C Mantz Running

     XC-We did Golf Course Extended backwards, and coach said that we could extend it up sunny-side if we wanted, so I did that.   I did 2 half mile (very) downhill pick-ups once my GPS finally locked on.  I did one at 4:38 pace.  That one felt pretty good.  I did another down the Sky View hill, and it was way too fast, but that's okay, I still have 2 easy days before the 15K.

      Pretty easy pace. I got new Asics 1170s yesterday and I tried to break them in today, but they didn't feel too good.  Maybe that's just how breaking in shoes is.  

      Today I ran the Blacksmith Fork Freedom Run in Hyrum.  I was hoping to be 47:59 or faster, but I just didn't have it in me today.  I learned a few things, so it was still a good race.  I need to get better sleep the 2 nights before. I didn't take a water at mile 4, and the one I took at mile 7 splashed out when I grabbed it, so that was another thing I could've fixed.  It was pretty warm, in the 60s or 70s at the start, so not ideal but still good.  I didn't feel the regular tail wind you get coming out of that canyon, and it was hot, so I think if I had the great conditions I had last year, I may have been able to break 48. 

      The first mile didn't feel too good.  I didn't feel like I had everything there.  It just didn't feel like a race.  I was running alone, but I could see Jon Coyle (who ran for Weber and was a very accomplished steeplechase runner.  He also beat me in Smithfield half last year and this same run 2 years ago where he bandit the race) behind me, but I had a good ways on him.  The next few miles just felt slow.  I haven't ran a race over a 5k for almost a year and I think that may have effected me.  After the fourth mile I looked back and saw I still had a good ways on Coyle.  At mile 5 I thought I was speeding up a lot, but when I looked back, Coyle had gotten a lot closer.  After a little ways I looked back again, and he was only a small ways back, and then he passed me.  I ran with him for a little bit, but he was just going too fast, so I let him go.  He had probably 10 to 15 seconds on me when he hit the hill.  I pushed the hill and it actually felt pretty refreshing.  I almost caught up to him at the top, but then when it became flat I think I slowed down.  He gained a lot of time on me on mile 8.  I calculated it out that if I ran 5 min. mile pace for my last 1.3 I would break 48.  I pushed it a lot more when I found this out.  I pushed it a lot and started catching him.  With a half mile to go I was in a good position to get first. With .4 to go he threw in a kick, and I just dropped off pace.  I should've sprinted here, but I just thought the race was over and I couldn't get a better time.  I know I slowed down here though, and that cost me a few seconds.  If I would've pushed the last .3 more I think I may have been able to break 48.  After I talked to Jon, and he said that he was taking it as a workout, and during the last half mile he heard me, and he got competitive and really pushed it.  He was 48:02, and I was 48:10.

      Mile splits: (possibly slow because my IPod had me about 9 seconds slow again.  I think it's just my IPod's timer) 4:48.9, 5:06.6, 5:12.3, 5:11.6, 5:02.6, 10:23.5 for two miles, 5:34.9, 5:06, 1:41.4 for the final .3

      XC-5.3 with team.  It didn't feel easy because my calves were really sore from yesterday.  Not as bad as last year though, so that's a positive thing that happened.  Tyson said we did two 7 min. miles, and I think that's the fastest we went. 

      No running today, my calves hurt too much and I think I should just play it safe.  

     I went to BYU cross country camp from Monday to Thursday and then my school cross country from Thursday to Saturday.

    2.5 miles tempo with warm up and cool down.  I was able to run with Ryan Waite for it, and that was pretty fun.  Averaged somewhere in the 5:20s pace, so slower then I should've been, but still a good run.  Later I ran a few miles on the track.  My calf hurt a little.

      4 easy miles in the morning in Provo. 

      5 miles with a fartlek workout in there.  Warm up, then 5, 3, 2, 1.  All on grass, and my calf felt great, but it was still a hard run because it was very hot.  Over 100.   Really fun to run with some of these fast BYU guys.  Tyler Thatcher  and Ryan Waite.

      I got to the morning trail run on the "Y" late. Around 3.5 miles. 

     We went and ran to some waterfalls, and that was pretty fun.  A little over 4 miles.  I was able to talk/run with Ian Hunter on this run. 

      Fun race.  It was 4 loops around the camp area, and it was 2 miles (maybe more) and I planned on just running with everyone and out sprinting them, but Steve Flint ran the first lap with us, and he took it out pretty fast.  2:27 for the first 800m and on long grass for part of it, and it hurt.  People stayed pretty close behind me until the last 2 laps.  Good effort, but not a good time for how it felt.  

      6.75 with the cross country team on a trail in Nephi, and it hurt.  Our first 2 miles were around 12 min. mile pace, and that was pushing it. 

     2.5 with team.  It was pretty easy.  Kyler, Alex, and I dropped our shirts, so we had to run a little more than everyone else.

      We did a local "5k"at the end of the camp.  At the start some kid sprinted the first quarter mile, but then fell off the pace.  I ran with Kyler and Tyson for the first 2 miles, then ran with Kyler until we had about a quarter mile left, and I threw in a big push.  Our team took the top 5 spots, and 4 out of the top 5 on the girls side too.  It was pretty fun.

     PM- 3 and a little when I got home.  I finally started using my new shoes again, and my feet felt better then usual.

      XC-6.2 We did sunnyside, and it was easy besides for a small bit of tempo that Kyler, Tyson, and I did. 

      PM- 5 easy on my own.  It felt really hot, but when I got home it was only 77 degrees.  My first two miles were way too fast, and I averaged sub-6 min. mile pace for them. I later could feel it in my legs.  

       800m warm up, then I tried to pace my sister for a sub-6 min. mile.  She ran too fast at first, and too slow for her 3rd lap, but she ended up at 6:02, which is a PR for her.After I started my workout of 4X1600 at sub-5 min. mile pace, with 3 min. recovery jog inbetween.  My first two felt great, (4:52, 4:49) but on the jog after my second my calves started hurting like they did in the 15k.  I did one more (4:57) before deciding it might be best to pull the plug.  I think I could've hit two more, but my calves weren't feeling the best and I want to make sure I don't get injured.  After I ran on some easy grass miles to finish the run up. 

      XC-6 We did a track workout today, and it felt pretty easy.  It was 6X600m at I pace with 200m jog recovery. I was supposed to be 1:45, but I think I was fast almost every time. I didn't have my watch, so I would give Tyson and Kyler 50 meters or 8-10 seconds head start before I would go(they were running them in 1:54) and then I would catch them in the last 200m or so.  It felt good, the last two hurt, but it wasn't too bad.  On the last one I tried to catch up to them, but Tyson went really hard for his last 200m and I wasn't able to catch him.  1 mile warm up, 2 cool down. 

      PM-3 easy.  I thought it might be best to do one the runs planned for tomorrow today. 

6 "easy" miles.  I ran up the canyon pretty slow, but it didn't feel easy at all.  My legs are sore from this higher mileage I've been trying to get.  

       5 mile tempo, with 2 mile cool down.  I did the 5 miles in 27:05.  My splits were: 5:05(downhill), 5:48 (uphill), 5:22(uphill, then downhill), 5:12 (downhill), 5:36(uphill).  I felt better than I thought I would for this run.  I was thinking that the higher mileage would make me run slower, but it doesn't look like it did.  I kept thinking that some of the other people in 4A weren't doing this workout, and weren't hurting as much as I was. 

     Today I did 10 miles with my dad up Smithfield Canyon and back.  I think we averaged 7:20 min. miles, so that was good.  It felt pretty easy the whole time, so I'm excited to see how the XC season will go. 

        XC-5.5 Today we did our hardest workout of the season.  I don't think this will be our last time doing it either.  We did 10XBeast (a 290m steep hill that gains 80 feet from bottom to top) repeats, with recovery back down to the bottom of the hill.  I ran all of them with Tyson.  I think he only beat my twice, but I don't know if he was going all out for them.  I felt as good as you can on the first few repeats, especially on the fourth, but after that it hurt just as much as usual.  During the 7th one I was soo tired, and coach had Alex and Brayden run this one with us.  Well I gave up almost when that one started.  Brayden shot passed Tyson and me, and Tyson went with him.  I just couldn't get to the top.  After the 10th one I dry heaved a few times, and just had problems staying on my feet.  We ran a cool down back to the school. 

        PM-5 easy miles.  I felt pretty tired from the beast repeats.

      Met up with Brian at Green Canyon.  We went on a trail up there and he was going to show me a new one they had been doing construction with last year, but of course, since we're in Utah, they were still doing construction on it (I didn't know you needed construction on a trail).  I felt really sore, and my hamstrings hurt afterward, but felt good during the run.  We also worked on some breathing techniques that I'm going to try later.

    I'm going to be at the Nike elite running camp these next few days, so I don't think I'll be able write anything until Sunday.  Good luck with your Deseret News races everybody! I'm excited to see how everyone does.

       10.5 around Oregon, at around 6:45 pace is what someone said.  .5 on a treadmill/down a hall.  

        8 on a Leif Erickson Trail at 6:10 pace approximately.  It felt pretty easy at sea-level.  

    Track workout with all the guys on the Michael Johnson track.  Jerry Shoemaker made our workout and was calling out our splits, so that was way sweet.  Our average pace with the repeats and recovery was 5:12 for the 3 miles.  1 mile cool down.  

      AM-We did some pool running today.  I felt really sore from the core we were put through the last few days.  

      PM/Race-We did the Bowerman 5k, which was just around the campus twice.  I planned on racing it even though we had hard workouts the last few days, and we even did that pool running.  None of the other campers planned on racing it besides Estaven.  I warmed up 2.5 miles with Aaron, Noah, and Obsa.  Aaron said he would tempo the race or go 5:30s until the last mile and then try to run a 4:30.  The race went out pretty fast.   I was right between the chase pack/lead "pack"(a long string of guys with some Africans leading the way) for the first half mile.  People were passing me, but I felt pretty good.  We hit the mile mark, and Nick "Biebs" passed me.  I asked him what our time was and he said 4:46.  He encouraged Estaven and me to keep pushing it.  I slowed down a bunch, but Estaven kept up the pace.  I just ran in a sort of no-mans-land for most of the race after that.  On the second loop around the 2 mile mark Aaron passed me.  I went with him for a ways and passed a group of guys, and then he lost me.  I tried to push it the rest of the way, but I wasn't feeling it.  When your diet has consisted of many M&Ms and pretzels for the last 4 hours before the race, you won't feel too good.  I wanted a sub-15 min. 5k, but it just wasn't in there for me.  I knew I would be able to push it because I was at sea-level, but with the mileage bump for the last 2 weeks, and the workouts the last few days, I'm really happy with the race.  I only was behind the winner by a little over a minute.  After I cooled down with everyone, and when we passed Michael Johnson's track we did a 400m where we tried to go sub-60.  I was in last for that, but I was still a 58.  Noah ran a 54 and blew us all away.  After we did more of a cool down to bring it up to 4. It was a great experience to come out to this camp for the last few days.  Hopefully I can make it again next year. 

      AM-I slept in, even though I fell asleep at 6 last night, I slept almost 15 hours.  I woke up a twice for 10 to 20 minutes.  It was nice because I didn't get any sleep the night before.  Anyway, I woke up and my Achielles was hurting, so I knew I was going to have to go easy.  5 easy miles.  It was harder running back at altitude than when I was at sea level and could run 6 flat pace and still call it easy. 

      PM-5 miles easy.  I would slow a lot if it started hurting.  Just for fun I timed the run, but that made me go way too fast the first mile(5:20), but I slowed down enough to finish in 31:40.

      My dad recommended taking the day off with the Achilles tendon hurting yesterday.  Better to be safe and take his advice then be sorry and be hurt before the season starts. 

      XC-7 I talked to coach about my Achilles, and he said just jump in with a group that was going at an easy pace. The team was doing 8X1000m at I pace (3 min. jog recovery).  I was almost happy that my Achilles was hurting because this workout kills me.  I'm supposed to hit 2:57, and I am usually slow.  Anyway I ran alone at really easy pace, then went with a group that was going a bit faster.  I just kept switching to a faster group until I ran a few with Tyson.  I actually felt really good during these, but I don't want to try anything that will hurt it. I ran the last one in 3:06, so I did do one at a pretty good pace. 

       PM-3.1 easy, but at a good pace.  Everything felt good up until a big bug flew into my mouth in my last mile. After that the rest of the run was full of spit and a runny nose.