I was talking to a friend of mine who was down in Boston watching her husband run the marathon last week and it got me thinking about the qualifying times needed to run that race. So I ventured to the website to see what I would have to do if I ever wanted to do the famous Boston Marathon. 

The good news:  I am at the lower end of my age bracket (35-39) 

The bad news:  The qualifying time for that age bracket is 3:15.  3:15 for a 42.2km run!  That’s a 4 min 37sec km!  I could probably do one km at that pace but 42? C’mon!  If I were to think about my best ½ marathon time (1:51:53) and make the assumption that I would be able to continue the pace for another 21.1km I would come in at 3:43:46.  That’s a smoking 5:18km and a fair ways from 4:37!  Hmmm something tells me that my current training regime of running 3-4 times a week, drinking more than the occasional pint and eating whatever I can is not going to help cut the required 41 seconds per km off my pace. 

So all I need to do is increase my training, cut out beer and cut down on eating………easy right?  Not when the NHL playoffs are on and my family is still 5 hours away giving me more freedom to head to the pub to watch a game or two! 

So at this point what do I have to do to qualify for the famous Boston Marathon?

Answer: strap rockets to my feet.

Looks like 4 consecutive weeks of 70km of running have caught up with me as I’m dealing with a wonky ankle just 26 days to go before the Ottawa marathon. While I can still run on it, I’m feeling a few things I shouldn’t be feeling…..so today I headed to my friendly neighbourhood physiotherapist.

A good physiotherapist is worth his/her weight in gold. This afternoon I started with ultrasound and ended up with acupuncture, and had pretty much everything else in between. So far, so good. We’ll see what the next run brings but I’m confident that by cutting my mileage ( it’s close to taper time anyways ) and letting my physio guy do his magic that I’ll be ready for my 9th Ottawa marathon on May 24th.

The Flora London Marathon as seen through my  holiday snaps:

 You can see the newly built Globe Theatre on the left of the picture.  It was on my list of things to see while in London.  I decided going for a run in Kensington Palace Park, Hyde Park and a bit of Green Park was a better use of my time.

The London Eye just to the left of the picture.  If I had taken the ride, I could have watched the runner’s of London from a really cool angle.  Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, I am terrified of heights.  You can only imagine how interesting that made things on a plane at 33,000 feet!

Tower Hill where Henry VIII’s second wife Anne Bolynne was executed.  I was thrilled to see people running along the walkway near the Thames river!  I don’t think I could get bored running past sights like these.

There you go, just a little tast of the sights along the Flora London Marathon that took place on April 26, 2009. 

I’m waiting for my internal clock to reset itself.  It should make my first day back running at the Runner’s Den tomorrow a bit interesting.

Dorothy really got it right when she said …”there’s no place like home.” 

One really long airplane ride later, I am sitting at my own computer waiting for it to work properly and trying hard not to fall asleep.  Boy would that ever make for an interesting blog. 

I have dispensed the gifts decided and purchased with tender loving care.

I could hardly contain myself when I got to the airport and the Gazelle was waiting for me on the other side of the wall.  And my dad was there too! 

I had bought the Gazelle a very special gift.  One that caused me to giggle slightly when I thought of it.  No, it wasn’t anything nasty.  What is it you are asking yourself.  Why it is an official Flora London Marathon technical shirt.

Oh and let’s not forget the “special” socks.  I thought they were special because they had an emblem on them.  They are special because they are dual socks.

The Gazelle grinned a silly grin when he opened his gift.  Or pressie as my new English friends say.  And said  Wow, I have the best, most unique gift of everyone! 

I can’t imagine there will be a huge number of other people wearing a lovely blue and neon yellow running shirt.  Or special socks.

And when I get this photo problem sorted out.  I’ll make sure to post a picture of it.  In the meantime, keep an eye out for a shirt unlike any other you’ve seen.  It might be the Gazelle!

I think I may have had another breakthrough!!   Today I ran the furthest I have since I went to Mexico and ran in salt water soaked shoes on the beach….ahh the beach. 🙂

Well today wasn’t nearly as nice and wasn’t quite as far but it was good and way better than the treadmill runs I had out east!

I returned from my trip to Halifax and Moncton on Friday and lucky me brought home a head cold.  I spent Saturday running some errands and doing my taxes and decided to pass on the run to give my head a little time to clear. But I made a commitment to get out first thing Sunday morning and head out.  The day itself was pretty unspectacular but I figured I would go for about 7km. 

I started out, felt great and after about 3.5km I reached my turn around point and decided that I felt good enough to continue and do a loop instead of an out and back route.  It all felt great until I turned the corner at 4.5 km and the wind decided to switch direction and hit me square in the face!  Or was that because I switched direction?  🙂

Anyway, I pushed forward, went past some trees that were knocked over by the nasty storm we had last night and through a 1km section that smelled like Pepe Le Pew had met his demise.  Always nice to be breathing extra heavy when you run by something like that!  After I passed the skunk smell the pain kicked in.  But it was a good pain.  It was the pain that I recognized from training for the half marathon the past 5 years.  The pain you get in your hip flexors when you go further than you have before in your training.  Ahh I thought this is what I have to look forward to for the next 5 months or so every Sunday. 🙂

So I finished the run with that pain in my hips flexor and feeling of accomplishment knowing that it meant I was actually training!  Total distance for the day: 9.5km! 
Again a little more that the 10% increase that is recommended but hey when it feels good you have to go for it.  Pepe Le Pew would!

As well as getting myself prepared for the Ottawa Marathon I’m also coaching over 100 elementary school children in their own running journey……the Ottawa Kids Marathon. This event, which is run on the Sunday morning of race weekend an hour after the start of the marathon, sees the school kids put in 41 ( or more) kilometres of training prior to race day. The training can take the form of running or any other physical activity like biking, swimming, soccer etc where 1/2 hour of physical activity will equal a kilometre. We’ve been doing a lot of our training at school with the kids running a kilometre at a time during the lunch recess.

On race day the kids run the final 1.2 kilometres to make a total marathon distance of 42.2 kilometres. The kids get to cross the same finish line downtown that the adult runners do and they receive a smaller version of the adult marathon medal! Great incentive for the young runners! Last year my elementary school had over 100 students cross the finish line and we are on track to do the same thing for this year’s race.

My own running journey this spring is taking me to the same place I’ve been for the last 8 years….the start line of the Ottawa Marathon. This year’s edition is slated for Sunday, May 24th. While it’s exciting to race out of town at a major marathon like Boston or New York, there is something very comfortable about running your hometown race. Sleep in your own bed, eat your food, leisurely trip to the start line….those are just some of the benefits of running your hometown race.

Seeing so many familiar faces (runners and spectators) on the race course gives you that little extra push you need when pain and doubt start to creep up on you. It also helps to know the twists and turns of your local race course……I’ve run along the Rideau Canal so many times that I know the race course like the back of my hand. Dow’s Lake, Frank Clair Stadium (before the southside stands were demolished!), the Pretoria Bridge…..all familiar race landmarks that tell me I’m gettin’ closer to the finish!

There is nothing like having a bunch of your friends run the Boston Marathon to get you motivated to go out and do a tough run. On Monday, April 20th, several of my regular running buddies made the 42.2 kilometre trek from Hopkington, Mass., to Boylston Street in Boston, where the finish line is located. Two of them even managed to go under 3 hours and the rest all requalified on the course, which is not easy to do.

I followed them online back here in Ottawa, making mental notes as each 5km split came up on the screen. “Wow, he’s off to a tremendous start….I wonder if he can hold that pace for the entire race?” “She ran what for the first half?? By watching the times come across the screen I could tell when they were hammering, when they were suffering, and knew that they would have the exhausted/triumphant feeling that comes when you cross the finish line at the end of any marathon, or even any race.

Even though I’ve done Boston twice ( ’06 and ’07), following my friends’ race journey made me think…” I gotta get back there someday!” Like I said, having fast friends is a great motivator!

Note to self:  Don’t have similar expereince with security on way back home as on way here!

I have to admit I am new to this whole travelling thing.  The furthest I’ve gone away from home is to Cape Breton.  And since that is like my second home, I didn’t have any moments of panic.

The whole customs search thing was different for me.  As well as the passport thing.  And flying for seven hours?  Don’t even get me started.

So when I landed at Gatwick airport, I was a little unprepared for what was going to happen.  I knew I had to go and collect my bags.  I had to walk for miles to get to the almost out door.

And then it happened.  There was the little man.  With a big sign above him that said Declarations.

I’m sure that it meant me and the guilty secret I’ve been carrying around forever. 

I don’t know how to work out splits when it comes to my running time.  I can hear your gasps of shock and horror.  I am so saddened.

Determined to enter this country with a clear conscience.  I march over to the declaration man.  I look him straight in the eye and I say.

“I have something to declare.  Something which once I declare to you will make my trip here more enjoyable.”  Deep breath.  “I can’t do running splits.”

There I’ve declared it.  I feel so much lighter.  So much better.

With a confused look, he says to me.  “That’s really nice Lovey.  I can’t either.  But do you have anything important to declare?”

It was pretty important to me.  But I guess not.