South Ottawa Race Day 5km that starts and finishes on the Carleton Rideau Horse Race Track.
My training during the past couple years has been spotty but I got back into regular training about 4 months ago with some long term goals in my plans. (to be disclosed at a later date
). I've done no speed work, a little bit of hill training but mostly just getting back into a regular routine with the intent of building base until spring of 2015. Running 3 times a week; probably a total of 20-24 km a week maxI wanted to do a 5km race this Fall to give me a benchmark.
The stats:
First...I'm a bit anal about properly measured courses and because this is only the 3rd year of this race I confess that I stalked the results of the top 10 and compared their results to other 5kms they've run this season and last and am fairly comfortable in saying I think this was an accurately measured course.
Chip time: 28:27 (2:21 off my PB but I'm thrilled with this result) 1/2 AG, 54/178 female runners.
The Venue and My Race:
This is the third year for this event and it is a fundraiser for Brain Cancer Research with the money staying locally. The race director is the wife of a neurosurgeon (I got to chat with him after the race). From what I understand the race was started in honour of a woman called Helen who had brain cancer...not sure about these details.
The 5km starts at back end of the track and finishes with runners running back onto the track and about 3/4 quarters of the track to the finish. It's an out and back course where you go by the horse stables (I had one horse look at me with a "wtf" glare
) and onto gravel trail (I have no clue what this trail is). There were no spectators except the volunteers who pointed us in the right direction as we left the stable area...and the one water station at the 2.5 km mark. This didn't bother me at all.I ran by exertion (I have a new Garmin that was purchased as a Christmas gift last year that I haven't taken out of the box yet
). Starting off I almost lost my footing in the loose dirt/sand on the track (a friend who is a horse rider commented to me today that she hope they'd packed down the track a bit so runners weren't running in deep dirt/sand...I'm not sure if they did...I just know that I'm glad I didn't turn my ankle)I must have started off conservatively as I passed people all along to the 3km mark. At the 3km mark I was feeling a bit tired but not discouraged and all of a sudden this person popped into my head...a person I've never met.....robinandamelia's partner who died last year at this time and I found myself saying..."okay George...this race is for you". So that helped me keep up the pace. And it may sound strange but I really did feel I owed it to George to run the best I could.
Coming back onto the track I found it very cambered and soft so I went right down to the part of the track by the railing that was hard packed so I wouldn't chance rolling my ankle. Seeing the finish line so far in advance was a bit daunting and I wondered for a moment if that's how a horse feels too
I finished...delighted with my result and knowing that some of the goals I have for 2015 are likely attainable.
I would do this race again. One of the pluses is that you get to wait inside and just go on to the track when you race is called. For a fall race that's a nice plus. There's also a 10km and a Half Marathon at this event. And a 1km and 2km (I think this is for kids)
