Tag: Victoria Half Marathon

2019 week forty

Book Read
Nope

Kilometres Ran
week forty – 85.7

2019 to date: 2,040 KM

It’s not that I didn’t read anything, rather I didn’t finish the book that I’m currently reading (that seems redundant). It’s a good one, though. I’ll finish it in time for next week and then I will be two books behind in my 2019 reading goal. Twelve weeks to go. I can do 14 books in 12 weeks. Talon’s fall launch is on Wednesday, and features new releases by favourites Oana Avasilichioaei and Danielle LaFrance. I’m not sure how I’m going to make it, what with Mile2Marathon track workout Wednesday eve. I need a doppelgänger.

NorthVanRun 10K a little over half way, with Shauna Gersbach out front, and Jordan Hurdal drafting me. Gersbach would finish W3 overall, and Hurdal passed me with about two to go, finishing AG 2nd. I settled for AG 3rd but more importantly to me 39:22 crushing my sub 40 goal. Photo by Dave Mallari.

On the running side of things goals are coming along just fine thank you very much. Earlier this summer I broke six minutes in the mile, which I don’t think was a stated 2019 goal, but became one when the opportunity to run it presented itself. Then after finally crossing an official timing mat to break 20 minutes over 5 kilometres in the Eastside 10K a couple weeks ago, and breaking 40 minutes at the NorthVanRun 10K last weekend, this week crossed another goal off my list, surpassing 2,019 KM (so far…) this year. In 2018 I surpassed 2,018 KM a few weeks earlier, but I was also running hurt (and dumb) at the time. This year started a bit slow dealing with an achilles injury, and the build for the BMO Marathon in May was pretty cautious in retrospect, or to spin it, quality kilometres over quantity.

Finish sprint down to the end of The Shipyards pier, and arguably the coolest race finish line in the Lower Mainland. Photo by Jan Heuninck.

I’m heading over to Victoria for Thanksgiving weekend with my sights set on running a sub 90 minute half marathon and I’m riding pretty damn high on confidence. I’ve never run the half event, though I’ve run every bit of the course, from many weekends escaping to Oak Bay to visit family, and getting chewed up and spit out running the marathon last fall. Weather and wind can both play huge factors, and weather apps indicate next Sunday will be wet. I can thrive in wet. Downpour less so. Headwind could spell disaster. But whatever. I’m ready to give it my all and see what happens. I’ll let you know how it goes.

2019 week thirty six

Book Read
35. Wilful Disregard – Lena Andersson

Kilometres Ran
week thirty six – 69.9

2019 to date: 1,751

Translated from Swedish by Sarah Death, Wilful Disregard tells the story of Ester Nilsson, a young intellectual who falls in love with a (much older) famous visual artist. That’s really all that you need to know because just about every other cliché is on display throughout this novella, and yet I thought it was very good. The story is entirely from Ester’s perspective and there are times that I want to grab her and give her a good shake (not unlike her “girlfriend chorus” who play much the same role and do just about as well as Jiminy Cricket). Today I learned that there is a sequel by the translated title Acts of Infidelity, which given the rather apt title of the first, makes me quite curious about the sequel. So I picked up a copy and I sort of feel like it should sit high on the to-read pile. I’ll let you know how it goes soon I’m sure. I find it difficult to sympathize with Ester but I’m invested now and what to find out what happens next. Like watch a car catch fire in an accident and hanging around just to see if it will explode.

This photo of me by Debra Kato looking very official counting laps at the Vancouver Distance Track Series 10,000 event a little over a week ago. I feel like I need a job that involves a clipboard.

It was, for the most part, a rather uneventful week running and by uneventful I mean that maybe in a good way. The slow build towards December is coming along just fine such that I’m waiting wondering when the bad stuff is going to happen. So I made an appointment to see my physiotherapist just to check in for a maintenance visit next week. I’ve had a nagging pain in my hips that hasn’t bothered my running at all but it annoyingly sharp when I’m not. And then, within 48 hours or so of making an appointment I went for a run and my hip flexors were not very happy. They calmed down after a couple hundred metres and it could be due to the 27 KM I ran yesterday. I expect I’ll get some answers this week. They will probably sound something like, “you really need to warm up before / stretch and foam roll after / do some cross training / maybe something (anything) with some lateral movement.” I mean, those are all true but I’ve never had any hip issues before. I’d rather not mess up the very full fall I have lined up: one week until Eastside 10K, three weeks until NorthVanRun 10K, five weeks until Victoria half, seven weeks until Fall Classic half/10/5 and then the big one, thirteen weeks until California International Marathon.