I did the Sun Run last year, so I actually knew what to expect this year. The Sun Run is sponsored by the Vancouver Sun newspaper, and it's the largest 10k "race" in Canada-I use the " because, if you've ever actually done the Sun Run, you know it's less a race than it is an exercise in people dodging. More about this later. This year, over 48 000 people did the Sun Run. That's a lot. That's more people than live in some towns in Canada. Picture that many people all converging on downtown Vancouver in athletic gear at one time. Yup, it's a lot.
Last year I learned the hard way that if you actually plan on running, it's best to register a category up from the time you think you'll actually finish. What do I mean, you ask? Well, when you register, the website asks you to seed yourself-that is, pick a time range during which you think you'll finish. That way they can actually separate everyone based on their expected finishing time. The problem is that everyone seems to think they run faster than they actually do, hence the need to seed yourself a category up from where you think you'll actually finish. So this year I put myself in with the yellow bibs, with an expected finishing time somewhere between 30 and 45 minutes. Now, if you know me, and you know how fast I run, you'll know that registering myself as a yellow bib was completely absurd. There's no way I could finish faster than 45 minutes. The yellow bibs are right behind the elite runners. The runners that have their entries comped because they're so fast. The runners that actually get invited to run the race. And I registered one category behind them? Sure, it could happen. When pigs fly, and we discover the moon actually is made of cheese. But that's what you do in the Sun Run.
Standing there, not far from the starting line, staring back at 48 000 people lined up behind you is amazing. There is a certain noise factor, of course, but for the most part it's just really freakin' awesome being there with that many other people who are all about to do exactly the same thing: cover 10 km worth of ground on their own two feet. Though I am very aware that the majority of people there on Sunday really weren't "runners" as I would think of them, I'll give them credit just for showing up and trying. So a big high five to everyone that actually bothered to get out of bed and come down.
This year Glen's company actually put together a corporate team, and paid the entry fee for all their employees. This was good for 2 reasons. One, because it actually got Glen to sign up without me having to nag him incessantly. And two, because, as a spouse of one of the employees they paid for my entry, too! Originally I was just going to sign up with them and pay the company back for the entry fee. But in the end I was actually the only spouse to sign up, to they graciously agreed to not make me pay them back. So thanks, Autopro Automation, for being my first official running sponsor! From here on out, I think I shall refer to myself as a sponsored runner. Perhaps later we'll chat about potentially paying for my marathon entry fees. But for now I have a lovely white t-shirt that says Autopro on the back.
The race itself was a 10k. Nothing special, really, just your average, run of the mill 10k race. I will say, though, that it was much, much nicer being one category up from where I was last year, as it meant I had fewer people to pass. Last year, as a green bib, I ran fast enough to actually start passing the yellow bibs at 6k. This year I didn't even see a hint of green bibs for the entire race, and I even passed a couple of blue bibs. How they ended up in that category if someone like me was passing them is a complete mystery. It was awesome. There was way less of a crowd, and it was significantly less frustrating.
Normally I'm not a very fast runner. I have one speed I like to call "Sara Pace", and that's all you get. But it's only 10km, so I figured I could go at least a little faster than Sara Pace. I wore my barefoot runners for this race, too. I should probably explain that a bit. A couple months ago, I read a book about a tribe in Mexico that runs basically barefoot and can do upwards of 200 miles of distance at a time. The book wasn't so much trying to convince you to try barefoot running, but it was enough to get me to at least try it. And it's made a massive difference in just the small amount of time I've been wearing the shoes for. I could ramble on about barefoot running and why I like it for quite a while, but if you'd like to hear more, leave me a comment here or on my facebook page, and maybe I'll do a separate blog entry on it. Sufficed to say, I wore the barefoots hoping they'd make a difference in my finishing time.
So what was the official finishing time? 50:57. Yes, you read that right. Nearly 10 minutes under the hour mark. For all the nerdy runners out there, that's 5:07 minutes per kilometre. That's fast, man. Maybe not for Haile Gebrselassie, but for me, that's fast. A good 17 seconds per km faster than the fastest pace I've ever clocked in a run. And I'm not gonna lie, I feel pretty good about myself right now. The best part? Totally could've gone faster. I didn't, because I've got a marathon to do in a couple weeks and I didn't want to blow myself out in a 10k, but if I'd felt like it, and had the right amount of steam, definitely could've gone faster. I think I could break the 50 minute mark, actually. Toot, toot. That's the sound of me tooting my own horn. It's a good sound. I think I like it.
Glen finished well, too. Somewhere just after 58 minutes, if I recall right. The rest of his team-the ones I saw anyways-seemed pretty pleased with how they did as well. Glen said as he was crossing the finish line that they announced that they were just letting the last wave of people across the starting line. So apparently it takes nearly an hour to get 48 000 people started. Makes me glad I was wearing a yellow bib.
I do also have to congratulate my friends Ang and Mel, who came over to stay with me for a couple days and do the race as well. They just started running, and managed to not only finish the entire race without stopping to walk, but also posted a pretty good time as well. Especially considering they ended up 2 waves behind me in with the white bibs.
So there you have it, my Sun Run race experience. Like I said, the marathon is actually fast approaching, and with 42.2 km of ground to cover, you can bet there's gonna be at least a few things I have to say about that. So keep your radio tuned to this dial.
This year Glen's company actually put together a corporate team, and paid the entry fee for all their employees. This was good for 2 reasons. One, because it actually got Glen to sign up without me having to nag him incessantly. And two, because, as a spouse of one of the employees they paid for my entry, too! Originally I was just going to sign up with them and pay the company back for the entry fee. But in the end I was actually the only spouse to sign up, to they graciously agreed to not make me pay them back. So thanks, Autopro Automation, for being my first official running sponsor! From here on out, I think I shall refer to myself as a sponsored runner. Perhaps later we'll chat about potentially paying for my marathon entry fees. But for now I have a lovely white t-shirt that says Autopro on the back.
The race itself was a 10k. Nothing special, really, just your average, run of the mill 10k race. I will say, though, that it was much, much nicer being one category up from where I was last year, as it meant I had fewer people to pass. Last year, as a green bib, I ran fast enough to actually start passing the yellow bibs at 6k. This year I didn't even see a hint of green bibs for the entire race, and I even passed a couple of blue bibs. How they ended up in that category if someone like me was passing them is a complete mystery. It was awesome. There was way less of a crowd, and it was significantly less frustrating.
Normally I'm not a very fast runner. I have one speed I like to call "Sara Pace", and that's all you get. But it's only 10km, so I figured I could go at least a little faster than Sara Pace. I wore my barefoot runners for this race, too. I should probably explain that a bit. A couple months ago, I read a book about a tribe in Mexico that runs basically barefoot and can do upwards of 200 miles of distance at a time. The book wasn't so much trying to convince you to try barefoot running, but it was enough to get me to at least try it. And it's made a massive difference in just the small amount of time I've been wearing the shoes for. I could ramble on about barefoot running and why I like it for quite a while, but if you'd like to hear more, leave me a comment here or on my facebook page, and maybe I'll do a separate blog entry on it. Sufficed to say, I wore the barefoots hoping they'd make a difference in my finishing time.
So what was the official finishing time? 50:57. Yes, you read that right. Nearly 10 minutes under the hour mark. For all the nerdy runners out there, that's 5:07 minutes per kilometre. That's fast, man. Maybe not for Haile Gebrselassie, but for me, that's fast. A good 17 seconds per km faster than the fastest pace I've ever clocked in a run. And I'm not gonna lie, I feel pretty good about myself right now. The best part? Totally could've gone faster. I didn't, because I've got a marathon to do in a couple weeks and I didn't want to blow myself out in a 10k, but if I'd felt like it, and had the right amount of steam, definitely could've gone faster. I think I could break the 50 minute mark, actually. Toot, toot. That's the sound of me tooting my own horn. It's a good sound. I think I like it.
Glen finished well, too. Somewhere just after 58 minutes, if I recall right. The rest of his team-the ones I saw anyways-seemed pretty pleased with how they did as well. Glen said as he was crossing the finish line that they announced that they were just letting the last wave of people across the starting line. So apparently it takes nearly an hour to get 48 000 people started. Makes me glad I was wearing a yellow bib.
I do also have to congratulate my friends Ang and Mel, who came over to stay with me for a couple days and do the race as well. They just started running, and managed to not only finish the entire race without stopping to walk, but also posted a pretty good time as well. Especially considering they ended up 2 waves behind me in with the white bibs.
So there you have it, my Sun Run race experience. Like I said, the marathon is actually fast approaching, and with 42.2 km of ground to cover, you can bet there's gonna be at least a few things I have to say about that. So keep your radio tuned to this dial.
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