And Then There Were No Races

I planned to write this post on Monday, April 20th. I planned to give an update on my races and training and then tell you how at least I still had Berlin—how my coach and I had adjusted my training each time a race got canceled and were at the point that I would just base build until Berlin training started in June. But I started the post a day later after learning that the 2020 Berlin Marathon was cancelled. I don’t have that same thread of hope to hold onto. So, I’ll go ahead and write the post I planned but one that has to acknowledge there are no races left on my schedule, there is no “at least I’ve still got” right now.

When we Still Had All the Races

I don’t think I shared my original racing schedule for the Spring, but at the beginning of March it looked like this:

• March 14th YMCA Saint Patrick’s Day 5-miler, Boise
• April 11th Frost 2 Flowers 10k, Boise
• *Goal Race* Rip City Race for the Roses 5k, Portland, OR. (Trying to go for sub-19:00 again)
• June 13th Sawtooth Relay, Stanley to Ketchum, ID (This was for fun, I have always wanted and still want to do a multi-leg team relay)

And then, of course, Berlin Marathon was at the end of September and training would have started in June for an 18-week training cycle.

Similar to anyone else who was racing this Spring (and basically every event anyone had tickets for, etc.) the races were cancelled one by one. First Saint Patrick’s Day two days before the race. Then Frost 2 Flowers was postponed on March 16th. And then right after, Race for the Roses. Sawtooth Relay was cancelled somewhere in there. I donated my race fees for the first two. Still waiting on more information for Race for the Roses.

And Then There was Just Berlin

So, by April 1 I had nothing left on my Spring calendar and my coach and I decided the best thing to do was go into base building until I started Berlin Marathon training. The sub-19:00 5k dream would be deferred to another time. (Writing that just made me think of this Langston Hughes poem). We scaled me back to running five days per week, lower mileage around 30-32 per week, one speed or hill session, and one longish run on Saturdays.

I made a personal choice to really focus on strengthening some of my weaknesses. I took the assessments in Jay Dicharry’s book Anatomy for Runners to identify (well, really confirm from past experience and PT sessions) what I need to work on and what exercises and stretching I can do to help. My appalling test results won’t make an appearance, but I’ve been doing the following as a result:

• 100 clam shells every. single. day.
• 60-second single leg balances, started on the ground, moving to a BOSU ball
• Hip extension stretches, particularly hip flexor, started at one minute, built to three minutes at a time
• Extra squats focusing on proper form and activating glutes
• And finally, spending more time foam rolling and doing hip mobilization with a Trigger Point ball (like a lacrosse ball).

And Then There Were no Races Left

That was life from about April 1st – April 21st when I received the news that the Berlin Marathon was cancelled. I didn’t receive an email or any notification from the race organizers. It was actually breaking news through Runner’s World and then I realized it was all over Twitter. It seems the Berlin Senate implemented an ordinance than no events over 5,000 people can be held through October 24, so by default the Marathon must be cancelled. The race organizers, to my understanding, were reacting and quickly posted a notice on the website. We’re still waiting on an email, options for deferment, etc.

I posted this on Instagram, but the news was an extra hard blow to me because the trip to Germany wasn’t just about running the Marathon, even though that was the reason for the trip. We were going for our five year wedding anniversary as well, and were making a longer vacation out of the trip. That included visiting Amberg, the town in Bavaria I lived in for three years while stationed there, the town where we met and got engaged. We learned earlier in the day Oktoberfest was cancelled, and, while that was part of our trip we have been before so it didn’t derail us. But, upon learning the marathon was cancelled, that was it. We canceled our reservations and the trip is off.

Looking Forward

My hope is that we can defer our registration to the 2021 Berlin Marathon and basically replicate the trip we had planned for this year. And I know, folks have had weddings cancelled so an anniversary trip is nothing, but it still hurts. And feelings of sadness and generally being bummed out are valid.

Aside from that re: Berlin, I find myself weirdly optimistic about what I can do and focus on during this time without racing. Maybe it’s the fact that we’re all in this together, maybe it’s that I realize racing isn’t a necessity it’s a privilege, maybe I am resilient, maybe it’s getting back to the roots of running for fun and fitness without racing.

My kind and caring coach who is out on maternity leave still immediately thought of me and reached out to offer her support. When she’s back next week, we will discuss next steps and how we approach training moving forward. I don’t know what the future, or races hold. But, for now I’m going to continue what I’ve been doing and keep moving forward through time, hoping there is a soon a day when life slowly returns to normal and that means we can race again too. Until then, I’m happy I am able to get outside, move my legs, and enjoy the natural beauty around me while Mother Nature gets a break.