First race of the year at the @ripitevents Little Patuxent River Run 10km. Snowy and icy trails were awesome and it was fun to run along with @dchammerette who crushed it. @gnerc bested his previous times for the half-marathon! If you need some solid trail running shoes you can't go far wrong with @salmingrunningnorthamerica . . . . . #IFB #salmingrunning #LPRR #trailrunning #trailrunner #ripitevents

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Cold Turkey 10km....No Turkey 2008!

Me and the Turkey!

As is tradition the race season well and truly ended this past Sunday at the Annapolis Striders annual Cold Turkey 10km. I had won this race for the past two years but standing on the start line I wasn't exactly expecting to get the 3-peat primarily due to:

a) my speed work has been lacking;

b) I was still pretty sore from a weights session on Saturday (not to mention the afternoon spent at Annapolis Mall!); and

c) Matt Fortin, who has won everything in sight this year, was also here.
Chilling at the start (literally!)

The gun went and off went Fortin quickly followed by 15 year old Cody Vernon. I settled into 4th but after the loop in the School pushed into 3rd and tried to keep the leaders close. Unfortunately there were not any mile markers out this year and so it wasn't until the course turn-around (the course is an out and back) that I would get any idea of the pace.



I was feeling quite good although couldn't keep the top 2 close and therefore was determined to keep 3rd. Hitting the hills between miles 2-4 I was alone in 3rd and after the turnaround had a gap of about 35 seconds over 4th. I was a similar distance behind 2nd place. I also calculated that I was at about 5mins 50secs miles and with downhills over the majority of the last two miles, I was aiming for under 36mins.

The earlier hills must have taken their toll on 4th and 5th place as the gap grew on the downhills and I was able to roll into the finish.....although I did try to sprint to the tape to try to get under 35mins 30secs. I was just outside at 35mins 31secs, but it was a new PB for the 10km. Matt Fortin took the win in 33mins 18secs, with 2nd being at 34mins 27secs.

Looks like 35mins 30secs to me........:-)

That was the good news, the bad news is that there was no frozen turkey as a prize this year. You have to be first overall or first in Age Group to get the turkey, being 3rd overall I was ineligible for AG prizes.

So far I am one week into the off-season, three to go and then the training for next season will kick in again. I might jump into a couple of running races over the next few weeks but it will be on a spur of the moment kinda thing....other than that workouts will just be random with little structure and just for fun.

Last race of the year done.........

Cold Turkey 10km Race Report

This is typically my last race of the season and it will be again this season. The cool thing about this 10km race is that it is usually a week or two after my last major triathlon of the season and so I should be in good form for it.

This year it was just a week after the 70.3M World's and after flying back from Florida on the Saturday evening it was at 8:30am on the Sunday morning (Nov 18th) that I found myself toeing the line trying to defend the 1st place that I had won last year. As an extra incentive Team Banks was still in attendance (and were staying through Thanksgiving) including my dad who had also entered the race.

Scanning the starting line I couldn't see the 2nd place finisher from the previous year (whom I had beaten out in a sprint over the last 200 meters!). So with that I was feeling good and as soon as the gun went I hit the front, happy to lead the field and set the pace.

Going throught the first mile in about 5:30mins there was a small group consisting of about 4 guys, or rather it sounded like 4 guys as I was leading and I didn't want to turn round to see. The course is a straight out and back so I knew that if I didn't get passed I could see the rest of the field after the turnaround.

Mile 2 has a nice long drag of a climb along Route 2 and as this climb gradually continued the footsteps behind began to thin out and become a little more distant. I was out on my own and now the race was there for the taking, unless I bombed or someone blasted the last half, it was looking good.

Mile 2-4 are filled with some nice short, sharp hills and after the turnaround you get to do them again! It is good though as you get to see the rest of the field and at this point I estimated a nice 200 meter lead or so. I also managed to see my dad at this point who shouted out encouragement, which probably surprised many people around him, especially with the English accent!

From Mile 4 it really is the homeward stretch, you get a nice downhill along Route 2 until mile 5 and the final mile is just the blast into the South River School and to the finish. Coming into these final miles I still had a good 200 meter lead or so and was trying to finish in under 36 minutes. My PR was 35mins 55secs. At the turnaround point (3.1miles) I had posted 17mins 47secs and so a new PR was certainly a possibility.

Rounding the final corner into the home straight you can see the clock from about 200meters out and with a sprint I pushed home at 35mins 46secs for the win and a new PR. A great way to end the season and of particular importance, and the main reason to enter this race, is that the winner of the race (and of each age group) gets a frozen 14lb turkey! Nice it was too on Thanksgiving Day!

Just to finish off the race report, my dad came across the line in 50mins 40secs and a job well done, although no Turkey for winning his age group (which won't be mentioned!). Although to be honest he appeared more interested to see if I had held my lead and won than in anything else!

College Park Cares 10km Race Report

Fully getting into the Fall racing spirit, this was my third running race in the past month and my first 10km of season. It was the College Park Cares 10km, funnily enough in College Park! On a brisk Saturday morning we set off at 8:30am. I was hoping for a personal best time but knew it would be a stretch based upon the hour run that I had done on Friday night....not exactly the best preparation for a PR but the main goal is obviously November 10th in Clearwater.

The race historically has had some fast winning times and I knew that winning would be a long shot and from the off I settled into the top ten and waited to see what would happen. Well, we were either running real fast the first mile or the marker was short....a 4min 25sec first mile didn't seem quite right! By the 2nd mile I had moved into 6th place and a more realistic pace of 5mins 38secs. I was on the heels of 5th place but the top four had forged a gap with the lead guy blazing ahead. The course was nice and flat but the mile markers were a bit random to say the least. Mile 3 came and went in 6mins 15secs and I know that I hadn't slowed significantly in that mile. It was however, between mile 3 and 4 that the elastic tying me to the runner in 5th place broke and the run of Friday night made its presence felt and I began to slow. For the rest of the race I could see 5th place but couldn't make a sustained effort to get back to him.

Still trying to beat my PR, I knew it would be tight and with a distinct lack of confidence in the placement of the mile markers I wasn't really that sure how close it would be. Without a mile marker from mile 4 until mile 6, I came into the last 400meters needing a sprint to get under the 36minute barrier and a huge effort to get under the 35min 55sec PR.....it wasn't to be and I finished 6th overall and 2nd in age group (with a nice restaurant gift certificate as an award!) with a 36min 8sec time. Not too bad for the first 10km of the Fall season and good preparation for not only the 70.3m World's but also in my defence of the Cold Turkey 10km on Nov 18.....which I will be fully rested for (although having done a 70.3m race the week previous).

So now we have the taper week prior to the World's on Saturday and then a vacation....more will follow this week on the prep for the Worlds.