A clydesdale no more!

I had a lot to think about during the run today which provided a nice distraction.  I didn't resolve anything but the run definitely helped clear my mind.  Physically I'm starting to feel good and am looking forward to the new year to step the training up again.

Really couldn't decide what I wanted to run today.  I started out running 3 miles really easy then thought about running some quicker miles.  Ran 2 miles at around 7:00/mile pace and I found myself at my 8 mile turn off point.  Decided that I wanted to turn this into a little longer run so I backed off the pace.  I thought about the cougar challenge and realized that my longest run this month has been 12 miles.  Thought that I had to stretch the run out to get to 13.1.  The pace was slow and I didn't feel great but I got the miles in.

My hamstrings were very tight this morning and I was just feeling off so I took it really easy.  And so ends the year with:

Miles	3,039.7
# Days	323
Miles/Day	9.41
Time	394:06:31
Avg Pace	7:46/mile

• 5 marathons (2 top 10 finishes and 3rd overall in the Utah Grand Slam)
• 5 5Ks (5 top 10 finishes with 1 win)
• 1 10K
• 1 1/2 marathon
• 2 Ragnar relays (including 2nd place overall at NWP)

First run of the year and you would think that there would be something special about it.  It was just your typical 8 miler - nothing exciting.  I really need to get around to setting some goals.  This running for running's sake is making me slow.

It was "warm" (43 degrees) and windy (20 mph). My left hamstring is starting to flare up again but seems to get better after a couple of miles.  It starts to get sore again towards the end of the run so I guess I need to start taking advantage of the pain free middle miles.  I felt better than yesterday but my pace ended up being slower.  It must be due to the wind.  Looking forward to the game tonight (although I don't have high expectations).  GO UTES!!

Run with the running club this morning.  I went to Wendover to watch the U game last night and didn't get home until the wee hours of the morning.  With only 3 hours of sleep, I really considered not running today.  I wanted to keep it at an easy pace because of the lack of sleep.  Only a few runners showed up and we all ran the first couple of miles together.  I thought it was nice but apparently Kathie disagreed.  Lora and I started to run a little quicker and maintained a good pace the rest of the run.  The pace felt perfect and I'm glad that I dragged myself out of bed to run.