Butt Kicking And Butt Braking

My first outdoor race of the season is now out of the way and I am very pleased with my race at Ottawa's Run For Reach half marathon. My time is 45:52 and I came in 4th overall in the women category, only 1:24 behind the second runner up. What a way to start my season!

The weather was cold and windy but nothing out of the ordinary considering all those crazy outdoor practices I've already done in April. In fact, I had to ditch my fleece sweater after warm up because it would get too warm during the race. My pre-race routine went like clock work including carefully timed feeding (breakfast 5am, bagel 8am, muesli 10:30am, lots of water in between) and a warm up (including three sets of 30-30) that worked well for me last season. I was as ready as I could be when I rolled to the start line.

It was a mass start and I parked myself directly behind GN. He is faster than me but just enough so that I could hang on as long as I draft well. We stayed with the main pack for, oh, a few seconds before getting dropped. GN was working hard and I could potentially stayed with him but I decided to slow down  to wait for the next pack instead. Skating with a pack was the way to go in that windy condition. Soon enough, I hopped on to the pack and we moved along at a good pace. This is a pack consisting mostly of big guys. I was at first a little hesitant about drafting really close but I quickly found my comfort zone so drafting was a piece of cake (that's one skill I learned well last season). Conserving my energy was the theme of the day. We caught up with GN and LF before the first turnaround.

I must admit the first turnaround caught me by surprise and I went into it with more speed that I should. I hit the curb and did my best rendition of butt braking as I saw skaters scattered around me, one even jumping on the curb. It was a minor fall (nothing compared to the falls I endured indoor!) and my first reaction was "Geez! I hope I didn't rip my skinsuit". Of course the pack was pulling away from me so I had no time to mull over my fall. I knew that I had less than one km to chase up to the pack before we got hit by a brutal head wind. I could see that GN was pulling and he was keeping the pace in check. I calmly pick up my speed, remember to have big recovery and drive my knees with every stride. I rejoined the pack without much issue.

Leading the pack. Photo by a Leesh.

The rest of the race was rather uneventful. Everybody skated quite coorperatively and we did not really drop anyone. There was a couple of places on the course with a slight incline. It was important that I keep my climbing cadence to make my way up in the most efficient manner. With all these big guys around me, they tend to have a slower cadence and bigger strides when going uphill. That would totally interrupt my rhythm and I would need to spend more energy than necessary. So I pulled out of the pack and climbed at my own pace with no intention of breaking away. At best, perhaps I could drop a skater or two from the pack or just make them chase me for a bit. However, at one of the inclines, "my own pace" was fast enough to get pass the leader of the pack and most of the pack got stuck behind him! LF followed me up the hill and the two of us made a successful break away. I was quite amused by that but of course with that wind, it wasn't realistic for the two of us to keep the gap anyway. Now that I think about it, if we had communicated better, we could have a chance had GN came with us too (team skating!!). Oh well. LF and I got reeled in back into the pack.

Towards the end of the race, people were visibly restless in the pack. I was paying very close attention to everyone around me. As we came around the last bend, the acceleration began. Obviously it was way too early to start the sprint yet I had no choice but to follow. I stuck closely behind GN, still trying to conserve my energy. When GN slowed down and the two guys in front did not yet show signs of fatigue, I continued the chase on my own. It was a sprint about 200m too long! I tried my best but that 50m between us was too much.

First runner up in the women 30-39 category and fourth overall in women! See other podium shots from my camera here. Pictures from GN are available here.

Comments

[Tom]

Hey congrats on the *great* time in the 1/2 marathon Candy! You'll be tearing up the races this year for sure. I guarantee you your indoor training will pay off this summer.

Tom