Cross-posted at Huffington Post Canada
Legend is, the first marathoner was a man named Pheidippides, who in Ancient Greece was dispatched the distance from Marathon to Athens on foot announce victory.
“Rejoice, we conquer,” was the last words he uttered, legend has it, before dying.
I crossed the finish line of my 20th marathon a few weeks ago and while my fellow runners who ran the Ottawa Marathon saw the event as a celebration of life, others see danger and death.
The Mayo clinic’s latest research made a bit of a splash in the headlines when it warned that “chronic training” or competing in endurance events, including marathons, Iron Man races and like cycling rides can cause injury to the heart. This scarring and changes to the heart and arteries are the culprit.
The running world recently mourned the death of Micah True, who was profiled in the book Born To Run that chronicled his barefoot running and long-distance races held in the copper canyons in Mexico. Micah was an ultra runner who died from heart complications during a daily run in March. The Mayo Clinic points to True as a possible victim of endurance running.
The latest running boom may have brought with it it GPS watches, chia seeds, ultra-marathons and Spartan contests, the sport of running has remained essentially the same, putting one foot in front of the other. While running is made up of simple movements, it may be hard to understand why endurance athletes decide to ‘go long’, even as the medical professionals tell you it can be bad for you.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the health spectrum, obesity rates in both the United States and Canada show that modern society has another type of crisis: In 2009 24.1 per cent of Canadians adults were obese, 34.4 per cent in the United States.
Those who invoke Micah True will no doubt remind themselves of the death of Jim Fixx in 1984, as the original reason why running was bad for you. Fixx, who wrote The Complete Book of Running, and others helped spark fitness, jogging and exercise as made popular by the masses. When he died of a heart attack while out on the daily run, all the more reason why running was bad for you.
The Mayo report does all the nods that all the good that exercise does for health, highly effective for treating “many common chronic diseases and improves cardiovascular heath an longevity.”
“However, as with any pharmacologic agent, a safe upper dose limit potentially exists, beyond which the adverse effects of physical exercise, such as musculoskeletal trauma and cardiovascular stress, may outweigh its benefits,” lead author of the report, James O’Keefe, writes.
Us marathoners have a saying, “respect the distance.” We mean it in that 42.2 kilometres or 26.2 miles is no task to take lightly. Most marathoners, and certainly repeat marathoners like myself, treat the marathon with the preparation anyone who needs to tackle a rigorous endurance event. Marathons are not bucket list events, nor are those of us who repeat the distance the famed ‘weekend warriors’ who sit sedentary for five days then go all out on Sunday mornings.
When you see a marathoner at the end of race, you must know that they’ve trained for up to four months of long distance training, and often years of running before that. We don’t go cold into the distance.
The marathon is still an exclusive event. Simply said, not everyone does it. At the Ottawa Marathon, some 40,000 plus runners participated, most of them in the 5K, 10K and half marathon and 4300 in the marathon. Last year in the United States, the number of marathon finishers jumped 46 per cent from 2000, some 518,000 people. If we were to believe that 78 million American adults are obese, there’s one group of people that should be more worried that another.
To put all this research into perspective, another recent study by John Hopkins researchers says .75 per 100,000 runners have died at marathons, making it a relatively low-risk event.
A week after my last marathon, I signed up for my next race. To simply ask marathoners to give up training and races for short antiseptic exercises reveal the problem with how medical practitioners see fitness today, as if you can prescribe a run as you would a list of drugs or bottle up a fitness regimen that you can down in one gulp. Find me at fault, but I find my health out there in one to three hour tours, where I can disconnect from modern sedentary living and reconnect with natural movement.
Just this past weekend, South Africans watched with rapt attention as competitors finished the legendary Comardes ultramarathon, a race of 89 kilometres. At the 12-hour mark the gun goes off and every second after that marks the difference between finishers and those who have failed. Why do they run?
“Live to run, run to live.”
Monday, June 04, 2012
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Race report: Goodlife Toronto Marathon 2012
What is that old saying, that you can't run your next marathon until you forget your last one? I'm writing this race report on the Goodlife Toronto Marathon as I'm on a train to Ottawa, where I'm running another marathon three weeks after this one that I still remember.
While signing up for the Toronto Marathon was a late decision, I felt it was just about the right place in my training program. I had started ramping up marathon training in January so by the time I decided to sign up in April, more than three months of training were booked in.
Ottawa I felt would be non aggressive marathon given the quality of my training has been lacking and whether would always be the wildcard.
And who could avoid the temptation to continue a running streak, since I've run Toronto Goodlife from 2009-2011. This year's race route also seemed to be a little interesting, with changes throughout, including a new finish line that was flat (compared with the 'uphill' finish to Queen's Park). The earlier start time of 7:30 and, heck, the fact that a marathon is run in my hometown made it a no brainer.
The race
We started before the half marathoners, so it was not a busy start area, which was a nice change for a chill warmup for the start. Boston Bill Rogders was a guest emcee and was giving us tips on how to run marathons, which I thought was both cool and funny, cause hey, who wouldn't love a tip from one of the great marathoners but who would really need it if they've trained up the to distance. The weather, as he said, was near perfect. Slight wind, cool, compared to the hot Boston. In fact, a few Boston runners were doing Toronto as their make-up run.
The start I seeded myself near the 3:40 pace group, and we took a bit of work to separate ourselves. We were running faster than goal pace. The first bit leading up to Hogg's Hollow went by fast and I started to regret not putting on a singlet instead of my T-shirt, it was cool, but warm enough to go summer wear.
The big uphill, Hogg's Hollow, is not a fun sight in what is a net downhill course. I ran slightly ahead of the pace group because I wanted to get a potty break done at the top of the hill, just as I'd done in previous years. After I caught back up to them after the break, feeling, well, relieved, we went to work on what is my favourite part of the course, which starts on the turnoff near Davisville station.
As a guy who has paced a few half marathons, I have tremendous respect for anyone pulling off the job. I started to tail the group that had thinned a bit. The makeup of this group was very relaxed, and I'm assuming there were Ironman folks doing training, and others just going. The pacer looked at my pace band and said 'where'd you get that!' after I told him what splits I'd be looking for a 3:40. He was using his Nike Plus app, which I thought a little awkward to be proper pacing. A few minutes later, his phone rang (yes, he was wearing headphones) and took a call. Later found out he was a 3 hour marathoner who wasn't used to the pace. :)
Anyhow, I ran with the group right until the bottom of Casa Loma, when for some reason, the banter of one particually loud marthoner (who seemed to be doing a 'training run') got to me and I was feeling pretty good anways, so I paced a little faster.
Saw my buddy Peter who was going for a sub 3:40, but largely went out on my own, down to Rosedale Valley Road. Every year i've run down it, I feel like I hit a nice zone-out period in my race. It's one of the few totally shaded parts and the sheer vastness of the tree canopy makes it a highlight of the course.
Finishing it, and coming back toward downtown, we were again back on streets and in the sun. Ran into Peter and we paced together for a bit until he dropped back (and ended later a tough marathon).
From the half mark to the end, Goodlife becomes a little surreal to me, as it's my daily training route, and pretty much exactly on the same path. It's so comfortable that I can almost close my eyes for portions and anticipate rolls in the hills or curves to navigate. We also passed the finish line on the way out -- not a pretty sight but we did see the leading half marathoners come in.
Meanwhile, I was maintaining pretty consistent and strong splits. Because I wasn't pacing with a group, per se, I just went by feel and looking back at the splits I was maintaing a 5-10 second variance between kilometres. My fueling was happening at the right intervals, every 8K or so, and my extra water I brought with me proved useful for taking gels and occasional sips.
In my mind, I was seeing this as a 35K training run with the option to continue to race till the end. In my heart, when have I really resisted the urge to go with a good running pace. In reality, I took a pace that was probably well within my fitness (I'd assume I'm somewhere around 3:35 fitness these days). Reality and races collide and I found myself still going. At the most westerly point of the course, again still on home turf, I saw the turnaround and was so happy that it came earlier than I'd anticipated. As I turned, and started my way back, I could see all the runners behind me, including in the distance the 3:40 group.
I think at the moment, I though of them, the chatter and the fact that I had a few minutes on them. Screw it, I thought, lets just keep going.
Onn the way to the final 5K, I passed blogger Felix, who recognized me from this blog. He was telling me how his day wasn't unfolding the way he'd thought, and commented to me that I'm usually faster. I smiled as we parted, knowing that yes, I'm not really much faster these days, or at least training up to potential. He reminded me of what I can do in marathons and that helped spur me on.
But the breaks did come -- A little bit of tired leg syndome and also the 'holy crap, this is a marathon'. I took a few prescribed walk breaks to get my legs good and my cardio in a good place.
Still, by the time we reached the final kilometres, I had banked more than enough time to come in under 3:40, even enough time to savour the finish and get my legs ready for the next marathon.
As with all local races, I did bump into several friends, including Sam, who rocked the course after her bad Boston experience, and Lee and Julie, who were cheering on the runners. Lee and I were at the sidelines, watching the marathoners come in. My favourite thing to do is to stand in that final 500 metres and give a little bit of love back. My favourite cheer, 'lets go marathoners,' with the emphasis on MARATHONER. Love this sport, next one's coming up pronto.
Final time: 3:37:25
Splits
1 5:10.8
2 5:00.7
3 4:52.6
4 4:38.6
5 4:47.9
6 5:57.1
7 5:10.7
8 5:26.8
9 5:31.8
10 4:39.7
11 5:13.6
12 5:13.5
13 5:15.3
14 5:00.1
15 4:55.2
RESET :31.0
17 5:12.0
18 4:53.2
19 5:10.2
20 5:08.8
21 5:10.2
22 5:12.3
23 5:15.5
24 4:52.2
25 4:56.8
26 5:03.5
27 5:06.7
28 5:01.5
29 5:08.0
30 5:12.0
31 5:05.4
32 5:08.1
:36.4
33 5:04.6
34 5:05.9
35 5:09.4
36 5:06.2
37 4:54.2
38 5:02.9
39 5:06.5
40 5:25.5
41 5:17.2
42 5:17.2
43 1:11.9
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
While signing up for the Toronto Marathon was a late decision, I felt it was just about the right place in my training program. I had started ramping up marathon training in January so by the time I decided to sign up in April, more than three months of training were booked in.
Ottawa I felt would be non aggressive marathon given the quality of my training has been lacking and whether would always be the wildcard.
And who could avoid the temptation to continue a running streak, since I've run Toronto Goodlife from 2009-2011. This year's race route also seemed to be a little interesting, with changes throughout, including a new finish line that was flat (compared with the 'uphill' finish to Queen's Park). The earlier start time of 7:30 and, heck, the fact that a marathon is run in my hometown made it a no brainer.
The race
We started before the half marathoners, so it was not a busy start area, which was a nice change for a chill warmup for the start. Boston Bill Rogders was a guest emcee and was giving us tips on how to run marathons, which I thought was both cool and funny, cause hey, who wouldn't love a tip from one of the great marathoners but who would really need it if they've trained up the to distance. The weather, as he said, was near perfect. Slight wind, cool, compared to the hot Boston. In fact, a few Boston runners were doing Toronto as their make-up run.
The start I seeded myself near the 3:40 pace group, and we took a bit of work to separate ourselves. We were running faster than goal pace. The first bit leading up to Hogg's Hollow went by fast and I started to regret not putting on a singlet instead of my T-shirt, it was cool, but warm enough to go summer wear.
The big uphill, Hogg's Hollow, is not a fun sight in what is a net downhill course. I ran slightly ahead of the pace group because I wanted to get a potty break done at the top of the hill, just as I'd done in previous years. After I caught back up to them after the break, feeling, well, relieved, we went to work on what is my favourite part of the course, which starts on the turnoff near Davisville station.
As a guy who has paced a few half marathons, I have tremendous respect for anyone pulling off the job. I started to tail the group that had thinned a bit. The makeup of this group was very relaxed, and I'm assuming there were Ironman folks doing training, and others just going. The pacer looked at my pace band and said 'where'd you get that!' after I told him what splits I'd be looking for a 3:40. He was using his Nike Plus app, which I thought a little awkward to be proper pacing. A few minutes later, his phone rang (yes, he was wearing headphones) and took a call. Later found out he was a 3 hour marathoner who wasn't used to the pace. :)
Anyhow, I ran with the group right until the bottom of Casa Loma, when for some reason, the banter of one particually loud marthoner (who seemed to be doing a 'training run') got to me and I was feeling pretty good anways, so I paced a little faster.
Saw my buddy Peter who was going for a sub 3:40, but largely went out on my own, down to Rosedale Valley Road. Every year i've run down it, I feel like I hit a nice zone-out period in my race. It's one of the few totally shaded parts and the sheer vastness of the tree canopy makes it a highlight of the course.
Finishing it, and coming back toward downtown, we were again back on streets and in the sun. Ran into Peter and we paced together for a bit until he dropped back (and ended later a tough marathon).
From the half mark to the end, Goodlife becomes a little surreal to me, as it's my daily training route, and pretty much exactly on the same path. It's so comfortable that I can almost close my eyes for portions and anticipate rolls in the hills or curves to navigate. We also passed the finish line on the way out -- not a pretty sight but we did see the leading half marathoners come in.
Meanwhile, I was maintaining pretty consistent and strong splits. Because I wasn't pacing with a group, per se, I just went by feel and looking back at the splits I was maintaing a 5-10 second variance between kilometres. My fueling was happening at the right intervals, every 8K or so, and my extra water I brought with me proved useful for taking gels and occasional sips.
In my mind, I was seeing this as a 35K training run with the option to continue to race till the end. In my heart, when have I really resisted the urge to go with a good running pace. In reality, I took a pace that was probably well within my fitness (I'd assume I'm somewhere around 3:35 fitness these days). Reality and races collide and I found myself still going. At the most westerly point of the course, again still on home turf, I saw the turnaround and was so happy that it came earlier than I'd anticipated. As I turned, and started my way back, I could see all the runners behind me, including in the distance the 3:40 group.
I think at the moment, I though of them, the chatter and the fact that I had a few minutes on them. Screw it, I thought, lets just keep going.
Onn the way to the final 5K, I passed blogger Felix, who recognized me from this blog. He was telling me how his day wasn't unfolding the way he'd thought, and commented to me that I'm usually faster. I smiled as we parted, knowing that yes, I'm not really much faster these days, or at least training up to potential. He reminded me of what I can do in marathons and that helped spur me on.
But the breaks did come -- A little bit of tired leg syndome and also the 'holy crap, this is a marathon'. I took a few prescribed walk breaks to get my legs good and my cardio in a good place.
Still, by the time we reached the final kilometres, I had banked more than enough time to come in under 3:40, even enough time to savour the finish and get my legs ready for the next marathon.
As with all local races, I did bump into several friends, including Sam, who rocked the course after her bad Boston experience, and Lee and Julie, who were cheering on the runners. Lee and I were at the sidelines, watching the marathoners come in. My favourite thing to do is to stand in that final 500 metres and give a little bit of love back. My favourite cheer, 'lets go marathoners,' with the emphasis on MARATHONER. Love this sport, next one's coming up pronto.
Final time: 3:37:25
Splits
1 5:10.8
2 5:00.7
3 4:52.6
4 4:38.6
5 4:47.9
6 5:57.1
7 5:10.7
8 5:26.8
9 5:31.8
10 4:39.7
11 5:13.6
12 5:13.5
13 5:15.3
14 5:00.1
15 4:55.2
RESET :31.0
17 5:12.0
18 4:53.2
19 5:10.2
20 5:08.8
21 5:10.2
22 5:12.3
23 5:15.5
24 4:52.2
25 4:56.8
26 5:03.5
27 5:06.7
28 5:01.5
29 5:08.0
30 5:12.0
31 5:05.4
32 5:08.1
:36.4
33 5:04.6
34 5:05.9
35 5:09.4
36 5:06.2
37 4:54.2
38 5:02.9
39 5:06.5
40 5:25.5
41 5:17.2
42 5:17.2
43 1:11.9
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:toronto, ontario
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Race report: Sporting Life 10K 2012
I've watched this race grow over the past 8 years into somewhat of a Toronto tradition. With essentially free entry (the Sporting Life guys gave gift cards for those who registered). But 20,000 plus runners? Wow. (Sporting Life 10K results here / 2013 Sporting Life 10K race info here).
Last week's marathon left my legs in pretty good shape, I ran a few times over the week and even as I was thinking about this race that starts at Yonge and Eglinton and ends near my condo, I mulled a warmup run. So this morning, I ran up the route, logging around 9K uphill, getting the heart going, even beating runners who were waiting for buses to get them up to the route.
Even with a race with more than 20K, I spotted a few other runners I knew, including Fran, a co-worker and a friend who was doing his first race in eight years.
I placed myself in the sub 48-minute corral, really just aiming to go around 47. As the race started, my legs still felt good even with the 9K warmup, so I went looking for that 'comfortably hard' feeling I'd go for in tempo runs. The downhills helped the pace, and since I've run this route so many times (and part of it last week) I was anticipating every rise and fall.
Though it was a big race, I found that most runners around me were going slightly slower than I was, which meant a fair bit of weaving through the course.
Here are the first 5K splits: 4:38, 4:21, 4:21, 4:15, 4:18 for a 22:02 5K. There are quite a few big plunges downhill here, so I wasn't surprised by that speed. Also knew that I wanted to go faster than 4:30 kilometres.
Nothing much to write about the Sporting Life that I haven't said before: road conditions were okay, the downhills really give you great speed, and the only tricky parts in my opinion is to attack the hills and to up your cadence during the flats.
Doing so meant that I had the sensation of speeding up while maintaining pace.
By the 5K mark, I was in the comfortably hard zone, though I was starting to count down the kilometres, which was a sign I was pushing it just right. I never got that 'pain' that you associate with those distance races, but it was okay to fight through.
We turned to go west and I was finding myself boxed in several times. Mentally, it was a bit to urge some speed out of my legs but I ended up continue to pass people right up until the last kilometre.
Here are my satellite screwed last 5K splits: 4:11, 4:38, 4:27, 4:32, 3:42. They are obviously all off because I have a final 5K split of 21:24 which on any other day be a fantastic 5K!
Wheeled it into the end and coasted home. Almost an hour after the race started, I was walking into my condo. That's a morning well spent, 19K with 10K of speedwork and done by 9 a.m.!
Final chip time was 43:26, pretty much a good indicator of where I am one week post marathon and two weeks to go to my next.
Yes, I'm working on my Goodlife race report!
Last week's marathon left my legs in pretty good shape, I ran a few times over the week and even as I was thinking about this race that starts at Yonge and Eglinton and ends near my condo, I mulled a warmup run. So this morning, I ran up the route, logging around 9K uphill, getting the heart going, even beating runners who were waiting for buses to get them up to the route.
Even with a race with more than 20K, I spotted a few other runners I knew, including Fran, a co-worker and a friend who was doing his first race in eight years.
I placed myself in the sub 48-minute corral, really just aiming to go around 47. As the race started, my legs still felt good even with the 9K warmup, so I went looking for that 'comfortably hard' feeling I'd go for in tempo runs. The downhills helped the pace, and since I've run this route so many times (and part of it last week) I was anticipating every rise and fall.
Though it was a big race, I found that most runners around me were going slightly slower than I was, which meant a fair bit of weaving through the course.
Here are the first 5K splits: 4:38, 4:21, 4:21, 4:15, 4:18 for a 22:02 5K. There are quite a few big plunges downhill here, so I wasn't surprised by that speed. Also knew that I wanted to go faster than 4:30 kilometres.
Nothing much to write about the Sporting Life that I haven't said before: road conditions were okay, the downhills really give you great speed, and the only tricky parts in my opinion is to attack the hills and to up your cadence during the flats.
Doing so meant that I had the sensation of speeding up while maintaining pace.
By the 5K mark, I was in the comfortably hard zone, though I was starting to count down the kilometres, which was a sign I was pushing it just right. I never got that 'pain' that you associate with those distance races, but it was okay to fight through.
We turned to go west and I was finding myself boxed in several times. Mentally, it was a bit to urge some speed out of my legs but I ended up continue to pass people right up until the last kilometre.
Here are my satellite screwed last 5K splits: 4:11, 4:38, 4:27, 4:32, 3:42. They are obviously all off because I have a final 5K split of 21:24 which on any other day be a fantastic 5K!
Wheeled it into the end and coasted home. Almost an hour after the race started, I was walking into my condo. That's a morning well spent, 19K with 10K of speedwork and done by 9 a.m.!
Final chip time was 43:26, pretty much a good indicator of where I am one week post marathon and two weeks to go to my next.
Yes, I'm working on my Goodlife race report!
Saturday, May 05, 2012
The (unscheduled) Toronto Goodlife Marathon
I've been training since January. The miles have been hard to come by, work's been busy and it's been hard to do the mileage I'm used to. Fear not, me thinks, you've gone through this marathon business many times before.
My marathon at the end of the month is in Ottawa, where weather can do anything to the day. I was looking at my past long runs and saw I've logged enough 18 plus milers and two 20 milers (one three weeks ago) so I decided to pull the trigger
Yes, I've signed up for a 'last-minute' marathon. Not really interested in seeing how fast I can push myself, but taking it as a marathon that I'll be paying careful attention to saving a lot for the last 10K.
The Toronto Goodlife it is, in fact, it'll be my fourth marathon at that race in a row (and the race of my 2009 BQ).
I'm pretty excited and nervous to leap at the opportunity to do an unscheduled marathon. As many of you know, I've done multiple marathoning many times (three in four weeks, two in 8 days) but that was usually the intention of the training season. This time, we'll see how it goes. Training run it is. A long one.
My marathon at the end of the month is in Ottawa, where weather can do anything to the day. I was looking at my past long runs and saw I've logged enough 18 plus milers and two 20 milers (one three weeks ago) so I decided to pull the trigger
Yes, I've signed up for a 'last-minute' marathon. Not really interested in seeing how fast I can push myself, but taking it as a marathon that I'll be paying careful attention to saving a lot for the last 10K.
The Toronto Goodlife it is, in fact, it'll be my fourth marathon at that race in a row (and the race of my 2009 BQ).
I'm pretty excited and nervous to leap at the opportunity to do an unscheduled marathon. As many of you know, I've done multiple marathoning many times (three in four weeks, two in 8 days) but that was usually the intention of the training season. This time, we'll see how it goes. Training run it is. A long one.
Mississauga Marathon race strategy
Reader Stan was asking for a Mississauga Marathon strategy guide and since we’re about 12 hours to go to the race, I thought I’d oblige with some quick thoughts.
First, I’ve run the marathon there twice, and each time it was a different course at the end. It looks like this year is the same as 2009 when I ran it.
Course in general: It is generally exposed, some hills in the beginning and can be subject to wind since the last bit is on the water. In general, it is a net downhill course, so it is quite fast, especially for half marathoners. For marathoners, the flat and potentially windy (and soul damaging out and backs where you get so close to the finish, you can get a little defeated.
This race report sums up my 2009 version and you can see that I ran a negative split, partly because I was pacing a friend for the first 30 some odd kilometres then bumped it up at the end.
First 10K: You’re running from the city hall/Square One, and it’s a big crowd since you’re pacing with half marathons. I try never to go out too fast but it’s definitely possible to make that mistake. Heading west, you will have both inclines and downhills as you run on wide roads. The second half of the first 10K brings you down Mississauga Rd. which is a lot of fun to run but includes some killer hills that you should get ready for. Before you hit the big downhill followed by an uphill, you visit the U of T campus that’s a nice detour.
10K to half: You run another 5K or so with the half marathoners, then you turn around 15K. I enjoyed getting some peace and quiet when the crowd thins, and it’s a good time to get into the pace. You’re running in neighbourhood so the change in scenery going west is nice. Not much to note other than again when you start hitting south again it’ll be exposed to the sun and wind so plan and dress accordingly.
Half to 16 mile mark: Yep, this isn’t a fun part of the course. Some industrial land. You’ll start to see faster runners who are ahead of you as you hit the lone out-and-back portion of the race. While you should have plenty of energy to go, wind can be your enemy here.
16 miles to 20 miles: Slowly, you leave the industrial part and start heading back toward the finish. Wish it was a straight line but you got a lot of curves. There are hilly bits here and there so be prepared for small rollers. Nothing that will get you but if you haven’t prepared you should.
20 miles to the end: The final bit of the Mississagua Marathon combines running on Lakeshore, where you are running on a main street, running south into a few neighbourhoods. First things first, a lot of people hit the wall on Lakeshore around the 36K mark. They do so because there is a considerable incline. My tactic was always to run it strong and not let the course do me in. Good in a race like this to carry water or Gatorade with you as water stations are not exactly close together (good to check that). The final bit features a lot of running on winding paths, many of them really designed for everyday trail traffic, so it can be quite tight in there depending on when you finish. I've finished a marathon having to wind my way through half marathoners who were just finishing.
First, I’ve run the marathon there twice, and each time it was a different course at the end. It looks like this year is the same as 2009 when I ran it.
Course in general: It is generally exposed, some hills in the beginning and can be subject to wind since the last bit is on the water. In general, it is a net downhill course, so it is quite fast, especially for half marathoners. For marathoners, the flat and potentially windy (and soul damaging out and backs where you get so close to the finish, you can get a little defeated.
This race report sums up my 2009 version and you can see that I ran a negative split, partly because I was pacing a friend for the first 30 some odd kilometres then bumped it up at the end.
First 10K: You’re running from the city hall/Square One, and it’s a big crowd since you’re pacing with half marathons. I try never to go out too fast but it’s definitely possible to make that mistake. Heading west, you will have both inclines and downhills as you run on wide roads. The second half of the first 10K brings you down Mississauga Rd. which is a lot of fun to run but includes some killer hills that you should get ready for. Before you hit the big downhill followed by an uphill, you visit the U of T campus that’s a nice detour.
10K to half: You run another 5K or so with the half marathoners, then you turn around 15K. I enjoyed getting some peace and quiet when the crowd thins, and it’s a good time to get into the pace. You’re running in neighbourhood so the change in scenery going west is nice. Not much to note other than again when you start hitting south again it’ll be exposed to the sun and wind so plan and dress accordingly.
Half to 16 mile mark: Yep, this isn’t a fun part of the course. Some industrial land. You’ll start to see faster runners who are ahead of you as you hit the lone out-and-back portion of the race. While you should have plenty of energy to go, wind can be your enemy here.
16 miles to 20 miles: Slowly, you leave the industrial part and start heading back toward the finish. Wish it was a straight line but you got a lot of curves. There are hilly bits here and there so be prepared for small rollers. Nothing that will get you but if you haven’t prepared you should.
20 miles to the end: The final bit of the Mississagua Marathon combines running on Lakeshore, where you are running on a main street, running south into a few neighbourhoods. First things first, a lot of people hit the wall on Lakeshore around the 36K mark. They do so because there is a considerable incline. My tactic was always to run it strong and not let the course do me in. Good in a race like this to carry water or Gatorade with you as water stations are not exactly close together (good to check that). The final bit features a lot of running on winding paths, many of them really designed for everyday trail traffic, so it can be quite tight in there depending on when you finish. I've finished a marathon having to wind my way through half marathoners who were just finishing.
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