| Friday morning in Halifax, Don, Joyce and I went out for an easy run and got to know each other a little better. Don is a Lt-Cdr in the CF's Navy and has been running competively since high school. Now in his 40's he is as competive as ever. (In Ottawa's marathon two weeks before he snuck up on me at mile twenty, moved past, and beat me by two minutes.) |
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We knew he had some strong competition for leg two, though. An Ottawa
runner, Rick Hellard, had put in some impressive performances already this
year. Both Don and I could beat Rick last year, but this year was a different
story.
Rick took it out hard and never looked back, averaging 5:30 miles over the 18.5 km distance. Don cruised in for a solid second. |
| There was a short trail leading from the end of leg two down to the
ocean--the waves breaking on the shore as far as one could see. This was
an added highlight of the race--these little surprises of stupendous scenery.
Next up was Shawna Thomas. Shawna is new to running. She plays soccer, and had recently taken up running to improve her conditioning. |
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When Mark Cunningham realized we were going to be short a runner he asked her if she would be on the team. Only having begun the sport she naturally was a bit apprehensive. Just to run the entire 13 km was remarkable, but Shawna actually finished 21st out of 55 runners on her leg! |