Manitoba Marathon Race# 29

Winnipeg, Manitoba
Sunday, June 19, 2016
Time: 5:14:54
Overall Place: 519/648

 

With Grandma’s Marathon complete it was now time to turn my attention over to the Manitoba Marathon to be run the following day.  We left Duluth at about 1:30 in the afternoon and expected to get home around 9:30.  Thankfully I had Heidi and my sister Elenore along and the plan was for them to drive while I rested.  Somehow we ended up taking a different way home then when we came and this was okay because the scenery was nice and the traffic was light.  We managed to stop twice along the way to eat, and fill the gas tank.  We just wanted to get home as soon as we could.  The drive home was pretty uneventful and I managed to find a very comfortable spot in the back seat where I could stretch out and relax.

We arrived home right on schedule at 9:30 and had just time enough to lay out flat ed, flat heidi, and flat elenore.  The two girls were running the half marathon and this would be my sisters first half so we were very excited for her.  We went to bed and woke up in the morning at 5:00 with the plan to leave the house at 5:45 so that we could be at the U of M for 6:15.  Stephanie got dropped off in the morning so it was the four of us that were going together.  I had decided to buy the VIP package which included parking at the start finish line since I was doing a back to back on the same weekend.  There were some other perks included, but it was the parking privileges that I was interested in.  I was feeling a tad lazy and didn’t want to take the shuttle buses in.

The weather on this Sunday morning was overcast with a temperature around the 17 C and very high humidity around 95%.  Because of the overcast the air just felt a lot more sticky and heavier than the day before.  I felt okay but I knew my legs would be tired and I was concerned about the humidity.  The race the day before had sucked a lot of the energy out of me and I was a little concerned that I had not hydrated enough.  I had run two back to back marathons twice earlier in the year and the temperatures were a lot cooler which made it a lot easier to run.  The warm weather and humidity tends to take a lot of energy out of a person so we were going to see how my body would hold up on this second of two.

 

It was nice to be back at the Manitoba Marathon and I have always held this race in high regard.  Even though there are not huge numbers for the marathon I know that the new race director was making changes to make this marathon better than ever.

 

Race Director Rachel Munday

  The biggest change was that they changed the direction of the route.  This race had always been hot to run in the second half because it was so open to the sunshine and with the change it was thought that there would be more shade.  There just seemed to be a different vibe to the race this year and a lot of people ran it this year feeling that a new direction and other changes would be more exciting.  It was nice to see a lot of familiar faces again.  I had grown somewhat accustomed to not knowing anyone at the start and finishing the race not knowing anyone, but at this race I knew a lot of people and all of them were very encouraging.

We all gathered at the start line and at 7:00 the race began.  I should mention at this point that I had someone very special to run with.  This being Father’s Day and my last race in the run ed run journey for Siloam Mission, Stephanie said she would run with me the whole way.  I was very excited to have her with me and I told her she was going to need to help get me through this.

We were off and running, all the marathoners together and on the other side of the road the first wave of the half marathoners.  It’s a beautiful sight when you have this many people running together all with the same goal in mind, to get to the finish.  Everyone has their reason or purpose for running and we get to talk to a lot of these runners along the way. Everyone has a story to tell as to why they are there.  Runners pull together and encourage each other along the journey and that is why I love this community so much.   Runners overall are very positive people and this becomes very infectious.  How else could runners get up at 3:00 in the morning to run a hundreds kilometers to raise money and awareness for a special cause and be joined throughout the day by dozens of other runners?  It is just what we do.

 

The first couple of miles in the race were quite difficult and I struggled with the warm temperatures and the humidity.  Some runners hit “the wall” at mile 18-20, I was there at mile two.  From here it couldn’t get much worse and it was just a matter of running through it till the end.  Thankfully I had Stephanie with me to help get me through the worst parts.  One mile at a time went by and as we got into the second part of the race I actually started to feel a little better because the humidity started to drop. 

 

 

It was also during the first half of the race that we picked up another runner by the name of Harmoney and we got to know her as we ran together.  When I reach the second half of the race I start counting down and so it was during the next 13 miles.  Run a bit, walk a bit.  We continued to meet runners along the course. 

A little tap on the shoulder and a brief exchange of greeting and see you at the end.  Through this all I really enjoyed myself.  There is something about pushing the human body beyond what we think it is capable of doing.  The feeling of accomplishment in overcoming these challenges is exhilarating.  Many people have asked me, why I do this to myself.  Why you run two marathons back to back and my answer do is simple, because I can.  A lot of people wish they could and they can’t.  That is why I have chosen to run this journey to support Siloam Mission, because it gives me purpose in what I can do.  In a radio interview I was asked why did you choose running when you could do something simple like collect blankets or something else along this line.  I answered that everyone has a gift or an opportunity with how they can best contribute and make a difference.  I chose to run because I have a passion and a gift for it.  I run for a purpose to support Siloam Mission.

I was looking forward to getting this run finished up because I knew I had a lot of support back at the finish line.  The entire way that Stephanie was running with me she had been sending pictures and messages back to the finish line to let them know how we were doing.  The last few miles seemed to take forever even though they were some of my fastest miles.  Stephanie reminded me that she didn’t want to finish as slow as her very first marathon three years ago so I made sure that didn’t happen. 
 

 

We came in at the back of the stadium and onto the track to a cheering crowd of friends and family with noise makers, balloons and a banner.  It was overwhelming to finally cross the finish line and be done.  Twenty nine marathons in fifteen months and it is over.  Thank you Stephanie for bringing me home.  I have run against strong winds, up steep hills, through torrential downpour, extreme heat, in sickness and fatigue.  I have seen beautiful countryside, majestic mountains, calm lakes but most of all wonderful supportive people. This opportunity has been very gratifying and rewarding personally.  This chapter is over but the journey is not done.  I will keep running and want to continue to support Siloam Mission in whatever way I can.  A big THANKYOU to all of you for your support and encouragement.

 

 

Thank you Stephanie for bringing me home

Two days, two marathons, two medals

 

 

Grandma’s Marathon Race# 28

Duluth, Minnesota
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Time: 4:56:03
Overall Place: 4634/7522

 

The lead up to this weekend went back about two weeks ago to the beginning of June when I was supposed to run the 28^th race of 30 in Minneapolis at the Minneapolis Marathon.  It turns out that the race was cancelled to some permit issues which was probably a blessing in disguise since I now had three weeks to prepare for this double weekend instead of two, so that was great.  I was feeling just a little tired leading up to the weekend but with that extra week I knew I had a better chance to run the last two feeling a little stronger.  I’m just not sure what my scheduler was thinking when he scheduled this many races at the end! 

The week leading up to the double header weekend proved to be quite busy with trying to schedule radio interviews to try and really push Siloam Mission and the Manitoba Marathon with as much support as possible.  It’s amazing how many people listen to the radio and how many people heard me.

 

 

 

On Thursday my sister Elenore flew in from Edmonton to run in the Manitoba Marathon on Sunday, but also to come to support me at the marathon in Duluth on Saturday.  The plan was to drive out to Duluth, pick up our race kit on Friday evening and run the next morning and head back right after the race to hit Winnipeg again Saturday evening.  Yes, it is a bit of a rush but what’s an adventure without a little stress thrown in?  On Friday we packed up and headed to the University of Manitoba to pick up our race packets.  What was to take only a few minutes took over a half hour, too many people to talk to and try and explain why I’m running two marathons on the weekend!

Our trip to Duluth was pretty uneventful as we drove through the northern Minnesota lake country and one small town after another. 

 

 

 

 

It was at the beginning of the drive in Manitoba where I received a phone call from a radio station to do another interview.  I pulled over and did the interview on the side of the road as this would have been a hazard trying to do it driving.  It was very relaxing and we quite enjoyed the trip.  You don’t get to really experience the rural America when traveling on the interstate so it was a really nice change.  We arrived in Duluth around 7:00 just in time to walk to the convention center where the Expo was being held. 

 

 

 

This Expo had a spaghetti dinner and we were going to do that first when we realized that the Expo was closing at 8:00 which gave us about 10 minutes to whip through all the booths and then pick up my race kit.  It was a very nice Expo and I managed to pick up some clothing, because I have very little from the previous 27 races! Not!  After rushing through the Expo we went to have our Spaghetti dinner which was really good.  This was a top notch Expo and all the festivities that surround the Expo.  Hard to describe in detail this event but it is big and they know how to do it right.  When we went out to Canal Park which is the area where the finish line was, there were numerous tents set up which were having pre-race parties and bands playing.  It’s not hard to see why people like coming to this event.  Amazing how a city with a metropolitan area of about 120,000 people can draw such a large event.  There were approximately 9,700 people registered for the full marathon and about 10,000 people for the half marathon, which by the way is done by lottery.  The fact of the matter is that the entire community throws itself behind this event.  This was the 40^th year of this event so the organizers threw just a little bit more into it than normal.   This event has to rank as one on the top ten in the US, and I hadn’t even run it yet.

 

We had a nice walk back to the motel which was about ¾ of a mile from the race finish and Expo which is right next to Lake Superior in an area called Canal Park.  As I mentioned before, this area was just a hub of activity.  Earlier in the evening they had run a 5K fun event for about 2,000 people.  Actually it would have been 1,999 because somehow I had registered for this race as well but we were too late to get there for me to run it.  No, I wouldn’t have done it anyway.  I’m still trying to figure out how I got registered for that one. It actually looked like it would have been fun.

 

Back at the motel not much time to do anything except lay out flat ed and get ready for bed.  It was nice, they had two double beds, one for Heidi and I and one for my sister.  It was a warm night and in order for me to get to the race shuttle pickup area I had to get up at 3:45 for the 20 minute walk.  The morning was interesting.  The girls were there to support me for this race and I found out that it was on condition that they didn’t have to get up with me.  After all they wanted to go for a little run in the morning so they didn’t want to be too tired.  I was quiet as a church mouse getting dressed and having a bagel and doing all of my morning stretches.  They didn’t move a muscle and I snuck out not disturbing them.  Thanks for the help girls!

Grandma’s Marathon is a point to point race starting in a small town called Two Harbors and running south for almost 26 miles along the southwest corner of Lake Superior.  Running one direction is really not a problem except that you only get sun on one side of your body.  You see a lot of people walking around only baked on one side of their bodies.  In order to get to the start you have to either take the shuttle or take the scenic train.  The scenic train takes about 1 ½ hours whereas the shuttle bus takes about 45 minutes.  I opted for the train because it had bathrooms on board and it was a very slow relaxing ride.  I also got to meet a bunch of runners which is always nice.   We arrived about 45 minutes before the start of the race so there was time to do a little stretching and find the coral.  The temperature was about 17 degrees Celsius with the humidity at about 95%.  Not the most ideal running conditions because we knew that it was only going to get warmer.  I was feeling pretty good.  My concern was that the last couple of weeks I was having trouble with my breathing.  I always felt out of breath so this forced me to have quite a few slower runs.  I had hoped that this would have passed for this race.  While I was waiting for the start I heard someone call my name.  How does someone find you amongst 9500 people?  It was a running friend from Winnipeg Al Neumann who was down with his wife Jaki to run the marathon as well.  It’s always nice to see a friendly face.

The race started, although I don’t know how it was announced since we were so far from the start line.  It took about five minutes to cross the start line and Al and I were off.  The pace was nice and slow and I was able to get my breathing under control and keep it at a comfortable rate.  The hills were very gentle and we went up and down them without breaking pace.  Two factors which made the run a little more difficult were that there was really no breeze to speak of, and this race is in almost constant sunshine so it got really warm.  Even with this I was able to run very comfortable keeping stride with the 4:30 pacer.  I stayed with Al till about the 14 mile mark when we lost contact and I didn’t see him again.  It was amazing to see some other runners from Manitoba which I didn’t know but Al did know them so we chatted along the way.  As the day became warmer it became more difficult to hold that 4:30 pace and I eventually fell back and had to do more walking.  There was just no shade relief.  At one point along the course at mile 22 I sat down with a family that were spectating and took in an accordion player that was providing entertainment for the runners.  We had a little chat and I was on my way again.  It was shortly after this that I encountered the one and only real climbs of the course.  I joined many others that were walking and made it over.  Not far now from the finish line I was really taking in a lot of fluids to keep hydrated sometimes three to four cups of water.  I also noticed that the race had raised the Extreme banner to announce the weather race conditions.  Race organizers have a warning system in place on the course which alerts runners to the weather conditions so that they can take precautions to not overdue it and end up passing out from heat exhaustion.  This deep into the race runners will sometimes not listen to their body and ignore the signs when they are in danger, because, we’d rather be stupid and not slow down when it is not a good thing to do.  As for myself I had nothing to prove and I knew that I had to run the next day again so I took it easy that last few miles and didn’t take any chances.  Coming into Canal Park where the finish is, is very exciting because there are thousands of spectators cheering on the runners. 

 

 

 I was coming down the finishing straight and I saw Heidi and Elenore close to the finish line and gave my traditional pose, everyone around cheered.  A short jaunt to the finish line and I was done.  That was a very warm run but I felt surprisingly good.  Now to find the girls, that was another story.  The race finish site is spread out over a very large area and it was not easy to find them.  There wasn’t much for food, or not that I could find, so when we finally found each other we just headed back to the car.  We couldn’t get a late checkout so it was the two girls and stinky Ed driving back to Winnipeg.  I did manage to get some stretching in but no ice bath or rolling out of the muscles. 

 

I really enjoyed this marathon and will definitely come back some day for another run at it when we have more time.  It’s unfortunate that it is on the same weekend as Manitoba so you have to choose one or the other.  I used to think that some marathons like Manitoba didn’t do well because of the potential heat, but I have come to realize that this is just not the case.  What draws people is a great event?  I’m not sure how an event evolves to that status, but Duluth is one of those events.

 

 

Calgary Marathon Race# 27

Calgary, Alberta
Sunday, May 29, 2016
Time: 4:56:58
Overall Place: 616/807

 Thursday May 26, 2016

One week after the Fargo Marathon it's off to Calgary to run the marathon and hopefully welcome our new grandchild into this world.

It's been a short week at work, back on Tuesday and leaving again on Thursday.  I could get used to these three day weeks.

Just found out this week that my next marathon after this weekend has been cancelled.  Minneapolis for the first week of June is a no go.  Looks like the new number is 29.  Don't think I didn't try and replace it.  Nothing within a day's drive is out there.  



Photo bombed

Got to the airport to find out our flight is delayed by about 45 minutes.  No problem.

Staying with our daughter Wendy and her husband Paul.  Wendy was due earlier this week to have their first baby.  This is great timing because we planned this marathon well over a year ago so this all works out great.

Plane finally arrived.  Everyone is excited; it's the West Jet Disney plane.  Yeah.  I asked some flight attendants if we could sing Disney songs.  She invited me to start.  Not gonna happen.

Nice flight, made it in good time, Paul and Wendy at the airport to pick Heidi and myself up.  Wendy is beaming, she looks cute pregnant.  Hope the baby comes this weekend.  I think it's a girl and they call it Edwina.  

Looking forward to sleeping in the next two days.  
Off to bed we go.

Friday May 27, 2016

No baby yet!

Had a great night’s sleep.  I've been looking forward to sleeping in on Friday and Saturday.  My body really needs that. 

Had some great breakfast, broke the routine of cereal and blueberries, and had bacon and eggs.  That's significant for me.  I am a creature of habit.

I planned to go for a run after breakfast, but not before I waited for a while.  Wendy planned a route for me.  Yeah well, that didn't go so well.  I planned to go for about 3.5 miles.  I ran 5 miles and got to see a lot of the neighborhood.  Wendy and Paul live just outside of Calgary in Airdrie.  

Came back from the run and had a shower. 

 

Never get in between food and a past due pregnant woman

 

Plan for the afternoon was quite open, but the three of us decided to go to a market just south of the downtown area of Calgary.  What a market it was.  They had foods represented from all over the world.  They had both market foods and fast food foods.  Incredible.  We settled on sharing a large Poutine.

After the market we went to the Cross Iron Mall.  It is the largest in Calgary and the one everyone goes to. Wendy didn't last too long.  Reason?  She is pregnant and past her due date.  Can't say we didn't try helping her along to have this baby. 

 

Went home, had some supper and watched the Blue Jays game.  Wendy and Paul are quite the avid Jays fans.  

I have to mention, Wendy makes a mean blueberry pie.  Wow was it good.  

Paul was working late so we barely got to see him, but now he is off for a couple of weeks.

Saturday May 28, 2016

No baby yet!

Slept in and slept well.

Expo day.

My sister Elenore and her husband Rob came to Calgary from Edmonton for the weekend so that my sister could run the 10K race.  They also have a daughter who lives in Calgary, her name is Becky. We were going to pick my sister up and go to the Expo in the morning.  We found the Expo where they have the Calgary Stampede in one of the buildings.  What a nice Expo.  Lots of different vendors and lots of free giveaways.  The coolest thing was that they had some runners on treadmills trying to set some world records.  One guy did over 260 Kms in 24 hours, yikes.  They broke 7 world records in the process.

 

After the Expo we headed for home and picked up some food so we could make a pre-race meal for my sister and family.  

Great food, great time, lots of pasta. Love spending time with my sister and her family.

I laid out flat ed and posted it to Facebook.

Time for bed and an early start. 

 Sunday May 29, 2016

No baby yet!  Five days past due.  

Woke up at 3:45, who knew that time came twice a day.

Plan was for Heidi and I to drive to Becky's house, then we would all drive to the LRT Park & Ride and take the train to the Stampede grounds for the start finish.  All worked out great.

 
Only one issue.  I made the mistake of asking Rob if the car could do 180 kph.  My sister got this new car and a simple yes or no would have been quite adequate.  No, he had to show me.  Good thing I didn't ask if it could do 220 kph.

Made it to the Stampede grounds, lots of activity.  Met our friend Wendy from Winnipeg who came out for the race to assist the Running Room where she works in Winnipeg.

We handed in our drop bag and I read our runners prayer.  This has become a pre-race tradition since I started on this journey.

This race is unique in that they offer a 50K Ultra, as if running a marathon weren’t enough.  There is actually a very passionate group that really enjoys running more than marathons and will run up to 7 day races.  These are amazing athletes.

The 50K, marathoners, and half marathoners all lined up together.  Oh Canada was performed by a local girls group and was very impressive I might add.

The weather was perfect for running with temperatures around 7 C and going up to plus 16 C.

With the 3 distances there were about 4000 runners.

The gun went off and we all moved forward to the start line.  In case you are not familiar with running events, we wear timing chips in our race bibs so our time doesn't start until we cross the timing mat at the start line.  There are two times which are considered.  The gun time is used for the elite athletes because they line up at the front and this is what the world records are taken from.  The rest of us runners run to the chip time, because sometimes it can take minutes before you cross the start line and it wouldn’t be fair for runners if it takes say 10 minutes to cross the line, especially if you are trying to Boston qualify.  

The first few miles went out towards the Bow River and we were quite tightly compacted so it was hard to get a good line around the corners.  Eventually we thinned out a little more and it was easier to move about.  I was feeling pretty good and moved at a nice pace, comfortable yet not too slow.  My breathing however did feel a little labored.  Calgary is about 3000 feet above sea level and it does make a difference.  

About 6 miles into the race the half marathoners split from the 50k and marathon runners.  We immediately took a left and climbed for what seemed like about a mile.  I wasn't expecting this.  Legs started getting tired and I knew it wasn't going to be a fast race.  This was probably my least favorite part of the race.  We had some main roads that were open to traffic and had parked cars on the other side.  I've never been in a race this close to traffic.  We finally started our decent toward the downtown and that was nice.  They have a lot of bridges on this course going over the Bow River.  I couldn't even tell you how many times we crossed the river.  The last six or so miles of the course were very interesting.  About four miles of it was along the river and it was run twice by the 50K runners so there was lots of activity.  I even met friend and fellow runner from Winnipeg.  He ran the wrong direction with me to take a few pictures, and then returned to his correct direction.  Junel is a very inspirational and motivating leader in the running community.  It was nice to see his friendly face.  The other thing I liked about the last few miles of the course is that it goes around the downtown and looks very impressive.

I had a decent time going into the last six miles but just couldn't hold it as I walked more than usual.  It's usually in the last couple of miles that I probably run about eight out of every ten minutes compared to the beginning of the race I might walk maybe 30 seconds in 20 minutes and running at a much faster pace.  My body is so fatigued right now which is why I am losing about 30 minutes a marathon if not a little more.  My body feels really good but I'm just tired.

It was nice to see Heidi and my sister at the finish line with Rob and Becky.  Elenore completed her 10k race and Heidi her half marathon.  Rob and Becky didn't run this race so they had to wait a long time for me to finish and I really appreciated it.
Heidi had a little bit of trouble at one of the aid stations where she had about a 17 minute wait for a Porto potty.  This is just something that happens to many runners.

After the race I was able to do some stretching on mats provided by Good Life.  One of the instructors tried to give me some tips, but this what I do every morning for 35 minutes.  She kept showing me stretches I already do.  She was very nice though.

We went to the train station and grabbed our train to the park & ride and then it was off to get some food.  You won't believe it, yup, Chinese food.  Only this food was real and very tasty.

We drove back to Becky's house, said our goodbyes, got in our car and drove home.  That was an adventure because if you don't update your navigation system at least every two days they have built a new street in the meantime and you are lost.  It was only about 20 minutes so we made good time despite the detours.  

On the way home to Wendy's house we picked up about ten pounds of ice.  You're probably thinking, wow that's a lot of ice for my drink.  Well it's not for my drinks.  It went along with the other ten pounds and into my ice bath.  I sit in a bath tub full of ice water for about 10 minutes to cool the legs whenever I can.  This helps tremendously in recovery.  

Well this is where the focus of our trip changes a bit.  Our daughter Wendy went into the hospital Sunday morning to have a baby, our timing was perfect right?  Wrong, our new grandson was born an hour and a half after we left Calgary on Monday so we were unable to meet him.  Well, the best laid plans don't always work out that way.  It was funny because if everything would have worked out we would have seen our new little grandson like the doctor said and we would have gotten a ride to the airport.  Fortunately we had a backup plan and called a cab to take us to the airport.  It all worked out in the end and we arrived back home in time to go to work.

Our new little grandson Chase Jeremiah

Well, only three more weeks till I wrap up this part of the journey to run 30 marathons in 15 months which means three more marathons.  Actually there are only going to be two more as Minneapolis cancelled their marathon for the weekend coming up.  This is really good for me because since I couldn't find a replacement, I get a full three weeks of rest until the double header.  It's been a great run so far and I am tired, but we need to finish this off strong.