Oasis Zoo Run 10k Race Recap

 Happy Monday! I have so many late nights this week for work that I am just counting the days till the weekend! I feel like I'm already sleep deprived (last night there was a spider web in my room and I of course knew there was a spider lurking somewhere and thus couldn't sleep).

I am excited to give a race recap of my Oasis Zoo Run 10 k this weekend though!

 

#realtalk

I haven't done a 10k in so long, that I actually can't remember when. If I had to guess, I would say it was probably within the half marathon I did in May 2016 so y'know ... it's been awhile. So I did my 8k last Monday, felt good and knew I could have run 2 more kilometres.

Saturday was an early start. We left our home around 6:15 because the race was pretty far away and I needed to do day-of race kit pickup. Because we got there around 7, the parking situation wasn't bad. We were in a traffic line up to get in for about 5 minutes and were able to park with no problem. The downside was that we were SO FAR from the actual race start. I guess the later people got the closer spots, which seemed unfair ;)

 

The line up for kit pick up was insane. We waited for about 30 minutes and it really felt like it could have and should have been more efficient. They had to delay the start of the race by 10 minutes and I'm thinking that crazy line up was why. The t-shirt in the race kit is so lovely, but that's really all that was in there aside from the chip, an Oasis juice box and some hand cream.

 



Photo link here

 

Then we went onto the porta potties. I can't stand them (who can?), but it was a long drive and frankly, I had no choice. We had to wait another 20 minutes to get in to use the porta potties so despite getting there an hour before the start, I ended up getting to the corral about five minutes before the start of the race (that was before the delayed it). They started the groups in waves that were about 3 minutes apart. which was a nice way to start without giant crowds. The first 4.5k of the run was animal-free which was kind of disappointing. We were basically running through backroads of the zoo. But at about 4.5 I saw the baby panda bears and nearly died because holy bananas they were cute!

 

So hard to get pics with this glass wall
 

I wish this was a better photo. They were adorable!

 

 

I had to stop to adore them for a minute and snap some pics through the glass. They were just sitting there all fluffy and eating bamboo. Oh I could have stayed there forever! I eventually dragged myself away and went back on my route.

 

I also stopped briefly to see the two humpback camels, flamingos, a leopard (jaguar?), red tree pandas (oh so adorable) and llamas. It was actually really fun to run and see all these different animals but the hills... Oh gosh those hills. They warn you before you begin that the route is hilly, but wow it was harsh. I didn't exactly hill train so let's just say there was some walking up hills involved.

 

 

Red tree panda!

 

As for the actual run (minus my brief animal stops), I stopped quite infrequently. As I result, I probably didn't drink enough of my electrolytes. I stopped at about 3, 7, and I think 9 for fuel but probably only for about 30 seconds. I also walked up some hills and tried to drink at those times as well but didn't always. I had a really bad headache later on in the day which was probably from dehydration. The water on the course also tasted terrible. I'm not sure what was wrong with it but it was nasty. I was glad that husband found a water bottle after because instead of passing them out to finishers, we got more cups of the weird water.

My official time was 1:06:48, which I was actually pretty impressed with, given that I stopped several times for animal pictures, and walked up some hills. And of course because I didn't exactly train for it. Doing races again has definitely amped up my motivation to run, so I'm going to register for a half marathon in the winter (chilly half) and try to keep it going. It's not about timing for me right now, but more about learning to love running again. So I know my speed will come back eventually, but right now I want to enjoy my runs rather than suffer through them. I think this will help me to move forward in a more positive way.

 

 

 

I was so exhausted after the race that I actually took an afternoon nap, which I rarely do. It was awesome and super cozy with my dim bedroom and frankincense in the diffuser. A delicious Saturday for sure.

We met with a realtor on Friday who we really liked, so we are now in the process of looking for a house to buy. While he wants us to buy first, we are going to try to list and buy somewhat simultaneously. He has a good track record and comes recommended from husbands work. Our goal is to be in our new home by Christmas. So keep your fingers crossed! We are going to look at houses next weekend, which makes me excited and nervous. Even with a decent budget cap, we are still looking at insane prices. The market is slowly dropping, and more and more houses are up for sale. The unfortunate thing is that a lot of people are stuck with insane mortgages on houses that have probably lost a significant amount of value now that the market is cooling slightly. So they are still trying to sell for close to what they paid. I'm not sure how the offers will work on those. I guess these are all things we'll find out!

Well, that's all for today! Have a great Monday!

 

 

 

Irongirl 2017 and other weekend things

This weekend was a doozy! It was definitely not restful, but was full of fun and good times (I've already ear-marked this coming Saturday as the day to sleep in ... it's been so long!!)

Saturday was a flurry of renovations. We are starting to do the final touches on our condo, so it was just boring stuff like door knobs, baseboards, constant trips to home depot and hearing my bank account crying.

Sunday ... Sunday was a day of action. I woke up bright and early for my irongirl after pressing snooze 15 times. I was so nervous but focused on getting my gear together and getting on the road. It was about an hour drive, which always makes things a little more stressful. Luckily our drive was quick and we made it there in ample time. I left my husband with my piles of bags so that I could set up my transition area, signed in, grabbed my wetsuit and we headed down to the water. The swim was a straight line down the beach, so we actually had to walk to the start line since the transition area was at the finish line. I squeezed myself into my wetsuit which was still a little bit wet from Saturday's OWS (damp wetsuit = most uncomfortable thing ever) and proceeded to warily glare at the water as the announcer reminded us all that the swim would be starting in 11 minutes. At this point I was reunited with some of my swim friends/supporters and with their encouragement along with my husbands I went down to the water and did a few minutes of back and forth swimming to warm up. Best idea ever by the way!

About a minute before my start time I realized my age group was wayyyy up front, so I managed to get there in time and we were off! The nice thing about this swim course is that it is along the beach so if you really wanted to, you could stand. Heck you could walk the entire course if you wanted to (which some people did and it looked exhausting). Now 500 m may not seem like much of a swim to all those seasoned triathletes out there, but for me to actually swim the entire course and not freak out, well it was huge! The last time I did a triathlon I mainly doggy paddled/panicked and was the very last out of the water. This time I was about half through my age group. Unfortunately no one expected me to finish so quickly, so they all missed me at the swim exit. My husband kept saying "but you told me it would take you half an hour". Yes dear husband, but that was actually just dramatic over-estimating (I was thinking more like 20).



I clearly like my space.

 

I'm the one swimming

So I was off to the transition area where I struggled out of my wetsuit and upended my entire transition area because I needed my towel to dry my feet. My nice organized area was basically just a pile of tri stuff now, so I grabbed what I needed and was off. The bike portion was by far my favourite, and not just because for the first time I was the one passing people and shouting out "on your left", which by the way, very few people actually do. I coasted along at a steady 27/28kmph on the way out, and on the way back the headwind kept me around 25-27 depending on the gusts. I saw my husband as the bike exit (finally!) and headed off to change shoes. The running leg was by far the most painful and dreaded piece for me. As someone who used to love running with every fibre of my being, I've struggled with being injured making running a (sometimes) painful experience. I don't look forward to it anymore because who looks forward to pain? Thankfully my run was pain-free but omg was it ever challenging! My only real goal in the running piece was to keep moving. I knew that if I stopped, I wouldn't start again. I did a brisk walk through each aid station, sipped some water and poured a cupful over my head each time. It was incredibly hot and sunny, without a single cloud in the sky. Soaking myself helped immensely!


I'll tell you - the finish line has never looked so inviting as it did yesterday! I had my friends cheering and my husband taking thousands of pictures, while the announcer said my name wrong and I saw a glistening cold water bottle being handed to me. And the medal ... so lovely! I (naturally) immediately began to contemplate which race to do next. I swear triathlons have the same amnesia effect as birth. You forgot the pain, the ugliness, the trauma and just remember the happy parts; the medal, the finish line, the awesome splits.

I'll be the first to admit that I didn't train as hard for this tri as I did for others, but I focused instead on overcoming the barriers that were slowing me down. I cycled fairly regularly with my group and I think I missed two open water swims over the entire season. I also swam often at the gym. I had to work really hard to get past my issues with swimming. Forcing myself into the water every week was part of that, but I also can't forget the incredibly amazing and patient people I had on my side. My swim coach had no problem telling me I was being irrational and he learned very quickly the best way to push me. I went into his class not even being able to breathe properly and so tense in the water that I could barely move. He basically just constantly yelled breathe and relax at me (after teaching me the correct way to breathe that is) and it somehow worked its way into my brain. I'll never forget the day when I was bobbing around with the rest of the class in the middle of the quarry and realized that here I was, in the middle of a huge expanse of deep water with no rapid escape possible and I didn't care. At all. I wasn't even vaguely concerned. This is from the girl who used to swim 10 strokes and then flail her way back to solid ground. To say I've made progress is an understatement. This is my 3rd triathlon (would have been 4th, but one was changed to a du at the last minute), and it is the first one I have actually swam for. I class this as my first real triathlon, because I finally have the experience of what it is to swim, get out of the water, bike and then run. It's hard, it's ugly and it is so much fun!

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And friends, look at this medal!!

Worth it! It sparkles!

I should add, that if you haven't heard of/done an Irongirl race, I would highly recommend it. It's a great sprint for people new to the sport. They are very determined to keep people safe and make sure they have a good time. There were tons of boats and rafts in the water for people who needed help, the swim was along the shore for those afraid of deep water, they had aid stations at every km during the run and the course was relatively flat for both the ride and run. The run had two semi-steep hills, but not terrible and the ride had a few rolling hills but was a nice road overall. This was the perfect race for me to get back into triathlon and be excited about it!
My only complaint was the lack of port-a-potties. We couldn't find them anywhere, and when my husband finally did find them, there were only 2. Regardless, this is a race that will likely become annual for me!

So you may think that after such a tiring morning, I would be heading home to a nice long nap. Well, not this time. I drove an hour home, showered and ate while I drove an hour in the other direction to my brother's girlfriend's baby shower. My nephew is due in December and I couldn't be more excited! Unfortunately I didn't take any photos, but I can assure you that it was a lovely afternoon filled with sweet little baby clothes, and lots of "oohs and awwwwws" over tiny baby boy outfits. Because seriously, baby clothes are just the cutest. This reason alone is why I can't stop buying things for him.

Well, this has been a super long post, but such an excellent race deserves it!
If you made it to the end, I commend you!
Today will be a well-deserved rest-day with pasta with homemade Bolognese sauce on the menu for tonight!

Happy Monday!