Pre-Race

Pre-Race: Casablanca Classic 8k (2015)

It’s that time of year again – the Casablanca Classic 8k race presented by the Niagara Running Series.

Last year, I ran the race untrained and suffered immensely. I finished with a time of 56:17, which put me last in my age group. At least there’s only one way this weekend’s race to go and that’s up. I’ve had a solid 13 weeks of run training leading up to this race this year, which means a significantly better performance.

My goal is a 48 min finish and based on some analysis and my recent submaximal efficiency test, I believe it is doable but it will certainly be challenging.

The weather for this Saturday’s race is looking perfect; a mix of sun & cloud, temps around 8°C, although slightly windy with 20 kph winds out of the west. Most the of course is ran in a SW/NE direction so there will be opportunity to take advantage of some tail winds.

Following the race, I have a 30 min stretch session with my great massage therapist, Victoria Van Helvert. Full body massage follows on the Monday. 😀

Stay tuned for race recap!

Pre-Race: Crystal Beach 5k (2015)

The Crystal Beach 5k is this Saturday. Although I’m considering this a C priority race, I also want to use it as a fitness benchmark for future training paces, and also to nail down my goal time for the Casablanca Classic 8k on November 7th.

My run training has been spot on and weekly mileage is up to 15 kms but I had a few bad nutrition weeks and therefore my weight is a little higher than I had hoped. Also, I’m finding my aerobic capacity isn’t as efficient as I want it.

My original finish goal was 30 mins – 6:00 min/km (9:40 min/mile) pace – and I was thinking of revising for 31 or 32, but screw it! I’m going to push hard at this race to and shoot for the original 30 mins. There might be some puking involved, or maybe a myocardial infarction, but dammit, I’m doing it.

Pre-Race: Crystal Beach 5k

Yes I know it’s only a 5k, but it’s the first race I’ve done since June. I signed up for it more of a means to get my run training back on track, and it’s worked so far. I haven’t missed a planned training run in almost 5 weeks. Weekly mileage is up to 24k (15 miles) and climbing.

Now, my weight is still the issue. In my “prime” of June 2010 when I weighed 190 lbs, I could have probably pulled off a 24:45 (4:57min/k pace) for a 5k, but now at 238, I’m hoping for a 26:15 (5:15 min/k pace). I did three 500m pace intervals on Tuesday, and I think I can maintain it for the 5k, but it’ll be tough, but 5k races are suppose to be tough considering you should be red lining it for the whole race.

To top it all off, the race is only 20 mins from home, and the weather looks to be perfect.

Recap to follow.

Pre-Race: Liberty! Bicycles 12-Mile Summer Series MTB

The Liberty! Bicycles 12-Mile Summer Series is an 8 event mountain bike series in the St. Catharines area that goes bi-weekly from Wednesday June 1. It’s a cross country course in the 12-mile creek area, approx. 15k long with a “LeMans” style running start. So I signed up for this series to get my MTB fix, and it’s also a great anaerobic workout for the biking muscles. 😎

So the first race is tomorrow evening at 6:30 PM. Since this will technically be my first MTB ride of the year, I plan on simply “riding” the course to get reacquainted with the nuances of XC MTBing. As the season progresses I’ll be pushing a little harder. I have to be careful to avoid falling, or remember how to fall properly to avoid as much injury as possible. 🙄 😆

Got the bike all prepped last night, tweaked the shocks for proper preload, tire pressures, shifting, #142 number plate installed, etc. and everything seems good to go.

This will be the only pre-race post for the series, but I’ll try and put up a race recap after every race.

Pre-Race: Victoria’s Duathlon 2011

…..and here we go. First multisport event of the year. Not a triathlon, but a duathlon: run 4k, bike 30k, run 4k. This was my first multisport event ever in 2010, and this year, I’m doing it again. It’s a well organized event, the course is challenging, and best of all, the post race food is great. 🙂

Now the big question – Am I ready? Well, that’s a little simple. Ready for what? Can I finish it? Of course I can barring any major mechanical failures or injuries. Last year my official chip time was 1h 39m 26s. My way too optimistic goal is a 1:34, of course everything is based on having the exact weather conditions. Last year it was sunny, hot & humid with a light SE wind. This year the forecast is 80% chance of thunder-showers with 30 kph SW winds – total opposite. All I know is my I’m a faster runner than last year, and my biking is about the same but I have a faster bike. I think a more realistic goal would be 1:36.

Anyhow, Mrs. Fat Guy is coming along again to cheer me on, and hopefully it turns out for the better weather wise.

Stay tuned for the post race report.

Fat Guy's Redemption

Pre-Race