my makeup may be flaking

AM HR 70

Actually suprised I ran as well as I did. I didn't think sub 1:20 was even possible until I was 200meters from the finish line.

I felt really bad before the race, again. It's getting pretty frustrating. Protip: I ran a 3.5 mile warmup going to Vivian Park which had a nice indoor bathroom with zero line. I still felt lousy despite this. I didn't poop in a watershed area, never poop in a watershed area, people!

As usual I started out way too fast. I should not have been sub 6 for the first mile. Unfortunately, I didn't start my watch until the first mile mark so I had no idea how quick that mile was (5:39 aparently) until the end. In general the mile markers were all over the place, some short, some long, so I really have no idea.

Second mile is a really steep downhill (5:36). As soon as we got out of South Fork I dropped back from the guys that I was running with and started to slow down. I was honestly feeling pretty negative at this point. My leg felt good, but m stomach was bad, I was breathing really hard and my legs felt beat up already. I was in my own little world of self pity and yet I managed to yoyo off the back of the group I was with. The next three miles were 6:06,6:07,5:41 (long, long, short). I would surge ahead, get a gap, lose it, get dropped myself, then recover and repeat. I did this over and over again. Mile 6 was 5:58 and was a legitimately good mile. I caught up to Bryce Peterson and ran next to him briefly.

After that I completely went in the tank and my pace dropped about 15 seconds a mile. Bryce dropped me again and another guy in white passed me. 6:06,6:15 for the last two miles in the canyon. I got passed again right at the lousiest point of the course, where you leave the bike path and now have to contemplate the giant straight road. Just 5800 block to go, I thought, somehow not comforted at all. 6:36 for mile 9 (this one was long). I reached the nine mile mark in about 54:05, which was over a minute slower than last year. although I didn't know this at the time as I hadn't started my watch, I had a pretty strong inkling this was the case.

In the tenth mile, someone ahead of me jumped into the bathroom. I was tempted to do the same, but I knew that it really wouldn't help. I got passed again by another guy and then Spencer Simpson drove by and told me to stay right on him, he immediately dropped me. Spencer, I failed. 6:27 for mile 10, 6 seconds slower than last year. Finally crested the slight hill at mile 11 and started to feel better. 6:25 for that mile 3 seconds faster than last year! I realize that I've stopped cratering and find another gear. I'm also now realizing that I can at least run 1:20:xx, which isn't a total disaster.

I catch back to one of the guys who had dropped me earlier and surge by as hard as I can 6:28 for that mile, but it's long. I only managed 6:50 last year. Let's all take a moment to thank 2013 James, who can alway make me look good by comparison.

One more person comes up behind me in the last mile, and stays right on my tail, all the way to the finish. This helps me push it in all the way to the finish, otherwise I might have coasted. From mile 12 to 13.1 is 5:50 (waaay short, to make up for all the long from earlier) but it's 50! seconds faster than last year for the same stretch, classic 2013 James. Ended up with a 1:19:19 coming in right ahead of Jen Hughes (great run for her) who had pushed me all the way to the line. Almost cried and vomited at the end of this one, but they sort of canceled each other out.

3 mile cooldown. Ogden wooo!