Going Long (again) in 2024

Grimsby Half Marathon and Family Day

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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

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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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to Ukraine's Armed Forces

Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	83.00	Year:	2207.30
Mizuno Wave Sayonara 2 Lifetime Miles:						412.40
Brooks Cascadia 11 Lifetime Miles:						394.00
Salomon Speedcross 4 Lifetime Miles:						356.75
Brooks Launch 8 Lifetime Miles:						153.00
Asics Metaspeed Sky Lifetime Miles:						32.20
Triumph 18 Lifetime Miles:						279.00
Black Hoka Bondi Lifetime Miles:						218.00
Saucony Triumph 19 Treadmill Lifetime Miles:						12.00

Mon, Feb 17, 2014

Race: Grimsby Half Marathon and Family Day (13.1 Miles) 01:45:58, Place overall: 71, Place in age division: 8

Total Distance

13.00

Okay, I decided to re-post this as a race, since it technically was, although I intended to run it only as a regular training run. I was supposed to run 13 miles on Saturday as part of my half marathon training program, but bumped it to Monday to take in this Grimsby (near Niagara Falls) Half Marathon. It's rare to have a race in Ontario on Monday (my day off), and this fell on a Statuatory Holiday - Family Day. So, I made the 5 hour drive to do this.

The race started at 9am. It was COLD. There were about 400 runners in the 3 events - the kid's 3km, the 10km, and the Half. There were 230 runners in the Half. It was very well organized, as part of the Hamilton runner's series of runs. This area takes in a population of several million people (Toronto is less than an hour away), so even a mid-February race draws an enthusiastic crowd of runners and supporters.

Although cold (well below zero), it was sunny. I was glad for my sunglasses. Also for the various layers I wore. I intended to take off my outer jacket as I ran, but ended up finishing in it - very glad also for my big mitts and ear muffs.

I planned on running this at my training pace of 8:36. My average pace ended up being 8:05, so a lot faster than planned. More on that in a bit.

Since for me, this was merely a long run training run, I was relaxed thoughout. I never felt like I was pushing it too hard, and I finished strong and was not winded or even overly tired. Although my pace was a half minute/mile faster than planned, it was comfortable, and my splits were fairly even. They were:

8:14, 7:56, 8:00, 8:06, 8:07, 7:52, 8:06, 8:05, 8:07, 8:08, 8:02, 8:03 and 7:52. So, all within 22 seconds; excluding the 1st mile, all within 16 seconds.

The course was mostly flat, but certainly a lot more hillier than the valley where I train. I made a point of drinking gatoraide at every aid station, mostly as an experiment. I've noticed in all my races that I do not tolerate carbs well. My stomach does somersaults. This was no different. I'm going to experiment with chews or jelly beans, because I have to solve this problem before my marathon in the Fall.

The race was mostly on pavement, with a few sections that were snow and/or ice covered, and one 200 meter portion that was a frozen over horse trail through an apple orchard. No complaints about any of this - I appreciated the opportunity to run outside and to experience race conditions at the same time.

Oh, one more note ... my time of 1:45:58 was done at a relaxed and comfortable pace. I never really felt like I was pushing it. However, just 5 or so years ago, this would have been a PR for me. So, not bad for an old man!

Anyway, that's it in a nutshell, except that after the race, after I showered and changed, I drove the marathon route that I plan to run in November. It was good for me to see this so that I can visualize it during my training. It's not as flat as I had thought, and knowing that will be helpful to me in my training.

Ghost 5 Miles: 13.00

Weight: 163.00

Comments

From Tom K on Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 08:00:38 from 174.58.4.250

A half marathon below 0? Man, you have GOT to change this to a race report! It's great that you could do the whole thing at a comfortable pace. Good race!

From Theotokos on Thu, Feb 20, 2014 at 05:15:21 from 208.96.65.101

Thanks Tom. This entire winter has been unusually cold, so I think most runners took this event in stride. Still, wow! Thanks for the comment.

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