track fan

1:58:31 (1:03:11/55:20).  Tough run (as you can tell from the massive negative split!) ... pretty cool for the most part.  It took us almost an hour to drive to this old fire road that climbs up to Mt. Lemmon.  As we suspected - it was very hilly.  Mainly rollers but with a significant overall net elevation gain (eventually goes from 4500 ft at the start to over 9000 ft -- but this is over somewhere near 20 miles).  Mostly it was easier than Jeremy Ranch Road, but there was one section that climbed quite a bit - about 2 - 3 miles of switchbacks.  The worst part today was the wind - really really severe headwind going out (up the hills) - at some points the gusts were so high I simply was not going forward (but the gusts did not last long).  It was severely dusty (since this was a dirt fire road) -- I will be tasting grit for days I am sure - and my eyes feel like they have been scratched!  

It was a challenge - but so worth it!  The views were something - and there was a sense of accomplishment that goes with a hard run.  

Have a good week bloggers. 

AM: (9.5 miles, 1:18:09, 4 mile tempo run). So very cool. Today we had the day off from work (and decided to take it since we are not finished unpacking our house) so we drove to the Pima Community College track for our workout (Dean was doing 4 x 1 mile @ 10K race pace). There are all kinds of trails around the college for wu and cd and the view is spectacular. The track is very nice - mondo surface with alternating blue and gray colors so it looks like water from a distance. It is a wide track too, so the turns are a little less sharp (easier on the legs) - I have heard that the track in Indianapolis that they use for USATF track championships is similar.

Anyway, I am so excited! Last week was not a fluke! I ran a wu of about 3 miles (26:09) with 800m of short strides before I started the tempo portion. The tempo run felt great! I felt really relaxed and did not even start to struggle until the last 800m and even then, I just had to relax into it. My tempo run pace is somewhere between (7:16 - 7:35/mile). I ran the first mile pretty conservatively and let myself go on the last one. (7:31, 7:21, 7:16, 7:13). I could have run one more at this pace if I needed to, I was pretty happy and felt I had the correct tempo pace dialed in. Had a nice 22:26 (~2.5 mile) cd on the trails.

PM: (3.5+ miles, 33:59). Ran with Dean in Reid Park.  Probably ran a little faster than usual (and than I should have), but I was with Dean and I got really inspired because I saw David Krummenacker (!!!!!) running in the park.  He went by the first time (very fast) and I told Dean, "I think that was David Kurmmenacker" -- then when I saw him again I actually called his name and he waved!  Then when I got home I looked it up and sure enough he lives here!  Pretty cool.  He has great form and even when he is running easy he looks fast!

1:12:40.  recovery run on the river trail.  I am tired today -- but it did not get any worse on the run so I guess that is good ;-).

AM: (9.5+ miles, 1:21:43). 25:31 wu + 18 x 1` @ slightly faster than 5k effort w 1` recovery + 20:22 cd. The first few were a little fast, so I felt these a little more than I should in the final ones ... but all and all a fun workout.

PM: (4 miles, 36:32).  Reid Park ... in the dark. 

1:06:04.  Whew, my legs could have used another 8 hours between runs ... tired today, but not any worse than I expected (I expected the run to be tough).  I hope I ran slowly enough that I feel more recovered tomorrow.

Happy Friday bloggers.
 

AM: (8 miles, 1:11:06). Very slow miles -- mainly because the first 4 miles were into a headwind that was gusting at times. Felt better than yesterday - just wanted to take it easy and recover for tomorrows longer run.

PM: (4 miles, 36:34). Ran on the very cool trails up north -- I found a dirt road (off of the trails) that runs around the golf course.  It was very cool, and better because the last 5 mins of my run was in the dark!!!