3 halfs in 36 days

This weekends race brought an end to the three closest races that we will run this year. With only 14 days between Winterman and Chilly half, we thought it might be a tough run, but it ended up being the best run of 2014 to date.

One very important experience we had on Sunday was the differences in how welcoming ( or unwelcoming) businesses are to the runners who invade their town or city for a race. Bathrooms are of particular importance during these events. Since the Chilliy half doesn't have an indoor venue for the runners to congregate in (with washroom facilities) before the race. This meant that the Tim Hortons and Starbucks had very long line ups to use the facilities. Kaitlin and I tried to go into a No Frills to use the bathroom (while Kaitlin's fiancée purchased some things), as we weren't certain that we would make it through the Tim Hortons line up in time. The bathroom was practically boarded off and as we left, we walked by a group of employees who stated loudly that they didn't "need" to have a bathroom available to the runners; that it wasn't against the law. We then rushed out of No Frills, jumped in the car and drove around the corner to a Longo's. As we entered the store, I asked a young clerk where the washrooms were and he responded "right this way, let me show you". I'm sure we weren't the only ones who experienced the differing service levels between businesses. I know it is a large group of people to deal with and clean up after, but I don't think it's too much to ask, that you band together create a welcoming community.

After all of this bathroom stress we made it to the start line on time, and we were excited to run our last cold run of the season. The route was fast and flat, and the temperature was considerably warmer than our first two races so we decided to pick up the pace. As a result we managed to finish almost 10 minutes faster than our Hypothermic Half, and we still managed to squeeze in a bathroom break and a lot of laughter!

We are very grateful to have 6 full weeks before our next race, which should allow for a full recovery of any lingering injuries. Our next race is at Spring Fling in Smithsfalls on April 13th.

3 down, 10 to go, and feeling awesome!

Until next time,

Melissa and Kaitlin