Fly on the Wall

Nice run to start the new year. Have you seen the movie "Forever Strong". I saw that movie today and wondered if that was Memory Grove in one scene where the Highland Ruby boys were running above the SLC.

Oh I saw that movie. I loved it! Made all my kids see it and they loved it too!

Great run fly, by the way what is 100 meter strides? Is it where you run full out for 100 meters?

Nice Fly!!

Any time I hear Memory Grove I think of the place that I crashed after running the hardest 15 miles ever ... you running terrain is pretty tough!

Hope you are having a wonderful New Year.

Look at that, 43 miles in 5 days and it seems like you hardly ran at all. I don't know how you do it!!!

Dale

Wow big mileage not feeling well. Your an animal Fly. Hope you get over that illness soon man.

Wow you ran a lot of miles yesterday. Are you training more for Boston now rather than Painters?

You ARE an animal. I could barely squeeze in 8.5 miles yesterday. This cold is kicking my buttocks.

WAY to brave the BRRR cold and got that huge mileage in. We get dehydrated just as easily in the cold as during warm weather training. Good thing you listened to your body and recovered from the long run. Again GOOD JOB, Fly!!!

Nice recovery run there. It's snowing now. Sure hope the weather improves for tomorrow.

Great job getting out there man. I am looking forward to running BST again with you in the spring. It will be here before we know it.

Hey, which trail marathon are you thinking about running? Is the BST Marathon? That one sounds like a lot of fun.

Dale

I think the road are worse today (Tuesday) but I am a baby. Be careful out there!

Fly - that looks like a great run. I am glad you decided on the treadmill it is much safer!

Fly...

Wow, those are some incredibly fast times. I know I say that all the time, but it's really impressive. I, too, Am sick and tired of being sick and tired. My sinuses throb every time I bend over.

Dale

Fly, how perfect is that? You got to use the gym for free, run an awesome speed interval workout, thus avoiding that nasty road. You're a SMART and LUCKY and VERY SPEEDY GUY!!!

Everyone's getting the gamboo these days. It doesn't help with all that hard training you're doing either. Take it easy the next few days and I'll bet you'll be on top of the game again.

Yeah the treadmill is dreadful but much safer. I'd be bummed to hurt myself a week and a half before Painter's.

Dale, I don't know how often you've said that but I'll take any and all of the praise I can get. Thanks!

Last week when I took some days off the gamboo came back. Go figure.

Fly you are getting close to the end of your Half Mar training cycle, your supposed to be getting sick and tired of being tired....just hope you are able to kick the sickness thing before next week. Very nice speed workout.

Get feeling better soon Fly, I too have been feeling a bit lethargic this week. I'm hoping to snap out of it for Painter's. I may need you to push me, so get up to 100%. Enjoy your taper. I don't think I'm going to taper much since I'm supposed to be treating this like a training run for Boston. I probably will cut out my X training next week and call that tapering.

Well at least you got some miles in today. Great job fly.

LOL...I never feel rejuvinated after a run.

Hey, is there a website for the BST Marathon? I can't find one. Are you going to run it?

Dale

Dale, I think it is an unofficial marathon. No cool web page, bring your own grub to share, no entry fee, etc.

Here is last year's web page-

http://www.users.qwest.net/~cirnielsen/bst08.html

Here's more-

http://www.users.qwest.net/~cirnielsen/bstannouncepage2.html

http://www.users.qwest.net/~cirnielsen/moellmercalendar.html

BUT I think the best way to get reliable info is to email one of the race directors.....

Thanks for all of the links. I'm still debating whether I should pick another race to do or just leave it as is.

Have you tried some claratin or something to see if that helps? I hope you get better soon. We need you at 100% next week.

Sounds like a lot of us have been sick or getting sick this past week. I'm finally getting over mine, but I still have that lingering cough. Hope you start to feel better very soon.

I'm glad you got a nice winter run today. We have all got to get better real soon.

It seems like everybody is sick. Good job getting out anyway.

Fly,

When I first read your post I thought you said you ran 8 miles at 6:38. (Although with you that would not have surprised me.)

I am so glad to hear that you are feeling a bit better.

Enjoy your rest day tomorrow.

I hope you start feeling back to 100% very soon. Great run, by the way.

Hey I thought the same thing I needed to read it twice to get it right. I am glad you are on the mend.

One week and we will see if you new super secret training plan worked!

Fly, it's been fun seeing how well you have followed your training schedule. You seem to be primed for a great race next week. I'm glad to hear that cold is on its way out. See you next week.

Glad to hear you're getting rid of that cold. Great run there today. You have trained hard the last 9 weeks. Time to reap the reward at Painter's.

AWESOME interval runs to keep those legs fresh. Sounds like you're getting over that cold too. Good job!

Looks like you are heading into painters ready to go! Great interval work out.

Thank you all for the continued encouragement.

I hope I'll be ready to go. I'm still not feeling 100% but I'm good enough to give it a shot. We shall see what Saturday morning brings.

Geez, I've never done that before! :)

Great run at goal pace. It'll be interesting to see how all that hard work in the last 9 weeks come together. You're ready! Time to reap the reward.

Mark, maybe we should hook up and run together at the beginning of Painter's. 6:47 is a marathon pace run for me and maybe I shouldn't be shooting for anything crazy in this race since I do want to do Boston. Anyways. Are people meeting anywhere specific before the race?

Yeah, count me in ... I'll run with you guys too!! NOT!! You two and your 6:xxish paces. Crazy fast!!

There are not really that many people at the start. Last year we ran into smooth and cougar and we didn't even know what to look for. You will most likely find each other if you know what to look for. You can miss our crew...5 beautiful women in PURPLE!

Maybe we should all meet at the 5 beautiful women in purple. How many poeple usually do Painter's?

Last year there were about 492 men, 495 women and about a dozen weight div. finishers in the Half.

The finish line was a traffic jam for both the Half and 5K. I am so glad they have chip timing this year.

Rhett, If you're planning a "slower" pace to put you over the line in about 1:29 or 1:30, I'd love to pace with you. Or maybe just draft behind you.

I don't think you'll have any finish line traffic to worry about.

I'll look for you by the 5 beautiful, purple women. I'll also email you my cell number.

I look forward to seeing everyone.

Good Luck!

Looking very strong Fly coming into this one. I havent seen the course so not sure how it will be to PR on it. But your looking very srong with times. I will be cheering for you at the finish line.

Start poppin' the AirBorne!!!

I hope your daughter feels better and the bug does not get passed around the family!

Look forward to seeing you at Painters. I hope your healthy. Good luck and drive safe.

GOOD LUCK tomorrow. So excited to see you. Have a safe and fun trip down.

Good luck. I'm predicting that the day will bring you a PR.

Congratulations, that is an awesome time! Was there a lot of runners in the race?

Way to run! Now do that again and you'll have your sub-3 marathon.

Sweet race. I like your splits. you Ran a smart race. All your splits were pretty close. Even miles 7-10. You will get that sub 3. I have the same goal.

The hard work's paying off. Very impressive!

You are so crazy fast!!

Congrats on such an INCREDIBLE race. You were smokin'!

It was great to finally meet you and chat for a bit. You're fantastic!

Here's to your upcoming sub3!!

Fly!!!

THANK YOU THANK YOU for cheering me and escorting me in for that last turn. You made me feel like a winner just hanging around you. You are a CHAMPION in my book!

CONGRATULATIONS on your AWESOME and WICKED FAST race. Is this your Half PR? You're SO SO SO ready for that sub-3.

Great job Fly. I think this is the first and many great runs for you this year. You looked very strong at the end. And really picked it up a notch or 2 in that final stretch. Great job man.

Fantastic job, FLY!!! Wow, that is some super speed!!! I wish I could have met you. Next time.

Dale

Fly you are the best cheerleader ever! I was so happy to see you at the finish.

Wow what a great time you had! I guess you super secret training plan really did work!

Nice run!

Great race Fly. While I was running and wondering why my body had failed me, I was thinking about you and hoping you were finishing strong. I was so stoked when I found out you went under 1:30. Congrats again. It was fun running with you while I could.

Nice work out Fly! Aren't you running Ogden this year? The Hurricane half marathon is a nice race on May 2.

You are hitting it good. I agree, the inversion is lame.

Wow, right back into the speed work. You are running at full tilt right now. I see you out running SirMalichai (Tim) soon.

Yeah, you should do Ogden. I'm running the full.

I'm pretty sure the air inside is a lot better. My lungs have been burning since we got back from St. George and I don't think the smog up here is as bad as in the Salt Lake valley.

I haven't decided about Ogden yet. I may do the 1/2? or the full? or????

Oh I love the song at the top of your post! I have been singing it to my husband all morning and he is about ready to call the divorce lawyers! I just keep telling him he won't find anything better! :) :)

I hope you do Ogden. Kimmy, Cristy and I are all doing the half.

I can't believe you can do speed work so soon after the race. You are a Animal!

LOVE your jingle there Mark. It puts a smile on my face. WOW! Looks like you're all recovered and ready for speedy speed work. You need to find a TM that max out at 12 mph. :)

Storm is coming this Sat. night, I think. Not soon enough. I wish I had time to go run up in Park City and catch a film festival movie afterwards. I'll bet the air is better up that way.

Yes, I heard a storm is coming. bring it on!!!

Was the audio book any good?

(I'm glad to see that you are taking it somewhat easy after that SUPER WICKED FAST race you had.)

The audio book is ok but not great. For some reason I started 'reading' the Clan of the Cave Bear series. They are sort of chic novels with archeology and lots of steamy to raunchy "action."

Wow,it's making me very cold just thinking about your run. Good thing the hand dryer worked!!!

Wow fly I can't believe you almost froze!

They should create a web site that you can check the weather before you go out... that would really help :)

Shorts... you silly man!

Yeah, a weather website.... Why hasn't someone thought of that? :)

I'm not silly, just a bit stupid!

Good thing the City Creek restroom is open and the hand dryer works. Frozen Fly wouldn't be good.

good job..job good. It's pretty dang cold out there today. When I got up this morning it was only 6 degrees up here.

Really? It takes me that long to JUST warm up.

Way to put in the easy miles, sometimes that is the best thing for the body and the mind.

Glad you enjoyed your "brisk but gorgeous" day!

I hope you get your Garmin back.

Oh it looked so great out there today! I hope it is still clear on Saturday! Are you following a training plan or just doing what feels good? I know your next race is Dam to Dam right.

Nice run there with some intervals to boot. Yeah, the weather was nice today. I did see some haze building up. Windy tomorrow would be nice for good air on Sat. long run.

The Dam to Dam 5 Miler is next but I'm not training for it. I'll just run it for joy and to complete the Runner's Series.

I'm thinking the Bonneville Shoreline Trail Marathon might be next. I will train for it but I only hope to finish happy and strong. Alternatively I might do the Salt Lake and/or Ogden half.

I want to shoot for sub 3 at St. George this year, so I'm thinking I won't kill myself till that training cycle begins.

But then again, who knows what the year will bring?

Any comments or suggestions are welcome.

Did these women run with you and talk...maybe the you look better now that it is not so hazy out there...just a thought.

How's the nose today, Rudolf? LOL Packed snow is considered a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10 for running surfaces. Asphalt is somewhere around 6, dirt is like 8. Hilly snow pack trail has to be 0.5. Looks to be you had a nice xtraining run. It has got to add strength to your tendons and muscles.

5 women talked to you? Were they lost? Were they checking you out? Did you wear your cool looking sunglasses? Did you talk back to any of them? You got to be careful next time you run solo on a trail. You never know about these women lurking and stalking in them foothills. ;)

I did not run with any of them. I said hello to all of them, but I'm one of those annoying runners who tries to say hello or wave or nod to everyone I see.

One woman fell over in the snow (when we tried to pass) then said hello and explained how she falls all the time and not to worry about it. Two women called me Matt. Two women said something about seeing me again. I told them I must be Matt. The rest is just a blur.

What a nice new beginning for you. Have fun discovering and exploring this new dimension of running. Good luck on the BST race in 12 weeks.

Nice miles, Fly! I was wondering about the air quality too. O well, if it shortens our lives for couple of years like they say, then the running will equal it out, right?

The air looks better but you never know.

11 miles on a Tuesday that is a lot are you training for a spring marathon?

Nice job Fly. Your doing awesome already for this month. Great job.

I love recovery miles. It gives me an excuse to run la-ayZ.

Nice job Fly!!

YUCK!!

I am so glad it rained today... tomorrow's run will have great air to breath!

Black ice are scary. Rain is good. Be careful out there.

I'm pretty certain that you are unbelievably insane!! :)

Seriously, that sounds awfully brutal.

(Send me some of your toughness, will you? I'll send a pre-adressed, stamped envelope!)

AWESOME RUN FLY!!

Sounds like a bitter-sweet run. I like the second part better with the sunset and twinkly city lights. Sounds nice. Great job, by the way!!!

Your runs sound like adventures.

Great run. Think how much easier the marathon will seem when you are not running in deep snow into the wind with wet shoes.

I think those trail guys are definitely a little on the wacko side for sure. I notice when I run trails the my ankles really hurt the next day and I have not tried it in the snow. You are an animal.

Wow, you're a mountain goat. AWESOME training run. What an adventure.

Is "unbelievably insane" better than "criminally insane"? Teena you have more than enough toughness or your own!

I guess it was kind of a bitter sweet, adventurous run. I think I was still feeling it today. I just noticed that the first loop is advertised as having 3,100 feet of vertical. Hmmm....

8:30 is an easy pace for you? I guess I really am slow.

Nice run with those intervals thrown in. Yeah, your easy pace is faster than my race pace.

Yuck, running back into a headwind bites. I much perfer running out into the headwind that way your not all sweaty when you run into the wind. Great run in bad conditions.

My 5k race pace is slower than ez for many runner's around here. I guess it is all relative. I bet Kathie and Smooth always finish with a higher placing in there respective lady age groups than I do.

Rhett, Yuck is right. I'd much rather start with the head wind, but really the conditions weren't too bad. And today (Tuesday the headwind was on the way out :)

Hey Fly...I made it over here. Now that you've qualified for NYC, are you going to run it?

I will run NYC but I don't know when. We already have planned a family trip to Yellowstone in the summer and a trip to Baja next winter. So NYC may not be in the cards this year.

Bet it feels good to have the tailwind. Nice mileage there.

So when is your trail marathon? I think twinkie on this blog is running the same one.

What section of the Parkway do you usually run on?

Nice job on the run! Hope you had a very easy and very relaxing run today.

The trail marathon is April 25th. Who is twinkie?

Paul, I run the Jordan River Parkway from about North Temple, northward till it turns into the Legacy Parkway Trail. I don't know of anyone else on these blogs that runs this section. Do you?

twinkie is a neighbor of mine. He ran the slam in 2006 and then ran very little because of knee issues until now he is running a ton of trail races and I think even an ultra. He is a pretty cool guy and if you want a training buddy I think he is about your pace.

Way to get'er done! Sometimes those are some of the most important miles.

Glad you got'er done!!

I ditto Rhett they are important miles and easy to blow off miles too. I am happy to see you did them.

Better get'er done than ne'er get'er done.

Yeeeee Hawwwwww!

Fly, where's your Dam 2 Dam report? CONGRATS on the win!!!

Where are you Mark?

Fly, where are you!? Did you take all that prize money from the D2D and go to Vegas? Overzealous Valentines date? Yo, Mark. Where are you?

It's been a week, Mark. Are you vacationing somewhere w/o a computer? Can't wait to hear all about it.

Fly, I know you are a humble guy and all, but we want to hear about the big WIN. I want to win a race some day. 3rd place is my current best though.

C'mon Fly ...

Fly!!!

AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!! I LOVED every word of your report. I could totally feel it!

A GIGANTIC congrats on the Masters Win!! That is beyond incredible!!

(How in the world did you run a 5-mile race faster than your 5K pace? That is some serious speed brother!)

Are you back in Salt Lake? Sounds like you had a fantastic race last Saturday. Did you buy anything with your winnings?

Welcome back, did you feel missed because you were.

Thanks for the welcome. I am back in Salt Lake.

I couldn't find any running gear that I needed and that fit, so I bought a shirt with a collar. It actually fits me! It is sized, large-slim. Does this mean slender cuts are now in style? I sure hope so.

Hey Fly, welcome back! What kinda oxymoron is large-slim? Is it like size large athletic cut? At least that's what my sons call it. But, how can you be a size large...you're a bean pole.

I have the build of a side show freak. I'm a bean pole with relatively wide shoulders and abnormally long arms. So large athletic cuts can sometimes fit me ok.

You are being very consistent. Good job.

Was it a bullet train or steam engine train? Nice miles this week.

YOUR BACK!!! Now that you are a Masters Champion, what's next on the docket?

Wow, I didn't realize you ever ran over 8:00/mi pace. Way to get'er done. :-)

What were you thinking about? Usually thinking slows me down.

I have the same question as Mike!!

Easy miles ... 8:16 pace ... how would it be??

All morning I've been trying to remember what I was thinking about and I can't. This must be a sign of being a Master's runner. What ever it was, it must have been exciting or angry. Both can make me pick up the pace.

Great job, Fly. Every time I drive by that area, I see those radio towers up there and I always think of you running up there and it makes me tired. Obvisouly, I haven't mastered the hills...yet.

Wow all the hill work you have been doing must have really helped your speed!

WOW, you're the King of the hilly trails. Those legs are gonna be buff, tuff and speedy kicking the asphalt.

So who can I talk into joining me on those trails?

Nice run Fly!!

Harder than it should have been with that 166 bpm?? Oh yeah ... you have that freakishly unhuman super heart!! Nice job (even if you felt it was a little hard, you rule the trail)!

That was the average. It was creeping up as the miles went on.

Great job Fly. At the way your improving I dont know if I will be able to keep up with you next race.:) Looking very strong man. Keep it up.

"stayed on the paved parts", do you guys still have a lot of snow on the ground. It was 80 degrees here yesterday and is supposed to stay that way all week. I'll pay the price soon though when the temps sore well above 100.

Nice miles and pace. Good start off the week.

Very, very little snow down in the valley. I stayed on the paved parts to avoid slick or sticky mud. It's hard to maintain pace in a mud bog.

When I heard the wind blowing this morning I chickened out and ran on the treadmill.

Your week is off to a great start. Running from the JRP to Legacy seems like a dangerous stretch. Do you wear kevlar while you run?

Kathie, It's like the bumper sticker says- The worst day on the trail beats the best day on the treadmill.

Andy, I've never felt threatened in the past 5 years I've run there. Though I was bitten by a little yippy dog and propositioned twice, once by a man and once by whom I presume was a "working" woman. All of these things promote a quickened pace.

Great job there, Fly!!! Exactly where is that stretch you ran? Sounds creepy.

Reading your run puts a smile on my face. That portion of the trail must be frequent by "heathens". :D

15 miles on a Tuesday? Awsome Fly. You're on fire!!!!!

I hope the legislatures pay attention to these children who are our future leaders. Tell your little girl I'm proud of her.

you give the legislature more credit than I would. :)

Very cool run Fly. I feel for you and the air problems you have there in SLC. We have our share, but at least we have some wind to blow it around.

When's your next race?

Thanks Smooth.

Who said anything about giving the legislature credit?

I'm not sure if I'll do something shorter before, but I think I'll run a trail marathon in April.

Our air along the Wasatch Front (SLC and the cities north and south) is good most days of the year. Unfortunately we have to breath every day of the year. We get high levels of ozone with the heat of summer afternoons but least you can still run in the mornings. Worse are the winter inversions we get. High levels of very fine particulate matter (PM 2.5)get trapped and just hang in the air for days.

Ooops. I just made the mistake of reading the reader comments on the Des News article about this. I guess I shouldn't be surprised by the ill will, malice, venom, malevolence, and contempt aimed at my daughter and her young cohorts for expressing their frustration with being forced indoors during recesses because a bunch of know nothing scientist and doctors claim the air is unhealthy to breath. I guess I should have told her to shut up and be happy for not living someplace worse. Perhaps I should tell her to keep quite or move out. Should I tell her that her ideas are worthless and she was just being exploited?

Sheesh. Makes me want to join a private club (places that serve stiff drinks in Utah).

Oh fly I am as conservative as the come and yet I agree with your daughter and am so proud that she was willing to fight for what she wants. (I looked for her/you on the news last night.)

Our neighborhood has been trying to fight the West Bountiful power plant but we have been told it is pretty much a done deal... I hope not!

Nice run..nice pace. How do you find time for a 12 mile mid-week run..do run in the morning?

Great run Fly. I see you are already at 43.1 miles this week. Do you still have a long run planned this weekend as well? You sure are training well as of late. What top secret training plan are you using now?

Wow, nice mileage and awesome pace. Yah, tell us about your training plan. Your sub-3 is no longer a dream. You're smelling it now, aren't you?

Feeling strong!! Love it!!

Awesome run there Mark!

A sincere thank you for the feedback! I have trouble finding the time to reciprocate, sorry.

I run when ever I can find the time, morning, noon, or night. This day I needed to do a working lunch so I took my lunch hour at the end of the day and did my run then.

I'm using Pfitzeger's (sp?) 12 week plan. I have a long run planned for this weekend but my wife works on Saturday so it will have to be early Sunday morning. This mean my mileage this week will appear short but next week it will appear abnormally high.

Its all good. So what races you got planned for this yr so far man?? Boston and what else??

no Boston this year. So far it's a trail marathon in April and St. George in October. I'm not sure what else.

LOL yeah I am tired just reading about it. Great job on the long run. Looking forward to running up there on the trail with you again. What is on the schedule so far this yr for you now??

Great job Mark!!! Wow, you always amaze with all of your long runs.

Manimal!!!

Nice run Fly. Got in some quality miles and some good strides as well.

Looks like you're off to a good week with nice miles and speedy strides. GOOD JOB!

Good grief!!! 40 miles in three days? When is your next trip back to Krypton? Great job!!!

Wow..that's wind! Usually, when you run with the "new guy", you have to slow down a little. It'll be nice to have someone who can push you just a little harder. Nice pace.

He could run me into the ground without breaking a sweat. His indoor 5k PR is 14:24.

So if it was harder than you wanted why did you log it under easy miles?

hmmmmm.... I guess they weren't pace, threshold, or max miles either?

Sounds like your new training partner is going to push you to the limit. Now your going to be super smokin' fast.

14:24...Wow, that's elite speed! You can't help but get faster hanging around with that guy. When's your next 5K race??..a can't wait to hear how much you smash that PR by!

great tempo run!

Nice run Fly. You really are getting faster. Are you doing the relay this weekend?

Nice run, Fly. Thanks for putting in the HR info. Looks like we're in the same ballpark in BPMs. What's your resting HR?

I have a feeling you're going to hit a Weekly Max this week..with a long run on Saturday you could easily hit 80+ miles!! Sweet.

No relay this weekend. Just a long run and skiing.

I don't remember what my resting heart rate is. I'll look it up or maybe just check it again Sunday or Monday morning when I wake up. Though I suppose the recent increase in mileage could have it elevated.

Holy Crap! You will have run 87.25 miles this week since Sunday. No wonder your legs feel a bit tired. That is awsome Fly. You are becoming my new running Idol!!!!!!!

You are big time!

Now you're getting up into some serious miles. Nice!

Wow, very impressive with all those hills. Are you still considering running the BSTM?

Mr. Gardinero, BSTM is my plan.

Sweet last mile! Awesome week, Fly..you deserve a relaxing day of skiing.

BSTM? Something - Something - Trail -Marathon?

Marc, that would be the Bonneville Shoreline Trail Marathon. Sorry, it's easier to spell out BSTM.

6:13 is your Marathon Pace? You freak!

Great job Fly. That is some good running and having something at the end is even better. Your going to do awesome on that race.

Great run Fly. What was the total time on that run. That is a long time on your feet. I'm glad your toenail is the only thing that hurts. Get some rest and then back at it next week.

Dang fly, that is a huge week. Congratulations on getting through it with only a big toe to complain about.

Total time was 3:46.

Dang man, that is a big week.

I'm sure that TBHQ is great for runners. After all, it does have BQ in it. I think it stands for Training for Boston? Helps Qualifying or something like that.

You guys make me laugh!!!!

Very funny!!! I LOVE Girl Scout cookies! Yes, they're GOOD for you! What training plan are you following?

I'm using Pfitz's (sp?) 12 week, 70 mile plan.

Thanks for decoding TBHQ Rhett!

Yeah the bake all the bad stuff out of them. Those girl scouts just know what to keep and what not to. I have only 3 boxes to get co-workers to help me with.

Gotta love those Girl Scout cookies. Only half a box? Rookie! :)

That 1/2 a box was just a warm up. I've pollished off 3 boxes in 2 days! Yee gads, I'm a pig. Luckily I only have 1 box left.

Nice interval work. I'll be feeling your pain tonight when I do my mile repeats.

WOW!!! WAY to embrace the pain. Don't push too hard with a malaiseeee cold. Looks like an easy day is in order. You hit some serious mileage last week...87+!!!

15 miles that is a lot mid week right? Well I guess it is a lot for me.

Pfitzinger calls it a MRL (medium long run). I call it a mid-week LONG run. GREAT RUN! I don't know how you have the energy to run AFTER work. Do you drink/eat in a 15 miler?

15 miles without a recovery day after the speed work is tough. I never do 2 hard runs in a row, but then again I just make up my own training and maybe if I followed some plan that actually was developed by someone who knew a lot more about running than I do, then I would be faster.

Nice pace and nice, low HR. Sounds like you're doing just fine. I hope you're taking a rest day before your race on Saturday, right?

I'm such a ditz...I was responding to the wrong Mark. That's a normal HR and easy pace for you, Fly!

I carried a Camel Bak fanny pack with water and had a gel.

Marc, What makes that funny is that you are also Mark.

I get up to 134 bpm just brushing my teeth. You're as fit as a fiddle. In my defense, the brushing is rather vigorous.

How can 10 miles be easy at a 7:57 pace?? And check out that freakishly low heartrate as well!! You are unreal!!

Have fun on your 16 miler tomorrow. :)

Great run Fly. Was just looking over your times at that Dam to Dam race too. Dang dude you scorched it. Great job. Can't wait to see what you do in our next 5k. Sub 20 for sure.

Wow, Fly..another banner week for you. You're going to rock that BSTM!

You're a rebel Fly, switching it up like that!!! LOL

How was the snow?

Nice run Fly one of these days I will have to learn to ski...after so many years of living in Utah it may not happen.

The snow was stale but not icy. The weather was beautiful and we all had a great day. I was still dragging from what ever minor illness has me down. My two kids have one more ski lesson for the season.

Kathie, Do any of your sisters ski? You're plenty young enough to learn and now is a great time of year for beginners. It's nice and warm and sunny up there. Just do it.

Nice run. Hopefully it is just some mild allergies or something.

I love the way smells get to you more when you run. My usual long run route has me run by a bakery and what should smell really good just makes me want to gag! So I can't imagine running by those sticky places!

Kathie, running by "sticky" places doesn't usually get to me, but stinky places are not so nice.

I imagine the bakery to be both sticky and stinky.

Have you ever been to Gilgal Gardens in Salt Lake? It's a very interesting sculpture garden and it is right behind the Wonder bakery. The smells are as odd as the art.

http://www.gilgalgarden.org/gallery2/images/IMG_2089ggg.jpg

Glad the body is feeling better. Check out your mileage already!

28+ miles and it is only Tuesday! Nice.

Oh my are we training for an ultra?

Always nice to hear that fast miles felt good!

So do you call him "Fast Guy" at work? What do the call you, "Speedy One?"

Haven't called him "Fast Guy," yet.

I think they call me crazy at work.

It's nice to run with people from work. Even better to have some speedy ones to push your limits a little. Nice run.

If you worked here, you'd be the fast guy.

COOL!

Mark, how's your cold? It must have really knocked you out.

THANKS for the warning! I will stay away from FiberOne or any runners who ingest them pre-run to save myself from major flatulence mishaps! :-p

OUCH OUCH OUCH! At least you got it done and know what you'll be up against. GOOD JOB!

So how long did it take you to do the mountainous 21 miler? Are you glad you have ventured into trail marathoning? I just don't think I have any desire to go there. I bet you do awsome though. You have been training so hard for this. Next year take it easy on yourself and come join us in Boston again.

It took me 3:57, which is an 11:10 pace. Not bad considering the terrain. Ask me what I think after I run the thing. I really enjoy running the trails but it can be hard work.

It was the ouchy trail 21 miler. Plus there was a nasty wind, plus it's winter again. Sorry about the cold and soreness. Drink plenty of fluids, take naps, breath deep, relax and think happy thoughts. You will get better soon!

Oh, what were you doing breaking concrete and tearing out a floor. Are you into Extreme Make Over - Home Edition or somethin'? Don't break a leg! Hire the boy from next door to do it.

Get well soon fly.

Hope you get better.

Glad to hear you're still alive and kicking. I missed your posts last week.

A couple days off will do you some good! Get well soon, Fly.

I hope you are feeling better today!

How are you feeling today? Better, I hope!

I'm on the mend and have run, but I'm having trouble finding time to post about it.....

He's back!!!! Nice workout. Welcome back.

I was beginning to think you took a turn for the worse. Glad to hear you're feeling better.

Nice intervals. I ready your reply about how long it takes to run on those hilly mountains. That has just got to take a lot out of you. I am anxious to hear how you end up enjoying the race.

Glad you feel better, good run.

You guys are great. Thank you for all the positive feedback. I feel bad that I don't find to time to reciprocate as much as I should and as much as I would like.

Snot rockets you are starting to sound like alisak from the other forum... but I guess she uses hers a weapon...gross!

Wow, that was a lot of miles in that brutal wind and cold. You are such a diehard. AWESOME run. GREAT JOB!

Fly, do you feel a differnce between how well you breath with and without your HR monitor? I don't like the feeling of the strap around my chest. Maybe its all in my head.

I actually don't notice my HR strap at all. In warm weather I have noticed people looking at me strangely. I guess with my singlet people see the strap and wonder why I'm wearing a bra.

Never mastered the snot rocket myself, so I'm impressed. Mine are more like snot yo-yos.

So when you say "up the mountain," are we talking like 400 ft per mile elevation gain? You are turning into a billy goat!!!!

Wow You are going to do great at your trail marathon. Have you thought of your goals for this race yet?

400 feet per mile is probably in the ball park as it is about 1200 to 1400 feet up in those 3.5 miles. Of course some sections are steep and some are not.

It was a wise decision turning around and going home. That storm was and still is bad. I was just getting ready to make my way out for my 20 miler when the snow started flying. I lost all motivation. Now it looks like I'll have to run on the treadmill tonight.

Wow. That type of weather does not sound fun. Sorry to hear your run got cut short.

That was a wicked storm. The road signs and some fences were blown over around here. It came fast and furious. Sorry it put a damper on your long run. You made the right decision to bale. I am sure better running days are ahead.

I'm glad you got home safely before the weather got really nasty. Those don't sound like 10 "easy" miles to me.

What is your 5K pace these days? About 6:20? 5.6 miles is a pretty long warm up. Did you run to a track? or was this on the treadmill?

Treadmill? What's that? Track? What's that? I just use my Garmin to track the mileage and call it good enough. I was shooting for a 6:14 pace. The long warm up was kind of because I was running into the wind and waited till I turned around to do the intervals. Usually I do some into the wind and some down wind but I was kind of lazy... but it didn't help.

You ran some serious intervals yesterday plus a ton of miles! I could never run after a heavy lunch. GREAT JOB!!!

Sounds like one of my workouts! :)

Oh you are kidding me right! Did you keep it down?

I kept it down. But I felt. :)

Man you are running some heavy miles. What race are you getting ready for?

PEEEWWWW! GOOD JOB running at lunch, no heavy lunch this time?

Tim, I going to try a trail marathon with lots of elevation.

Smooth, no heavy lunch, thank goodness.

Hey Fly, we're neck and neck on the Mileage Board this week. How many you planning to do for the rest of this week? I'm at 47 for the week, and don't know if I should push it too much higher...though I definitely want to do a MP 13.1 miler on Saturday.

Sorry about the showers...mostly sorry for your co-workers.

At least you have showers at work. I think state employees get treated better than federal employees.

Marc, Aren't you tapering for Boston now? This is a peak week for me. I did 6 at lunch and have this planned: 4 after work today, 20 tomorrow morning (it is supposed to be snowing all day), 6 ez on Saturday morning (probably on or on and in the snow).

Don, I think we have showers because a lot of people in the building actually work in the field.

At least you get to work in the field...just kidding. Yeah, I didn't think about that.

Great running Fly... do you always do your long runs on Friday or are you adjusting for the weather?

Nice, Fly, you're getting in some serious miles lately. Yep, I'm tapering for Boston. I had such a short week last week, and my 31 miles on Sunday (should really count for last week). I'm taking it kind of easy this week. Just one more MP 1/2 marathon this weekend, and then it's time to build up the glycogen stores, and let the body rest a little more for Boston. I don't think I've ever run 60 miles in 7 days before, so, if I run my long run tomorrow, I'll be in the mid 60s.

Kathie, I do my long runs whenever I can. My family and I stayed at Sundance and skied this weekend so I ran on Friday morning. The weather for my run was awful.....

Fly, I agree with that not being the smartest thing ever, but am glad you got home safely and got in your run. You need to post this quicker. Everyone is going to miss Fly's Stupid Adventure cause it won't pull up on this weeks blog. Glad I checked your previous week. So does your training plan have you doing much tapering this week?

I'm glad Rhett pulled this Adventure run of yours up! WOW! I can't believe you ran that snowy mountain trail. I'm glad you survived and are thriving well. Sounds like you're READY and confident for your BT marathon in 3 weeks. Can't wait to hear all about it! Oh, skiing for recovery? That's another risky activity I wouldn't do for tapering! :-D

I'd post quicker but I had no time on Friday or Sunday evening and no internet access in between. (The last thing I wanted on our mini vacation was the kids arguing over who got to play on Webkins.)

Smooth, If I were tapering for Boston, I wouldn't be skiing or dragging around big tree pieces either. But it's just an informal trail run. Besides, although the draw of Saturday morning's un-tracked powder was strong, the kids kept me from skiing anything stupid.

Sounds like you had a great weekend at Sundance. Nice running in the mountains. Be careful with the "cross training", don't tweak anything dragging tree limbs.

great interval session -- good job!

AWESOME speed work.

Did you forget your HR monitor or leave it behind on purpose? I feel naked without one now.

Hey Montelepsy! Sometimes I do leave my jog-bro behind on purpose, but today I forgot it.

I've never heard it called that before, but I have been self conscious of it. The other day I cut my run in half to to to a going away and I was worried the folks at the restaurant would think I was a cross dresser or something.

You went trash hunting? What has this economy come to? Did your gathering/hunting instinct go b'zurg? LOL :-D Trash or treasure...hmm...Happy Easter!

You're working on a house? Be careful! Remember what happened to TomSlick with his remodeling project. Those "antigue" doors and vanity must weigh a ton. Sanding the floor is HAZARDOUS to your knees and back!!! 9 hours of doing it is TORTURE; NOT xtraining. That's my excuse to avoid spring cleaning at all cost!!! ;) Your lovely wife must LOVE you for it though!

The house I'm working on is a rental. It is an 120 year old adobe brick house in our historic district. My lovely wife tolerates my insanity. :)

Wow, you're a geologist, an architect and historical-restorian (is that a word?) too? I've seen some of those old homes being restored and remodeled in the Avenues. They are magnificense. That's quite a project. Are you taking "before" and "after" pictures? It was nice to meet your lovely wife, even for just a brief second. I can tell she is very supportive of you. What a cute family you have.

Was it snowing on you again?

That is a really low heart rate is that normal for you?

No snow that day. I love snow and I'm really sick of it and ready for spring.

I was running slow for me. But even so that heart rated seemed particularly low. I don't know....

You're turning into quite a mountain goat on top of all the other "hobbies" you have. AWESOME trail run! Apparently you didn't hurt anything when you fell down completely twice by the look of those last FAST miles. When are you tapering for the BST marathon?

Nice pace. Tough conditions. You need to have Marcie crew for you this year at Wasatch Front 100..you're ready to tackle some serious terrain and distance.

I guess falling in mud and snow makes for an easier landing.

This is taper. I ran 17 miles. Last week it was 20. This run was more than an hour shorter because the terrain and conditions were easier.

So do you live right at the base of some mountains or something. How cool is that that you have trails right behind your house!!! I have a wash behind my house, but no way I could run in it.

So are you doing the Wasatch 100 or is Marc just kidding with you? That would be one killer race!!!

Fly, if you were to run the Wasatch 100, I'd fly out there and run with you for a while...seriously! (I'd love to do a 50 or 100 miler someday)

You are AWESOME Fly!! It was so good seeing you and your beautiful family. Your wife and kids are gorgeous!!

Btw, Ryan (my hubby) is trying to convince me to get into trail running once I have recovered. What do you think?

Y'all, I've no plans to run any ultras at this point. 26.2ish is far enough!

Rhett, Have you ever been to Salt Lake? I live on the hill next to the capitol.... (That's just north of the Salt Lake LDS Temple it you are more familiar with that) So it is just a few blocks and I'm on mountain trail, or the road in City Creek canyon which is only open to maintenance vehicles and a few others. For us it is a great place to live. Of course we don't have a garage or driveway and have to park on the street. Here is a pic of our house- http://www.utahheritagefoundation.com/preservation-resources/book

Teena, Nice to see you as well. If I'd known you, and everyone else, had to bolt before, during, and right after the ceremony, I would have done a better job at introductions and visiting- sorry if I was rude. I don't know about trail running after your recovery but if you decide to, I'd be happy to have you and/or other forumites join me on the trails around here.

You were definitely not rude Fly!!

I hated having to leave early but I had class that night (and was already going to be an hour late).

Maybe my hubby and I will take you up on the tour of your trails one of these days. (Do you need special trail shoes or do you just wear your regular running shoes?)

Fly, that is a way cool home. Is that a book that your house is on the front cover of?

Teena, I don't wear trail shoes but I do have rigid orthotics which protect the bottom of my feet from sharp rocks and there are rocks.... Just let me know when. We can see if Mark, Andy, or anyone else wants to join us as well.

Rhett, Thanks. Yes. It was quite a surprise when we first came across that book.

Nice intervals.

That's getting the heart pumping. Nice!

While I don't love the actual act of doing mile repeats, I always love how I feel when I am done with them. I think they help a lot with marathon training too. They make you mentally tough. Your coming up pretty close to your race aren't you. I'd guess you will stop these hard runs soon?

Way to go fly! That is some great speed work! Are your co-workers that fast too?

I had a lot of peer pressure to do karaoke tonight, but did you see break down? Nope.

I'm looking forward to seeing the race report, lemming-boy.

So you decided to do it! Just remember to take it easy so you don't ruin the big race you have really prepared for.

Last year I ran a half marathon the week before a full and it didn't seem to have much of an effect on me. You will do great at the trail marathon. Every time I run the trails I think about when we ran the BST last year and what a proficient trail runner you are.

Thanks Rhett and Andy. One thing about the trail full is that my goal is really just to finish without too much hurt.

Then I say run the 1/2 like you mean it and set a new PR!

You will do awesome. The half I dont think is that bad from the charts. So you can really smoke it. I hope to get there and cheer you in so look for us. As for the trail run. It sounds like the starting of a ultra marathoner.:) Wasatch 100 here he comes.

Awesome time. Pretty consistent miles, too.

Fly,

You are so stinkin' fast!!!

Yeah ... you are more than ready for your trail race.

Hope you are having a fantastic Sunday!!!

Congrats!

What an awesome race! I agree, it was a very well organized race and a nice course. You did great for just caving into peer pressure! Best of luck to you next week on your race.

Great race! Good luck on your full next week!

Way to go.

WOOT WOOT WOOT WOOT!!! Look at those splits man. Man your consistant. Great job on that speedy half. Your going to do awesome on the trail next weekend.

Fly great! job you inspire me.

Thank you all for the kind words.

When I grow up, I want to be like you and I'm not talking about being a fast runner. I'm all about geology. Nice job on your training run. I wish I could run a 5k at that speed.

So are you ready for Saturday! Has watching Boston has got you in the mood for a marathon?

Oh Kathie I hope I'm ready by Saturday morning.

Hey ... I didn't know that you even knew how to walk!!! :)

Nice job Fly!!

You are so ready for Saturday.

Get some rest so you can win your AG Sat. Maybe some easy cycling would do you some good.

REST REST REST REST REST REST REST REST

No amount of running now will help this weekend. Do something else besides running if you just have to get your energy out.

Go for a walk. It has really helped me with soreness. A good 20-30 mins will do you wonders. And you can even count it as rest.

So how are those legs feeling?

REST REST REST REST REST REST REST REST

Just a reminder.

better today but I didn't try running on them. I may do 3 ez miles either Thursday or Friday. Or I may walk or try sitting on my butt.

Mark...I'm going to take a break from running and the blog for a while to get my family in order.

Have you qualified for New York? What does it take to do that?

Mr. Gardinero, One needs family support to run, or at least to train, but I think I'm a better family supporter because I run.... Just don't forget to take care of yourself when you're taking care of your family.

Mr. Montelepsy, I qualified to avoid the lottery for New York. Getting older was key to my qualifying. I did it at the Painter's/ St. George 1/2 marathon (a certified course) in January with a sub 1:30:00 time. I may have also qualified at the Salt Lake Half, if they certified this years course.

Thanks for the advice, Mark. I'll still run, but not as much as I have been. I'll keep in touch.

1:30:00 for a half is crazy. I can barely get my hair done in that time much less run 13 miles.

I do appreciate the pep talk on qualifying for Boston. I will do it one day.

Tis why my hair is only 1/8 inch long.

Ah, what trail marathon are you running??

GOOD LUCK!

Good luck this weekend. That trail will be very muddy and wet be careful but have fun man. Your going to do awesome. You were like a mountain goat when we ran it. Now you will be doing it in a race setting.:)

Good luck on Saturday. It looks like it's going to be quite an adventure with the muddy trails.

GOOD LUCK at the Bonneville Trail Marathon!!! Be careful in the mud...uggg.

Good Luck tomorrow!!!!

Good luck Fly. I can't wait to hear how it goes. I'm sure you'll do great. Carefull out there on those slippery trails.

Wow. Thanks everyone. I'm as ready as I'll ever be. This is the first time I've included my gaiters in the pile of potential race gear for the morning.

Where the heck is it? I am still in the dark.

It is on the trails behind the capitol in Salt Lake, sort of between Red Butte and North Salt Lake.... http://www.users.qwest.net/~cirnielsen/bst.direct.html

http://www.users.qwest.net/~cirnielsen/bstannouncepage2.html

Do you have to follow those direction or are there signs and stuff? Is it a big race? Sounds fun!!! And the mud is becasue it is going to rain?

Sorry, my brain is fried this week. Too much homework for this mom who has been out of school for way too long!!! All week I have had you confused with another "fly" on the blog. I kept wondering why it said different stuff at the top. DA.

I will know better tomorrow but I think there will be flaging on the course, but I've hear people get off course every year. And yeah the mud will be from the rain, though there are sure to be mud puddles without rain tonight and tomorrow.

That's funny! I'm the other fly on the blog. I'm the fly on the wall.

That is how I will remember you, the OTHER fly.

Good luck, have fun, do well, have fun, have fun, have fun.

Hey other fly,

Are you done kicking butt on your marathon yet?

I changed my mind. He is NOT the OTHER fly he is THE FLY.

The marathon is done kicking my butt.

Report posted....

High Carumba!!!! That sounds like quite a race. Were you just covered in mud??? I am glad the weather did not pour on you today, but it was a little chilly (at least while I was sitting at soccer games). I am sorry you got lost, that is a bummer (but you burned a few hundred extra calories, so go eat a Snickers or something)!!!

Great job, HUGE accomplishment.

Fly your awesome. With losing so much time losing the trail for a bit. You came in very strong. Great report I loved it. I remember how some of those miles we ran were tough with how steep both up and down. And you did awesome. Gratz on your first trail marathon.

Well done! That is a very good time for that course and especially on your first trail race. Keep on the trails some more, you have some great talent for it.

Oh, and Karl Melzer is recognized the one of the top, if not the very top mountain ultrarunner in the entire world. We are very proud of our local hero and we learn so much from him. When he is at his best, no one can touch him.

Are you serious Fly??? Are you completely nuts??? Man ... you are amazing.

You are amazing!!

What did your wife and kids think?

COMPLETELY COOL, TOUGH, INSANE, AND HARDCORE!!!

Nice job!

I looked at the mountains today and thought about you running the BST race. The mountains looked like they're from Washington, foggy, rainy, misty.

You DID AWESOMELY AMAYHHZING!!!

CONGRATULATIONS! You're one talented runner and adventurous trail runner. Your family must be so proud of you. You know I AM!!! THANKS for sharing your report. I LOVE reading every word.

Absolutely amazing. Congrats your deserve it.

Chocolate Turtle

Sounds like an amazing run. Congratulations. Are you hooked on trail marathons now?

Holy mudpies, Flyman! You're a billy goat.

Hey it was fun seeing you zip uphill and exchaning cheers as I was lazily running down that two-way traffic section of Dry Fork :) Crowd Support works both ways LOL.

Wow - great job! That is one tough marathon from what I have heard. I'm actually glad I got injured a month ago and chose to not run it.

Sounded like quite an adventure! Not sure how I'd like trail marathons..it would be very difficult to compare one race to another. They're so unique. Great job, and how did you place overall?

Wow Fly I thought of you on Saturday, in Bountiful at 7:00 am it was beautiful and I thought you were having the same luck. I didn't even think about all the fog. So are you hooked on the trail runs... wasatch 100 next for you?

Mark...How's the recovery coming along?

You are a wild man! Nuff said!

Havent seen a post for a while. Hope your recovering well. Everything alright??

Hope you had a great week Fly!!!

Where's Fly?

Thank you all for the kudos.

I took a week of R&R, that's Rest from Running. I was very busy with house projects. But now I'm back and raring to go!

I may, well most likely will, run another trail race but I'm not ready for anything close to a 100 miler. Perhaps I'll see if the Wasatch Steeple Chase still has openings.

Next up will be the 5k my work puts on for employees. It is in a couple of weeks and will happen during our lunch break. Other than that, the only thing for sure is St. George. I hope to train hard for St. George.

Thanks again for the encouragement!

Sounds like you're all recovered. What's next?

Yea for running with the fast guys. We missed you around here!

Welcome back to the land of the running.

Glad to see your back at it again. Smart job on resting up some. When is the next race??

I wish I could run with the fast guy, probably couldn't keep up though. Glad your back at it.

I'm too Garmin dependent to run without mine. I don't know if you're the same and had to force yourself to run without data. Anyway, good job.

I'm sure he said the same thing!

Welcome back, Fly.

I kind of like running without my Garmin. It doesn't match my shoes.... uh I mean it's nice not to think about pace and distance all of the time.

Next will be my work's 5k.

I can not look at mine while I run but I want the data after. I guess I just want to verify that I worked as hard as it felt.

Thanks Mark. I'm all self conscious now. Where will I find a pink garmin in Iraq?

Fly ... you ARE THE FAST GUY!!!!

Hmmm ... maybe you should start inventing and selling "skins" for Garmins!! :)

Today I wanted to wear my Garmin but it wasn't in my gym bag.

Monte & Tina, I've given this some serious thought and more classy than a pink Garmin or pink Garmin skin would be wrapping your Garmin in fluorescent pink duct tape. You can get it here and I bet they ship to Iraq. - http://www.findtape.com/shop/product.aspx?id=341&bc=F&setscreen=1&width=902&height=0

Tina, I think I'll make it a goal for my work's 5k to finish within 4 minutes behind the fast guy.

Thanks for the shopping tips Fly! You're such a sweetie!

You're a riot Fly!!!

(and I am sure that you will be well within 4 minutes of whomever this so called "Fast Guy" is)

Good thing you hard the Garmin or you may have been confused. Did you put any flourescent tape on it to match your shirt?

LOL great job man. Looks like you got your legs back already. Your a animal. Are you going to do a version of the slam this year??

great run...what is your next race?

Hey, Fly..do you want to run Steamboat Marathon on June 7th? I have one Comped entry...it's not too far to drive, is it? It starts at about 8100 ft..right up your alley!

TOO LATE - Mark-O already took the free slot. But, you're still welcome to come run with us.

Hey, how come you do not have a time accomplishment for a 10k? Have you never run one? Just curious!!!

MarcE, Thanks for the offer for Steamboat. I really want to run that, but it wont' be this year.

Kelli, I have run a couple 10k's but I don't remember my time. I'll look it up and update....

Good luck today on the race. Any goals on it?? Sub 20 again??

Finish upright. I've got a cold or something.

Well, I hope you start feeling better, soon. Have fun at the 5k

How long is the steeple chase? Do you have to jump over stuff like the horse do?

Oh I forgot to say welcome back we missed you!

Thank you Don and Kathie. The Steeplechase is 17.5 miles with 9,000 feet of elevation (up & down).

"The Wahsatch Steeplechase is equivalent to a marathon, but run on a mountain trail with a vertical gain and loss of approximately 9000 feet in 17.5 miles. The course favors the up- hill runner right from the start, gaining 4500 vertical feet in the first 6 miles. After recovering from the seemingly endless vertical treadmill, you’ll find yourself at the top of a false summit. A greeting by the resident rattlesnake here is common, but your attention will quickly shift to negotiating “the crags” that sport a difficulty rating of 5.4 (Yosemite Decimal System) before reaching the actual summit of Black Mountain.

While the first part of the course favors the uphill runner, the rest of the course is quite the opposite--it’s all down-hill from here! As you descend from the summit to Smuggler’s Notch you’ll find a fully equipped aid station, a picture or item tacked on a tree (to insure you’re on the right trail and to verify that you’ve run the entire course) and 2.5 miles of quad-burning, gut-wrenching, knee-breaking downhill on an overgrown, root-infested single-track trail that leads to Rotary Park at the head of City Creek Canyon.

Now you’ll follow the road for 2 or 3 miles (who’s counting anyway) before moving back to the trail. The trail parallels the City Creek Canyon Road for approximately 3 miles before a short distance of pavement leads to the head of Memory Grove Canyon. Then it’s back to the trail for about 1.5 miles to the finish.

Have Fun!"

http://www.wahsatchsteeplechase.com/

I'm out to run my 5k. I'm substituting a can of Mountain Dew for training and good health. (Mountain Dew is really kind of nasty.)

Fly, it's good to hear from you again. As always, you have a great sense of humor about running and racing. Welcome back.

Man that elusive sub 20 5k happened again.:( Great job and I cant wait till you are feeling well and try it. Great job man. And good luck on that steeplechase. It actually sounds like a good race and a excellent challenge.

Welcome back, my friend! We missed you.

Bummer about the 5K DQ..I'm guessing that you must have been in the lead if you took a wrong turn? I thought you had a few 16 minute 5Kers where you worked...they must have been on vacation.

Go for the Steeplechase thingy. Better you than me. You're starting to enjoy those mountain goat runs, aren't you. I hear the downhill is tougher than the ups. Watch out for those rattlesnakes!

The fast guy was there but he was too far ahead to follow. He passed me after I took the short cut. He seemed to be running at a comfortable pace. He didn't seem to be breathing hard, hadn't broken a sweat, and had no problem having a one sided "conversation" with me (I was working way to hard to talk). I think he finished in 17:0?. He did run the course in reverse as a cool down with me.

Dang it, Fly. Did you lead anyone down the wrong path?

Hey there Fly!!

I've missed you!! Glad you're back. :)

"Dang it, Fly. Did you lead anyone down the wrong path?"

OH YEAH. The fast lady followed but she realized the error and tried to make up for it by doing a sort of double back.

Hello Teena.

Is the fast lady still your friend?

Wow that sounds really fun. So in this race the better you know the course the faster you will be! When will you know if you are going to run it?

WOW!!! That sounds more like a practice in survival than a run!!

You're too cool! :)

...birds singing, deer prancing, mucus splattering...

Glad I was not there to get splattered!

I see you are promoting the Steeple Chase...if it wouldn't kill me I might give it a try but I like living.

The cold is gone now right? Steeple Chase? You're too COOL for words!

How are you training for the Steeple Chase? Are you jumping over things and landing in puddles?

Rather than jumping over things and landing in puddles, my top-secret training plan includes tripping over things and twisting my ankles. Actually I don't need much training at this. I'm already pretty good at it.

Kathie- Silly, it won't kill you.

Did you find any nice specimens?

Lots of them.

Cool. Was that for work or pleasure? I used to collect rocks with my daughter about 10 years ago, but she lost interest...now my boys are getting to the age where they would probably enjoy it...time to dig out the tools and maps! :)

It was pleasurable work.

Too bad you are so far away.... Lots of neat stuff out this way.

Wow, that had to have been a tough run. Are you still running the race on the 13th?

I sounds like you are prepared for the race. For some reason I thought the steeplechase was Saturday and kept checking your blog for a report Then when I saw this I thought "wow that is a really crappy race report" then I realized it was just a training run.

Look like your heading towards doing more xcountry and trail running. Great job on scoping out the course.

GOOD JOB running the course. Sounds brutal. Good to hear the cold is all better. How exciting to try new running adventures! I just think you are totally so COOL! :)

Hey Mr. Gardinero, I've put my money down so I had better show up. It should be fun.

Where is the impending family vacation gonna be? "Impending" doesn't sound as good as "happily long anticipated". C'mon, you're FLY, you're COOL, you can find time. Did you read the June's RW? There's an article on running while traveling.

Train well. Run fast.

I started my training today too!

I see you also chose cougar blue to post in too...all good new should be posted in blue!

Oh man ... all of this training for SGM is sending me into some kind of something!!! :)

Oh Fly ... you will make it work. You seem to be the perfect balancer of things!!

Btw, why didn't you tell me that I live in a place that will be devestated if a major earthquake hits??? Oh ... maybe because you don't know where I live!! STINK!!!

Smooth, The vacation is to Yellowstone :) with my in-laws :~ The hard part will be finding time to run without having my wife feel like I've abandonded her with the kids.

Kathie, I stole (cut and paste) the Cougar blue from you (I appologize to all Cougars).

Teena, I'm guessing you live in Utah and along the Wasatch Front. So hopefully you don't live in an old un-reinforced masonry house.

Yes, it is, thanks for reminding me...

YELLOWSTONE, I wanna go to Yellowstone!!

Okay, so what plan are you following because I was SUPPOSED to do that same run yesterday??

Great job.

Pfitz's 18/70 plan. Is that what you are supposed to be doing?

I read that same workout for day 1 in Advanced Marathoning. I was going to follow it, but not to a T. I run with a group on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I want to keep doing that, but they do all of the speedwork and hill work on those days. I have to tweak it somehow.

I am dumb. I just realized that was what you were talking about. DA! I think I am going for the 18/55 plan. I topped out at 80 miles last year when training for the marathon, but I was to beat all of the time to function in life. So, it was too much. 55 is sounding much better, but I hope it is enough to beat my Ogden time.

Kelli, 80 miles is a lot for anyone with a life. Go for quality over quantity and you'll beat little kids in the final sprint.

Those darn 3 year olds get me every time!

Very solid.

Two nice days of running in a row. Well done.

You're the man!

great job how does the steeple chase fit into your training plan?

Nice run Fly! BTW....Huans and I want to thank you again for our wedding gift, it goes without saying it was his favorite (mine too)!

Kathie, I guess the Steeple Chase is a 17 mile long training run.

Kristi, Glad you two liked your silly gift.

Your friends are speedy. Was it really easy?

Always fun to run with friends! :)

Nice.

I absolutely LOVE runs like that (makes me feel like a "runner" not a "jogger!").

Very strong.

Yeah for feeling good. That is one heck of a general aerobic pace. GREAT JOB!!!

Thanks for your tips, I am not so great at figuring these things out (plus I had to return the book to the library, I had already had it 9 weeks!!!) I am really not following the plan at all, but trying to follow the mileage suggestions as well as pacing and stuff. It is hard when someone else plans two of your runs every week.

I need someone to run with me and show me what a stride is. THAT I do not get.

Mark, since you're such a good trail runner, you should do the Triple Trail Challenge up in Park City this summer. In case you don't know, the first race is the Jupiter Peak Steeplechase(16 miles), then the Park City Half (or Full, your choice) Marathon. And Finally, the Mid-Mountain Marathon to complete the series. I'm thinking about doing it as part of my St. George training.

Good luck tomorrow Mark!

Good luck on whatever you're doing tomorrow!

It would take me a week to recover from the runs you do!!!

Again I am crazy and thought your race was this weekend! Next weekend right?

I was waiting to read about the race too. I guess I am a week off also.:(

Are you running UVM?

Teena, he's running the Wahsatch Steeplechase this weekend. Can't wait to read about it.

Good Luck next weekend!

I didn't know you are running UVM. Do you have a time goal?

Opps I just read the above comments and now I remember you are doing the steeplechase. How far is that?

Thanks Dale and Kathy. I'll try to report asap but immediately after the race I have to pick my kids up from the sitter and run a bunch of errands.

It's advertised as 17.5 miles and 9,000 feet of vertical gain and loss.

I'm thinking of this race as having 4 sections:

"4500 vertical feet in the first 6 miles"

Slow walk and scramble miles on a craggy ridge, "difficulty rating of 5.4 (Yosemite Decimal System)."

"2.5 miles of quad-burning, gut-wrenching, knee-breaking downhill on an overgrown, root-infested single-track trail."

Then fast miles running down a road and mellow trail back to the start.

(I'm trying to get mentally ready.)

Wow Fly, people actually sign up to do that? You are amazing.

Hey Fly have you decided what your goal is going to be for SG?? Sub 3? Or 3:15??