Toronto Half Marathon Race Report

last weekend, i ran in what used to be the toronto international marathon and is now the good-life toronto marathon. (i ran the half) this event has a 30 year history. it is the first marathon i ever did. i also ran this same race about 8 years ago. this was my first chance to see where i'm at in the discipline that is usually my strongest, but my training being what it is, the most difficult for me to guague so far. here is my race report.


the expo:


wow, was i disappointed. i ran in the scotia-bank half marathon last fall, and that was an expo. i actually went there convinced that i would be able to buy a pair of my favorite racing flats, based on what i had seen in the fall. forget it. there were a few stalls from stores i already know and that was pretty much it. the best part was the girls doing aerobics on stage to promote the fitness clubs that sponsor the race. underwhelming.


race day:


pretty organized overall. but no corrals, just self seeding (and judging from the first few k, more than a few people were overly optimistic about themselves). this is a beautiful course, much nicer than the scotia-bank course, it goes right through the city, into a ravine, along the financial district, through the entertainment district, and finishes near the water-front. spectacular. but compared to the scotia-race, just not much hype. at the scotia race there were bands every few k playing live music and crowds along the whole route. just more hype and a more festive feeling.

if you were running your first half and only one, i would choose the scotia-bank race in the fall. it is bigger, better, more festive and just more fun.

my race:


after some debate i came up with a plan i liked.  the fast downhill sections and rolling hills soon had me abandoning that plan, and paying the price.
i was pretty tired all week, at the end of a long block, and trained pretty hard right up until wednesday before the race, so really, my "taper" was sort of a chance to realize how fatigued i really was.

i got in a relatively good warm up, which included a pee in the local cemetery, but i was feeling a little weak in the knees.

once the race got going, i found my stride and by the 5k mark i was feeling pretty good.
this is where things went wrong. i was running a few s, per k faster than i wanted, but it all felt good so i kept at it. i had not trained for downhill running at all, and this course has a fair bit of it. great learning for me. downhill running fries your quads. big-time. wow.


i ended up chasing a better runner for 6 k because i was feeling like this might be my day to over-achieve. you can throw the dice sometimes, but i tend to throw the dice a bit too much in the early part of my runs and this was a little different because i waited a while, but throw the dice i did. and i almost crashed.


we were on sub 1:30 pace until the last 6 k and then course turns dead flat, with some false flats, and head winds. at that point, all at once,  i became aware that i was running. my feet hurt. i had hot spots. i felt my turnover slowing. i started to suffer.

i had wanted to be in the hurt box, as stupid as that sounds, but i was hoping that would happen at 19k not 15. my heart sank as i gradually realized that i was in for 20m plus minutes of real suffering.  i dug in.

there were more than a few times when i wanted to stop. i actually was forced to stop briefly by an undone shoelace (it was double knotted, so go figure). but i just kept going, focusing on a fast turnover. as fast as i could muster, which seemed like slow-mo. i have never been so happy to see a finish line. 1:31 and change. i got my goal pace. i did not win my gamble and this was not my day to over-achieve. so i got my goal, but suffered alot more than i had anticipated. and i managed to finish pretty up front in a field of skinny runners.



i was hoarse and dry hacking alot at the finish. this week i have been sick and ended up taking some much needed rest. my quads were mashed for a few days. i have felt spent. so, at the end of the day, it is difficult know exactly what this race tells me about my fitness for a fast 1/2 ironman, but i am used to uncertainty anyways.


finally, this race was my first chance to test out the new desoto forza race shorts with liftfoil, and my skincooler long sleeve top. both performed flawlessly, with total comfort and style. the new shorts with liftfoil in them, are indeed an improvement upon what i already consider to to be the best running "tight" there is. desoto are a first rate company and their gear is, quite simply, the best.