What A Weekend

I know this post is a little late, but it will probably make sense if you keep reading. The weekend started with the Tidewater Striders 30k on Saturday morning – a 3 loop race at Fort Story in Virginia Beach. I held back a little during the first loop, but in the second third of the race I soon found myself running low six minute miles and feeling good. I reached the 20k mark in about 1:18 and realized if I pushed a bit more I could get close to my 30k PR of 1:56:48 set in 2007. Running alone was tough and although I made up more time in the next four miles, I faded a little in miles 17 and 18 and missed the PR by 10 seconds. Still, getting so close to a lifetime best after holding back for one third of the race was a great confidence booster.

The Tidewater Striders Annual Awards Banquet on Saturday evening brought another unexpected surprise. I knew I’d placed 2nd overall in the Striders 2008 Grand Prix Series – a 12 race challenge spread over 12 months and taking in race distances from the mile to the marathon – but I was completely shocked to be awarded “Outstanding Male Performance of the Year”. I guess my hard work and never-say-die ethic counts for something after all? Anyway, the award really meant a lot and was a tremendous way to round off a successful 2008 – probably my most consistent year of running ever.

Thankfully it wasn’t too late a night as Sunday had another challenge in store – the Colonial Half Marathon in historic Williamsburg, Virginia. The race wasn’t due to start until 1pm so it was nice to stay in bed a little later than normal and take a leisurely drive along I-64 to the College of William & Mary Campus where the race would begin. This race was one of the reasons I held back a little in the first loop of Saturday’s 30k, but seeing as though I pushed the pace in the final 20k, I didn’t expect too much in terms of time and resigned myself to an enjoyable run along the scenic course.

Once again, however, I surprised myself, and found the miles ticking by at quite a pace. My legs were certainly sore from the 30k, but somehow I was able to keep the cadence going at a nice clip. Maybe it was the constant uphill/downhill that the Colonial course offers? I’ll spare you the details but with a few miles to go I realized I might be in with a shot of beating last year’s finish time of 1 hour 22 minutes. Luckily there was a younger guy (who I remembered just beating me in a 5k last year) to keep me going and I spent most of the last 2 or 3 miles trying to keep him in my sights. Finally we reached William & Mary Hall and it was just a couple of quick turns to the finish line where the clock read 1:21:22 – 38 seconds quicker than last year after a very solid 30k just 30 hours previous! Fantastic! For the record I finished 21st place overall and 2nd place Master in a very competitive race.

Highlight of the afternoon was meeting fellow Welshman Nigel Edwards from Northern Virginia who also ran the half. He spotted my Welsh Dragon hat as I walked to the start line and we immediately hit it off. I saw Nigel during the race and it was great to cheer on a fellow countryman for a change. We also hooked up at the post race area, exchanged email addresses and phone numbers, and I’m sure we’ll see each other one day soon – either at a race in the DC area, Virginia Beach area or at some random pub showing a Welsh rugby game one Saturday afternoon…

Here the weekend takes a turn for the worse. After hanging out for an hour or two after the race, Allyson and I decide to head for something to eat. By this time it’s about 4pm, snow is falling and we’re both starving. After a well-earned lunch, we spend some time with our daughter who was working an afternoon shift and finally head for home around 6pm. We hadn’t even made it to I-64 when I started to feel a little nauseous. Allyson was driving and as I sat in the passenger seat I just thought my food hadn’t digested properly. However, with each passing mile, I began to feel worse and worse and desperate to get back to Virginia Beach.

Finally we made it home. I grabbed my bags, got out of the car, and headed upstairs to lie down. The rest, as they say, is ugly. I’ll spare you the details, but the last 3 days have been none too pleasant and quite a blur; a nasty bout of food poisoning has left me six pounds lighter and weak as a kitten. Thankfully the worst is over, but I still have no appetite and need to put some of the lost weight back on.

Needless to say I haven’t run a mile since Sunday and am thinking the Mud in Your Eye XC on Saturday is out of the question. What a bizarre weekend – two tremendous races, a wonderful performance award followed by the worst case of food poisoning I’ve ever experienced. It’s a funny old world….