Race: Sporting Life 10k
Date: May 12, 2013
Result: 35:01, 28 of 21839
Happy Mother’s Day!
First and foremost, and because I have never written it nearly enough, this race was made possible by the continued support of my wife Melissa. Really, three of the four past weekends included a race. This one on Mother’s Day no less. She is a champ in my books.
Over these past few races I have exchanged greetings with Predrag Mladenovic, now the perennial master’s front runner in any race he enters. Each time I have offered: “Stop running so fast!” The thing is, although it is good natured, I really do mean it. The pickings have definitely become slimmer for me, now that Predrag has reached his 40’s. I offered him the same greeting today as we collected ourselves after the finish. If only he had taken my advice seriously.
The race site confirmed a sold out show: 27,000 had entered. But less than 22,000 actually finished. That is around 5,000 race entries other racers could have used. And thanks to the SL10K permitting transfers, many had the opportunity to race this sold out affair, yours truly included. Perhaps more avenues to get those unneeded entries into running feet are needed. At $15 per transfer, that is $75,000 more that could have been raised for Camp Oocheagas.
It is a dangerous obsession, but I will at least admit it. I spent a few hours before the race looking up other fast masters racers in the confirmation list. Know your competition: Paul Leduc, Paul Huyer, Ian Sinclair were signed up. Leduc is running 5k well under 17:00 and in great shape. Sinclair nipped me at the line at the Yonge Street 10k, and Huyer was just outstanding last weekend in the Toronto Half. I had my work cut out for me. Winning a master’s prize today was no gimme.
I also kept searching for my name in the confirmation list. I presumed that my name would appear once the transfer was completed. However, right up to race morning this was not the case and I was now beyond worried. The big issue was I had a green race bib that started in the 4th wave, and no indication at all of whether the bib had been properly transfered including reassignment into the first corral.
So with the alarm bell ringing at 5:30 am this morning I almost didn’t get up. What was the point? The race website clearly indicated NO TRANSFERS OR CORRAL CHANGES ON RACE DAY. But get up I did. The vision of scanning through race results to learn I could have been among the top masters kept opening my eyes.
I got going extra fast and scooted down to the race site to attend to matters. At 6:30 am, the race was still being set up. A queue had already formed for out of town bib pickup and it was not moving. They needed power to run the computer and no one knew how to start the generator. I jumped to the task with another fellow. It seems these generators don’t like to start until you put some gas into them! Problem solved, and I hoped I had earned myself a return of favours. I got to the desk and the nice lady could not find my name on her computer (the bib number was still listed under its previous owner). Furthermore she could not change my corral, the same story she told 50 others before me.
I was totally out of luck. I was furious at myself for not transferring the bib into my name my self, which is what I had wanted to do in the first place. I had also thrown away a good sleep in. And the dude whose bib I now possessed would be expecting compensation. What a waste.
One last ditch attempt: throw myself upon the mercy of the race organization. First I had to find someone official, so I jogged toward the start area and ran into the big Kahuna, Jay Glassman. I caught him at just the right time: all too busy to care about me, the least of his worries. So I asked who else I could speak with and he pointed me to the ChipTimeResults truck where I met Norma.
Thanks to Norma, she confirmed my bib had in fact been transfered to my name, and then called down to the finish line to have my bib reassigned to the first wave. I was now a legitimate contender! All this because the race website instructed the owner of the bib to do the transfer. Even Jay Glassman asked me why had I not done it myself. Perhaps a small correction for next year?
As we gathered at the start line, I realized my snooping of the confirmation list was meaningless. So many front runners had clearly snagged a bib last minute judging by all the scratched out names. None of those people were on the confirmation list, and most notable, the aforementioned Predrag Mladenovic stood in front of me. My chances for a top masters placing had just become negligible.
Nothing to do but race as well as I could. I was off to a quick start, and I kept expecting to see any one of my peers appear on my flanks. But none did. There was Predrag, long ago disappeared in the lead pack, a guy with gray hair (Chris Serran) just ahead of me, and that was it for the old men.
We had quite possibly the most unfavorable wind direction imaginable: from the south-west. We battled it south down Yonge. I was again taking aim for a sub 34 and first order of business was to get to 5k in 17 flat. A 17:15 5k split into the wind spelled the end of that plan. I tried to stay with others but often found myself between groups battling the wind on my own. Big mistake. We turned westward off Yonge and the winds strengthened just as my legs weakened. I just could not catch Chris Serran and his group. Working solo, I sucked up a lousy 3:41 km split at the 9k marker and then drained the tank to the finish, seconds behind Serran.
I was at a loss as to what happened to Leduc et al, but now optimistic about my chances for a prize. A quick Google on a smart phone confirmed my hopes, that I had finished third master male. However, Predrag had finished fourth overall and was awarded a $300 gift card in the open category. That put Serran into first master ($500 gift card) and myself second master prize, a $300 Sporting Life gift card. Predrag would have earned $500 with a 50 second slower finish. So thanks, Predrag, for running so fast today!
I ran back to my car parked at Yonge & Lawrence, and returned home where I gave my wife her Mother’s Day present: A $300 Sporting Life gift card! All made possible by kind Norma at Chiptimeresults and the fast feet of Predrag.
I never planned to run this race but I am sure glad I did. All is well that ends well.
