Well here we are in September. I last posted in April with a review of a great shoe, the On Cloudflow. As an aside, I still really like that shoe and run in it for things like tempo work. But what else have I been up to?
Well, with no in person races, I started doing a lot of virtual races, some were just personal time trials but a lot have been through VDOT. VDOT is the training system I follow as a coach and they have been working on establishing coaching tools, which includes their on coaching app (think Garmin Connect / Strava / Training Peaks). Within it, they they have established a virtual racing series which allows racers to choose their distance and results are based on the effort you deliver, this way you could race a half marathon or a 1 Mile and all the results can work together.
The rules of the VDOT race series all for some level of downhill and let you choose your course. Some of my efforts took advantage of the downhill, others were a lot tougher. I raced everywhere from 1 Mile, through 10 km.
Needless to say, this is racing based on GPS data and not a measured course. Any PBs I achieved were not in any official records anywhere. GPS racing does have its downside, in that you have to pay attention to your watch and not the actual finish line. So it does take getting used to begin able t push yourself at the right time.
It was actually back in April where I tried to better my current Mile time since we knew that the MacPass Mile was cancelled. I managed to knock a few seconds off my best MacPass Mile effort on a tougher course (MacPass is fast).
A few 5K efforts followed with good results, though were primarily downhill hill. Then I discovered the 3K distance and ran that for awhile. It was great fun, and in many ways even harder than a 5K to get an equal effort under VDOTs system. PBs at a distance you never run are not hard to achieve, but I think after a few 3K efforts I maxed out at 9:51. That is unless I opt to train specifically for this distance.
Eventually I decided to give a 10K a go and managed to knock almost 30 seconds of my previous PB from a couple of years ago. To be honest, this was a tempo run that got away from me.
This half marathon was also a training run that got away from me. Some days just feel great. Not a PB, but the third fastest half I had ever run.
My results on the VDOT were pretty good. I often was a top placer in Canada (sometimes the top runner), I won my Age Group numerous times, and was generally in the top 30 World Wide, sometimes dipping into the top 20. I even won this great coffee mug from Brooklyn Running Company, which is my go to mug now.
A slight break from personal racing and I helped to set up a virtual racing series for the Maritime Harness Dog Association. While I don't often get to take part in Canicross running, I entered with my dog Newt and we rocked the Mile. We did manage to break that 20 minute Mile barrier once.
As June approached our run club, the BLT Runners, had a birthday. With COVID we couldn't have our usual big event, but we set up a "cake" station for members to be able to run by and have a treat to celebrate. This great sign (made by Jill R) was our welcome to club members.
And not all runs were mine. I have been working with Craig towards a half marathon in late June that ended up cancelled. So we opted to run one anyway. We picked the local trail, ran together (but at a safe distance), and smashed his previous PB. I have no doubt he would have smashed it at the official event as well.
Quick Taco break.
I don't want to forget my awesome bike rides. For a bit I had some tendinitis in my ankle. I could run, but knew that a reduced load would be a smart play. So I ramped up my cycling and on my birthday did a 100 kilometre ride with my buddy Sheldon. I hadn't done one is quite awhile, so it was great to do that.
That bike ride was actually supposed to be an epic trail run, but I opted to not push the ankle issue. So a few weeks later, I hit the Bluff Trail with a vengeance. I ran the whole trail, which also meant the side trails. Over 30 km later and on a 30 degree day, I managed to break 4 hours on this tough terrain. I know I can do better and will head back in the Fall, when it is cooler.
I made some great bread as well.
Two weekends ago, Craig and I went back to the parkrun course (I had been running a lot of time trials on this course) and went for our monthly hard 5K. I decided to really push the downhill portion (ie the first 2.5km) and hold on to the uphill. Last year I was able to do this by chasing a faster runner in 17:19 and didn't realize that I had a 17:14 in my old legs this day, especially as it was muggy and warm. But I did it and it felt great.
There's been more stuff, like swimming, hiking, and of course work. A lot of solo time. And not every run or hard effort ended up being the best part of my day. I pulled up short in an attempt to better my 15K time in June, I halted a few Mile efforts half way through, and even ones that ended up with good results felt bad. I've learned to cherish the good running days and work through the less nice ones.
Let's see what the Fall brings.
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