First off, I would like to apologize in advance to all the people planning to run the half or full marathon at Ottawa Race Weekend this year.  I have plenty of evidence to suggest I have broken my “race weather curse” – the one where miserably hot weather seems to follow me to races – but I promise to do plenty of interpretive dances and sacrifices to the weather gods, just in case.

Now that that’s out of the way, you’ve probably guessed that I will indeed be making the trek to Ottawa for Race Weekend again this year.  I acknowledge that my experience is limited, but I think this has to be my favourite event of the year.  I have never been anywhere else where the whole city is engulfed in a giant running party for a whole weekend.

But this year, it’s even more exciting because (drum roll please…) I joined the Pace Team.  That’s right, I am running the half marathon with rabbit ears.  For those who may not know what that means, many races have a team of people, often known as pacers, pace rabbits, or my favourite, pace bunnies, who run the race with the goal of finishing in a specific time.  These people carry signs and wear rabbit ears to let you know their time, and if there’s a bunny with your goal time, you can just stick with him or her to stay on pace.  Another advantage to sticking with a bunny is that you will be surrounded by a group of runners with similar goals, and you can all keep each other motivated.

While it is true that I am very excited (very very!), I am also a little nervous.  I’ve paced myself loads of times, of course, and would say I am fairly good – once I get into a rhythm I tend to be like a metronome.  However, I have never had anyone counting on my metronomic ability before.  So if anyone reading this has any rabbit experience, I would love to hear from you!  Please feel obligated free to leave your tips and advice in the comments below!

I read this super blog post about fear and excuses today.  You really have to read it, but the gist of the beginning is that the author, James Chartrand, was afraid of flying, and despite making a big show of wanting to overcome the fear, he would make all kinds of excuses rather than actually work on it.

I totally do that.  I would be willing to bet that a LOT of people do that, if not most.  But I would take it one step further: people don’t just make excuses to avoid facing their fears – I think that in some cases, people make excuses for not doing things without even realizing that they are afraid.

Take me for example.  I wasn’t a runner.  Other people ran, and they were amazing, but I couldn’t run!

That is, until I did.

So where did that leave me?  I honestly believed it when I told myself that I couldn’t run – as if it was a physical impossibility, that I would somehow violate the laws of physics if I tried.  So when I did it, I had to face the truth: I was afraid!  Afraid I would give up, afraid of what people would think of me for trying.

While knowing I was afraid didn’t magically cause the fear to evaporate, it sure helped – the amusing irony about fear is that the simplest way to overcome it is to do the thing you’re afraid of.  Then you have proof that there is no basis for your fear, and it is never as bad in hindsight.

I am sure you have seen non-runners go through this – they’re chirping about how they really need to exercise but would never run because they can’t or would get bored or whatever – but maybe they’re being loud about it because it’s something they really want to try.  Come to think of it, I have just decided that one of these times, when I hear someone who sounds like she might just be this person, I am going to invite her to run with me.  In fact, if she says no, I might even come right out and ask, “Why? What are you afraid of?”

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you probably know that, in the right conditions, I am a fan of winter running.  In the cold, you can always add another layer, as opposed to extreme heat where you can only peel off so much.

But that being said, adding all those extra layers does make it more complicated.  The smirk on my husband’s face as he leaned on the wall and sipped his coffee told me he found it quite comical watching my friend and I get ready for our long run on Saturday morning.  Even though I was dressed (2 layers on the bottom, wool socks, short sleeve on top) by the time she arrived, there was still so much to put on:  long sleeve (too soon and I’d overheat!); vest; neck warmer; jacket; watch (over my jacket sleeve so I could still see it); hat; shoes + cleats; water belt (with warm water to try to delay the freezing); and mitts.  It is such a production – by the time we were ready to go I think we’d both cracked a sweat.

Then there’s the laundry factor – in the summer I am always looking for other delicates to fill the load when I wash my gear, but in the winter, I can darned near fill a load in one run.

Still, as much as I love those first few warmer runs where it only takes 10 seconds to get ready, I am really not complaining.  Saturday was one of those perfect days where it was only a little bit windy, the sun was shining and the snow was sparkling rather than falling from a cloudless sky.  Once we were warmed up, we were really quite comfortable, which is more than I can say for some of our runs in August!

Happy New Year, and cheers to you, iRun Nation!

May your 2011 be a fabulous year of injury-free running and endless possibilities.  May you inspire someone, be inspired, and meet many new runners.  May you achieve your goals, but always set new ones so you have something to aspire to.

The world is at your feet – go run it!

Recent changes to my schedule have given me the opportunity to wait until daylight to get my morning run in.  It’s nice because I am getting a bit more vitamin D and feeling a little less like a mole.

Of course being out later in the morning takes a little bit of the fun out of running in the snow because I don’t get to make the first set of tracks anymore (or even the second set on those days where I do a double loop of the block).  However, it does add a different dimension of fun in that I can analyse the tracks of those who’ve been before.

For example, a set of paw prints just barely on the outside of a long groove can only be the feet and belly of Werner, the chubby dachshund that lives around the corner from me – and the set of boot prints beside tells me he wasn’t AWOL.  Footprints that tell me someone is walking tend to have a scuff leading into the heel print when the snow is deep enough for Werner’s belly to leave a groove, yet shallow enough that Werner can still see where he’s going.

Runner footprints, in contrast, are a nice, crisp shoe print, perfectly defined – unless it is that light, poufy snow that blows out as your foot makes contact – then runner footprints tend to look more like a cross section of a light bulb.  Most of the time you can even tell whether the runner was wearing Yak Traks.

Of course, all of this fun only lasts until you encounter the sidewalk plough.  Not that I am complaining!  I am just not accustomed to seeing it, given that I used to be long done my run before it was out and about.   Sure, it interferes with my studies to become a master tracker, but hey, how much demand is there for a master tracker of dachshunds, anyway?

Well, it’s one month until Christmas and I’m feeling festive!  Before the humbugs out there raise a chorus, let me just say I have simplified the season a lot in the last few years and really do enjoy it.  However, shopping for the perfect gift for a loved one can still be stressful when your greatest desire is to see the smile that says “I love this!” rather than the one that says “you shouldn’t have! Really!”

One need only Google “gifts for runners” to get tons of ideas – but some are better than others.  So in the interest of helping you to delight your loved one and not waste money, here are some Dos and Don’ts of gift giving.  These ideas are really to help people with good intentions but little knowledge – and let’s face it, I don’ t know your runner, so feel free to deviate if you know what you’re doing!

Do

Get gift cards: they’re the gift that gives twice! First you’re excited to get a gift card, then you’re excited about picking out your gift!

Get the facts. Some stores, like The Running Works in Guelph, Ontario, provide little “wish lists” that your runner can fill out and stick on the fridge for you – they have all the information you need to make sure you get the correct item.   If your runner’s favourite store doesn’t have these, get him or her to write down exact style names, sizes and colours – and hey, more ideas are better, so he or she is still surprised!

Get thoughtful.  Runners hurt sometimes – massage gift certificates or self massagers like The Stick show you care.  Reusable ice packs make good stocking stuffers!

Show you care.  Reflective vests, blinking lights and other such items show you want your runner to be seen in the dark!  Shoe cleats such as YakTrax show you don’t want her to break any bones or split her head open.

Try books.  If your runner is a book worm, there are a lot of great books out there that she might enjoy.  Check out the iRun, iRead Book Club for some ideas!

Offer babysitting.  Please note, this is not for spouses of runners – when you’re at home with the kids so your spouse can run, this is called “parenting.”  But if your runner happens to be your sibling, child, niece, nephew or friend, offering to babysit and give your runner a guilt-free long run could be the best gift in the world.

Get socks. Runners love socks.  This is one area where you can get some advice from a running store and generally not go wrong!

Don’t

Get shoes. Unless you know the exact make, model and size of running shoe your runner loves, don’t ever try to buy shoes.  If you must buy shoes, try to go to the store where your runner got his last pair – the store might be able to look up what he got.

The same goes for tights, sports bras, most other clothing and Superfeet.  Even with electronics, make sure you know what you’re doing – you wouldn’t want to drop $300 on a fancy GPS only to find out your runner really wanted the one with the heart rate monitor instead.

I could go on and on, but how about a little help?  If you have your eye on something, have ever received something that made your day, or have some advice for gift givers, please share in the comments below!  Every little bit helps!