tonight i had the opportunity to sit down with my coach and talk about my 2010 racing schedule. i'm already amped for this year and i've got a few big races scattered throughout the season that i'm particularly looking forward to. the two of us sat down and we started with me naming off all the races that i would like to do, and then coach al gave me a few choices, made some recommendations and designed a schedule that focuses on my 'A' races, ultimately leading me to the worlds in september. what will be different in 2010 is that i won't just be heading to all of my races with speed and finishing time as the focus; each race is being used to help me prepare for others, and some races are being used strictly as training tools. some races will be fun and i'll be out there to see how hard i can push myself, while others will have a pre-determined race plan that i'll be expected to adhere to. this schedule will likely change once i know when and where the provincial and canadian duathlon championships are, but this is what it looks like for now:
february 28 - grimsby 5k
my first race of the year will be fast and flat. i'll be using it to gauge my fitness level, and my coach will be using my split times from this race to determine what the race plan for my next race will look like.
march 07 - chilly half marathon, burlington
my first half marathon! this race will be a very strict training race, not a "let's go out and see how fast i can run a half marathon" race. the focus of this one will be negative splits for the entire race, starting off easy and finishing hard, fast and strong.
arpil 04 - philly's fools 10k, whitby
i placed 2nd overall in this race last year so this race will be an opportunity to see where my running is at compared to 2009, and it will also be an opportunity for me to try a different race strategy on a familiar course. last year i lost this race by going out too hard too soon. in 2010 i'll race smarter.
april 25 - us national duathlon championships, richmond, virginia
i'm going to head to richmond, va, to race against the best in the US. an 'A' race for sure, my first duathlon of the year will be a big one.
may 16 - limestone duathlon, kingston
a great opportunity for me to compare my fitness level to what it was in 2009. i'll be returning to this race for the second year in a row, and more than anything else i'll be looking to see how my bike splits have changed year over year.
may 24 - victoria's duathlon, waterloo
i'll be dancing with ontario's best multisport athletes at this one. i was too intimidated to enter this race in 2009, but in 2010 i'll be making my rookie debut at one of the most anticipated races of the season.
june 26 - welland duathlon
returning to welland for the third year in a row will present another opportunity to compare year over year times, my favourite way to track personal fitness improvements.
july 17 - gravenhurst duathlon
i always look forward to this race. there's nothing like leaving the cottage early in the morning and crossing a misty, glassy lake to get to race site. this has always been a challenging race in the heart of cottage country, and i've heard rumors of a new bike course for 2010.
august 15 - toronto islands duathlon
fast and flat, i'll be looking to push big numbers on the bike this year and cross the line with a good finish for the hometown crowd.
august 22 - orillia triathlon
this will be a key training race for me in preparation for the world championships. i won't be heading to this race to break any records, but there will be a focus on bike performance.
september 05 - duathlon world championships, edinburgh, scotland
my big race of the year. the race of the year. everything up until this point will have been geared towards making sure that i perform at my best here. i've set a very ambitious goal of finishing top 10 in my age group and i want to hit it. if all goes to plan and i remain injury free, i should have a strong race.
september 19 - lakeside duathlon
fully recovered from the world champioships, my first race back on canadian soil will be lakeside.
october 09 - fall colours duathlon
this is a fun little race just outside of ottawa that i had to miss in 2009 because of injury. i'm looking forward to returning to it in 2010.
i'll likely do a couple of running races in the fall, perhaps even taking on another half marathon. one of the races that i was looking forward to doing in 2010 was the sporting life 10k, but on my coach's recommendation i'll be sitting it out this year. missing it will allow me to build up to victoria's duathlon a bit better. this schedule is tentative and will likely change with the announcement of the provincial championships, and perhaps even with the announcement of the canadian championships, but i'm only going to go to the canadian's if the race is close by. regardless, i'm very excited about this schedule. i wanted to race less this year and focus more on key races, and my coach came up with a schedule that does just that. i'm still concerned about my running fitness but it's slowly coming back up; it's definitely not what it used to be, but by the time the worlds get here in september, i hope to be in top form. i've learned the hard way that injuries are a part of racing but i'm doing what i can to stay strong. 2010 is here, my first race is about 6 weeks away, and i'm psyched. this may not be a huge year for me, but it's definitely going to be a good year.
