Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Race Wish List

Here's an excerpt from an e-mail I wrote recently to my Team Point Two Marathon Advisor  John Ellis. I sent him this after we both decided it would be a good idea to incorporate some races into my training for the Las Vegas Rock 'n' Roll Marathon on December 6th.

Hi John,

FYI: Here's a list of races in my area I'd be interested in. Any of these would be great - I don't have any preferences, except:

1.It would be nice if I could do one on July 26th. I'll be in bored because Ian's out of town that weekend with "the boyz".

2. I'd like to do the half-marathon on Sept. 20th with Ian (his first - he'll probably beat me anyway!)

Here's the list, with a little history on why each race is included:
Jul 26
Super nice setting right on Jericho Beach. I did the 5K last year and WON my age group (it wasn't even a PR).

The Zone @ 91-3 Esquimalt 8k
Its on Vancouver Island so I can stay at my Dad's and he's likely to take me for lunch afterwards. Not to mention I've never done an 8K before (guaranteed PR!)

Aug 9
It's flat. I did the 5K last year, and had a cold so it would be nice to have a do over. They have medals for both distances. Delta's not far from where my sister lives in White Rock.

Aug 16
If I don't do the 8K on July 26th then this is another chance for my first 8K (=guaranteed PR). It's right by the new Richmond Speed Skating Oval, one of the venues constructed for the 2010 Winter Olympics. It's bound to be flat, being in Richmond, which is flat.

CFB Esquimalt Navy 10K
See The Zone @ 91-3 Esquimalt 8k on July 26th, minus the part about being an 8K.

Sep 13
Guaranteed PR, never done a 14K race before. Point to point, which is always nice.  Ends at a festival celebrating the return of the Coho salmon to the North Shore.

Sep 20
My old town of White Rock, right on the Canada-USA border. My sister is almost guaranteed to show up, and I can stay at her house the night before and eat a delicious, home-cooked meal.
 
Oct 18
Diva on the Run Half Marathon & 10K
A race for girls only, like the other Diva races - there's also a very scenic route on a gravel path next to the beach.

Oktoberfest Brewski-Daddle 2.5k, 5k
A race sponsored by a microbrewery, need I say more?  

Oct 24
Cute name, sounds fun. Unlikely to attract serious competition.  This is not a bad thing.


Oct 25
Guaranteed PR (weird distance, huh?). Running on the seawall is nice. James Cunningham was an accomplished stone mason who oversaw the construction of the seawall in Vancouver from the 1930s until his death in 1963.


Nov 15
This is the last great race of the year in Vancouver, and the course is on my Alma Mater's campus. Lovely, big trees all around and usually a pretty big event.

2 comments:

Brianna said...

14K? Interesting distance! Also fun to read about the Diva races. Looks like a FULL race schedule - makes me think of our pre-kid days in the East Coast when we did races just about every weekend, too (but, BOY, did we drop a lot of money on running in those days!). ENJOY!!!

jeannie said...

you've got an interesting wish list of marathons, and one for each month as you gear up for Las Vegas. the divas races sound like fun. i'm curious about the spooktacular scurry (love the name) as it falls on my b-day! and i think it's great that you'll get to run in one of the olympic venues before the olympics - you gotta take pictures of that! good luck!