Seeking a better country...

7:30 a.m.  Same as Wednesday, but I brought Jack.  He started saying, "Uhhhhhhhhhh" over the bumpy parts today.  4.5 miles in he fell asleep.  Right on cue I'm coming down with something and rubbed a blister just under my pinky toe.  Marathon must be getting close.

9 p.m.  Final longish run for a week.  After working around the house and yards all day long, I finally got out for a lonely, moonshadowed run along LPT.  Sprinklers and drinks at one park near the turnaround were the highlight.  After being disappointed in Farmington with no water, I went south instead, and was happy to find that NSL is capable of providing culinary water in public parks.  

I didn't see another runner, and only 3 bikers.  This speaks to my sanity level; there are much better ways to spend approx. 2 hrs on Saturday night. 

9:30 p.m.  6.2 "why am I even out here?" miles.  It was sultry, and not because I saw attractive people.  Or makey outey people at the park.  Sultry because I had to stop for the oven restrooms at two parks.  It's not as hot as a mid-day porta-potty, but it was still toasty.

When I arrived home I had a code red and caught up my 11 words with friends games while rocking on the back patio watching the moon rise.  Jack even woke up, so we enjoyed the wind and tramp.  I'm glad I ran so I could deserve the code red.   

11:30 p.m.  Long day at work.  I watched the wind from a window, and felt the cold.  How often do you get a chance to run in 48 degrees on June 5th?  I brushed my teeth and headed out.  To my surprise, Nena joined me on her bike.  We rode under the full moon and chatted.  She thought most of my stories were fictional.  

I'm trying the marathon taper where you run no more miles than the number of days till the race.  So far it's working out great.  I'm over-hydrating all week for a system flush, and tomorrow is the big eating day.  I've been telling myself for weeks that I'll get lots of sleep this week, but a work crunch and 6 a.m. sunrises are interfering with that.  I had a great nap on Sunday, but gave away those make up hours within one night.  I've got to get more than 6 hours of sleep for the next couple nights...  

Friday afternoon I drove with my little-A girls to Springville.  We stayed with a friend and spent the afternoon picking strawberries, playing with little kids, and watching movies.  We had the obligatory spaghetti dinner, and retired around 10.

For the first time in 3 marathons, my sleep was horrible.  I know I slept some, but never deeply or in such a way to be refreshed.  No matter; I never plan on sleeping well the night before, and try to make up for it by sleeping extra the week preceding a race.  At 2:10 I was wide awake.  I lay there for a time, thinking about the race, trying to come up with a plan that had thus far eluded me.  Still nothing.  I got up and ate oatmeal with Nate and Liz, plus 4 pieces of toast.  We got all our items gathered and left for the buses around 3.  

The bus was unusually warm, which was strange.  The heater wasn’t on.  I lowered the window, and was surprised at the warm air blowing in.  Even as we climbed up to Wallsburg, the temp didn’t drop much.  It was around 55 at the start; I wish it was 10 degrees cooler.  I managed 2 POP stops, including one at 5:58.  I made it to the line just in time for the cannon shot, and we were off.

Miles 1-5

I ran with a guy named Ben.  He was a marathon rookie with big plans for a 6:50 pace.  At mile 3 he bumped into me.  A few minutes later I checked my watch.  It had turned off, and I lost three minutes.  No big deal.  At this stage I’m still running without a plan, so having an accurate Garmin didn’t matter.  He was more conversational than I was, and we ran side by side until he noticed the pace drifting in the 7’s.  He asked if I wanted to come along, and I told him good luck.  I figured (incorrectly) he’d come back to me in the end.  I wasn’t feeling ready to take my perceived effort level any higher.  It ends up he executed pretty well--I saw him in the finisher’s area and he came in at 3:04.  These miles felt fine; not effortless, but not hard at all.

Miles 6-11

I don’t know the exact moment we picked up the wind, but during these miles it became very noticeable, then troublesome, then discouraging.  Combined with the sustained climbing sections, things slowed down quite a bit.  I was also noticing some stomach issues that seemed to manifest themselves a few minutes after passing each aid station.  It wasn’t too serious, at least not as serious as the woman who “hid” behind a telephone pole and took care of business.  I guess she figured all the runners were too focused on hitting their splits they wouldn’t pay her much mind.   At one point, I considered leaving the course and bushwacking down to an outhouse, but just kept running.  I had a 5 hr energy at mile 9, and gagged down one Gu chomp. 

The wind blew.  It shifted in inopportune ways, staying a headwind, no matter which way the road turned.  The canyon was funneling the breeze right at the runners.  I finally got smart and tucked in behind a tall guy.  As we passed other runners I told them to tuck in.  We got a group of 7-8 together and took turns pulling against the wind.  This helped a lot, mentally if little else.  At least we weren’t running alone.  I remember being “knocked” off balance once by a cross breeze, so this wasn’t an insignificant factor.  I’d guess it was sustained 20-25 mph for at least 10 miles in the canyon, and still a headwind on University, but less intense.  I kept hoping the canyon walls would shield us, but with rare exceptions, it blew in my face from the highway to the finish.

Miles 12-18

As I neared the half, I was still with a group, a bit ahead of the 3:05 pacer.  My gut was really complaining, and I ducked into a POP at mile 13.  (1.5 minutes)  No joy.  That excuse gone for good, I crossed the half at 1:32 on neighboring Garmins, but 1:35 on the clock.  Still running without a plan, one began to take shape.  I didn’t figure I’d negative split the marathon.  Let me put it another way.  My chances of negative split were zero, unless I got a ride.  But 3:0x was definitely in sight.  I knew the wind was taking a toll, and although I’d reached the halfway point, the work wasn’t half done.  So 3:0x it was.  My watch was screwed up with mile markers, so I had stopped checking it, except for pace.  My POP stop lost me my group, but I soon found others of their ilk, and we continued down the canyon, sometimes drafting, running horrible tangents while the traffic raced by.  An iPod might have helped during these miles, but probably not, as the noise from the cars and trucks, not to mention the whistling wind would have made listening a chore itself. 

Miles 19-23

The character revealing miles.  “I’ve run 19 miles.  I’ve gone pretty fast.  It’s &#*@ windy.  My stomach hurts.  I need to puke.  This sucks.  I’m not going to be able to stay at this pace.”  While bombarding myself with these positive affirmations, the 3:05 guy passed me.  “No problem.  3:05 would be nice, but for you, today, that wasn’t in the cards.”  It was actually kind of encouraging.  That doesn’t make any sense, but it did at the time.  I felt encouraged that the 3:05 guy was dropping me like a bad habit.  Maybe I should have eaten more.  At this point I had 50 calories of chomps, two 5 hour energy and a few oz of powerade.  My gut felt horrible.  I thought, “If I can just puke my guts out, I’ll feel better.”  My effort level felt really high, but the pace wasn’t there.  At this point, I saw Tara.  She ran with me for a mile, and was very encouraging.  She helped me hold off the walking demon an extra mile.  After she left, I ran on until she went by me in her car.  Once she was out of sight, I could walk without shame; and I did, except for the sign I put on my back that said “Smack me if I’m walking.”  Instead of smacks, I got a few pats on the back, and some encouragement.  I have 7 separate minute-ish, embarrassing walking spikes on my graph.  “You are giving away too many seconds.  You have to keep running!  Run!  Run, you lazy &&#@!  You didn’t do all this training to walk in another one!”   I tried to screw my courage to the sticking place and PERSIST! but each time my gut would respond unfavorably.  For shame.

To the end

By now I was close enough to the finish to smell the barn.  I regrouped a bit, and ran the last 5k in 23 minutes, including a 6:50 final mile.  At that point in the race, I guess I finally believed I could go hard for that many more minutes, whereas at mile 19, there was too much distance remaining for me to be able to convince myself.  Also, when the 3:10 pacer went by me by himself, I thought, “No. Freaking. Way.”  I latched on to him, following for a mile.  He seemed to be rasping and struggling, so I passed him and ran on, gaining speed, watching the big blue arch get closer.  Tara appeared again, and encouraged me to greater effort, pointing out three runners for me to catch.  Thanks, Tara,  I caught them.

The time when I crossed was 3 minutes off, just like at the half.  ????  I entered my bib at a tent, and was rewarded with a 3:10:16.  Results still aren’t online, but I hope my official time is lower.  I beat the 3:10 guy, after all…shouldn’t that translate to a 3:0x?

At the finish, I saw my parents, ate some Creamies, had a Dew, and watched the other finishers.  Nate’s parents took us back to his house, where we fed the kids, got cleaned up, and came on home.  The girls watched Wallace and Grommit while I drove, trying to keep my knee from locking up.  Traffic was great.  I set the cruise control in the carpool lane, and never did anything except follow the road.

By 5 p.m., my appetite returned.  Luckily, I was at Mandarin at the time.  I left before dessert; my legs would not tolerate sitting anymore.  The 1.2 mile walk home seemed like a good idea.  Today I’m very sore, but nothing a week won’t cure.  Great sleep last night, that’s for sure.

I know this is long, but marathons give me a lot to think about.  Life is full of ups and downs, steady times, and grueling moments.  I had it all today.  I’m not ecstatic about the result, but I recognize how fortunate I am to be able to toe the line and run as well as I can, AS WELL AS I CAN.  I think I gave 95% today.  It wasn’t the full-final, but it was a reasonable effort.  Today it was a headwind that dampened my spirits, and added a level of challenge beyond just the distance.

Life presents a variety of obstacles that deter us from finishing well.  I love what the marathon is teaching me about overcoming myself AND enduring on the way to a strong finish.  

Other than a little bit knotty calves, my legs as though they are returning to normal.  I can stand up and descend stairs normally.  I considered a  BST run this morning to check out the fire in Centerville, but stayed in bed instead.  Maybe tonight, if they let me leave work.

Everything still works.  Right knee is stiff, left calf is knotty--no big deal.  I think I'll reduce the mileage a bit for the next few weeks and do more speed stuff for 5ks and Desnews 10k, then jump back in getting ready for Huntsville.  15 weeks, which is more than 6, by the way.

Herding cats run; Jack in the stroller, A-girls on bikes.  We saw peacocks and ate a donut.  Nobody was tired at the same time, so I always had one girl 100' ahead and one 100' behind.  It's hard to pay attention to that many driveway and cross street hazards at a time.  Neither stern lectures or kindly encouragement could stimulate them to greater effort.  We made it home, though.

Nice and easy with Tara and Jack.  I spent the run feeling jealous of the Wasatch Back participants.  The whole thing is kind of ridiculous, but it's a lot of fun, especially running in beautiful, different places.  If 10000 people want to celebrate fitness and the outdoors, I want to be a part of that, despite the nonsense.

8:15 p.m.  BST with Kurt.  We went to school together from 4th grade on.  He did ragnar over the weekend, so we just banged out the miles and visited, easy pace.  Saw a dead snake on the sidewalk rather than the trail.  No rattle, but it still gave me the willies.  Serpents are strange creatures.

So I've been thinking about UVM.  Regardless of the wind this year, I think the canyon section of that course is horrible.  I hate running on concrete in any circumstance, and having rumble strips to trip over made it even worse.  The traffic noise was anything but soothing, and of course there aren't any spectators to speak of during this stretch.

Two other quibbles, one at the start and finish.  At the start, it would be nice to stand in a portapotty line without being soaked by sprinklers.  Perhaps in future years they could persuade the rancher to irrigate some other time.  Finally, the race information distributed at the expo indicated there would be ice baths at the race's end.  I guess they got held up in traffic or something, because there were none.  Other than this, the race seemed well organized, and it's a great event for Provo, but I have very little interest in returning.

I must be feeling back to normal if I'm complaining...  

6:15 a.m.  10k+ to Farmington and back.  I ran hard then easy then hard on the 5k course.  The little hill is a bugger.  I came home ravenous and ate 4 eggs, ham and toasts.  Jack didn't like the eggs.  I gave him one bite.  He pulled it out of his mouth and scrutinized it, then deliberately threw it on the floor.  I tried one more time and he made a face about as good as his lime juice face.

I don't understand why I can't sleep at 5:30 a.m. while lying in a comfortable bed, but while driving 75mph on I-215 at 8:00 a.m. I can't stay awake.  It's a good thing cars have horns.  They can be used to alert other drivers to danger. 

6:15 a.m.  My brown crocs are too big for morning runs.  I ran out of the left one three times.  Luckily, my ninja skills prevented any falls.  I decided to hit up legacy today, telling myself I was boring to run to Farmington and back all the time.  Well, this run reminded me why I usually stick with my other route.  I hate crossing the freeway, legacy smells bad, and running into the sun is unpleasant.  I'll stick with my north/south route shaded by the mountains, thank you very much.

Happy nuptials, allie and fiddy.  

Warmup alone around sugarhouse, and on the track with Tara and Glidergirl. 

My 2nd track 5k was as disappointing as my first.  Steve and I ran a lap together, then he steadily gapped me to about 100 meters.  We ran at that separation for the last half of the race.  But somehow, Tara magically passed me, and it took me over a minute to run the last 100 meters.  I know I slowed down, but I didn't think that much. 

The relay was a fun element, and I spent the rest of the day feeling like a chump because I didn't drag some of the kids out of bed to participate.  Next time... 

9 p.m.  Out and back from Marriot Mountainside to the Canyons.  The part by the creek was VERY buggy. 

I was considering running the two guardsman pass legs.  But it was smoky and hot, and I didn't want to waste the gas.  Instead of getting up at 6, I slept till 8:30 and didn't run at all.

I'm not sure about logging these miles.  Hiking miles?  I spent Wed and Thu escorting young men on a 6 mile hike.  The miles included a bit of running, but mostly walking.  Garbage miles, to be sure.  I wore a nasty blister on quarter toe, which beats morton by a long way.  Without the miles, my week looks like garbage, so up they go.

Same as yesterday.

6:15 a.m.  It was cool, which was a nice surprise.  Ash came with to Freedom hills.  I did a few laps while she played.  I found a tennis ball, and we ended up playing catch on the field for 20 minutes.  On the way home we stopped at Maverick to get her an ice cream cone.  She couldn't hold it and pedal her bike, so I carried the dripping cone for a few blocks till we reached the bottom of the street.  She ate it on the way up so her sister wouldn't get jealous.  3 ladies in workout gear saw me carrying ice cream while running.  They may take up the sport.