Before the Race
Friday I went to the expo to pick up my race kit. STWM has a virtual goodie bag so the physical bad itself did not contain a lot – mainly the race shirt, bib, and these Sweet Thins cookie things (that are starting to grow on me!). Pick up was pretty easy, I went around 6:00pm and there was no line – plus they organized it very well so that there would be plenty of room if there was a line to avoid bottleneck.
First you get your bib then your shirt with the bag before getting you chip tested. Look, there’s my number!
Easy peasy!
The expo had a lot to offer (compared to the Goodlife expo) in terms of booths. To list a few, there was a Running Room boot, Garmin booth, Saucony booth, Polar booth, Mizuno booth, and of course a Black Toe Running booth, and more! You could say that my credit card was starting to get nervous! But unfortunately for me (and lucky for my credit card) I did not have enough time to hit up all the booth (Sorry Krysten! I was so looking forward to meeting you at the Polar booth!) however I did have time to finally meet Michelle! She was working the Mizuno both and of course I ended up with a new winter top (because breathe thermo is kind of really cool! Can I get more?!)
I also swung by the Black Toe Running booth and got an awesome shirt. Say hi to Mike guys! :)
And of course… the Brooks x Running Free booth got a lot of loving. I totally regret not getting these super adorable ear warmer ): I also saw Kate Van Buskirk and squealed a wee bit right before paying haha. I also saw Sarah who helped me pick out a race souvenir shirt!
All in all, I quite enjoyed the expo despite not being able to check everything out! Here’s what I ended up leaving the expo with.
Day of the Race
My obligatory pre-race picture of my outfit! A Black Toe Running singlet, Nike sports bra and arm warmers, New Balance shorts, Brooks Running socks, Sunskis sunglasses, and ClifBar ShotBlocks!
So you know how they say “don’t do anything new on race day?” Well my roommates ordered pizza and woke me up at 1 am for a slice. Yes, we live like teenage boys without parental supervision. And since that’s just how things worked around her, I of course couldn’t just have one slice… so after two slices, I went back to sleep. Yes, you read that right. Sleep -> pizza -> sleep -> race! Crazy? Maybe. Normal? Yep!
I ended up waking up around 6am, wandered the house a bit, ate some almonds and bread, then got dressed and left. Parking wasn’t bad as we went with underground parking and we slowly made out way over to the start line.
We met up with some Black Toe teammates and went to the port-a-potties before anxiously making our way over to our corrals. These two pictures were taken by Jess of our teammate Cynthia who was freaking amazing and cheered us on/raced despite smashing Chicago right beforehand!
And there’s me in the corrals repping Black Toe! :)
and lucky for me, my friend Sherman (who guest blogged here) decided to pace me because I was terrified of attempting a 1:59.
The weather was a bit chilly but it wasn’t cold. It was almost perfect!
Race
Okay, prepare for my unfiltered thoughts throughout my splits
5:43
Feeling good! Look it’s me! Can you spot me?!
5:32
Okay, I’m good. I’ve got this. Feeling pretty good!
5:34
LOL SHERMAN IS TEXTING. TEXTING AND STILL ON PACE. WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?
5:28
LOOK it’s KATE! And Seq (Her gorgeous bernese mountain dog)
OMG who called my name? OMG it’s babe! HI BABE. I love you! He usually never shows up during a race minus the start and finish line haha so this was a HUGE surprise! (he ends up rotating the phone after a bit. I’m around the end! Tell me if you spot me!)
5:28
So man, there’s so many people! Overwhelmed!
OH HEY IT’S CAPTAIN KERRY. Hi!
5:26
Omg Black Toe! I love you guys so much. One of my teammates (Mridu) highfived me which led to a chain of highfives and omg I’ve never been happier! I was honestly about to cry afterwards – the love and support Black Toe gave was just so loving! I can’t even describe it. They were so loud and supportive, I love them! <3
5:34
YES DOWNHILL – kind of.
HEATHER! HI! Tribe Fitness you are amazing! I always love seeing you guys at races! Lots of cheering and photos!
5:46
Man my hips are tight.
Why are my hips not loosening. Ugh my core is cold, why isn’t it warming up?
5:43
Oh look at the elites go! We are so Canadian haha. All of us are cheering for them! Go elites go!
5:39
OH IT’S BLACK TOE RUNNERS! HI! GO AVERY GO. KYLEEEEE GO KYLE. (how I had so much energy to cheer them on I do not know but I was just so happy seeing them) Oh hey maybe I can see Mike. Matt just ran by and he’s gunning for 1:30 so Mike has to be near by. Whoa is that Ryan? HEY INSTAGRAM BUDDY
5:42
Argh I’m hurting. This all hurts. My hips!
5:48
My stomach is cold ): Sherman is leaving me to go pee. Okay we will meet back up at the 13k mark. That’s right, Sherman’s actual pace is fast enough that he can go to the bathroom after leaving me, pee, and catch up without it being difficult for him. Damnit Sherman!
5:54
Sherman I’m so tired. Sherman don’t leave me. Oh my god this is a hill.
5:56
I HATE HILLS. And as I was whining about the hill internally, Jess came up behind me…and past me! She is on point with hitting her marathon goal.
5:52
My hipssssssssssss. Why am I hurting so much. My legs do not want to keep moving
5:48
I’m dying. dying. dying.
5:43
Who called my name? CLARE. HI. OMG. I’m so happy to see you! Since I’m practically dying, seeing Clare made me so happy! I have someone cheering for me! Woo <3 Thanks for the awesome pic!
5:38
I’m going to cry a little now. I’m so tired!
5:40
I hear my name! Oh my goodness. Wing! Wing you got this! She looks so strong and I cannot believe this is only the half way mark for her! She’s got this in the bag
5:45
I think I’m going to cry. Oh my goodness, I’m I want die! But hey, it feels shorter than last year! Sherman’s chatting really helped. I needed this
6:35
I’m so close! SO CLOSE! THERE’S THE 500m MARK! YES YES YES OMG POTHOLE. Crap. Of course I stepped into a pothole with my bad side. Everything hurts twice as much now. Oh my god. SHERMAN HELP ME. Sherman’s response? You see that girl there? CHASE HER. I of course could barely chase her now with a bad hip but damn I am going to try. I could literally SEE the finish line. Then Carla, who paces with me during interval training was there! Cheering! Of course walking was out of the question. So I got my ass in gear, and went for it. Praying that I wouldn’t die. There may be some sad whimpering noises coming out of me for 500m but there’s the finish line.
0:35 – 234m
I’M DONE. I’M DONE. I’M DONE.
Whew! That was one hard hard. At the beginning I was in the mindset of “this is just a long run. Don’t worry. Breathe.” I knew that if my groin strain was to act up, I’d drop to 6:00 min/k and treat it as a long run. However, in the back of my mind, I was dying to run a sub 2. I’ve honestly never wanted anything so badly before. Sub 2. Sub 2. Sub 2!
Sherman, my pace bunny, was amazing. He talked me through the whole way which made the race seem so much shorter than last year (and there seemed to be more spectators too which really helped!). He kept me calm and led me to a speedy start to help make up for the hills and head wind that he knew would be ahead of us.
I was so happy seeing so many familiar faces on the course and it really made my day and the cheering from the crowd was crazy! And I totally fan girled when I saw Lanni Marchant and Mindy Flemming run by because hello? speedy Canadians ladies?
Throughout most of the race, my hips were being freakishly tight and my core was strangely cold, nothing I’ve ever experienced but I kept pushing through hoping that it’d go away (shocker: it didn’t). It was a painful race for me and unluckily for me, I went into a pothole in the last 500m mark which tweaked my right hip some more so sprinting the end was completely off the table. I ended up PR-ing with 2:00:58 which was 6:02 faster than I did last year so despite not hitting my goal, I’m pretty happy with what I ran.
After the Race
When I was done, I could barely move. I was walking as slow as a snail and I use the word walking loosely. I was dragging my right leg behind me and I just wanted to sit down. The bottle neck after the finish line was once again present but it was not as bad as last year so I’m pretty happy with that. I saw my running buddy of 4-5 years at the finish area as he was a volunteer and I was over the moon! He hugged me and I cried and kept going “I did it! I finished!” I was about to be an emotional mess.
I was holding back from whimpers and as I made my way though the crowd slowly towards Nathan Phillip Square, I saw my boyfriend right before the turn for the food station and I literally went over to collapse on him and cry some more. He asked me if I wanted to go to the food station and I said no. The guy beside him jokingly said that I had to as part of the race experience and at this point I was delirious and crying so of course I went “I don’t want their stupid food! :'( I don’t want it!!” insert an ugly cry snort/hiccup “I don’t want a bagel!!!!!” Sorry sir, I don’t mean it to be rude but at this point I was so physically done at this point, I just didn’t want to line up for a bagel and banana. As you can see, I was probably crazy at this point and my boyfriend had to carry me over to a wall so I could try and stretch out my hips. I, of course, cried some more at the wall about how I was so happy I finished and that I Pr-ed and that “I DID IT!” I have never cried so much in my life at a race so I have no idea what in the world came over me.
Then… in my most unladylike/runner-like moment, I flattly stated to him “I think I have to poop.” He laughed and that’s when he took me home (via dragging me to the car since I couldn’t work my leg).
So there you have it! I ended up taking a hot Epsom bath and took a long nap and woke up at 7 pm then proceeded to eat EVERYTHING in sight. So will I do it again? Yes. I ran 2:00:58 and would love to try to do a sub 2 on this course again next year. Whew that was a LONG post. Thank you SO much for reading all of this! and THANK YOU to all the volunteers and the Canadian Running Series who made this all possible!
Other places to connect with me
Instagram: http://instagram.com/runcarmyrun
Twitter: https://twitter.com/runcarmyrun
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/carmyycom
Email: [email protected]
<3 Carmy
Amber
Sleep, pizza, sleep – you are crazy, haha! But maybe mid-night fueling helped you hit that PR? ;)
Sucks you hit a pothole so close to the finish (well, I guess it could’ve been worse if it happened earlier in the race…but still), but sounds like you still had a good race aside from those hills. Sometimes I think I’d like someone faster to pace me for a PR in a race, then I wonder if I’d get frustrated at them for making it look so easy while I’m dying mid-race :P
Enjoy your recovery and I hope your hip feels better soon!
Carmy
Haha it wasn’t too frustrating since he was able to chit chat with me the whole way so I wasn’t thinking about how badly I wanted to die! And yes! Pizza counts as carb loading right right!??!?!?! ;)
Lisa @ Running Out Of Wine
Great job and congrats! I don’t know what would happen if I woke up in the middle of the night and ate pizza…either something awesome would happen or it would be really really bad. Potholes during races are the worst! They are all over the Baltimore marathon course so I am constantly trying to pay attention to where I am running so I don’t trip!
Carmy
thanks! and yeah! it’s hard to focus on pacing AND potholes! ):< but I'm going to chalk up the pizza as last minute carb loading ;) hahahaha
Alison (Fueling for Fitness)
LOL, 2 pizza slices in the middle of the night? That’s hilarious. I’m proud of you for your awesome PB! Congratulations! I’m sure you will get your sub-2 at next year’s race, if not sooner! Hope you’ve been enjoying recovery week.
Carmy
Thanks Alison!! I spent all week eating and sleeping (and essay writing) LOL I think I gained 10lbs! and yes … pizza = carb loading? ;) yes? yes? haha
Crystal
Congrats on the new PR! I love your videos!
Carmy
Thanks Crystal!!
Kristina
CONGRATS! You did amazing, pushing through with the pain and coming out with a great time! I have NO DOUBT that next time you’ll get sub 2. You were thisclose during this race even with all the things you were dealing with!
You’re awesome, Carmy!
Carmy
You are too kind! Thank you :) I’m hoping next year hurts less! Lol I think one of the reasons I had more injuries this season was my lack of strength training and massages :( so maybe if I get more sport massages, I’ll do better next year (think my BF will buy that ;) lol)
Nessa @ Ness Runs
Congrats on your pr! I’m totally behind the sleep, pizza, sleep – only my two favourite things! Where I live there are tonnes of potholes, they are the most annoying thing ever – I almost sprain my ankle on every other run – not good at all.
Carmy
ugh potholes really need to be covered! one race I ran this year, someone didn’t cover a manhole properly! that was worrisome!
Susie @ SuzLyfe
Hey, you gotta fuel when you can, amiright? Good for you for gettin’ it duuuun after so many problems in the past few months–now go and get those hips released, girl! Congrats on the PR!
Carmy
Thanks! and yeah! “carb-loading” ;) 1 am is just as good as any other time right? ;) haha
Laura @ the gluten-free treadmill
I seriously adored this recap – so authentic and I’m so proud of you for doing it! It was a great race and a sub-2 is coming for you when you are ready for it!
Carmy
Thanks! I was thinking it’s too long but hey, it’s my race recap so why not right? :D
Ray
That’s a very good time. I also tried to run under 2 hours and finally got it in the end with 1:57 (this is my 4th half-marathon {2:18, 2:08, 2:15}), but yeah, I barely managed to avoid that pothole you were talking about. You might have the same issue I had before: the fear of distance. I still had it a couple of weeks before this run but after getting rid of it through training, every unit distance, whether it’s a kilometer or a mile, becomes another milestone. When it hurts, the only way is to keep running at a comfortable pace (no walking), breath at a constant rhythm (3 pace in, 2 pace out), and keep a good posture. The pain will slowly go away and by the time you don’t feel it anymore, you can start picking up your pace again. Good job on this one, next time you’ll nail it!
Carmy
Thanks! Did you race STWM too?
Ray
Yup, I did. It’s my first time running at the STWM and I loved every moment of it except for the first few kilometeres. I was frozen by the time my corral was allowed to start running, haha. I discovered a lot of things during this STWM and will help my future runs. This STWM feels so special, especially the energy. It was like every runner has their own story. Very inspiring~
Krysten (@darwinianfail)
You rocked it girl!! Congrats on the new PR!! So awesome!! And we will definitely meet next time!
Carmy
Thanks! Hopefully we’ll cross paths soon! :D
Stephanie
WOW what an amazing experience! It looks like all of the pre race stuff was fun! I usually run on a track or trail because city running has POTHOLES… Your times were great, Congratulations!!
Sandra Laflamme
Congrats on your sub 2 half! Such a great accomplishment and now you know you can push through it! Way to go!
Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner
congrats on an amazing PR! You look good out there. Fun idea to have friends write messages on your arm.
Diatta @ Femme Fitale Fit Club
OMG too cute – I didn’t spot you in the video though. :-( You had an excellent time!!!!! And who texts and keeps pace? That is freakin’ amazing. When I am out there don’t even try to talk to me – I ain’t hearing ya! LOL Great job!
Kerri Olkjer
Sounds awesome! I just love race recaps. They make me google more races to sign up for though, lol.
Rachel
What a fun race. Great race recap!
Michael Anderson
What a great and fun summary! You *should* be really proud! I was excited seeing a PR, and knocking 6 minutes off is no joke! Awesome … :)
Carmy
yes! 6 minutes!!! I was like “who can complain about 6 minutes? serious?!”
Toni @runninglovingliving
Congrats on the PR!!! You did a amazing job! You will hit sub-2.
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
Great job my friend!
Steve
Congrats on the run. Sucks about the pothole. Saw a girl do that during the Chicago Marathon right next to me about half way. My biggest fear during a run. Sounds like you’re okay and good thing it wasn’t mid-race. Good luck on the next half!
Carmy
oh my! that’s terrifying ): glad you didn’t go in the pothole though!
Paulette
Big congrats on the PR!
MCM Mama
Nice job! You’ll hit that sub 2 soon!
steph
I would have spent a small fortune at that expo. You were far more restrained than I ;)
Carmy
it helped that my friend/my ride wanted to leave! if it wasn’t for him … oh man… haha
Rachel
Congratulations on the huge PR!!! You were so close to your goal that I bet you will smash a sub-2 once you get healthy. Best wishes on your hip and for a speedy recovery!!
Carmy
Thanks!!
[email protected].
Amazing Job!!!!
That is a huge PB! And as soon as you get that hip figured out, you will definitely go under 2:00 for sure!
WELL DONE!
Yunica @ Music for Miles
Congrats on your amazing race and PR!! Way to tackle the rest of the race like a champ despite the pain.
I’m not used to seeing kilometers (you Canadians haha), so at first I was like “WOAH she’s going at 5 minute miles?! that’s insanely fast!” but still. your time is insanely fast. woohooo ! :)