Times Colonist 2008 10k

It wasn’t pleasant. Still, I ran better than I feared under near perfect conditions and for that I’m thankful. If nothing else I ran a PB as a father, which must count for something?

Ally and babe had hoped to cheer me on but after a late night/early morning, I was lucky to make it to the race myself. Despite the 10,000+ participants I didn’t have any trouble finding parking and after a short break at Starbuck’s I headed into Beacon Hill Park to begin my usual warm-up routine: 20’ with 4’ tempo - I try to finish about 20’ prior to the start so that I can stretch and relax.

The race start is tight with everyone funneling down a slight grade prior to a sharp right hand turn. This year wasn’t any exception as I had my heals clipped twice during the first 200m.

My plan, which was loose, was to aim for 3:30/km and assess how I felt midway. I settled into a nice group with Marilyn and Walter and despite trying to bridge-up several times during the race I couldn’t close any ground.

Walter and Marilyn slipped back on a hill about 5k but I managed to close the gap on a lone solider in no man’s land and we worked together over the final 4k. All things considered, I’m happy with the race which translates into a 2:45:29 marathon. My (running) priority over the four weeks is to a) maintain some consistency and b) tuck a few longer runs under my belt. Results here.

3:30, 3:26, 3:30, 3:34, 3:35 (17:35)
3:43, 3:40, 3:27, 3:38, 3:28 (17:56)

Congratulations to Seamus who ran a solid race despite lacking any strength and still finished second with a time of 30:36! Oh, and this is Isla (day #1), I’ll try and post a few more in the next day or two.

Training: 1:21:17 with Times Colonist 10k 35:31, 45th OA, 8th AG