Time Machine

I wish things were simple.

I finished up my penultimate clinic run on Wednesday feeling great.  It was the notorious/infamous 2x2mi.  John said I should target a 7:05/mi... I didn't like the sound of that.  A few weeks prior, I did a 2x2, I was nearly a minute/mile slower.

When I managed to actually hit the target, you can understand why I was absolutely thrilled.

It's taken me two months to get back to where I was.

The second 2 miles was tougher, but I was trying to chase Sue down.  Just when I got close, she pulled away.  I think she was teasing me ;)  She's normally much faster and is actually not even in my league... but she's had a couple of injuries that almost brought her down to my level.

Sue is a fantastic runner.  She ran a 1:38, a PB, in the Historic Half, that extrapolates out to a sub-3:30... more than enough for her BQ.  At the time, I told her (semi-)facetiously, that I'd be disappointed if she didn't run a 3:40 for Vancouver.  However, in the coming months she nursed a nagging injury; add on a vacation, and you have the makings of doubt.

She's now targeting RVM for her BQ.

At the end of the clinic run, I mentioned to John, I was having a tough time with pacing for the last couple of tempos.  But he said, tonight's run was proof that I was getting my speed back.  He said I should probably target my race pace to be a bit slower than what my tempo runs used to be.  An 8:15/mi!!!  Now I am really confused.

I like the idea of challenging myself, but I also enjoy pain as much as the next guy (or gal).  An 8:15/mi was my goal 2-3 months ago... before my injuries.  I was thinking more of a 8:35-40 was going to be more realistic.  And this has me quite anxious.  I feel there's a good chance (i.e. 75%) I can manage a 8:35-40/mi pace for the marathon, it won't be easy, but it's within my grasp.  An 8:15 is probably pretty low (i.e. 25%).  But is that my negative self-doubts creeping into my mental calculations?

I understand, few people think they're ever ready for a race.  No matter what, it always seems like you could always use more time to prepare.  But for me, it's honestly a bit different.  A few months ago, I was riding pretty high.  I completed my tempo runs (12 miles at 7:45/mi) and feel I would have been better to race then.

Wouldn't a time machine be great?  Just hit the rewind button and no bruised ribs, no calf injury, and no missed LSDs.  No pain!

I don't like the idea of wimping out, nor do I like the idea of crashing and burning.  John set out my weekend long run... I was supposed to run 14 miles at race pace.  I decided to meet in the middle and run a 8:20/mi, 5 seconds slower than John suggested, but still 15-20 seconds faster than I was originally planning.

Sue ran with me.  An 8:20 fits perfectly for her BQ (which I personally think she has a good chance to do for VIM).  Thankfully as an equalizer, she logged a pre-run of 13km.  Even at that, she was pushing the pace for much of the run.

Obviously, there is no time machine that can erase the past. But I suppose this is what my blog is about.  Not about perfection, but battling through adversity and continue to strive for improvement.

Aside from being cold and wet, I felt pretty strong at the finish of the 14 miles.  Another 12 miles... tough one to answer.

This will be only my second time I've "raced" a marathon.  I've done two previously that I held back on.  I don't like to put myself on the line, but I'm going to do it now... I'll put myself out there and say, yeah, I'm going to target a 3:40 for VIM.