| Location: Garson - Sudbury,ON,Canada Member Since: Apr 20, 2013 Gender: Male Goal Type: Other Running Accomplishments: I ran my first marathon in 1998: "The Friendly Marathon" in Massey, Ontario. I was 32. I had never raced in a shorter event, and I trained really poorly - ended up running it in 4:00:30. After that, I gave up running for the most part for 6 years. I got into karate a bit more seriously, until I got my knee kicked out and had ACL surgery. Then I became a 'fair weather runner' and started to run half marathons every so often. As a priest, entering weekend races always meant having to book a holiday, so it just didn't happen much. My holidays were primarily focussed on various canoe and kayak trips.
At some point, I started training more consistently, and started to think of myself as a runner. I guess doing that in your 40's is better than never doing it at all. I even started to wonder if I had it in me to qualify for Boston. Well, I did. First time didn't count, I suppose, since I didn't make the "cut". But the second time was a charm, and on my sixth Marathon, run in Chicago in 2015, I beat my BQ by almost 6 minutes. And now, running a BQ is routine for me, not that I have any desire to run Boston again.
Through it all, I've made tons of mistakes - and have had lots of injuries to show for it. Hopefully, now that I'm in my late 50's, I'm a bit wiser and can use that to my advantage to continue running for a very long time.
My PRs:
5k (12 run): Guelph, ON. October 10, 2016 (50 yrs.) 20:10
10k (10 run): Collingwood October 5, 2013 (47 yrs.) 43:37
Half Marathon (26 run): Cleveland May 18, 2014 (48 yrs) 1:33:08
Marathon (12 run): Ste-Jerome, QC October 3, 2021 (55 yrs.) 3:22:10
Ultras (8 run):
Run for the Toad 50k Trail September 30, 2017 (51 yrs.) 5:31:23
Niagara Falls 100k June 17, 2018 (52 yrs.) 12:26:30
That Dam Hill 24 hours September 15-16, 2018 Completed 100 Miles in 23:20:44
Sulphur Springs 50 mile Trail May 25, 2019 10:37:27
May 25, 2024 9:21:26
Limberlost 35 Mile Trail July 6, 2024 8:12:57
Haliburton Forest 100 mile Trail September 7-8, 2019 26:46:27
September 7-8, 2024 DNF after 65 miles/16 hours
Pacing my sister in her 1st Half Marathon. Short-Term Running Goals: I really want to take on the Haliburton 100 again, after it kicked my butt in 2024, but I'm going to wait until 2026 to take it on again, when I'm 60 years old.
For 2025, I want to try running a Backyard Ultra, just to see how far I can run.
So, a couple of fun runs: 30K Around the Bay in March, and Pick Your Poison 50K in April, followed by Coach D's Backyard in May. That one only runs for 24 hours, so I'm using it to see how I handle the format, in view of running my goal race for 2025: The Bush Bitches Backyard, here in my hometown of Sudbury, in October. Let the training begin! Long-Term Running Goals: Run until this old body of mine won't let me run any more. I was inspired in the Spring of 2016, watching the start of the Ottawa Marathon. Near the back of the pack was an 'old man', running with his walker. I loved it! I thought ... there's me in 20 years. Maybe.  Personal: I am a Roman Catholic priest of 31 years, ministering in the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie. I spent 8 years ministering in the small town of Wawa (where I helped establish the annual Blackfly Run) and 9 years in Sault Ste. Marie. I have been in the Sudbury region now for 14 years. Currently I Pastor 2 small Parishes: St. John the Evangelist in Garson, and St. Bernardine of Siena in Skead, covering the area just Northeast of the city, surrounding the Sudbury Airport. |
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| Triumph 18 Miles: 10.00 | Brooks Ghost 13 Miles: 16.50 | Hoka Bondi Miles: 117.00 | Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 58.00 | Ghost 13 Blue Sole Miles: 12.00 | Saucony Triumph 18 Miles: 12.00 |
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| | Treadmill; 9:05 pace.
So, the power went out last night sometime before 2am - that's when I noticed it. It came back on at 5:30am. I'm usually out of bed before 5am, but with no power, just stayed the extra.
Had 3 thoughts:
How will I make coffee?
How will I run on the treadmill?
It's COLD!!! It was 14C/57F. Enough to keep me under the blankets.
It was actually nice running on the treadmill with the cooler temps in the house.
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| | Hovered just around the freezing mark and just a slight wind. The sun was in and out. Pretty nice for running. 9:01 pace. Rubber legs towards the end, especially on the hills.
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| Brooks Ghost 13 Miles: 16.50 |
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| | Tried to take it to the trails today, but 2 miles was as much as I could manage in the mud and ice. A bit of rain fell at the 7 mile mark, but overall a very nice running morning. 9:34 pace. | |
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| | Heavy downpour this morning. I waited for it to end, but finally decided to hit the treadmill. 9:50 pace. | |
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| | Speedwork on the treadmill.
6 x 800 @ 6:58 pace with 400 recoveries. No problems, and feeling strong.
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| Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 10.00 |
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| | Early morning run, most of it in the dark. Just a touch below freezing, with clear skies and little wind. 8:48 pace.
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| Ghost 13 Blue Sole Miles: 12.00 |
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| | Steady (at times heavy) rain for the entire run, with a stiff North wind to boot. Temperature held steady at 1C/34F throughout. So, cold, wet and challenging. Still, SO much better than on the treadmill. 9:04 pace.
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| | A bit of a setback today. Scheduled for 14, but felt some tightening in my right groin area at around mile 6.5, and by mile 7 there was some slight pain. So, I walked the final mile home. It felt better as I walked. So, I stretched out and foam rolled for a half hour, and then tried to run at a very slow pace. Still tight after a half mile, so I decided taking time off was far better than risking an injury. That's the wisdom of experience - not that long ago, I would have run through it, got injured, and been off running for a couple of weeks or more.
Pretty sure it's the psoas muscle, and likely from tightening up during that cold, wet 24 mile run on Saturday. This was supposed to be one of my peak mileage weeks at 68 miles, but I'm okay taking it all off if I need to. It won't affect my overall training.
I'm scheduled for an easy 6 tomorrow, so I'll see how I feel then.
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| | I decided to err on the side of caution, and took 4 days off running. Today was a short and easy run 'just to see'. A very casual 10:31 pace. There is still some tightness in the right groin area, but no pain. And the tightness did not increase during the run. I'll take tomorrow off, as planned, and then see if I can get back to my regular training starting on Monday.
I had a massage on Tuesday, and I've been stretching the psoas out all week. I'll so some Ultrasound and TENs on it tonight; hopefully things will continue to improve.
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| | Easy 9:55 pace. On the cold side with a stiff North wind. Good news ... No pain or tightness in the groin/psoas. So glad I rested last week. Hopefully, will not see a relapse as I ramp up my mileage. | |
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| | Easy 9:50 pace. No issues. First day of Spring and Winter is back. Fairly heavy snow, driven by a stiff wind. Today is my Conception Day, so I'm now 59 years old. | |
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| | Speedwork on the treadmill. 7 x 800 @ 6:58 pace with 400 recoveries.
2 1/2" of snow fell yesterday. It may not sound like much, but in a winter that didn't see much snow at all, having that much fall on the 1st day of Spring seemed remarkable.
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| Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 10.00 |
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| | Dark and cold morning, so I chose the treadmill. 9:05 pace.
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| Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 10.00 |
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| | I planned on road running today, but woke up to a significant blizzard. Low visibility, with huge, fluffy flakes of snow. One of the nicest snowfalls this year, but I opted for the safety of the treadmill. 9:31 pace.
9 weeks to Sulphur Springs 50 and 24 weeks to Haliburton 100.
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| Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 18.00 |
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| | Back on the road today. On the cool side, but ok for running. 9:17 pace. I may have a fracture in my middle toe on the left foot. It has been hurting for a few weeks, but I really felt it today. Not affecting my running form, so will continue running through it. Hopefully doesn't get any worse. | |
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| | Very easy 9:25 pace.
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| | On the treadmill for today's speed workout.
7 x 800 @ 6:58 pace with 400 recoveries.
Everything feels great.
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| Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 10.00 |
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| | Overcast and cool, at -3C/26F; good for running. 8:57 even pace.
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| Saucony Triumph 18 Miles: 12.00 |
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| | I ran this in 3 loops so I was able to make my home a 'rest stop'. 8 miles for the first loop, then I picked up a flask of Tailwind. By then, it was 'warm' enough for it not to freeze. Then I ran a 10 mile loop, stopping after that to eat a banana and add more Tailwind to my flask. Also ditched the mitts and neck warmer, and put on gloves. The final 6 loops had the sun shining, and I finished with no aches or pains; just heavy legs. Averaged a 9:38 pace, so 9 minutes shy of 4 hours.
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| Triumph 18 Miles: 10.00 | Brooks Ghost 13 Miles: 16.50 | Hoka Bondi Miles: 117.00 | Hoka Bondi 8 Treadmill/outside Miles: 58.00 | Ghost 13 Blue Sole Miles: 12.00 | Saucony Triumph 18 Miles: 12.00 |
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