Saturday, October 02, 2010
The only reason I am blogging the results of this run is because I know some of you are expecting it...
Let me preface this with....I AM NOT PLEASED WITH MYSELF AT ALL!!!!!!
I was really hoping to be able to report back that it was a great run and I did it...but seriously...it was HARD!!!
My time is nowhere near what I wanted, I am in ridiculous amounts of pain in my knees, and my back...don't even get me started there...
So a couple of blogs back I posted the route map...wasn't sure how hilly it was...ANNE7X7 thought it might not be too bad...well I am NOT a trail runner....and that's exactly what it was...it started around the parking lot area and stuff...but I do believe that in total over 4k of it was completely bush trail...
At one point the trail just went straight up a hill...and let me tell you...a VERY steep hill. I refused to walk it, although it was all I could do not to....then it moved right into another hilly stretch...then of course at some point you have to run down the hill...i was so looking forward to it...until it came...holy crap it was a steep drop too...very hard to run it...but I continued on thinking there was no way I was stopping or I would never start up again.
Anyway...I started off slowly...actually the slowest runner of the bunch...behind me were the run/walkers and the pregnant people....can you see where this is going?
There were only about 20 of us running. A few men pushing chariots with kids and their wives running along side as well, as well as a couple of kids.
my first km was a 7.2 minute km....the second was at 12.23....I reached the 3rd at 23.40 and then the hills came into play.....and so did my allergies and asthma....the mold was nasty...all the rain we have had here, combined with fallen leaves...makes decay...MOLD!!!!!
It is by far my worst allergy. I really started feeling it around 3k....and wanted to quit. My back was not liking all the jarring from the trails, nor was I wearing trail running shoes...big difference using street runners I tell ya.
Did I mention I don't train on trails at all???
Did I mention I don't have gear for running on trails either???
Anyway, at 25 minutes running I took a quick 1 minute walk to help slow my breathing down...ran only an extra 3 minutes before I had to do it again...in the portion of the run between 3-4.5km I took 4 minutes walk time...once I got out of the trails, I naturally couldn't be seen walking so I kicked it up a notch and ran my way to the finish line...before I even got to the finish line I had to yell at my daughter to grab my inhaler...by this point I was in a FULL ON, wheezing, asthma attack...but I WAS NOT stopping...
Did I mention I don't train on trails at all???
Did I mention I don't have gear for running on trails either???
As I write this, I haven't seen the pictures that were taken...but I know I don't have a smile on my face, and that all I wanted to do was cry because I was so disappointed in myself for walking a few times...I finished in 38.17minutes...pitiful I tell ya!
I have run that WAY faster plenty of times before. I know there is no way in hell that tomorrow at the breast cancer run that I will be able to beat that...I am so damn sore right now in my knee joints and hips...I know it's from jarring my body on those trails.
I'll take streets any day over that...I am way to old for that! LOL
Did I mention I don't train on trails at all???
Did I mention I don't have gear for running on trails either???
At one point in the difficult part, I was replaying in my mind, VAMANOS's blog that I read yesterday where she writes out a conversation she is having with herself...I was laughing to myself because as I was having that same conversation with myself, I was remembering her blog.
So all and all...a crappy ass run...here's hoping I do better in next week's 5k...I won't aim to do better tomorrow...I will just aim to make it...via whatever means possible.
Oh....let me take you all back to the beginning of the morning there...
I had the 3 of us signed up to do a 1k family fun run...WELL...we get there...and this place was NOT well organized AT ALL...we get there, and the woman who is running the 1k asks me if I could do her a huge favour before the run...could I take my Garmin and go and mark the 1k course, apparently she had been in the hospital all week and didn't have time to come out and mark it...so all I had to do was walk in half a km then mark it so she could turn us all around and come back.
She points out where she wants me to start at...which is already about a km further than where we are standing at this point...I get there and start walking into the trails...I mark it and walk back...all this time having no clue what time it currently is...as I am nearing the end of my marked 1 km...my daughter's dad yells out....Hey, hurry up...they started the run....I said how can they when I am in the process of marking the trail for her...he said someone else had marked it from a different starting point...WTF??? I was pissed...
I get back out and they are long gone on to another trail...when they return, I ask her why she didn't wait for me, knowing that I was marking it off for her...her answer...
"well we already had enough chaperons for the kids so I didn't think you would mind"
REALLY???!!! SERIOUSLY??? That's your answer???!!! I told her that the whole part of the FAMILY run...was to run it with the FAMILY!
She apologized pulling the hospital card on me to make me less pissed with her...
Anyway...It all worked out in the end, because had I run THAT 1km....I would NEVER have finished the 5K...
but still...I missed both my kids' first runs...other than seeing them at the finish line..
Did I mention I don't train on trails at all???
On a POSITIVE note....
this run was for a charity to help at risk children, so there were LOTS of activities afterwards.
An AMAZING trampoline display...I had know idea it was an olympic sport...but apparently it is...and Ottawa is home to a few Olympic athletes...One of the guys performing was a GOLD medalist in Greece...WOW...
There was tons to do so it help ease the disappointment...NOT THE PAIN!!! LOL
Did I mention I don't train on trails at all???
Did I mention I don't have gear for running on trails either???
I was speaking with one lady who said that since she started running 5K's this summer...that by far this was the hardest. She said she wasn't prepared for the off roading either...
You know, come to think of it she didn't have trail running shoes on EITHER!!!!
OK...I will get over it...soon...this blog is therapeutic I tell ya!!!
Before the 5k...when I was still positive! The little girl in pink pants...CAME IN 3rd!!!! I was floored to find that out...I think she's about 7, maybe 8 tops!AWESOME!!!!!
This is me...GASPING for air...the last 50 meters or so...
Letting the asthma inhaler kick in
Reily running in...at 49.47minutes...he said he walked a lot...it was his first so I am SUPER PROUD of him!
Finally able to breath...woohoo...I am so proud of both my kids...
Payton did a 1 km...she ran the whole thing
Reily did a 1km and he ran the whole thing...AND he completed a 5KM that started less than 30minutes later!
Next week, Payton runs another 1k, Reily runs a 3k and I run another 5k....
Here's hoping tomorrow's Run For The Cure goes better....MUCH better!
The pain killers and ice are kicking in...maybe it'll be better?
Later Sparkers,
RUN RUN RUN!!
Member Comments About This Blog Post:
I'm happy to hear that you survived the race and you did well. I LOVE, LOVE the pink hair!! 
And take care not to overstress those joints! 