faster with age

     It seemed more like Jan. than April this morning. Temps were in the lower 20s with a very strong north wind blowing and the roads covered with snow and ice. My first 2 miles were into the wind. The wind was so strong and the footing so poor [even wearing shoes with screws in the bottom] that I was barely running under 10 min. pace with about an 8:30 effort [according to HR]. After that it didn't get a lot better with 3 inches of fresh snow [instead of ice from being driven on] which I enjoy but it is slow. I went 7 miles with an 8 min. break halfway through at 9:03 pace.

      I know spring is coming. I had a flock of 12 swans fly right over me low yesterday on my bike ride [There is about 300 that just returned to Swan Lake up the road in the last 2 weeks]  and I heard a frog croaking in the pond a couple days back which seemed odd with a lot of the ground still snow covered [ it was a warm day] But there was no sign of spring today.

     PM     Ran 4.6 miles easy. Picked it up the last .25 to probably low 6 min pace. Overall pace 8:27

     My son was out of school for spring break this week so he and my wife and I left for southern Utah. We drove down to Arches National park where we met up with my parents. We got one nice hike in before dark.

I was hoping to get a run in this morning but the wind flapped the tent so bad all night that I didn't sleep much until it had calmed in the morning and then I just felt like sleeping in. I sleep well in a tent with the sound of rain or a nearby creek but not in a strong wind. We had a few off and on rain showers but the day wasn't too bad. We did some more hiking including the hike to Delicate Arch.

     This morning we woke up to 3 or 4 inches of snow in the Arches campground. The tent was really sagging under the weight. I was planning to run this morning but the warm bag was just to hard to get out of in the cold tent and I was still tired from not sleeping much the night before. The Moab marathon was supposed to start this morning not too far away and I guess it was canceled but  a couple of guys on the blog [Bill Mandler and Nate the Great] ran it anyway. It sounded like quite an experience from reading their race reports.

      We left camp early and drove down to Canyonlands National Park for the day. Fortunatly it was lower elevation and we eventually got down out of the snow. We did a lot of four wheeling down there including driving over the famous Elephant Hill which is like rock climbing in a jeep. We did a lot of exploring old Anazazi ruins and rock climbing. We got back to our camp up in Arches late after dark.

     Our last day at Arches. I finally got up early enough to take a run although not as long as I would have liked. It was a little cold but a sunny gorgeous morning with the long shadows coming off the red rock spires. There was no traffic out yet either [I think I only passed 2 or 3 cars].  I went 5 miles at 8:06 pace. I would have loved to have gone farther but I was a bit short on time. I ran harder on the last quarter mile uphill to camp at around 7:30 pace.

     We did a lot more hiking today totaling about 9 miles. I ended up with some sore muscles in my arms and shoulders from all the rock climbing on the trip. I also did a 3 1/2 mile bike ride.

     Weather was nice. Never got time for a PM run

     Was able to ride my favorite mt bike loop today for the first time this year. The snow drifts are mostly gone and most of the mud. I went 20 miles and felt good pushing it fairly hard. I averaged 16 mph wich is pretty good for me on this mostly dirt route with a lot of hills.

     PM  easy 4 mile run.

     This morning I ran 8 miles which is my longest run since my ITB flared up in Jan. I did take a 5 min break at the halfway point. I ran up to the reservoir for the first time this year. The ice is half gone and it was covered with ducks and geese. I ran hard up a couple of hills about 7:20 pace up both. One is .15 long the other is .25 long both at least 6% grade. There was hardly any wind until just over 2 miles to go a very strong wind picked up as a front moved in with winds around 30 MPH. I had just run miles 5 and 6 at 7:38 pace but turned directly into the wind with 2 miles left and the same effort ran mile 7 in 8:28. With .4 to go I picked it up into the wind to 7:20 pace wich felt like sub 6 effort. Overall pace for 8 was 7:57.

     PM   4 miles easy. The wind was still blowing bad but not quite as bad as this morning. I ran back and forth on a half mile sretch with the first half of each mile into the wind. I had to run close to 10 min pace to keep the effort as easy as I wanted it while running into the wind. overall pace 9:14

     20 miles on mt bike in a light rain.

     I ran 7.2  miles this morning. I ran hard up a couple of hills and picked it up several other times for anywhere from 100 to 400 meters. Overall pace was 8:11.

     PM  5 easy miles at 8:53 pace. IT band still doing good.

7 easy miles this morning at 8:34 pace. Nice 40 deg morning with no wind. This is by far the best week I've had since my injury.

      9 mile run this morning up around the reservoir. The ice is gone and the loons have returned. The eerie calls they make are a sure sign of spring. I ran the first half at 8:12 pace and then did some fartlec the second half with 3x1/4 mi. at 6:40 to 7:00 pace and 4x1/4 mi. at 6:10 to 6:20 pace with 1/4 mi. recoveries. 6:10 pace felt way to hard. I also ran hard on the hills. Pace for last 4.5 was 7:22 and overall pace for 9 was 7:48. IT band still doing good. Hopefully It's a thing of the past.

     PM   4 relaxed miles 9:12 pace

     I was planning to do a bike ride this morning but it has rained hard all day. I'll run in a heavy rain but I'll usually pass on biking if it's raining hard. I went to the gym in town and hoped to ride the upright bike [they only have one] but it was taken. I didn't have a lot of time so I did the eliptical at a fairly intense pace for 30 min. Then hopped on a treadmill with a few min. left. started at 8 min pace but continued to up the pace until 6:40 to finish at least 1 mile before I had to go.  7:12 pace 

     Ran 4 recovery miles in the rain. It reminded me of the STG mar exept it was 15 deg colder, I only had a headwind half the time today, and when I did have a headwind it wasn't near as strong today.  9:03 pace

Snowing huge wet flakes when I started my run but let up some part way through. I ran a nice easy 7 miles at 8:29 pace.

     PM   Lots of wet heavy snow still coming down. We had to run into town so we went to the gym again and I ran 5 miles on the treadmill starting at 9 min pace for the first mile then cranked it up a bit faster for the rest of the run including some faster pickups. 8:17 pace for 5.

     It was raining like crazy and I wanted to get in a good bike ride [since I hadn't yet this week] So I broke out the road bike for the first time this year because the roads that I mountain bike would be to muddy. I can't wear any raingear [even the most breathable] when I bike or run because I quickly overheat. So I threw on some tech shirts and fleece that don't hold much water and still keep you somewhat warm when they are wet and some good thick polyester / wool blend socks [my cycling shoes are mesh and the water goes right through]. I also wore a pack with some dry socks gloves and an extra fleece jacket in case I got to cold. I was quickly wet all the way through but not uncomfortable [more comfortable than running in 80 plus deg]. It was somewhat windy. It got a little hard to see on a couple of big downhills where I hit 35 to 38 MPH with the rain hitting your face at that speed. I climbed about 400 feet in elevation on the way out to where the rain became snow but it was about as wet as the rain anyway. My feet did start to get cold at the end but I was close enough to being done I didn't bother with the dry socks. I went 30 miles total.

        Late AM 8 mile run. I think this is the first time this week I haven't been in snow or rain. Sunny and in the 40s felt nice. I ran the first four miles at just over 8:30 pace. The second half I threw in 1/2 mile at 6:32 pace Then did a hill run on a 1 mile 6% hill. Ran easy down in 6:58 with a mild wind at my back. I ran it quite hard back up in 7:44. I have never broken 8 min up this hill before but I'm normally doing 3 or 4 repeats when I run it.  Still I felt pretty good with that into the wind and all. Overall pace for 8 was 7:56

     PM  5 miles at 8:34 pace.  

     8 mile run this morning. Nice weather again in the 40s and sunny. Ran a nice easy 8:41 pace. This is the first week I've run over 50 miles since I fell and tore my hamstring the first week of Aug. last year. Since then ,because of various injuries, I've only run over 40 miles 3 times [not counting last week] twice just before the St George mar. and once the week before Painter's half in Jan. I'm sure that just recovering from one injury and then pushing the training too quickly right before each of those 2 races had a lot to do with getting me reinjured . Hopfully I can have good injury free rest of the year.

     Perfect weather this morning. I went 8 miles up to the reservoir. I ran the first 4 at 8:02 pace and the last 4 at 6:52 pace starting with a 7:12 mile and finishing with a 6:22 mile that felt way harder than it should. Overall pace for 8 was 7:27

     PM  6 easy miles.

     I only found time for 10 miles on the mt bike this morning. I grow landscaping trees and spent the day digging a bunch of them.  It was past 9 PM when we were finished and I was worn out so I bagged the run.

     Ran 10 miles this morning. First double digit run in a long time. I didn't have a lot of energy this morning. Must not be recovered from Mondays run yet. 8:22 pace.

     PM 3 more easy miles.

      AM    20 miles offroad mt bike ride.

     Started having some pain in my right knee Wed night. I don't think it was caused by running because it dosen't hurt when I run. It hurts right under the knee cap when I straighten it completely as though it was hyper extended. I just rode my bike yesterday and skipped the run. This morning it was the worst it had been and felt a bit swollen when I first got up and still hurt when I straighten it but it felt better after walking around a bit.Lter in the day I tried running and felt 0 pain so I went for 5 miles including a mile downhill at 7:12 pace then ran back up hard. It climbs about 300 feet in 1 mile and I ran it in 7:51 into about a 7 MPH wind. That's just the second time I have run that hill under 8 min. My knee felt fine but I kept the run short at 5 miles just to be safe. It is still only sore if I straighten it completely. I'll see how it feels tomorrow.  Overall pace 7:56.

My knee was sore again this morning but much better than yesterday. It didn't have the swollen feeling but still hurt to straighten completely. So I figured yesterdays run didn't hurt it any. I ran 5 miles then changed into my Vibram Five Fingers [My wife got for my birthday] and ran a mile. This was just the fourth time I have run 1 mile in them but I must be getting used to them in a hurry. My first couple of runs I felt like 9:00 pace was about all I wanted to do. Today I wasn't paying attention to pace until near the end and was supprised to see I was at 7:44 pace and I felt like going a few more but decided to keep it at one mile for now. I must heel strike pretty bad because the heals of my running shoes always wear through quite quickly. I hope by gradually building up some mileage in these might help me with that as well as strengthen against injury. They sure make you stride different and feel exactly like barefoot without feeling the small things that stick my tender feet. I swiched to some racing flats and ran the next mile in 6:35 then one more to cooldown. Overall pace for 8 miles was 8:09.

     9 mile morning run at 8:10 pace.

     PM  This run should probably be recorded on tomorrows blog but I started before midnight so I'll count it for Monday. I couldn't find time for a PM run any earlier. I've been busy getting my grain planted and various other things. My wife works in the hospital lab and was on call. She needed some blood taken down to Logan after she drew it around 12:30 AM so rather than sleep for an our thats when I got my 7 mile run in before I had to leave and didn't get to bed till almost 3 am.  8:47 pace.

     Didn't have time for a morning bike ride but did get in a 5 mile PM run. 8:54 pace.

     Morning run 9 miles at 8:14 pace

     PM  run 4 miles after dark at 8:38 pace.  Been busy getting my grain planted and it's been tricky to squeeze in the runs

     24 miles mt bike.

     PM     2.5 miles. Planned to do more but ran out of time. 8:27 pace.