Sun Run Recap

The Sun Run on April 21st was near perfect conditions. A little gusty perhaps, but not too cold and not too warm.

Leading up to the race I was feeling great - I was very satisfied with my training, especially my speed work. I did have a nagging left toe problem (seismoiditis) but I figured it wouldn't affect my race. I was well tapered, and feeling good.

The morning of the race I followed my usual routine - wake up 3 hours before the race and go for a very easy 15 minute shakeout run. I didn't really feel like running around the streets of Vancouver yet, so I ran on the treadmill at the hotel. It worked out okay despite my dislike of treadmills!

After the run I gobbled down my usual pre-race breakfast of a small bowl of yogurt, fruit and granola. Then proceeded to crank up some tunes and get pumped up! Luckily no one got to see my horrible dance moves except for my wife.

The race starts at a very reasonable time of 9am. I headed out the door at 8:25, and as soon as I started my warmup I had this sudden burst of energy and excitement. "Oh yes, I feel fast today!". A few laps around Nelson Park and then headed over to the start line. It's a nice setup - the start is on West Georgia Street (very wide, probably 4-6 lanes?) - and the first kilometer of the race course is open to seeded runners for warmup. Did a few sprints, chatted with some friends, and then it was time to get serious. I purposely waited as long as possible before moving in behind the start line to be as near the front as I could. I figure I was probably about 4th or 5th row back.

The gun went off, and away we went. The first kilometer is very fast - it's straight and mostly downhill which really lets the lead runners get off to a fast start. It was congested but not too bad at all. I tried to make the most of the downhill without getting my breathing up too much, and passed the first marker in 3:16, perfect! The second kilometer has a couple corners and a slight uphill in it and ended up being slightly slower at 3:39, but still nicely on pace and feeling good. The next two kilometers are flat and relatively straight and the goal was to maintain a 3:30 pace: 3:30, 3:34, close enough. Just before 5K there is a short and nasty hill up Hornby before going over the Burrard Street Bridge (which is also an uphill but not as steep).

I knew my friend Jonathan would be waiting at the bottom of the hill, and sure enough there he was! Perfect placement because it really helped propel me up the hill. I also knew that my wife would be waiting at the top of the hill, so I had to be smiling :) Here is a photo from the bottom of Hornby. Interestingly the guy in green and the girl in orange both finished right with me. Both of them pulled ahead after this photo but I just caught them right at the line (although the green shirt beat me even though we had the same time, and of course he is in my age group!).

The 5K was slightly slower as expected (3:43) due to the climb, but my 5K time of 17:47 was right on target for my goal of 35:30. I clawed my way up the Burrard Street Bridge telling myself that there is a nice long gradual downhill on the other side. The next few kilometers were a little bit of a blur but the pace was good: 3:33, 3:31, and 3:27. I had some more friends waiting at 8K and it really helped to keep me going. Somewhere around this point I glanced down at my watch and saw that my pace was 3:31/km... and had visions of going sub 35 minutes (3:30 pace)! But I quickly realized that my Garmin watch is never that accurate, and so in a 10K race I usually run around 50m more (10 more seconds), so I figured I was on pace for 35:20.

Right around 9K there is a short and unpleasant uphill on to the Cambie Street Bridge, and this was when the race really started to hurt. That kilometer was slow at 3:36, but luckily by then all the hard work was done. I held on along the bridge knowing my wife would be cheering at the end of the bridge, and put in one final push down the off ramp and a decent sprint to the finish, crossing the line in a time of 35:18. As the photos show, I was quite happy with that result! 50 seconds faster than my previous PR at last year's TC10K. It is also my highest ever points - 770!

Splits:
3:16, 3:39, 3:30, 3:34, 3:43 (17:47)
3:33, 3:31, 3:27, 3:36, 3:32 (17:31)

Here is my garmin activity for the race, and full race results.

After the race I met up with my wife and brother (who also ran the race) and we walked back along the course to the 8K marker. It was incredible to see the sea of runners as far as the eye could see. We relaxed in the warm sun at a friends place, and then walked over to Granville Island for some lunch. My legs felt pretty good overall. Slight soreness in my right knee but otherwise fine. We stayed another night in Vancouver to relax and enjoy ourselves before heading back to the island on Monday.

The last 2 photos are copyrighted (in case you couldn't tell) and belong to Marathon Fotos, from this website:
http://www.marathon-photos.com/scripts/event.py?new_search=1&event=Sports%2FSTCA%2F2013%2FVancouver%20Sun%20Run&match=123.