Lawrie Oliphant writes:

Just thought I would drop you a line about this past weekend. Jill,
Leila, Lindsay, Josee and I went to Niagara for the Half Marathon.
As I am sure you know we were certainly not alone. What a
fantastic turn out from Sudbury! It was really overwhelming for some
of us "newbees" to see all those familiar faces and seasoned veterans
who could provide such great encouragement and keep everything so
loose and relaxed.

The weather was not the greatest but it certainly could have been
worse. The race could have been run on Saturday or I guess it could
have been like the Santa Shuffle 2004! I was still able to run in
shorts and a long sleeve shirt but I should have had some gloves for
the first 3 or 4 miles because my finger tips were white until I was
able to get going. That is the last time I listen to Jill with
respect to clothing recommendations. I should probably also say I
quickly got a little hypothermic at the finish.

The race it self was pretty exciting for me. I ran the first 7 miles
or so with Steve Fessenden until he took it up a notch for the last
half. After that I was pretty much running on my own but always
trying to chase someone in front of me down and not let anyone pass
me if I could help it. I still had a little bit to sprint at the
end. Afterwards I met Leila, Diane and Paul in the finish area and
we even discussed some tentative plans on how to improve for the next
race.

The biggest thrill of the entire day though was when I saw Lindsay
and Josee cross the finish line. They looked so comfortable, strong
and happy it was truly amazing. Thanks to Carole for taking them in
the Half Marathon Clinic and showing them the way. Are we allowed to
call them associate ROCKS? little ROCKS? baby ROCKS? or maybe
PEBBLES? There has already been some discussion by the two of them
about tackling Ottawa.

Anyway's despite the weather it was still a great weekend. If I had
one gripe it was that the t-shirt was uninspired.

Lawrie

Gary Petingola writes:

The race was awesome on Sunday with the exception of the wet rain for the first half of the run and the winds on the bridge. Never ran in a yellow plastic rain shell before but kept it on just to stay dry for the first 5 k. Just finished months of physiotherapy, felt pretty pumped and then slammed my toe against a desk chair on Saturday morning and broke it. No damned way was I not going to run after all of that training and those long 30 k runs. Laced up my shoes, covered every inch of my feet with Body Glide and headed out.

Got the first bus over to Buffalo at 7:00am and it ended up getting lost. Finally got to the Knox Albright museum, wolfed down more bagels (don’t ever want to see another bagel or drink Gatorade again) and headed in to tour the gallery and keep warm. This is an awesome venue for keeping warm and dry. Located a quiet spot right next to a pianist and harp player and shut my eyes for 40 minutes of live classical music. Awesome!

Did well until I got to the bridge. Nice to see Lise and Monique along the way, Klaus and Carol at the Expo. On the bridge I began my 20 minute power gel regime, went to wash it down and ended up dropping my water bottle. As it rolled down the incline, it came within inches of a transport truck’s tires. Swooped it up…almost took down a lady who was right behind me in the process and then headed up to old Fort Erie and up the Niagara parkway.

Not as many spectators as previous years but lots of good spirit from local high schools serving water and Gatorade and many memorable eye to eye contacts from people lip syncing “keep it up…your doing awesome” comments. Their eyes said it all.

Finished with a 3:43…not my worst…not my best …still not good enough for Boston…but 11 down and only 3 more years till I make the next Boston qualifying time category. Can barely walk down stairs today but I would do it again.

Lots of great inspiration to plan our Sudbury Marathon now! We runners are a crazy bunch!

Gary Petingola

Steve Matusch writes:

First of all, it's a beautiful course - flat, long straight sections, and well organized. My only gripe about the course, is the lack of markers each 1k. Overall, highly recommended!

I made a conscious decision that I was going to approach this race kamikaze style - run out hard at a pace targeting a time under 3 hours and see how far I could go before completely blowing up. I know very well that my training would not support this sort of a finish time, but I don't feel like the season is complete without at least one major crash and burn!!!

It actually went far better than I had hoped. I came through the halfway point at 1:28, and to my great surprise, at 30k I was still on target for about 2:58. And then came the wall. But it wasn't' the familiar, gut wrenching steel wall that I've thudded into before. This one was more like peanut butter. It did slow me down but I wasn't hopelessly miserable like I've been in the past. But my fantasy 3 hour finish popped like a balloon.

At about 40k, within sight of the finish, things got much worse. I could feel cramps starting to pop up, and I really started slow. Then I had new experience - the muscle on the back of my right quad totally locked up in pain. Oh damn - I had stop. So, I stood on side of the road, stretching and massaging my leg for about 2 minutes, wondering if I could finish the race. I popped 2 salt tablets and slowly started to run again, hoping things would loosen up a bit. They did, and I cautiously plodded the last 2k in for a 3:10 finish.

Another great experience!

Steve Matusch, P.Eng,MBA
Ionic Engineering Limited

Mike Wilson writes:

Well the first one is officially under the belt . This weekend
I had the pleasure of running my first half marathon in Niagara Falls . Myself and the rest of my family made it down to Niagara Friday night , and being "newbies" to the whole experience we quickly made it to the registration and the running expo . (of course we spent a bucket load of money on t-shirts and pretty much anything that said Niagara Falls International Marathon ) .Saturday night we enjoyed a wonderful supper with the group and I was quickly enlightened as to the necessity of Carbs for race day.
Finally race day came and nerves kicked into high gear . Met Sheila ( may race day partner) and we bused over to the start line , which seemed like an eternity , and waited for the start . The rain was steady and the wind not bad , but it didn't matter , the nerves were the biggest problem .
Met a lot of familiar faces on the line which helped considerably , then the start . Mile after mile came and went , body felt good , run was going great . Not much to say other than nerves went away , got tired around 18k but I think that was just anticipation of being done . Crossing the line for the first time was awesome and overwhelming , and I recommend it to any . But I didn't do it myself . The first thank you has to go to my son (he ran the 5k in Niagara) for pushing me to do it , the next to Vince for when I asked him if he thought I could do it he said " no problem , you'll be fine " , the next to Paul for all the race day hints , to Brent for insisting I eat Pasta and to the Ladies that "ran" me through it - Christine , her company sure made the run enjoyable and it was my pleasure to run with her . Last but not least Sheila . A special thanks to Sheila for getting me through it , pacing me the whole way , providing constant words of encouragement , and kicking my butt at the end . When somebody is willing to spend the whole race with you and provide all the support and encouragement you need it means the world to a rookie runner .With a support team like the above Sudbury Rocks members and Sheila's race day pacing skills , it was a great success . I look forward to many more ... Thanks guys ....


Mike

Lise Edwards writes:

Hey Vince,

I thought that I would write a race report for the Niagara Marathon/1/2 Marathon as it was a great event to be involved in. You know that you are part of a great running community when you go to a race expo and you see more Sudbury people than you do on an average visit to the local mall. The excitement began as I got my race kit and long-sleeved technical shirt and walked around to the expo and saw so many familiar faces including my pacer Monique Fournier.

Monique had agreed to help me run my 3:45 and in exchange she got to yell at me or say whatever she wanted along the way.... anything but "I have to go to the bathroom" I don't trust people who say that in a run :) Monique was relaxed and I was in great shape so we knew we could handle the challenge.

I stayed with Stephanie Leclair and we all know how excited she was to run her very first marathon and I had the pleasure of watching her prepare for it from the methodical display of all her clothing, shoes and enough gels for ten marathons. We got moving by 7:00 a.m. and it was a little wet outside but all was good. We stopped to pick up Monique and get a coffee, well I had a coffee until we drove away and left it on the roof of the car. Good thing the bus picked us up right outside Starbucks so I got a second shot at getting some coffee in.

What a great thing to be waiting for the bus and hear your name being called by fellow walkers and runners all excited about getting this day started. Stephanie had a cry on the bus before we even started the marathon...I do believe she is the most emotional runner I know. We got to the art gallery and met up with Steve, Peter, Drew, Becky and Brent Walker. Hugs for everyone and good luck we are off to the start line. They called for the elite runners and I made my way to the front of the line :) Monique was ready with Snickers and tips from "the Coach" to get me through this run.

We started off on a great pace and I felt great. Monique was great all the way always asking how I was feeling and letting me know if we were too hot or needed to speed up a bit. I started to feel a twinge in my knee at 10 miles and thought I was going to give in to the pain, Monique turned to look at me and asked what was going on and I said "its all good". The 3:40 pace bunny was behind us for a bit and it was a really nice feeling knowing we had some time in the bank...good thing for sure because I started getting a little sluggish after 20 miles.

Monique told me we had to keep going as we had come too far and she was right, but at the time I thought she was lucky to have me standing up let alone running. I was so pain focused that my breathing was heavy, and the slightest thing annoyed me including the freaks running in plastic bags for a full marathon. I thought we were athletes...a little rain never hurt anyone. By 25 miles Monique knew it would be tough to get me to my time as I was struggling so bad, she was great with very positive and direct words to get me out of my funk. I cried a bit and said I had nothing left and I really didn't. I have never felt so spent and there is the finish line and the time is ticking... Lise you have 20 seconds to cross the finish line pick it up and I just couldn't give it anymore than what I was doing.

3:46:27 was my finishing time, only 28 seconds off Boston qualifying although we had a moment of excitement when Donna came over after looking at the wrong time and told me I had got my time...only to find out it was the runner just before me. No big deal, we did a great job, Monique did awesome because I was a tough subject and dragging someone along is not easy and she got me to the finish. So I got a personal best, ran my fourth marathon this year and have New York to look forward to in two weeks.

We waited for Stephanie to finish and missed out on that and I didn't get to see her cry at the end, but she surpassed her marathon expectations and finished half an hour earlier than we all expected.

Thanks for your ongoing support, but I have to tell you in New York I will have a camera and I will not be too weak at the end of it all...okay well I may be weak from carrying shopping bags, but not from running fast...

Take care,
Lise Edwards,
aka 28 seconds damn

Henriette Washchuk writes:

Hi Vince, just a little note re my weekend walk. Of all times for the long range weather report to be right. All summer they were wrong, but, I didn't allow it to rain on my parade!......!.... But speaking literally, it rained and rained and rained. Our group met at the start, in the rain, under the tent, near the starting line. At 9:00 am sharp 297 walkers took off, in the rain, oh did I say it was raining! Most of us started off draped in plastic rain capes provided in our goody bag. The course followed the Niagara River and would have been quite scenic if it hadn't been for the rain. The temperature was ideal for the walk, approx. 7 degrees, oh and did I say it was raining! The course was flat and winding, Water stations every few kilometers, manned by students in Halloween costumes cheering everyone on with great enthusiasm. The organization was great! My walk as such was uneventful. I chatted with a few people along the way and became a little perturbed to see people jogging or running a bit than walking and running a bit, etc. In fact, there was a lady in front of me who slow jogged all the way. Maybe she was trying to get out from under the rain faster....?????? When I hit the 18 km mark I could feel myself slowing down. As I started to sag Pauls' GPS kept me going. When I noticed my pace slowing down I would talk myself into picking it up again. Oh did I say it was still raining..... As I counted down the last 3 km and crossed the finish line all I could think of was 21 km is a hell of a distance and my hat goes off to all you marathoners. I felt great with what I accomplished. During my training I had done 2 practice half marathons and bettered my time by 9 minutes at Niagara, and as for the rain......, it actually stopped when I finished. Henriette

Jill Champaigne writes:

My daughter's 1st half marathon, (Niagara Fallsview Marathon)

It was a cold drizzly morning but no complaints from Lindsey Champaigne and
Josee Oliphant our 2 young runners, they kept smiling all the way. It was
great seeing so many participants from Sudbury at the start of the 1/2.
While we were are huddled together to stay warm, Carol Kirkwood
strategized with Lindsey and Josee, thus changing their goal from a 2:30 to
a 2:15. This really motivated them. Great advice Carol, they became
driven. Off to the races we went, just not too fast. I tried to hold
them back a bit, but they said it felt good, so we caught the 2:15 bunny.
The new goal became BEAT the 2:15 bunny. So off they went and boy did they
go. They came smoking in at 2:09:51 and 2:10:37 giving Lindsey 2nd and
Josee 3rd place in their age group ( 15 and under). Pretty impressive for
two 15 year olds to be receiving trophies from an International Marathon.
Many thanks to Coach Carol and the Running Room for allowing these
underagers to join the 1/2 marathon clinic. Your support and the Rocks has
been amazing. Also congrats to Josee's dad, Lawrie for completing his
first 1/2 also.(1:46:31)

Jill

Stephanie LecLair writes:

Just wanted to share with you!! Yesterday
I completed my very first full marathon. My time was 4hours and 29 minutes
which I am extatic about, my goal was to finish and secretly I wanted to
finish in under 5 hours. So finishing before 4:30 hours was pretty amazing.
I am overwhelmed with emotions ....I can't explain the feeling that I have
from completing this goal (crying while I'm writing this).

The Niagara marathon starts in Buffalo
NY and you run the 42km into Niagara falls canada. The race started at
10 AM but we had to take a bus to Buffalo which left Niagara falls at 7am.
Of course I was crying tears of joy even before the bus took off..I was
so excited and couldn't believe I was actually doing it! The bus
ride was sooooo long...I changed songs after 30 minutes of driving. At
this point I kept asking myself «what the hell am I thinking?? Did I train
enough for this??? This is F"*&ing far!!!!» Thank god I had my
running buddies with me.....they tried to keep me calm. Of course I was
the newbie....what I like to call a marathon virgin(not anymore!!). Off
the bus ..FINALLY.....bathroom!! The effects of being well hydrated!! The
weather was really cold and rainy so we waited for our start time inside.
I listened to my music and got totally pumped up!! Now I'm excited again!

Bang...we start. I had an amazing first
10 miles .....felt amazing, my legs were cooperating. I was even going
faster than I had planned and I kept telling myself to slow down..I was
afraid I was going to bonk at one point. I hit the 13 miles point, still
felt good but at this point it started becoming that mental game. Ya running
is 85% in your head...I would say that at 13.1 miles with 13.1 miles left
to go it's 95% mental. Bouc...I kept thinking of you on saturday morning
when you looked at me and just pointed to your head....it is all in your
mental state! My right knee, hip and lower back was really starting
to bug me (more like it hurt like hell). Listened to you Steve!!! and
had my little pack of ibuprofen. Popped a couple of those and just kept
telling myself that nobody ever said it wasn't going to hurt. From then
I ran mile per mile and did the big countdown that's 8 miles left to go....that's
7 miles left to go.....and so on and so on!! I never talked to myself more
in my life. With 8 miles left to go my pace was still pretty good....I
was waiting for the 20th mile. For those of you who don't run they say
that at mile 20 there is a wall and you usually hit it (20 miles is the
furthest you run in training). I was never really sure what they meant...
well it came and it was gone...no wall!! I kept positive and told myself
whatever happens now ....I'm finished...even if I walk the rest of the
way I will still have achieved a goal most people don't in their lives.
Well my pace was still good ...WOW I am now at 23 miles only three more
to go and I have a lot of time to spear...Holy shit I might actually finish
this even before 4 hour and 30 minute...STAY positive Steph!!! Focus...don't
think about your aching legs.....GEEZE one more mile.....OH MY GOD I AM
ACTUALLY finishing a marathon 26 miles only
.2 to go!!! I come around
the corner and hear my name...It's Al, Marty, Alane, Sophie and Marie Jo.....I
run by and give them a high five....huge smile on my face and of course
tears rolling down my cheeks. I cross the finish line with a 4:29 finish
and I am so proud of myself. At the finish I got a finishers medal...I
might not have won an Olympic gold medal but let me tell you that is what
I felt like. I set a goal...worked my butt off and achieved it!! So in
my heart I am a winner!!! When I say my family and I got a hug from Marty
I lost it!! I pretty much made all of them cry!!

2005 has been a GREAT year for me...thanks
to all my friends and family who have been supportive of my triathlon..marathon....crazy goals....it
was the first and not the last marathon, I did enjoy every grueling minute of it!!!
Ya Jan and Steve....still thinking Ironman in a few years!!!!

kisses and hugs

Steph