I rode my bike down Hastings St to Stanley Park for the VFAC Thursday night workout. A forty minute ride through some of the more interesting parts of Vancouver and I was there. Stanley Park is beautiful, and this warm, rainless evening was not going to change that impression. In the light of the towering condos and boats in the marina, the VFAC crew ran along the seawall, completing a workout I have never done.
The workout was 1 x 4miles, 2 x 1 mile, all with full recovery. It is interesting running the semi-darkness along the seawall, dodging other runners and the occasional dog. I had taken a couple of days off as a commitment to my chiropractor that I would take it easy this week, so I was a little tapered for the workout. I ended up running 22:26 for the four miles, and my two one mile repeats were 5:15 and 5:10. I felt good throughout the workout, although my calves are a little tight right now - I am not used to that kind of speed recently.
The plan right now is to run the two Gunner Shaw races (one in Victoria and one in Vancouver) and possibly the Khahtsahlano 15k this coming Monday. Eric runs this race as well, so I know it will be a good one - it may be a good tempo run (and hilly at that!)
Tonight was fun. Running in the dark is fun. Running with people is fun. Running fast is fun. Good times all around.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Faux Anniversary
Since Sonja and I don't really have a day that we first started "dating" but rather a period of time, tonight was our Faux Anniversary. We had a nice dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant (vita bella) and then went to see Craig Cardiff in concert. However, due to it being late and us being tired (and old and maybe lame) we came home early.
However, I am going to see Craig on Friday and to make amends for leaving his show tonight early, here is a Cardiff performance. You should also check him out at www.craigcardiff.com He is a brilliant singer/songwriter and all around great guy.
However, I am going to see Craig on Friday and to make amends for leaving his show tonight early, here is a Cardiff performance. You should also check him out at www.craigcardiff.com He is a brilliant singer/songwriter and all around great guy.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
A commitment is a commitment
I am writing because I said I would, not because I have a lot to say.
I ran on Sunday and Monday and checked out a new chiro tonight. It is Craig Cardiff tomorrow night and VFAC workout on Thursday.
Other than that
- Simon won in Cancun, but Brent McMahon and Paul Tichelaar, two other Canadians, were 2nd and 4th, respectively. Awesome work, boys!
- Jasper and the crew are somewhere in Nepal doing something amazing.
- I have registered for Boston; accommodation, flight, and entry are done.
- Gunner Shaw is coming up and I am disappointed that Bob Reid showed people the course. I wanted everyone to be running blind! How fun would that be? (Not literally, just that we wouldn't know what is coming up next).
That is all. I am excited to see Mike's prep for his marathon - I call for a great race!
I ran on Sunday and Monday and checked out a new chiro tonight. It is Craig Cardiff tomorrow night and VFAC workout on Thursday.
Other than that
- Simon won in Cancun, but Brent McMahon and Paul Tichelaar, two other Canadians, were 2nd and 4th, respectively. Awesome work, boys!
- Jasper and the crew are somewhere in Nepal doing something amazing.
- I have registered for Boston; accommodation, flight, and entry are done.
- Gunner Shaw is coming up and I am disappointed that Bob Reid showed people the course. I wanted everyone to be running blind! How fun would that be? (Not literally, just that we wouldn't know what is coming up next).
That is all. I am excited to see Mike's prep for his marathon - I call for a great race!
Sunday, November 04, 2007
H2(o)H
Ha. Figure that one out.
Haney 2 Harrison was interesting. It was fun, most definitely. I saw some old friends (Hi Jen!) and made some new ones (Hi VFAC!). I ran decently, but not amazing. And we came fourth. But is wasn't a simple as that.
The day started off in the dark with a lot of enthusiasm and expectation. We had a strong team and VFAC was hoping to podium. The event consists of teams of 8 runners running different lengths of stages, but the total distance is 100k. We were in the second wave start, 6:30am, and cheered our first team member, Jorge, on as they ran into the darkness of morning. It was drizzling and cold and very dark. This is where the race went downhill.
We drove ahead in our car and waited at about 4k for the runners. There were slower runners from the first wave trickling through still, Chris and Jeff and I chatted about the strategy for the day and hoped to see in the top three positions. We became concerned when another team member's father ran past us and we still hadn't seen Jorge. We figured we missed him the dark and drove to the end of stage one hoping to find him. While we were waiting for Jorge and having trouble seeing him (and others) due to the drizzle and lack of light, he and about 10 other people missed the first turn of the race and ended up about 5k off track. There was apparently no marshall at the turn and everyone went of course, some more than others. Jorge ran back to the start of the race and eventually made his way to the finish of the stage - good for 73rd overall for that stage.
The hand off to Simon Driver was made and we were in 4th by the end of the next stage, a position we would keep for the rest of the race. The boys ran hard and ran well, but it was very lonely out there as we were 15 minutes behind the top three and about 40 minutes ahead of the next team. It was 6 degrees and the rain was floating more than falling. I felt ok about my stage - 13.08k of rolling highway. I ran 3:34 pace, good for 4th in the stage overall, but lost time to the guys ahead of me; however, those guys usually beat me, although not by that much. The day finished and we wondered about what could have been. I was impressed by the support shown for each other and the desire to perform well even in imperfect situations.
The conversation at the pub after was great. There wasn't a lot of hang wringing about going off course and no one was really bitter, although we were definitely disappointed about not being in the mix. But the talk was about training and future running and goals - very geeky running talk (the value of VO2 versus vVO2, ideal cross-training for injuries, and figure skating - don't ask.)
Overall, a very good introduction to the VFAC club. I got to put faces to names that were always way ahead of me in results and it is going to be fun to have these to chase them in workout. But the group is supportive and fun and that is the key to success. Thanks to Jeff, Chris, Ynuk, Jay, Graeme, and Paul for a fun and educational day.
Haney 2 Harrison was interesting. It was fun, most definitely. I saw some old friends (Hi Jen!) and made some new ones (Hi VFAC!). I ran decently, but not amazing. And we came fourth. But is wasn't a simple as that.
The day started off in the dark with a lot of enthusiasm and expectation. We had a strong team and VFAC was hoping to podium. The event consists of teams of 8 runners running different lengths of stages, but the total distance is 100k. We were in the second wave start, 6:30am, and cheered our first team member, Jorge, on as they ran into the darkness of morning. It was drizzling and cold and very dark. This is where the race went downhill.
We drove ahead in our car and waited at about 4k for the runners. There were slower runners from the first wave trickling through still, Chris and Jeff and I chatted about the strategy for the day and hoped to see in the top three positions. We became concerned when another team member's father ran past us and we still hadn't seen Jorge. We figured we missed him the dark and drove to the end of stage one hoping to find him. While we were waiting for Jorge and having trouble seeing him (and others) due to the drizzle and lack of light, he and about 10 other people missed the first turn of the race and ended up about 5k off track. There was apparently no marshall at the turn and everyone went of course, some more than others. Jorge ran back to the start of the race and eventually made his way to the finish of the stage - good for 73rd overall for that stage.
The hand off to Simon Driver was made and we were in 4th by the end of the next stage, a position we would keep for the rest of the race. The boys ran hard and ran well, but it was very lonely out there as we were 15 minutes behind the top three and about 40 minutes ahead of the next team. It was 6 degrees and the rain was floating more than falling. I felt ok about my stage - 13.08k of rolling highway. I ran 3:34 pace, good for 4th in the stage overall, but lost time to the guys ahead of me; however, those guys usually beat me, although not by that much. The day finished and we wondered about what could have been. I was impressed by the support shown for each other and the desire to perform well even in imperfect situations.
The conversation at the pub after was great. There wasn't a lot of hang wringing about going off course and no one was really bitter, although we were definitely disappointed about not being in the mix. But the talk was about training and future running and goals - very geeky running talk (the value of VO2 versus vVO2, ideal cross-training for injuries, and figure skating - don't ask.)
Overall, a very good introduction to the VFAC club. I got to put faces to names that were always way ahead of me in results and it is going to be fun to have these to chase them in workout. But the group is supportive and fun and that is the key to success. Thanks to Jeff, Chris, Ynuk, Jay, Graeme, and Paul for a fun and educational day.
Friday, November 02, 2007
And we're back...(fuller update)
Note: After reading Eric Langhjelm's blog, I felt that I needed to add some more about the Hallow's Eve Trail Half Marathon. See the update in italics below.
After a hiatus from posting due in part to having not enough time to write, I am going to try to blog more often. In fact, there is a whole initiative amongst the blogging community call NaBloPoMo in which you are supposed to post every day for one month. I am not saying that I can complete this event (especially since I missed the first day yesterday), but I will try.
(Yeah yeah, I know I have said that before.)
So, since we last spoke, I have come 8th in a trail half-marathon on the North Shore of Vancouver, a mere 15 minutes from my new residence. In most cases, I would be disappointed with 8th, but this was one of the deepest trail race fields I have seen. In fact, I was running right around where I though I should be, but there were many many fast people there which always makes it fun. I had been prerunning parts of the course in the two weeks leading up to the event, and I didn't think it was going to be that difficult. There were some difficult parts, but nothing that I thought was too insane. However, I did not run one very, very important part of the course, the Baden-Powell loop.
Before the race, Eric, the race director, told us that there were 1700 total stairs in the race. I still find that hard to believe, but I believe that Eric would go out and count them. The course started with a uphill road run through a nice cemetery (very appropriate for the theme of the race - of which there were many costumed runners; I wore orange and black). A group of about 12 people jumped out to the front, with Adam Campbell, Simon Driver, and Mark Bates in there. I sat back as the uphill start was going to be about 2k long and I could do some serious damage to my race if I tried to stay with those guys going up.
We got into the forest and I quickly caught back up to what was now the second pack, the leaders having already distanced themselves. The race was a windy trail through open forest and then a steep descent to a boardwalk and the first stairs. It was a race of two peaks, the first one coming about 8k in, after a grueling climb of stairs. I was not expecting that, nor was I expecting the dirt road climb AFTER the stairs. But the downhill made it all worthwhile!
The second climb I was ready for only because I had stumbled across the route two days prior, but in reverse direction. Again, it was a steep climb up, but it was good. I was fortunate to be around Katrina Driver (Simon's wife and one heck of a runner) and another guy who I had caught. At the end of the this climb in Lynn Valley, it was essentially a downhill 4-5k run to the finish - some technical stuff at the start and then road running at the finish.
As usual, Eric puts on a great event. The atmosphere was great and the course was well chosen. Eric had said that all the races he does are his favourite training routes. My race went well, but at this time of the year I am looking for the races to be fun and I am not too concerned about the results.
While the race was good, the most intriguing part of it was the cool down. I ran with Adam Campbell, a good friend form Victoria, and Simon and Katrina Drive, the overall male and femal winners. In fact, I barely held off Katrina for 8th place - the girl can climb AND descend. Anyway, the cool down was intriguing because Simon told me about his run club, Vancouver Falcons (VFAC), and invited me to come out. I listened politely and asked a few questions, but wasn't really too interested. I have been coaching myself to some good results in the past two years and didn't really want to commit to weekly runs. I was more interested in somehow convincing Simon to let me join him in some of his trail running training. We finished our cool down and I came home and persued the VFAC.ca site. I have been looking at some different coaching options of late, mostly reading more about Lydiard and Daniels and looking to incorporate their philosophies into what I believe about Maffetone (the real running geeks will understand all that). But after spending some time on the VFAC site I began to change my mind. The tone of the site was very supportive and there were some very good athletes training there. As well, many people were setting personal bests in a number of different distances. I emailed the coach, John Hill, and after an hour on the phone I decided to give it a shot.
That decision has landed me on the VFAC relay team for the Haney 2 Harrison 100km relays race. It is an epic and infamous race held about 45 minutes from here and while I have heard a lot about it, I have never had the chance to be a part of it. Some unfortunate injuries left the VFAC Open Men's team short a runner, so Simon put forward my name and now I am waking up at 4:00am to drive out to the 6:30am start. This will be fun, but I will be a tired boy tomorrow night.
So there is the update and my commitment to post more this months has begun.
After a hiatus from posting due in part to having not enough time to write, I am going to try to blog more often. In fact, there is a whole initiative amongst the blogging community call NaBloPoMo in which you are supposed to post every day for one month. I am not saying that I can complete this event (especially since I missed the first day yesterday), but I will try.
(Yeah yeah, I know I have said that before.)
So, since we last spoke, I have come 8th in a trail half-marathon on the North Shore of Vancouver, a mere 15 minutes from my new residence. In most cases, I would be disappointed with 8th, but this was one of the deepest trail race fields I have seen. In fact, I was running right around where I though I should be, but there were many many fast people there which always makes it fun. I had been prerunning parts of the course in the two weeks leading up to the event, and I didn't think it was going to be that difficult. There were some difficult parts, but nothing that I thought was too insane. However, I did not run one very, very important part of the course, the Baden-Powell loop.
Before the race, Eric, the race director, told us that there were 1700 total stairs in the race. I still find that hard to believe, but I believe that Eric would go out and count them. The course started with a uphill road run through a nice cemetery (very appropriate for the theme of the race - of which there were many costumed runners; I wore orange and black). A group of about 12 people jumped out to the front, with Adam Campbell, Simon Driver, and Mark Bates in there. I sat back as the uphill start was going to be about 2k long and I could do some serious damage to my race if I tried to stay with those guys going up.
We got into the forest and I quickly caught back up to what was now the second pack, the leaders having already distanced themselves. The race was a windy trail through open forest and then a steep descent to a boardwalk and the first stairs. It was a race of two peaks, the first one coming about 8k in, after a grueling climb of stairs. I was not expecting that, nor was I expecting the dirt road climb AFTER the stairs. But the downhill made it all worthwhile!
The second climb I was ready for only because I had stumbled across the route two days prior, but in reverse direction. Again, it was a steep climb up, but it was good. I was fortunate to be around Katrina Driver (Simon's wife and one heck of a runner) and another guy who I had caught. At the end of the this climb in Lynn Valley, it was essentially a downhill 4-5k run to the finish - some technical stuff at the start and then road running at the finish.
As usual, Eric puts on a great event. The atmosphere was great and the course was well chosen. Eric had said that all the races he does are his favourite training routes. My race went well, but at this time of the year I am looking for the races to be fun and I am not too concerned about the results.
While the race was good, the most intriguing part of it was the cool down. I ran with Adam Campbell, a good friend form Victoria, and Simon and Katrina Drive, the overall male and femal winners. In fact, I barely held off Katrina for 8th place - the girl can climb AND descend. Anyway, the cool down was intriguing because Simon told me about his run club, Vancouver Falcons (VFAC), and invited me to come out. I listened politely and asked a few questions, but wasn't really too interested. I have been coaching myself to some good results in the past two years and didn't really want to commit to weekly runs. I was more interested in somehow convincing Simon to let me join him in some of his trail running training. We finished our cool down and I came home and persued the VFAC.ca site. I have been looking at some different coaching options of late, mostly reading more about Lydiard and Daniels and looking to incorporate their philosophies into what I believe about Maffetone (the real running geeks will understand all that). But after spending some time on the VFAC site I began to change my mind. The tone of the site was very supportive and there were some very good athletes training there. As well, many people were setting personal bests in a number of different distances. I emailed the coach, John Hill, and after an hour on the phone I decided to give it a shot.
That decision has landed me on the VFAC relay team for the Haney 2 Harrison 100km relays race. It is an epic and infamous race held about 45 minutes from here and while I have heard a lot about it, I have never had the chance to be a part of it. Some unfortunate injuries left the VFAC Open Men's team short a runner, so Simon put forward my name and now I am waking up at 4:00am to drive out to the 6:30am start. This will be fun, but I will be a tired boy tomorrow night.
So there is the update and my commitment to post more this months has begun.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Weekend Warrior
Well, maybe not a warrior, but it was a great weekend of running.
This is the first weekend in a while that I didn't have a race or any other type of commitment. I took advantage of this by going over to the North Shore and exploring some trail there.
Saturday was a light 35 minutes around Lynn Creek Valley and this morning was an hour or so exploring the route of the Hallow's Eve trail race, which occurs in a couple of weeks. I found a suspension bridge and Twin Falls - pretty incredible sights. Not the single track like Thetis, but a good place to go (and only 15 minute drive away)!
The legs feel quite good, but no intensity for another week, then I will build back to 2 hour trail jaunts. Motivation is good and body is feeling good.
And mad props to Sam McGlone and Jasper Blake, for different reasons. Sam for being a stud and coming second in her first Ironman (oh, it was the World Championships) and to Jasper for going for it, even if it didn't work out this time.
This is the first weekend in a while that I didn't have a race or any other type of commitment. I took advantage of this by going over to the North Shore and exploring some trail there.
Saturday was a light 35 minutes around Lynn Creek Valley and this morning was an hour or so exploring the route of the Hallow's Eve trail race, which occurs in a couple of weeks. I found a suspension bridge and Twin Falls - pretty incredible sights. Not the single track like Thetis, but a good place to go (and only 15 minute drive away)!
The legs feel quite good, but no intensity for another week, then I will build back to 2 hour trail jaunts. Motivation is good and body is feeling good.
And mad props to Sam McGlone and Jasper Blake, for different reasons. Sam for being a stud and coming second in her first Ironman (oh, it was the World Championships) and to Jasper for going for it, even if it didn't work out this time.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Post-post marathon musings...
- I am recovering well. That may be due to the (very) slow last quarter of a marathon.
- I am making sure I am not overdoing it. 3 x 25 minutes so far this week.
- Jerry Ziak, who ran a 2:17 marathon, also had issues while running the Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
- There are some ENDURrun athletes going to Boston, which means more fun for me!
- There is NOWHERE around here that is flat. Even recovery runs are hilly.
- Work doesn't stop for running.
- The painting/fixing of our place is almost done, which means a clean house for us!
- K'naan cancelled his show in Van. That sucks.
- Craig Cardiff and pretty much all of the Arts and Crafts label are coming to Van in the next month. That is cool.
- The new Radiohead is quite good. And they are touring in '08.
- Read Jazz's blog. He is racing Kona this weekend.
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