Marathon Number 6 & Olympic Dreams

OK settle down. It’s not what you think. Before you consider an intervention, or perhaps recommend some medication, hear me out…

Probably the best of the medals. Coffee cup & glitter.

Back when I was a young lass of 39, I had this crazy idea that I would push back against turning 40 by running a marathon. Because really, there is no better way to feel young and sprightly than by subjecting yourself to a physically and mentally punishing ordeal that will leave you shuffling like an octogenarian for days afterward. (So just in case you are again thinking about interventions and medication, let me just mention that I now celebrate my birthday with a day at the spa with two women I covet as sisters.) But crazy ideas are a specialty of mine and so the Seattle Rock’n’Roll Marathon (2010), falling within a couple of weeks of my 40th birthday, became the Bucket List & Birthday Big Idea. I talked my bestie into doing it with me and after months of training together, off we went, and ta da: a few hours (way too many) later, we were marathon finishers. I took an eternity to finish (6:56), finishing just ahead (barely) of the sweeper vehicle, and really getting my money’s worth out of that race fee. Actually not really, because by the time I finished, all the bands had gone home and they were packing up the water and other finish line stuff. Rock-and-roll, not so much. And I swore I’d never run another marathon... in Seattle. And high on endorphins and post-race-afterglow (probably dehydration), I declared I would run a marathon every year thereafter.

Despite my hate-on for Seattle marathons, for “41”, in 2011, I went back to Seattle and ran the “regular” Seattle Marathon. Because if you don’t love Seattle hills, interstates, and 40-million out & backs on a sunny June day, you’re probably going to feel much better running a hillier Seattle route on a rainy, windy, November day. I know. Rain. In November. In Seattle. Who could have predicted that? I had manipulated convinced my bestie to run this one too, waiting for the right time (read: emotionally vulnerable) to pop the question: Wanna run another marathon? We both ran big PBs (6:11 this time for me) and declared our Seattle Marathon days were over.

For “42”, I stayed home and ran the BMO Vancouver Marathon in 2013 (4:31). For “43”, it was Whidbey Island (4:21), my favourite (so far). And of course for “44”, if you’re not new here and have been paying attention… Napa Valley (4:11). But that was like weeks ago and within a few days of finishing, I started trying to pick #6. Something between June of 2015 and June of 2016. And something that would work timing-wise with IMC this year and whatever IM I might be thinking about next year. Because Coach says recovery is important. Sure.

So after working out a Plan A, B and C that all hinged on race lotteries, I ran these by my Coach and then scrapped all of them and went with Plan D: LA in March. Only guess what? LA moves to February next year. Why? Something to do with allowing time for recovery between the marathon and the Olympic 10K trials… yeah I think that’s it. I didn’t pay too much attention because (obviously), I’m not looking for a spot, lol. And speaking of the Olympics, LA is hosting the Olympic marathon trials the day before the LA Marathon.

So registration opened today – for 2 days only – and then it re-opens in September with a higher price tag. And I might have accidentally signed up. So number 6: LA Marathon, February 14, 2016. Sub 4 is the goal.

And speaking of the Olympics… Recall in my last post, I mentioned that my swims were sucky. Suckier than usual. So today, I was repeating one of last week’s workouts and feeling pretty good about it. This was my workout:

• 200 swim, 100 kicks 
• Main – on 15s rest: 
• 4x200 @ 70% 
• 4x100 @ 80% 
• 4x50 @ 90% 
• 4x25 @ 100% 
• 4x100 with pull buoy & paddles, on 10s rest. 
• 100 easy 

So I’m feeling good. Lane to myself, no rage, and I’m pretty sure I’m swimming it faster than the previous week (which I did, 2 minutes faster FWIW). And then I’m doing my 4x50s and I’m just finishing my 15s rest when an elderly Asian lady in the next lane, doing breast stroke and keeping her hair dry, comes swimming up. I head off for my next 50 and am just finishing my 15s rest at the wall when she comes swimming in again. WTF? Suddenly I’m not feeling so much like Ariel. As I head off, I think I catch a glimpse of flipper and I think “riiiight, of course… this is why her leisurely breast stroke is not much slower than my 50m @ 90%”. After I’m done my main set, before I head off with paddles, I duck my head under and have a look: no flippers. Damn it!

It’s so obvious what’s going on here. Clearly this woman is a former Olympic medalist. Next time I’m there, I might ask her to sign my swim cap.