydrated; she ate a banana shortly before the race; and she was well rested. I did everything wrong: I did not properly carb load; I had wine the night before the race; I was dehydrated; I ate breakfast very early (520am) and was bonking by the time the race began at 8am; and I did not get much sleep the night before the race. Mariana had a terrific race: she felt good and had a strong run. I had an awful race: I felt terrible and ran slower than I usually do. Lessons learned: sleep more; drink more water and less wine; and eat something about an hour before a race.
In any case, once crossing the finish line, we ALL felt great. I had predicted that Mariana and I would finish the race in about 58 minutes; I was delighted that I was wrong by about 2 full minutes. Given our successes, it was only natural that we then retired to the Monk's Table for a hearty brunch. Of course, we did take VICTORY PHOTOs!!!
Eventually, I did arrive and we began to make our way to the appropriate start corrals (after a final stop at the Port-a-Potties, of course--it's a running tradition!). We did take some photos for the "Before" part of our race collection. The line-up to use the Port-a-Potties provided the opportunity to get in our pre-race photo shoot.
Mariana and I, preparing to kick some butt down Yonge Street.
Nana, looking like a seasoned pro, and me (T), looking like a goof. You know, the usual.
For the most part, the race went well for the Go Girls. The weather was quite good for racing: it was cloudy and relatively cool, though humid. Runners in the race were assigned to colour-coded corrals based on their expected finish time and the race began in waves, with different corrals starting at different times. It was not long before we were off! Here is where our experience of the race begins to diverge, with some of the Go Girls enjoying themselves as they virtually floated down Yonge Street while others (okay, me) struggled to continue running. Both Mariana and Nana report having great races. Having personally witnessed Mariana's race, I can confirm that she had a great race with a strong finish. I'm not even sure she broke a sweat. She finished with a chip time of 55:57.4, shattering our previous 10K run time of approximately 1hour 10minutes set in the Nike 10K race we did last October. Mariana would have finished faster if certain other runners (me) had been able to maintain pace.
Nana reports that she felt good throughout the race. When she hit the 8K mark, she realized that she was having an excellent race and determined that she would finish strong. Nana tore up the road in those last 2Ks. She completed the race in 1:08:53.7, breaking her race goal of 1:10:00.
As for me, well, it was not pretty. Or at least, it did not feel pretty. I did not have a particularly good race. In addition to having a poor night of sleep prior to the race, I was also dehydrated. (Note to self: do NOT drink wine the night prior to a race!) I bonked. I cramped. It was ugly. But Mariana pulled me through this race. She shared her water with me. (I lost my water bottle early in the race.) She stayed with me even though I was running at a slower pace. This is what it means to be part of a team: we stick together and drag each other across the finish line! I finished a few seconds behind Mariana, with a time of 56:00.1.
The juxtaposition of Mariana's and my race experience highlights some lessons in terms of race preparation. Mariana did everything right: she carb loaded; she avoided booze the night before the race; she was hydrated; she ate a banana shortly before the race; and she was well rested. I did everything wrong: I did not properly carb load; I had wine the night before the race; I was dehydrated; I ate breakfast very early (520am) and was bonking by the time the race began at 8am; and I did not get much sleep the night before the race. Mariana had a terrific race: she felt good and had a strong run. I had an awful race: I felt terrible and ran slower than I usually do. Lessons learned: sleep more; drink more water and less wine; and eat something about an hour before a race.
In any case, once crossing the finish line, we ALL felt great. I had predicted that Mariana and I would finish the race in about 58 minutes; I was delighted that I was wrong by about 2 full minutes. Given our successes, it was only natural that we then retired to the Monk's Table for a hearty brunch. Of course, we did take VICTORY PHOTOs!!!
Mariana and I, post-race, pose with our trophies: medals around our necks and food in our hands. Yes, it's true: we race to eat. Note the Port-a-Potties in the background. Do we ever take photos away from those things?!
The official Team Victory Photo. Here we are, post-race, post-brunch, in all of our glory. WE were all feeling good since we had warm and dry clothes on our backs and food in our tummies. And look! Not a Port-a-Potty in sight!!
As a final note, take a careful look at the above, post-race photos. In them, you will see three runners. Not three people who run, but three runners. And having seen Mariana's performance in the Sporting Life 10K, I think it is only fair to put the running community on notice: my friends, Mariana is now a runner. Stand back! I don't know how big this thing gets!!
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