Yesterday was the 3rd day of 2011 that I did not post. And no, it was not because I was watching the Oscars. Although I’ll jump on that theme and mention that movies were something of a topic on the Saturday run. The DVD of my favourite movie Ugetsu Monogatari by Kenji Mizoguchi is now making the rounds of our group albeit slowly. And next week, I’ll hand off another favourite, Johnny Guitar a Nicholas Ray film, beloved by Truffaut and Almodavor to name a few. If you love film, you owe it to yourself to click on my links to information about these two classics.
Mainly the absence of a post was due to a thematic vacuum. Jumping off from a point I made in my last post about how lovely those long straightaway marathon finishes are I’m going to assign a 5 star rating system to final mile of some of the marathons I’ve run.
I like the finish on Ford Field of the Detroit Marathon and the separate finish for men and women and the California International Marathon but nothing beats the final mile of Boston with the final turn onto Boylston Street, a slight downhill grade and the stupendous crowd support with the finish line in sight. Check out the this footage of the turn on to Boylston.
And this exciting footage of Dire Tune and Alevtina Biktimirova battling it out in the 2008 Boston Marathon. I’ll be there in 14 months and counting!
A blogger in eastern Canada was wondering whether the downhills at the Mississauga Marathon are of the quad-pounding variety. I’ve run Mississauga twice, in 2004 (3:14) and 2005 (3:12) and found that the downhills are very evenly spread over the first half of the course. So no, this course does not beat up your quads.
I feel a time run on this course gives you a 2-3 minute advantage over a flat course even with the section of rolling hills which comes in the last 10K, along with a somewhat winding lakefront path. In 2004 & 2005, the path was crowded with back-of-the-pack finishers in the half-marathon although that may only affect runners finishing under 3 hours and 30 minutes. In 2003, the inaugural year I ran the 10K in 39:39 a time which I am very proud of as the 10K is run on the slowest section of the marathon course. In its entirety, the route is not especially scenic but it is fast and is a great community event infused with a positive spirit.
Two noteworthy individuals associated with the event areMayor Hazel McCallionand Olympic marathon runners, Peter Fonsecanow MPP for Mississauga-East, Cooksville.
TheGoodlife Toronto Marathonwhich will be on the same day as Mississauga this year, is also a net downhill course, but some of the downhills, like the Rosedale Valley Road section, are steep enough to beat you up, and after that downhill you face a stretch on one of the bleakest roads in Toronto, the southern section of the Bayview extension. A drawback of the finish, is that it is a very long and gradual uphill going north on University Avenue, with intersections often punctuated by by angry motorists. I’ve often joked that the racers should wear t-shirts that read, Saving You Health Tax dollars! to appease these impatient citizens.
To finish you must run three-quarters of the way around Queen’s Park Circle, which means you only see the finish line when you are about 150 meters away. Nothing beats a long straightaway to the finish line of a marathon, such as turning the corner onto Boylston Street with 800 meters to go in the Boston marathon. I can feel myself getting a little teary as I remember and write about the sensation of seeing the finish line banner of the Boston Marathon.
In the battle of the Toronto fall marathons, Mississauga was most certainly the loser. Said Mississauga Mayor, now 90 year old, Hazel McCallion “That’s what you call co-operation.” in reference to the Goodlife Toronto Marathon being moved from the fall to the same day as the Mississauga Marathon, and as an indicator of the general process of coordination and cooperation between Toronto and Mississauga.
As a runner looking to run a spring marathon, I have not yet ruled out Mississauga. However The Goodlife Toronto Marathon does not appear on my long list as the distribution of the downhills, makes it difficult to capitalize, time wise on the net downhill factor. I ran the fall version of this marathon in 1996 when the course had fewer uphills and path running than it does now, so it is unlikely that I would give this newer version a try. I do like the Toronto Marathon, 5K course run the same day as the marathon as it has only one turn.
For fast times, the Missisauga Marathon & half-marathon are my picks for running in the Greater Toronto Area the weekend of May 15, 2011.
I really miss the fact that my husband cannot do longer runs with me when we travel. He has had a wonky knee for the past 3 years and last week got the results of his MRI, a torn meniscus. I told someone recently that I’ve found it hard to recover from my husband’s knee injury. It was a lot easier to bound out of bed for the long run when he was doing the same.
All kidding aside, it is very difficult for someone who has run nearly every day for nearly four decades to be barely running at all. He is waiting for his appointment with a knee surgeon. Sigh . . .
I started this blog to document my return to marathon training after a break of almost three years. My goal was to qualify for this years Boston Marathon. To qualify, my plan was to run MY qualifying time at the California International Marathon, last December which I did successfully. BUT WHOA . . . the Boston Marathon sold out in 8 hours and 3 minutes, on October 18th, 2010, the first day of registration. So much for the plan. A big rethink was in the works for the marathon and word was that the new plan would be unveiled in early January. Finally on February 16th, the new plan was revealed with this headline.
B.A.A. to Offer Fastest Qualified Runners Early Acceptance into 2012 Boston Marathon With New Registration Process
BOSTON – The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) announced today a change in its registration process for the Boston Marathon, allowing the fastest qualifiers to enter the earliest and with a rolling admission system while also offering all eligible runners an increased registration period. The changes in registration are a response by the B.A.A. to greater than ever demand by runners to gain entry into the Boston Marathon and culminate more than three months of analysis, including input from the running industry. Rather than accepting runners who have met the qualifying standards on a first come, first served approach, a more systematic, performance-based process will be employed.READ MORE
Personally, I’m satisfied with the new process of staggered registration dates, with those exceeding the qualifying standards in larger increments given the opportunity to register first. Since I exceeded the qualifying time for my age-group of 4 hours and 15 minutes by 33 minutes with my December time of 3:42. I can register on day one and day two (all those who have surpassed the standard by at least 20 minutes) and rest assured that I won’t lose an online registration race.
More from the B.A.A.
“Those who qualify by the greatest amount of time to have the longest period to enter,” said Tom Grilk, B.A.A. Executive Director. “Our new registration process takes into consideration the many comments we received from runners this past fall and winter, most of whom urged the B.A.A. to institute a system which recognizes athletic performance above all else.”
As for the 2013 race, qualifying times will be tightened by 5 minutes. I’m disappointed to miss the 2011 race but it is probably for the best, given that my big focus for the spring is the Gala. And speaking of the Gala, some late-breaking news . . . Peter Fonseca MPP and former Olympic marathoner has agreed to be an honourary Patron for the Gala, along with his wife Christina who recently was elected to the Mississauga City Council.
I have known Peter for a number years as a generous contributor to community events that I organized including a “Breakfast of Champions” that I held as coach of school cross-country team. Peter a 2:12 marathoner, used to do live commentary of the Boston Marathon and placed 17th as top Canadian in the 1996 Olympics.
Boston Marathon 2007 – Louise Voghel, 1st place age-grouper & Canadian marathon record holder (left) and me proud to be third.
Sunday is when I tally up my total miles run for the week. When building towards a marathon, I take easy weeks on average, every three weeks. My total for this week is 40 miles. Prior to this I had run 52, 60 and 60 mile weeks. After taking an easy week, in addition to the physical break to rebuild, I find I am mentally recharged as while I look forward to the break, it doesn’t take much easing off before I begin to feel like a slacker.
Here are some of the things I did or did not do that lead to feeling this way.
Missed a weight work session
Missed a tempo run session
Ran 2 miles on a day I had planned to run 5 miles
Ran 10 miles instead of 12 miles on Saturday
Doubled my typical caloric intake for one day with three large meals while visiting Ottawa
SO that is the point of the easy week, paradoxical though it may be, easing off and experiencing a bit of remorse for not having made more spartan choices, makes me look forward to the next round of training . Ultimately, I love the results of being a super-fit, 55 year old and after one week of relative ease I am chomping at the bit to “get with the program”.
Skipping the tempo run and weight workout had a lot to do with being in a rush to visit the National Art Gallery which was a 10 minute walk from the hotel. I had a thoroughly relaxing time there and visited a number of shows, includingIt Is What It Is: Recent Acquisitions of New Canadian Art
One of the most memorable pieces was a very large pencil crayon drawing by Cape Dorset artist Shuvinai Ashoona. I’m happy to know that the National Art Gallery (NAG) has purchased that drawing for their permanent collection. I was unable to find a photo of the drawing in question but did find this example of Ashoona’s work.
The gallery has recently bought and installed a stunning sculpture, One Hundred Foot Line by Roxy Paine. I stepped out onto a terrace with a “Beware of Falling Ice” warning to take the photo below. And did I mention that I set off an alarm when I tried to step out to take another photo.
New Installation-Sculpture
In case you wonder what I consider overeating, my big day started with a large portion of eggs benedict with home fries and croissant at 7 a.m. followed by a lunch at the National Art Gallery of soup and a sandwich, then a three-course dinner with two glasses of Proseco ending with a fancy apple cake dessert.
National Art Gallery Cafeteria Lunch
Some may laugh at what I consider excess however the work of the easy week is done. I’m eager to run 60-65 miles this week, skip desserts and opt for less rich food, that is, until the next easy week.
I had planned to tie in my afternoon as a tourist in Ottawa with the Ottawa marathonrace route. However we are making a mad dash out to Scarborough this afternoon to check into a hotel, using Aeroplan points, close to the location of a Valentine’s dinner we are attending. The dinner is hosted by the marriage enrichment group that we are a part of. Last year we attended with my parents, as they attended a retreat organized by this same group, a few decades ago. Perhaps “the boys” will have a party in our absence. The boys being our son who is home most weekends, and his friend, Alain who lives with us 24/7.
I have run the Ottawa marathon four times. It is tied with the Boston marathon for repeat outings.My first running of this marathon was in 1982 and I was wearing a t-shirt that read, No Nukes are Good Nukes. Those were the days. Here are my Ottawa marathon times.
# Ottawa Marathon, May 1982 — 3:37
# Ottawa Marathon, May 2002 — 3:07:02 (personal best, age 46)
# Ottawa Marathon, May 2003 — 3:11
# Ottawa Marathon, May 2004 –3:10
Speaking at Ottawa Marathon Race Expo
In 2005 I was a co-presenter at the Ottawa marathon race expo with Steve Boyd. Steve holds umpteen Canadian masters records and also has a doctorate, I think it is in the history of political thought from Queen’s University. Shortly after, I wrote an article on Steve Boyd which is somewhere on the hard drive of an old computer. I hope to retrieve this one day (so many things to do, so little time) and post it on my blog. I’ve added some award-ceremony photos and a bit about Steve Boyd to my post on Dylan Wykes the winner of the California International Marathon, as Steve is Dylan Wyke’s mentor-coach.
A young American woman, 22 years old is training for her first marathon in Italy. She is using a plan which is very similar to what both my husband and I used to run our first marathons. You can find the 16 week plan at Rookie Marathon Training Plan
My husband started running in his early twenties and ran his first marathon a few years later, using a Runner’s World, Three-Months to a Marathon plan. I was in my mid-twenties and had been running a few weeks, when I decided to train for a marathon using the same plan which Runner’s World recycles yearly. So I feel some nostalgia in reading about this woman’s ambition to run a marathon when she returns to the U.S. She is calling it the SkinnyItaly Project. Go, go, young one, you CAN do it. YES, you can.
I’m going to be MADE. Into a Marathoner. My coach will be my own stubbornness and muscle tension from my daily lifestyle in Italy. Running a marathon has been on my BUCKET LIST (aka life goals), along with building orphanages in Uganda.
You can check out the full story of the SkinnyItaly project HERE.
I’m inspired by the marvelous energy and enthusiasm of the young. It is easy as one ages to view youth as a phase we passed through and thought better of it. I like to think that we can distill the essence of youth and reinvent ourselves as youth-full in spirit as we age, or at the very least, appreciate it vicariously. Although, like George Sheehan I’ve often thought that running has been, and still is my fountain of youth. Vigour is definitely a good foundation for optimism.
Dostoevsky said that “The second half of a man’s life is made up of nothing but the habits he has acquired during the first half.” However sobering this gloomy outlook may be, know truly that it is never too late to start exercising regularly, or too early.
Snow, snow, snow . . . will this storm materialize as predicted? I thought this might be a good time to list the different indoor venues where I have done long runs when poor conditions prevailed. In days of yore, treadmills were not available at fitness facilities, so most runners slogged it out on the roads. I’ve always been finicky about poor footing due to chronic ankle troubles stemming from having severely sprained my ankle at age 13 on a trampoline. Consequently, I’m usually the first to head indoors to find relief from slipping and sliding outdoors.
I once ran 18 miles on this track, a total of 4955.5 laps in the early-eighties. David Suzuki used to be a regular on this teeny track.
Former Central YMCA on College Street
The West End YMCA
15.5 laps to the mile.
I ran a full marathon, 26.2 miles here in the mid-eighties, a total of 380 laps.
Hart House Track at the University of Toronto
About 11.3 laps to the mile
I’ve run 12 miles on this track. Although it is bigger than the old Central YMCA track the banking is horrible and I would not recommend doing a long run here.
The Athletic Centre at the University of Toronto
8 laps to the mile
About 6-7 years ago I ran 23 miles on the outside track and ran by time rather than counting laps. Who says we don’t get smarter with age.
The York University Track
8 laps to the mile
I’ve run a number of track races on the indoor track, which has excellent banking and run on the outer warm-up track before and after workouts or races. I’ve never done a long run there but I imagine it would be fairly entertaining with all the high-performance activity on the inside track. My husband and I used to see the infamous Ben Johnson work out on the sprint lanes.
The Eaton Centre
One New Years Day in the eighties I ran a few miles here, having started outside during a snowstorm, I ducked inside and logged some miles in the mall.
Treadmill
The most miles I’ve run on a treadmill is 18 miles which I did a few years back.
If you think this sounds crazy consider this, legendary marathoner Emil Zapotek’ssolution to training in harsh weather. Zapotek would fill his bathtub with water and then his laundry and run in place for hours. Zapotek is remembered for winning triple gold in the 5K, 10K and marathon at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
I’ve finally gotten round to writing an ABOUT tab for this blog. Here it is.
Detroit, Ford Field Finish
The choice to return to very active life I experienced while growing up, has brought many good things into my life. This journey began with a few runs, while still a smoker, fitness classes at the YMCA which led to quitting smoking, cold turkey. With all the excess energy of being more fit and tobacco-free I began to run regularly, first a mile and then a few months later, a marathon in 4 hours and 11 minutes. Recently, I celebrated 30 years of running for fitness, friendship with my 20th marathon, surpassing the Boston qualifying standard by 33 minutes. One of the good things was meeting my husband over 25 years ago when he introduced himself in a YMCA cafeteria after the 1985 Peterborough Half-Marathon. He remains, my favourite running partner. We have a 23 year old son, 17 nieces and nephews and 4 grandnephews and grandnieces.
Highlights of my racing career came later in life; 1st place finish in the 50-54 category at the Chicago Marathon, 3rd place (50-54) at the Boston marathon and a time of 3 hours & 10 minutes at the Detroit Marathon, run at age 50. I like to refer (or brag) of having qualified for the Boston Marathon in the Open Men’s category at age 50. This time also qualified as an Ontario 50-54 age group record for the marathon. The time I am most proud of from my younger days is having run my 4th half-marathon in 1 hour & 23 minute after less than 3 years of running and with low-mileage training due to chronic ankle injuries.
Over the years I have learned that advising people about how to train is tricky business AND that there is no formula. We are, as George Sheehan put it, “An experiment of one.” I’ve run while pregnant, run good times on low mileage, run great times on high mileage and run purely for fitness for the first 9 years of my son’s life, returning with a vengeance by logging more than 100 miles a week at times, with high-intensity workouts thrown into the mix.
Along the way, I’ve had to learn and abide by the “laws of the body”, George Sheehan again. I hope that providing some insight into how running fits into my daily routine might encourage you to commit to habits that will enhance your quality of life. I find the benefits to be as much (if not a little more) about mental well-being as physical.
There is an abundance of information available on fitness and training for the motivated and curious, and it is not my goal to spend a lot of time on the details of which others have expertly written. I would caution however that discernment is required as there are obvious paralells between “getting fit quick” and “getting rich quick”. I hope my observations about what has worked for me, while running close to 60,000 miles or more in my lifetime, might arouse your curiosity and point you in the direction of finding out what routines work for you, be it running or your heart thumpingactivity of choice.
As for all the non-running chit chat, I think of it as my side of a conversation, were we to share each others company while on a run — that being the most companionable of spaces. Consider this your invitation to comment and question.
Today I lunched with a friend who is helping my husband and I organize a gala for a sponsorship program for AIDS-HIV orphans in Ethiopia. The program is supported mainly by volunteers, here in Canada is run by People to People Aid Organization, Canada Inc. . Thus I thought it would be timely to profile one of Ethiopia’s finest runners, Fatuma Roba who was the mother of five children when she won the Olympic gold medal.
Born in 1973 and raised in the village of Cokeji in Ethiopia’s mountainous southern region—also home to internationally known 10K champion Derartu Tulu—Roba was one of seven children born to a farming couple who raised and herded cattle. Like most children growing up in rural Africa, if she wanted to go somewhere, the quickest way to get there was to run. The daily run to and from her school—much of it going up and down hills—trained the young Roba in the art of sprinting. As a child her hero was 1960 and 1964 Olympic marathon champion Abebe Bikila, a fellow Ethiopian. After completing school, the five-foot-five-inch Roba decided to train to become a police officer after her performance at a national cross-country championship caught the attention of members of the Adis Ababa prison police athletic team.
Fatuma Roba, Fluid Grace
Roba first gained an international profile in 1990 when at age 18 she placed fourth in the 3,000 meter and 10K competition during the African Championships. Three years later she decided to attempt the 26.2-mile marathon distance in her home town of Addis Ababa, and had reached a personal best time of 2 hours 35 minutes 25 seconds by 1995. Roba continued to reduce her marathon time throughout the spring of 1996, helped along by the coaching of Yilma Berta. To train to excel at the 26.2-mile marathon distance, the 22-year-old Roba logged an average of 125 miles a week, most of it at high altitude, thereby forcing her body to use its resources of oxygen efficiently. She ran and won two marathons early in 1996, the first in January at Marakech and the second in Rome, Italy, two months later.
When Roba joined the field of the 1996 Olympic women’s marathon in Atlanta, Georgia, in July of 1996, she was ranked only 29th among the elite women athletes assembled there. Surprising almost all onlookers of that years’ Summer Games, she managed consistent five-minute miles, gained the lead by mile 13, and left behind Japanese runner Yuko Arimori, who had won the silver at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. At mile 19 timers clocked her race pace at 5:21; relaxed and alert, Roba waved as she passed, the crowds cheering on the first woman in the pack. She went on to cross the line in 2:26:05, her lead a remarkable two minutes. “This is not only a special thing for me but also for my country and all African women,” Roba was quoted as commenting by Amanda Mays in the Philadelphia Inquirer. “The Ethiopian women are coming up in the marathon. This was the breakthrough and now we are ready to challenge the others.”
Roba’s success in Atlanta was balanced by an equally notable performance in 1997 at the 101st Boston Marathon. She gained and held an easy lead by mile 20 to win in 2:26:23. The first African woman ever to win the historic Boston race, Roba bested an elite field that included defending champion Uta Pippig, Japan’s Junko Asari, and South African runners Colleen de Reuck and Elana Meyer. “She ran with the same smooth stride and placid, dispassionate look on her face that she carried through the Olympic race,” reported Runnersworld.com. “Race commentator (and fellow Olympic marathon champion) Frank Shorter called her ‘The most relaxed-looking runner I have ever seen.'” Roba’s performance at the World Championship Marathon held in Athens, Greece, the following fall was a disappointment when she was forced to leave the course after being injured.
One for Ethiopia!
In 1999 the 25-year-old Roba took her third straight win at Boston, her time a personal best of 2:23:25 that set a new women’s overall course record. She won the silver at the Tokyo Marathon with a time of 2:27:05, but at the World Championships in Seville, Spain she finished a disappointing fourth. Roba’s winning streak at Boston ended in 2000, when she fell to third, barely losing the Boston gold to Kenyan runner Catherine Ndereba in one of the closest finishes in Boston Marathon history. Like Seville, the summer heat in Sydney, Australia proved hot enough to stall Roba, who finished a disappointing ninth at September 2000’s Sydney Olympics with a time of 2:27:38.
Like her hero Abebe Bikila, Roba has become a role model for African runners, women runners in particular. Her own younger sister, Sennaito Tekru, has followed in her path, and has embarked on a course as a competitive marathon runner. With her grace and seemingly effortless performances, Roba has broken the barrier for African women with her triumphs at both the Olympic Games and the Boston Marathon. Despite her disappointment in Sydney, she has continued to rank among elite women marathoners, handily winning the San Diego Marathon in 2001 with a time of 2:27:22.
Mind, Motion & Matter 