{"id":2082,"date":"2016-06-01T18:54:21","date_gmt":"2016-06-01T22:54:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/?p=2082"},"modified":"2016-06-01T19:01:37","modified_gmt":"2016-06-01T23:01:37","slug":"ottawa-race-weekend-2016-recap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/?p=2082","title":{"rendered":"Ottawa Race Weekend 2016 Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IMG_3605\"<\/a><\/p>\n

What a weekend here in Ottawa!<\/p>\n

You can’t possibly recap this weekend without talking weather. \u00a0I long ago decided that I would never plan for Ottawa Race Weekend to be a race to PB in, regardless of distance. \u00a0Training isn’t an issue for me, I quite like winter running. \u00a0But in this city we seem to jump directly from winter to summer and often that seasonal change comes right around this race. \u00a0It takes me forever to acclimatize to hot weather, a few days just doesn’t do it for me. \u00a0While I don’t plan for PB’s, I do always participate and this year did so in a completely different way; pacing for the marathon.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The heat warnings were up at expo.<\/p><\/div>\n

But first, the weather. \u00a0After a rather cold spring (the kids and I ran the CHEO 10k three weeks ago in 2C with multiple layers), we were very suddenly hit with a forecast for a heat wave. \u00a0During the week before the race the predicted temperatures just kept rising. \u00a0Every time you thought it couldn’t get worse, it did. \u00a0In fact, it ended up being the first 3 day official heat wave in the month of May since 1911. \u00a0Needless to say panic set in amongst runners everywhere. \u00a0The only people who were more panicked? \u00a0The race organizers. \u00a0What do you do when predicted temperatures are at least\u00a031C\/88F with humidex climbing towards 40C\/104F? \u00a0By Friday it became clear that the entire weekend could be cancelled due to concerns for runner safety. \u00a0The organizers were in a no win situation, anger more than 45 000 runners and cancel or deal with life-threatening heat stroke in potentially record numbers.<\/p>\n

In the end, two of the races had their start times changed. \u00a0The Saturday evening 10k ran half an hour later and the Sunday morning half marathon started 45 minutes early. \u00a0Unfortunately logistics prevented an earlier start time for the marathon while Saturday’s 2k and 5k times also remained unchanged. \u00a0Even with the changes there was no guarantee the race would go on and the organizers noted that if necessary the dreaded black flags could go up mid-race and runners could be diverted to the finish.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_5508\"<\/a><\/p>\n

On Friday during all of this weather related chaos I headed to the expo downtown. \u00a0ORW has my favourite expo and I admit I never walk away without spending a chunk of cash. \u00a0Before shopping, however, I was going to be doing a 2 hour shift at the pace bunny table. \u00a0On my way in I was nabbed by a CBC reporter and immediately asked about what my thoughts were with regards to the race continuing or being cancelled. \u00a0At that point I was still hoping for an earlier marathon start but also noted that runners had to be sensible and change their goals. \u00a0Let’s face it, in the end we make the decision as to whether we run and how hard we run. \u00a0My theory was as long as people took that responsibility seriously all would go well. \u00a0Of course we all know that runners are not the smartest group after four months of training.<\/p>\n

Once in the expo I grabbed my bunny ears, pacer shirt and my sign and then hung out chatting to other runners who visited the both. \u00a0The two hours flew by and I had a great time talking to lots of excited and nervous runners. \u00a0It was during this time that I truly realized how much runners appreciate pacers. \u00a0I actually have never run with a bunny. \u00a0I usually just find a space of my own and once in a while look around at what bunny is nearby. \u00a0But wandering around expo wearing those pink ears was an amazing experience. \u00a0Lots of people want to talk to a bunny and they are all so appreciative of the work done by pacers. \u00a0There was a little part of me that wanted to spend the whole evening walking around but once I had been there for 4 hours I figured it was probably time to go. \u00a0Mind you I left only after buying a marathon jacket, a discounted ($10!) long sleeve marathon shirt and \u00a02 pairs of compression socks. \u00a0I made up for the fact that my entry as a pacer was free!<\/p>\n

\"IMG_5520\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Saturday I headed downtown again for a 9:00 a.m. friendship run, a tradition at races sponsored by Running Room. \u00a0John Stanton was there to give everyone advice as to how to deal with the heat and keep safe and then all of the bunnies were introduced. \u00a0The top three bunnies from last year were awarded golden ears – all of them being less than a second from their goal times. \u00a0During the run I got to meet twitter friend Tracey who had come from the East Coast with friends for the marathon. \u00a0It was a 3k easy run along the canal in sweltering heat. \u00a0It was then I realized that there was no way I would be able to wear the somewhat heavy pace shirt given, this was tank top running weather.<\/p>\n

I spent the afternoon eating rice, drinking electrolytes and wearing compression socks.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_5524\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I opted not to head downtown yet again for the 5k race which Mike and the boys were participating in. \u00a0All three did phenomenally well given the fact that the 5k race really ended up having the worst conditions of the weekend. \u00a0Starting at 4:00 the city was<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The boys looking a little hot.<\/p><\/div>\n

truly baking in temperatures well over 30. \u00a0The lack of a water station before the 4k mark – something the race has since acknowledged on its Facebook page as something they have to re-evaluate – made the race all the more challenging.<\/p>\n

Sunday morning came early when I got up at 4:40 a.m. \u00a0I was very focussed on making sure I ate at least 2 hours before the 7:00 start. \u00a0In all that focus I somehow forgot to think about what time I had to leave. \u00a0In a sudden panic, I realized that in fact I was already late leaving and not even organized! \u00a0All I could think of was this was my first pace bunny gig and I wasn’t even going to make it to the corral in time. \u00a0I grabbed everything, flung it all in the car and headed out at speeds I won’t admit. \u00a0I applied sunblock at red lights. \u00a0Rather than risk porta potty line ups I hit a virtually empty Tim Hortons. \u00a0I applied body glide on a side street downtown. \u00a0Not the smoothest start but I told myself the adrenaline rush would do me good. \u00a0Yes, that is grasping at straws.<\/p>\n

I managed to make it into the corral at about the right time and had the chance to meet many of the people who wanted to start running with me. \u00a0They were so grateful that this race supplied a 5.5 hour pacer as many races don’t. \u00a0Given the heat, many runners also wanted to start very conservatively and just enjoy the experience. \u00a0I told many people to do it for the party rather than the pace.<\/p>\n

And what a party it was. \u00a0I can honestly say I have never enjoyed a race experience so much. \u00a0I loved chatting with the runners following me. \u00a0In fact it amazed me how quickly you can start to have a “mother hen” feeling for those around you. \u00a0I wanted so much for each and every runner to have a positive experience. \u00a0And that is what is the hardest part of pacing; as you go you do lose people – thankfully not to medical emergencies which had certainly worried me with the heat – but just because people have to run their own race and when they decide the pace isn’t right for them they have to adjust. \u00a0As we were told by the pace team organizer, our job was to pace a time, not a group. \u00a0But as some people left the group, falling behind or ready to go ahead, others joined and new people were met.<\/p>\n

One moment that will always stay in my memory was when we turned the corner at the War Museum. At this point we had merged with half marathons and there was such an energy in the air. \u00a0There were lots of spectators cheering and as we passed, one of the men in my group kept shouting, “Give it up for the pace bunny!” \u00a0Talk about feeling like a rock star! (Thank you Francois!!!)<\/p>\n

In the back of my mind I was still worried about the possibility of the race being stopped. \u00a0We started on green flags but somewhere along the route we noticed they had been changed to red. \u00a0There is only one colour left after red, the black flag indicating that the race would be over. \u00a0It was only after I got home that I discovered runners in the after 6 hour group were diverted and had to do a shortened course.<\/p>\n

Because I was not running my regular pace it is hard for me to judge how bad the heat was. \u00a0The first couple of hours were under cloud cover and whenever we ran towards the east we would catch a breeze. \u00a0The race organizers did an amazing job of making sure there was plenty of water and Nuun.\u00a0The only station that ended up under-supplied was the final sponge station where volunteers apologized that they had no sponges left. \u00a0There was still the trough of water though and I saw a few runners stop at it to splash themselves. \u00a0As for me, I for the first time brought my own sponges and started with them under my tank and bra straps. \u00a0I poured water on them at the first station and kept them wet for the rest of the race. \u00a0I highly recommend this to anyone running a hot race as I have no doubt the sponges made a difference in my body temperature.<\/p>\n

I have to give a massive shout out to the people of Ottawa. \u00a0Organizers had made an appeal in the news and social media asking for residents on the route to bring out hoses and sprinklers. \u00a0Letters with the same request were delivered to the homes along the race course. \u00a0These residents were amazing! \u00a0There were more hoses and sprinklers than I had ever seen. \u00a0But they didn’t stop there. \u00a0Kids were out with water guns, families handed out water bottles – with the lids already off so you could just drink or soak yourself right away. \u00a0By far my favourite were the young kids handing out freezies somewhere around 36 or 37k. \u00a0Never has a freezie tasted so good. \u00a0These people stuck around for the back of the packers and cheered with gusto.<\/p>\n

As for being a marathon pace bunny, I would do it again in a second. \u00a0It was such a great experience on so many levels. \u00a0I loved talking to the people following me and learning a little about them. \u00a0Some were running their first marathon, others were just coming back from injuries. \u00a0There were runners who had made extraordinarily lifestyle changes to make sure they were around for years to come. \u00a0What a privilege to be part of their marathon experience. \u00a0The thank you’s they passed on to me in person and even in social media mean more to me than they can imagine. \u00a0I was incredibly impressed with their determination and will to run in some very tough conditions. \u00a0We always hear about the Boston Qualifiers, but the people closer to the back are working just as<\/p>\n

\"My<\/a>

My pacing skills were better than my photo skills!<\/p><\/div>\n

hard and spend far more time on their feet. \u00a0I have so much respect for each and every one of them.<\/p>\n

I stuck around at the finish line for a while and managed to catch some of the runners who had run part of the course with me cross the finish line. \u00a0I managed to get a picture with these lovely ladies who ran the whole race with me and then were able to take off at the end to get their sub-5.5 hour time. \u00a0Amazing!<\/p>\n

Ironically I do feel it was me, not those with me, who got the most out of the experience. \u00a0All I could think of when I finished the race was, “When can I do this again?” \u00a0Believe it or not the 5 and a half hours flew by and there was a part of me that didn’t want it to end. \u00a0Needless to say I am very much hoping that I will be part of the pace bunny team again next year. \u00a0Maybe I will get even closer than 3 seconds to my goal time \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What a weekend here in Ottawa! You can’t possibly recap this weekend without talking weather. \u00a0I long ago decided that I would never plan for Ottawa Race Weekend to be a race to PB in, regardless of distance. \u00a0Training isn’t an issue for me, I quite like winter running. \u00a0But in this city we seem […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-running"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3amQ2-xA","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2082"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2082\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2099,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2082\/revisions\/2099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}