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| Finisher's medal and my post-race treat. The finish line to the race can be seen on the street in the background |
Over the weekend I finished my second half-marathon. Simon and I flew to Vancouver, British Columbia to take part in the Sea Wheeze, which is a race sponsored the athletic clothing company, Lululemon. It was my second half, Simon's first. My first half-marathon was back in February in Orlando, FL (you can read a little bit about it
here, if you like). The Sea Wheeze race couldn't have been more different than the Disney race.
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| On our way to Stanley Park |
For starters, I was able to finish this race 35 minutes faster than the Disney Princess half-marathon in Orlando. 35 minutes is huge, especially considering that my training leading up to this race was lackluster, at best. The only explanation I can come up with is the elevation change. For most of the last year, I've been living and exercising at 7,000 feet of elevation. I get out of breath walking up a hill here in Flagstaff. In the three months leading up to the race, the longest continuous distance I had run was four miles. Four. And then I transported myself to sea level and rocked out 13 miles like it was nothing. Well, not quite like nothing. I was definitely struggling at the end, and I was sore for about three days afterwards, but other than that, I was shocked that I was able to run the entire thing with little to no stopping (it's hard to drink water and run at the same time, so I had little walks near the water stations). The running seemed easier in Vancouver though, and I never once felt out of breath. So I've decided that I need to move to Flagstaff, and only run races that take place at sea level...then I'll feel like I've accomplished something. Honestly, it almost felt like cheating. Another reason I think this race went a little better than the Disney race was the number of participants. At Disney, I ran with over 23,000 other people, about half of them walkers (no judgement, just an observation...I did my fair share of walking as well). There were times during the Disney race where the bottlenecks were so severe and the lanes so narrow that I had no choice but to walk until the path cleared...an inevitability when sharing a one-lane road with that number of people. The Sea Wheeze capped out at just over 10,000 runners, the majority of them were much more fit than the average Disney runner, and from what I saw, most of them were running for most, if not all, of the race. The running path was much wider at Sea Wheeze as well, enabling Simon and I to maintain a pretty even pace for most of the race.
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| Simon getting warmed up for group yoga |
For all the frivolity that Lululemon can bring to the athletic clothing world, they really put on a very good race. There were several group yoga sessions that Simon and I were able to participate in, they had a roped off area with food vendors, couches to hang out in, and people doing the runners' hair and nails. The course that we ran was absolutely beautiful, and we got a see a decent portion of downtown Vancouver, including Gastown, Yaletown, Kitsilano, and Stanley Park. We ran across and under a couple bridges, and it was cool to see the different parts of town. We lucked out in that the morning was cool and overcast, so the sun wasn't a factor in overheating us and wearing us down. At the water stations they had not only water and Gatorade-type stuff, but they also had orange slices and banana pieces, which I thought was a really nice touch. The orange slices were so refreshing. The little packets of gel...not so much. Simon choked one down and got heartburn almost instantly afterwards. He said it tasted like someone had made a paste out of crushed up vitamins. Ick. Pretty much all along the course there were people cheering us on. My favorite fans were the drag queens, who we got to run past twice, which I enjoyed. At one point we were even chased by one clad in skin tight pants and super high heels, her gigantic breasts thrust out in front of her as she yelled, "I'm a chase you! I'm a chase you!" It was pretty funny, and a nice distraction. There were people on stilts, people in costumes, and an entire dance troupe of little girls decked out in tutus...all of them cheering, screaming, and ringing cow bells as we ran past.
Honestly, I was almost taken aback by the spectator turn-out. The only places where there weren't people cheering were the places where there physically wasn't room for them...like along the sea wall in Stanley Park where the only place they could have stood was in the ocean. And even during that part, there were people out on the water on paddle boards cheering us on. Part of me felt a little weird about it, to be honest. There we were, decked out in our brightly colored, expensive athletic wear, running a race we paid to participate in, a race that really doesn't mean anything in the broad scheme of things...it's not like our race fees went to charity. But still...thousands of people got up early to come out with their homemade signs to cheer us on. I felt like I was doing something significant, but at the end of the day, I really wasn't. A friend of mine is wildfire firefighter, and I saw a video recently of the reception that the firemen get from the community when returning from a long day fighting fires...it was a lot like the reception we got as we ran through town. People cheering, honking horns, congratulations abound. I appreciated them being there, and at times was even grateful for their encouragement, especially during that last mile. It made me feel like I was accomplishing something important.
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| Simon and I after finishing the race |
As far as the actual race itself went, I finished in 2 hours and 25 minutes, a new personal best for me. Simon and I were able to maintain a running pace of just under 11 minutes per mile for the majority of the race, which is also quite good for us, at least for a race that long. I awoke that morning pretty nervous and a little queasy, and it didn't help matters that I found myself in dire need of having to poop five minutes before we were supposed to head out for the race. Of course it had to happen right at that time. Maybe it lightened me up! That could be another reason why I finished so well. ;) I recently switched to a new brand of shoe, and while I had my reservations about switching from my super stable Salomons to the lighter and more flexible Mizunos, I thought they were a great shoe to run that distance in on that particular course (and they matched my shirt...what more could I really ask for? Haha!). However, around 10 kilometers, my arches started to ache. Fortunately, my right butt cheek went numb around 15 kilometers, so that was a distraction of sorts from my feet. By 20 kilometers with only 1 kilometer left to go (that last one is always the longest), it was all I could do to just put one foot in front of the other. Simon was a fantastic motivator. Not pushing me too much because he knows that will backfire and I'll just give up, but pushing me just enough to keep me moving. It was great running with him, and I know that a big part of me finishing as fast and as well as I did was because of him. He's not sure if he's got another half-marathon in him though. This race was really hard on him...most especially on his joints. I told him that we could just walk more next time, but he's got that competitive spirit that I've never had. He would want to try to beat his time from this race, rather than take it easy and finish at a slower time. I'm just happy to finish the thing, and don't really care a whole lot about the time. I think that's why we made such a good running team...he pushed me to keep going, and I just went. We'll see if we end up there again next year. I hope we do. What I do know, is that I will never be one of those runners who pushes myself to the point of expiratory grunting. We were passed a few times by women who sounded like mini freight trains going through. That just sounds painful. And not fun at all. I would rather walk than reduce myself to a sweaty, grunting, breathless mess. As Simon and I finished the race, there was a woman who finished right next to us who was immediately whisked away by the medical staff. She must have had a look about her or something, because they didn't give Simon or I a second glance. 13 miles is a long way to go...it took a lot out of us, and I'm sure there were people running it who even less prepared than we were.
For some odd reason, I preferred to keep track of the race in kilometers, rather than miles. They labeled the course both ways, since the race draws so many participants from the United States. A half-marathon is 13.1 miles, or 21.1 kilometers. Logic would tend towards tracking the race in miles, since the numbers are smaller. But my brain wanted to track in kilometers, since I know that kilometers are smaller than miles, although really not by much. But that didn't matter. Saying that I went 21 kilometers sounds like I went so much farther than 13 miles, and therefore accomplished more. These are the things we have to tell ourselves when we get it into our heads that running 13 miles/21 kilometers sounds like a good idea. It's not a good idea. There is no logical reason for a person to run 13 miles straight. But we do it anyway. The races are good motivation for me to stay in shape, and to maintain a certain level of fitness. I guess if that's what it takes, I'll keep doing them for as long as I can. It was kind of funny after the race to see people hobbling around town, the 13 miles taking their toll. The funniest one was when we were on the elevator on our way to our hotel room after the race, and the doors opened a few floors below ours to reveal a woman limping by wearing an athletic top and a tutu. It was like a tiny glimpse into the aftermath of the race, cut short by the closing of the elevator doors.
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| Lululemon Sea Wheeze store...crazy busy! |
In true Lululemon fashion, there was a spectacle surrounding the Sea Wheeze specific items for sale. For their race, they release a line of athletic wear in colors that are exclusive to the event, and people go absolutely nuts over it. The doors for both the store and the race packet pick-up opened at 8, which is when we got there, but we had a clear view of the front door from our hotel room, and the line was already around the rather large building by then. I have no idea what time those crazy women at the front of the line got there, but it had to have been around the 5am mark, if not earlier. Insane. Crazy. The store itself was a complete disaster area. Women were grabbing things left and right, then hoarding them off into a corner where they sifted through them like little misers...or like little rodents lining a nest with expensive, brightly colored spandex blends. I was bit disturbed by it, to be honest. I wandered around aimlessly for a while, marveling at how picked over everything already was, despite the store having only been open for an hour and 45 minutes at that point. Out of curiosity that night, I hopped on to eBay to see if things from the store were up for sale, and sure enough, there they were...at triple the price. What was even more shocking were the number of people bidding on the items. I very briefly thought about buying a bunch of stuff to put on eBay...if the prices on eBay were any indication of the profit those people were going to make, I probably could have made back the money for my flight and hotel with just a few items. But I didn't do it. That's not why I was there, and honestly, I really don't care for people who do that. But...if there are people out there who are dumb enough to pay $400 for a $100 hooded sweatshirt...well...maybe they deserve to be taken advantage of...just not by me.
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| Porchetta sandwich at Meat & Bread |
Simon and I stayed an extra day after the race, mostly to just wander around and enjoy Vancouver. We had visited Vancouver last summer, and part of the draw of doing the Sea Wheeze in the first place was an excuse to go back. It's such a walkable city, and there is so much to see, do, and most importantly, eat. :) During our few days there, I had only 2 cilantro incidents, and I handled both of them quite well, if I do say so myself. No fits were pitched, no food was thrown, no bad attitude took over. I just had an outward exclamation of "dammit!" and then passed the offending morsels to Simon, who is always glad to accept my cilantro-tainted refuse. Other than that though, the food was fantastic. Everywhere we went, no matter what we got, it was great. My favorite, of course, was the Porchetta sandwich at Meat & Bread. Seriously, the best sandwich in the world. I have to imagine that's true. It's slow roasted pork, topped with salsa verde (no cilantro...I asked), and sprinkled with cracklin's (basically pork rinds). Divine. Fantastic. When are they going to come to the States?? Probably never, and so my yearly pilgrimages to Vancouver will most likely continue. If not for the running, then definitely for the sandwich. My second favorite food in Vancouver was found at the Granville Island Public Market. It is a pastry simply named Blueberry Bread, but it is so much more than that. Think of a cream cheese danish. Now take out the cream cheese and replace with it with a creamy, not-too-sweet white chocolate. Top it off with fresh blueberries and powdered sugar. Amazing. I bought one in anticipation of eating it for breakfast in the morning before boarding our flight. Yeah, it was an evening snack the night before. The thing didn't last 3 hours in its simple, blueberry stained paper bag. The one food item that I didn't try, which I will save for next year, was the Poutine Burger at Tap and Barrel. A burger topped with salty fries, cheese curds, and a red wine gravy? What's not to like?? It was our last night there though, and I was feeling a little heavy from all the eating and figured a grease bomb such as that would probably not sit well through the night, and might have dire consequences the next day when I was supposed to be sitting on a plane for hours on end. Next year, Poutine Burger, you will be mine.
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| Simon and I at the Xavier Rudd concert after the race |
By the end of the race, and the weekend in general, I was done with standing in lines. Just over it. I had been surrounded by more people than I care to acknowledge for those 2 days of the race event. Everywhere we went, for everything we wanted to do, there was a line. On our last day in Vancouver Simon was taking a nap, and I wanted to go to Starbucks. Luckily, there was one right across the street from our hotel. I had the misfortune of getting in line behind a rather large family who didn't speak much English, and wasn't all that familiar with the offerings at Starbucks. After waiting 5 minutes for the first person in the group to order (I had assumed he was ordering for everyone since he was taking so long), the second person in the group stepped forward and began asking the barrista the exact same questions the previous person had asked, complete with asking the barrista to show her what all the sandwiches looked like...exactly what the first person had done. So I stormed out...into the rain...and walked 5 blocks in the rain to the next closest Starbucks. I arrived soaked and with a poor attitude, but luckily didn't have to wait in line. By the time I got back to the hotel room, I looked like a drowned rat, albeit with a steaming coffee drink in my hand. By the time we left Vancouver the next morning, those clothes from the Starbucks incident were still wet. I was impatient, and I made an irrational decision. And luckily for everyone involved, it was a trivial irrational decision. The only person who saw any negative effects was me. Simon kidded me and said he hoped I had learned my lesson. Yes, I had. Will that prevent me from doing that again in the future? Probably not. We all have days like that. Sunday morning was mine.
All in all, it was a fantastic trip, and we had a fantastic time. For those of you who bailed, you totally missed out. Luckily you'll have a chance at redemption next year, as it sounds like plans are already in the works for Sea Wheeze 2014. See you there! :)
