Why Not?

8 months until Christmas. I just joined the blog. Hello. My wife and I just moved to Heber, UT from Michigan. Let's say my training up to this point has been rather casual. That said, the last two weeks have been better, and I got out this morning for a few miles with Sammy (my dog) which will lead to my first day of more than one run. Sammy and I decided today that we will run every morning before work.

I'm more than willing to meet up and run with other runners in the area for workouts, long runs, easy runs, whatever. My training can be sporadic at times, as I'm sure you'll note from the log. So I'm up for any type of run any day.

PM Run:

3xMile (approximate distance) I ran by time rather than distance.

Location: Soldier Hollow: Let's just say I wasn't on any paved road. Uphill for each of the repeats, full recovery. Each mile successively faster. Weather was good. No real wind.

3 AM, 8 PM, = 11 Total

Ran the City Creek Canyon Rd. for the first time with AdamW. and Eric (not sure of his last name).  What a great place to run. The uphill start isn't so great, but comng back down is awesome. I'll certainly be back. Also thanks to Adam for showing me the area and meeting me to run.

We went 4 up and then back down for 8, and then I ran back to Hogle Zoo through some roads, some bike path and some trail.  I figure the total to be around about 13 for the day. A perfect day for a long run once my hands warmed up a bit.

Out for now.

Went to Wasatch Mtn. State Park today. Previously, it had been snow covered, but everything up there is now dry and great for running. Didn't have any distance in mind, took Sammy for a few miles until she got tired, then she walked with Erica while I ran some more. I ran a few miles with Erica, and then finished up the last few by myself.

Another great day for running. Temp was good, the sun was out, and the trails were in very good condition.

Back to the track tomorrow.

Out for now.

About 18 minutes this morning with Sammy Dog. I'll say about 2.5 miles or so. A little chilly this morning in Heber, probably 35 degrees. She was tired and I was late for work, so we cut it a little short. Try some speed tonight, supposed to be warm.

PM:  8x400 meters with about 1:15 recovery -- walk jog.  Averaged about 71 seconds per for the first 6, and then two under 70. Felt crappy, but that's expected. It was warm and a bit windy. Finished up with 3.5 miles with Erica around Heber.

10 total for the day.

Out for now

AM:  2.5 with the Sammy Dog. Cooler this morning and my legs felt pretty tired. Time for an easy one this afternoon.

PM: 4.5 miles easy. Very windy and the weather is turning for the worse.

Ran for about 1:10 at Dutch Hollow. I may not have actually covered the distance but the effort was there and I don't have a GPS.  One of the hardest runs since for me in a few weeks. 100% trails, very little flat. It's either up or down and very rocky. At least everything was dry yesterday, there wasn't much mud.  If anyone is ever up for skinned knees, scratches up and down both legs, sprained ankles, and scratched arms, then this is the place for you.  Oh, and I forgot, endless hills and turns with the occasional cliff.  I think I'll make this a common running destination from now on.

When will this winter end?

Out for now.   Steve

Ranfor 60:00 up Dutch Hollow Road and the back down. It was rocky and the footing wasn't great, but it keptme out of the wind and in the sun. Another run of no roads, it was all dirt and gravel and rocks. It doesn't get much better than that. The first 2-3 miles were the toughest and of course that made the last 3 or so the easiest. Good for the legs and good for the head.

Let's hope it warms up tomorrow so I can do some speed.

Out for now.

Steve

Snuck out at lunch for a workout as I agreed to play in a soccer game tonight at 6:30 with Erica. Not sure if I'll be running much after the game, but during the game will be good..

Lunch Run: Went out to Soldier Hollow.  1 mile warmup.  1 mile all out uphill. Broke 6:00 which is actually pretty good on the course. Jogged 1 mile on flat land. Then 2 mile all out, the first pretty level, the second one mostly downhill. Okay, it was really downhill. Ran about 10:20 for the two miles -- right about 4:55 for the downhill 2nd mile. Jogged back to the car for a cooldown -- About 5.5 total. 

Weather is back to being all around great for running.

Out for now.

Steve

PM: Erica and I went running for about 25 minutes. We took it pretty easy, and ran with Sammy. Nice or the 2nd run of the day.

Ran in SLC at the Jordan River Parkway. What a great place for a long run. Mostly flat with some winding curves and some very nice sites. Lots of people out there too. Erica played soccer at 8:15 in West Valley so I finished up with the last 4 on the surface streets making my way to the soccer complex. This was my longest run in a while and I felt very good for the first hour and 10 minutes and then got some heavy legs in the last few. All in all a good day though. No major aches and pains and my longest run in quite  a while.

Out for now.

Steve

Ran a new loop east of Heber out toward Timberlakes and the farm country out there. It was a really great day to run and I took it easy. Ran with Erica and Sammy for almost all of the way -- they make me take it easy. The loop was uphill for the first 3 miles, then some downhill, then flat.  Overall, it was very relaxing and enjoyable.

We ran for about 1:10, but I'll round down and call it 9.

2.5 in the AM with Sammy Dog. She was tired from yesterday. The warmest morning since I have been here, I think it was almost up to 45 degrees when we left the door. Soon, I'll be shedding the hat and gloves -- can't wait.

To the track tonight -- I'm not excited, but it's only once a week.

PM:  Warm afternoon, around 75 with a little wind. The warmest day since I've been in UT. Did a mile and a half warmup -- felt terrible and considered postponing the workout til Tues. But I know how that goes, so I didn't want to postpone.

5x800 with 400M (2:15-2:30) recovery:  The first one was rough 2:38 and it was all I had. 2nd one was not much better, got down to 2:36.  By the third one I hit a rhythm and ran a 2:34, my easiest one of the day. The fourth and fifth were a bit of a struggle as I tried to keep taking time off. 4th one was in 2:31 and the last one in 2:28.  Splits were pretty even throughout, a couple times I got out a little fast. 

Total for the day: 9 Miles

Ran what I'm now calling the Heber East Loop -- just under 60:00. One of these days I'll actually take the car out and measure the distance. Took it easy for the first 4 miles -- ran with Sammy Dog until Erica picked her up in the car -- and then hammered the last 5 miles of the run.  I'd guess 6:15 pace for most of it, 6:00 pace for some of it. It is mostly downhill with just a small grade.  The weather was right, and the legs felt pretty solid.

Out for now.

Steve

AM:  Ran for 23 minutes with Sammy Dog. I was cramped up at the start, but felt better as the run went on. Another great morning for running. About 45 and sunny. Back to the trails this afternoon if I can find the time to drive out there.

Steve

PM: Didn't make it to the trails due to house shopping. We are looking in the Heber area, and have some good options now. Anyway, didn't get out until about 8:15 at night and ran for 42:00.  It seemed to take me about 25 minutes before I felt decent, then it was great after that. I took it very easy and didn't push it today.

Out

Ran at Dutch Hollow. Tried some new trails. The weather was very good -- not too warm and not too cold. Ran 45 minutes by myself and then 36 minute with Erica and Sammy. They made me take it easy, and it was a good thing. Total time was 1:21.  I felt pretty strong throughout the run, the trails were a nice breakup from all of the road running I've been doing.

Out for now.

Steve

LunchTime workout at Soldier Hollow:

Had an hour for lunch so I decided I'd take advantage and go to the closest place to run my Friday workout.

1/2 mile warmup

1 mile uphill hard, about 5:35-5:45. I left my watch at home, so I used my phone, which only counts in minutes, so I tried my best to count the seconds until the 6:00 mark after I stopped. Fortunately, the miles are marked

1 mile recovery

2 miles all out, one is rolling is, the other rolling hills and then the last 600 or so downhill. Ran somewhere around 5:30 for the first mile and somewhere around 5:05-5:10 for the second one. My goal was to break 11:00 and I did that, so I'll take it.

1/2 mile cooldown and back to work. I hope they don't mind a little sweat. I put deodorant on, that should be good enough, right?

Steve

Nice run with Chad, Adam and Josh. Met some new people. Great sights and some nice variation in the run. It was great to just take it easy. Things went well except for one bathroom break in the middle. Another nice run to file away and try to remember how to get to the trails.

Out for now.

Steve

9 miles in the AM with Erica and Sammy. My legs felt like logs. Finally feeling some pain the legs, shins, and such. I ran on the side of the road and avoided the pavement for the most part. It was a great day to be outside and get some sun though. Sammy went for a swim and we put in a solid 66:00. I was happy with that.

Back to the track tomorrow if the weather holds off, otherwise it will be Tuesday.

Out.

Steve

Cold, a little rainy, and windy.  And a little bit of snow at the end. We'll just say that it wasn't great conditions. I can handle these days every now and then though with the promise that the rest of the week will be better.

Anyway, the workout was the same as last Monday. I would have went for 6 800's but it was getting dark, windy, and cold by the end.

1.5 mile warmup

5x800:  2:37, 2:37, 2:36, 2:36, 2:31

1.5 mile cooldown

Out

Lunch Run:  3 miles with Sammy. It turned into a bit of a tempo run. I felt great and the legs were really clicking. We ran the last two miles just over 6:00 pace.

PM: Basketball Game -- running most of the game.  Then 28 minute run following. I don't really know how to log it. I'll give myself credit for 3 miles at the basketball game.

Supposedly good weather tomorrow. That might mean some trails for me.

Out for now. Steve

AM: 3 miles before work with Sammy dog. A little chilly in Heber. I twisted my ankle last night at the basketball game. Felt fine yesterday but it's a little sore today. Nothing I can't run onn, but it's a bit bothersome.

PM:  36 minutes by myself at Dutch Hollw, then another 30 minutes easy with Erica and Sammy. We ran uphill for the first 15 minutes -- it was tough. Basketball took a toll on my legs, but they loosened up after a while.  1:06 in the PM

31:00 run after work with the dog. The weather was great and my legs felt good for the second half of the run. Maybe that's because the 2nd half was more downhill.....

Ran for another 25:00 after dinner and after watching The Life of Dan (or something like that) with Steve Carell. Plotted out where I am going to run mile repeats in the AM. I really like running at night -- especially in the summertime. Maybe I'll have to find a way to fit that into the weekly routine, at least 2 night runs.

Steve

AM: 3 repeat miles up the side of highway 189 between Heber and Midway. Ran on the bike path beside the road--great for running, no stops, no traffic.

5:17 for the first mile, mostly flat, no wind. A little chilly.

5:20 for mile #2, a little uphill right at the end.

5:22 for mile #3, felt in rough shape for the 2nd half, mile was a little downhill and my slowest.

A good AM run / workout. Might be doing some camping this weekend, so had to get the workout in early before we leave.

6 total

 PM: 4 miles easy with Erica and Sammy. Ran up a canyon and then back down plus some trails. My legs felt pretty good.

Steve

Longest run of this year. 18 miles at Park City Rail Trail with Adam W. The weather was great and he even gave me a GU packet at 9 miles. We went downhill on the way out so it was almost all uphill the way back. We still negative split. I believe we were just under 1:09 for the first 9 and somewhere around 1:07:30 for the last 9. (Check Adam's blog, I'm sure he has the splits).

Went camping Saturday / Sat. night / and Sunday. It was nice and relaxing.

Steve

AM:  3.5 miles easy around the campground. I didn't feel like running hills today so I used the morning as more of a shakeout / AM run. My legs were heavy from yesterday and the hills really aren't too fun.

PM: 5.5 miles. Easy on the way out, a bit harder on the way back -- around 6:15 paces for the last 3 miles. I felt great, never breathing hard the entire run. Must finally be getting in shape.

Out--

Lunch Run:  3 miles with Sammy Dog. It was hot!! Almost 80 out here in Heber. I think we went right from winter to spring. Good to get some sweat going though. Workout tonight, might be after dinner once it cools a bit. Half marathon race at The Homestead Resort on Sat.

Steve

PM: Track workout.... 3 sets of 4x400M , 200 jog between reps, 400 job btwn sets

1st set: 73, 75, 75, 74 

2nd set: 75, 75, 73, 73

3rd set: 73, 72, 71, 63 (all out)

Never felt great -- probably still feeling the 18 from Saturday. But I was able to finish. Ran later at night (around 8:30) so it was cooler. A little windy, but overall nice.

9 Total

42 minute run around Park City, ran some on the rail trail, some on roads, some on trails. My legs are shot and it was 82 degrees out so it was darn hot.

Also played basketball, we only had 5 players and then one guy fouled out, so I did some more running there. I am logging that for 3 miles.

So 9 total. 

AM: 2 miles easy with Sammy.

PM: A rainy, windy and COLD 6 miles with Erica. She ran 2xmile to get ready for a 5k this Saturday at the Homestead Resort.  She ran pretty well, 6:40 for the first and 6:55 for the second -- very solid considering the weather and that it was her first workout of the year (excluding soccer games).

8 total

Out

Lunch: 3 miles easy with Sammy. What's up with this weather?

Night: 3 miles hard by myself. What a great night to run after the rain.

6 total

Steve

Lunch Run:  3 miles relatively easy

PM: 40 minutes as easy as I could go. Probably about 5 mi.

Racing Homestead Half MArathon tomorrow AM.

Stev

Homestead Half Marathon

Half the course was road, the other half was the trail along Deer Creek Reservoir. It was a very tough course with many hills and the wind was pretty rough. The first 3 miles were somewhat downhill, the next 3 quite uphill, and then we came back. So it was an out and back course. The last 3 miles uphill with some wind in the face were not real fun.  There was about 4 different climbs of well over 100 ft in this run and another 5 or 6 climbs of over 50 feet. It was tough. The race is also run in Midway at the Homestead Resort, about 6000 feet.

I ran with another guy for the first 5 miles. We hit 3 in 18:00 -- a definite surprise for me, as I was taking it easy and my goal was to run 6:15-6:30 on the roads and 6:30-7:00 on the trails. I let him lead through 5 miles, and then passed him at the 5 after the pace slowed to over 7:00 (although that mile gained about 250 feet of elevation I was told later)

I hit the halfway mark in 42:45 -- right about 6:30 where I wanted to be. I felt pretty good and ran the next couple hard to put a gap on the guy behind me. I had about a :30 second lead at halfway. There was a huge uphill followed by some nice downhill, then 3 miles of pavement all with a steady uphill grade to the finish. The last 2 miles were hell for me, my legs were junk and I was struggling to run 6:30 on the pavement. I ended up running the 2nd half in 42:30 (15 second negative split). It was decent. I know that I'm not yet in very good shape.

That said, I won the race and was happy with how I ran, especially on the hills and from 7-10 I was pretty strong. My pace was solid considering the course and conditions.

15 miles total -- didn't have it in me for the long cooldown today.

AM: 9 miles easy on the Heber East loop with Erica and Sammy. My legs continually felt better as we ran along. Oh, I forgot to mention. Erica won the 5k yesterday too. So her legs were a little heavy as well.

9 tot.

9 miles on the trails at Dutch Hollow. No workout today since I raced the half on Sat. Workouts may be shifted to Tues-Fri, or Wed-Fri or whatever seems to feel right. I will still try to get some 800's and some mile repeats in this week.

My legs felt strong in the second half of the run. No lingering pains from the half -- I'm thankful for that.

Out

Lunch Run: 3 miles with Sammy Dog. What a beautiful day outside!

PM: Speedoworkout: 2xMile at faster than 5k race pace. This was the first workout where I ran almost 100%. I don't know why but generally I have been doing more at pace stuff with more volume. Today two miles hard:  5:03, 4:58. Flat course, some crosswind but nothing bad. I felt after the first one that the 2nd would be faster. I felt pretty strong for both and was pleased with the times.

Later: Basketball. We played terrible and lost. But I got some miles in.

10 total

32 minutes with Sammy, then 28 minutes by myself. I was very tired at the end, probably from lack of food. The weather has been excellent though. It's great to just be outside doing anything on days like today.

9 Total

55 minutes total.

Ran up from Soldier Hollow toward Cascade Springs. When I say up, I mean way up. It is a climb all the way. Ran pretty hard, something like a tempo uphill, although I doubt I was breaking 6:30 pace.

The way back down was glorious, and very scenic. Next time I will mak it further.

8.5 miles

AM: Ran with Kent (I think) Michelle, and Josse. We ran about 5 miles warmup -- mostly uphill -- from Vivian Park to the Girl Scout Camp. Then we ran 6 mile tempo run -- about 37:00 for 6 miles, the first 3 being downhill, the next 3 flat. I felt great. Michelle and Josse ran very well.

about 5 miles cooldown.

16 total

Moving Day!!! Erica and I have moved everything to our new home in Heber. It was exhausting and pretty time consuming, but we've got everything in t he house and we're starting to set everything up now. The house is great, and has a fenced backyard for the Sammy Dog so that she can run around all the time.

6 miles in the PM.   Dog tired.

This will be a backoff week -- somewhere in the 50's. Then we'll ramp up to 75-80 for the next 3-4 weeks before the next step. For the first time in a while, my shins and knees are sore. I'm not sure if it's from the tempo downhill or from moving heavy boxes, beds, etc. Either way, I'm due for some easier days.

6 total

Legs still sore and tired. Ran for 60 minutes, the last 20 minutes quite a bit faster. The weather was great, and I found some new dirt roads to run. I felt okay at the end of the run as the rain started to fall.  Workout either tomorrow or Wed. Have to decide if I am going to race on Saturday at the Draper Trail Days or not.... 

9 total

2x1 mile:

The first one was a bit into the wind: 5:01. The second one was a clock malfunction on my part, so I don't know the time. I'd guess a little slower than the first -- maybe in the 5:05 range.

B-ball game later at night.

Steve

Lunch Run:  2.5 miles easy with Sammy -- felt great and I beat the rain.

PM: I did not beat the rain. 10 trail miles in a mud bog at Dutch Hollow Trails. My legs felt great, and the weather didn't bother me too much. At least it was almost 50 degrees, so I wasn't freezing. Just lots of mud.

12.5 total.

Steve

I realized that my back off week was going to equal my other weeks, so I'm going to take a couple days easy and then race Draper Trail Days 15 mile on Sat. for my LR.

5 easy today and will do the same tomorrow. 

Out

4 miles easy. 15 mile race / Long Run tomorrow.

Felt pretty good today.

Draper Trails Day 15 Mile Race.

My wife wanted to do a trail race, so I signed up for the 15 thinking I could get in a good workout and a long run all in one. My original plan was to run 2 hours today, so I figured I'd race the 15 miles and then add on whatever distance was necessary to reach two hours. How plans change....

The first three plus miles of the race were uphill. And I mean UP hill. The trail kept winding up a canyon, up and up and up. I didn't have a watch on and there were no mile markers, but I'd guess I was running 10:00 pace at best. Maybe even closer to 12:00 pace at times. To say the least, it was a b****.

The next 2-3 miles were down hill on a dirt road. I took the lead here and ran pretty hard downhill (yeah my legs are still feeling that). Anyway, here I probably ran closer to 5:15-5:30 pace for a couple miles. Note: This was the only easy part of the race.

After the 6 mile loop, the course was out 4.5 and then back. These 4.5 were very difficult. Tough footing, lots of hills, lots of turns. No fun. Anyway, at least I didn't have a watch. I almost got lost a few times, but made it out to the 15 mile turnaround and headed back. The last 4.5 I honestly jogged easy. My legs were hurting and I was winning by about 10 minutes. I had no idea what my time was or how long I had been running at this point -- no watch. Up and down back through the trails dodging oncoming runners and I made it back to the finish. I was guessing I'd be over 7:30 pace, so I was figuring about 1:55ish for the time. I was excited only that I would be close to 2 hours.

Then I crossed the finish line in 2:06. Almost 8:30 pace. Yikes. I can't say enough about the difficulty of the course. I didn't have a bad day. In fact, I ran some parts extremely hard. At least I got my 2 hours in.

Oh, and I'll never run that 15 mile again.

Steve

Ran for about 40 minutes easy. My knees, shins, ankles, feet, and hips are all sore.

Going to try and hit 80 miles this week. Not a great start but I have 6 days left.

Steve

AM: 3 miles before work with Sammy Dog. *This is going be a long week I think.* 

Lunch Run: 3 more miles. My legs felt pretty good actually. Going to Park City to run tonight and watch Erica play some soccer. 

PM: Bought some new shoes and just felt like running a workout. The weather was right and my legs felt like crap so I figured what the heck. I went back to the 400's, it's been a few weeks. Ran from the soccer fields to the track (2.7 miles according to the van).

Here are the splits for 8x400 with 200 jog recovery: 71,70,69,69,68,68,69,67

2.7 mile cooldown. 9 total for the workout.

I never felt "good", but the workout was solid. Going to start training with Park City HS on Thursday -- my next workout day. I will be asst coach with the HS so the training will be 5k geared on those days.  Hmmm....Sounds better than marathon training.

Out

AM: 21:00 minutes nice and easy. My legs don't feel terrible. A little foot pain and a little knee pain, but I think I'll be okay.

Lunch: 2.5 miles with Sammy. 40 mph wind gusts made things interesting.

PM: Ran a workout in the high winds with Erica1 mile warmup, 1 mile hard (with the wind most of the way), 1.5 miles easy, 1 mile hard (partly into the wind). 1.5 miles cooldown (the wind got really rough at the end.  6 total

Steve

Lunch Run:  Foot was bugging me so I didn't run before work. Plus it was cold and rainy -- double whammy I guess.  Anyway, weather was fine at lunch and Sammy and I put in 3 miles.

PM: Ran from Heber toward Midway, took a little detour down a trail along the Provo River for about a mile. Came back to the main road and decided to run up Memorial Hill. It's a nice long steady grade for about a mile or so to the top. Great views from up there, but it was quite windy as well, and even a little chilly. The way back was all downhill, and so I decided to do an informal tempo run where I ran hard for about 20 minutes or so. I timed the only mile that is marked on the way back -- 5:58. I was happy with that considering it was my 9th mile of the run. Overall a solid day. Foot is feeling OK -- still have to decide which race to run this weekend.

72:00 for the PM run -- I'll call it 10.

3 miles after work easy. CC practice tonight at Park City with the team. I believe we will be running 800's uphill.

PM: 1.5 mi warm up and cool down.  4x800 M uphill at the Park City Ski Resort. The course was very difficult with some not so good footing. The team looks solid. I am anxious and excited to get started training with them. Times really aren't relevant, but our last two were the fastest. We averaged around 2:45-2:50.

2.5 easy with Sammy

PM: 8.5 miles. Ran up Cascade Springs Rd. then back down

Will write report later. See AdamRW's blog for time, etc.

Nice and easy 4 miles with Sammy. My legs feel okay after yesterday.

PM: 42:00 rather easy with Erica. She is also running Wasatch Back so she's in the "10 days to get in shape" mode. My legs felt good. Calf is a little tight, or it's the achilles. But I think I'll be able to fight both of them off.

10 total

AM: Nice, cool morning with the sun shining. Great morning to do anything. Ran about 4 miles with Sammy. My legs felt better this morning than they did any morning last week. Must be a good sign. No lunch run today -- workout at PCHS tonight. 400s

PM: Workout at the North 40 Fields in Park City. Grass Loop, 400 M. We even checked it with the GPS to make sure it was accurate. A little downhill, but also a little soft, even some mud in one spot. Not super quick, but nice.

The first 8 were all 73 or 74, with one 72 sprinkled in there. 73,73,74,72,73,73,74

The last four were a little quicker: 73,69,69,62

Great workout for the HSers. 4 of them ran the entire thing with times very similar to mine. I felt crappy most of the time, my legs felt tired. But now I know that I'm in shape. I was never really tired, I just wasn't clicking like I would want to. I also felt that I could have done at least 4 more at 73-74. This is a good sign. I am strong right now, and ready to race this weekend.

12 Total for the dat

AM: 2 miles with Sammy. Slept in through the alarm and only had about 15 minutes to run. The weather was beautiful though. Gonna get hot later in the day.

PM: 7 miles at Silver Summit. Ran some mountain bike trails and some pretty good-sized hills. Nice training at the elevation though. It was a tad warm.

Out

AM: Woke up earlier than normal for me and got in 5 miles with Sammy. I felt great and pushed it for the last 2-3. Again, the weather in the morning is just awesome. I'm glad I have the opportunity to get out there and put some miles in.

Need to consider how much to taper for Wasatch Back. Maybe 10 today and 10 tomorrow easy will do it.

 PM: 3 miles easy.  What can I say, a little taper is nice.

Woke up early and ran 5.5 with Sammy Dog.  Another awesome morning. ran the dirt roads and then down Midway Lane.  Great run.

PM: 3.5 miles easy with Erica. Getting read for the relay.

AM: 2.5 miles with Sammy. Kinda chilly this morning. This night might be a little cool.

WBR:  3.5 miles in 18:44.  Ran about 5:20 pace, pretty happy considering it was dark outside and I was dodging some traffic. Nice course, and nice and cool.

WBR: 6.4 miles in 38:50.  Kept it right at 6:00 pace, tried to pick it up for the last two miles, but 6:00 pace was all that I had. The run felt very long for only being 6 miles, I guess I was already getting tired before this run started. 15 minute sleep just wasn't enough.

WBR: Ragnar 4 miles. It was awful and I was hurting... badly. 34:30 for 4 miles and I was pretty happy with that time. I think for much of it I was over 9:00 pace, some parts probably over 10:00 pace. But I finsihed. Yikes.

Total Mileage for Fri-Sat including warmups and cooldowns: 26

Almost took the day off, but decided to do some jogging with Sammy. I didn't feel terrible, but I need a couple easy days.

3 total

AM: 3 miles easy with Sammy

PM: 5 miles easy with Erica.

AM: 3 miles -- legs are coming back to life. I felt back to normal today. 5 miles tempo run with the CC team tonight. We'll see if I'm recovered yet.

PM: Decided to bump it down to a 4 mile tempo.  It was hot, and 4 is longer than they have previously run.

We ran the 4 miles slightly downhill on part of the rail trail. About 23:20 for 4, pretty solid. I was hoping to get them under 6:00 pace, and they ran 5:50s. Overall very solid workout. 9 total in the PM.

Steve

AM: 3 miles with Sammy. Kinda chilly this morning.

PM: Ran 4 miles up Deer Valley from the parking lot at the bottom. Saw tons of bikers out there and a few cars. I think they thought I was crazy. The altitude really does seem to affect me once I hit about 8000 feet. It was hot, and a hard uphill, but I took it relatively easy. Took me about 34 minutes going up and about 24 minutes coming down. (I'm not 100% sure on the distance, but I guestimated as their were Kilometer markings all the way up).

Went to concert in the park after and met up with some friends. The beer tastes like wine after running in the heat. Back with the HSers tomorrow for a fartlek.

Out

AM: 2.5 miles. It's going to be a hot one today, it was warm at 7:00AM.

Lunch: 2 miles Damn it's hot

PM: 4 miles with a friend who hasn't run since HS but is going to get back into running. He did pretty well considering it was almost 90. It's a start

Later:  HS practice, 1.5 mile warmup. 10x2:00 hard, and we ran pretty hard. After about 4 I was feeling it, but I held in there. We ran loops on some grass and pavement. A very solid workout.

16.5 Total

AM: 2 miles with Sammy

PM: 6 miles easy. Going long tomorrow so I decided on having a light day.

16.5 miles around PC with Adam, Chad, Clyde, Josh, Megan, Walter, and Jeff -- I think I'm forgetting someone too... Anyway, it was a very nice run, even with Clyde's idea of running up over a mountain so we could have a loop run instead of an out and back run. THe weather was great, even a little chilly in the morning, and the conversation was good until the last couple miles when we all got a little serious.

AM: 1.5 miles easy with Sammy. Only b/c she kept waking me up and wouldn't let me sleep in, so I just gave in.

PM: Waited til 8pm, ran 3 miles with Erica, she turned around, then I ran into Midway up Memorial Hill part way and then ran back. My legs feel strong, it was easy running, but knees felt a little banged up, so I only ended up going 9 in the PM. Workout tomorrow, so I will take the morning off on Monday.

10.5 total

PM:  2 mile warmup-- 6x800 with the PC team.

2:41, 2:39, 2:38, 2:34, 2:30, 2:29

We took full recovery, 800 jog between each one, but I wanted them to be fast, and wanted everyone to complete the workout. It was hot at the beginning, but cooled down throughout. I felt great, the best I have all year, could have run faster or could have run more. Going to try and race on Friday.

3 mile cooldown.

11 total

AM: 2.5 with Sammy Dog

PM: Ran from Sportexe Field in PC where Erica had practice. Found some great running / biking trails from there. I ran for 33:00 and then ran 32:00 on the way back. It was hilly and somewhat rocky, but overall nice. I could have went further on the trail, but I didn't know how far it was, and I didn't want to run for much over an hour.

Right shin is hurting. I felt it a little yesterday but was hoping it would go away. Ice and some stretching... Might even need a day or two off.  Ugh

6 miles with 3x5:00 uphill in Park City. My shin is hurting, so I decided to run uphill on some dirt and grass. My quads were burning but the leg didn't hurt as much. I'll try some ice tonight and take it easy tomorrow so I can race on Friday.

Still have some shin pain. Taking it easy so I can race tomorrow and hopefully go long on sat.

Park City Mountain Resort 5k:

Tough course, out and back. It was downhill on the way out and uphill coming back making the second half a bear. No mile markers, which was fine, I didn't want to know, but there was some solid competition.

I forgot how hard people go out at the beginning of a 5k. My quads locked up at the start as we sprinted about 200m downhill. Finally, by 400 in, it slowed down and I pulled ino 2nd place. I wasn't comfortable, but I could hold the pace. I was in second place by 800M in (or so, there were no markings) and held that spot for the duration.

I never saw a mile mark so the first place I knew distance was the turnaround. I hit halfway in 7:56, under 16:00 pace, but I knew the second half was a whole lot harder. I fell apart in the last half mile where the hills were the toughest. I had rigor mortis set in and my arms were just locked up. No chance at the win, I lost by about 10 seconds.

I was happy with the time considering it was at 6500 feet and a b**** of a course. Also since I haven't run a 5k in almost a year.

Got in a 4 mile cooldown and then ran 2 with Sammy when I got home.

Have a great holiday weekend.

Steve

Chad is a liar. But it was a great run through the forest from 8000-9500 feet. It might be my new favorite run with the views and the elevation. Desolation Lake -- awesome.

13.5 total

6 miles very easy.

Also hiked up to Timpanogos cave with Erica, her sister, and her niece who were in town to visit. I won't log it as mileage, but it is a bit of a walk up there.

6 total

3.5 easy this morning with Sammy. Legs feel pretty good, the weather was great.

Tempo run tonight at PC.

PM: 6 mile tempo run with PCCC. The guys ran excellent today with two of them under 36:00. The girls also ran well with four of them running around 44:00 or so. The loop was rolling hills for the 1st 2 miles and then somewhat downhill with a few ups for the last 4.  We were at about 35:25 up front, and that was after a 6:30 mile (the first mile has the most elevation gain, and we took it easy so we could finish strong).

10 in the PM

AM:  Friend from Michigan was in the area and met me and a guy from the team in PC for a nice morning run. It was cool, about 45 degrees at the start. But we had a nice run up Park Meadows with some good hills and great scenery.

8 total

PM: 4 miles total Ran to the soccer fields with Erica and ran 15x100M sprints. My legs felt okay, it was nice to run such a short distance. Mile repeats tomorrow.  Fun Fun

12 tot.

AM: 3 easy with Sammy Dog around town. Nice and cool this morning. I love the mornings here before it gets hot.

PM: 3 by 1 mile with PCCC. THe first one was relatively flat, with a little hill at the end. ran about 5:19 and felt terrible. I didn't get warmed up enough and my legs seemed tired.

The second one I felt a world better. I was loose and ready to run. This one was mostly uphill with a very large hill at teh end. Ran 5:15 on a tougher course.

The third one was nice and downhill. I felt pretty good on the downhill and okay on the flat part. Ran 4:57 with a good finish.

After the cooldown, met up with some of my former runners who are on a road trip. We ran 8 more miles at a clip faster than I wanted to go. The workout made me a little tired (or a lot tired), but I hung on and we ran 8 in about 6:30 pace. Long run, but it was nice to get in the miles.

17 total

AM: 10 miles at Wasatch Mtn. State Park. IT was nice and cool, but the hills were rough, especially after 17 yesterday. 27 miles in 12 hours is decent though. It will help the weekly totals. The guys took it easy on me today, they said they are driving to Denver where they will run for the 2nd time today. Me, I might just sleep this afternoon.

 PM: 2.5 with Sammy. I really could have went a distance tonight, but I have workouts scheduled for the next 2 days.

8.5

400 Repeats. Ran 11 of them with PCCC. Most of them were 74-75 with a few a little faster.  I felt pretty terrible. My legs were still tired from Wed. and probably a little from the Mon. workout also. I was just hanging on.

8.5 total

16 in the AM, Great tempo run down Emigration Canyon .  See AdamRW blog for details.

PM: HIked behind the Canyons to Desolation Lake. Ran a few of the flatter miles.

18 total (I won't count the hiking miles)

5 miles easy in the morning. DId a little biking with Sammy also.

AM: 3 miles easy with Sammy Dog.

PM: Ran at 6pm in SLC while Erica played b-ball. It was HOT. Ran up some trails behind the U of U, it was tough, but I got in about an hour and was happy with the effort.

10.5 total

AM: 2 miles with Sammy and then hill workout with PCCC. Never felt good, never felt bad, just ran hard and did 6x400 uphill. It was a good workout, I just sort of got through it.

7 total for the AM

10 miles along the Provo RIver Parkway

12x300 at PCHS track. Felt great. TImes ranged from 52 down to 45 for the last one.

Ran for 1:50:00 with my friend Nate. It was hot as hell.

5k race. Humid and hot -- about 75 but very humid. ran in Ohio, near Galion. About 65 people in the race. No comp. I felt pretty good, but not great.  Course was flat with the potential of being fast, but I didn't have it today.

Splits  5:05, 5:11, 5:09

Day off -- too much drinking the night before and too tired.

AM: 8 miles by myself in the AM

PM: 8 miles with 10x400 uphill.

Powers Catholic Alumni 1 mile Race:  4:38  2nd Place

The track was covered in mud (it's an old cinder track, and it rained for about 2 hours before the start of the race), the corners had about 4-5 inches of water for stretches of 50-75 yards in 3 places. I actually felt great, and would have probably broken 4:30 if not for the track conditions.

Splits: 70, 70, 69, 69

After the race, ran a 4 mile tempo run with some former Powers runners who are now in HS

5:44, 5:36, 5:32, 5:30 -- felt very strong

7 mile AM run. Legs felt okay, we ran a pretty hilly loop.

AM: 8 miles on some trails and roads.

PM: 8 miles around Lake Cadillac in Cadillac, MI

7 miles arond Lake Cadillac

Ran for 2 hours around Lake Mitchell with Nater

AM: 10 miles with PCCC in 68. Felt great.

PM: 3 miles with Erica and Sammy. It's great to be back in the cool, non humid weather.

AM: 1 mile warmup followed by 4xMile.  Ran with PCCC and was basically a pacer for the top guys. I could have went somewhat faster, but I was relaxed for most of it. The first and third miles were a little downhill and the 2nd and 4th a little uphill. Course was on a dirt path near Hollow Creek -- no shade, and a little wind.

5:22 (nice and easy)

5:25 (ran a little harder)

5:17 (pulling some guys along)

5:10 (had to push at the end of this one).

Nothing spectacular, but a solid workout nonetheless. 7 total in the AM. More to come tonight.

PM: 8 mile trail run with some guys in Jeremy Ranch and Erica. It was a nice easy pace with some very good sized hills in there.

AM: 5 mile easy run with PCCC. Ran uphill for the first two and then down and flat for the last 3 miles. My legs felt like junk, but that's okay.

PM: 4 miles with Sammy -- legs felt okay

AM: 5 mils tempo run with PCCC. My legs felt absolutely terrible. I ran the 5 miles in 6:00 pace but it was pianful and required a 5:30 last mile to get there. Might take the afternoon off or take an easy day tomorrow -- need something to get me going again.

7 total

AM: 5 miles with Sammy then 4.5 miles with PCCC. Felt pretty good. Took it easy. Long run tomorrow or Sunday.

5.5 easy by myself in Sun Valley ID

Ran up and down a mountain in the Nat'l Park just outside of Sun Valley ID. Saw some foxes, they were really cool. My legs felt okay, didn't sleep too well in the tent last night.

8 miles at Mill Creek. I have a conference in SLC so my runs will be around the city this week, Legs felt like shit.

2 miles with Sammy at 5:30am

Then got dropped off and ran down EMigration Canyon HARD on the way down. Felt pretty good. Ran the last 10 miles in about 62:00.

4 miles at City Creek Canyon. Worst run in a while, legs felt terrible.

4 am with PCCC

4 in PM with Sammy.

6 miles easy around PC

Provo Half.

Nice downhill race. Felt pretty good. Here are the splits that I can recall:

1 mile:  5:14

2 mile: 10:36

3 mile: 16:05

5 mile 27:25

6 mile: 33:05

10 mile: 55:35

Got lost in the last mile, turned wrong direction.

A good race for me.

8 miles easy on some trails. Hiked some with Erica also.

AM: 8 miles with PCCC at back of Jeremy Ranch

PM: 6 miles on the trails at Sportexe.

AM: 5 miles with PCCC

PM: 3 miles with Sammy

Toughest run I have done in a while. Ran from the bottom of Deer Vally Resort in Park City, up over Guardsman Pass and down to Midway and then toward Heber. The whole run would be about 21 miles, but I stopped at the river at 19 and had Erica pick me up in the car. I needed to ice the legs in the cold water.

Felt okay for the first 10 minutes (no joke), and then struggled until about 30 minutes. At this point, there was a little downhill for a 1/4-1/2 mile. The rest of the first 6.5 miles was straight uphill with almost no breaks whatsoever.

At 45 minutes I considered turning around and running back down to the van in PC but I figured I won't get many chances to go the distance, so I took a GU and kept running. No water up there, that didn't help. Oh, and I started at 3:30 -- what a moron.

Made it to the top, got some strange looks from cars, and then down the Ragnar side of the mountain. I was at about 1:02 when I got to Guardsman. Running downhill was easier but was rough on the legs. It seemed forever down, but I made it to the Visitor Center at the State Park in 1:51 (so I ran just over 6:00 on the way down). Then I ran about 2.5 miles into Midway, found a hose, got some water, and ran toward Heber. At this point, things were getting ugly, it was hot, and I was toast. I ran with my phone and called Erica and she came and got me. THankfully.

Couldn't east for a couple hours but am okay now.

Oh, and I'll probably never run that again.

4.5 miles easy, legs are trashed.

AM: 6 miles with some hills. Didn't run hard, but ran up a hill about 10 times. PCCC was running a workout. Felt much better today.

Ran from Midway up Cascade Springs road to Cascade Springs, and then all the way to Mt. Timpanogos. If I had known how hard the run would have been, I probably wouldn't have run it. The first 5 were uphill and then down for one. The three after that were uphill, then downhill for one, then bac up for 3 more. Fortunately the last 4 miles were down 92 toward Sundance, and those were easy running.

According to Google the distance was 17.94, and my time was 2:06:14, so I was pretty happy with that.

Went hiking for a couple hours afterward, so I'm counting that as at least .06.

Steve

I'll update later.  But 2:41:49 and 4th if you're wondering.

Here's the rundown.

 It was a loooong bus ride up. Longer than I thought it would be. Not that it had an effect on my race, but I just wasn't expecting it. The start was a little windy and cool. I saw Sasha and some other FRB guys and girls. I was relaxed and excited.

Mile 1: Went out fast, probably too fast, but I felt good. I ran with the top 4 runners for most of the first mile and then decided to back off. Still hit about 5:36

Mile 2,3,4: Ran by myself, could see the group of three in front at most turns. I was still curious as to how I would feel. I never really know until a few miles in. Took my first PowerGel at 4 (this is the earliest ever for me, the plan was 3 in the first 11 miles). I was running 5:50's consistently at this point.

THE NEXT PART IS AT LEAT PG-13, if not R 

Mile 5 and 6: Somewhere in here I went pee while running. I'd never done it before, but no one was around, so I pulled my shorts down and sort of hopped for 50 yards. I was impressed that I had this skill. NOTE: sorry for the rest of the runners, I tried to get it off the road as much as possible, sorry if I missed.

Hit 10k somewhere around 36ish

Miles 7-10: I did not feel good. I felt okay, bt not good. I couldn't control my breathing and I started having some bad spots. Generally, I usually don't feel anything until after 13 in a marathon, so I was worried. I tried to back off and relax, didn't help. Took another PowerGel at 7, stomach started feeling crappy (also early for this).

Hit 10 mile in 58:something. Still moving along well and still some downhill to go.

At this point, I made the decision to just keep pushing even though I didn't feel great. I figured what the hell, I'll just try to PR anyway.

Somewhere between 11-13 I ran a 5:40 mile and then a 5:48 on mile 14. Maybe it was t he downhill, who knows. At this point, I'm not feeling any worse or any better.

Halfway point right around 1:17ish (the results have this incorrect) 

Erica (my wife) was at 14. She gave me some GU and some support.  

14-18 are honestly a blur.  I can't remember what they were like, only that I was tired but still running close to 6:00 pace. There weren't a lot of people and the sun came out. I thought things could get ugly, but they didn't.

Erica got me again at 18, and gave me more GU (this was a PR for me, almost 4 GU's/PowerGels in a marathon and I'd have a fifth later). She also informed me that I was only 25 seconds out of 4th place. It's funny b/c I never even thought of catching anyone and hadn't really been paying attention to what was in front of me.

By 19, I saw the guy in front of me (Eric something) and it didn't give me new life. I thought it might, but at this point I was wondering if my last 10k would be 45 minutes or 55 minutes.

I caught Eric at 20 and thank god he ran with me. He said he needed help. I said I needed help too. We shared the lead, spoke at least 10 words per mile to each other (not that he wasn't friendly, but we were both hanging on.)

Crossed 20 miles in just over 1:59 

By this point I am running 6:20-6:40 pace and it was all I had. I didn't feel like I couldn't make it, but my hammys were toast and I was honestly just hanging in there.

We made it through 22 and then Eric fell back. Without him, I would have fallen off the map at 20. He really did save me. For me, from 22 on I can make it usually, it just might be slow. But 20-22 is my barrier.

The last few miles were painful but bearable. I was running 6:45-7:00 at this point, but I was happy with it. My shot for a PR(2:37) had been gone by 22 but this would be my 2nd best time ever, so I was pleased.

At 23, I saw some FRB guys who cheered me on. THat actually helped for a couple minutes, the idea that you're running for something other than just yourself. 

The last miles, as always, were grueling, and I was by myself. I never saw Sasha, who was in 3rd. I finished in the usual haze and painful limp run, but I didn't walk, and I didn't completely crash.

To be totally honest, my training suffered in the last month leading up the marathon and 2:41 was probably all I could do. I am very happy with the time and with my effort. Maybe in a few days I'll even start running again.

Special thanks to:

Erica for all her support.

Eric ..... for running with me from 20-23

The FRB guys I saw at mile 23 who cheered me on.

AND congrats to FRB, I think 2nd place was FRB and Sasha was 3rd.

OUT for now.

Steve

GL TO ALL ST. GEORGIES OUT THERE. 

1 mile easy. Legs feeling okay. I'll try to run a little tomorrow.

5 easy miles. I was a little herky-jerky, but my legs are coming around. The weather is so nice now, how can I not run?

5 miles on grass at a CC meet. Felt okay.

Warmup

8 400's around 80-82 with the girls team.

Left hamstring is shot, couldn't do the last two.

6 total 

Did a hike/jog with Erica. We went up Weber Canyon and stayed at a friends' cabin. We would jog the parts with good footing and hike the rocky parts. It was pleasant until the thunder and rain came. Then we HAD to run to avoid getting cold.

9 miles slow and easy. Trying to get the hammy better. About 65 minutes.

Played soccer with ESL students from HS. Ran in the dark last night with Sammy. I love night running, except when I can't see anything.

6 total 

20x400

I'm back on the horse. 11 days out, the hamstring is better and I ran 20 quarters with the HS kids today. The last 5 were barefoot (we run on grass). Just call me Quenton Cassidy.

We ran 4 sets of 5, 1:30 rest between interval, full 400 jog between sets (about 3 min)

73,73,71,71,72

74,72,72,73,72

72, 72,71,71,69

71,69,68,66,61

It was an honest course --GPS certified. I never felt worse after about 5 today. I mean that  the 5th one was bad, and then they were all about the same, they didn't get progressively worse. . I didn't begin to feel better, they were just all the same.

9 total