Div Gun
Chip
Pace/
Place No. Name City / Town Prov CO.
S Total
Div Time
Time
Km
94 John Volkman Fresno CA
US M 2/11
M6069 3:56:28 3:55:46 5:37
My plane was supposed to leave Fresno at 6AM on Fri and
get into Moncton at 8PM. Instead it was delayed leaving Fresno so that I missed
all my connections including the one from Toronto. I was rerouted via New
Jersey and got into Moncton at midnight. New Brunswick is in the Atlantic time
zone which is 4 time zones over from our Pacific time zone. We don’t even have
that time zone in the states. Saturday I got up about 10 ADT and ran 15 min in
32° with light winds and “feel-like” of 28°.
Brrr
I went to the expo and got my race packet and bib which
in Canada are called a race “kit”. It was fun to find out that the race
benefits Legs for Literacy which works with teaching adults to read. Very cool
for a retired librarian to be part of thatJ I
enjoyed meeting a number of race personnel and having pasta dinner with some of
them. Jeanne invited me over to meet her family. I had fun talking with her
husband, Mike, daughter, Sydney, and her boyfriend, Tyler. Mike is a golfer and
we had fun looking at pictures of some great courses he’s played and hearing
about the 4 times he’s played in Ireland and Scotland. They are big Red Sox
fans so we watched some of the World Series which, with 4 hour time difference,
didn’t start until 9PM. BTW, Mike ran 3:18 the next day and then went to play hockey
at 9 that night—and he’s 52! Sydney ran
a 1:42 in the half and got 2nd.
Race day for me meant getting up at 2AM PDT (6AM in
Moncton) for the 8AM start. The morning was dark until nearly starting time and
was 38°, overcast, and included light showers most
of the race. With ¾ of the race on packed gravel trail, this meant some puddles
and muddy spots. The 800 half-marathoners started with the 200 marathoners so
the conditions were very crowded especially in the 3 or 4 parts where the
course double-backed. I stayed very consistently between 8:55-9:05 for the
first half hitting midway about 1:58. The second half of the race had just the
full marathoners so I really ran alone most of the time. It included some
neighborhoods and running on streets which was a bit faster than the trail and
a good change of pace. I ran miles 19-26 at 8:43, 8:05 (downhill), 8:55, 8:34,
8:56, 8:40, 8:35, 8:23, and last (on my watch) .53 at 7:50 pace. I knew I was
going be close to my Boston qualifying time of 3:55 so was pleased my legs felt
good and I was able to run hard & fast the last 8 miles.
Unfortunately, even though the overall average pace of
8:53 on my watch (which is sub 3:55 marathon pace) was not fast enough because
I actually ran 26.53 miles. Oh, well, that wasn’t my number one goal for this
race. I wanted to place and I got 2nd and I wanted to be under 4
hours. My real BQ goal race (for 2015) is CIM in Dec., and in my mind this was
a “training” race. It was also my comeback-from-injuries race in that I finally
felt like I had been able to get some speed work in the last couple of months
and the hamstring was ok with itJ I
really was pleased that I was patient in the early part of the race, and was
able to run negative splits with the last miles being my fastest!
I admit I did not take an ice bath as I was already
freezing cold after the race. I had worn a long sleeve shirt for first 5 miles,
but tossed it and wore just singlet and gloves the rest of the race (shorts,
socks, and shoes, too for those who you who might not be assuming those things
and thinking odd thoughtsJ).
In the pictures you can see the pumpkin pie blizzard I
got at Dairy Queen and the beautiful sunset views of the trail and river in
Moncton. Also, Magnetic Hill was an interesting phenomenon where your car seems
to be coasting uphill because of the way the surrounding land and trees give an
optical illusion.
On Monday I drove about an hour and a half to St. John
which is on the Bay of Fundy which has the world’s highest tides. The city has
many historic buildings, and I enjoyed a walking tour of the town. The Market
Place is a combination of museum, restaurants, shops, and a public library. The
museum featured the War of 1812 from 4 viewpoints: American, Canadian, Indian,
and British. Francis Scott Key who wrote Star Spangled Banner at Fort McHenry,
MD is a highlight. Note the captions on the pictures for more details.
Marathon
#133; 8th province; 16 states on 2d go round. Next up CIM #14 in Sacramento on
Dec. 8, 2013
