Well this could be the last time

Around The Bay 30km is coming up in two weeks and I can start to drop my mileage a bit and start my taper.  Training has been going well.  I’ve been doing two main workouts a week with the group and then a shorter speed session.  Last week that short speed session was 3 X 400m hills at the 26km mark (they were actually too slow for real speed).  It was good to run the hill hard and get a feel for how much it’s going slow me down and hence how much money I’m going to need in the bank by 25km.  The 30km is an interesting course and I’m excited to see how it plays out.

Many people can’t believe it’s my first time running the 30km and ask why I haven’t done it yet… Last year I wanted to run a couple of half marathons that were one month apart and I wasn’t going to plop a 30km in between them.  In 2010 I was focusing on a 10,000m on the track (which I never ran due to injury). In 2009 I was just coming back from a broken foot.  In 2007/2008 I was also focusing on a 10,000m in April.  2006 were the Commonwealth Games in March. Any year prior to that I don’t think I would of even humoured the idea of racing over 15km.  Yet as early as 1998 or so I figured that one day I was going to race the 30km after seeing the finish live.

Barring disaster I’ll get to check another race off my bucket list on March 26th.  Here’s a list of some of my bucket list races which I have done, probably won’t do and might do one day.

Race a Golden League – I did that by racing the Brussels Van Damme 10 000m in 2007.

Boston Indoor Games – I ran there twice and in one race checked off something I didn’t care to; a DNF.

Sub 4 mile – I ran 4:00.08 in my first mile race when I was 24 and figured I would do it some day.  I only raced one more outdoor mile (4:01) and my 3:40 1500m just doesn’t sound as cool.  With my focus on the marathon I think the door is closed on this one.

Stockholm DN Galan – Famous track race in a great stadium which I will also probably never do.

Prefontaine Classic – I actually had a spot on the start line last year in the 10 000m and was looking to run under 28:00.  When I found out the pace was set for sub 27:00 I chickened out.

World Cross-Country Champs – Fortunate enough to have raced four of them.

Cross Country race in Europe – Got a couple of these in the past two years.  Definitely cool!

Race in Kenya – I could have done one this year but I didn’t feel like racing in the middle of 200+km training weeks, heck I’m already at a disadvantage being from sea-level.

London marathon, New York City marathon, Boston marathon – Maybe in the next couple of years.

Western States 100 – Not any time soon!

Milne, Winter, Boorsma and myself at the Yonge Street 10km tune-up training run Sunday morning in Toronto.  Much better weather than the last time we all ran together… two days earlier we battled 50km/h winds and blowing snow during mile repeats.