2014 BMO VANCOUVER MARATHON RACE REPORT

Hmmm, the weather didn't QUITE look like this, but it was a true Northwesterners' marathon.

*this post may be updated in the future with more/different photos... working with what I have at the moment to get it up (#)*

Marathon #2 is in the books and I have a shiny new PR. It wasn't the perfect race and I didn't quite enjoy this one like I did Portland, but I cut three and a half minutes off my personal best despite all that. Fair warning, this post might be quite lengthy.

THE DAY(S) BEFORE

Nothing too amazing to report. Got off work Friday and Alejandro met me at the office so we could drive up to his in-law's house in Burlington, Washington. About a four hour drive. Got there in time to watch the fourth quarter of the Blazers game and see Damian Lillard's series clenching three point shot live. Fan-freaking-tastic. They were really nice people and I was able to get around eight hours of sleep Friday night.

Peace Arch at the border of USA and Canada.

We woke up, had breakfast at a really yummy place called the Burlington Café, then headed toward the border. We took the Interstate 5 Peace Arch border crossing into Canada. This was my first time ever crossing the border by car, so that was a unique experience. Took about 45 minutes to get through and after a small grilling by the Canadian border guy we were in the land of kilometers and flashing green stop lights (still trying to figure that one out).

Next we checked into our hotel, the Patricia, which was located in a slightly shady area that the homeless liked to populate. Room was cheap and clean though, so really it wasn't so bad. After walking to Canada Place for the expo, which was well done, we met my parents for dinner. They came up for the weekend to cheer me on and just make a trip out of it. So glad they were there! One safely non-spicy Thai meal later we headed back to the hotel to sleep.

RACE MORNING

We woke up at 6:00am. I was probably asleep by midnight, which meant I got a solid six hours of sleep before the race. Honestly, not bad. I think I only got four for Portland. We ended up taking Bus #3 which went straight down Main Street toward the park. There were other runners on it as well and the anticipation was building. We hopped off at a stop and ate breakfast at Tim Horton's. I've always wanted to go there, because Canadians seem to love it, and it was good. Had a turkey sausage McMuffin type thing with a hashbrown and coffee.

The start of the 2014 BMO Vancouver Marathon!

Next we hopped back on the bus and to the starting line. I thought it was pretty well organized. Unlike Portland, where you had to head into your corral to use the bathroom and do bag check, all those were in a communal area here. Waited ten minutes at most to go pee and the bag check was a breeze. Well done. The corrals weren't really sectioned off, you were just expected to go to your correct spot and most everyone seemed to be in the right spot as I didn't have to weave around anybody.

Overall I wasn't nearly as nervous this time around. At the Portland Marathon I was a bundle of nerves and really just freaking out. I guess I was more confident this time around... I was still a little nervous, but I knew I could do it and was ready to get rolling. After the usual pre-race announcements and national anthem we were ready to go off! The weather was 50 degrees and very cloudy with off and on showers. By the end of the race I was soaked.

FIRST 10K: FEELING GOOD! (~7:40/mile)

This is from later on along the seawall, but
it gives you an idea of the conditions.

Why don't I have splits? Funny you should ask. My watch had the hardest time getting satellite reception. I really should have synced it to my new location the day before to make sure it worked. It was very cloudy, and they were thick, low clouds, but still, I would expect a $250 watch to be able to adjust. The most frustrating part is when I got home and uploaded the workout it was sort of tracking me successfully. From what I could see race day though, it would flash a not very accurate pace every ten seconds or so and overall it wasn't giving me any useful stats. I think it was catching the satellite here and there but nothing continuous.

Anyways, this basically meant I was flying blind. For planning to run a very specific pace the entire training cycle and then not having the ability to know if you were hitting that... not the greatest. But whatever. I did have my pace band and an overall time though, which was my backup. Unfortunately my pace band was in miles and the mile signs were only every five, so it was a pretty shitty way to be up to date on your current pace.

I ran the first 18k with Alejandro knowing he'd be going my pace or just slightly faster. He was talking about taking it easier in the first half so he could attack the second half better so I figured better sticking with him than running blind. I asked him for updates from time to time and they seemed to be coming back around 7:40-7:45/mile. I was planning to run 7:55/mile or so, but I felt good, so I just went with it. Mistake.

The course at this point was as expected. Nice run through large residential streets including a nice downhill before the main hill up the smaller Camosun Street. Later on Alejandro noticed one of those downhill miles was actually in the 7:20s, so yeah, a little fast. We did do the hill at like 8:05 though. There was good crowd support on the hill and it wasn't TOO bad.

SECOND 10K: ALL SYSTEMS GO & FLYING SOLO  (~7:50/mile)

I think I was right behind these guys in Pacific Spirit Park...

After the hill we ran through Pacific Spirit Park and that was very pretty. Was able to get right back on pace after the hill and was still feeling good. My legs felt excellent and it was my lungs that were struggling a little. Perfect way to feel during a marathon though! By the time I crossed the mile 10 mark and checked it against my pace band I realized I had a three minute cushion on a 3:30 marathon pace. This was really the first point I realized I might be going unsustainably fast.

Right before kilometer 13 we had the out and back portion of the race, or as I loudly announced "the OOT and back!" God, Canadians must get so fucking sick of that shit. Sorry guys. Anyways, that was fun as usual. Still with Alejandro at this point. After that we turned right onto 16th Avenue and started running the perimeter of the University of British Columbia.

Pretty campus but it was hard to see much from the road. I lost Alejandro right before the 18th kilometer mark (mile 11) when I pit stopped to use the bathroom. I tried to hold off as long as I could, but I really had to pee. My proper hydration struck again! The stop probably wasn't more than 30 seconds and I could still see Alejandro ahead. I sped up for a second trying to catch him but realized that was stupid as I was already going too fast. I was alone now!

A couple downhill portions on campus that I tried to take advantage off. Once I lost Alejandro I probably slowed a titch, but not much. Maybe averaged 7:45/mile this section but had the thirty second pee break. Legs still felt pretty good and I was eager to hit the half marathon mark and see where I was time wise.

THIRD 10K: ALRIGHT, THIS KIND OF SUCKS NOW (~8:00/mile)

Coming across the Burrard Street Bridge.

Early on in this section I hit the half marathon mark at 1:42:01, which is 7:47/mile. If I were running the pace I planned I should have run a 1:43:45 half marathon. So I was almost two minutes faster than planned. I was on pace for a 3:24 and there was no way in hell I could get a 3:24. Sub 3:30 was going to be hard enough. I tried to slow down a little but I think the damage had been done.

This portion seemed really long. After getting off the campus of UBC we wound around a lot of streets and neighborhoods. Was really looking forward to crossing the bridge because I knew my parents would be at the end of the bridge and I would only have the seawall left to go.

All told I was still feeling pretty good. I was starting to tire a bit though and I knew I might be in for a rough time on the seawall. I just tried not to think about it. Ignorance is bliss. After what seemed like forever we finally hit the bridge. It was a long slog slightly uphill over that bridge. Definitely seemed like a lot more uphill than you got on the backside downhill. It took a little something out of me but I was able to put a pep back in my step because I knew my Mom and Dad would be cheering for me around the corner.

Seeing my parents was a lot of fun. They were stationed around mile 19 and I was still feeling alright when I saw them. Definitely hovering around 8:00/mile in this portion. I was able to run over to the side of the road and give them a high five. Wohoo! Unfortunately, a few blocks later the seawall started and the excitement faded as the race caught up with me. I really started to doubt I could finish without blowing up.

Mile twenty, start of the seawall.

FOURTH 10K: THIS SEAWALL CAN BITE MY SHINY METAL ASS (~9:30/mile)

The seawall is a solid six miles of pedestrian trail along the edge of Stanley Park. Basically zero spectators along this portion, nothing but park and bay. Couldn't see very well due to the weather, which had picked up into a steady rain and wind to make things even more miserable. At mile twenty I was still about two minutes ahead of my 3:30 pace band and I made it a good two miles along the seawall before things started to come apart.

First, the 3:30 pace bunnies passed me around mile 22. That was a big mental downer. I think they may have finished like a minute ahead of pace though because I know my own pace hadn't dropped off that much to eat up two minutes in two miles. I kept them in sight for a while but they slowly faded away. I took an extended walking break through the next water station... no more than fifteen seconds, but it happened.

I tried to make it to the next water station without walking but I just couldn't. The too fast first half was catching up with me hard core. I just was zapped of all energy and my legs were starting to hurt as well. Honestly, I am proud of the way I managed this. I maybe walked for twenty seconds then ground it out to the next water station. Took a nice extended walk through there, then starting running again.

Mile 23.

In all I took maybe like five walk breaks. No more than thirty seconds a piece and some solid minutes of running in between. Let's round up and say I walked for three minutes. I could have ran that distance in a minute and a half. So all told my walking cost me 90 seconds on my time. I will fucking take that. I don't think I could have physically ran the entire thing without passing out or hitting the wall or something.

Now, my running had slowed to probably like 9:00/mile or so, but it was steady and grinding. I wanted to finish so badly. That fucking seawall would not end, as I expected. I questioned paying $150 to do this race, the whole marathon thing in general, running in general, the purpose of life, etc. Okay, not that last one, but still. I was SO RELIEVED when that seawall was done.

FINAL 2.2K: OMG YES! WHO PUT THIS EFFING HILL THERE? (8:00/mile)

So part of this was still along the seawall but by this part you could see downtown and the finish line was definitely near. Right around the end of the seawall there was a sign that said "One Kilometre To Go." There was no way I was walking any more at that point.

The course finally darted downtown. The homestretch was many, many blocks uphill. Not the steepest incline, but certainly nothing to sneeze at. You could see the finish line from like five blocks away, a little blue arch way in the distance. It seemed to take forever to get there, but honestly, I kind of liked this part. I was grinding like no other but I was on a mission now and I knew relief was near.

Finish line fist pump.

Crossing that finish line was an amazing feeling. To know it was finally over was the best part. The second best part was knowing I had set a solid PR. I crossed the start line a mere twenty seconds after the gun went off, so I knew the clock at the finish line was close to accurate. It was 3:33 something when I crossed and I couldn't have been happier. Eff yeah. Regardless of outcome, finishing a marathon is an amazing feeling.

THE AFTERMATH

Well, the chute was interesting. I was in rough shape. I was limping around slowly and having a miserable time. My legs felt even worse than my first marathon. Again, I blame the too fast start for this fun time. After limping around to get food my parents spotted me from the other side of the fence and I limped over to say hi. I couldn't hide the pain I was in. It was terrible. If I was a crier I would have been crying. I wanted to cry, was open to crying, my body just doesn't cry unless someone dies or I watch My Dog Skip.

Eventually I limped around and got my bag check with my coat and sweats. It took every ounce of energy to get those on me. I then needed to sit or lay down, like pronto. So I ended up laying in the middle of the street on my back (luckily they had given me a sheet of plastic for warmth I could lay on). It felt amazing. I laid there for about ten minutes, my parents watching on from the other side of the fence concerned.

I gathered enough strength to get up and finally limp out of the chute and meet my parents in person. A hug and a kiss from each and then, guess what, I needed to rest again, like now. I found some steps and plopped down. I started shaking a lot and apparently I was pale and my lips were semi-purple. My core temperature was coming down and even though I had sweats and a jacket I was still pretty cold in the 50 and drizzle.

Halle-frickin'-lujah

I then suddenly announced I needed to go inside somewhere and get warm, pronto. We were able to find an office building next to the finish that had left their lobby open. Thank you Canada. Inside I was able to sit on the floor and get warm and stop violently shaking, much to my mother's pleasure. My dad went and got me a hot chocolate. By the time I consumed that and sat in the warmth for twenty minutes I was back to normal. Not dying today, thank you very much!

Originally Alejandro and I planned to walk back to the hotel but there was no way in hell that was going to happen, so after saying goodbye to my parents (so glad they were there!) we were able to catch a taxi back to the hotel. Best $8.40 CAD ever. Naps ensued.

Anyways, I'll have another post with more reflections but I'll end this now before it gets even longer. Overall I am super happy with my result. It wasn't quite what I hoped, my watch not working really screwed things up, but despite that I got a three minute PR and left it all out there.

Official Chip Time: 3:33:16, 8:08/mile. 554/4933 overall, 455/2817 male, 83/367 M25-29.