Vistas Race recap

After handing in my pledges (thank you again so much to my generous family, friends and clients) and picking up my race package at yesterday’s Vistas Run, I did what any runner should do 30 minutes prior to a race, I went in search of a friendly toilet to have my pre-race tinkle.  Sometimes you receive signs that a day is going to be good or that you should go back to bed, and after being smacked in the forehead by the stall door while having my pre-race tinkle I pretty sure that this was not going to be my day.  Thank goodness for my obsession with squats and lunges, it sure paid off at that moment because the toilet was not all that friendly.

This year the organizers of the race had changed the format a bit, instead of the usual age category groupings (under 19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, etc) it was now 0-11, 12-19, 20-39, 40-59, 60+, so I was going to be running against the young things.  Usually age category groupings don’t bother me, but yesterday I was defending my silver placing from last year.   I had checked around to find out who was running the 5km distance and there was one young thing that I knew would give me a serious run for my money and there were quite a few that I didn’t know.  My friend Daryl told me on Saturday that I should have retired with my placing last year, I was beginning to think that I should have listened.

The start line

I placed myself right at the front of the pack to start, and hoped for the best.  The race started and I was away, the only female ahead of me off the line was Soraiya, but she was running the 10km (and would have killed me in the 5km).  Out of nowhere young thing passed me, I think that she may have even got ahead of Soraiya for a moment or two . We hit the 1km mark and the first hill, young thing was still out in front, I managed to close the gap a little but I knew that I was out way too fast and had to reel it in a bit.  Up the hill and onto the flats, and just before the 2km mark I caught and passed young thing.  No sooner had I passed young thing I was passed by another woman (with fantastic running form I might add), thankfully she was running the 10km distance.

I love the Vistas race because it is half road, half trail and it isn’t flat (I have a bit of a hill sickness, I love hills) so we hit the trail and I didn’t look back. My goal on this next section was to cover as much ground as I could before hitting the last hill on the road, if young thing was going to catch me it would be there. Other than my heart rate being way too high and my breathing a little weezy (I like to run with music for this particular reason, but didn’t want the distraction of it all today) I felt great. As I rounded the corner out of the trail and onto the road for the last km the volunteer directing us gave me the news I wanted to hear…I was the first woman!

Up the last hill and towards the finish line, I took a quick peek (ok maybe six) over my shoulder and could see young thing behind me. I wasn’t going to let what happened years ago (actually it happened twice, there are photographs documenting both occasions) when my competition caught me just before the finish line, so I pushed hard. I set a PB, 25:59, first woman, 5th overall!!!  Young thing came through not far behind me, we woohoo’d and high five’d eachother, the race was over so we were no longer mortal enemies!

Jenn (young thing) and I

Me, Connie, Angie, Soraiya, Cheryl and Gisele

Another change to the race format was the omission of an awards ceremony and medals, instead first place finishers were given loot bags.

Wearing our lime green loot bag medals!

The contents of my loot bag

For me, part of running a timed event is the recognition in front of your peers, so I wish to congratulate all of the participants and recognize the following runners for their achievements:

Colin McLean – 5km race winner

John Graham – 10km male winner

Nicol Aherm – 10km female winner

1. MAIR, MACEO

2. METIVIER, NICHOLAS

1. GRANT, MARLEE

2. BOWES, OLIVIA

3. MORRIS, HAILEY

1. BRODOWSKI, RYAN

1. GABRIEL, CONNOR

2. SPECKMAN, JOEL

2. BURTON, COLIN

3. BROWN, MATTHEW

3. GARDNER, JACK

1. TYMCHYSHYN, CELINA

2. WALLIS, BETHANY

1. MAIR, CHRISTOPHER

1. GRAHAM, JOHN

2. MORRIS, JEFF

2. DAVIDSON, BRENT

3. BORROW, BRYAN

3. LYONS, NATHAN

1. CAWTHORNE, KERI

1. AHERM, NICOL

2. HICKS, JENNIFER

2. ABDULLA, SORAIYA

3. ROSS, EVA

3. NELSON, SARAH

1. MCLEAN, COLIN

1.  LEYLAND, TONY

2. TOURAND, TOM

2. SCHACHTER, DAVE

3. GABRIEL, WARWICK

3. TIERNEY, KEVIN

1. SCHACHTER, RAEANNE

1. EIKELENBOOM, AGNETA

2. KISELYCIA, SHELLI

2. HAYTER, DEANNE

3. HOL, CONNIE

3. BURTON, DONNA

1. SOMMI, KEVIN

1. HEDRICK, TED

2. BORROW, DAVE

1. SHAW, CAROLE

1.  KENT, JOANNE

2. TYMCHYSHYN, ADDALIN

2. RADJAH, OKIE

3. KURY, MARGARET