Another guest post:
“My running roots go way back. I grew up as the second oldest brother, which I think sewed a
competitive spirit into me that will continue to exist as I always strive to get the best out of
myself, no matter what I am doing. Running has been part of my life as long as I can remember.
The first “organized race” that I remember was being first in a kindergarten sprint. That laid the
seed for many running adventures ahead.
I competed in cross country running and track in elementary and high school, but not at a high
level. It was only an necessary spinoff of my training to maintain fitness for amateur boxing.
This was my main sport until the age of 22 when I went to medical school. With no time for
serious training at that point, I continued to run for fitness in the years to follow by doing around
5 km three times per week and the occasional “long run” of up to 8 km.
I moved to the Comox Valley in 1983. Having a busy family of three boys and a full time medical
practice, running and my own physical activity took a back burner for a number of years. I did
run a few 10 km races for fun and sampled the marathon in a poorly prepared and disastrous
1994 Vancouver Marathon. I did everything wrong. Limited training, poor pacing, inadequate
nutrition and hydration and the ultimate sin of wearing new shoes on race day, made for a
disastrous debut. Massive blisters forced a stop at the first aid tent by half way and a shoe
change at 20 miles. I went out hard and hit halfway at 1:29 before the wheels fell off. Besides
the blisters, I dealt with extreme nausea in the entire second half of the race leading to a finish
of 3:30. The additional bonus was three hours of vomiting to follow. This consolidated the
thought that I never wanted to do that again.
And so it was for the years to come. A little bit of recreational running, squash, golf, coaching
kids’ sports and still working long hours in my busy practice. But one day, twenty years later, it
all changed. Two friends were talking at the nursing station at the hospital, with Stef Schovanek
asking Jason Wale whether he wanted to join in for an 18 km run that Sunday. I was very
impressed and I leaned over to say, “if you take a one off the front of that, maybe I would come
too”. Of course, they didn’t and neither did I. I did go out and run 12 km on my own though and
convinced myself that I was ready for the challenge. So I joined in for the next several weeks,
not realizing that Stef was training for the Victoria Marathon. They were in disbelief when I
suggested that with limited training and with a deeply suppressed memory of my last marathon
disaster, perhaps I would do it too. I managed to finish strongly in 3:15 and thought that the
marathon bug was scrubbed from my brain. Of course, that was not to be. “You’ve qualified for
Boston” said Stef. “So what” I replied. “Well you have to do it” said Stef. “Well, maybe sometime
in the future” I came back with. “You don’t know what will happen in the future, you might never
get another opportunity”. And that was when I became a serious runner.
I joined the Comox Valley Road Runners in 2004 and have never looked back. I have enjoyed
the camaraderie and many friendships I have made there as I immersed myself in my running
journey. Social functions, fun runs, training partners and racing all over the world have all been
part of the adventure. I have raced various distances from 400 meters to the marathon and all
surfaces including track, trail and road. Among other achievements, I have been fortunate to win
a number of awards for BC and Canadian age group championships at the Half Marathon and
Marathon distances along with multiple podium finishes in the Vancouver Island Race Series,
TC 10 K and the Vancouver Sun Run while representing the CVRR. Other highlights included a
hard fought revenge at the Vancouver Marathon at the age of fifty one. After twenty two years I
returned and broke the magical three hour barrier running 2:59. I have now run sub three hours
in the marathon ten times with 2:49 in the Victoria Marathon at age fifty three as my personal
record and 2:56 at the Toronto Marathon at age sixty likely being my best marathon effort. In my
first outright wins since kindergarten, I was the overall winner of the Run the Rock Half
Marathon on Texada Island and the Edge to Edge Half Marathon in back to back years in my
mid fifties. I was also proud to be a part of teams setting BC M55-59 4 x 400 and Canadian
M55-59 4 x 800 records. While other records have fallen, my M60-64 record of 1:24 in our own
half marathon still stands. Among hundreds of other races I have run over 60 marathons,
including four Bostons to date and a fifth on the horizon. (So Stef was wrong about that).
My involvement with CVRR has also been on the volunteer side. I have been race director of
the Jingle Bell Run for two years, the half marathon for 12 years and currently of the CVRR
Backyard Ultra for the last 5 years. I also served as club president for 2 years, have been on the
Board of Directors for 19 years and volunteered to help out at numerous other club events over
the years. I have also served on the Vancouver Island Race Series Board of Directors for the
last 15 years. Other volunteer positions which reflected my interest in sports medicine included
Medical Leads for both the BC Senior Games and the BC Special Olympics as well as a
Medical Consultant for Boxing at the Commonwealth Games.
While my personal running remains important I am now in another phase of the adventure. I
have been a long time student of the sport. Over the last several years I have enjoyed sharing
the knowledge that I have gained to help guide a number of runners on their own journeys. I get
great joy in sharing my passion and helping others to reach towards their goals, whether it’s by
learning from my mistakes or by taking advantage of things I have learned along the way.
I have enjoyed all phases of the journey and look forward continued involvement for the years to
come.
Fast And Fun Times Ahead!!
Wayne”
