Recovery from the marathon has gone well and one week later I feel great.  In fact, by last Friday I felt like going on a run however, I’m going to take my prescribed 10 days off before I get into one week of easy running.  My next big race will be the National Cross-Country Championships in Guelph on November 27th and I’ll likely have one tune-up race beforehand. 

I didn’t nearly eat as much junk food as I thought I would after the marathon.  I was pretty exhausted for the first two days after the race and I was craving healthy food but, I did eat more than my fair share of cookies.  I think I crave junk food much more when I’m burning a ton a calories each day… makes sense.

Looking back over the weather from Friday Sept 24th to Tuesday Sept 28th I feel so lucky to hit that perfect day.  I don’t think I would have changed the temperature at all and I cannot complain about the wind.  A few people mentioned it was breezy on race day but you can’t really expect zero wind.  On Friday before the race Gillis and I did a 7km run along the Lakeshore path in gale force wind.  Gillis asked me what I would plan to run in these conditions and I said sub 2:15 would be tough… and then a gust made us lean into the wind and I thought sub 2:18 would be a good accomplishment.  It was so brutal out there we actually ran with our shirts over our faces when the sand from the beach was blasting us.  We even wondered if geese could even fly in this wind.

My next marathon is planned for April 2011.  I feel I can run faster by at least 45 seconds for a few reasons.  My 2:16 and 2:17 from 2009 taught me a lot however running 2:11 also gave me more confidence.  Looking over my training there are things I can improve on and tweak.  Finally, if I have someone to run with past 22km I know I can stay on pace for longer, hopefully to the finish line.  Of course I’ll need to feel good on race day and have the weather cooperate.

Finishing the marathon:

Post-race interview:

I went on a leisurely hike to get out of the house for some fresh air. 

The taper is upon me and my body is feeling better everyday. The little aches and pains are dissipating and my legs feel more fresh every run.  Tomorrow we will do our last workout before the marathon.  It’s going to be a very short workout (4 times 3 minutes) run a touch faster than race pace.

I like the taper but I miss the hard training as well.  I guess I’m so used to running a lot and running tough workouts that it feels weird training like a pansy.  I trust the taper because I know it has worked well for me in the past but it’s a tough thing to trust.  I have to remind myself that I’m not going to lose fitness running 145km in a week (last week’s total) and running 5 to 15km/day this week.   On Sunday I picked up my pace a few times, not because I was supposed to, it wasn’t in my training plan, but because I’m feeling antsy with this extra energy.  I’ll keep it under control this week.

During this taper (two weeks) I’ve cut out 90% of the junk I normally eat.  In general I eat healthy however, once I have consumed the goods (veggies, fruits, lean meat, whole grains etc) I indulge in the real goods (cookies, frozen yogurt, chocolate).  Plus, when I’m running over 200km in a week there is only so much healthy food I can eat to get in my calories.  In response to my health kick I’ve created a list of things I’ll pig out on next week.  They include, but not limited to, an Olympic crepe, Walker’s cookies, butter tarts and probably a donut from Timmy’s.  In Hamilton we have a special donut, although I’ll pass on that go for the Boston Cream.

Josephat, Karanja and I were in a Tim Horton’s recently and Karanja had to ask me if this particular donut was actually edible.  It depends who you ask.

If you want to follow the race live on the Internet you can go to STWM LIVE PAGE  for a live video broadcast and blog updates.  Speed River Twitter (on the right hand side of my blog) will have some updates as well.  If you’re planning on watching the race in Toronto don’t plan on driving from spot to spot.  From what I hear, with all the closed roads, the traffic is super backed-up.  To see the race at three points with minimal walking you can watch at 4km (Lakeshore Blvd/Bay St) , 20km (Queens Quay/Bay St) and the Finish (Queen St./Bay St). 

At the start of the season I really wanted to race the Commonwealth Games 5000m but as I got deeper into  marathon training I kept getting more excited to have another crack over 42.2km. It doesn’t hurt that in the Athletes Village in Delhi “it has been reported that in some flats labourers had defecated.”

Good article from the Guelph Mercury about Eric and myself gearing up for the upcoming marathon.  It states our time goal in the article although I’d really like to run 30 seconds faster than that.

The Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

“Pick the Champions Contest”

brought to you by Canada Running Series

2010

Athlete Bios and Form Sheet   Vote Now

Voting closes at 7:00am September 26, 2010.

Here are the running bios of all the STWM2010 Starters. Odds are supplied by our expert, Ian Ladbrooke. Ian is an Athlete Coach and Manager, based in Edinburgh. He works with STWM Race Director Alan Brookes to put together the Elite field for Toronto Waterfront — something he also does for a number of other prestigious races around the world including the Delhi and Ras Al Khaimah half marathons and the Mumbai Marathon.

THE DEFENDING CHAMPION:

KEN

Kenneth MUNGARA
Odds: 11-2

Age 37. Kenneth loves Toronto Waterfront! In STWM 2008 he had a thrilling one-second victory in a sprint to the line up Bay Street, in 2:11:01. He followed that up last Fall with a massive PR of 2:08:32, a convincing victory, and the fastest time ever run on Canadian soil. Can Kenneth 3-peat?

THE CONTENDERS:

ETH

Chala LEMI
Odds: 11-2

The 2nd place finisher at STWM 2009 in a PR of 2:08:48 — his first time under 2:09. He’s only 23 years old and one of Ethiopia’s bright young stars. He trains with Coach Haji Adilo’s group in Addis Ababa. Chala vows to return and “do one better” this year!

 

ETH

Teshome GELANA
Odds: 5-1

A 25-year-old teammate of Chala Lemi’s. Teshome ran 2:12:03 in Warsaw last Fall, then had a huge breakthrough to win Houston this January in 2:07:37. The second fastest man on the Start line, and the oddsmakers’ pre-race favourite.

 

KEN

Daniel RONO
Odds: 11-2

Age 32 yrs. STWM’s most-famous alumni returns. Daniel was our Champion in 2:10:15, then placed 2nd in 2007. In ’07 he ran 2:09:35, only to lose in a dramatic finish, to countryman John Kelai, whose 2:09:30 was at that time the fastest marathon ever run in Canada. After that, Daniel went onto record a scintillating 2:06:58 in Rotterdam in Spring 2008, place 3rd in New York in Fall ’08, then 2nd in the illustrious Boston Marathon in Spring ’09. Now he’s coming back to where his big breakthrough began, looking for victory AND a fast time.

 

ETH

Zimbaba YIGEZE
Odds: 11-2

Will be running on his 27th birthday! A man with some speed, and a 27:37 10,000m on the track. He ran 2:09:46 in Reims, France last year, then made a big move to run 2nd to compatriot Teshome Gelana in Houston on January 17th, in a PR of 2:08:27. He followed that up with a 2:08:48 in Paris in April [7th place].

 

KEN

Jafred CHIRCHIR
Odds: 10-1

Made a major improvement this Spring with a 2:09:15 surprise victory in Milan over some talented competition. It was just his 4th marathon, and a big step forward from the 2:10:42 he ran in Vienna in April 2009.

 

ETH

Gashaw Melese ASFAW
Odds: 10-1

Before last year’s race, we wrote this about Gashaw: “The real deal! Won Paris in 2006 in 2:08:03. Was 7th in Beijing Olympic Marathon, and 6th in Boston this Spring. Can Gashaw’s experience guide the pack to a bunch of 2:08 and 2:09 performances?” And he did just that, making a decisive, strong move at 30k, just as the pace was starting to slip. It pushed Kenneth Mungara to a 2:08:32 victory, Chala Lemi to a 2:08:49 second-place, while Gashaw took third in 2:09:23. Since then, he’s won again in Shanghai in November, and placed 6th again in Boston this April. Can this masterful veteran use his guile to lead him to victory this year?

 

KEN

David TARUS
Odds: 10-1

Age 29 yrs. Is he ready to “pop” one? Since placing 4th at STWM2008, David has subsequently gone onto run 2:12:02 in the heat of Mumbai ’09, 61:29 in the Lille Half last year, then a PR of 2:09:24 in Eindhoven last Fall.

 

KEN

Nixon MACHICHIM
Odds: 20-1

Age 26 yrs. A young man on the move, confident and motivated after a strong run in Rome in March — a 2:09:08 for 3rd on a tough course. This was a major step forward after running several smaller marathons in the 2:13 to 2:15 range.

 

KEN

David NJAGI
Odds: 20-1

Another relatively unknown, talented East African, who did a great job of pacemaking Gelana and Yigeze in Houston to 32km in January, then went on to victory at the Valencia Marathon in 2:09:44 the following month.

 

KEN

Denis NDISO
Odds: 25-1

Age 26. Champion in Mumbai in January 2010 [2:12:34]. However, Denis is a talent just waiting to “pop’ a marathon, and maybe the best “Outsider” bet! Has a Half PR of 60:33, and has run under 62 minutes for the half-marathon 6 times. He led the pack through halfway at the Prague Marathon this May in an injudicious 62:33 before fading to 6th in his current PR of 2:10:51…

 

ERI

Beraki ZEREA
Odds: 25-1

The first Eritrean to toe the Start line in Toronto, Beraki ran a 2:11:55 in Frankfurt last October, then improved to a 2:10:06 Hamburg in April, for 3rd place.

 

THE OUTSIDERS:

CAN

Eric GILLIS
Odds: 50-1

Age 30 yrs. Eric is the leader of a new generation of Canadian men’s marathoners – the best we’ve seen in 15 years. Originally from Antigonish, Eric now lives and trains with Guelph’s Speed River TC. He represented Canada in the 10,000m at the Beijing Olympics, then “moved up” for an impressive, controlled 2:13:52 marathon debut at Houston in January; now he’s ready to show the world we can be internationally competitive.

 

CAN

Reid COOLSAET
Odds: 50-1

Age 31 yrs. A Hamilton native and club-mate of Eric Gillis’ at Speed River, Reid ran last year’s Ottawa Marathon on just 6 weeks training to win a place running the World Championship Marathon for Canada in Berlin last August where he ran his 2:16:53 PR. With better times than Eric at every distance except the marathon, Reid hopes they can push each other to both set new PRs and beat the Africans.

 

MEX

Alejandro SUAREZ
Odds: 50-1

Represented Mexico in the 10,000m at the Beijing Olympics. Has 13:18 and 27:43 PRs at 5000m & 10,000m. Currently Mexico’s #1 marathoner, this will be his third crack at the distance, following a 2:13:33 cautious debut at Maraton Lala in 2009, and then a 10th place finish at Boston this April in 2:12:33.

 

KEN

Francis MUENDO
Odds: 50-1

Age 32. Had a strong breakthrough at last year’s STWM, where he ran his 2:12:09 PR to place 5th.

 

JAP

Minoru OKUDA
Odds: 75-1

Age 25 yrs. One of the best young prospects on the HONDA Japan team, Minoru will be making his marathon debut in Toronto. He has an impressive half marathon PR of 62:53 run in Yamaguchi last year, and this Spring ran 64:00 at Sendai Half.

 

CAN

Matt LOISELLE
Odds 100-1

Age 26 yrs. Canadian Half Marathon Champion in both 2009 [64:10] and 2010 [65:07]. A member of the BROOKS Canada Marathon Project, ready to move up and make his mark at full 42km distance, with hopes of London 2012.

 

CAN

Danny KASSAP
Odds: 100-1

Age 28. Now a Canadian citizen, Danny astounded us in 2004 when, as a young, new refugee to Toronto, he beat the field to claim victory at STWM, over the favoured Kenyans, in 2:14:50. As his life and running career were finally surging forward, with a win at Montreal Marathon and a 15th place at London in April 2008, Danny experienced an almost-fatal heart attack at the 5km mark of the Berlin Marathon in September ’08. Now getting back to training with the medical thumbs-up, Danny hopes he can re-discover his former, winning form.

 

KEN

Thomas OMWENGA
Odds: 100-1

Age 30 yrs. Has run 2:12:50 and 2:12:29 the last two autumns in Dublin; the winner of the Vancouver Marathon this May in 2:16:55.

 

ENG

Dave NORMAN
Odds: 250-1

Age 31 yrs. An experienced marathoner, Dave Norman ran his 2:18:34 PR in 2005, and notched a 2:19:05 at this April’s London race.

 

ENG

Steve WAY
Odds 250-1

Age 36 yrs. A huge inspiration to all recreational athletes. A self-proclaimed “fat bloke, bouncing along next to club runners” when he weighed 225 lbs and ran 3:07 at the London Marathon in 2007. This Spring, he ran at a svelt 145 lbs and took 48 minutes off that time with a 2:19:38 PR!

 

ENG

Brian WILDER
Odds 250-1

Age 39 yrs. A relative newcomer to marathoning, he set his PR of 2:24:18 at London in April.

 

PER

Gobin CONDOR
Odds 250-1

Age 32. A veteran on the Peruvian National Marathon Squad, who ran STWM07, but was forced to drop out because of injury. He has a marathon PR of 2:21:01, and most recently placed 9th at the Bogota International Half in 65:59. Bogota is over 2,600m above sea level — and this is always the challenge for Latin American athletes. How will they adjust to performing at sea level?

 

PER

Wladir URETA
Odds 250-1

Age 28. Another member of the Peruvian National Marathon squad looking for international experience at sea-level. STWM2010 will be his marathon debut. He has a Half-marathon PR of 65:22 and ran 66:14, for 10th place at the Bogota Half on August 1st.

Women

Who can run the fastest Women’s time on Canadian soil? [Time to beat, 2:26:01]

THE CONTENDERS:

ETH

Tirfi Beyene TSEGAYE
Odds: 9-2

Only 25, but an top-tier international marathoner. After running 2:28 & 2:29 in Turin and Shanghai last year, she clocked a superb 2:24:51 for 3rd place in Paris this April. She clearly has the speed, as demonstrated by the 69:24 she ran in the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Birmingham last October — a time that earned her 6th place in the world championships event.

 

ETH

Firehiwot DADO
Odds: 9-2

Age 26 yrs. Co-favourite to win this year’s STWM, with fellow Ethiopian Tirfi Beyene. Firehiwot has staked her claim with back-to-back victories in Rome: in 2:27:08 last March, and 2:25:28 this Spring. Also a member of Haji Adilo’s group in Addis, she hopes she and Teshome Gelana can make it a double victory for “Team Haji”.

 

KEN

Sharon CHEROP
Odds: 10-1

Age 26 yrs. Following a major win in Hamburg this Spring in 2:28:38, Sharon is in good form, and gunning for a 2:25. She hopes she can work with fellow-Kenyan Rose Kosgei to break up the dominant Ethiopian pack.

 

ETH

Merima MOHAMMED
Odds: 10-1

Remarkably, only 19 years old, this fine young talent has already won the 2010 Ottawa Marathon in 2:28:19 in May, and represented her country in the 5,000m at the World Junior Track & Field Championships in Moncton in July.

 

ETH

Koren YAL
Odds: 10-1

Age 23 yrs. Following her 2:28:41 second-place finish in Venice last November, Koren went on to notch a strong 70:52 at the Ras Al Khaimah Half in February. Buoyed, she went hard in April’s prestigious Boston Marathon. Injudiciously, she went with Teyba Erkesso, when Erkesso made the decisive break at halfway, running 16:21 between 20k and 25k. Koren paid the price, fading badly in the later stages, finishing 12th in 2:33; Teyba also faded but hung on for victory in 2:26:11. If Koren can run a more sensible pace on Toronto Waterfront, who knows…?

 

RUS

Alevtina IVANOVA
Odds: 25-1

Age 35 yrs. An experienced veteran, with PRs of 31:26 for 10k and 71:08 for the Half marathon; Alevtina has two victories in Nagano where she ran her PR of 2:26:38 in 2008. She was 2nd in Prague this Spring in 2:27:36. She trains with Mikhail Kuznetsov in Cheboksary, the base for almost all the top Russian female marathoners.

 

KEN

Rose KOSGEI
Odds: 25-1

Age 29 yrs. Has chosen STWM’s flat, fast course for her marathon debut. Rose starts as the impressive Prague Half Marathon champion for the past 2 years, running 69:57 this March and 69:03 last Spring.

 

JAP

Maki SUZAWA
Odds: 25-1

A member of Team Japan and star of the Yamada Denki Corporate Team. Maki is also making her marathon debut in Toronto, and hoping for great things. Her Half marathon PR of 70:23 suggests she’ll be in the thick of things, and battling hard for national honours.

 

THE OUTSIDERS

RUS

Albina MAYOROVA
Odds: 50-1

Age 33 yrs. A vastly-experienced marathoner at the highest levels, with a PR of 2:25:35 run in Chicago in 2003. Most recently, Albina placed 10th at Boston this Spring in 2:31:55.

 

JAP

Ayumi NAKAYAMA
Odds: 50-1

Age 25 yrs. Teammate to Maki Suzawa, Ayumi has a marathon PR of 2:28:50 at Osaka in 2008.

 

KEN

Lucy NJERI
Odds: 75-1

Age 32 yrs. Though based in Kenya, and training in Mexico, Lucy has friends in Toronto. Her connection has made her a multi-time winner of the Around the Bay, Harry’s Spring Run Off 8K and Sporting Life Toronto 10K races here. Her marathon PR of 2:34:00 was run in Monterrey in 2007.

 

CAN

Marilyn ARSENAULT
Odds 100-1

Age 42 yrs. A veteran from Victoria, BC, who has really blossomed over the last 18 months. Set a new course record in winning the Royal Victoria Half last October in 1:15:39. Was 3rd woman, 1st Master at Canadian Half Championships in Montreal this April in 1:16:33.

 

CAN

Josiane ABOUNGONO
Odds 100-1

Given her successes at shorter distances which have crowned her Canada Running Series Champion for the past 2 years, Josiane — originally from Gabon and now a Canadian citizen — has been motivated to try the marathon again. Ran 2:51:09 in London, Ontario in 2005.

 

CAN

Katherine MOORE
Odds 100-1

Age 32 yrs. From Vancouver, Katherine ran her PR of 2:47:47 in Victoria last Fall.

 

ENG

Sarah GEE
Odds: 100-1

Age 36 yrs. Having a banner year, having set PRs for every distance from 10K to the marathon – including her 2:38:10 victory in Edinburgh in May.

 

ENG

Julia BRISCOE
Odds: 100-1

Second-place in Edinburgh in 2:41:31 for her marathon debut.

 

ENG

Nicky ARCHER
Odds 100-1

Age 25 yrs. PR 2:42:22 run in London on April 25th this year.

Screen shots from my virtual course tour using Google maps street view:

I didn’t finish the whole tour, it was too tedious.  I’m going to drive/bike the course on Monday to get familiar.

This morning Gillis and I did our last 30km run before the marathon.  We did some pace work and averaged a little faster than marathon pace.  It was really easy to hit 3:04/km today with the cooler temps and a reduced work load. 

This past Tuesday we did mile repeats on our road loop.  They went really well and I actually feel that I’m in decent 10km shape right now.  Before my first two marathons I never felt I was in good 10km shape and I think this will really help me in Toronto in two weeks time.

Rob, Gillis and I finishing up one of our mile repetitions:

I just finished my last week over 200km before the marathon and now it’s time to bring it down a notch.  There is still work to be done and this week will have two key workouts but I’m hoping that I will start to feel fresh instead of consistently tired.  It couldn’t come at a better time because the last two days I’ve felt beat up so I’m hoping an easy day tomorrow will rid me of the kinks.

The weather has been all over the place this past week.  On Wednesday it was over 30C with the humidity by the end of the workout and this morning I was running in full-tights and a long sleeve.  For Wednesday’s workout we didn’t quite hit the pace we wanted to for the last 30 minutes of the 90 minute tempo run.  Given the heat I was quite pleased with the way the workout went because I felt in control the whole way.  I also experimented with a higher intake of carbs/hour and I handled it quite well.  That was the longest workout in terms of quality that I’ve ever done and was a great confidence booster 3.5 weeks out from race day.  I followed that up on Saturday with a relatively easy workout.  It’s funny to think that 40 minutes of work now seems like a short one.

Looking back on my 2009 running log I have been running about 30km more per week than last year before the Berlin World Champs marathon.  I’m hoping that the increased mileage will pay dividends in the final 7km of the marathon.

The race organisers have lined up some pacers for Gillis and I in the hopes of pacing us through 30km.  Having a pacer through 30km would be absolutely wonderful but I have to remember to be flexible and ready for anything. The leaders will likely be paced for 63:30 through the 1/2 marathon which will produce both fast times and casualties.  There are a couple of good Japanese runners and a Mexican that might have similar pace goals as Gillis and myself.  Having a small pack of runners would be very advantageous for us but also unlikely to still be intact when you really need it after 30km.

Now that I’m lowering my mileage it’s time to cut out the Tornados and Jumbo Dogs… I don’t even know what a Tornado is?

The Scotiabank Waterfront Toronto marathon is four weeks from today. 

Despite starting the week off on the stationary bike I had a productive week of running.  I put in some decent mileage and had two solid workouts.  The first workout felt a little tough because I was still recovering from the 1/2 marathon but I felt great for Saturday’s workout.  In both workouts Gillis and I managed to get in a lot of running at or around marathon pace.  Rob “Destroyer” Watson joined us for our mid-week workout, which was nice to have another body in the mix. Wednesday was an easier session as we were doing 5 minute intervals and on Saturday we had a total of 62 minutes of 3:04-3:08 pace with only 6 minutes of rest in the mix.  Thankfully we started early enough to avoid the heat on Saturday and then we followed up the workout with crepes from Olympic Crepes at the Guelph Farmer’s Market.

My shin (anterior tibial tendon) cleared up pretty quickly and I probably could have run on Monday but I decided to play it safe and wait one more day.  Unfortunately last Sunday and Monday we had wet weather, otherwise I would have gone biking outside.  The first day back I wanted to avoid hills and stay on grass so I did all my running around Churchill park.  I felt pretty fresh after the two non-impact days except my quads were tired throughout the week from a few hours of biking (which happens to be a few hours more than any other week).

The dude (Julius Kogo) who beat me in Parkersburg last weekend came back this Saturday to win the Crim 10 miler in Flint, MI.  It always makes me feel a little better when I get beat by someone who is fast.  Kogo also finished 10th this year at the Kenyan Cross-Country championships and 3rd at the Healthy Kidney 10k in NYC this past May.

In a few days we have our last long effort before the marathon (no other single session will be longer than 32km).  This session will have the most volume around marathon pace however once you add in the warm-up and cool-down it probably won’t be our largest total volume in a workout.  It looks like it will be quite hot this week and we’re going to do this workout early in the morning.  After that session there is still plenty of work to be done in the coming weeks including another set of fast miles. 

I can’t believe David Rudisha has already bettered his 1:41:09 800M World Record. 

Here is the Berlin footage.  FAST!

Here is the Rieti footage.  FASTER!

Update:  Race video from local TV station HERE

I raced my first half marathon yesterday in Parkersburg, WV and I have to say that I like the distance.  I ran 63:46 to finish second over the hilly course and I’m already looking forward to running a 1/2 on a fast course.  The temperature started off at 22C (27C with humidex) and it got up to 24.5C  (30C with humidex, 86F for you Yankees) by the time I finished.

There were a ton of Kenyan and Ethiopians on the start line including 5 guys who have PB’s under 63 minutes.  As the gun went off Gillis and I settled into the top 10 and cruised through the first mile in 4:37.  And then we started to climb a looong hill but no one wanted to press the pace so early in the race and it felt easier than the first mile.  I passed three miles in 14:14 and I was right behind Kogo and Reta with a gap to Gillis and a few other guys.  From mile 3 to 4 there is a decent downhill and the two guys put a gap on me even though I covered that mile in 4:22!

Kogo and Reta were working together and I thought that this was going to be a long day at the office until Reta fell off Kogo on an uphill around the 5th mile.  Going into the race I really wanted to beat Alene Reta and once i saw he was vulnerable I focused on catching him.  As I approached him I put in a surge to drop him but he stayed with me.  We went through 10km in 29:27.  He was running the downhills fast and I was pushing the uphills so it was good to work with him for the next 4 miles.  At the 10 mile mark (48:07) I pushed up a hill and dropped him however, by that point Kogo (the leader) was wayyy out of sight.  Once I got to the bottom of the toughest hill on the course (around 11.5 miles) I had a good cushion on Reda and jogged up the hill.  That was my slowest mile (5:18) of the race and the only one over 5 minutes (or maybe there was one just over?).  After the hill I cruised it in fairly comfortably although my left shin started to bother me in the last two miles.

When I run hard downhills my tibialis anterior muscle gets wrecked from the dorsi flexion (I have to remember not to over-stride on downhills!) and then the muscle becomes too messed up to work properly and that puts too much stress on my tibialis anterior tendon.  After the race I wasn’t able to do the cool-down I planned and the injury felt very similar to what I had done to my right tendon a few months ago (couldn’t run for 6 weeks).  This morning my left tendon feels like it should come around in the next day or two.  At this point I will err on the side of caution and hit the bike for a couple of days.  With 5 weeks to go and feeling pretty fit a couple of days on the bike won’t hurt me a bit.

Place   No.   Name                  Age S City               St Co 10kmSplit   Net Time   Time       Pace  

    1     55 Julius Kogo            25 M Chapel Hill        NC US   28:57 1:02:17.81 1:02:08.78  4:45

    2      37 Reid Coolsact        31 M Guelph                CA   29:27 1:03:46.66 1:03:46.78  4:52

    3       1 Alene Reta               28 M                              ET   29:27 1:04:21.09 1:04:20.92  4:55
 
    4      46 Girma Tolla            34 M                             ET   30:01 1:04:31.76 1:04:31.60  4:56

    5      54 Samuel Ndereba         33 M                       KE   30:01 1:04:42.43 1:04:38.54  4:56

    6     36 Eric Gillis                  30 M Guelph                CA   29:57 1:05:48.09 1:05:48.00  5:02

    7     7 Jeffrey Eggleston      25 M Flagstaff          AZ US   30:36 1:06:09.08 1:06:06.39  5:03

    8     27 Benjamin Meto          35 M                       KE   30:43 1:06:17.95 1:06:18.14  5:04

    9     58 Geoffrey Kiprotich     32 M                       KE   31:31 1:06:59.25 1:06:59.44  5:07

   10    59 Daniel Kipoech         24 M                       KE   29:58 1:07:24.80 1:07:25.31  5:09

   11    41 Edward Tabut           27 M                       KE   30:56 1:07:28.39 1:07:26.80  5:09

   12    60 George Towett          26 M                       KE   30:19 1:07:56.41 1:07:56.26  5:11

   13    8 James Boitt            31 M                                 KE   31:29 1:08:05.03 1:08:06.02  5:12

   14   38 Lazarus Nyakeraka      35 M                    MX   31:24 1:08:27.96 1:08:27.82  5:14

   15    32 Luke Watson            30 M State College      PA US   31:56 1:08:41.13 1:08:40.95  5:15

Start ’em young!

There were two Timmy’s in Parkersburg, WV.  They have Banana, and Chocolate Banana Timbits in the States.  Think of Banana Bread in Timbit form, mmmmm.

Can you hear the Banjos?

People will ask me about my upcoming races and when I tell them I’m going to West Virginia for a half marathon the first thing they usually mention is that WV is a hilly state.  Well there must be at least one 21km loop that’s flat,  apparently not:  Course Map and Elevation.

In total the course climbs 79 meters and drops 75 meters.  There are two main hills, from 1.5 miles to 3 miles you climb 100 feet and then from 10 miles to 11 miles you climb 50 feet.  Which really doesn’t seem that bad now that I’ve written it out, the elevation map just looks really steep.  From a couple of people who I’ve talked to that have been to the Parkersburg Half it is a challenging course and is quite slow.

Gillis and I are making the 7+ hour drive tomorrow, racing Saturday and then driving back later that day.  It’s a little further than I’d like to drive at this point but it’s more of a pain to fly.  The race is also very competitive which makes the travel seem worthwhile.  There will be a slew of Kenyans and Ethiopians including Alene Reta who has won the race before and won the Around the Bay Road Race earlier this year.  He also happens to be racing under a different name than the one he used when he was caught for cheating (drugs).

I put in two solid weeks of training where I ran 227 and 212 km and had good workouts (2 x week).  The second week was supposed to be a little higher but my piriformis/glute-med was sore one day so I took the day off, got some ART and the next day it was quite better.  It is still tight from time to time but it seems to be getting better. 

You can either squish or stretch that elevation map to get two different perspectives of the same  race course.  You can also see two different sides of West Virginia in YouTube clips…

Here is a video of the July 17 workout where we did an hour run followed by an hour of tempo and a short cool-down.  We don’t actually start the tempo until Gillis has his shirt off…

It was 25C that day (32C with humidity) and we averaged 3:12 for the hour.  This past weekend we split up the tempo into two 30 minute sections and our average was quite a bit quicker in the much cooler temps.  I’m very pleased with the past week of training as I had two solid workouts and got in 227km (140miles), my highest week ever. 

A great compilation of Olympic Marathons (saw this on Mzungo Blog).