Well howdy. I’m Diane Chesla and I co-direct the Niagara Falls International Marathon (NFIM) alongside my husband Henri Ragetlie. My foray into running happened in grade 6 when I trained super hard for my school’s annual 5k only to pass out right before the finish. That was my first taste for massive disappointment in sports. Being young and naive, I also thought passing out was beyond cool and that maybe there were secret powers my mind held that could help me win the next race.
From that point on I never stopped trying to tap into the strength of my mind. Ya, I know, my parents were worried too & began to roll their eyes when I talked incessantly about the Olympics. I never quite made the Olympics, but I did go onto study Peak Performance in my Masters. I dove right in and explored all these neat psychological theories on mental attributes of succeeding in sport in addition to some of the lesser known ones tied to Eastern philosophy.
I worked with a few athletes in sport psychology after my studies, but I had this euphoric vision one day while running the Niagara Ultra 50k. And that was to create an ultra race on trails, make it super tough, but create this community of inclusion where all these like-minded individuals supported each other. I still reminisce with friends I made in the days of “dirty girls 24/48 hour trail race.” That race lasted 10 years. In those years I started a road race and eventually moved onto where I am today—with NFIM.
Along the way I’ve learned that event production is bloody hard. I can be a logistics pro, but there are SO many elements that are completely out of my control. And patience is one of my worst virtues, but I’ve learned that there are options for “getting things done.” Like, our marathon starts in Buffalo and runners return to Canada via the Peace Bridge. We bus people out to Buffalo from Canada early on race morning. Well, guess what? One year at 8 p.m. on the Saturday night I learned that we had no buses coming for everyone the next morning. And there was no answer at the bus company in Buffalo late on a Saturday night.
Well, something magical happened. I told only my husband what was unfolding and said I would take care of it. I was driving at the time so pulled over on the shoulder of the highway and began making phone calls. I was able to secure buses for the next morning to arrive at the scheduled time in Canada to pick up runners. No one knew of the massive glitch and no one lost an eye or shed a tear.
Why am I telling you this story? From my personal interest and studies in the strength of the mind, I noticed something. We can use all these mental techniques to perform at our best in sport, but sport makes up only a small percentage of our time on this planet. We can apply these techniques to our personal life and we can certainly be über successful, but it’s not easy and the truth is that life presents real challenges involving emotional pain, setbacks and working with others with different personalities and goals.
The challenge is learning how to succeed in sport and then applying these lessons to our own life so that whatever we choose to do, and however far we choose to reach, we are happy and others around us are also happy. In my series of articles for iRun, I’m going to be exploring lessons learned from running & how we can apply these to our everyday life. Stay tuned and I hope to inspire readers to examine their own approach—to running and life.
We’re a unique type—lovers of coffee, running, and travelling for races. We enjoy our lifestyle and don’t mind people asking us questions about why we do what we do. We take pleasure in scrolling through Strava just as much, if not more, than any other social media platform. And we don’t mind leaving parties early or being the first in our household to go to bed. Because, when our head hits the pillow and we’re drifting off to sleep, we’re all enjoying thinking about the same thing: the coffee we’ll drink in the morning before our run in preparation for our next race. Am I right?
Toronto, Ontario
Competing in the December Tannenbaum 10 km (2014,15,17,18,19) has always been very fun with a lot of familiar faces. I’m usually just returning to training, after taking some downtime post fall marathon, so I rarely have specific goal times. The Christmas spirit is in the air and the running community is happy to be together out along the beachfront. We usually start decorating for the season at home so I’m happy to pull this mug from the box amongst other holiday items.
Orlando, Florida, USA
After recovering from my fractured femur in 2014, I was succeeding in what it would take to make the standard for the 2016 Olympics. In order to get a solid block of peak training in March for my April marathon, I travelled south to escape our Ontario winter. For the first ten days I stayed and trained in Houston, Texas with my good friend Mary Davies. As she was also preparing for a spring marathon, our plan lined up well for joint workouts, easy and long runs. From there I travelled to Florida where I met up with my family for continued warm weather training and a Disney vacation. I would get up early to complete my run while my husband and kids would eat breakfast and pack lunches for the day. After a quick shower and eating, we’d head to the amusement park for the day and repeat it again the next day. Looking back, when our kids were ages 4, 7 and 9, I don’t know how I had the energy to keep up. But I did. And I have the mug to show for it. I went on to run 2:29:38 at the 2015 Rotterdam Marathon, which made me the first woman in 20 years to qualify for the Olympic Games.
Edmonton, Alberta
This mug is my favourite of all. I love the shape, its solid structure, and the memory of what I overcame after I purchased it. In 2015 I was in great shape and training for the October Toronto Waterfront Marathon. A few days before travelling to Edmonton to race the half marathon, I stepped on a rock and injured my foot. After flying all the way to Edmonton, my pre race test run revealed that I definitely should not even start the race. Mary Davies was my roommate, who also travelled for the race, and I was so grateful for her friendship. She helped me during a very difficult time. I bought this mug at the airport before my long, solo, and teary trip back home, where the next day I discovered that I had broken a bone in my foot, and my season would be over.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
I have several items to remind me of my incredible experience running for Canada at the 2016 Olympic Games. I enjoyed my time in the Olympic Village, was very pleased with how I worked my way from about 70th to 35th place in the race, and was full of emotion when I celebrated with my family and coach just after crossing the finish line. I don’t think anything will ever top that moment.
Iten, Kenya
For the month of March in 2017, I completed my first (and only) stint of training at altitude. Other than the deep sadness I initially felt when leaving my family, I absolutely loved everything about this trip. The local people, facility, other athletes with whom I ran and ate, the cuisine, culture, and training made for one of the best experiences of my life. I feel like a small part of my heart remains in Kenya and I have the mugs to take me there.
London, England
After my very productive month of altitude training in Kenya, I was fit and in fine form to run a personal best at the 2017 London Marathon. It was a perfect day for racing—ideal temperatures without wind, and a pace group within my goal time. Around the 10 km mark I started to feel unwell and dropped off the pack, only to then realize that my stomach would be problematic for the remaining 30+ km. I finished the race and managed to win the masters division but to this day it still seems like the longest marathon I’ve ever done. I decided to make the best of my remaining time in London, doing some sightseeing and shopping, before making the trip back home.
New York City, USA
I was fortunate to compete in all three New York City bucket list races—the Half Marathon (2014), Mini 10 km (2018), and Marathon (2021). Visiting the M & M’s store has always been a must-do with every trip, which I enjoyed once with my sister and once with my husband. My most memorable moment in New York City was likely in 2018 when I sat on a panel with Des Linden and Sarah Sellers after our podium finish at the Boston Marathon.
Over the years I’ve collected a few mugs while away for training and racing. For each mug there’s something meaningful behind it. And when I drink from a particular mug, that memory reminds me of who I’ve become and how it’s contributed to my story. There’s a lot more racing, and mug collecting, to come, stay tuned.
A shoe offers support, fundamentally. Despite the barefoot rage and the Born to Run ethos, a good running sneaker is there to help you achieve your goals: withstand distances, achieve speed. Further into our journeys, as our form breaks down and exhaustion takes over, the shoe can be the only thing that keeps you from turning an ankle or, worse, not finishing the race. You want a shoe you can depend on.
The Ride 15 from Saucony is an iconic piece of footwear. For a brand that launched in 1898, the Ride has become its cornerstone: synonymous with neutral training, stability, trustworthiness, value, and efficiency. Created to fill a gap in the market, the Ride is smooth, practically perfect for anyone, fool-proof, and the proper gateway drug for someone getting curious about our sport.
So what happens when a shoe like that meets modern innovation? It’s the Ride 15, which takes the great lines and assets of a legacy model and updates it with the bells and whistles of cutting-edge tech. The result is the comfort of an everyday trainer gifted with the lightweight, forefoot flexibility of a racing shoe.
First, the details: the Ride 15 has an 8mm drop and weighs 7.8oz in women’s, 8.8oz in men’s. (About an ounce more than the Alphafly Next% from Nike, and a hundred dollars cheaper and lasts about an extra six months). At BlackToe Running in Toronto, the Ride 15 costs $170, and it looks good. Ogling the new model, in Acid Lime, I couldn’t help thinking it looked like a purring Corvette. The foam employed is called PWRRUN, and while that name won’t mean much—all the shoe brands have foams titled with capital letters and lacking in vowels—just know that it’s what makes the feel of the shoe on the road almost cloud-like: the sensation is soft, plush, and cushioned, and the bounce of the street feels good. You want a sneaker that you can wear straight out of the box and the Ride 15, for me, is it.
Testing the shoe on a long run, perhaps a bit out of shape or else just tired and old, the Ride 15 felt almost like a saviour, a life raft. I have experience in marathon races and know how close I’ve come to twisting my ankle when, exhausted, my stride falls apart and it takes everything I have just to remain upright. This run in the Ride 15 wasn’t quite at that level (thankfully it was a straight 36K and didn’t involve strides), but I was able to appreciate my coverage. Protection. The shoe is light but sturdy. It feels significant without weighing you down. There’s also a mesh upper and a sewn-in tongue, which are just little modern touches that improves fit and feel from earlier Ride iterations, and make the comfortable shoe also fast.
The last thing to consider, when pondering your next shoe, is stack height. Currently there almost seems to be a competition to turn running shoes into platform boots. HOKA has been ahead of the curve on this, but ON has followed suit, and Adidas, too. These shoes almost look like Kiss boots, and I’m yet to be convinced of their efficacy, outside of making you seem taller than your running peers. I like the stack height of the Ride 15: again, it’s ample, without being over the top. You could wear your running shoes to the grocery store without attracting curious stares.
In conclusion, Saucony is a terrific shoe brand, timeless, and their Endorphin Pro 2 helped me achieve my most significant race time (which I won’t mention here but also never will achieve again). Like the Pegasus from Nike or the Kayano from ASICS, the Ride is a comfortable, iconic staple of legions of runners’ closets and it’s for good reason the shoes endure over time. They’re affordable, indestructible, and stable—a shoe almost any runner will like.
Clap, clap, clap. The crowd began to simmer. As UNB’s Lexie Shannon made her way down the triple jump runway, the clapping increased to a crescendo, culminating in an explosive hop, skip and jump.
At this point, Shannon was attempting her final jump, after what UNB REDS head coach called “Lexie’s best series.” Still, Shannon, who had been leading the whole competition, was now trailing after her opponent from the University of Toronto, Kristen Shultz by four centimetres.
As Shannon made impact with the sand, the building hushed, knowing this moment would determine the gold medalist. It was going to be close. And as the final measurement was announced, the crowd erupted with the UNB REDS winning their first ever U SPORT gold medal, all while hosting the U SPORTS Track and Field Championships.
This was just one of the many climactic moments witnessed by track and field fans who attended the U SPORTS Track and Field Championships in Saint John, New Brunswick.
After the cancellation of the 2021 event due to COVID-19, the energy at the new Irving Oil Fieldhouse was palpable. Thousands of student athletes, coaches and spectators descended on the city, looking to break records, win medals and bring pride to their universities. In addition to a great atmosphere the event was projected to bring over $2-million in economic impact for the region.
Aside from Lexie Shannon’s gold medal in the triple jump, the bulk of the drama came on the track. Perhaps the best of these events was the men’s 1500, where Laval’s Jean-Simon Deganges (JSD) won a dramatic sprint finish over Guelph’s Alec Purnell and Calgary’s Eric Lutz in a relatively tactical but explosive race. UNB’s Jared Howse, a rookie, pronounced himself as one to watch with a 6th place finish.
That wasn’t JSD’s only medal of the competition, as he and teammate Thomas Fafard won gold and silver in the men’s 3K, with Fafard narrowly taking the win.
Western’s Kate Current was dominant over the weekend, claiming double gold. In the 3K, she defeated the Laval duo of Jessy Lacourse and Catherine Beachemin on the last lap with an explosive kick. In the 1500, she kicked away again, this time beating Toronto’s Jazz Shukla and Windsor’s Sydney Pattison in a sprint finish.
In the men’s 1K, U SPORTS male rookie of the year, Eric Lutz won by seven tenths of a second in a four-man sprint, narrowly edging out fellow medalists Alec Purnell of Guelph and Rohan Nowbotsing of Toronto. JSD also featured in this race, running only about two seconds faster than his last K in the 3,000m.
A Great Day at the Track
The women’s 1K had an equally close result, this time with Guelph’s Sadie-Jane Hickson defeating Jazz Shukla by less than one-tenth of a second. Sydney Pattison took third.
Moving down in distance to the women’s 600m, Sadie-Jane Hickson won her second individual gold medal of the weekend. She defeated Grace Konrad of Trinity Western and Avery Pearson of Saskatchewan. The highest seed, uOttawa’s Sydney Smith, was denied a podium spot by four-one hundreths of a second.
The men’s race was equally dramatic with defending champion Vaughn Taylor of Windsor taking the race out supremely hard, but fading to fourth. Marcus Nandlal of UofT took the win, followed by Windsor’s Ben Tilson and Michael Anku.
In the 300m, Zoe Sherar took the win on the women’s side. Defeating Trinity Western’s Grace Konrad and Carelton’s Alexandra Telford. Whereas on the men’s side, Karson Lehner upset Austin Cole – a member of Canada’s mixed 4×400 relay squad – to take the win. UofT’s Emmett Bravakis took third.
Jacqueline Madogo of Guelph stormed away from the field in the women’s 60m, running 7.30 for the victory. She was followed by Gracie Anderson of Saskatchewan who ran 7.43 and Audrey Leduc from Laval who rounded out the podium running 7.44.
The men’s race was won by Nigerian Olympian, Usheoritse Itsekiri who ran 6.66. Itsekiri made the semi-final in the Tokyo Games for the 100m. He was followed by Immanuel Onyemah from Waterloo in 6.74 and Jordan Soufi from Manitoba who ran 6.77.
The women’s 60m hurdles was won by Catharina Kluyts of Alberta, followed by Tyra Boug of Guelph. Timi Adelugba of Saskatchewan was third.
Another big upset came in the form of the men’s 60m hurdles, where Guelph’s Craig Thorne was beaten by one-one hundredth of a second by Western’s Nathaniel Mechler. They were followed by David Adeleye of UofT.
Both the multi events also provided drama. The first indication of this was the men’s high jump—within the heptathlon—with Noah Dommasch (Guelph) and Max Speiser (Manitoba) dueling. After making jump after jump, it was Dommasch who prevailed over the 1.96 barrier and once again over 1.99, setting the U SPORT record for the event.
The jump also allowed Dommasch to close the gap on the Speiser who lead the event after Day 1 (and four of seven events). Teammates Masson Altrogge and Kieran Johnston of Saskatchewan were also within 25 points of the leader.
In the end it was Kieran Johnston taking the win thanks, in part, to his large scores in the 60m hurdles and the 1000m.
RAMS’ athlete Dallyssa Huggins won the women’s pentathlon who ran a 2:20 800 to overtake the leaders. Hannah Blair from Waterloo was second with Lorena Heubach from Dalhousie rounding out the podium.
The competition in the field was kicked off by the women’s weight throw, which produced its own drama. Noemie Jeffrey threw 18.89m to take the gold, followed by Lethbridge’s Jinaye Shomachuk who threw 18.00m who in turn was followed VERY closely by Calgary’s Osereme Omosun who threw 17.99m.
In the men’s event, Guelph athlete Mark Bujnowski won the event on his third round throw, eclipsing 20m. He was followed by a pair of Lethbridge athletes Andreas Troschke and Brayden Klippenstein.
York athlete Leah Jones won the women’s long jump by six centimeters with a mark of 6.18. She was followed by Regina athlete Joely Welburn and Manitoba jumper Kirsten Hurdal. On the men’s side, the event was won by Eric Che of UofT. Montreal took both second and third with Clement Mougeolle and Guilhem Hermet.
The men’s triple jump was won by UofT’s Femi Akinduro in a mark of 15.47m. He was followed by Western’s Kenneth West and Manitoba’s Daxx Turner.
Moving from horizontal to vertical jumps, the men’s high jump was won by UofT’s Aiden Grout with a mark of 2.13m. Windsor and Manitoba jumpers Caleb Keeling and Daxx Turner were second and third.
The women’s high jump had four medalists, with UofT’s Emily Branderhorst taking the win over the height of 1.78m. Madison Mayr from Calgary was second. There was a tie for third between Joely Welburn and Hannah Blair (who also medaled in the pentathlon).
Like the high jump, there was also a UofT winner in the women’s pole vault, where Alexzandra Throndson just bested Meghan Lim on countback after they both jumped 4.05m. Mia Rodney from Guelph was third.
Everybody Wins
The men’s pole vault was won by Jamie Eduardo Martin from Trinity Western, in a jump of 4.93m. Maxime Leveille from Sherbrooke took second and Nojah Parker took third.
Finally, but certainly not least, the women’s shot put featured a U SPORT first: a para category. This was won by Charlotte Bolton in a distance of 7.91m.
The women’s shot put was won by Anna McConnel of Mantoba in a distance of 14.39m. Kaitlin Brooks from York was second and Osereme Omosun from Calgary was third.
The men’s shot put was won by Mark Bujnowsku in an 18.30 put, followed by Mathieu Massé-Pelletier of Laval and Brennan Degenhardt of Saskatchewan.
Perhaps the best events of the weekend were the relays. This is where the spirit from each school truly shows and the volume around the track is completely turned up.
The first relay final of the event came in the form of the men’s 4×800 (personally my favourite event). The women’s event proved to be a duel between Western and Saskatchewan with the former winning in a sprint finish. Guelph finished third, just getting the best of a tired Laval squad (as they had raced the 3K earlier in the day).
The men’s 4×800 had no less intrigue, but this time the University of Guelph took over, winning the event by over two seconds. Toronto finished second with Manitoba sneaking in for a medal, beating Western in what looked like a dead heat.
The 4×200 was the next relay final of the weekend with the Guelph women taking the victory. Team starter and senior, Morgan Byng told me this after the race: “Setting the record is the coolest thing. With all the lockdowns we have been working so hard …In my final year I just wanted to have some fun, run fast and things just lined up.” Guelph was followed by Saskatchewan and Laval.
The men’s 4×200 was dominated by Alberta who beat Saskatchewan by about 2 seconds on a team that featured Austin Cole. Guelph was third.
The men’s 4×400 had a similar trend to it with the same Guelph and Alberta teams taking the win in both the women’s and men’s events respectively.
So ended the first U SPORTS Track and Field Championships ever held in the Maritimes.
Here are four quick takeaways:
New coaching staff, same result: Guelph dominates
Despite the turmoil surrounding the Guelph track and field program and cover-ups from the administration, Guelph still is the force to be reckoned with on the U SPORT stage. They won both the men’s and women’s teams titles for the weekend.
Laval definitely has the deepest distance program
Despite Guelph’s dominance, Laval still has the deepest distance program. Budding star JSD flanked by Thomas Fafard were virtually unbeatable over distance events (both cross country and track) this year. Fafard’s win was punctuated by the fact that he had just returned with a silver medal from the Pan Am XC Cup in Brazil. Meanwhile, JSD raced three events on the weekend, meddling in two.
Relays are fun but USPORT needs a DMR (distance medley relay)
Relays are a blast. Every year they get the competitors, the spectators and the coaches fired up. In turn, there is always drama.
However nothing touches the excitement of a distance medley relay where instead of four legs of the same distance, each leg is a different distance, leading to even more strategy on part of the coaching staff and a mix of distance and middle distance talent.
UNB is a budding distance program.
Watch out, Canada. UNB is on the national stage and here to stay. 16 athletes participated at the Championships, a record high for the program. This most certainly lead to increased success under the tutelage of coach Chris Belof.
Stephen Andersen is a law student and cross country athlete at the University of New Brunswick. He is from Burlington, ON. You can find him on Instagram @andersen_runs or Twitter @AndersenRuns.
Photos were generously donated by Kevin Barrett. Find him on Twitter @KevinBarrettNB
Two of Canada’s all-time greatest marathon runners raced on Sunday and they finished, respectively, second and fourth. Reid Coolsaet and Krista DuChene, both Olympians, are 42 and 45-years-old, and both chat easily about their performance. There were things they did well—Krista’s last kick, Reid’s ascension in the hills—and things that didn’t go their way: Reid felt a bit under the weather, Krista, like everyone Sunday at Around the Bay, felt hamstrung by the wind. There are elements, however, that they share in common, beyond grit, natural talent, drive, and almost a supernatural ability to tolerate pain. That’s joyfulness.
They both have days like we all have, to be sure, but, if you want to run forever like Reid and Krista, you have to fall head over heels, with running, in love.
“I don’t overthink stuff. I truly enjoy it. I put the work in and, when I’m done running, I don’t let it consume my life,” says DuChene, Canada’s Marathon Mom, who Sunday set the W45 Canadian record at Around the Bay, finishing the event for the eleventh time. “Sunday’s race was good for me because I didn’t have marathon fatigue. I could stay up and go to my kids’ activities in normal clothes and not sit in the van in my pyjamas.”
All of us love running. We want to go fast and go far and buy the latest gadgets and sneakers and travel to exotic races while maintaining our fitness and posting cool running photos online. However, practitioners of the sport who’ve survived, and by that I mean not just running the half marathon once and crossing it off their bucket list, must develop a deeper relationship with the sport. Running is a lot of running around in circles and, if you do it in Canada, oftentimes you have to do it while the weather is crap. To hear Reid and Krista describe it, they chase numbers and records and both have chased prize money and considerable, though Canadian, fame. That’s not the reason they run.
“I will totally admit that I’m motivated by numbers and hitting a weekly mileage or time in a week, but if that’s all-consuming, it’s detrimental,” says Coolsaet, currently training for the Western States 100-miler and adds that, despite his forays into race directing and coaching, the two-time Olympian with a marathon PB of 2:10:55, is most definitely not retired. “I’m not chasing Olympic spots anymore, but I always love racing and, even now, while my focus is trail running, I ran Around the Bay solely because I couldn’t pass up a local race that’s one of the big icons of running in Canada.”
Coolsaet ran Around the Bay because he wanted to. He ran it in trail shoes. He had fun. Being him, he knows that diehard running geeks will check out his times and wonder if he’s still got it. He wasn’t feeling 100%. He didn’t care. Like Krista, he runs for himself and because he loves it. Loves getting to the starting line. Fighting through the aches and pains. Seeing familiar faces and hearing the cheers and, when it’s all over and he’s with his wife and kids, thinking about the race and drinking a beer, he loves to plan for what he’s going to run next. “I enjoy having a reason to compete and train and, as long as I wake up and want to do this, I think I’ll hang on as long as I can,” says DuChene, who plans on running shorter distance races this spring and summer with Canada Running Series as she prepares for the Chicago Marathon this fall. “You always have to have some motivation and reason for running, and I definitely still do, but I’ve just adjusted my goals reasonably to make them appropriate for my age.”
Reid Coolsaet and Krista DuChene are two of the finest practitioners of our sport. They’ve achieved great success in their sneakers, but they’ve also inspired legions of middle-of-the-packers to follow in their fluorescent shoes. Do you want to run forever? Want to extend your spring season into the fall, into next year, into ten, twenty, fifty years down the road? Listen to Krista DuChene and Reid Coolsaet. The secret isn’t the stretching, the sneakers or the training plan—though all those things will help. The secret is the attitude you choose.
“I think some part of my longevity you’d have to attribute to a combination of motivation and listening to my body,” says Coolsaet, “but the bigger thing is, probably, I just love to run.”
Photographs by daniel.tnf.autographs, @daniel.tnf.autographs.
Amanda Ralph, one year cancer-free, is continuing on the 10K-per-day run for the month of April to raise money for the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre that was begun by Ian Fraser, race director of the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend.
She says that, as a mother of two daughters, violence against women speaks to her heart.
“I want to make sure my daughters are safe and know what they need to in order to stay safe, and I just want to support everyone who has been through hard times,” says Ralph, 47, a school teacher in Brampton who won a hotel room and race entry at the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend, a race entry she won’t be using because she was already registered to run Ottawa’s half marathon.
“Running, when it’s not about me but for other people, feels more rewarding. During chemo I could not wait to get back to running, and now that I have, I’m really looking forward to being able to help.”
Ralph will be running 10-kilometres-per-day and posting about her runs on Instagram @WonderWomanRalph, and the link to donate to her efforts, which will be added to the funds raised by Fraser, is right here.
Ralph says she’s no stranger to hard times. When doctors found a cyst on her ovary, it was assumed that her colon cancer had spread. Her tumor was so large that she had two-thirds of her colon removed. But, the day after her December birthday, she went in for chemo, and, when it was over in March, 2021, she went back to work. Then she started running again.
“Mostly I was walking because my iron levels were so bad and breathing was hard,” she says, “but, like most things, you start slow and don’t quit and, eventually, you find your rhythm again.”
Ralph’s rhythm has already seen her complete three half-marathons and an IronGirl race and now, the schoolteacher and mother says she’s ready for her 10K-per-day. She runs with gratitude, she says. All she wants to do is use the sport she loves to help people in need.
“Raising awareness about violence and supporting those affected by it is an important job,” she says, “Plus, this might be the challenge I need to get me back to where I used to be.” iRun magazine will be documenting the great Amanda Ralph’s journey and we encourage everyone to support her, and the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre, as we move towards the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend.
To donate to Amanda Ralph, once again, please click here.
Lots of us will have gone years without in-person racing by the time we line up at our next start line. That can be a cause of discomfort and anxiety but Peter Papadogiannis, mental performance consultant, professor and head of the Toronto Marathon’s psych team, argues that the discomfort can actually be a launching pad to a new opportunity, if only the framework of our approach to race day can change.
“Times to runners are historically so important—all we hear about is PBs—but if you flip the script for this race season, that being back is what’s important and trust that the times will come, I think it will serve many runners well to have this season’s races be all about gratitude,” says Papadogiannis, who, alongside his colleagues, has been a presence at the Toronto Marathon for the past 22 years. “In fact, believing that racing is a privilege is a helpful approach at any time, but it feels awfully appropriate during times like these.”
There’s pressure, even for amateur runners, when racing. We compete against ourselves, against the clock, against our peers. However, reminds Papadogiannis, that pressure is almost entirely self-imposed. Don’t let the nerves get the best of you, says Papadogiannis. Sometimes, he says, a finish line is nothing more than a starting line in disguise.
“A technique I often tell racers is to approach their event as a learning moment, you can’t get to where you want to go without starting, and perhaps this first event back is just a stop along your path,” he says, mentioning that race day helps not only in terms of physical performance, but also mental toughness and a practice of your race day routine. “There are so many different factors that go into race day, and we’re all out of practice—society is—which, when you think about it, is a wonderful opportunity: every race you attempt after COVID is something brand new.”
To get ready for your race, break things down into simple chunks. What are you wearing? How are you getting to your event? What will you eat? Give yourself a realistic race goal. Many of us are no longer in the shape we were at the start of the pandemic. Plus, this winter’s been long. All that’s OK. The point is, says Papadogiannis, relax, lean into the moment, and trust that you’ll have this opportunity (if you’re lucky) again and again.
“We always look forward with trepidation or else we’re fearful and go into the past, but I tell all my runners, it’s much better to be in the moment, be grateful, and have fun,” Papadogiannis says. “It’s a wonderful thing to get to the startline, and that doesn’t change no matter how well you do.”
Racing is back in-person and, as runners, that’s something exciting to us all. But with that, however, comes expectations and, sometimes, unhelpful nerves. All of that is natural. Papadogiannis urges racers at any event this spring to enjoy the process, focus on building strength (both mental and physical), learn from the experiences, and be prepared to do the whole thing again.
“The thrilling part of racing, what gets us hooked, is that it’s all one ongoing evolution,” says Papadogiannis. “Remember that and take a giant exhale. Do your best. And trust that you’ll be here again.”
Peter Papadogiannis leads the Psych Team at the Toronto Marathon, which is Sunday, May 1. To read more about it, and Papadogiannis’s Psych Team, see torontomarathon.com.
Cannabis has come a long way since the 60s and, thanks to innovative companies, athletes are beginning to see the applications of the plant—which is being used for so much more than getting high. Internationally known sports celebrities from Wayne Gretzky to George St. Pierre have gotten behind CBD, a molecular compound of cannabis, which does not have the psychoactive effects of THC. Athletes use CBD for its anti-inflammation properties and also, in sport creams, to rub on sore muscles. In Canada, CBD is sold the same way as joints and cannabis flower, but in the United States, where pot isn’t legal, CBD is sold on Amazon and at WholeFoods. People like Gwyneth Paltrow and Martha Stewart have espoused its purposefulness, and none of these athletes are using it to get stoned.
CBD, however, is just one of the new cannabis molecules that are attracting attention in the world of sports. CBN is a newer cannabis molecule that has been derived from the plant by cutting-edge scientists to provide yet a new host of sports application. CBN, which stands for cannabinol, is sort of like what happens when THC ages, but, like CBD, it’s non-psychoactive. Though there’s a certain placebo effect when using either CBD or CBN, most consumers agree that neither molecule will get you stoned. In fact, CRONOS group, an early Canadian cannabis company since the days of medical marijuana, is focused on rare cannabinoids like CBN and has touted the property to take away the yucky part of being stoned (that being paranoia, or feeling like everyone’s talking about you, and they’re not saying nice things).
Canada legalized cannabis on October 17, 2018, and with that came a massive influx of tax dollars into the Canadian economy and a watershed of new research into the plant. One of the major companies working in the CBD and CBN markets is MediPharm Labs, which is based in Barrie, Ontario, and pioneering CBN as an all-natural sleep aid. For any athlete who’s struggled to sleep, where the muscles work hard to repair and gear up for the next day’s work, the CBN1:2 nighttime formula will come as a Florence Nightingale offering blissful nighttime relief.
We’ve been following the cannabis trail and its intersection with sports since before legalization in an effort to keep our readers updated on the latest health and wellness innovations. Over the next few months and into the fall race season, we will continue reporting on new products, new companies, and new applications that we feel comfortable to endorse. Please know that the medical proof of most of these products doesn’t go much further than the anecdotal. Studying cannabis as a science has been difficult before October 17, 2018, and this is still a brand-new field. Cannabis, clearly, even in its non-psychoactive forms, is not for everyone—and that’s OK. However, like energy gels and sports drinks, carbon-plated shoes and GPS watches, these new cannabinoids can help certain athletes enhance their running experience.
Stay tuned for more updates on this channel, and, as always, we welcome your feedback. Have you tried these products? Had a good or bad experience? Let’s start an open and honest conversation and give runners nationwide the best, most reliable source of information and news.
Ian Fraser is the popular race director of Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend and, since the start of March, he’s been running 10 kilometres per day for the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre as part of the Race Weekend’s Charity Challenge (which means 100% of the funds Fraser collects goes directly to charity). Fraser says that, as a runner, he feels our sport must be safe and the work being done at the Rape Crisis Centre should be supported by people who love how our sport makes us feel.
“What we do as runners is supposed to be accessible and safe and give people a sense of freedom, relief and release, but so many women don’t feel safe running alone, particularly if it’s a little dark,” Fraser says. “I think the victims of sexual violence have a unique set of needs in the community and I shudder to think that an organization that provides help to people who are struggling needs financial assistance so desperately to stay in business.”
Runners share the streets with the community and, in completing his nearly month-long 10K-per-day challenge, Fraser has only become more committed to his cause. There are eight days left in Fraser’s Charity Challenge for the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre and today he’s announcing that if someone wants to continue his challenge for April, that runner will receive free entry into the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend event of their choice. But that’s not all. Obviously sexual violence isn’t contained only to Ottawa, and so if a runner opts into the challenge, Fraser will also throw in a hotel room for that Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend participant willing to carry on the challenge of helping this great charity raise funds. The only ask: run for the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre and promote your running. Help this great charity raise funds by promoting Fraser’s fundraising link.
Fraser got the ball rolling.
We need another runner to help get us to the Tamarack Ottawa Marathon Weekend starting line.
“I firmly believe that running should be a safe haven for everybody, and to think that it’s not—that’s got to end,” Fraser says. “Running should be physically and emotionally safe for everybody. I just know that for so many of us who really love running, the sport is such an important pillar of our overall well being.”
We’re not going to end the need for the essential work being done at places like the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre—or the Rape Crisis Centre in the town whereveer you live—but we can help raise money for these charities. Fraser has spent the last twenty-three days running 10K-per-day and he has eight more 10K runs before he completes his journey. Who will take over his mantle? It’s a feel-good mission for an unbelievably good cause with a bonus prize for the runner baked in. To help support Ian Fraser on his fundraising quest, please click here. If you’re ready to get involved on your own, please contact Ben Kaplan at iRun magazine, by emailing Ben@iRun.ca, or else just leaving a note in the comments.
As runners, we share our streets with our neighbours. Let’s do what we love and help those in our communities who do the work that we don’t for people in need.
There are few things more important to a runner than the shoes we love. But what are the best shoes? What are the best shoes of all-time? Well, according to John Stanton, founder of the Running Room, there might just be an answer. “Starting in 1993, ASICS Kayano has stood the test of time and been a consistent top performing and selling shoe designed by Toshikazu Kayano of ASICS.”
The Kayano recently came out in its twenty-ninth iteration, and the $160 shoe—neutral-riding, designed for stability and support, practically guaranteed to please everybody—registered quite a few votes from our audience. When the question was put to more than 12,000 runners, we heard lots of high marks for ASICS. A typical comment went like this: “ASICS Kayano have been my go-to for over 15 years now.” Stability shoes—not the newfangled super expensive carbon-plated numbers that are currently all the rage—generally ranked highest as the Greatest Shoes of All-Time.
Nike, which began the carbon-plate revolution and is generally worn by most runners attempting Olympic gold or even a Personal Best, earned lots of raves from our audience. But it’s not the $365 NEXT% that made our audience swoon, though of course those are shoes we love. The best-selling running shoe by Nike? The Pegasus, which was introduced in 1983 and worn in training by athletes like Joan Benoit Samuelson and an up-and-comer named Eliud Kipchoge. (Phil Knight, the Nike founder, is known to wear the Peg at black tie events). “I will always have a fondness for the Pegasus, as it was the first actual running shoe I’d ever run in,” said one reader. “I ran for several years in Nike cross-trainers, and for months in combat boots, before “discovering” real running shoes. It was revelatory to say the least!”
I think when we ask what the All-Time Best Running Shoe Ever is, what we’re really asking is: what shoe were you wearing when you fell in love with the sport? People love the Ghost series from Mizuno, which is what I ran my first marathon in, and Brooks Ghost, Brooks Beast, Brooks Glycerin, and the Brooks Adrenaline (Brooks, after Nike, is the second best-selling running shoe). Of course, lots of people called out New Balance. Again, the shoes that runners were referencing were models like the 860 or the 1400 (both neutral stability shoes). Our friend Kelly Arnott (of Chilly Marathon fame) said: “The greatest running shoes of all-time is the New Balance 998—this must be 50-years-old and had AA to D and E for men and went to size 15. My grandfather’s store Hendry’s Family Shoes in Hamilton sold it from 1994 to when we closed. I am an old shoe dog.”
For new shoes, HOKA received plenty of votes as the Greatest Running Shoe of All-Time. HOKA, more than anyone, is revered for its comfort and cloud-like ride. Often I’ve wondered if runners could tell the difference between shoes if they wore blindfolds. It’s almost an emotional connection to our shoes that makes us keep coming back to a sneaker we trust. That mental edge—if we think the shoe is The Best, perhaps we run like it is—can make all the difference when choosing a running shoe. Anita Behnessilian-Melnyk said Saucony makes the Greatest Shoes of All-Time. She gets a new pair of Saucony shoes before every race. The Saucony Ride, in its fifteenth iteration, received lots of love. Paula Danyliw only wears Saucony shoes. She has five pairs of Saucony sneakers, and when she shared a picture of her collection, she wrote: “Don’t mind the Nikes in the background, they’re my daughters and she doesn’t know any better.”
What’s the Greatest Running Shoe of All-Time? Something neutral, that brings people into the sport, that’s consistent, and holds up over the kilometres. The Best Shoe Ever can’t be super expensive and it has to be something you’d recommend your mom. I like the way one reader put it, when talking about his most successful sneakers. “I think the Best Shoes Ever are the ones I wore 40 years ago,” he said, “I think they worked much better back then.”
Perhaps it’s his youth, not his sneakers, he’s pining for.
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