Tag: Boston Qualifier

2019 week forty eight

Book Read
44. Wanderlust, A Book of Migrations – Rebecca Solnit

Kilometres Ran
week forty eight – 50.0

2019 to date: 2,505 KM

I picked up this book because I like Solnit’s essays and I like the idea of this book and so far it hasn’t disappointed. And by so far I mean I’ve been taking a bit of a stroll through this book rather than a run or even a casual jog. I’ve read quite a few books that explore the relationship between mental health and running; this is the first that I’ve found that focuses on walking, and in Solnit fashion explores the walking within an ever accelerated culture. I’m interested, but I’m not hooked yet. I’m not ready to give up on it yet, but I’m also not in any rush to finish it off.

Another finish sprint shot from last weekend’s Moustache Mileish courtesy of Jeanine Avelino

This afternoon I noticed that after my run this morning I surpassed 2,500 km so far in 2019 and I got to thinking about that. Two years ago I wanted to run 2,600 and didn’t quite make it. Then last year I sort of tongue-in-cheek went for 2,018 knowing full well that I wanted another crack at 2,600. Injuries threw a wrench into that plan but as the year came to a close I closed in on that number, and managed to surpass it on New Year’s Eve. With four weeks and a marathon between now and New Year’s Eve 2019 it looks very much like I’m going to run far more than I ever have. The California International Marathon is now just a week away. My goal is to run a Boston Qualifying time, and then my plan was to not run a full marathon in 2020. (CIM could still go sideways, though I’m riding some pretty high confidence right now.) Sometimes life comes along and changes your plans. Injury has been the one that has crashed my running quite a bit since I started this stupid sport. Then this week, it was a lottery. On Wednesday morning I woke up and made coffee and eased into my day doing pretty much everything and anything except checking my email, having completely forgotten that November 27 was the beginning of Berlin Marathon lottery notification. I’m no Hitchcock; you can see where this is going. I finally opened my email to find out that contrary to my grand plans I am going to be running the 47th Berlin Marathon on September 27, 2020. This is the World Marathon Major that I want. Needless to say I’m very excited. It’s ten months away and I haven’t lost sight of the looming 42.2 that’s just seven days away, but I’ve already set a goal for 2020: to run a sub three hour marathon. Berlin seems like as good a place as any to do it.

2018 week thirty nine

Book Read:
In progress

Kilometres Ran:
week thirty nine — 32.8

To date: 2,104 KM

I’m still reading Roger Robinson’s When Running Made History and it seems sort of fitting that I finish it and write about it next week. I haven’t read much this week but I did pick up a read a pretty great Haruki Murakami short story called “The Wind Cave” in the September 3 issue of the New Yorker and you can read it too here if you haven’t already used up your free articles this month however many that is (five?) but it’s also October tomorrow so new month! or you could clear your cache and browser history or you know get a VPN or something. Or get a subscription and then randomly pick up an issue from a few issues ago from your coffee table one night when the power has gone out and you’re sitting in your darkened apartment with a few bottles of slowly warming ginger beer and a Petzl headlamp. Or just read it online.

North Van Run by WestVanRun. Confused?

I’m tapering and by tapering I also mean trying to rehab a knee enough to convince it to work for just 194 minutes, give or take, next weekend. In spite of that, it was a busy week. I bought a new bicycle, one with more than one gear, which is nice. I decided to try out the indoor pool in my new-to-me building for a few laps of pool jogging and pool jogging sucks but it felt good so I’ll probably do it again (a lot again). And today I ran the North Van Run 10K and it was really great. This week has been a mental drag as I second guess myself on whether or not I’m going to meet my goals in the Victoria Marathon next weekend. Recap: Goal 1) run a BQ which means 3:14:59 or faster Goal 2) set a new PB which means 3:34:40 r faster Goal 3) don’t die. More on Goal 1 later. My plan for today was to run the first 5 KM at goal marathon pace and then run the second 5 KM faster. And it worked beautifully and was a lot of fun. At 5 KM I was right on 4:37/KM average pace and then I followed that with my third fastest 5 KM for a chip finish 43:46 good enough for 28 overall and 8 in my age group (my age group winner was the overall winner at who finished just over ten minutes before me). The weather was awful but I don’t mind running in the rain. The finish on this course, though, is ace. The last 1,500 metres are a nice downhill onto the straightway to the end of Burrard Dry Dock Pier looking out across the harbour to downtown Vancouver. I think it’s the best finish line I’ve run through.

I’m especially happy with my result today because of how everything felt at the start and throughout. Lately I’ve had to fight through pain for the first couple kilometres before everything loosened up but today I felt great through warm up and from the gun. It wasn’t easy to hold back and stick to my race plan; the NVR course is slopey but fast and I’m sure I could have set a new PB out there today. But I definitely didn’t want to blow a tyre a week before chasing a BQ in Victoria. I definitely got a confidence boost from today, but 3:14 is still very ambitious. Then the news this week: BQ times for 2019 are minus 4:52, and they’ve dropped the standard across the board by five minutes for 2020. I’m not interested in running Boston 2019 or 2020. But I want to run that BQ time. But I’m not running 3:09 in Victoria next weekend. But I want to end this somewhat positively so I’ll say that I’m still looking forward to crushing my first marathon time.