The New York City Marathon

One of the many highlights of 2011 was the New York City Marathon.  A favourite of mine, I’ve have now run it 2.5 times and each time it is extraordinary. 

It was all over for me at mile ten when a man in a chicken suit passed me. Five miles into the New York City marathon I found myself on a different kind of journey than I had ever been on in a race. The one walking before anyone around me, I had to figure out how to drop out. After completing a dozen marathons I wasn’t exactly sure how to walk out on this one.

Ten years ago my friends Norm, Kelly and I ran this epic challenge. It was the year of 9/11 and it was kind of scary to travel to NYC. Mayor Giuliani made a speech before the gun went off telling us that we were brave to be there, that we shouldn’t let anyone change our way of life.

We knew that we would go back again for the ten year anniversary but when Norm said that he was ready to go… I wasn’t entered, but neither was he or Kelly. He signed us up for a charity called Team Continuum and donated the money so that we could compete.

The man that was leading our team, Jon, has stage four cancer and he was not only determined to run the race himself but to make sure that the whole team finished the marathon.

My little back problem seemed like a silly excuse not to at least join them part of the way. I had the option of VIP seats beside my husband at the finish line and a catered breakfast and lunch at “Tavern on the Green” watching the super fast elite runners finish or the unknown of figuring out how to just run the first part of a race, drop out and make my way through NYC in my running shorts.

The whole team had a relationship with cancer and they were all there for a reason. In a text message to me afterwards Norm said “that was almost a religious experience.”

Norm, Kelly and I held hands on Staten Island as we prepared to cross the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. I had a pack around my waist with my camera, $100, a cell phone and American Express card, ready to be a drop out. The gun went off and we were serenaded by the song “New York, New York” playing on the load speakers. We all sang along and ran across the 2 km bridge with 45,000 athletes of all shapes and sizes.

At the start line anything is possible, anything. People with cancer can compete and complete. Survivors can prove to themselves that they can do it and people like me can begin and then stop.

I was looking at the marathon from a different angle than I ever have, traveling further back in the pack than I was used to. A man stopped to walk with me around mile six and he told me that he was on my team (Continuum) and that he had melanoma. He thanked me for raising money for cancer and he told me that I might be the reason that he survived. He ran off and left me in tears.

A young lady started walking beside me. She confided that she was worried that she had been sick on the bridge and that she felt nauseous. I reassured her that I knew lots of people that vomit continuously and finish marathons. She seemed relieved and suddenly optimistic. She gave me a hug and set into her pace.

Jon was behind me so I texted him as I knew that he would eventually catch up to me as my run turned into a walk and the limping started. When a man in a chicken suit passed me I snapped his photo. I found it hard to leave but then a juggler zinged by me and then three ladies who were running in their brightly coloured bras. I giggled and looked over at the first aid station at mile ten. I couldn’t bring myself to saunter over and ask for help so I passed the station and sat on the curb and waited for Jon.

He came over to me with his entourage of two guys and he told me to walk with them for a bit because they were going to have beer and pizza up ahead. “Things are really different back here”, I thought.

They went ahead for the beer and pizza – in a marathon? I thought that he was kidding but there were three of his friends at the side of the road with a box of pizza and cups of beer. Perfect, I thought to myself, “this is where I stop”. Jon told the three guys… “meet us at mile 16 and take Katie to the finish line.”

Then I became Rose Ruiz, the woman who in 1980 took the subway in the middle of the Boston marathon and then crossed the finish line to win. She was also reported to have cheated in the NYC marathon qualifying race as well. I was careful to take my number and chip off before I got anywhere near there. The three guys helped me navigate the subway to see my friends finish.

My husband had been sitting next to Sandra Bullock and her entourage. Did I miss out on some star gazing to start and then drop out of a race? I met some blazing stars in the first ten miles of the New York City marathon. I may have DNF’d (Did not finish) this race but I am DNF (Definitely not Finished).

Relentless Pursuit

The Relentless pursuit of … Physical Health

Simon Whitfield has recently said that “the relentless pursuit of excellence” is a worthy goal.  I love the word relentless and it was how I felt about my pursuit to get to Kona Ironman World Championships these last 2 years, 3 Ironman, 2 half Ironman’s and two marathons later.  Now towards the end of the summer of 2011 I’m relentlessly pursuing health and healing for my injured lower back.  A real change of pace for me as this summer I have basically been doing nothing except strengthening exercises, a little walking and very little swimming. I can’t even water-ski!

My husband calls this time, recovery time, a part of my journey.  Time to take a break, regroup and focus on other endeavors for a while.  My last Ironman in Houston brought me closer and there are some positives to take from the race.  My swim and particularly my bike ride went really well.  My back didn’t hold out for the run.  As soon as I got off the bike I knew I was cooked (yes it was hot there but that wasn’t the problem). I couldn’t move my legs properly, had a little limp happening with a weak left leg from my herniated disk pressing on a nerve. I knew I was in for a rough run but as I was somewhat expecting this and I had already planned that I would finish this race no matter what.

I decided to just try to enjoy the atmosphere of this Inaugural Texas Ironman.  People were cheering, “you go girl” and “Y’all are doing so well!” Lots of high fives and fun along the way.  The heat was an incredible 90 degrees with 90 percent humidity. That is crazy hot and living in Calgary it was pretty new to me.

Next scheduled Ironman is NOT Ironman Canada!  I am registered for Coeur D’Alene next June but this is subject to cancellation if my back needs just a little more time.  I want to do this till I’m eighty so like in the Ironman race itself pacing is everything and pacing my physical health over a lifetime is important too.  A friend of mine recently wrote when I mentioned that due to my injury I wouldn’t be joining them for a bike ride on a beautiful day … “Good girl Katie, short term for long term”.

This summer I have been hanging out at our cottage in Ontario with my family and tons of visitors, driving the boat for water sports and cooking meals on the BBQ. It’s kind of nice not to have to go out for eight-hour training days!  Stay tuned for the couch potato getting back into shape after summer cottage fun at Camp McLean!

“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”  ~John Wooden

Ironman 70.3 Oceanside California April 2, 2011

The very cool things about doing this race…

Overcoming huge ocean swim fear of cold water, creatures, crowds and a long sleeve wetsuit to complete the swim

Watching the two eventual winners Andy Potts and Miranda Carfrae come out of the water just before my swim start time.

Seeing a fellow Calgarian and a friend from my cycling class at the Talisman out on the bike course, and then finding out that he won his age category 70-75 yrs old to qualify for Kona.

Running along the ocean with tons of crowd support.

Having family there cheering with one of the guys I was running with telling me how great it was that my 14 yr old son was running along beside me so excited.

Having a cup of Sprite for the first time at the end of the run. Best drink I ever tasted!

Dancing to great music at the start line in my wetsuit with the other ladies in my age category all wearing wetsuits and purple bathing caps.

Having a marine yell at me to “give’er a little hell” when I approached the toughest hill on the bike course which takes place in the Marine Corps base, Camp Pendleton’s (125,547 acres) in Oceanside, California.

Finding out that swimming in 62 degree water isn’t bad at all – with a wetsuit

It’s All Relative

Running in the winter never used to appeal to me. It seemed silly getting all bundled up – getting hot, getting cold. I thought it was better just to quit, be a couch potato, ski and pick up running again in the spring. Since getting a little more serious about competing though this is not an option.

I have now embraced winter running. I have lots of company for long runs on Sunday and I get a laugh out of how the conditions change from week to week. When you run in -20, feels like -30 you need three layers on your legs or two layers plus a hat stuffed down your pants covering your tummy. Actually you could probably use an extra layer on your butt. For sure you need 4 layers on your top. A balaclava is crucial as there are times where you only want to be able to see and you need all exposed skin covered. When I go out with my running group we look like gaggle of bank robbers with our faces covered, running fast. You can’t talk much because you’re too cold when it is -30. You never stop and you hardly need to drink anything. The objective is to finish… fast. Problem is when your legs start to freeze it is harder to move fast. The good thing is you can’t feel your legs so they don’t hurt when you get tired. The bonus is that your hair and eyelashes can look kind of pretty all frosted with snow! This week we ran in -11 feels like -11. It was balmy! I only needed two layers on the bottom, three layers on top, two gloves and a hat. I felt free and fast! There was a time when I though anything below zero was too cold for running. Clearly, perception of temperature is all relative.

 

 

Freak N’ Fast

Swimming is my weakest link in triathlon and I have been working hard at trying
to get faster.  A few weeks ago I decided to test my progress and I challenged
Jon Bird, one of my swim and cycling coaches to a race of 50 metres off a dive.
Jon is a Pro triathlete and one of the fastest Triathlon swimmers in Canada.
My friend Angela set us off and…he beat me by half a length (or more). I told
him I would race him again in a month to see if I could get a little closer.  He
agreed and now I have a new goal, a shorter-term goal than my big race.  Beat
Jon Bird. Ha!

After this race I decided that in order to improve, I would need to pull out
“the cap”.  My daughter’s swim cap that I have been eyeing for weeks trying to
work up the nerve to wear it.  Written across the top on both sides it says
“Freak’N Fast”.  I hadn’t felt worthy of it but I knew that perhaps if I put
those words closer to my brain it just might magically happen.

I warned Jon in his cycling class that I was going to wear the cap in the pool
that day. He nodded and when I arrived at the pool he noted the cap.  I did the
first set and finished first in the group and waited for him to put the next set
on the board. He looked at me surprised that I was already done.  I pointed to
“the cap” and he nodded again.

I completed the day with a set of 100’s and I was much faster than I normally
am. I was “Freak ‘N’ Fast” and I am now going to wear that cap every time.  You
had better “Freak N” watch out in our next race, Jon Bird.

The Level of Effort

Calgary is a cool city for athletic prowess.  Many Olympic and former Olympic athletes live here, a leftover from the Calgary Olympic games in 1988.

The attitude of the city impresses me with many people riding their bikes to and from work summer and winter. Participation in athletic events is high and the facilities that we have here to workout in are top notch.

This is the perfect place for me to live.  There are so many like-minded
individuals it has been easy to pursue my goals. I always find it impressive when I see a person riding their bike in -20c weather.  Ski goggles, balaclava, and they go out in any weather.
I did get a chuckle from this abandoned bike one afternoon when it was -35c.  Clearly even hearty Calgarians have their limits.  Sometimes the climate in this city makes it difficult to persevere.  I always find that the level of effort that goes into triumphing over the ever-changing weather is inspiring.

The Struggle

We wiped the snow away so that my friend Dave could show me what was written
under our feet. He asked that we finish our run underneath the archway that was
above this plaque. He told me that he always made a point of crossing over it,
that he found it inspiring.

Sometimes I wonder why I continue to train and compete fighting injury, fatigue
and time conflicts when I will most likely never actually win the races that I’m
in. This sentence pretty much summed it up for me. I love the struggle.

Joe Finley (1951-2010)

I recently said goodbye to my dear friend Joe Finley. I only knew Joe in the
six years that he had cancer. When I learned that he was creating “Joe’s Team”
I wanted to know him, I wanted to help, so I called him and I got involved.

This man had an impact on me that is difficult to put into words… He lived his
life in such a way that he inspired others to live theirs better. He made me
want to be better.

He created an atmosphere in Joe’s team that helped hundreds of people take a
chance and try their first triathlon and give back by raising money for cancer
research at the same time.

I found it charming the way that he drove by our house one day, stopped his car
when he saw the lemonade stand with the big “Joe’s Team” sign on our front lawn
and sat down behind the table to help the little kids serve.

When my daughter did her first triathlon she put her shoulder out in the swim,
put it back and then insisted that she would finish the race. She learned this
from Joe. Fight hard to finish strong with a smile on your face.

Joe was never one to complain. He spent the last six years of his life making
other peoples lives better when he was sick and enduring perpetual chemo.

I won’t forget the things that he taught me. Joe’s Team will get bigger and it
more people will get involved every single year. Those of us who were touched
by him all have a part to play in that.

www.joesteam.ca

I am an Artist

I am an Artist…I always tell people that anyone can complete a running race, triathlon or

marathon. I truly believe it. I say to them that you just have to set your

mind to it. One of my friends recently told me that the same is true about

painting. Anyone can do it. So I decided to give it a try.

My friend has filled the walls of his home with his incredible paintings. All

different styles but mostly oil based paintings. He said it was really easy

just a few techniques to learn and he would teach us. We took him up on it.　

In the first session we just studied different painting techniques but we didn’t

pick up a brush. For the second session we sat down and began to copy a simple

painting of a field, sky and clouds. We painted the blue of the sky and then

the white of the clouds over top all the while blending the colours together.

Very quickly my painting began to resemble something that my kids do… but not as

good.

Hmmm… as of day two of painting class it looks like yes I can do anything I set

my mind to and yes I can complete a painting. What I forgot to consider was

that it may not actually be any good.

Ironman Canada 2010

Nothing is ever like the first time. This Ironman didn’t have the same sense of heightened drama that my first did in Lake Placid. Kind of like a second year in a relationship. I knew what to expect, I felt comfortable and able to enjoy the day but I am still in love with the sport of triathlon and everything about it.

I began my training for this race almost immediately after Lake Placid 2009. With the support of my family, coach and friends, I was determined to do everything in my power to improve. I swam three times a week instead of once. I cycled ten times as much. I went to a one week triathlon camp in Florida, ran two marathons one half marathon, half marathon trail race and did my first ever swim race. I took an extra swim lesson in open water with my coach. I cycled the Ironman course with four cycling Olympians. I invested in a Powertap to help me measure my watts and cycle at an even pace. I kept on with my coach, harassed him almost daily and paid him for a whole year instead of the three months the last time.

I studied mental preparation and I hung out with successful pro triathletes and tried to uncover all their secrets. I did a half Ironman and a long course triathlon. I saw a nutritionist, got help from a chiropractor and had nutritional shakes after my workouts with protein powder and glutamin. I bored my husband, my children and all my friends with my obsession to improve. I became more intimate with my bike and learned how to take it apart and put it together. After getting a flat in a race I learned how to change that #!@ tire once and for all. I did strength training twice a week and learned how to finally do a chin up.

I thought we had covered everything and we came close. I swam well, cycled well but my run still needs some work. I made it halfway to my goal of improving my time over last year by an hour and I had a series of PB’s in all of those races through the year.

I signed up for the California 70.3 in April and the Ironman Texas on May 21st to go after those thirty minutes. This year my focus is to conserve my energy, do fewer running races (maybe none), work on my cycling and stop talking about triathlons all the time!