Clyde's Comeback!

8 mile run today up the Middleton trail and to the water tank then down around the industrial park. Typical taper run with some pains and stuff along the way but overall a really nice morning to be out running. 

(Blue Cumulus- 512.7)

I decided to do what Jon did on his blog the other day. A short little comparison of this year and last year with some stated goals.

Last Year This Year

weeks at 100 or more miles- (10) 100 miles+ a week- (22)  

120 miles+ a week(5)  

Longest week- 103.7 133.65 all running miles

Snow Canyon Park 18 mile run w/ 7.5 mile tempo

(5:19 min mile pace) (5:12 min mile pace)

20 mile run with 10 @ brisk and 10 at tempo

overall-1:59:40 (tempo avg 5:19)1:55:47 (tempo avg 5:19) 

As far as overall mileage goes I'm hundreds of miles ahead of where I was last year at this time. I'm not sure how many but a lot.

Goals for STGM on Saturday! Listed in order of priority. 

1. To PR from last year

2. Be in the Top 10

3. Sub- 2:22

4. Place in top 5

5. sub- 2:21

6. Place in top 3

7. Sub- 2:20

8. Win

I'm really excited to have a good race. I haven't had one in 2008 and I'm due. I hope everyone else runs great and it can be like last year where everyone was getting PR's and being happy about all their hard work. It was a great day and hopefully we'll have another one to add to our memory bank.

Good Luck! 

6 mile run this morning. I did 2.5 up to the golf course and then 1 mile of barefoot w/ a couple strides mixed in, then I came home the same way. I felt good overall. The hamstring was kind of pesky but I've come to the grim reality that it's going to hurt on Saturday... just how much it will affect me is the question. Other than that the horses where chomping at the bit today. I tried to just go slow but kept finding myself at 6:20-30 pace then I'd back down to around 7 until I'd speed up again. 

(White Cumulus- 525.6) 

4 miles this morning up the starting line of the STG marathon. I met up with the girls (Michelle L, Josse, Marci, and Josse's sister- I forgot her name- sorry). There was a mild tailwind up there this morning... and the skies were all overcast. I've got this strange feeling that tomorrows weather might be interesting. Anyways the little run was good. The hamstring is a little more achy than I'd want but it go time regardless. Looking forward to a fun day of seeing friends and doing running stuff all day long. 

(Black Stratus- 187.5) 

I'm not even sure how to start this entry. I'm inclined to say it was a "bummer" race but this was so crazy that you almost have to laugh at it. Last year I would have been disappointed if I would have run anything less that a sub 2:30- so this year after all the work and miles I've put in and I ran a 2:31- well it just leaves me speechless. The wind was horrible and the rain just got annoying. No it wasn't worse than Boston in 2007, but what was worse was the fact that I didn't have anyone to draft behind with the exception of the very first mile... so in the end it made for a worse overall race performance. 

Things were slow from the start. We hit the first mile and someone said 6 min's and I looked at the watch and it was 6 flat. Around 30 seconds slower than the plan. Then it just kept getting worse. I hit the half in 1:16:10- the plan was for 1:11 high or 1:12 mid. I almost pulled out at the half thinking "why" why even push to the end and trash the body up. What could I possibly gain? The only reason I kept pushing was because I knew I was ready for a great, hard, fast race and I thought I'd just really hammer the second half and see what happened. Well nothing really happened. I did catch a few guys at around mile 19 (Sasha, Jeff, Dave D, and Nick M- who kept having to stop and retie his shoe and eventually left me again. I pushed into wind all race at the front of the pack until the base of Veyo hill and then when I slowed down going up Veyo and the pack dropped me and a new one formed with me and the 3rd place guy and a couple Japan runners. Then they all sat back and I broke trail until 23 or so and the 3rd place guy who had been sitting on me all race went ahead and at that point I was starting to feel the effects of my efforts.

You have no control over the weather and everyone had to deal with it so I really can't be too upset about that. The thing that really bugs me is that I can always finish on this course. On the good downhill coming into town I can roll and bring it home. So today that was the only think I was counting on and then I got there and couldn't get things to move. I finished so bad today and it cost me 2 or three spots place wise.

My splits were horrible so I'm not putting them up. In fact I've been to worked up to even look back through them. At this point it really doesn't matter. They wont be helpful to me in the future for anything.

I feel bad for everyone that had to pound through the weather today, and if you were the one in the front of your little pack I feel worse for you because you were working harder than the guy 3 feet behind you. In a race you can't physically force someone to take the lead and break the wind for you.

With the exception of a few blessed runners everyone was 10 or so min's slower than goal pace. Some up to 15 and others maybe only like 8. Me personally 12. Like I said this was so crazy and weird that you really just have to laugh about it. The ironic part is the conditions didn't seem to slow the winner down too much at all. He must have eaten his Wheaties this morning. 

I may come back to this and add more later but for now this works.

(SS#2- 84.6) 

The legs are totally trashed. It's hard to say if they are worse than last year or the year before because it's been so long ago. Nonetheless they are trashed. 

No running today. No aspirations to run for a few days. I'm going to run when if feel like I want to again- not when I feel like I need to. 

First things first. It's a BOY! Due on March 7, and I'm really, really excited about it. We went to the ultrasound yesterday and everything seems to be just fine. The fact that our baby is going to be a boy was unmistakeable if you know what I mean. 

I was going to take it easy this next year and maybe even stop running competitively. However after a lot of thought here is 3 reasons why I'll keep doing what I do:

1. I wasn't happy with one race in 2008 despite the increased volume and intensity.

2. I still have a hunger that isn't satisfied!

3. Because Peppi road me like Seabiscuit from Veyo to mile 23 and he ended up taking 3rd! Here is my photographic proof- Proof! 

I was dying to get on my mt. bike and do a good ride because for weeks I've stayed off it in fear of an accident and injury. So today I got a good ride in just over 12 miles on the bike and 1:06 min's of time. Then I came home and did a ab workout with some push ups. 

The legs are still a little sore but if I wanted to run it wouldn't be a problem. I'm still going to milk out the rest of this week at least until Saturday. My do a run before the weekend. Something fun if the guys are up for it.  

12.5 mile in 1:15 on the bike up and around Dino tracks and some other funny bits. There was a howling headwind on the way back that brought back some scary memories of a day last week that I'd like to forget. My calves have been pretty sore all day today- I hope it wasn't from yesterdays ride. I'm trying to just do enough physical exercise to scratch the itch this week. Then I'll pump out around 40-50 next week and work up on kind of a revers taper. 

Nothing today. I had to go to a funeral of one of my cousins that died in a car wreck on Sunday. It was sad- He was only 2 years older than me and leaves behind a wife and a 4 year old son. I'm just kind of feeling somber and not into doing anything active. 

In the mean time I've been eating like a champ. I think the goal is to put 10-15 pounds on so that when I'm ready to start training again I'll have some motivation. You name it I've been eating it- and in large portions- over and over again. Good times! 

9 mile bike ride in 58:35 = 2.25 easy running miles. I chose a sandy, hard trail above the house today and it was a quad workout. Then I challenged the water tank hill and made it to the very top and just before I was all the way there I hit a rock that made me wheelie over and I had to put my foot down. I've made it up before but today my gears were acting up and needed to be adjusted so I couldn't get in the lowest one. Anyways a nice hour workout in the winter weather. It sure came quick. 

I can't believe how cold it got down here so fast this year. I'm sure it will warm back up but this morning it was 41 outside my house... That is January temps. 

I posted this on the discussion board but I'll also plug it here. I've decided to do the Utah Grand Slam next year. This would include running the Ogden, Des News, Park City, and STG Marathons. With the Top of Utah marathon being my alternate. I know this sounds like a lot and my plans had been to kind of kick back a little, but thats exactly what I plan on doing. Instead of running 100+ mile weeks all year in 2009 I'll most likely be doing 75-85 mpw with 60 mpw being the minimum. I think I can maintain some pretty good fitness and have a good shot a winning the Grand Slam and at the same time kind of relax during my weekly/monthly training. I'll have to race the marathons a little more cautious than in years past, but I should be able to run some pretty good races nonetheless.

So here we go. I swore off Ogden last year forever but I guess I'll be back. I still may go do another marathon in December or January but I wont know for sure for a few more weeks.

7.2 mile run today up around GS and finished coming home on the trail. Wowzzers is all I can say about this run. I left the house feeling like I was ready to run and the legs felt pretty dang good. Well by 2 miles out the only thing that kept me from walking was pride. I had planed on doing the 6.5 mile GS loop but by the time I got up to the top of GS I decided to hit the trail- this would make the run longer but... It  would get me off the hard road and maybe the dirt would feel better??? and more importantly I needed to get out of sight. I couldn't let anyone see me running in such a pathetic manor. Everything hurt and I was barley moving. 

So in retrospect this last week off wasn't such a good idea. Even if I would have just ran one mile each day last week it would have helped loosen things up and aided in recovery. I guess you live and learn. I'll never go cold turkey again right after a marathon. Even some walking or hiking each day would have helped.

So on that note I've got a long ways to go before the next race. Whatever that may be. I'm looking forward to working into the week and hopefully feeling better each day.

 (Adrenaline- 100)  

7.2 mile run up the trail and around GS. Same loop as yesterday only the other direction. Legs still feel like death on a stick but maybe just a little better than Monday. Today however I had a really sore left groin. I mean it hurt bad for the first mile and a half. Then things started to loosen up. 

What I should really do is go see April and get everything kind of smoothed out. We'll see how the rest of the week treats me.  

(Black Stratus- 194.7) 

Tonight I was going to meet up with a mountain biking club that I've been meaning to go ride with all summer but haven't due to fear of injury. So I checked to see where this weeks ride was going to be and made plans to be there. They said we were going to ride the JEM trail out above Hurricane and I thought I followed the map... Well I got out there and 5:30 came and went with no one showing up. So I jumped on the trail and did my own ride. I did just over 13 miles on different portions of the trail in a time of 1:17ish. It was a really good workout and the hips and legs were sore when I finally got back to the car.

13 bike miles = 3.25 easy miles 

5 mile church loop this morning. I ran and Mik'L came along side on her bike. I was really stiff this morning from last nights pounding trail ride. But on top of that I'm just waiting for the magical run to happen when I go out and things feel pretty good. I'm guessing I'm a long ways off that. I really need my hips adjusted. I think Stephen is good at that...

(Old Landreth- 436.5) 

7 mile run tonight with the running club. We met at the store and ran a trail root up above the golf course. The weather is just amazing. It was nice to meet up with the guys and just chill. 

(New Landreth-181.2) 

9 miles this morning up to the water tank and around industrial then home the long way. After I got warmed up (4 mile or so) I felt pretty good. However those first few miles hurt. My hammy is just about to break it's so tight. I'd really like to get rid of that issue before I even think about getting ready for a race again. 

(Red Stratus- 514.5) 

20.25 mile trail run today with 8 guys from the club. What an amazing run. This sits atop of my list of All time best runs. We started up above Angels Landing in Zion NP on a trail that I believe is called West Rim trail. Katy dropped us all off and we started down off the mountain right at day break. It was cool but we all opted to shed most of our cloths before we left the vehicle. A wise choice because after we got warmed up the extra layers would have become cumbersome. Basically from the get go the views were amazing all the way for the entire run. Deep, vast canyons with the fall colors to make it just priceless. The running part was good too. We just took it easy and had fun making our way down the single track trail. As we got closer to the end we started the big drop in elevation and realized that we were actually on the famous Angels Landing switchbacks that we made our way down and kind of pushed our way through the tourists who were hiking up. 

The entire run was a big elevation loss but there was some really killer up hills throughout that made us gasp for air in the 7,500 ft elevation. What a blast! A few guys took some little tumbles (Steven's was classic) and that made for some quality memories. 

After we got off the trail we hit the parking lot right at 15.5 miles and could have caught the bus down from there but we ran down another mile to Zion's Lodge and then some of the guys did jump on the bus while the Circle of Trust ran down to the park entry to make it a total of 20.25 miles. The distance was o.k but we pushed out the last few miles at Tinman pace or faster and I really didn't need that but it was all worth it for the run today. This one is a must for anyone!

(Black Stratus- 214.9) 

7.2 miles this evening. I'm leally leally leally sore. As my friend Tosh from Japan would say. He struggles to say his "R's". I was coming around at the end of last week and then took a few steps back on the run on Saturday. I don't regret a single step of it other than some of the ending miles which were a little uncalled for. 

Today I ran up to GS and back home on the trail. Just struggled to get anything going. I'm really looking forward to being able to run again and not being sore and hurt. Forget racing at this point.... I just want to run without pain.

  (Landreth- 443.7)

7.8 mile run this morning up into GS the long way and home on the trail. I decided that mileage, pace and the like will all go on the back burner for a while until the body says it feels ready for more. I just struggled through this run. So if I get in 3 or 15 miles a day I really don't care for now. Whatever feels good. I'd really like to feel well rested and fully recovered before thinking about anything else. So unless something big happens soon I'm most likely crossing off any December or January marathons. 

(Blue Stratus- 514.2)

4 miles this afternoon. I really didn't want to run again today but I went into the store and got some new shoes and had to go try them out. I've been running on shoes that for the most part are wore out or don't feel that great- and right now as sore as I am I need something that feels nice and plush.

So I just went out and back a couple miles and the shoes felt good.

(Glycerin- 4)

7.5 miles this morning. GS loop with Middleton extension. I kind of had some control over my form this morning for the first time in awhile. My hamstring is so sore. I think I'm going to need a transplant. 

Good little run as I tried out a new pair of Cumulus- I think they will be a hit.

(Cumulus- 7.5) 

4 miles on the treadmill this evening. I spent a long day taking care of some business and other stuff in Cedar City today and got home just dead. I've been really stressed out the last week or so and that's sucked too. So todays little quickie on the machine was just that- a quickie on the machine. I guess the only nice thing about it was that I cleaned and rearranged the garage so the treadmill and two cars could be in there and I was excited to see how it worked in it's new spot. It worked great in it's new spot. Now I just have to find a new car... nothing fancy just something for me to run around town in. The bike thing only really lasted 4 months. But I needed to sell my car and get something with 4-wheel drive anyways or all wheel (Subaru). 

So there you have it. I decided if your feeling a real zeal for life and running right now you may not wont to read my blog for awhile because I'm kind of a downer. I'm really not into running right now and just do it out of repetition. Everything hurts and when it stops I'll get bubbly again.

(Glycerin- 8)

12.15 mile morning run up around the overpass. Actually this was a pretty good little run. I still felt sore in places- hamstring for sure but overall one of the better ones since the marathon. This will most likely be my long run for the week as I'm going up to Orem today and will be up there over the weekend. Maybe I'll catch a run tomorrow morning before going to the BYU game and maybe I won't. 

(New Landreth- 203.3) 

Well no running today up here in Orem. I wasn't feeling that great when I woke up in the morning and then the rest of the day just flew by. We went to the BYU game and it was just o.k. They really didn't look that good. After the game (we left in the 3rd) we went to SLC to Mik'L's uncles house for a little family party. I ate some amazing chili (maybe the best ever) but that put an end to my running thoughts for the day. My stomach was going through World War III- oh yeah the chili was on top of the Brawt and fried onions I had at the game. 

We had a good time up there this weekend but it is good to finally be home. One of the highlights was getting a bunch of stuff for our new nursery. Mik'L is a little shopper and we loaded up. I fact a lot more than we could haul home. So a friend will be brining it down in his truck latter this week.

 So after the no running and eating everything in sight. I think I can hear myself getting fatter!

Glad to just be home tonight after a long weekend. I love just being at home with the family (me, Mik'L and our little dogs + our little baby on the way). 

I'm looking forward to a better week. Maybe not too much though. I'll shoot for 65-75 miles. I see no real reason to go much more than that without a race coming up to focus on. I'll try and shed a few of the pounds I put on over the weekend.

Mik'L is heading to PHX for the weekend and some of next week to work with her dad.... and now I'm coming along. However not like most times where I just come along and eat room service and lay by the pool. This time my trip down there will be for a purpose. I have to go to the dentist!!! I had an x-ray and I have 5 regular cavities and 2 others that most likely need root canal's- so if your counting thats 7 teeth that need to be fixed. Have mercy! I do brush twice a day just so you know. But I haven't been to the dentist for over 6 years and I think that all the gatorade I drink may be one of the causes. Lots of sugar. 

Here is an example of my day when I'm training hard- like through the summer. I'll brush right before bed and then sleep until 5 am or whenever the run is. Then up and I'll drink gatorade right out of bed and then on a lot of occasions I'll be out running for 2 hours or so with that sugar just sitting on the poor teeth. Then I'll come home and drink some more and mess a round with whatever for like another hour and then go shower and brush. Then once I'm out of the shower I spend the rest of the day drinking gatorade trying to get hydrated (I do drink water but when it's really hot water just won't cut it). Then out for the second run sometime late afternoonish. Then dinner, TV, blog, ebay... and finally brush again before bed.

Anyways I guess I just need to take better care of these babies. The only good news is my uncle is a dentist (in PHX) and that helps the pocket book.  

7.6 miles this morning up around GS. Other than my hamstring nothing really hurt which was nice. However I was basically stumbling around because my form was so bad. I felt like a big lurp. But that is to be expected considering it's Monday and I didn't run on Saturday so I'm that much more out of it. 

(New Cumulus- 15.1) 

7.5 miles up to GS and home on the trail. It was actually too hot out this afternoon. That and the fact that I had two too many potty stops... The good news is I was sweating to the oldies in the sun. I also saw one of the biggest desert tortoise's I've ever come across on a run. Not the biggest (that one was massive) but the second largest green guy. He hissed at me as I ran by. The littler ones are kind of cute to see but these big ones are kind of scary looking. Like a crocodile or something prehistoric.

Adrenaline- 114  

8 mile morning run around the water tank and through the industrial park. It was kind of smokey out this morning and was making me sick for about half the run then the sickness just went away. What a beautiful day in the neighborhood!

8.5 miles up the trail and round GS. No turtles today. Logan it's true! Really, really warm out for this time of year. For some reason I'm feeling really good and finally coming around. I'm still not going to do any speed work for a while but I'm just going to do the miles that feel good.  

12 mile run this morning up around the overpass. Nice and even effort throughout the run- I never pushed the pace but I never relaxed to coast either. I'm still riding a little heavy so I'd like to drop a few pounds. I had Mik'L walk/ kneel on my hamstring the other night and it really loosened it up. Maybe I should have been doing that all summer. 

 I planned on getting back out this afternoon but my stomach got into a train wreck with Cafe Rio and then there was no way. I didn't even think about it the rest of the day. I think I'm done eating there for a while.  

8.6 mile run up into GS and then up the trail to the power line directly north of the houses. Then I took that back over to the regular trail back home. The hammy was a little more tight today than it was yesterday so I'll have to get Mik'L to kneel on it again. Weight is still there... I guess it will take a couple weeks. 

8.5 mile run this evening with the club. We met at the store and ran up the Chucawalla trail that drops off and loops around Entrada. It was a beautiful evening and the run was good too. The last little section in the wash was more "commando" than I remembered it. Nice to get out with the guys and run with our shirts off the last week in October.  

9.5 mile run this morning. Same loop as yesterday only I did it in revers and add the Middleton extension. Kind of overcast this morning and I actually caught a few rain drops so hopefully it will rain later today- the trails could us it. My hammy was just about as sore as ever today. I'm beginning to think I'm injured. I mean I could cram all the easy miles in I wanted but there is no way I could start doing any speed. On top of that I don't want to try another race until I can get a handle on it. It's bugged me all year long and that's just about enough. So that is mission number one for the rest of 2008- get the hamstring pain to leave. 

5.6 mile loop up into GS. I felt pretty trashed and needed some food so the run kind of sucked. Now to BBQ and scare off all the little ghosts and goblins.