Moustache Miler

Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Moustache Miler through my involvement with West Van Run! Don’t forget to sign up for the West Van Run 5K or 10K (or both!) on March 5 & 6 – get 15% off with discount code ‘bradley’.

I hadn’t actually heard of the Moustache Miler before this year, but 2015 was actually its third year (based on the info I could find!). You’ve most likely heard of Movember, and the Moustache Miler is most easily described as a ‘fun run’ in support of this worthwhile cause. Although I didn’t personally fundraise (I concentrate on fundraising for the BC Cancer Foundation as part of the Scotiabank Charity Challenge), a lot of folks put in a lot of effort to raise awareness of men’s health issues, particularly prostate cancer. If you’re interested in donating, my friend Ed has a Movember fundraising page here, and all donations will be matched by our employer.

On Friday, I had committed to doing ‘wear testing’ for Mizuno. This involves trying on 3 different pairs of Mizuno shoes, running 3 kilometres in each, and then providing feedback on the experience. Debra, Pat and I participated back in August, and signed up together to do it again. Debra kindly offered to pick up the race packages for most West Van Run team members at the Running Room, and brought mine to Forerunners that evening. This gave me time to go to Pilates, because improving my core strength is key on my goal list right now.

Jeannine happened to arrive early for her wear testing as well, and we had a great time running together and getting to know each other a bit better! I didn’t get home until 9pm, but fortunately the race the next morning didn’t start until 10:30am!

Moustache Miler

Debra picked me up on Saturday morning, and we cruised down to Brockton Oval in Stanley Park. It was frosty and chilly, but with sunny blue skies.

 

We gathered with the members of the West Van Run Crew. We’ve all been involved in a lot of races together over the past several months, but this was the first race where everyone was in attendance!

We had lots of fun mingling and chatting before heading to the start line on the Seawall.

Karin led us in warmups – still looking in tip-top shape at 4 1/2 months pregnant!

A quick countdown, and we headed out along the seawall to Brockton Point. As we rounded the lighthouse and hit some shade, the frost on the ground (particularly on the slight downhill) was a bit of a hazard. I won’t blame the slipperiness for affecting my time, but I definitely stepped a bit more gingerly at this point.

Shorter races are funny things. The one miler lasts forever. This was my first 5k in years. I actually thought (and told a bunch of people) that I had only done one 5k before – the 2009 Scotiabank 5k, which wasn’t chip timed, so I have no idea how long it took me. However, I discovered that I had, in fact, done the Longest Day 5k back in 2010. My memories of that race are a bit vague, but I recall it took longer than forever.

Somewhere around Lost Lagoon, we did an out and back, and I cheered for a few members of West Van Run who were keeping pace ahead of me. As we headed back onto the Seawall, I started to wonder how far we had gone – there were no kilometre markings on this route. When my Garmin beeped, I wasn’t even sure if I was at 3k or 4k (it was 4k).

After nearly getting bowled over by a guy running with a double stroller – I swear there were at least 3 kids and a puppy in that thing – I was on the final dash to the finish. I could see Karin just ahead of me, but she still finished before me. Give her another couple months of pregnancy, and I’m sure I can beat her!

We got our fun Moustache Miler medals, cheered for all the West Van Run team as they crossed the finish line, and then headed back to the Oval to celebrate. There were snack, coffee, and freebies outside – and upstairs in the clubhouse we got cupcakes and (if you wanted to purchase it) beer.

Kirill, our fearless West Van Run leader, not only won the race – he also had a course record (16:45, to be exact). Yep, he bested me by 7 minutes!!

The music cranked up and the 80s-themed party started to swing, but it was time to take my moustache and head home.

The best part of this race – in addition to the costumes and moustaches of all varieties – was the chance to run with my peeps from West Van Run Crew. You guys rock!

Final Results

Chip Time: 23:47
Average Pace: 4:44/km
Place Overall: 47/279
Age Category Place: 8/29

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RACE REPORT

Packet Pickup
I didn’t go to package pickup, which was on Friday night at the Running Room. One of the members of my running team kindly offered to pick up packages for most of the other folks. We got a fair amount of brochures, a bottle opening/magnet and a fake moustache.

T-Shirt/Swag
No swag to speak of, although we got a cute Moustache Miler medal, which isn’t bad for a 5k! Also got a coupon for free shipping on a RoadID – so now I’ve got one on the way!

Course
Scenic loop around the Brockton Point end of the seawall, including the Stanley Park lighthouse. Then we cut through the park, did a short out-and-back along Lost Lagoon, and then back to where we started. The only real challenge was a bit of frost on the route, but at least it wasn’t raining!

Post-Race
Outside the Brockton Oval clubhouse, several vendors were set up with fruit, water, Starbucks coffee, Vega products, and LIFT Bars – lots of free goodies! It was a fun, festive atmosphere. We then gathered upstairs for awards, draw prizes, costume and moustache judging, and cupcakes.

Would I Run It Again?
I would consider it, for sure! Because most of the #WestVanRun Crew was in attendance, I had a particularly good time! And runs in Stanley Park are never a bad thing!