Penguin World Conference IV
Toronto, Canada
May 24 to 27, 2002The first international Penguin encounter and the first encounter outside of the United States
Race Report from Lauren Clark of Columbus, Ohio...
Date: Tues May 28, 2002
Subject: Race Report
Canada Rock ‘n' Roll Half Marathon
5/26/02Hi everyone,
There is much more to tell from the wonderful Penguin World Conference weekend, but I will just say here that Glenn and the Toronto penguins did an outstanding job. I can't thank them enough for all the hard work that went into making the weekend such a success. Here is my race report:
I expected to get a PW due to losing 3 weeks of training from being sick and having the rib fracture. I was happy that I was feeling good enough to run and expected a 2:45 -3:00 finish. The day was cool, overcast and slightly windy. It was cold at the start but was good running weather. I enjoyed seeing the kilometer markings throughout the race because they came much more often than mile markers.
About an hour into the race, Nancy Toby ran by with David G. and Heather from Canada. Nancy said, "Stay with us and we'll pace you in." But they were doing 5/1s and I was doing 3/2s and I was unable to keep up. However, for the rest of the race I could see Nancy's red shirt way ahead and I tried to always keep them in sight.
I was glad I wore my water bottle because water stops were far apart and one stop had no water. Traffic control wasn't always well maintained and part of the time we ran on the shoulder with cars going by in both lanes. This meant running on uneven and banked surfaces and my ITB wasn't too happy about this. My ribs were a little sore, but didn't bother me as much as I expected.
I seemed never able to close the distance between me and Nancy and David. I felt like a horse with a carrot dangling in front of it. At 18 kilometers I fell further behind them. However, help was around the corner at the Penguin Water Station. I approached to wild screaming, bell ringing, and cheering of my name and as I turned the corner, there were even more penguins going crazy. It was a much needed boost. I waved and smiled and took their ppicture as they took mine. I think I smiled for the rest of the race.
I decided to push myself hard in order to catch up with Nancy and David. I did less walking and added fartleks to the runs. I got a little closer. The finish line came into view. I decided I could breathe after the race and began to sprint as a last effort to catch up to them. I passed 2 other runners and heard the crowd at the finish line cheering. I had almost caught up to them when they joined hands and picked up the pace. They saw me and Nancy grabbed my hand and the two of them pulled me across the finish line. Even though I did not run with them during most of the race, they included me in their finish line victory and it felt great. I wish I had been wearing my HRM because I am sure I would have had a true max number then!
I got a hug from John B. and congrats from all the penguins that were waiting at the finish area. Without Nancy and David ahead of me giving me a goal to push for, I am sure my time would have been much slower. I am extremely happy with my 2:38:52 finish (not a PW for me after all) and very proud of Nancy's PR that is many seconds ahead of me. David didn't know that when he was helping pace Nancy, the two of them were also pacing me. The race was a great experience and the finish line was probably the most exciting finish I've ever had.
Lauren Clark
Columbus, OhioClick here to return to PWC IV Reports Index
Home About Us Calendar T.O. FAQ Photos Links PWC4 Page last updated: Oct 1/02
