April 12, 2009

Three Weeks to Go

I had company for the first two hours of my final long run before the Vancouver Marathon.
Our neighbour Paul took Tim and I on a run along some of the many trails of Squamish.

Because of the rain we stayed mostly on wider trails to avoid slippery rocks and roots. The last section that got us back into Valleycliffe has narrower trails and we had to pay a bit more attention to our footing. It's a great loop, with fantastic views.

I ran the last 45 minutes on my own, feeling very happy with my preparations for the race. Next week I am running a 10k, the Vancouver Sun Run. I haven't done this race before and am curious to see what it's like.

Like Sydney's City to Surf, this race draws tens of thousands of participants. Last year there were 59,000. The following Sunday I have an easy 90-minute run.

My main speed sessions until the marathon will obviously be the 10km, and a 3km time trail this Tuesday.

Mentally and physically I feel very ready for the marathon. I will sharpen my mental race focus in the next three weeks.

Next weekend two good friends are set to race in the Canberra marathon. For one, it's his first although he has race many triathlons, including Ironman, and other running distances. For the other one, running marathons each year is simply part of her life.

Thinking about them racing next weekend is a great mental warm-up for my own race. I'm very excited for them.

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