Gutbuster and a 30k

I just ate my traditional pre-race meal - a red curry from My Thai.

"But you're in Hamilton!"

I KNOW! But there is a My Thai Restaurant here, and while not quite the same quality at My Thai Cafe on Cook St in Victoria, it is still good.

The run today, later this evening thus avoiding the nasty cold rain earlier in the day, felt good. I am glad to be racing tomorrow, but I already find my mind fast forwarding to the training needed for Iceland.

At package pick-up I saw Gord Pauls of Runners' Den, the running store I used to work at here in Hamilton. He and his wife, the incomparable Esther Pauls, own the store and so it was with a big smile I saw them at the Race Expo at Copps Coliseum this afternoon.

I also went looking at past results, and in the process found that this year there are live results. In fact, you can check results at 10k, 15k, 20k and, of course, the finish. The race starts at 9:30am EST, which means 6:30am PST, or 10:30am East Coast time. Follow the link and enter my name, or bib number 909, if you want to see how things are going.

http://www.sportstats.ca/follow-a-runner-live.php?lang=eng

I am hoping to go 1:51, although some have encouraged me to go for 1:49 (that equates to a 3:42/km or 3:40/km, respectively). Some pretty challenging times, but I will see how things are going and make a call on the course.

Congrats to all my Club Mud crew on what looks like a great race today at Royal Roads. I have never run this event, but from all accounts it is one of the nastier Gutbusters around. You guys have done me proud!