Middies are over, and the brain is still buzzing. So yeah, time for another post.
I remember having left you with a cliffhanger, not talking about any racing results. I told you that we would blog about it as a family with the boys of 18 Greening. I lied. Truth is, we did not get around to it just yet. Between going to class, going to practice, cleaning Cal's dishes (he's not that bad) and playing Chel, there is not much time left in the day.
We were busy running on our cross roads. Brook, Benyond, Landing, West River, Point, repeat. Each road tells its story. Each story has its road. The selection of the road, repeated every day, is always interpreted in a different manner. The selection usually reflects our moods that day. The repetitive pounding on these varying surfaces is the glue that keeps everything together. It is what recharges us after a hard workout effort and what prepares us for the next. Say what you want about easy runs, they are more essential than PK Subban is to the Habs defence corpse. Actually they don't really need him for defence, or for economic purposes while we're at it. Bad analogy, never mind. Anyway, these easy runs and cross country roads and routes are what keep us together as a unit, and they welcomed me back smoothly, as the first few races were at a time fast, and enjoyable.
Sept - 13th Acadia Invitational 8k - 8th - 26:02
Sept - 20th UNB/STU Classic 8k - 6th - 26:19
No pictures provided. Couldn't find a good one of myself. If you are curious, check out my previous post. I am currently working on looking better at the end of races. By growing out my hair in flow, the plan is in action. Don't worry. I may look like your typical 'beaut,' but I don't spit in bottles.
Since that anemia-riddled 18:47 5k that I ran in June, the improvement has been amazing, albeit purely physiological. But after these two little dances, things took a turn for the weird. If you are attentive to detail, you will ask yourself why my last race was in september. Things did not exactly go as planned during the StFX interlocking meet. A meet that I have been anticipating all year is now nothing more than a bad afterthought. Everything started well, warmup was nice. Saw some friends from all over the maritimes and Le Pays du Quebec! All systems go, PRP was out, ready to grind for the hopefully minimal time it was going to take. The thought process during this race went something like this:
1k - Hey this is cool. All the X boys are together, looking good in front of the home crowd. That Chuck guy is fast.
2k - Right, left, turn, right, left, jump, roll, turn, right, right, left, damn squigglies, right, left, left, up. That Chuck guy is gone.
3k - Ok, second loop. Stay with Cal. This feels good.
4k - Halfway. 4k until turkey. I can pick this up a little
5k - I can't pick this up a little. This is hard. This sucks. Why do I run? Keep this pace. Yeah, this is good.
6k - I need sleep, I need to lie down, I need to...oh hey Gregg....f*** this just happened.
I blew a tire. The energy was spent. The tank was mismanaged and emptied before it should have been. I was helped up by our athletic therapists, who took great care of me when I wasn't all there, and helped get me back to full function in no time. I swear that there is no worse feeling than looking up results after a race and optimistically guess where your name would have been. A DNF is like a bad hair day. Nobody else thinks much of it, but it invades your thoughts for the rest of the day and can make you spend a lot of time in the bathroom looking at yourself in the mirror. Good news is, runners get over this stuff, and I was back to my normal self by Tuesday, where I hammered a hard workout feeling great about myself once again. Did I ever not expect what was about to drop on me the next day. I was told by our therapists that my fainting needed medical attention, and that I was not cleared to be running with the team in races OR workouts until I see the specialists. Shit. AUS is in a week. CIS is in 3 weeks. I am now scrambling for answers, and I need them fast.
This news puts me at cross roads. I could take the appreciative road and adopt a peaceful mindset. I could think that this is it for now and just conclude that 'Yeah, Cyr, it's been a good run. You ran well in the summer and in september. Time to take some time off and chill until indoor.' But, being a runner, I opted for the more hellish approach. I have went through hell and back to be where I am now, and I will not let this stop me from training and getting ready for the race that I have been waiting for since last October. Bending the bars and pushing for my medical clearance as far as I can is the only way that I can bring clarity to this situation. If I do not get cleared in time, I know that I did everything in my power that I could. If I do toe the line, I will be fortunate enough to show to everyone that I in fact am ready to race. Fainting happens. As runners, we exert ourselves to the point of near-exhaustion. Sometimes, that point comes faster than expected. We get up, shake it off, and get back out there. After being tested all over in the summer, any more time in hospitals searching for something that isn't there to me is interpreted as downright impedance.
So for now, I am training on my own, waiting for the proverbial green light governed by procedure and ethics, and I will be honest, the pace at which this is going is scaring me. But whenever it comes, back from exile, I will take off.
Onwards
AC
PS - Because I was not training with the team today, I took on the role of cameraman along with co-sidelined stud and 18 Greening member Alex Neuffer. We picked up some neat footage of a beefy workout and with the help of SD and Fabio, are currently working on something magical.
