(Note: This one is a bit long... sorry.)
When I stepped out of the car at Barrington Passage, I knew we were in for a hot one. At 7:30 a.m., an hour before the start, I was already stripped down to my singlet and shorts – and I was already sweating. This area of the province is supposed to be foggy and cooler – no such luck. It was all sun and humidity. So it goes. You race the conditions you’re given.
Warmed up with Mike, a fellow Antique, and then lined up at the front. I figured I had a pretty good shot at top 5, so I decided toeing the line at the front was appropriate. With the heat, I was trying to convince myself to be conservative with the pace, but when the gun went, I took off. Ignoring the heat, I decided to be aggressive and establish a solid pace early. This would let me see who the challengers were going to be and give me an early indication of my race fitness.
I crossed 1k in first, but there was a guy with me. This was a bit surprising and disconcerting because we crossed well under 3:30. Actually, my Garmin recorded a 3:23. Oops. A little quick. I wanted to back off the pace, but when I did, the other guy passed me. I didn’t really know what to make of this. My first thought was that I wasn’t going to win this one – if he could maintain a low 3:30 pace, I was toast. But I didn’t want to give up on the race after only 2k, so I stayed with him, even though the pace was a little too quick.
He led as we ran through town and made the left towards the causeway – it links the mainland and Cape Sable Island, where the majority of the run happens. Through 3k, he was still leading, although I could feel the pace becoming more reasonable. Around 4k, though, the small gap that he’d opened up in town was gone all of a sudden. I found myself running off his shoulder, trying to figure out what was going on. By the sound of his breathing, I wondered if the first few k were too fast for him, so I took a chance and pulled ahead as we left the causeway and climbed a short hill onto the island.
I crossed 5k in 18:00 (17:48 according to my Garmin, which was measuring ks a little shorter than the course) with the other guy still within earshot. I didn’t look back to see where he was. Instead, I just tried to run my own race. I was already a little worried because although 18:00 was a great opening split, I figured it should’ve been faster after the opening 2k. I really wanted to maintain a 3:37-3:38, but I knew I was slipping.
The course was actually pretty good in terms of terrain. The hills weren’t monsters, although there were plenty of long, gentle inclines that ate away at my legs. Sometime after 5k, I stopped hearing the guy who’d gone out with me. I didn’t know how far back he was, and I didn’t want to know. I needed the thought of him right behind me to push me. I was sweating like crazy – wilting like a fragile flower in the sun (I’m a little delicate).
I checked my watch at 10k – just over 36:20. Not bad as an overall split. But it was bad news – it meant my pace had already dropped below where I wanted it to be. 18:20 over the 2nd 5k meant I had dropped from 3:36/k to 3:40/k – and the race wasn’t quite half over. I did my best to maintain my pace, but it’s hard to run fast alone in the heat. I had my wife and my parents to cheer me on – they drove to various points of the course to encourage me. But it wasn’t enough. I was fading. I just hoped I wasn’t fading too much.
As a precaution against frustration, I decided not to look at my watch during the second half of the race. Looking back at the data, my Garmin recorded me crossing 15k in 55:26 – which means my 3rd 5k was a little over 19:00 (3:48/k). That’s a long way off where I was hoping to be.
The course does a little out and turnaround at 15k before heading for home. This gave me a chance to see how far ahead I was. By this point, I had a nice lead, so I cheered myself with the thought that, as long as the wheels didn’t come off completely, I was probably going to win the race. From about 16k to about 18k, though, there is a long, gradual uphill. Rami warned me about this before the race, but I thought little of it. I’m so glad he told me about it, though – and told me the landmark of where it ends (by a church) because it was a killer. I had to talk myself up the hill – one foot in front of the other. And then, when I got to the top and started the descent back to the causeway, my diaphragm started cramping... badly.
With only 3k to go, I thought for sure the wheels were coming off. I thought about walking the cramp off, but I realized that the cramp was being caused by my breathing – I hadn’t noticed, but I was practically gasping for air after the hill. So I slowed way down and got my breathing under control – and over a k, I got the cramp to subside. I lost some time, but I saved the race.
For the final 2k, I was being led by a fire department van. As we came down the hill to the long causeway back to the mainland, he turned on his sirens to let the folks at the finish know that the first runner was coming home. I have to admit, I got chills. I’ve won a few races, but I’ve never been escorted home to sirens. Over the final k across the causeway, he was sounding his siren, and I felt like I was winning the Olympics. In reality, there were maybe 20-30 people at the finish line – but, hey, after a rough go, I’ll take it. I tried to open up the pace a bit over the final k, but there wasn’t much in the tank. According to my Garmin, I’d crossed 20k in 1:14:53, which meant my 4th 5k was 19:26 (3:53/k). Way off. My first 10k had been 36:23 (3:38/k), but my second was 38:29 (3:51/k). Yikes.
The finish line people held a ribbon across the line, so I got to run through the tape – another first for me – races don’t generally do this. My official time was 1:19:21. I have to admit that I was disappointed with the time. However, given the conditions, perhaps it wasn’t a complete disaster. Getting the win, though, was fantastic. It’s always a privilege to win.
The guy who went out with me finished about 4 minutes back. I chatted with him a bit after the race. He was a really good guy – he’d just gone out a bit quick and suffered for it. He’s a talented runner, though, and I’m sure he’ll be challenging for wins in no time. He’d run without a watch, but it had cost him because he wasn’t sure of the right feel for a pace. Again, he’ll learn that quickly.
My buddy Mike finished third overall and top male in the Masters category – so it was a good day for the two Cliff’s Antiques in the crowd. Neither of us was happy with the time, but we both decided to blame the heat and move on. There’s always another race.
So I had the honour and the pleasure of winning the 41st running of the Nova Scotia Half Marathon. My name will go on a trophy for posterity – pretty cool. I’d like to thank all the volunteers who put on a great race in Barrington Passage. The course was well marshalled and the food at the reception was amazing. I don’t know if I’ll be back again next year – I like to shift my races around – but I’ll be recommending the race to others.
