Friday 27 September 2013

Milton Half Marathon 2013


BIB #: 482
TIME: 1:50:50
CHIP: 1:50:40
PACE: 5:16
CATEGORY: M40-44
CAT. PLACE: 7/15
GENDER PLACE: 48/89
OVERALL PLACE: 79/205

History
Jamie and I had just finished the Mississauga Marathon and both decided to take it easy for the summer, not really train for anything but be ready should we want to run a half in the fall. I was 90% sure that I wanted to run Milton, and after a few months of indecisiveness I decided to sign up. This is where things got interesting; I couldn't sign up with my AMEX card so I asked Jamie to sign me up and I would pay him for it. A week before the race I got an email from RS races..."Hello Fred LeDoup, Thank you for your order." "Jamie you ass!" I said out loud and proceeded to laugh my ass off...I spent the next ten minutes trying to explain to the RS Races guy that my name should be changed, I told him the story of how it happened, and he laughed as well...he told me to send an email and they would change it. Saturday September 14th came and I went to pick up my kit, "Sorry sir there is no Philip Morris on the Roster"...I smiled and said "it must be under Fred LeDoup" and it was. I became Fred LeDoup.

Training
The training plan was simple...run about 10k when I could which was usually Monday, Wednesday and the odd Thursday/Friday and a long run between 15 and 20k on the weekend. I would run without staring at my watch, run by feel, try and focus on economy. Generally I ended up with about a 40km week. I came up with a couple of sub 50min 10k runs and a couple of sub 2hr 20k's while training which gave me an inkling of being able to PB; this was the race I PB'd in last year.

Race Day
I was as ready as I could be, race day had come. Sandy and Graham had offered to cheer my on, so we all awakened at the dawn of crack. I had my traditional cereal with fruit and a big glass of water. I showered, got dressed and we left the house. Packing my stuff the night before and double checking before I went to bed ensured that I wouldn't go through the same hell I went through at Mississauga; forgetting my garmin, fuel belt, water etc. Sandy, Graham and I were in Milton by 7am with Starbucks in hand. Everything had been going really smoothly. A couple of guys in the starbucks wished us luck at the race and we left.

We gathered at the meetup in the Go Station parking lot. The beautiful thing about a small race is that it's very easy to find your friends. The gathering included myself Nicole, Alan, Shawna, Robin, and Peter. Peter was not running but came to cheer us on...awesome! 

Sandy and Graham wished me luck and went to get some prime real estate at the corner of the parking lot near the Hakim Optical.

Ready, Set, Go!
Jamie and I had planned on running this one together, and I hadn't seen him yet; until we lined up in the corral. We got a quick photo snapped and off we went
Fred LeDoup and Jamie MacRury

We lined up behind the 1:50 pacer who recognized me from last year and commented that I should be running at the front of the pack by now...?! A small amount of doubt entered my mind as I pondered his statement. Should I be faster? Maybe I set the bar too low? Have I been too lax with my training? No time for anymore questions...the gun went off and we were running.


The course was identical to last year, I had pictured it in my mind for the weeks leading up. I had run the race in my head several times. The starting gate was on the road this year which was much better. My wife was here this year which was much better. I was running the race with my friend which was much better. It occurred to me that we didn't get a group photo...we passed Sandy and Graham and they wished Jamie and Fred good luck. Fred...jeesh!


Rockin' and rollin'
We started off at a good clip, I was feeling strong; we passed quite a few runners in the first few kms and eased into the high end of my comfortable pace. Jamie and I chatted back and forth about roadkill, mice, and wrestling. We kept pace with a lady who's husband and little one came to several locations of the race to cheer her on. very sweet :) 

10 kilometers came and went, we passed the halfway point and ran into a familiar face, our friend Mark was there cheering on his wife. Jamie said "do the robot" as we passed him. I think I did the zombie instead??
Thriller!

Friends!
So there came a time in this race when I went from feeling strong to feeling not so strong. I got quiet and serious, it felt like I was slowing down. Suddenly up ahead I could see a small gathering of people holding signs...Nicole's family was there with the signs they had made for the race with all of our DM friends names on it. That filled me with positive energy, enough to step it up again and get back on pace! Thanks Macpherson Family!

Making my way out of the old neighbourhood was a physical struggle for me last year. This year was no different; the rolling hills did me no favours, and the negative part of my brain was fighting with me. Jamie was really helpful and kept me going, and helped keep things light. 

Crossing Thompson towards the Tupper loop I saw three lovely ladies (Amy, Sarah, and Marguerita)   on the corner cheering the runners on; I was struggling so they were a sight for sore eyes :) I yelled some kind of blubbering something or other at them and they let out a great cheer "Go Phil!" at least thats what I heard LOL! I knew on the way back they'd be there too...something to look forward too :) 

Up the street at the water station Jamie's wife Dee and their two kids were waiting with water and big hugs for their dad :) and a cheer for me!

By this point my energy level was down, but my spirit was up. We rounded the loop, had another cheer from the MacRury's, and the DM Cheerleaders and headed towards the homestretch. 

Only 2k!
Jamie yelled back to me "only 2k to go, I'm gonna giv'r" and off he went; I tried to keep up but he's faster than me, especially after 19km :P 

The end is near...
Back on Thompson I knew the end was near, I pushed on, my legs were heavy, I felt spent; then Nicole showed up beside me "c'mon Phil let's go!" I did my best to keep on her heels. We turned onto main and I looked for Sandy and Graham. There they were! My heart skipped a beat, a lump in my throat, (how great is this that my wife and child are here to cheer me on!!) and I went for the final push across the finish line.

Nicole and Jamie were there to hi-5 me; I grabbed my medal, goodie bag and sat down to eat my banana. We gathered near the finish line and cheered on the racers after us. We saw Alan cross the line and milled about for a few more minutes. I said my goodbyes and left to go and change at the car. We saw Robin who had PB'd (awesome). 

I enjoyed this race and will do it again...next year PB? I think I will train a little harder next year...and go for it!