Training

Lousy weather and very icy outside. Checked out the west side health club at noon today for 4 miles on the treadmill.  These new treadmills with built-in tv's are nice, but I still would rather be outside.

catch-up

Catch up - 4 miles on the desert

Catch-up  Ran at home around the neighborhood.  2 miles with my son and 3 more alone.

Nice noon run on the greenbelt. Ran part of it with Clydesdale and jtshad.

5 miles at noon around the river on a mostly clear path.  Nice day with light winds.

Catch-up post  6.4 miles at noon Friday.  Path was wet, but mostly clear 

Catch-up  Ran with jtshad, Andrea and Mckay on Saturday morning.  Snowing hard most of the run.  Since I had not taken a long run since May and was feeling it, I stopped at 9 miles.

5 miles on the greenbelt on a clear cold day.  I have been having lower back problems for the last several weeks and have not been running much.  I find it frustrating to not be able to run at will.  So far it is not getting better. 

Catch-up  Ran 5 slow miles at noon. 

Ran the treadmill at the west side club.  This sore back is getting old.   

catch up

catch up

catch up

catch up

Well, maybe my back issue is getting better.  It has been gradually improving over the last several weeks, but I have no idea how it was caused or why it took so long to get better.  I have been taking it kind of easy and running very little since it may return.  So much for training for Ogden!  I am hoping to train for a marathon later in the year so I can get the BQ for next year. 

Ran 6.4 on the greenbelt on a sunny spring day.  Temp  40, light wind  Pace 7:34

Five mile greenbelt run. Nice day and it was good to get out. Temp -42, light winds, Pace - 7:40

Catch-up  Late afternoon treadmill run at the east side club.

Catch-up Five miles on the greenbelt at noon.  Windy/cool.  Pace - 7:44 

Noon run on the desert on a calm, cool day. Started with jtshad and then turned back. He caught me of course.

Catch-up   Ran east from the Hilton in Las Vegas. Nice morning run with little traffic

Catch-up  Beautiful morning.  Ran down the strip from Monte Carlo and across the freeway to the west to make a loop.  The bad economy is not evident from the amount of activity and construction going on in this area.

Back home to a snowy, cold day.  I ran on the treadmill on the west side at noon.  Felt a little sluggish today - probably withdrawal from the warm weather and cold beer of the last few days.

More bad weather to freshen up the snowpack.  Wet snow has been dumping all morning.  Treadmill for 4 miles at a 7:45 pace.

catch up Ran from home in the late morning at an Easy pace

Beautiful day!  Ran the greenbelt at noon.  Pace - 7:27

Ran the greenbelt to Panchari Bridge ot noon. It is a very nice day for running with temps in the low 50's and no wind. Ran the first couple of miles with Dave and then continued on alone. I am trying to get my speed up a little and it is improving, but I need more miles to make it less painful. Pace - 7:24

Catch-up Run on treadmill in Gaithersburg Marriott

Catch up  Treadmill again

Catch-up  Outside run in Gaithersburg with Greg B through a park near the hotel. 

Catch-up.  Ran up the backside of Peterson hill and home for a total of 10.3 miles.

Catch-up Easy run around Tauthphus Park with my son. 

Noon run around the greenbelt on a beatiful day.  Pace - 7:36

catch-up  4 miles on the desert

catch up  Four slow miles at home,  walked the last half mile with my wife.  Pace - 8:45.   Left right afterward for the SLC Supercross race with my sons.

catch-up   Short on time for a noon run so I made 3 laps around Freeman park.  Pace - 7:14

In the evening, I took my son to baseball practice and ran around Ammon from the field.  Pace - 7:44

Rainy day.  Westside treadmill at noon for an easy 5 miles.  pace - 7:55

Noon run around the greenbelt on a windy, rainy, haily, and sunny day.  Had a little bit of everything - gotta love spring in Idaho.  Pace - 7:40 

Out at noon for a loop across the railroad bridge and down to the greenbelt.  Nice weather during the run, but it did not last.  I will try to get a short run in tonight with my son.   Pace - 7:32

Ran the greenbelt to Panchary at noon.  Decent day with light winds.  I was a little unmotivated, but kept it under 8:00 minute miles.  I have decided to run the Missoula marathon in July, so I have no excuses and will get my mileage up!  Pace- 7:52 

Ran 12.7 in the morning in the hills from home with jtshad.  Actually, jtshad made several out-n-back runs ahead of me and ended up with an addional 2+ miles.  He just keeps getting better!  I plodded along and got the miles, but need some more uphill training for the mostly flat and slightly uphill Missoula marathon. We made a loop up and around Comore Loma and then ran the 4 mile steady climb up to the end of Crowley rd.  Thought I'd die going up but felt great coming down and even got a few fast miles.  Pace - 8:24

After jtshad left, I went back out for a 2 mile loop back up with my son Jake at a little slower pace.  Jake wants to try the half marathon so we will do some training together which should be fun.

Up early and hit the treadmill at Anytime Fitness for my 1st AM run. It was a little hard to get moving and my miles were slow but not too painful.  Pace - 7:50   4.2 miles

Out for a 5 mile noon run on the greenbelt.  Some wind and 46 f  kept me cool.  Pace - 7:32

Jake and I went out in the evening while waiting for baseball practice.  Easy 3 mile run.

Ran outside at noon on a windy day.  I think I have been increasing the miles a little too fast for my current fitness since I was struggling with the run (the strong wind did not help) and was tired afterwards.   I will cut back from my plans for the week.  Pace - 8:02

Out at the desert on a very windy day - I heard this strange noise and realized my shorts were flapping.  Downwind was nice.   I went easy and felt much better after the run than yesterday. 

Ran long from home in the late morning.  The morning was nice with light breezes and 42 f temps.  I ran a progressive starting with a 8:15 pace for 5 miles, then 8:00 and 7:45 for the next two five mile segments.  My last mile up the hill was a little slower.  It was a good run, but I need a few more to make it less painful.  Pace 8:03.

Ran a couple of loops up the hill from home in the evening. Ran with Jake for an easy first loop. He is improving, but still has to walk some due to the uphill sections. Ran the second loop alone at a 7:23 pace.

Ran the eastside treadmill in the morning.  It is still not quite light enough at 5:30 to run outside at home, but should be in a couple of weeks.   

Outside at noon for a beating in the gusty wind.  Ran the first 2 with jtshad and then fell back as the wind seemed to be taking its toll.  Pace - 7:38

I had a hard time getting motivated today, so I left the GPS off and just took an easy cruise around the greenbelt at noon.  Decent day with 42 f and breezy.  Tomorrow I drive 9 hrs to northern Idaho to get my daughter so may not get much running in.

Easy run in the morning before driving to Moscow to get my daughter.

Long run from home.  Great sunny morning for a run.  The temp started out in the mid 40's and no wind.  I tried to run at a steady pace, but slowed way down on the hills.  Pace - 8:01

Not feeling well today so no decent run.  I went out for an easy 1.6 miles in the evening with my son.

Morning run on the treadmill.  Started at an 8:00 pace and then ran a couple at 6:58  Feeling much better that yesterday.  The day looks to be pretty full, but hopefully I will get another run in this evening 

Ran the greenbelt on another windy spring day.  I was hoping to get some faster miles in today but the wind blew away my motivation.  Pace - 7:43

No morning run again - up too late last night.  Ran around the greenbelt at noon on a nice day for 7 miles.  Tried to pick it up a little today hoping for a 7 minute mile or two.  I did not quite get there, but close.  Pace - 7:22

Morning run from home on a nice day.  In a hurry to get going, I wore some old gym shorts that I did not recognize.   The fabric was rough and about 5 miles from home I realized that the skin on my inner thighs was starting to sting.  By the time I got home, it was a constant burning.  I walked like a duck the rest of the day.   The shorts are now a garage rag....    Pace - 8:01

Ran from home into the valley and then up around Comore Loma for 6 miles.  Met up with my wife and son taking the dog for a walk and went 2 more miles with them.  Since we jogged part of the way, I am claiming a mile for the walk.  Pace - 7:56 

Early morning run from home up through Comore Loma.  Very nice morning with mid-forty temps.  It is now light enough to run at 5:30.  No GPS today.

Noon around the greenbelt.  More runners than usual on the path because of the nice day.   I saw the first of a new brood of  baby ducks and geese out learning the mooch for stale bread routine from their parents.  Temp - 64, light breezes.  no GPS

Ran the new section of the greenbelt down nearly to South Tourist Park. Beautiful day with temps in the mid 60's and no wind.  For the first time this year I was uncomfortably warm while running.  Pace - 7:33

Ran 4 miles from home at 5:30AM.  Fantastic morning and was surprised to see a few other runners/walkers out.  I thought I was totally alone and it was very quiet when a fast runner went screaming by, nearly causing my first heart attack.  Turned out to be a coworker who drives up there for early morning hillwork.  Pace - 8:17

Noon - 6 miles around the greenbelt with Clydesdale on a great day.  It was good to have someone to chat with.  Temp - 71, light breeze.  Pace - 7:57

Another beautiful day.  Noon run around the greenbelt.  Caught up with an old coworker who is getting back into running and ran a slow relaxing mile or two with him.   Pace - 8:17      Temp -75, no wind

On vacation in Riverside, CA en route to San Clemente.  Easy run with Jake.

Easy run with Jake along the beach 

Long run from San Clemente around Dana Point and back.  Climbed a hill out of Dana Point that was killer steep, but fortunately short.  The weather was great for running - cool and sunny.  Pace - 8:16

Morning run on the beach.  I needed a longer run, but was short on time as the boys and I were heading to the San Diego zoo.  cloudy and cool.  Pace - 7:44

3.2 easy beach miles with Jake and then left him on the pier and ran another 4.7 fast miles.

Back home to rainy Idaho Falls.  Took advantage of a break in the rain to run 8.6 miles from home down to the valley and back.  Nice running weather and no wind.    Pace - 7:48

Slow daybreak run around Comore Loma. Nice morning run with temps in the low 40's and no wind.  It started raining shortly after I finished. Pace - 8:30

Morning run through Comore Loma for 4 miles. Pace - 8:01

Noon run around the greenbelt for 6 miles on a very nice day. Ran with jtshad for one fast (for me) mile.

4 miles around home at 5:30 AM.  Every day I get attacked by a small black bird about half a mile from home.  He follows me for about 100 yards hovering 2-4 feet over my head and chattering  like mad.  Pace 8:03 

AM run around the neighborhood on a nice, but overcast morning.  I know I am not a morning person, but I really struggle with getting a decent pace going in the early AM particularly with all the hilly sections.  It seems to affect me more than later in the day.  The attack bird sneaked up on me today, but only harrassed me for about 100 ft.  I am thinking he would make a nice treat for my cats.  Pace - 7:48

Noon run on the greenbelt.  The clouds parted for a while and made for a great 6.2 mile run.  Pace - 7:22

Raining hard this morning at home so I reluctantly went to the gym for a short TM run. I ran later this morning since I had to wait for a contractor we hired to start some repairs on the garage.  Sometimes it would be nice to just rent

Noon run of 7.3 miles with sunshine around the greenbelt. Pace 7:37

Ran 13.6 miles from home on Sunday morning.  Started in a light rain and finished in a light rain but nice for the majority of the run.  Pace - 8:06

Out for a noon run around thge greenbelt.  Ran with jtshad for the first couple of miles and then continued down to Panchari for a total of 6 miles.  Pace 7:22

Made the 4 mile loop from home on a cool, cloudy morning.  I was not motivated for time and did not take the GPS. 

Noon:  6.1 miles around the river on a partly cloudy day.  Temp - 66   Pace 7:49

Need to do a 20 mile run this weekend which I am not particularly looking forward to.... 

No AM run today.  I semi-consciously put a pillow over my head and slept through the alarm.

Noon  Ran 5 miles on the desert in very nice conditions.  I ran out of trails and had to wander around a while until I picked up the road back. no gps

Noon run across the railroad bridge and down to Broadway.  Good running today with cool temps and no wind. Pace - 7:45

Long run from home in the morning.  Ran out Canyon to Jameston, south to Yellowstone and back on Sunnyside.  Felt good for most of the run, but ran out of gas on the last mile so I walked on part of the uphill for a slow mile.  Pace 8:03

The wind was blowing pretty good this morning and it was chilly so I decided to hit the treadmill before work.  Ran 2 miles at 7:45 average and 2 at 6:50 average.

Noon - Outside for a 5 mile river run in the wind.  temp - 55, pace 7:40 

Easy run around the neighborhood on a clear, cold morning.  Temp - 40, no GPS

Rough day - no time for a run.  went for a short run on the desert at noon.

AM - Ran up the hill from home on a beuatiful morning.  No wind at my house but the neighborhood above me was blowing pretty good.  No GPS

Noon - greenbelt loop for 6.4 miles. Pace - 7:26

AM    Not much time due to early meetings.  Also, I did not want to get up! Went out for 3.5 tired miles from home in light rain.

Noon - Greenbelt standard loop run for 5 miles.  Pace - 7:41 - 73 degrees and cloudy

Ran 13.5 miles from home on a clear, breezy day.  This is my last longer run before the marathon.  I ran a decent pace up to 13.1 miles just to see what my half marathon time would be and then walked for a minute before trudging up the rest of the hill to home. The half marathon time was 1:40:02. I have not run a half masrathon yet, but that is my best time in practice.     Pace 7:38 

Very easy noon run around the greenbelt with Kelly for 4.5 miles.  Then went one more loop around Freeman park for a total of 5.6.  Great day.

AM    Dragged myself out of bed for a short morning run up the hill .  Very nice morning, I ran past deer and a confused cat being chased by a small bird.

Noon   Ran the river to Panchari.  Feeling tired today and the run showed it.  Pace - 7:54

Temp 79

I missed running yesterday because we were getting set to go camping.  Slow run along the shore of Hebgen lake.  I tried to make some noise as a guy was recently mauled by a grizzly near here.   The elevation here is about 2000 ft higher than home and I could feel it.  I came down with an intestinal bug later in the day that prevented me from running the rest of the weekend.  This was not what I needed a week before the marathon.

Ran the river at noon on a sunny, warm day.  I still have some effects from my bug last week, but it is improving.  Nice run with some breezes to cool me off.  Pace - 7:32

Easy run at noon. light wind and warm.  pace - 7:56

Noon run on the river on a sunny, breezy day.  I still have a little bit of the intestinal bug and had to make a pit stop, but it is much better than a few days ago. 

Last run before Missoula!   I went very easy for 4 miles around the greenbelt while thinking about the best strategy for getting under 3:30. 

  I now seem to have developed a sinus infection that  I need to get under control by Sunday.  Just my luck...

Pace - 8:12

Slow jog from home before leaving for missoula.

Great race and I even finished feeling good!   I beat my goal of 3:30 and got the BQ.    I even managed to get a third place award for my age group.  I will write a little more detailed report when I get back from Montana.  

The trip to Missoula was thankfully uneventful, though when we got there it was pretty hot and I was wondering how warm it would still be in the morning.  Fortunately, the clouds rolled in overnight and the day was ideal for a summer marathon.  The race started in the tiny suburb of Frenchtown at 6:00 AM (walkers went out at 5) and the temperature had dropped to 49 f.  On the advice of local experts’ jtshad and Pat B., I decided to go out at an even pace based on a 3:30 finish and fell in line behind the pacer.  The first seven miles or so were through farmland with plenty of heady smells from the dairy cattle.  This area is not heavily populated and I do not recall seeing a single car or non-race person for the first hour of running.  The only cowbells ringing were from a supportive college professor in a sombrero periodically riding up the line on a bicycle and a curious goat. 

Some distance after passing a paper mill, the course turned south and headed across the river and up the hill into the forest.   The hill started at about mile 14 and was not nearly as bad as I had feared, probably because I live on one that is steeper and so have no choice but to hill train.  Although not particularly tired, I decided to conserve energy and fell behind the pacer a little on the steepest part of the hill and then passed him on the rollers near the top.   The downhill was great to gain a little extra time and I started picking up the pace hoping that I could have a negative split.  After we merged with the half marathon course, the runner traffic picked up a little and I found myself behind a lady that was picking great lines and passing walkers/slower runners without changing her pace.  I ended up following that gal through town for about 8 miles and may not have caught her, but she began to slow down and I still had a little energy so I chatted with her for a while and moved on.

The race ended on the far side of a bridge in downtown.  I was still feeling decent and tried to sprint the last 0.2 to the finish.  I think it was only a sprint in my mind, but I seemed to go a bit faster.  The end was great!  They had cool showers and even a free beer for the runners (I had a few of these!)  My splits are below

1                    8:01

2                    7:59 

3                    7:59

4                    7:58

5                    8:02

6                    8:01

7                    7:57

8                    8:01

9                    8:00 The pacer was very good at holding around 8.

10                8:05

11                7:55

12                7:56

13                8:03

14                8:23 Course moved up the hill

15                7:38  Started down

16                7:25

17                7:42

18                7:54

19                7:56

20                8:01

21                8:06

22                8:00

23                8:01

24                7:54

25                7:55

26                7:43

0.2             unknown – forgot to stop GPS. 

Slow recovery run around Flathead lake.  What a beautiful place for a run.  I feel fine- my legs are a little sore but this is nothing like the recovery I needed from Ogden last year.  No GPS

Ran the river on a warm, beautiful day.  Went 5 easy miles  Pace - 8:02

Beautiful summer day. Ran a little early since I had noon meetings - also it was cooler.  Pace - 7:30

Warm day!   Greenbelt for 4.6 miles at 11:00  - trying to beat the heat. Pace 7:30

Easy greenbelt run at noon.  GPS batteries died so no pace.

Out at noon for a run to Pacheri.  Nice day, not too warm, and breezy.  I still have a dead GPS  so as advised, I ran a pace of 6:00 or less.  I am considering running the Poacatello half or full marathon in September so my miles are going to have to increase significantly to prepare. 

catch up  - short run from home

catch up

Catch up   ran on the desert.

Warn noon run on the river.  I was kind of stumbling along today, maybe the heat.

Ran the greenbelt at noon on a cool day (for August).  I ran the first 3 with jtshad and then fell back as he picked up the pace.  I think I heard his sonic boom.  Great day for a run and good company.

Catch-up   Ran 5 miles on the Moscow-Pullman path while in northern Idaho to drop off my daughter.  The path is nice and even had a conveniently located porta john that probably saved me a trip into the tall grass!

catch up

catch up

catch up

Vey nice day for a noon run around the greenbelt.  Jtshad was taking it easy and ran with me for most of the run.  A little faster than my usual pace, but was a good run.  Pace - 7:15

Catch up  Ran west river to Panchari.

Ran Freeman park and west river road to the north with jtshad.  Nice day, a little warm.  Jeff was doing speedwork and went ahead a couple of times.  Nice and easy for me.

Easy noon run on a warm day. Pace - 7:49

I keep getting meetings scheduled at noon so I forced myself to go out for a short run afterward. I need to start running on the TM in the mornings again

Ran the loop to pancheri at noon. 75 degrees with calm winds made for a very nice run. I hope we have a long warm fall.

Ran the loop to Panchari with jtshad on a nice, cooler day.  Good run and Jeff is tapering so he held back, I ran fast, and we ran most of the loop together.  Pace - 7:15

Catch up-  short on time so quick greenbelt loop  no GPS

Ran the west river road to Pachari.  Ran a few fartleks to keep motivated.  Warm day with no wind.  Probably not many of these fine days left.  No GPS 

Catch up   Ran 6 miles from home.  I was home from work with a sick kid

Noon run on the greenbelt  Calm, cool, and beautiful day.  no GPS

Noon run - first half with jeff. No GPS

Ran the West side of the river down to Panchari.  Great day and felt good running, probably because the GPS died and I slowed down.   We have both the flu and colds at home, so I will no doubt be next. 

catch up  -  Easy noon run.  no GPS

Went on the longer run on west river road.  Fantastic fall weather that sadly will soon be gone.  Ran with Jeff for a mile or so, but could not hold the pace.  No GPS

The weather is turning to fall right on schedul.  Nice, cooler day with light breezes.  Greenbelt run at noon.  No GPS.

Noon run around the greenbelt on another nice fall day. Tried to run a faster pace but started feeling puny, so I went back to my normal jog.  No GPS

I suspect this will be the last 80 degree day of the year.  no wind - no GPS

Catch up    One more nice day.  6 miles at noon on the greenbelt

I skipped running yesterday because the wind/rain/snow was not working for me.  Today is cool and windy, but the sun is shining.  Ran the Pancheri loop at a 7:23 pace.  temp - 39

Catch up  Easy run on a cold day with wet snowfall.  Summer is defititely over.   Pace 7:56

Noon run on another cool day.  At least it's not snowing.  Temp - 38  pace 7:50

Nicer today, but still cool at 37 f.   Ran the west river road to pancheri at an easy pace. 

Catch up  - Ran to the top of my neighborhood and around to the southern end.  Checked out several massive homes in various state of completion that are in foreclosure.  I have a hard time understanding why anyone wants 10,000 square feet of house - even if you could afford it.  The weather was nice, but the uphill was tough.  Pace - 8:07

Noon run on the greenbelt.  I started slow and then picked it up to 7 - 7:15 pace.  Temp - 53, and breezy.  Pace 7:21

5 mile run from home.  Stayed at the house with a sick kid, but took a break for an easy run.

Treadmill in the morning.

Time to start tracking my miles again.  Boston is coming up fast.

6.3 easy miles on the greenbelt.  Temp - 16, light wind

Ran the greenbelt at noon on a cool day.  Ran the first couple with jtshad and then had to make a pit stop.  Pace - 7:33  Temp 20, no wind