I'm retired from racing. Really.

AM- 5 by myself, then 5.5 with both kids.  I was supposed to go to FL later today for work, but they decided this morning to push it back to later this week.

PM- Trail run with Cody.  Hot in town (90+ deg) but a bit cooler in the mountains, plus lots of the run was in the bottom of shady, cool canyons.  We did Rick's Canyon to Steel Hollow- medium effort up to the top, then really pushed it most of the way down Steel, which is a blast to run down.  Some of the miles coming down were sub-6:00, with stretches as fast as 5:15-ish- pretty darn fast supposing it is technical downhill.  We slowed up a bit after Cody got stung by a wasp- he was a good sport, and we admired the swelling on the drive home.  1:41:00 for about 12 miles, with 2200 ft climb and descent.

By the way, Cody, I have that we ran this together July 30, 2007- so 2 years ago!  And it took us 1:43:30.  Definitely does not seem that long ago.

AM- GC 6.  Saw Cody heading out just as I was finishing.

PM- 8.5 with family.

AM- Well, I had an exciting morning and a new experience.  I left my house at 5:15 headed towards the golf course.  After less then a quarter mile, with no warning, a big dog suddenly ran out of a yard, crossed the road, and attacked me.  Now, I've had lots of dogs run at me, bark, even nip me, and I've had dogs bite me once or twice.  But I've never had a dog attack me like this.  It was a full-grown, black Rottweiler, and it was vicious.  No barking or tail wagging, just snarling, growling, and biting.  100 lbs of teeth.  I kept circling on the road, kicking him away with my feet, while he kept charging in, trying to bite.  I was extremely fortunate that a car turned onto the road just then.  I waved my hands and yelled at it to stop and help.  The man rolled down his window, yelling and whistling to distract the dog.  He stopped right next to me but it still took me 30 seconds to open the door and hop in, due to the continued aggression of the dog.  I was scared out of my mind, my heart was pounding, and the adrenaline was surging.  The whole time, another dog (yellow lab, I think) stood in the same yard and barked at the scene.  Once in the car, we drove a few blocks down the street while I checked myself to make sure I wasn't bit.  The dog didn't follow, so I profusely thanked the man for his help, hopped out, and ran home.  The whole attack lasted less than 1-2 minutes, I think, though I can't be sure amidst the fear, adrenaline and confusion.  For the first time ever, I called the cops on a dog- there was no doubt that I did not want this dog around- heck, our little 12 year old newspaper girl would be riding down that street at 5:45.

The cops came and found the dog.  It tried to attack one of the officers, as well, but then ran off, though I noticed they kept their batons at the ready in their hands for the next 10 minutes.  They talked to the property owner, who said the lab was his but not the Rottweiler.  The officers said they would send out animal control, then left.  I ran around my neighborhood for a while, and will admit I was very jumpy.  I even saw a few other dogs in people's yards, with each sighting eliciting a huge adrenaline rush. 

Hope I never have that experience again.  I have never been that scared or threatened by a dog, and was reminded just how helpless we are against them.  It obviously was not a trained attack dog, otherwise I wouldn't be writing this right now.  But I know I will be even more cautious of big dogs, esp. Rottweilers and pit bulls, in the future.  And to everyone reading this who owns a dog, please keep them restrained at all times, even if they don't have a history of attacking people.  You never know what they will do in the dark at 5 am when a stranger runs by.

PM- 12 miles on Green Canyon, with 1800 feet climbing.  I love the trail, esp. the new singletrack.  My legs were very tired by the end from the mileage recently.  And it appears my business trip to FL won't be till next week, so I should be able to run Jupiter Steeplechase.  I'm very happy about that.

AM- 6 easy at the gym.  No way I was running outside after yesterday's adventure.  I may be traumatized for a little while...

AM- 6 easy with 4 striders, 2xPW.  Beautiful morning for a run.  No work today- heading to Park City for my race plus 2 nights at a resort.  One of those "$25 for 2 nights if you listen to our timeshare presentation" kinds of thing.  Should be a nice getaway.

Noon- 3 more with the family.

Quick report- Jupiter Steeplechase today in Park City.  Great race.  I ran it last year in 2:08:00 and placed 4th.  The field was much more competitive this year- I improved my time by over 5.5 minutes, but got 7th place (my time this year would have taken 2nd place last year).  But I had a blast, loved the downhills, and am excited about a huge time improvement... 

Long report- My family had a 2 night stay in PC, so I was able to sleep in this morning.  Ran a few miles in the hotel facility (no hills) and bumped into another runner, who ended up finishing just ahead of me.  Saw Twinkies at the start, plus **lots** of good runners- this is on the La Sportiva racing circuit with big prize money, so it was stacked.  Weather was 45 deg and absolutely perfect.  Last year I started off too slow, so wanted to fix that this year.

Race started with the field heading out very quickly.  I eventually settled into about 8th spot for most of the ascent, with a bit of passing and being passed.  It is a very steady climb of over 3000 ft in 8 miles, with the last .25 mile being so steep it is barely walkable.  Splits were 9:22, 9:07, 8:48, 7:27 (this mile had some flat and some down, which was a very welcome respite from the never ending uphills), 9:59, 9:34, 14:48 (includes the very steep ascent to Jupiter Peak).  Luke Nelson (La Sportiva runner) was a couple minutes ahead at the summit, and Brad Mitchell (also La Sportiva) and another guy barely edged me out over the summit (I can't really say they passed me, since we were all just slowly bushwacking up the mountain on our own paths, but they were just ahead), so I was in 10th place at this point, with another guy just behind.  It sure is hard to breath at 10,000 ft while climbing straight up a mountain while eating Shot Blocks.  Then it is a slight downhill, then another steep climb to Tri-Counties peak.  This mile was 9:07, and I hit the summit in 1:16:50- last year was 1:21 and 7th place at this point, so I was more than 4 minutes ahead of my time but further back in the standings.  At least I can say I didn't go out too slowly this year. 

I love trail running, and by that I primarily mean I love downhill singletrack.  LOVE it.  I tolerate climbing just for the downhills.  So, now the race was getting fun.  I quickly caught the 2 guys in front of me but could not pass them due to the singletrack.  Rather than force anything, I just relaxed for about a mile and let them carry me along. 6:33 mile.  Then we turned onto a jeep trail and I picked up the pace, moving into 8th place.  Next few miles were 5:30, 5:42, and 5:16 (what!?!  That split surprised me, given the technical nature of the downhill- flying).  At this point, Luke Nelson suddenly popped into view much to my surprise.  He pulled off so I could pass him, moving into 7th place- I was very surprised to pass him, since he beat me by 7.5 minutes this year at the Wahsatch Steeplechase.  I had no idea who else was ahead of me.  Next miles were 5:40, 6:12, and 6:11.  The last 3 miles of the course have lots of switchbacks which make it very hard to keep up the pace or to see where the competition is.  I would say some miles have as many as 15 or more switchbacks.  The last mile actually has some very painful, though somewhat short, uphill which saps all momentum.  No one ever appeared ahead of me, but I finished with a fast kick (aided by a nice downhill) and 6:04 mile pace.  Total time 2:02:21, 7:38 pace- 22 seconds faster per mile than last year.  I was very, very happy with how I raced and how I felt, though nowhere near my top 3 goal.  Winning time was 1:52, 3rd place was 1:58.  Man I love trail races!

Ended up in 7th overall, which was great since the top 7 got prizes.  There were a bunch of free shoes and some ski passes to PC- I ended up with a ski pass.  Sweet.  Hopefully I can use it.  Talked to a bunch of nice guys after the race, cheered Twinkie in, then headed back to the hotel for a nice shower.  Now I'll spend the rest of the day enjoying Park City, then fly to Florida tomorrow.  If I get in some good miles and BW while there, I'll aim for a PR at TOU 1/2 and full, my next 2 races.  Then I transistion fully into my ultra training for my 100 milers next year.  Should be a blast.