Recap of the 2016 Brainsport Brainfreeze Half Marathon

Rule #1 of racing, always move furniture the night before, and then refuel with a Twix.

I don't have any other rules, so I'll stick to the recap.  As you might expect, if you live in Saskatoon, Brainsport events are generally well organized and fun.  So let's discuss.
First off, the half and 10k both got started on time and followed 10th Street East to Broadway, where it continued over the Broadway Bridge and onto 4th Avenue.  Then the course turned right onto 20th Street and winded onto the trail along the river (heading North) up to the turn-around point near the Waste Treatment Facility.  There was still a fair amount of ice along the course and at times you had to dodge and jump a bit just to avoid it.
I ran my first kilometre at a 4:38 pace, which (upon hearing Runtastic announce it) caused me to slow down to a cruising speed of about 5:35, which became my average pace.  The next kilometre was alongside the South Saskatchewan River (as all but the final kilometre would be) with views of the Bessborough Hotel as well as the river, of course.
Like everyone else whose run on the trail--which I should identify as the Meewasin Trail, for anyone from outside Saskatoon--I'm familiar with the dips and depressions and all the little things that a runner needs to know to pace him or herself properly.  I know, for example, that running the path under the University Bridge is a damned good time to bank a few seconds by speeding up a tad.  I also know that the ascending path from the late Mendal Art Gallery to Spadina can be, on occasion, kind of an annoying little jaunt.

As it turns out the Brainfreeze is not chip timed, nor is it a fun run either.  The race, which benefits the Huskies Cross Country Team, is something of a throwback--in some ways it reminds me of my military days when we'd run our allotted distance and then shouted our bib numbers out at one of the NCO's at the finish line. At the Brainfreeze, each runner's timing is recorded by hand.  The post race spread is not unimpressive, though I did have one complaint.  The spread consisted of water and coffee, pastries and bagels... but no protein recovery drinks.  Not a big deal as I was able to secure a small quantity of Muscle Milk from the local 7-11.

 For what it's worth, I ran in a pair of Hoka Bondi 4's.  I probably would have finished a few minutes earlier in lighter racing shoes, but as nearly all my training has been in Hokas, I didn't think it was a good idea to change anything major for race day.   I wore an Adidas cold weather sweater, with the Brainfreeze's technical shirt underneath, and a pair of New Balance running pants.  I was perhaps slightly overdressed for the event, but it's better to be overdressed than underdressed.

As for my own race and performance, right as I got to the 19k point I knew I had locked-up a sub-2 hour half marathon, barring either a bizarre injury or epic meltdown of some sort.  In fact, I had maybe 15-16 minutes to finish the remaining two kilometres.  Naturally, though, those final two thousand metres would be the toughest of the entire race as they would be almost entirely uphill--to the tune of over 60 metres of elevation over the 19k mark.  I struggled, of course, running uphill on the Broadway Bridge into Nutana and my heart rate climbed to more than 185 bpm.  But as I made the final turn, I realized that I had a PR locked-up.  It was a good race.

Recap: Intrepid Dezine Half Marathon

Intrepid Dezine Half Marathon
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Distance: 21K (Half Marathon)
Time: 2:06:40
Pace: 9:36
Best Split: 8:17
10k: 54:59 (PR)
Rank: 1511/3127
Post race meal: Chocolate milk, sun chips, banana, half whole wheat bagel.


Comments: Another rainy race.  We started at six minutes after 7am--the delay was owed to a vehicle that stalled on the course.  All-in-all, I found it easier to run in Winnipeg than in Saskatoon, and was headed to a new personal record when near disaster struck about 3/4 of the way through.  Thanks to a build up of lactic acid, my quads and hamstrings really suffered, making it difficult to run. Ultimately the IT band on my right left became an issue.  I had banked enough time early on that I still consider my time (2:06) respectable given the circumstances.  The course started at the University of Manitoba and wound up Pembina into a residential section.  Runners were met along the route by a lot of locals with signs--a few even wanted to slap us five as we ran by.

The aid stations were more numerous and more useful than was the case at the Saskatoon Police Half Marathon.  Water and Gatorade were available, as were soaked sponges; at one point, volunteers were handing out sticks with Vaseline (for chaffing).  I used the aid stations primarily as a walk break--the theory being that my legs would hold up better.  Alas, my theory was wrong, as lactic acid flowed in.

I stayed hydrated by drinking water with GU Brew.  I fueled with Salted Caramel GU (3 packs total- take once before the race, and twice during). All-in-all, I never felt tired.

We crossed the finish line on a running track in a stadium.  Although I didn't sprint, I did greatly pick up the pace at the end, and crossed at 2:06:40.

I've certainly never hurt so much after a race.  Part of the reason for this (and for the one week delay between this post and my previous post) is that I've been under the weather.  First with a cold, then with gastroenteritis (which followed immediately after my previous race).  Clearly, when you're just getting over an illness, you're not necessarily going do your best.   However, sometimes you find out who you are when you keep running after realizing that there won't be a PR.

Arresting Developments in Saskatoon (or, today's extended Half Marathon recap).

Saskatoon Police Half Marathon
Downtown Core, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Distance: 21K
Time: 2:19:18
Pace: 10:15
Best Split: 8:46
Rank: 42/57
AG: 43.38%
Post race meal: Chocolate Milk, Iced Coffee and Blueberry Muffin from Tim Hortons

Comments: Some days you have it, some days you don't.  Let's look at the positives: I finished... despite two injuries (IT Band and SI Joint Syndromes).

The highlight of the day was when my knee seemed to buckle from the IT band pain.  Of course, sans a foam roller, I had to get by using my phone to release the IT band.  That was not terribly pleasant, but it allowed me the ability to finish without destroying my knee.

The race started at 8am on a misty Sunday morning. Runners crossed the start line, which was between police cars with whirling police lights.  Notice the theme here?
(Luckily, as bad as my time was, it did not lead to my arrest.)  After a circuitous route through Downtown Core, we wound down to Victoria Park and along the river.  I ran a tad bit faster than I had planned to.  Right around 5k is when my knee started to hurt, and my quads and hamstrings started to argue with me.  The problem is basically this: because of the SI Joint point, I needed to have a hip adjustment (simple procedure... done several times). Because my hips adjusted and aligned properly, I'm now "burning different fibers of the same muscles."  In English, I'm rebuilding my leg endurance.  I'm not really able to do much about my muscles during a race, but my knee was another matter.  As I mentioned before, I used my android phone (in lieu of a foam roller) to massage my IT band. The result was that the horrific/sharp pain that accompanies IT band syndrome was minimized.  Alas, I would have to do this virtually every 1-3 kilometers, and that is what really killed my pace.