Finishing Up 2024

2024 is coming to an end (or is over by the time you are probably reading this).  I would say that by my normal standards in the sporting world, I came into and left 2024 without really having goals I was working towards. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy getting out and working hard, but I just didn't feel the pull of anything specific. Instead I just allowed the year to come to me, occasionally finding mini goals along the way to chase.

Look over there! No goals!

I did want to make sure to get some running in away from home and with 2 other parkruns in the province, I made sure to get to them. The Butter Trail in Tatamagouche is a fun one that is dead flat and on crusher dust.  The bonus is when you are done you get pop into the farmer's market for some great local treats. 

The girls wanted some adventures as well, so we made sure to get them out of the house and into the wild. Even when they didn't know it was what they wanted.

I formed a relationship with New World Marketing and got to sample many of the products they represent, which includes On running gear, Darntough socks and Knock Around Sunglasses. All are carried by local companies. It is fun to try out products and give feedback to the reps as well as to local stores that are planning on carrying these products. Over the years I have become very fond of the On running shoes and was more than happy to oblige with the feedback. The On CloudSurfer Trail in this photo was probably my shoe of the year. A little road, a little trail, and amazing so far this winter for a little extra grip. It is easy to pick a supershoe, but I am more a fan of the every day workhorse shoes. 

Some days we had rain, some days it was a lot. 

The kids grow up fast, which ones are the parents? Who knows! Well I know, it is easy to tell when you pop into the heard. 

It was the second annual Cinnamon Bun Run hosted by the 5K Cafe. You coudl choose 3 or 5K run options. I came back to defend my 5K win from last year. While my time wasn't quite as fast, I did finish well under 18 mins and with a second win in a row. 

The end of September brought the Rum Runners Relay back. I opted to return to a Leg I ran very long ago. Leg 10! Though now Leg 10 was slightly different and mostly on crusher dust. At a little over 11 km long it was going to be hard and fast. It started with a crazy steep climb that was book ended with a sweeping downhill finish. I had a great initial battle with a Slow Ships runner, then with Kyle, and eventually came in third overall for the stage with a PB in the 10k distance in my 11km run (and yes, that included the uphill start). The 50 year old legs were still running.

Instead of racing (again I had few goals this year) I opted to pace bunny the half marathon at the Valley Harvest Marathon Weekend. Pacing is awesome and people get so happy to have someone get them to their finish in a PB time. I ran the 1:30 half marathon and had at least 10 people with me most of the time, most finishing under 1:30 (I ran a 1:29:58).

A quick stop at the finish line and I found Colin starting his second loop of the marathon. So I tagged along. And just like that I somehow ran an accidental marathon. We got Colin to the finish line in a great time so he could soak up all the accolades. I was happy to know my legs had some oomph left in them after that.

As the Fall weather cools, it becomes canicross season. I hosted the Long Lake Lap Dog event and it was a blast as we raised money towards the Disaster Animal Response Team of Nova Scotia.

Look at this cute dude

I didn't get to race this Fall, but I did get some time on feet with my best boy Kona. 

Movember came and so did my antics in raising funds for Men's Health. 

And my 13th annual Movember 6K Run in Point Pleasant Park. Between this event and friends and family, I raised almost $5000 and over $7000 for my and Mike's Team, Mo With the Flow. 

Another road trip lead to the 100th parkrun in Truro at Victoria Park. A huge group of BLT Runners made the trek up and the weather was great. I had one of my fastest 5Ks of the year! 

Winter hiking can be cold. 

Each Christmas the BLT Runners hosts the Christmas Marathon to stay active over the holidays. We tried to also host our Miracle Mile race but the weather kept preventing that. Regardless many runners achieved some great results staying active.  

My goal was to try and take advantage of the increased mileage I started doing as I prep my training for next year's 100 Mile effort. So I thought I would use this opportunity to try and get my first ever 100 mile week. I achieve it in 7 days, hitting 162 miles on feet with an avg pace of 5:33 min/km. I was happy to not only get that total done, but also feel pretty good at the end. I wasn't injured, hobbling or over tired. This bodes well for my upcoming training. 

In fact when counting my daily steps in addition to my running, I was at an all time high of 187.4 km travelled over the past 7 days. 

In terms of yearly mileage, it was my second biggest year of pure running at 3298.5 km (unless I go back outside) but also 1931.4 km of hiking / power walking. This is also looking good for the 100 miler as I know there will be lots of times were power hiking will be a key strategy. 

Boom Pow and welcome to 2025! 

50 is Fabulous - We're Back (July 2024)

June 30, 2024 and I turned 50. While this blog has been a little quiet lately, a certain John needs to be kept up to date, so I thought I would fill everyone in on what's been up in the first month of Ian's 50th year.

With no specific goals set except for the Natal Day 2 Miler on Aug 5th coming up, I opted to see what my 50 year old legs coudl achieve. I wanted to increase my time on feet through both running and power hiking. I wanted to get my vert up as well because why not. 

The month started with a Parkrun in Truro on a humid and foggy July 1st. The Truro parkrun is always a welcoming crew and I love this course. It is tough, hilly, and with a rocky road as the bulk of the run, not technically fast. I have never been excited in general about flat courses. 

Since it was Canada Day, I also got to wear my red parkrun shirt which coincidentally is the 50th run short. So a great chance to show off my age. I managed to grab a nice tough sub 18 min 5K run to start the month. 

As I mentioned, hiking and hills were a key part of my "plans" this month. So I found trails and hills where I could. Like right next to my office, where I would head out for a quick morning 100m of vert. 

With my partnership with a local distribution company that deals in On running shoes, I was also out testing the On CloudSurfer Trail shoe. For me this is a great fun and heavily cushioned shoe that has a little road capability as well. So I feel super comfortable running from my house to our local trails. I tried to get out a few times this month. 

Training means eating. I also tried to make sure and increase my pickle and sandwich numbers this month. I think all 50 years old should consume m ore pickles. Thanks 5K Cafe. 

Though I normally have been just settled on hitting one sub 18 min 5K a month, I got back to our local parkrun and threw down a second one. Our parkrun is technically a faster course, though it can be daunting as the 2.5km constant slight uphill can be draining. You really need to fight  to keep on pace.

All of this of course was in addition to increased running milage, more hill work, more intervals, more hiking. And my efforts at hiking were fast as well, with an ideal hiking speed of close to a 9 min/km. 

I found some big stair cases! 

And some waterfalls.

A last minute sign up for a hilly trail race came mid month. Why not? Was all my training going to drain me or help me? This race was a 16km run up and down the "local" ski hill. 

It was a hot and humid day, like this whole month as been. As the course was a 2 loop one with the chance to grab water or electrolyte drink at the start of lap 2, I opted to just carry a small flask of highly caloried drink to sip on lap one with the goal in mind to get it all down. The course was 250m of vert in the first 2 km, so all my power hiking came in super handy. 

I quickly took to the lead of the run, making it to the top solo, then began the meandering run down the other side. I took care to power hike the steepest bits, not wanting to fall prey to killing myself "roadie" style on lap one. I also took it a little easy on the steepest descents as well. But by 7km in, second place Cameron had caught up to me. I let him threw and tagged along. He was pushing hard. 

Luckily my saving myself on lap 1 paid off. I was able to push the climb even harder on lap 2 to pass Cameron again (after refilling my bottle). This time I didn't take my lead for granted and pushed the next bit as hard as I could. I ended up holding the lead and taking home first place in a time of 1:38, better than my goal of 1:45 (trails are usually hard to judge pace on). I was happy almost hitting a 6 min/km pace on this run. 

Taking advantage of our trip up to the race, we had some drinks to celebrate, then headed off for some hiking and waterfalls!

It was great to have the pups with us as well. 

The month wasn't done though. More parkruns and more hills! More hikes! 

As learning is always fun I found a new book to keep myself motivated to hit my best self at 50. I am happy I am not slowing down with age, that my injuries are limited and minor and that I have a great community around me. 

And though it wasn't in July, I did have to mention that August started with a sub 18 min parkrun on Saturday then a 3rd place overall finish in the local Natal Day 2 Miler, averaging a 5:27 min mile and placing up in the top with all the 19 year olds. 

August is bringing a focus on strength. Again no specific goal races, just keeping things interesting. If something fun comes up, I'll be up for it.