Wheeler Farm Loops

AM - Horsepark with Roo.

PM - 6 miles at Kiwanis Park in Provo - USATF-Utah XC Champs 5K in 21:32. Ran w/ Lloyd Hansen and his son - they both outkicked me. I wore my basketball shorts.

AM - 10 miles.

AM - 6 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

Felt good today - loose(r) and a more flowy stride. Nice progress. That being said, I decided to end the racing season (other than a turkey trot w/ my family) and skip the big ones still on the schedule - RnR Vegas 1/2 and Cal International Marathon.

The potential outcomes of another short block of training and races are...

-Run fast, come out unscathed [nearly impossible]
-Run fast, prolong / worsen hamstring injury [somewhat possible]
-Run slow, come out unscathed [possible]
-Run slow, prolong / worsen hamstring injury [probable]

I don't feel good about those odds. I'm going to have the chance to run some great races this upcoming winter/spring, but I need to fix my hamstring so I can fully capitalize on those opportunities. I'll work on rehabbing and just stick to easy running for another month or two, then start the long ramp-up to a spring marathon once I feel balanced and uncompromised. When talking about my top choice for a spring marathon last week, a good friend and supporter ended a message with "Get yourself ready!"... simple advice... and squeezing out another marathon isn't the way to do that.

AM - 6 miles.

PM - 7 miles.

AM - 7 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 7 miles.

PM - 7 miles.

AM - 7 miles.

PM - 7 miles.

AM - 9 miles from our campsite on the Temple Mountain Road (near Goblin Valley). Spent the rest of the day hiking in Crack Canyon and exploring the swell.

This run/road goes high on the all-time list.

Crack Canyon

Temple Mountain at dusk.

AM - 8 miles on the Behind the Reef road. I wasn't sure the Temple Mountain Road could be topped, but this was just as beautiful (and hard!). We camped right at the intersection of the two, and several other trails/ATV roads. Awesome area for running... and desert exploring! We checked out some old ruins from uranium prospectors, then did a hike in Ding Canyon before driving home.

Behind the Reef road

Roo is #1 in his age group for canyoneering. How many 12 week olds are tearing it up like this? Amiee is raising the world's most awesome puppy.

But sometimes he still needs some help from Andrea on the bigger obstacles. To be fair, so do I.

I'll post more photos later in the week. Hoping for one more desert trip before Thanksgiving.

AM - 7 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 8 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 7 miles.

PM - 7 miles.

More Desert.

AM - 7 miles. 

PM - 5 miles.

I took a hard fall after being caught off guard by a sheet of ice this morning. Luckily I only banged my hip, shoulder, and head. Why do businesses still have sprinkler systems turned on?

AM - 10 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 13 miles. The light dusting of snow made for a brilliant morning. I enjoyed it... but these guys probably enjoyed it even more.

AM - 4 miles in Park City.

AM - 8 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 8 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 8 miles.

PM - 6 miles + 8 x 100m strides*.

*Might have approached marathon pace on some of the faster ones.

AM - 8 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 14 miles.

AM - 8 miles.

AM - 8 miles in the snow. Winter!

PM - 6 miles + 8 x 100m strides.

AM - 10 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

AM - 10 miles.

PM - 6 miles + 8 x 100m strides.

PM - 5 miles. Winter slush mess in Connecticut. Did the standard Tuesday red-eye to JFK and then drove up to Monroe, but this time we didn't go into NYC at all, which was a huge blessing.

We decided to run the Commodore Hull Road Race in Shelton/Derby this year on Thanksgiving morning. The course was altered due to the snow, and it ended up being well short of 5K. That being said, this was one of the best organized small races I've been a part of. They even had a live webcast and drone flying around taking pictures!

I ran at last month's marathon pace for almost 3 miles and considered that a success being that I've hardly broken 8:00 pace for the past 6 weeks. Finishing up with a seemingly healthier hamstring and then running in with Dad / Andrea / cousin Andy (the three of them had packed it up XC style) and then back again to pace in my Mom was what this one was all about. We all had fun.

Dad (orange cap) executing proper tangents!

AM - 6 miles.

PM - 6 miles.

Cold and snowy Thanksgiving this year back East. Luckily my aunt and uncle have the necessary natural resources and ammenities.

AM - 8 miles. Thought about doing a longer run today, but wanted to go for a walk with Andrea and my parents instead. Flew back to Utah in the evening.

AM - 15 miles.