It ain't Chinese algebra!

I didn't get up and run this morning but I was able to squeeze it into lunch.  I stayed up until 1 last night so I could watch the 5000m and 800m races from the trials.  Lame that I'm 2 hours south of where it's happening yet it doesn't come on t.v. until 11 pm.  Oh well, it was very worth the late night.  The men's 800 was one of the best races I've ever seen!  I can't wait until Friday night to see the 10,000m live and in person!!!!!  I was online this morning and found out that Brian Sell and Ryan Hall are in town and running with the Eugene Running Club today and tomorrow.  I wish I was able to go up a day early, but Thursday will have to do.  It's going to be awesome.

Anyway, back to todays run--it was good.  Nice and easy to St. Mary's High School, around the track for a couple miles, then home.  Fun stuff.

Average Pace: 6:48

Rotterdam (312)

Nice and easy this morning.  I'm not sure if I should be running outside--the smoke from N. California fires is fairly bad.  I'm not a big fan of treadmills though so out I went to run the Albertsons loop twice, plus Golf View Drive up and back.

Average Pace: 7:34 

Red (427)

No run--just work and then drive to Eugene for the trials.  Best race of the night was the women's steeple and Lindsey Anderson finishing 2nd to qualify for Beijing.  9:30-WOW!

I ran the Butte to Butte 10k this morning and it was a pretty cool experience. There were 4600 runners last year (most all time) and they were prepared for 10,000 runners this year with the trials in town. Race organizers were over-prepared when only 5900 runners showed up. Not too bad for a 10k.

There were a bunch of fast-like runners warming up before the start. Many Hanson-Brooks tank tops, university tanks, etc. I figured I would go hard, but just enjoy the experience. The start was a bit of a joke and frankly I was expecting better from a race in Tracktown USA. We were crammed in at the starting line--most people belonged there but there was a large amount of 60 year old men, 50 year old women, boys and girls below 10 and, I'm completely serious, a 75-80 year old lady right next to me on the third line. What's going on here?! Do these people seriously think they're going to run there first mile at the same pace as the people surrounding them?

Needless to say, the first half-mile was a lot of bumping, grabbing and tripping as I passed people that had no business being among the first 3000 runners. Add to the fact that every single step of the first mile was uphill. I passed a bunch of people going up and still only managed a 6:09. Immediately after the first mile mark we turned and cruised downhill. It wasn't gradual either--it was steep as could be. I don't do well on that type of layout. I hold back and my stride doesn't open up as it should. Always been that way, always will be that way. Anyway, mile 2 in 5:05. 3rd mile flattens out (basically flat until the finish) and I only manage a 5:12. The first mile killed any shot at a P.R. so from that point on it was just hold on and reel people in and don't get passed from behind. I managed to pick off 2-4 people per mile and not get passed from 2 until the finish, so I was happy about that.

Mile 4 slowed to 5:23, followed by a slower 5:24 mile 5. By this time we're running through downtown Eugene and there are people everywhere. The entire course was lined with supporters which kept spirits high throughout the race. Mile 6 improved slightly for a 5:15 and the last .2 in 1:18. I was pretty beat at the end. Glad I ran and was apart of the whole Eugene experience. Tomorrow's run will be sweet as Jason and I will run the sights of Eugene--Pre's rock, Hayward Field, Pre's Trail and everything between! Good stuff.

Sinister (216) These shoes are worthless.......

Trials are going to be sweet tonight! The 1500 was great last night and it continues with Semis tonight. Alan Webb looked dominant in his heat..... I'm most excited for the mens 10k though. Josh Rohatinsky is going to fly

Very fun run this morning with Jason around Eugene.  We left the hotel and ran just over 2 miles to Pre's Rock.  Paused there for a bit, then headed downtown and looped around Hayward Field and the rest of the campus.  After that we got on a bike path that headed east and crossed the river and hopped on Pre's Trail.  It was fun to run on wood-chips, but I didn't realize how many tiny pieces of wood and other foreign objects get trapped in ones socks.  Not very comfortable, but the path was smooth and soft, so very nice.  Anyway, from that point it was just a couple miles back to the hotel.  I would have liked to have got a few more miles in but I ran out of time before the hotel's breakfast finished.  Fun to run with Jason as always....

Average Pace: 7:24 

Rotterdam (321)

13 miles around town. West on Barnett, south on the river trail system to Phoenix and then north on the highway. I added a loop around a subdivision in Phoenix and also an out-and-back on a dirt road off of the highway. Felt pretty good after a restful sleep last night.

Pace: 7:00

Red (440)

6 miles in Portland. I think so anyway....my garmin was out of service for most of the run. I ran up and down both sides of the Willamette River that flows right through downtown Portland. What a cool city. I think, in the 40 minutes I was running, that I saw at least 500 bikers as they made their way home from work. They were all over the path I was on. Fun stuff.

Adidas (11)

5 miles on the hotel treadmill. One mile @ 5:25, one @ 5:40 and one slower but @ 5% incline. The other two were around 7:00mile pace.

Adidas (16)

Nice and easy around Medford. I ran west to South High School to run around their track but the gates were locked. I then ran north and went through the downtown and continued to McAndrews. Then it was east to north Phoenix Highway and south to my house. Basically just one big loop so there was a good mix of hills and scenery.

Average Pace: 6:57

Red (451)

When I woke up I had zero desire to run. Not sure what's going on....I'm just not into it right now. I think it's because I don't have any races I'm shooting for in the immediate future and the fact that my training is going to completely fall apart in August when I'm in New Jersey for 3 weeks. It makes it hard to train when I know what the future holds, so to speak.

Anyway, after doing some errands and getting my 3rd car in just over 1 month (hopefully this one hold up-it's a Dodge Avenger and I really like it so far) I was mentally ready to run. When I left the house I didn't know if I was going to run 3 miles or 16 miles. I felt really good and found myself enjoying every aspect of the jog. I ran up into the East Medford hills which made for a 600 ft climb in 3 miles, followed by the same drop in 3 more miles. That type of course will be great for 2009 SG training.

Average Pace: 6:47

Rotterdam (331)

A simple 3 before leaving for Portland.  Better than nothing I suppose.

Red (454)

10 miles by myself and 1 more with the dog to cool down.  That's the idea anyway, although she loves to run and sometimes ends up pulling me along as she sprints down the sidewalk.  I ran an extended loop to Jill's home and then back and tried to keep the pace steady the whole way.

Red (465)

9 miles alone and 1.5 with the dog. I ran south on North Phoenix Highway to Exit 24 the back up to Barnett Rd via the trail system. I added the retirement hill, then continued home. That's a killer hill and one I should try and run more often. I felt okay, although my right hip was tight when I started and stayed that way for the first 4 miles or so.

Rotterdam (341)

Around Medford, but way too many turns to describe the route.  My right hip was tight and never loosened up.  Time to see the chiro again....  I picked up the pace twice for 800m each and felt pretty good doing so.

Sinister (222)

Very enjoyable 15-miler this morning on a route that I'll run often in the future. I ran south on Phoenix Highway to exit 24 and then ran east on the back-roads to Talent. It was exactly 7 miles to the bridge that crossed I-5 and I considered turning around there, but instead continued on to Talent and then ran north on Highway 99 to exit 24 in Phoenix. Anyway, the first half had some great hills throughout and the second half was much more flat so in the future I'd probably run it in reverse. 1 more with the dog after I finished.

Average Pace: 6:52

Red (481)

9.5 miles all around Disneyland. Not within the park, but actually on the roads around the park. Got into a few areas where there were lots of bars on windows and doors so I made promt u-turns. Fun run.

Adidas (26)

2nd run in California. This time I ran to the Angels baseball stadium and back. Home to Medford tonight after completing my first POA.

Adidas (30)

1 mile with the dog.

Same loop as last weekend except this time I ran it in reverse. I ran west on Barnett and then south on Hwy 99 until Talent, then crossed over the bridge (8 miles at the bridge) and ran north through the rolling hills on the east side of the freeway. Great hills to finish off the run. It was 15 miles back to my house but I added 2 more with the Albertsons loop. I came back to the house, drank some powerade and then took the dog for 2 miles. Pretty good morning, perfect weather and relatively pain-free running. Good stuff.

Average Pace: 6:54

Red (500)

4 miles after work. Nothing special.

Red (504)

Another pretty easy morning. I need more time to run but it's just not happening right now.

Rotterdam (346)

1 mile with the dog....