Trot to the Beach 2012

Today, I am walking stiffly, very much like the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz (which we recorded off the TV a few weeks ago, and the kids have been enjoying watching it... though I have wondered, from time to time, whether it's really a good idea to let Mallory see the tornado carrying Dorothy and her house away... she does not need any new ideas in her head.) Yesterday morning was the Trot to the Beach - "From Blenheim to Erieau the Long Way", as the race's tagline says. Chad and I both ran and it was convenient for us (not sure how convenient for Gramma and Grampa) since their summer place is not far from Blenheim, so we were able to drop the kids off to stay with them while we ran, and then they met us at the finish line.

(The course was set such that they were able to watch us at a point with about 1 km to go, and then again at the finish line itself, and there were Liam and Mallory cheerfully waving and sucking on popsicles as I went by at the 20km mark with another km ahead of me, and I did very nearly quit right then and there at the sight of both them, and the popsicles.)

The race was OK. Just OK. I could tell early on in the run that it was not going to be a great run, and it wasn't terrible, either, although the last few km were more painful than I expected them to be. The day did not turn out to be too sunny and the first half of the race was into the wind, but at least it wasn't as windy as it had been the few days prior. My finishing time for the half marathon was 2:05:18 and yes, I wish I'd known I was that close to breaking 2:05, for surely I could have found another 18 seconds out there. The last half marathon I ran was the Chilly Half in Burlington in March 2011, and my time then was 2:10:something, so I did improve. (Of course, there wasn't snow on the ground at this race either, so I figured I would.)

I was actually feeling pretty good about the race, my time, the whole nine yards until I checked the official race results last night, and saw that my 2:05:18 put me at 17/21 for my age group, or bottom 20%. Seriously! When did I fall from being a respectable middle-of-the-packer to such a total back-of-the-packer? This is what really knocked the wind from my sails. Chad broke the two hour barrier so he accomplished his goal. My ultimate goal is to break 2 hours, too, and I am thinking of doing another race in the fall, so maybe I will get one step closer to it then.

For now, though, I am looking forward to spending a little bit less time running. Triathlon season is underway and my first tri is less than two weeks away. In training for the Trot, I feel like I have been neglecting the bike and the swim a little, so it's time to become more well-rounded once again. I am hoping not to fall into the bottom 20% again at Tomatoman. On the bright side, here's a cute picture of all of us at the finish line. (Albeit with a rocking case of 'visor hair'.) If that doesn't bother me too much, then I think I will tick this off as the June entry for Four People Twelve Times. And only three days into the month, too!