NEW 2012 Brantford Tournament of Races, Road and Trail Series.

Recently I was invited to have coffee with Brantford's marathoner, Rick Mannen (read below about his major success in the 1980's). What an honour. It was great to exchange running stories and learn about the NEW 2012 Brantford Tournament of Races, Road and Trail Series. Brantford has had numerous road races but never a series so this is great! The group is gaining a lot of support from local businesses and organizations and I was asked if I would consider supporting and endorsing the Series as a runner and spokesperson. The more I learned about Brantford's history of running, the more I wanted to be involved in bringing a culture of running back to Brantford. So, I said yes! Kevin Sullivan has also agreed to support this Series!
There is a media launch Nov 15th where we will introduce the series to the media and community and will be inviting local dignataries and prominent supporters of our series.

Here is the link to the Brantford Tournament of Races Road & Trail Series
Stay tuned for more!


Rick Mannen, Brantford's Athlete of the Week in December 2000.
Rick Mannen - December 12, 2000
This week's "Athlete of the Week" is Rick Mannen a member of the Brantford Track and Field Club. Rick is an outstanding marathon runner who has competed at all levels of competition. He represented Canada at the World Cup Marathon in Seoul South Korea in 1987, at the Pacific Rim Marathon Championships in 1990 and was the winner of the 1987 Hong Kong International Marathon. Rick was recognized for his outstanding sports accomplishments locally in 1984, 1985 and inducted into The Sports Hall of Recognition in 1987. This year he was the overall Masters series winner of the 2000 Tim Horton's running series and is currently ranked 4th in Canada for the Masters (over 40 yrs.) marathon. Rick is an active community supporter who has been involved with the Brantford Classic Run for many years and most recently was a honorary water carrier and committee member of the 2000 Trans Canada Trail Relay. What an outstanding career, much success in the future Rick.



As for training, I had another great week. Ran 95 km, biked 3 times, and swam 3 times (plus the usual core, strength training and stretching). Tuesday was a biggie run ... 25 km with Seth and Leah in the Chariot and the dog on leash!
I hope to log about 105 km this week, which will include another long Chariot run. It's so beautiful in October! Another few weeks of this great weather would be lovely!

Another Season

Let me tell you, I love the location of our home in Brantford. It's close to the 403, the trails, the school, and the Wayne Gretzky Sports Centre.
With my training, and now that we are into hockey season, I will be at the WGSC Monday-Friday. I train 3 mornings/wk and take Seth skating Tues'/Thurs'. Check out the pictures of the new facility. We now have 4 new rinks, one indoor track (!!!!), and a new pool on the way.

I just finished a decent week of steady running, nothing spectacular considering I just raced on the 16th. I got in 90 km, which included a great 25 km run Saturday with sunny skies, beautifully coloured trees, and the perfect temperature.



Just seems like yesterday that Micah was using the pusher and Seth was in the stroller!

Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon (STWM)...WOW!

Well, today was a GREAT day at the STWM!
Here are a few articles with the many exciting events of the day (one, two, three). In short, here is what happened: Reid and Eric met the "A" standard for London 2012, Kenneth Mungara won his 4th consecutive STWM, and 100 y.o. Singh and 80 y.o. Whitlock set World Records. Oh, and I ran my first 1/2 since Leah was born. OK, not so news-worthy!
In these pictures, 1) Micah and Seth LOVED eating their pizza supper in front of the hotel tv!
2) We really enjoyed ourselves as a family; cheering on the runners, staying in a hotel, etc. I've been trying to explain to the boys about the significance of the day's events. They don't quite get it yet; shortly after seeing Reid and Eric finish, they were more concerned than anything about getting back to the tv! Jonathan did a great job getting the kids fed, to the start and finish, etc. It's not always easy trying to keep your eye on the kids AND the runners! Thanks to Kevin and Jen for coming to cheer me on and help w/ the kids.
3) After showering, I enjoyed some down-time with Leah (and she was glad to be fed again!).
4) Here I am, about 500 m from the finish.

As for the race, although I did not achieve my goal time of sub 1:18, I am thrilled with my performance (time was 1:19:15). I knew there was going to be some decent competition so didn't have an pressure to keep up w/ the lead pack. So, once I saw them head out, I was ok with that and stuck to my own plan. I wanted to stay around 3:40-3:45/km, which was difficult at times with the fast start, wind, etc. Around 5 km I ran into Roger who provided me with some relief from the wind and a decent pace. We ran together for at least 7 km. Thanks, Roger! Before the race, I wasn't sure I would need any gels but good thing I had 2 in my back pocket! They came in handy. Around 12 km (?), the best thing happened ... my body surged. It was neat in that my body said, "Yes, I've got this" and my mind said, "Are you sure?". So, I went with it and rather than counting down the km's left to go, I found them slipping by quicker and quicker. If my math is correct, I think I had a negative split (second half faster at 3:43/km than the first at 3:48/km). Around 16 km I caught up to one girl ahead who was leading a pack of 5 or 6, and went past her to get a 4th place finish. Not too shabby. I must say that even though I was only doing the half, I certainly took advantage of the crowds. The support from the fans was amazing. I just love hearing people call out, "Go, Krista. Great pace. You look strong!".
So, I am ready to start ramping up the miles. The plan is to average about 100 km/wk between now and the end of December. Then, Coach Nicole takes the reins January 1st to get me ready for Ottawa May 2012.

STWM 1/2 ... a few more days

Only 4 more days until the STWM 1/2. All is well but I really do not know what to expect.
Here is the elite start list for the full and half. It'll be a great race for all!

Skunked.

Well, this morning was rather eventful...
Leah was my alarm clock at 6:00 am so I fed her and got dressed. Then, Micah got up right before I was about to sneak out of the house quietly for my run. I asked him to let Moses (the dog) out for a pee while I put on the tv show, Wild Kratts, for him. In seconds he ran to me saying, "Mom, there's a skunk in our backyard!". My first thought was that he was joking, but I could then tell by his excitement that he was not. I ran to the door and looked out to see Moses and the skunk in a battle. The skunk was aiming. Moses was barking. I ran to get Jonathan out of bed (poor guy, he is not a morning person if he doesn't have to be, and needs his sleep because he travels a lot for work during the week). By the time we got back downstairs, the skunk was in a heap on the ground and Moses was walking around, disturbed and grabbing at his face. Both defeated.
So, we paced the house for a while not knowing what to do. Jonathan started looking up recipes and posted it on facebook (where he got a lot of suggestions such as coke, tomato juice, pet store stuff, homemade stuff, etc.). We couldn't let Moses back in but he kept going toward the skunk. So, Jonathan tied him up at the back of the yard (our backyard is 150 feet deep). I went for my run and he started making his weekend waffles while he kept his eye on the skunk, which we thought was dead. Well, it was not. Jonathan saw it move on occasion. Disturbing. This can't happen again! But eventually the skunk staggered its way out of the yard (it would take a few steps, fall then get back up again) and Moses was free. We had breakfast together then Jonathan got the ingredients to making the paste/wash and spent the day cleaning Moses (bathed 3x), the back patio, etc. What a Saturday!
Training was ok this week. The Toad trail race was harder on my legs and foot than I thought so I tried to take it somewhat easy, not doing my tempo until later in the week. So, I got in 80 km of running with some biking and swimming.
I hope to go under 1:18 next Sunday but we'll have to see.
I've been following the events for the STWM. The Canadian guys have a great field. It will be amazing to be at this race. And it's going to be covered by CBC! Great for the sport!
This week I will continue to taper. I'll likely run 4x, swim 1x, and bike 2x.

Run for the Toad

Pictures:

1. Awards and meal tent. Sooo many people!
2. Snake!
3. Snuggled up.
4. Kids' tent.
5. Race morning w/ Leah before heading out.

Well, I survived the week on my own (Jonathan was away for work) AND managed to do OK at the Run for the Toad 25 km trail race (near Paris). First, a big thank you goes to Jonathan's parents for helping me with the kids. Training can be tricky with 3 kids, including one you are nursing. Racing is even more difficult. But, Grammy saved the day! She slept over so that I could feed Leah and leave by 7:30 am then brought them to the race, shortly after I finished. Since I'm on the topic of kids, what a kid-friendly race!They had a tent with crafts, activities, heat, and movies to keep the kids entertained and warm. They even had a snake to show the kids!
As for the race, it was really quite a different experience for me. I'm so used to road and treadmill running so the twists, turns, hills, leaves, roots, etc. made for an entirely different, but great race. I hadn't run a trail race since highschool but certainly enjoyed it again! I wasn't a big fan of the fact that you have no idea where your competition is but welcomed the beautiful scenery and well-marked course. Oh, and the food was amazing! When Jonathan is away, I must admit, I don't do a lot of real cooking. So, I thoroughly enjoyed my first real meal of the week! Thank you, Peggy and George.
Jonathan is now home, the kids are in bed, and I've enjoyed a wonderful epsom salt bath. Lovely.