Last week was the big race, the Victoria Marathon Weekend 8K road race. It was this years goal race, which means it was the race I was training for all year.
The Royal Victoria Marathon includes a Marathon, half Marathon, and the 8K Road Race. All of which occur on the same day and start within 45 minutes of each other. Last year the downtown was so crowded that some Marathon runners had to park 2 miles away from the start (and finish). The idea of walking that far back to my car possibly in the wind and rain didn't appeal to me so I got a hotel room across the street from the race.
The race started at 730 AM. Apparently that is standard with races, but starting in near dark and the cold is going to take some getting used to. Luckily there was no wind and no rain. The temperature wasn't even that bad.
It was hard to see the start line as there were only some flags on light posts and not a proper starting gate like in Edmonton. I just had to assume I was in the right crowd.
The plan for this race was run the first half at 152 bpm and the second half at 168 bpm. I had set my iTunes playlist to music with a clear beat at the cadence I needed. For example, "Autobots" was perfect for the first half and "Bittersweet Symphony" for the second half. If I was right and if I could sustain the cadences, I should finish in less that 40 minutes.
People run fast at the start of every race. I just have to get used to it. So when the gun sounded and we got going I didn't worry that everybody ran past me. My 1K split time was 5:09. I failed to believe that EVERYBODY can sustain a 5:09 split time for the entire race so I just kept to my plan. Slowly the crowd stopped running past me. For half a kilometer they even kept up. Then the inevitable, epitomized perfectly by the runner I passed who was vomiting on the side of the road less than 3km in to the race. As for me, I was just warming up.
3km into the race I was weaving my way past the crowd. Finally I had to abandon the road for the sidewalk, which wasn't a problem for me since I had trained on the sidewalk anyway. 4km came and I had no problem fast forwarding to "The Field of Pelennor", and picking up the pace.
There is something psychologically satisfying about passing other runners and knowing they have no chance of fending you off. I do feel respect for my fellow runners who are just as dedicated and trying their hardest. I mean, its not like I was winning the race either, not even close (I finished 339th for crying out loud...). But still, I imagine they felt the same satisfaction when they passed me way back at the 1/2 km mark. Except the 1/2 km mark feels like a million years ago as I pass them from behind. A few glance at me as I run past, trying to measure if they have a chance to not get beaten. They don't, so they don't even try to speed up or at least match my pace. Most, though, have tunnel vision, just trying to keep their legs moving without passing out or quitting.
I did get passed at the 7km mark. By a boy who couldn't have been more than 11 years old. I have to admit I was quite impressed. I matched his effort until the last 250 meters when I started my sprint and passed him back. Still though, I couldn't even walk 8km when I was that age....
The finish and final sprint were very satisfying. Just like I had practiced. Thanks to the pacing and the taper I had alot of energy left and passed several others at the finish.
I knew I was close to my goal. I knew that it was only 8k instead of 10k. But I needed a sub-forty. I had to wait until the next day for my official chip time: 39:41. I have finally broken 40 minutes.
