Race: Harry’s Spring Run Off
Where: High Park, Toronto, Ontario
Date: April 6, 2013
Race: 5K
Saturday April 6th, 2013 was my fourth time running the Harry’s Spring Run Off in Toronto’s High Park. It was the fourth time I heard about this rite of Spring being the symbolic kick-off to the running season in Toronto. It was the fourth time hearing pre-race stories of freezing cold and occasional heat over the 35 years of this event.
It was also the fourth straight year I wore sleeves.
A trivial footnote at best, but with my first Boston Marathon a short time away, even the smallest distractions at this point are welcome. Where was I? Oh yeah…
But it was also a day of firsts.
It was the first time I got to see the first race of the day as a spectator. It was sadly the first time I actually heard one runner plot with some of their friends to create an obstacle to aid them out of the chute. And it was also the first time I ran the 5km event as opposed to the signature 8km race.
Being somewhat local to the area I have the advantage of running the course several times throughout the year. Dropping down to the 5km event required a bit of reprogramming in my head as it is the final 5km portion of the 8km race course.
Run the opposite direction around the top part of the park.
Avoid the temptation of the pancake breakfast. Those large stacks of fluffy, syrup covered…focus RJ…lousy taper messing with my head again.
Don’t need to hold back as much to prep for the uphill trek that is Center Road.
Still have to watch the footing on the steep downhill approaching Grenadier Pond.
Regardless of the event you enter at the Harry Rosen Spring Run Off, one thing doesn’t change at the end…
The legendary Spring Road Hill.
Honestly…it’s not that bad. The Around the Bay Road Race, the Boston Marathon, and the Toronto GoodLife Marathon all have signature hills that are well documented and anyone running these courses should be somewhat prepared mentally and physically for what awaits.
Having said that if you’re not expecting it, it’s kind of a sucker punch in the sense that you know you’re well within the last kilometer of the race, you can hear the cheers of the crowd and a public address announcer off in the distance, and for kicks it’s tucked neatly around a corner. So the chain of thoughts in your head would be…
I’m almost there! The signs and marshals told me so!
I’m spent but I can taste the finish line!
Listen to that huge crowd! This is great! Just a little further and…
WHAT THE %$#&?
So the one racing lesson to take away is that if you aspire to do your best at a particular event, it is advantageous to run the course ahead of time if you can. At the very least, read up on the route in advance to remove any surprises of this nature so you can prepare accordingly.
I have always had good experiences overall at Canada Running Series events, but there were two things I took away from this event that showed me that there’s always room for improvement:
The Corral Structure: It has to change. The first non-elite corral for the 8km is capped at 39 minutes, and for the 5km it’s capped at a mind boggling 26 minutes. I’m no elite by any stretch but having folks in the first few rows of my event (aside from those who were plotting evil doings) aiming to go out at a 5:12/km caused some minor difficulty. I finished 2nd in my Age Group, missing 1st by 19 seconds, so it didn’t impact my placing I suspect. If the gap had been under 10 seconds…it may have been a different story.
I totally get that this sort of thing happens at every event to a point, but I submit that the thresholds need to be changed or at least one more level added to the existing framework such that the potential for this is minimized by the Race Director.
The Sportstats Glitch: Timing glitches happen all the time. I’m sure one of the worst jobs in the running industry is working for a timing company on a Monday morning having to brace for the wave of complaints that await you from the weekend’s events. It’s inevitable and is part of the game. Long story short, the script for the timing calculated each runner’s age as of December 31st, which knocked about two dozen runners up an age group and into award territory.
This was eventually corrected after the fact, but no one on site was able to comprehend or address the situation at the time (in fact one runner explained the situation to the awards tent personnel as they may not be entitled to an award, and was told to ‘just take it anyway’), and after it was clarified through emails and new results published, as of this writing no mass note to runners or website post stating ‘here’s what happened and you may want to check things out’ has been released to my knowledge. Communication is key.
All in all, it is listed on my profile as my favourite race. I’ve been back four years straight and I plan on keeping the streak going. I’m undecided as to which event I’ll participate in (no big surprise seeing as we’re a year out). Maybe next year I’ll try them both back-to back. That would be another first for me
It would definitely be a more prolonged short-term distraction.
COMING SOON: My 18 week program on how to effectively remove what sanity you may possess – or RJ’s Guide to the Boston Marathon.
So what happened to you at the top of Spring Hill? Inquiring minds need to know!
Oh I was fine…Spring Road and I are old friends. Crested the top followed by a quick right turn and home free (though each time I do the race I always seem grateful to only have to climb it once – makes the mid-week hill repeats there all worth it).