From
Helen –
Six of us met at 7am to walk our distance. We
walked 8k east on the lakeshore .Phyllis ensured that we all walked
to the 8k halfway point touching the red banner as we passed. It was
exciting to see the cyclists in the staging area as they waited to start their
"Ride to Conquer Cancer". I cannot imagine biking 5K never mind
all the way to Niagara. Diane and Phyllis stopped to cheer on the
cyclists near Ontario Place. Rorie and I thought it was a chance opportunity to
pass them. Thoughts of the Chicago Marathon drifted in and out as I
walked.
There
are 124 days until the Chicago marathon and 17 weeks of training. Approx
96 days until the Army Half in Ottawa. Signing up for a race is often
done with a leap of faith, in some cases a GIANT leap and others a graceful
stumble. You challenge yourself more than when you walk with specific
goals. Walking is good but having a BIG goal makes it scary sometimes and
very rewarding. Yes there is emphasis on distance, pace and stretching. Not to
mention intervals, hills, tempo walks and cross training
If you
do not have a race goal chosen for the fall, talk to others in the group and
find out what they are doing. Experience the "training" aspect
of walking the distance. YOU will be amazed at what you can do. I know
many of us have said "Been there, Done that", I know from my
experience that there is always something new to challenge and reward the
effort. Choose YOUR distance 5K, 10K Half Marathon or Full. What is your goal distance?
On
another note, I hope the 8am group had a good walk on Saturday and that the line-up for breakfast was
short. We missed seeing you.
Danielle shared
her neighborhood coffee shop "Extra Butter" in Roncesvalles and
Sherry, Rorie and I enjoyed coffee and conversation there.
Walk
your distance !!! and consider your first or next race.
From
Diane –
Saturday was a perfect
day. The 8:00 team headed east under a glorious blue sky and full sunshine.
There was still a lovely touch of cool coming off the lake which just added to
the perfection. I felt that there was no place on earth that could be better at
that moment - maybe as good, but not better.
We waved at the long
ribbon of cyclists off on a race to Niagara for a good cause. We walked on and
chatted about everything from the nature of happiness (apparently largely made
up of good memories - so the day contributed to our collective 'happy bank')
through the oddness of large corporations to the relative merits of going east
or west along the waterfront.
We never did meet up
with the 7:00 group (maybe they went west?). Breakfast was delicious as it
always is when you are hungry. We decided next week we would head west and all
went off to enjoy the rest of a very pleasant day.
