I went for a waddle

It took me a while to decide on what event to do this month, but I'm very happy with the event I ended up with.
The Widdle Waddle is the half marathon cousin of the Wattle Waddle and the first event of the famed Seattle Quadzilla - what you've never heard of the Quadzilla?????
A quadzilla is pastime of marathon maniacs and half marathon fanatics - run 4 marathons (or halfs or some combination of half and full marathons) in 4 days. The local maniac community in Seattle has organized a quadzilla for the last two years. This year's event started with the Wattle Waddle, followed by the Wishbone trail run, the Ghost of Seattle and culminated with the Seattle marathon on November 27th. I think around 24 insane runners completed the quadzilla this year.
The Widdle Waddle was a wonderful run along the Burke-Gilman trail in Seattle. This trail is a paved running/walking/cycling trail that runs along a former rail bed. With its railroad history there are no major hills of any kind - in fact I could have sworn it was slightly downhill in both directions. The half course did an out and back, and considering the total registration was limited to 150 participants the on-course support was great - a self serve water and Gatorade station at the 4/9 mile mark, and a manned station at the turn around complete with a porta potty, and all the best snacks (chips, M and M's, lots of Gu's). Before crossing the finish line you had to make your way to the top of a small hill in Gasworks Park to read the secret message that was required to claim your medal - and yes they had medals (take note Whistler half). At the finish line there was a veritable feast: tomato and red pepper soup, yams with marshmallows (this was Thanksgiving), brownies, chips, gummy bears, what more could one want!

Pre-race

I took this run easy, having not done much distance since Victoria and with December's run coming up fast I treated this like a training run and kept in zone 1 for the whole distance, so I am very happy with my 2:26 finish. My partner in crime, Bob Hansen, took off after about the 4 mile mark and completed in a very respectable 2:19 (I think). The weather was great for most of the race, while the winds blew at home it was fairly calm and dry for most the race. The rain started up with about half an hour to go. With the weather turning Bob and I scurried off after the race on a hunt for brunch - not an easy task on Thanksgiving day. Eventually we found a great little Mexican place with warm food and cold beer. A final Starbucks stop on the way home and our day was done. Thanks Bob for the company!

Self serve water station

Post-race

Nice medal

Cerveza

mmmm enchiladas

Next up is Vegas in a few short days - can't wait to run the Vegas strip at night, it will be a different experience with all the lights!

November finally decided

Well it took a while but I finally made a decision on what half marathon would be my November event. Drum roll please.............and the winner is - The Widdle Waddle in Seattle on Thanksgiving Day. Bob Hansen and I will be driving down for the day, come back in a few weeks to hear about the adventure.  (the Widdle Waddle is the half marathon version of the Wattle Waddle, race number one of the Seattle Quadzilla - four marathons in four days).

In other news: the results of my comprehensive exams are in and I passed! I can now call myself a doctoral candidate :)

That's all for now, back at the end of November!

P.S. - November is Diabetes Awareness Month

Half way!

A second successful marathon

The Pearce family

We were the third to last car on the ferry, this is where we were parked :)

Woo Hoo!!!!! Half way through 12 halfs in 12 months - it's all downhill from here!
Thanksgiving weekend can mean only one thing - Victoria marathon time. Armed with a reservation (for a change) we headed off to the island Friday afternoon for a weekend of good friends, good food and good running. Thanks to Barb, Paul and Lauren for hosting us once again and being there out on the course for Dave. Saturday saw us headed to the expo to pick up race packages, a marathon jacket for Dave (only to be worn if marathon successfully completed), and lunch at the Noodle Box - the Pearce family tradition. The sun was out on the island and once again we lucked out with some fabulous weather. Sunday morning came awfully early, a 7:30 start in October seems so much earlier than it does in the middle of the summer, and it was extra early for Dave who didn't have to start until 8:45. With the lovely Corinne to run with we were off on the lovely Victoria half course. I really enjoy this course for a few reasons, the scenery is great; from the inner harbour, beacon hill park, to the waterfront, the hills are there but are gentle both up and down, and the volunteers and spectators are enthusiastic and supportive. There is one house that plays the theme song from Chariots of Fire all day long, the Hash House Harriers always have their beer stop fully stocked, and the retirement home near 19 km that plays 50's and 60's dance music all day are just some of the highlights. It is also nice to see the leaders on the out and back stretch and to see the marathon leaders as you head back in on the half course - so inspiring.
No PB this time out but I certainly wasn't expecting one - I'm very happy with my 2:19 finish. Given the amount of training I've done in the last couple months that is quite respectable. And, I'm very happy to be officially have way through this challenge. Only 6 more to go.

Other notable results: Dave successfully completed his second marathon in 4:16 so he can where his nice new jacket. In the half Corinne, Deb, Christine, Emma, Andrew, Maxi, and Noah all had great runs (hope I didn't miss anyone). In the full I know Jacek, Sebastian, Brian, Christine, Ashley, Dave, Ken, Anna, Bob, Kelly, and more were all successful. Well done everyone, enjoy your rest and recovery time!

On the education front, I turned in my comprehensive exams on September 30th, I'll be getting my results by the end of this week. Keep your fingers crossed everyone - passed comps mean I can call myself Ed.D. ABD (all but dissertation) another milestone reached.

Next up - still haven't decided for sure but I think it's time to face the Fall Classic once again - not my favorite race but the timing is right and maybe I'm due for a good run at the Fall Classic.

Thanks for reading, if you have suggestions for upcoming races let me know, I'm still looking for January and March.

5 half's down - 4 days to go

Since I'm having a tough time focusing this morning, I thought I might as well update my blog.
Sunday was the Bellingham Bay Half marathon, officially number 5 of my 12 in 12. Not much sleep the night before as I listened to the pouring pouring pouring rain
I had visions of a chilly wet run and garbage bags at the start line.
Luckily the half start time was 9:30, which any half marathoners out there will realize is really late as far as start times go. This meant we could stay at home Saturday night and make the cross-border trek in the morning. Border line-ups were a little heavier than expected but after about a 20 minute wait we were across the border and headed to downtown Bellingham. The rain from the night before was gone and there was a fierce wind blowing the clouds away.
Arrived at the start area in plenty of time, found cheap parking a couple blocks away, late package pick-up went smoothly as did bag drop. By now the sun was shining (although the wind was still blowing) and it was much warmer than expected.
The race started right on time and we were off on a tour of historic Bellingham, it was a great course, a mixture of residential, park, waterfront, trail, and boardwalk. The occasional small hill, both up and down, all around a great course. The full marathoners, did a point to point route, they started at 7:30 and their route joined up with the half course at our 4 mile mark, it was great to run along marathoners who were at about the same pace. The only downside to this course was the wind, it was at our backs for the first 4 miles or so, and then we turned, there were a number of places where you had to squint and keep your eyes almost closed against the dust and dirt blowing around, and lots of debris falling from trees. The volunteers and spectators more than made up for this little inconvenience though. I would definitely recommend this event to anyone looking for a September half, it fits in nicely with tapering time for October marathons - oh and I forgot to mention one of the nicest medals and shirts in a long time!
Not a great time for my result, but not unexpected, training has really taken a back seat for the last couple months and in particular for the last couple weeks. The 4 days to go reference is 4 days left to complete my comprehensive exams: two 20 page papers, one on advocacy coalition theory and one on my methodology for my research project. They are coming along and will get done, but it is a challenge.
So what's up next......well number 6 and the half way point is coming up quick, Thanksgiving weekend in Victoria (where Dave will be running his second marathon), and then November is still undecided. I need some help with this one. Here are the options:
1 - Fall Classic - double loop around UBC - I've done this one a number of times and can't say I've ever enjoyed it, I think this one is November 20th.
2 - The new Ginger Jar half - another double loop this one around Stanley Park, this one is November 27th so it's a week before Vegas.
3 - Phantom trail run options of 12, 19 or 24 km. None of these distances are half marathon length, but 19 is close, this will be a challenge, I'm loving the trail running but boy am I slow, a 12 km run generally takes 1:45, not sure I'm up for these distances.
Let me know what you think - maybe I'll go with the one with the most reccomendations

Ok enough procrastinating, time to get back to the papers and figure out just what it means to code interview data.

Cheers and thanks for reading!

Update time

Thought it might be time for an update on how the 12 halfs are going.
It's been a nice break between events this time, with my September one not until the 25th. In the meantime I've been trying to focus on the other aspect of this adventure (my doctorate) as well as continuing to incorporate Michael's diabetes into our lives.
Michael is back to school, and adapting well. Our school, Gray Elementary, has been wonderful. They have a couple other kids with diabetes within the school and are well versed with the potential issues for kids with diabetes. It is great that the school has been proactive and I feel confident that should an emergency arise they will know what to do. It also helps being off this year and knowing that most of the time I am only 10 minutes away. Michael has also started back with his swim club, first practice this week went well, both in terms of blood glucose levels and swimming :) Michael was thrilled that he was the fastest in his group on Monday, and is looking forward to seeing how his times come down at the first PASS meet of the year in October.
I am spending this week getting myself organized for comprehensive exams. Comps are one of the major hurdles to get over in doing a doctorate. In my program they consist of two major papers which will ultimately form the basis of two dissertation chapters. My questions will be emailed to me Friday morning and then I have two weeks to complete two 20 page academic papers. I already know the topic areas so I've been able to collect background materials (haven't read it all yet), and get things organized and ready to go. The next two weeks will be a lot of work but then a short break to recover and I'll be good to go moving forward with research.

On the running front, well I'm not running as much as I'd like :(
So I won't be expecting any PB's anytime soon :)
September's event is the Bellingham Bay half, looks to be a nice course with a beautiful finishing medal and shirt. Dave and I will be driving down for the day, this will be a good taper run for Dave in anticipation of the Victoria marathon a couple weeks later.
October will be Victoria, I'll be running the half and Dave will be running the full, his training has been going very well so I'm sure he'll have a successful run. I'll be out there enjoying the beautiful scenery and since the half starts well before the full marathon I'll be finished in lots of time to cheer on the Alma marathoners!
November has been a tough decision, the new Whistler 50 relay is the same weekend as the Boundary Bay half so that one is out, there are two other halfs in Vancouver the Fall Classic and a new one the Ginger Jar half both of which are double loops (ugh), another option is a new race in Victoria, the Bear Mountain half. The Bear Mountain 10 km race advertises itself as North America's hardest 10 km, due to the three hills nicknamed Baby Bear, Mama Bear and Papa Bear. This year they are adding a half marathon course (not a double loop). This could be a fun event and may turn into a girls weekend :)
That's it for now, I'll be back in a couple weeks with a race report and comp report, until then happy running and happy studying!

August - 4 down!

Well, the last month has been nothing if not eventful.
After getting home from our Oregon trip (and the boys' cross the US road trip adventure) it became apparent something wasn't quite right with Michael. He was getting more and more lethargic and drinking an unbelievable amount of water. A quick check with Grandma's glucometer showed blood glucose levels that were way too high. Off we went to Children's Hospital and since then we have been learning to live with a diagnosis of type 1 diagnosis. Can't say enough about the wonderful doctors, nurses, dieticians, nurse educators, residents, and others at Children's.
Needless to say training has changed a little, Dave is continuing with his goal of the Victoria Marathon, I have adjusted my October goal to a more realistic half and we are now splitting up our weekend running. I'm doing the North Shore trails on Saturday's (love those trails) and Dave is running with the clinic group on Sunday's. I'm sure it won't be long before we are back to both running on Sunday's but for now it is easier on all for one of us to be home.
The Delta Half on August 10th was my designated half for the month, in the week prior I checked the website for a reminder of where and when package pick-up was and saw a note about there being less than 200 registered runners. This struck fear in my heart, with so few runners, and not quite the training I had hoped for, this could be the race where I could come in........insert shudder here......last! So it was with trepidation that I headed out Sunday morning for a 7:30 am start. Now there are a few really good things about such a small race: there is no line up for the washrooms, and you get to use real washrooms not port-a-potties, you get to park at the start line (I literally drove over the start line to get into the rec centre parking lot), you get to wait in your warm car until just before the start (it is still chilly at 7:00'ish am).
The Delta half winds it's way from the Ladner recreation centre through the suburbs of scenic Ladner, past a little nine-hole executive golf course, along River Road and into the farmland of Ladner/South Delta, before returning to suburbia again and finishing up back at the rec centre. The good things about this course: no hills, it was well marked, the volunteers were numerous and supportive, the water stations were well spaced, well supplied and well staffed primarily with families. The not so great things about this course: no hills (I know who would ever have thought I'd say this was a negative, but all flat all the time can get a bit monotonous), it's not the most scenic of courses, and once into the farm land the roads are very crowned you had to run down the yellow line to find a relatively level part of the road and then dodge the occasional vehicle as the roads were not closed.
The end result: a time of 2:21:50 and not last! I am actually very happy with my time and how I felt during the race. The finish line featured a pancake breakfast put on by the local rotary club, and a good number of draw prizes including a grand prize of a bike donated by one of the sponsors, South Shore Cycles. (Sad to say no prizes came my way).
Would I do this race again, probably not, but if you are looking for a half marathon to run in August, there aren't many out there and the organization and volunteer support was certainly there for this one.

Next up - Bellingham at the end of September, this one will serve as a stress reliever as I will be in the middle of my comprehensive exams that weekend :)

Thanks for reading :)

Fueled by Fine Wine

Number three is in the bag! And seeing as I am having a hard time going up and down stairs today I might as well update this.
Fueled by Fine Wine as an absolutely stunning course put on by the Dundee Vineyards Association in Dundee, Oregon in the Willamette Valley (now make sure you pronounce that correctly). The course covered a variety of terrain, from asphalt to gravel to farm paths through the vineyards. From descriptions of last year's course we knew we were in for something special and something challenging, these race organizers love their hills. I will never again complain about having to head up 8th Ave to UBC, at least with 8th there is a block or two of warm-up - not the case this weekend, over the start line out of a park and boom there's the first hill, that went on and on and on (or so it seemed), we climbed through the residential area of Dundee before venturing into the vineyards and heading back down again to Fox Farm Road, it was very challenging to not turn off and head straight back to bead as we ran right by our home for the weekend, Fox Farm Cottage. More hills were to follow, and more vineyards, and more hills, you get the picture. The most challenging hill took us for a loop around vineyards with some of the most spectacular views. Thank you to Newton for the Tuesday night training sessions - I know they helped, and thanks to Kate for the trail runs on the North Shore, they sure gave me the confidence to run downhill on farm tracks and to conserve energy by walking up the big ones. With one more hill at mile 12 the finish line was finally in sight, and not only a finish line but a fantastic medal and wine tasting with at least 20 local wineries, can you say pinot noir at 9:30 am?
The organizers were correct, you may not get your best time but you will have your best time - it was a fantastic experience. (Dave may disagree but perhaps he took the run a little too seriously :))

Here's a few pics, you'll note you don't see many people actually running up those hills, in fact I don't think I've ever seen such a large portion of the field walking the hills. 

On the other thing that I am supposed to be working on while doing all these runs - well the last couple weeks have not been all that productive but...I have nailed down my research questions and am continuing to expand my background knowledge learning all about advocacy coalition theory, tenure and promotion policies and practices, and also exploring qualitative research techniques. I'm also exploring means of keeping my work organized, OneNote is looking promising but I've got to figure out what office 2010 has done to my laptop, they don't like each other. Another month of so of reading and processing and then it will be time for comprehensive exams in early fall - if I can figure out the paperwork that is.

Next up - the Delta Half sometime around August 14th.