Today I raced the 9Run Run Half-Marathon in Stittsville. I only signed up for it a week ago as I’ve never heard of it before. The race supports Ottawa’s fire, police and paramedics services. They have a 2k, 10k and half-marathon.
I placed first female overall in a time of 1:28:19 (best time this year). My gun time was a bit higher as I didn’t get to the race start in time (see note below about distance from race center). There were other top racers that had a chip time a minute or so faster than the gun time because they were late to the start too. I felt like I could have given more in the race, but that is something that I’m working on, pushing myself beyond just running comfortably. I could have continued that pace for another 21km, so I need to get past that endurance training that keeps my effort at that level. I think that also comes with running races more than I do.
I also saw a fellow EndurRunner there today, which was a nice surprise. He flew past me like usual!
Pros
– flat course and scenic course (part of it goes through the Trans Canada Trail)
– nice technical long-sleeve shirt
– timing by SportStat
– great cause
– friendly race volunteers
– didn’t have to wait long for awards
– well marked, no traffic
– cool medal
– warm food for vegetarians/vegan!
Cons
– race starts 1km away from where the race center is (bathrooms, bib pick-up, bag drop-off) and 1.5 km from where you park. There were no visible signs to let people know the distance to the start.
– no water the last 5km
– one water station didn’t have people handing out water, so I had to stop briefly
– no place to keep warm until race starts or after race ends
Running With Veggies 
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