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Ottawa Half Marathon, Canada - 2003

5/11/2003

I registered for the full marathon but on race day due to lack of sleep and training, I changed it to half. We drove early from Kingston with Yasser and his friend who were both running the 5K. The half started at 10am right after the 5K finish. The field was huge and we ran through some of the most exciting parts of Ottawa. It was a fun race with lots of crowd support. I ran the whole race without stopping once but still ended up running a little slower than my expected time. However, I finished the race just in time before the rains came. After the race we walked around the downtown area before heading home. The medal was pretty nice!

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Waterloo Half Marathon, Canada - 2003

4/27/2003

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Before heading off to Carriage Hills Resort, Nadia, Kiren and I drove to Waterloo for the race. Only about 170 odd people took part in the half and a few kms into the race I discovered why. The race route wasn’t exciting at all. We ran thru some farm lands stinking off cow feed etc. The scenery was mostly flat apart from a few rolling hills. I didn’t enjoy it a bit and half way down the course I was dying to reach the finish line. I finished the race in my usual time and got presented with a clay medallion. After some stretches we left Waterloo, dropped Kiren off in Mississauga and drove to Horseshoe Valley.

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Bob Hartwell Challenge, Canada - 2003

4/13/2003

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Nadia decided to accompany me to the race since she felt guilty of me going to the races by myself. It was also during her final exams at York but felt it was impotant for her to support her husband (How nice of her!). Before the race start, she told me to run faster so that she can go home and study. The race route was amazing, went past beautiful estates and country side. The weather was sunny but slightly chilly which was ideal for running. As per Nadia’s wishes, I did finish the race a little quicker than usual. As I was approaching the finish line, I looked around to spot Nadia so that she can take my picture. I smiled and raised my arms but to my disappointment, Nadia was no where to be seen. After about 10 mintues of finishing I finally saw Nadia running towards me. ….her excuse, she over slept in the car !!!!! Oh well ! at least she came to support me!

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Around The Bay Road Race, Canada - 2003

3/30/2003

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Finally after 7 races, I decided to run a distance that’s more than a half marathon. 30K seemed a daunting task as I waited at the starting line with thousands of runners. The big turn out, live bands and great scenery helped me through the first half of the race. I crossed my first hurdle (21K) and then I was in unfamiliar territory. When I saw the 24K sign beside the graveyard, I knew I can do the last six. Then came the biggest hurdle, the huge 1km climb at the 28th km and literally got me winded. I mostly walked that hill and then one km from the finish, we were greeted by the “Reaper”. The crowd was huge at the finish line and as I crossed the line with cramped legs, I knew I was ready to take on the marathon distance!

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Tim Horton's Chilly Half Marathon, Canada - 2003

3/2/2003

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7TH ANNUAL TIM HORTON’S CHILLY HALF MARATHON - BURLINGTON

Biggest Chilly half ever with 1500 in Half and 300 in 5K. It was a cold snowy day when I drove to Burlington on Sunday morning. The race route was amazing with a mix of country side, upscale neighborhoods and finally the last 5kms along the lake shore. The chilly shaped medal was quite nice as well. The best part of the race was the chilly party in the heated tent. Had about 3 bowls of chilly and later discovered that Tim Horton’s chilly is actually made from pig meat ! Oh well, it was quite tasty !!! J)))

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Peterborough Half Marathon, Canada - 2003

2/23/2003

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What a start to 2003….! Over the weekend we were buried in over 30 cm of snow.., and because of the storm that hit the Southern Ontario area Saturday only half of the 1000 registered runners started the race on Sunday….I was one of them. Being not used to running outside, it was a big challenge for me. First, I did not have the right winter clothing and secondly, it was difficult to breathe in snowy conditions with the temperature around -30c (with the wind chill). Half way down the course, I knew there was something wrong with me. I could not feel my toes and the touk I was wearing became hard. I thought about quitting half way thru but then decided to continue after seeing a 70 year old couple on the course. As I crossed the finish line in a little less than 3 hrs, I had sweat icicles formed on my touk and had frost bite on my ear lobes and face. Took a little while to defrost and then headed back to Toronto. Nadia was not very pleased with my effort but still ran a warm bath for me followed by a nice warm meal.

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Casino Niagara Half Marathon, Canada - 2002

10/27/2002

13 Comments

It was a chilly overcast day as I drove from Toronto to Niagara Falls. After picking up my race kit, I hopped on to the race bus to be driven to the race start. The field was sizeable and there were a lot of foreign runners. The whole race was run along the Niagara Parkway along river Niagara and finished beside the falls. The crowd support on the course was not that big, probably because the entire race was outside the city. It was my sixth race in 8 weeks and instead of being tired I was feeling quite fresh…maybe because my legs had gotten used to long distance running. I finished the race a little over 2 hrs which was my personal best. We were given thermal blankets after the race and then transported back to the race hotel. The medal was actually quite nice. This happened to be the last race for 2002 and am already looking forward to the races in 2003.

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Toronto Half Marathon, Canada - 2002

10/20/2002

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It was beautiful sunny day in Toronto as I stood at the starting line at Mel Lastman Square. Being one of the biggest marathons in Canada, the turn out and festivities were amazing. It took me about 5 minutes to cross the starting line. The route was simple and downhill most of the way apart from a tough climb on Hoggs Hollow and the last km up to Queens Park. There was plenty of support on the way and running through Forest Hill and Rosedale Valley was a treat. Nadia was there at the finish line taking photos. The post race party was quite elaborate. We stayed around for a while and then took the subway up to Mel Lastman square to pick up the car. The best part of the race was receiving the half marathon medal which was literally half a medal (quite fascinating).

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Ottawa Fall Colours Half Marathon, Canada - 2002

10/13/2002

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The race was held at the beautiful Cumberland Heritage museum on the outskirts of Ottawa. I drove with Yasser on race day from Kingston and got lost on the way to the race site. Luckily I got in about 20 minutes before the race start. The field was small (capped at 500). It was a chilly overcast day with a little breeze. The course was quite hilly but the scenery was unbelievable. It was fall colors at it’s best. There was minimal crowd support on the way and felt quite lonely at times. By the time I finished the race, it was raining. The medal was quite basic but got a nice massage and a hearty meal. After the race, I had to wait half an hour for Yasser to come pick me up as he had gone to drop off his friend to downtown. The worst part was that my warm clothes were in his bag, so had to shiver in my wet running clothes for that time. He did get a mouthful from me in the end!

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Run for the Grapes Half Marathon, Canada - 2002

9/29/2002

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My 2nd half in 2 weeks. I was slightly under the weather the night before the race and Nadia didn’t want me to go. However, at 4am on race day, I woke with a sore throat, took 2 Tylenols and drove away to St. Catherine’s. I took a further 2 tablets before the race start and felt better. I started slowly and ran slowly (even by my standards) ! The race was very low key with the turn out a lot smaller than Scotia and Quebec City but the scenery was amazing. We ran through the vineyards and country roads and met a few nice people along the way. I even forgot my watch so had no idea how fast or slow I was. I eventually finished the race only a minute later than Scotia Bank but since the field was small, it felt like I was the last person to arrive. I drove home after the race with another medal (wasn't a nice one though !).