Racing Series

Fairmont Mother’s Day Run 2016

Posted by Wynne Lock on

Oh, dear me, I have not before let so much time elapse before recapping an event but here I am now, feeling under pressure to post this because another event is around the corner!

So… I have semi-officially retired from running. The Fairmont Mother’s Day Run on Sunday, May 8, was the second event in a row that was a 5K distance and that I walked. That’s not even counting the 2016 May the Fourth Be With You Virtual 5K (which I completed on May 6 and will not recap). The upcoming event is also a 5K and I am walking and I’m doing it with a 16-odd (hopefully 17 by then) pound baby bundle attached to my front.

I learned about the Mother’s Day Run in 2015, during its inaugural year. At the time of the race, I was 30-something weeks pregnant and not yet a mother so I did not want to participate. It is by no means a criteria to register, though! But it meant I was so keen to do it this year that last November, I emailed to let my girlfriends who were also celebrating their first Mother’s Day in 2016 and registered myself and E just before the early bird deadline in December.

Website_-_gift_bag_giftsSentimental about Mother’s Day, are we? It is despite, or because of, my previous stance regarding Mother’s Day. It’s been a roller coaster ride since E came along last summer (mind you, I thrill at roller coasters) and I feel like gratitude and acknowledgement is few and far in between, a sentiment I fear I will often feel. So, for my first Mother’s Day, I wanted to recognize it. And next year, I will not feel the same urge to participate in this event again.

When there is no medal, it is all about the swag. Most races do not display a photo so I was eager to get my goodies. Alas, there was not a full size Lindt chocolate bar – I would not want caramel anyhow – and no Burt’s Bees products. The Rocky Mountain Soup Co. scent was not Cherry Blossom (thank goodness) but Cinnamon and it has been delightful to use. It wasn’t a Power Bar bar but some other brand that was tastier. The Fairmont lotion is a very nice brand that I’ve tried before. And E and I each received not one pair – not two – but three pairs of gloves! Some administrative error. The pashmina scarves the 5Kers received were tan and not hot pink and this year’s participant technical t-shirt was hot pink.

The 5Kers were last to start, following the 10K and 3K starts and with two strollers between me and two mums walking together, we were the last to start. We were cheerfully and brightly dressed in the hot pink t-shirts to help volunteers identify us amidst the other pedestrians on the Seawall for it was not closed for our event.

Again, my A Goal was to not finish last. It was not difficult to overtake some walkers who were taking it quite leisurely. My B Goal was to finish under an hour and with a few pushes, we handily did that, too.

I didn’t catch the 10K start and didn’t for the 3K, but there were fewer participants pushing strollers than I thought there would be. Only one other stroller in addition to my friends’ two in the 5K. And I was the only one in the 5K wearing a baby in an Ergobaby. Go me! E was very good and napped for about 20 minutes.

I used to consider half-marathons as great Sunday morning workouts with a thousand others for company. These 5Ks are great Sunday walks although I still want them to be over rather quickly, too! It was a nice course that cut through Stanley Park and hugged the southern edge of Lost Lagoon and the finish line at Jack Poole Plaza was festive. Smaller races are going to take some time to get used to. Or I should start running again and do something really big!

On this day..

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