So today I got out for a morning ride and was reminded of two things: 1-why I love cycling and 2-why I love autumn in Nova Scotia

I took out my mountain bike, but knowing I’d be mostly on asphalt and/or gravel, I checked to be sure the tires were firmly inflated. I took off and had some pain in my knee, which was mostly alleviated once I lifted the seat up to a more “road position”.

It’s a hilly ride around my neighborhood, and more challenging than I wish for, which causes me to hesitate about getting my bike out, but I’ve determined that riding uphill on trail is much “easier” than uphill on the road. I just need to find more trails near my house!

I rode for about 18km, 1:15-1:30 (didn’t check the time when I left).
The brisk wind, crunchy leaves and beautiful colour reflected off of the water was invigorating. I need to make that a habit.

I haven’t run for a few weeks, and haven’t missed it…

Happy Fall!

I haven’t raced since Cabot Trail. For those who don’t know – that was at the end of May!

My training has not gone well, I’ve down graded goals, and lost all interest in racing. The only thing getting me through is that I will NOT DNS the Team Diabetes Okanagan. I registered for the half, rather than the full when it became clear I wasn’t getting anywhere close to that kind of mileage, and to be honest I’m really not prepared for the Half either. The race is in two weeks time. I figure this weekend’s race would be telling as to whether I should drop down again a notch to the 10k. I’m torn. I want to do something significant for this cause and for my sister, the fundraising AND the running…

My knee hurts all the time, snaps and aches and pains. I see RMT and chiro on a regular basis, but it seems to no avail.

So yesterday I was NOT into this race. For those who know me, it is telling that I was only getting on the road to join the relay at 10am. We arrived as leg 3 was finishing up.

Once we got on the race course we decorated my brand new Matrix with Team Diabetes banners, and we started cheering our team on.

I took my traditional dip in the ocean at Queensland, which woke me up and got me ready for the day. The water was much colder than last year and my toes became numb rather quickly…

By the time my leg rolled around I was ready to see what my knee could do. I wanted to push hard, but had no expectations and did not want to ruin myself for the big race in two weeks. I hadn’t run in almost two weeks. My knee just was not liking the training.

So I started out at the back of the pack and became much more social than usual when I’m running a race. I introduced myself to a couple of ladies who seemed to be running at my pace and we stuck together for more than half of the run. It was a lot of fun to chat and push myself a little harder than I may have on my own. Eventually my friends each left me behind, but I was holding steady, so I was feeling good for them being able to pick it up and with a a nice negative split. For one, it was her first race ever, and for the other only her second.

My knee felt good at first, but the other was twinging after a while, so I must have been over compensating… then I hit 9k when the gradual downhill to the finish begins. My knee started giving me problems, but I decided I couldn’t walk it off or I wouldn’t likely run again this race.

They were calling for rain all day long, my leg got the only rain of the entire day. I actually enjoyed it as the air felt very heavy and humid all day long. The weather was perfect for running except for the humid/dampness in the air, so I quite enjoyed the rain even when it was coming down heavily. About 500 m before the finish line I came up behind a runner taking what appeared to be her third puff form her asthma puffer… I asked her if she was ok and told her we were almost there. I heard her start running again behind me. Once we hit the finish chute she ran up beside me and let her get by on the corner.

In the end I was very happy with my results, I held an average 6:10 pace for the 12.5ish km run. (I was so ill-prepared I didn’t even remember the actual distance of my leg). I got to run into Mahone Bay when the traffic wasn’t nearly as bad as previous years (their scarecrow festival usually falls on this weekend, but this year it’s not until next weekend). I was tempted to jump into the Bay and swim across once I saw the churches though – my knee felt that bad… but I made it to the finish in good time!

The highlight of my day was when a couple came up to me during the leg before mine while I was getting ready and gave me $20 for my campaign! They’re doing TD Hawaii this year!

So now I will spend my day stretching, heating and icing and hope for the best in the Okanagan. Any thoughts on whether I should stick with the Half?

“2 year Anniversary” pic: