Tina-Marie Poulin
Tina-Marie Poulin
Artist, Athlete & Designer
May 16, 2018
March 2018
It was a pleasure to get back into snowshoe racing and have an opportunity to compete at the 2018 World Championships in Snowshoeing in Picos de Europa, Spain. The last time that I competed in the sport was at the World Championships in Quebec in 2012 where I placed 9th overall for a woman. It has been 6 years since my last race so was happy to come in 12th overall for a woman and to receive age-group Gold.
The course and region was beautiful and far more mountainous than what I was expecting. I also never thought to check the altitude before the race either. It turns out that Picos de Europa has an elevation of 8,690 feet! But even if I had known the elevation prior to the race, it really wouldn't have changed anything in determining if it was a race that I wanted to compete at. As an athlete who lives and trains in NYC at sea level, pretty much any race that I do is going to be at a higher altitude!!
Snowshoe racing is definitely a niche sport but the USA had a great representation at this years World Championships and we cleaned house in the medal count! We were not even entirely sure if the bus was going to make it back up the mountains because we were carrying around so much extra weight from collecting so many medals.
June 21, 2017
Wow! It has been a long time since my last blog entry and what a change there has been! Since my December 2015 post, I have lived in San Francisco, gone back to Maine but am now back in the city that never sleeps - NYC! It was very easy to leave NYC in 2014 but certainly much harder to move back, find a good job and also find a new apartment. But after lots of hard work, I landed an incredible opportunity working for Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates as their Manager of Auction Relations based at Sotheby's Auction House in NYC so I am back to the auction business which is the business that I love and also missed so much!
As for the running and this year's performance at the Mt Washington Road Race, I knew with starting a new job and moving back to NYC that it wasn't going to be my best performance. I was only running 4 days a week and my weekly mileage was only about 30 miles but I felt that I had enough endurance to at least make it up the mountain. And I did make it up the mountain but my time was certainly "off". Not showing up and running the race would have been morally defeating to me and as an athlete I do not want to not show up or not race if my body is not in tip top shape! There will be good races and bad races, times that I am in better shape and times that I am in not so good shape and that thing called "life" in between it all!
Still happy that I ran the race, saw old friends, made new friends and managed to still get an age group award!
Pre and post race pics and I am smiling in both!
December 24, 2015
Back in Maine after a fabulous few weeks in Hawaii! I competed at the Xterra Trail Run World Championship again and am pleased to have secured another Xterra Age-Group World Champion running title again for the second time. The course was a complete mudfest due to rain leading up to the event and on certain downhill sections of the course there was nothing for you to hang onto and without secure footing - sliding down the mud was really your only option. Tina was NOT a happy camper but I was very, very happy to run the course without getting injured and also without any serious falls. At one point in the race, my sneaker got stuck in the mud and entirely came off!
Xterra provided a hose for you to clean-up with after the race and as always, they do such a great job hosting the event! Mahalo!
After the race - I went to the beach, got cleaned-up and had a few pictures taken with a surf board. Certainly no surfing for me and the thought of having to walk up & down the three steps to get in & out of the pool at my hotel seemed like too much of an effort.
Will now take a little break from training and then head into the new year with the hopes of competing at the USA Snowshoe Championship in Utah and then the USA 50K Road Running Championship in NY the week after. Of course, provided that I am healthy and God willing....
Ok, and only in Hawaii I guess??
November 10, 2015
Very thankful to receive an automatic nomination by USATF (Mountain, Ultra, Trail division) for 2015 Runner of the Year in the Road Ultra category. Last year I received two nominations - Mountain and Road Ultra but am glad to have at least one this year!
November 6, 2015
I haven't posted any recent race results because I have been plagued by off and on injuries since last May but am hopefully on the mend now! I did compete at the Sugarloaf Uphill Climb a few weeks ago and decided to run it even though I was having back and leg pain. I figured that it was a soft uphill surface so would cause less stress on my body than a faster road race on a hard surface. Needless to say, it may have not been a smart decision. I was in a lot of pain, ran it 4 minutes slower this year and came in 2nd. Although 2nd isn’t bad but when you won the race the previous year and set the ladies course record, a 2nd place finish will obviously be disappointing. But my course record still holds so things could be worse (positive thinking)!
This was also the first race that I wore a shirt that I designed using images based on my paintings. The shirt needs some tweaking but off to a good start! Also while up at Sugarloaf Mountain, I found this great coral colored hat with a pompom. I have a white hat similar to it but love the coral color and am anxious to wear it après snowshoeing in Tahoe this winter. Fingers crossed for a winter Tahoe road trip!
March 6, 2015
Competed at the USA 50K Road Running Championship last Sunday for a third year in a row. It was a very cold and windy running day and am happy to report that I placed 5th overall for a women and am the National Masters Woman Champion once again for three years in a row!
This race comes very early in the calendar year and getting in enough miles for a 31 mile race during the winter months can be quite challenging. I wasn't able to get in as many long runs as I had hoped but also felt that I had enough miles to battle through the race. My time was slower than last year's (which I anticipated) but most of the other athletes also ran slower so it is possible that the race day conditions were just slower in general. I am very happy that I made the effort. It was a good day!
November 17, 2014
Excited to receive two automatic nominations from USA Track and Field for Runner of the Year! Nominated in both Mountain Running and Road Ultra. Glad that my race performances at the World Championship in Masters Mountain Running in September and also the USA 50K Road Running Championship last March have been recognized.
http://www.usmrt.com/call-for-nominations-mountain-ultra-trail-runner-of-the-year-awards
October 18, 2014
Ran the Uphill Climb at Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine last weekend. Was the overall female winner as well as broke the women's course record. In lieu of a trophy, received this fine axe instead! The below picture was taken after the race and I am wearing an INKnBURN shirt to match the beautiful fall foliage in New England.
Will need to go back next year to try to win another axe so that I may have a criss cross display of axes hanging on the wall in my home!
September 20, 2014
Back in the USA after an incredible two weeks of running in Europe. I came in 7th in my division at the World Championship in Masters Mountain Running and then I went onto Switzerland to run the Jungfrau Marathon in the Swiss Alps "for fun". Although, that race really wasn't so fun but it was the most beautiful race that I have ever run!
Originally, I thought that I would just fall in love with Austria because it is a country that I have been wanting to visit for years. Yes, Austria is lovely and I had a wondeful time there but I was just blown away by the shear beauty of the Swiss Alps. You see pictures of the Swiss Alps so you know that it is going to be pretty but until you experience it first hand, any picture just doesn't do it justice! I couldn't get over how bright the blue sky was contrasted against the white snow on the mountains. The reflections of the sun on the snow was so bright that you really did need to wear sunglasses.
As for my races, I was pleased with my result at the World Championship in Masters Mountain Running in Telfes, Austria. I ran a smart race and paced myself properly. Had the race been a little longer, I could have moved up to 6th place but I ran to the best of my ability so cannot complain about possibly moving up only one more spot.
Jungfrau is a complicated mountain race because the first 16 miles are a mix of
pavement, dirt trails and grass (but mostly pavement). On mile 16 you head into the mountains and there is a huge increase in incline. It was at this point that I was finally able to start to pass back the runners who passed me on the road. I was happy with my running until about 4k to go in the race but then the course became single track and I got stuck behind a line of runners and could not pass. I was also not brave enough nor do I have good enough technical running skills to maneuver around the other runners. I lost a lot of speed in the last 4k so did not make my time
goal but am thankful to have had an opportunity to take in the most amazing scenery.
I met some wonderful local people in both Austria and Switzerland but also enjoyed getting to know a great group of runners from America as well. I will certainly miss the incredible desserts, bread and wine but will not miss the very bad exchange rate of the USD to the Euro and CHF!
July 29, 2014
I recently competed at the Old Port Half Marathon in Portland, Maine. I have not run a half marathon road race since 2005 so had no idea what to expect but knew that it would be a good test to my fitness level. The race started at 7am and I am not a morning person so getting to a race for 7am has it's own challenges. It ended up becoming a really hot day so in the end, I was thankful for the early morning start time!
It took me a while to get into my race running rhythm but by mile 4, I was relaxed, feeling good and focused on the task ahead. I knew that my family were coming out to cheer me on at the 9 mile mark so was looking forward to that. I also knew that after the 9 mile mark, I only had another 4 miles to run.
In the end, I won my age-group and received a very fitting buoy award and ran the half marathon at a 6:56 pace. What also made this race so special to me was that my cousin Danielle and aunt Janet were also running the race. It is great to have other runners in the family and also a supportive family that comes out to your races to cheer you on!
July 1, 2014
The Mt Washington Road Race is one of my favorite races even though I find it one of the most grueling! I have been fortunate to run this race for the past three years with pretty good weather. Mt Washington is known for unusually high wind speeds and possibly even snow/hail conditions in the summer.
I placed 12th overall for a woman and was 2nd in my age group. I felt a little tired going into the race but battled through the 7.6 miles up the mountain. It is sort of an unusual mountain race because most of the race is on a paved road and not trails but I also relied on the incline of a treadmill for my "hill" training so the race terrain suited the terrian of my training. But of course, training in the mountains at altitude certainly would have been better than the incline of a treadmill in NYC!
At the awards ceremony wearing INKnBURN sugar skull shirt
Wearing the INKnBURN drifting petals singlet tank
March 10, 2014
USA 50k Road Championship - Caumsett Park on March 2, 2014
6th overall for a Woman and USA National Masters Woman 50k Road Champion
At the starting line wearing INKnBURN Forest tech shirt
March 10, 2014
Now that it is March of 2014, I am getting around to posting pictures from the 2013 Xterra Trail Run World Championship in Oahu, Hawaii.
I came in 14th overall for a woman and am also an age-group world champion (below please find the podium pic). I was a little disappointed in my overall placement but did run the course a few minutes faster this year so was glad about that. Of course, running a course faster depends on so many variables like weather conditions and race terrain on that specific day but I like to believe that I was just in better shape this year! At least that is what I am telling myself.
Hawaii is such a beautiful place so really any opportunity to race there is a complete pleasure regardless of any kind of fitness level and I hope to return again there next November.
Awards ceremony - 1st age-group
Wearing INKnBURN Sakura skirt
Wearing INKnBURN Flutter top
Colorful surfboards on Waikiki Beach
January 22, 2014
As an INKnBURN ambassador we have been asked to share recipes during the month of January. I don't really cook much but enjoy making this fruit/yogurt parfait and putting a slight spin on it.
I use diced and baked apples for the fruit mixture. Just bake the apples with cinnamon and a little brown sugar similar to baking an apple pie (you can also use honey or maple syrup or nothing at all to sweeten the apples). Let the mixture cool and then alternate between yogurt and the apple mixture. I sprinkle my parfait with a little granola for texture and extra flavor.
It is a great post workout snack because the yogurt has protein and the apples have fiber so it fills you up without feeling heavy.
