It ain't Chinese algebra!

Washougal

Chick-fil-A 

Fred Meyer

Church

205

My neighborhood 

Chick-fil-A and Les Schwab 

Washougal 

Chick-fil-A and Timbers. 

Wells loop 

Church 

Fred Meyer 

500 & 205 & 14

Neighborhood 

East Wells Loop. 

Neighborhood 

Highway 

4:30 AM before flight to Chicago. 

Chicago treadmill. 

Chick-fil-A and 34th. 

East loop

Fred Meyer 

Chick-fil-A 

East loop

Neighborhood 

205, 14, Prune Hill. 

Fred Meyer. 

Timbers

Fred Meyer 

Target

Church

Frontage road and McGillvery. 

Costco Loop.

Wells Loop.

chickfila and elementary school.

Fred Meyer

Hotel treadmill. 

Target north to Safeway and home. 

14 and back

Union

Wells loop

164 north and back via Timbers & Union. 

Timbers, Dog Park

Chick-fil-A 

Chick-fil-A 

Old Wells Loop

Neighborhood 

Chickfila and 14. Final mile in 5:26

Chick-fil-A and neighborhood. 

Chick-fil-A 

Right hamstring not happy

Union 

Fred Meyer

Hamstring better

MVHS

Chick-fil-A 

South to 14 and back

My neighborhood. Rainy and cold so I quit.

205 and evergreen loop

HS and golf course. 

Chick-fil-A and timbers. 

Grass Valley Loop

Chick-fil-A 

PM: 4 Miles 

Neighborhood 

Chick-fil-A and 500 for 13.4 miles  

Final 5 in 5:50, 5:45, 5:39, 5:39, 5:38

2 more miles before lunch 

Chick-fil-A 

MVHS and Target North

Wells loop

Church and back. Mile 8 in 5:31. 

My neighborhood 

Grass Valley Church, down to Lacamas, around Wells and Costco, then home. Mile 19 in 5:55. Tired. Thick rain for the first 30 minutes, then crazy wind the next 30 min. Tired. 

34th and back

Big wells loop

Camas Meadows

Awake and running at 4:49 AM before a trip to Utah. Even pacing for the first 16 miles and then progressively fast the final 4; 6:40, 6:30, 5:50, 5:40.  Averaged 6:53 for the entire run. 

I’m SLC. All around University of Utah. 

Bonnevile Shoreline Trail above UoU for 4 miles and then I to downtown SLC, then back  to the house. Tired. The 20 mile run on Thursday finally caught up to me. 

Chick-fil-A and dog park. 

Union and Chick-fil-A 

Church

Reserve for 6.7 miles this morning.

PM: 3.5 Miles before mowing the lawn. Sunny first the first time in weeks. 

Neighborhood 

Solid run. Averaged 6:51/ mile. Lacamas trail to camas and then big hill to church. Down to qfc, up to lacamas swim, then home. Right foot hurt around mike 16 on last downhill but then went away. Mile 19 in 5:35. 

Reserve 

Reserve

Timbers, dog park

Reserve

Early run. Felt good. 

Salishan

Costco Loop after work

Reserve

Reserve

Neighborhood

Wells loop

Over Camas hill, around Lacamas, then back over Camas hill. Pounded my legs something good. Final 2 miles in 5:45 & 5:50. 

Old Wells loop

Neighborhood

New Wells Loop

Movies

Lacamas Trail

Mill Plain and around. 

To GV park and back

Union

Taper

Ogden Marathon.

4th place overall which is a total shock. Figured I'd be 2:40-2:49ish and so not really dissapointed. Was trending for 3rd (prize money) but the wheels came off on the bike path (miles 24/25). So it goes. Beautiful course. 

Legs still hurt

Wells Loop

Lacamas Trail

Four early, then 2 more at lunch

5 miles early, the. 3.6 at lunch

Chickfila 

Neighborhood. 

Target North and Wells Loop

AM: 6.6 miles around the Wells.

Noon: 2.4 around my neighborhood before mowing the lawn.

34th to 164th

Sick

Costco and camas meadows 

AM: 7.1

PM: 3.2

Chickfila to 34th and 192nd

Chickfila

My neighborhood

Winco and back

San Antonio, Texas. Staying near UTSA, so I ran around the campus. It looks like a big mall. Wierd.

San Antonio. Humid

San Antonio. Ran around UTSA again. Getting used to the humidity. 

Treadmill

Final run in San Antonio

Home

Eugene

North Target

Seattle

Seattle

Mill Plain to 205

Church to winco

Neighborhood

Camp Alpine

Camp Alpine

Around the neighborhood

Chickfila

PM: 4.5 miles in Pasco

Pasco

Costco loop. 

PM: 4.4 miles in Boise

Boise. Slept like junk. 

Boise

Vancouver

Costco loop

Chickfila

Middle school track

Las Vegas at 5am. Still hot. 

Las Vegas. Hot and miserable after a late dinner and lots of walking/stNding yesterday. 

Chick-fil-A 

Neighborhood 

Church

Roseburg

Roseburg

Medford. Lots of smoke from forest fires. 

Home Depot to 164th and south to 34th.

AM: 6 miles 

PM: 4 miles in Eugene

AM: 7.3 in Eugene

PM: 4.2 in Corvallis

Corvallis 

Wells loop 

Lacamas Trail to Camas HS, then back on the main road

Super early flight this morning so no run. 

PM: 4 miles

-conference call for work

4 more miles afterwards

Boise

AM: 7 miles 

PM: 5 miles in 96 degrees

Boise. First mile was slow but then I started feeling better. 

Mill Plain to 164th to 34th and home. 

To the HS and a few laps around the track.

Spaghetti loop around Camas hill so I could have plenty of hills to trash my legs on. Felt good. Final mile in 5:40, averaged 7:05 for the run. 

Around the neighborhood. Legs feel good. 

Past Costco to to Camas Meadows new subdivision and then home.

Wells loop 

Mill Plain to 192nd

Bend, OR. Probably my favorite running city in the world. 

Awake at 4:10 and running by 4:15 because I had to to be back by 6:00. Bend has very few street lights (city ordinance so you can see the stars) and it was awfully dark for the first hour. Guts weren’t happy around mile 6 and I never felt great. Pretty miserable run, all things considered. I wanted to run 18 but had to cut it short due to time constraints. So it goes...

AM: 7 miles (home)

PM: 4 miles on hotel treadmill (6-15% incline the entire time).

Tri-Cities, WA. The smoke was manageable (aqi 165, down from last night).

Slept in my own bed last night for a change. Ran the mill plain and 164th loop this morning early before my oldest opened birthday presents and then leaving for another few days in the Tri-Cities. 

PM: 4 miles in Richland, then sushi. 

Kennewick, WA. Lots of smoke...first time it’s bothered me. 

Costco hill to camas meadows and back. 

Lacamas Trails. Goal was to run for 2.5 hours and not be concerned about distance. Started in downtown Camas so 1.3 miles uphill to start and then just made a ton of loops and zigzags around the area for the next couple of hours. Hi at mile 6 and 12 and a few sips of water at 7 and 13. Felt great. The last few miles were a blast and I wanted to keep running but obligations at home forced me to quit. Total of 2,000 feet elevation gain & loss and total time running was 2:42. Had fun and felt like I could keep going, so that’s a good sign. 

Short run. Better than nothing. These shoes are shot and I need to stop wearing them. Strange that I got to 1,000 miles with my last pair and this one is done at 600. 

Nothing this morning because I had to catch an early flight. 11 miles tonight in Boise. Hot. 

AM: 7.6 miles around Boise

PM: 5 miles around Boise State and the green belt. 

Awesome run in Boise. From downtown hotel to north of the city and a dirt trail oasis with routes all over the place. I’ll bring my headlamp next trip and enjoying it again. 

Home! Ran to Lacamas and did about 14 miles on the trails and dirt loops, then home. 

Just 4 miles after getting home from camping. New shoes that I liked. 

Lacamas trail this morning in a new pair of shoes. I didn't love them at first but after a while, they seemed ok. If it's flat or uphill they're great, but feel a bit sloppy on the downhill.

AM: 5.2 miles. Right knee a little bothersome from the new shoes yesterday (I think).

PM: 8 miles in Bend. Ran on the trails at Shevlin Park. I’m falling in love with trail running.  

AM: 8 miles in Bend, OR. 

PM: 3 miles in Medford after nearly 8 hours of driving today. 

Medford. Ran North Phoenix Rd, my favorite route from when I lived here. Mile 9 and 10 were 5:44 and 5:30. Felt good. 

To Costco and up the hill, then back. 

To highway 14 then Prune Hill up/down into downtown Camas. Turned around and came back the same direction. Just under 2,000 ft elevation climb and drop. 

AM: 7 miles in the rain. Nice to have a little moisture in the air after a long, hot summer. 

PM: 6 miles on Badger Mountain. My heart skipped a few bears when I saw and heard 4 (!) rattlesnakes. Had to jump over two of them. The trail was great but I’m not likely to return anytime soon. 

AM: 7 miles along the river in Richland. Left shin hurt a bit. 

PM: 2.2 miles along the river again. Wanted to go more but my shin hurt again like it had earlier so I cut the run short to be safe. Maybe Altra’s just dint work for me. 

First step I took on my run sent a sharp pain in my left shin again. I stopped and stretched my calf and started up again. From that point on, I felt fine. Strange. I need to do a better job stretching and I’ll continue to monitor if it’s an Altra issue or not.

Mill Plain to 164th and home. 

6 miles. Wells loop. 

I woke up at 4:50 (alarm was set for 5:30 so no biggie) and drove to Lacamas Trail. Only goal was to run for 3 hours and practice hydration and pound my legs. Managed 22.4 miles and felt really good through 21. Final 10 minutes I was ready to be done. Really enjoyed being outside and running this morning. 

A little tired from Saturday still, plus a slight sickness made for a rough morning. Completely missed my alarm and only had time for 6 miles. 

MVHS

AM: 7.5 miles before early morning flight. 

PM: 3.6 miles in Boise. 

Boise. Ran from downtown to the trails north of the capital. Crossed paths with a coyote and my heart skipped a beat. Not fun. I brought my headlamp which was needed for the first 8 miles. The sun doesn’t rise until late here... 

6 miles around Fisher's Landing. Need to do a better job at stretching. 

Lacamas trails for just over 3 hours (3:05:12). Felt good for the most past but the first 3-4 miles I was tired and not having a good time mentally. Thankfully that passed after a bit. 

AM: 7.3 around the neighborhood. 

PM: 5.2 around Pre’s Trail in Eugene. 

Eugene

AM: QFC and back. 

Richland, WA. Perfect morning north past the HS and WSU campus. 

Lacamas Swim and back. 

Camas Hill up Brady and back. 

Wells loop

Old Wells Loop

Boise

Mill Plain to 164 and 34th. 

St. George, UT.

Goal for tomorrow is to not trash my legs. I don't care about time and will be perfectly happy if I run my slowest time ever for a marathon. With a 50 mile race in 5 weeks, I want to be able to run next week and still get in 3 weeks of long runs on the trails.

SG was the first marathon I ever ran (2007) and I'm excited to experience it once again.

Had a good time running the SG marathon. This was my first marathon in 2007 and every marathon since then I've 'raced.' Today was the first time I didn't race a marathon and just ran for fun. Took it very easy to the bottom of Veyo and maintained my pace up the hill to the volcano. I'm not going to lie...it was a strange feeling to be running slower than normal in a marathon and not racing, but I kept telling myself I have bigger goals next month and it wasn't worth going too hard today and feeling the effects for a week. Given the course layout, I naturally picked up the pace the last 10 miles and with 3 miles to go, I felt completely fresh so I picked up the pace and ran 6:06, 5:31, and 5:20 with the final .2 in 5:08/pace. It was fun to cruise and run quickly at the finish--totally different than the normal battle/struggle. 

I crossed the line, grabbed a drink, and then ran back up the course 1 mile to meet my buddy who was trying to BQ. We met at 25.2 and then I ran with him back to the finish. Pace was 7:30 on the 2 extra miles and my legs felt great. So...the day was a success. My legs feel great, my lungs feel strong, and I think with a few more weeks of training, I'll be ready for my first 50 mile race. 

I think I'll run Boston in 2020 as a 40 year old, then be done with road marathons(?). I'm enjoying the trails more and get a greater sense of accomplishment with ultra marathons than roads. Perhaps not. Either way, I'm done with the downhill road marathons of Utah.

Dallas, TX. Legs still sore from the marathon.

Dallas, TX. Ran with a coworker somewhat slow but my legs still are sore. 

Final run in Dallas, TX. Legs finally feel back to normal. 

Trail run around Lacamas. New shoes that feel pretty good. A little tired at the end so not fully recovered...but close. 

Neighborhood. 

North Target. 

PM: 7 miles on the trails @ Shevlin Park in Bend. 

AM: Bend, on a treadmill because I didn’t pack clothing for 24 degrees. Incline between 3-8% the entire time. 

PM: 5 miles on Ridgeline Trail in Eugene. Lots of up/down.  

6 miles in Eugene. Strange to see Hayward Field gone...

Wells Loop. Cold and fog. 

Lacams Trail at 5:15 this morning. Very dark and foggy for the first 2 hours and then finally cleared up with the sun. I felt ok but never great. Maybe I ate too much last night? I just felt full and eating/drinking throughout was never pleasant. 

I tried running with a new hydration vest and hated every minute of it. With it loose, it sloshed around and with it tight to prevent sloshing, it was difficult to breath. Took it off after 7 miles and figured I'd try something else next week. Only 1 or 2 more long runs to figure that out...I guess if nothing else, I'll just stick with my handheld.

AM: 5.5 miles this morning on Mill Plain. 

PM: 7.1 miles on Badger Mountain in the tri cities. Quickly becoming a favorite trail run. 

7.5 miles in Richland

Fishers Landing

No run. Right knee a little bothersome.

Around Mill Plain

Long run around Lacamas Trail. Slept in a litte bit and didn't get started until 6:30. The rain held off all morning and the temp was low 50's, so the environment was quite enjoyable. 

This was the best I've felt for a long run in over a month. Nothing specific, but I didn't feel tired, my legs felt somewhat fresh, my stomach felt fine, etc. It's been a while since I've felt this good so that bodes well for the next few weeks. I'll slowly reduce the miles the next few weeks and hopefully be fresh and confident on Nov 10th.

New shoes. Short run. 

AM: 9.5 miles

PM: 4 miles in Eugene

Eugene

Mill Plain

Boise

Lacamas Trail. 

Feeling rested. I don’t like daylight savings but I do enjoy the slightly brighter run in the AM. 

Eugene, OR

I ran a 5K this morning around the neighborhood. 

On Saturday I will do that 10 times...plus another mile for good measure. 

Richland, WA

1 mile on the treadmill in Bend. 

It's been a goal of mine to run a 50 mile race for a number of years and when I found a race that offered a 25% discount for veterans, I signed up. :) I've been pretty intimidated by the distance and never had the courage to sign up, but once I did, I was pretty excited. My training in August and September was great. I was listening to a lot of ultra podcasts and couldn't be more excited. In October I ran the St. George marathon and then took a few days off as rest. From that point on, training started to feel more like a chore and I just wanted the race to be over. Mentally and physically I was ready for it to be over. So it goes...

Even yesterday (and race morning) I wasn't super excited. Not nervous, not excited, not scared...just flat. It was weird. I was a little intimidated by the elevation and the total elevation gain/loss over the race (7500 ft) and wondering if I made the right choice of course. And it was going to be cold. Really cold. 19 degrees cold.

Thanks for all the great advice from Jon Allen--going into the run I felt like I had a strong gameplan and strategy for success. I waited until the very last second to strip down to shorts and t-shirt w/arm sleeves. I was putting on gloves and walking to the start right as the gun went off. The plan was to go out easy (super easy) and take walk breaks for 3 minutes every 25 minutes. The course was stunningly beautiful with Smith Rock glowing with the morning sunrise. We decended down to the river and rolled along for 4 miles before climbing switchback for the next 4 miles. I took scheduled walk breaks and didn't stress one bit about the pace the first 20 miles. For anyone that has ran trail races, you are kind of at the mercy of the group. When the lead individual starts walking, the group walks as well. Tight singletrack makes it difficult to pass and I just rolled along with it. I checked into the first aid station at mile 9 feeling good. I grabbed some water and was off running again with 4 more miles of uphill (this section being somewhat rocky). 

It was cold throughout and it took about an hour before I could feel my toes and fingers. Not much to report from here until mile 15. Just plugging along, running with individuals for a bit and then moving up to the next group. This was the most rocky section of the course and half of it was run on a dirt road. I used the bathroom at the 2nd aid station and was off quickly again. The next 3 miles were slight downhill on fun singletrack where I ran with a guy from Montan. We chatted throughout which took my mind off things and I was having a great time. Final aid station (on the first loop) at mile 21 where I filled up my water and ate 1 potato chip, then took off for the halfway point (start/finish line).  Throughout the first 25 miles I stuck with my own fueling (sport beans, stroop waffles, gu) every 7/8 miles. 

Miles 21-23 were fun single track again, relatively flat along the ridgeline. Mile 23 was straight downhill and it was horrible. As I ran down, I was already dreading having to run it again at mile 49. But that wouldn't be for another 4 hours. Ran along the river for another mile (25) and then a steep uphill uphill for .5 mile to hit the halfway point at 25.5 miles. My wife and kids were there to give me some high fives, I swapped shirts, traded my beanie for a visor, replenished my fuel/water, and was off once again. In hindsight I wish I would have hung out for even just a minute more but I was (for the first time) focused on my race time and wanting to be quick and on my way again.

I enjoyed running a double loop and seeing everything a second time. It was a solo run for the next 8 miles. The wind picked up and even though the sun was out, it was still chilly. My nose dripped continually and my face felt windburt. The hills that I felt weren't so tough the first loop suddenly became VERY STEEP. The first time through I remember thinking that the hills weren't as bad as I was expecting and I'd be able to manage them no problem the 2nd loop. I was wrong. They were so. much. harder the second time around. I walked/ran a good share of them and ran out of water about 2 miles before the aid station (mile 33). For the rest of the race, I maximized the aid station and took my time as needed. I sat down, drank 2 cups of chicked broth and a couple pretzles and then managed to stand and proceed with the race. It was 4 more miles of uphill (I walked a lot, ran when slighty uphill or flat) and rocky/challenging footing until mile 40. It flattend out about mile 37 and I ran to the aid station at mile 40. This was by far the hardest part of the race. It never felt depressing or like I needed to quit in any way. I was just tired, cold, out of water again, and realizing from this point on, it was the farthest I've ever ran in my life. It wasn't all bad (and clearly everyone was having personal struggles to some degree) as I passed 3 guys during this time.

I made it into the 40 mile aid station feeling optimistic in running the final 11 miles, but certainly tired. I drank 2 more cups of chicken broth and a couple animal crackers. I said "it doesn't matter because I'm not going to be able to run any faster, but any idea what place I'm in?" thinking the answer would be 20-25th place. They said 10th....and I was immediately rejuvinated and feeling like a million bucks. Shortly after that, the 11th, 12th, 13th, and 14th place runners arrived so I took off, running with some juice in my legs and my head. It was great. The next 4 miles were some of my fastest of the entire race, partially because of now running for placing but also because of the smooth trail and slight downhill sections. Miles 45 and 46 were uphill and in the shade and I was so glad I had kept my arm sleeves and gloves. I ran out of water for the 3rd time (!) and slowly made a climb to the final aid station at mile 46.4.

Same routine as the last 2; sit, chicken broth, animal crackers, and then a handful of M&M's as I left the aid station. The volunteers were amazing and I thanked them as much as I could. I was tired (understatement) but told myself that I could manage 4.6 miles no matter what. I actually felt great here; mentally I was sharp, happy to have fueled, and excited to be running at a good clip. The next two miles I cruised and hit low 7:00's each mile. I moved into 9th place and caught the 8th place guy right as we hit the killer downhill at mile 49. I hate downhill. Give me uphill anyday of the week. The descent down obliterated my legs; not my quads suprisingly, but my hip flexor and ankles. Just so much pain and discomfort with the steep decline. 8th place left me in the dust and halfway down the guy I had passed at mile 48 passed me back, putting me back in 10th place. So it goes.... With my place somewhat secured in 10th, I walked a chunk of the remaining downhill and then ran along the river and climbed the quarter mile uphill to the finish slow slow slow. Final 100 meters to the finish line I managed to run again, so a small victory. :) If the race would have ended at mile 49 before the downhill, I would have finished on cloud 9. The downhill was rough and...not fun. It put a slightly sour taste in my mouth for the race, but in reflection, it's silly to be disapointed in the entirety because of that small portion. Obvioulsy there were some lowpoints at times, but all in all I had a blast and am so glad that I set/completed this goal. Finally, I am speechless at the thought/idea of running 50 more miles. I always had respect for those that can run 100 mile trail races. The respect grew even more after today.

We'll see what's next! I'm looking forward to not running for a week, rest in general, eating ice cream, and finding another race to run in the future. 

Rest. Feeling suprisingly good!

Lots of walking tonight in Boise. Had to jog through a couple intersections to avoid traffic and legs felt good. No way will I run for a few more days, but still shocked at how good I feel. I ate a Chip cookie tonight--it was amazing. :)

Stretching and foam roller. Maybe a small jog tomorrow?

Rest

1 mile around the neighborhood. Legs feel good walking and on stairs, but running is too much. I'll rest the remainder of the week and try again Monday.

No running as I drove from Redding CA to Phoenix AZ. Long day

4 miles in Phoenix. Perfect weather and I finally feel 100% with no pain or strain.

Wanted to run more, but went with family to hike Camelback, followed by swimming. Lots of fun!

Nice and easy on a dirt path south of Fetlock. Final climb to home hurt my left foot for some reason. It was bothering me a bit on the hike yesterday and flared up the final stretch. 

Ran to Deems and ran around the mountain. Foot hurt for the first couple miles, but then loosened up. Mile 7 I pushed the pace and getting up on my toes actually felt a lot better. Weird. 

Nothing. Foot hurts just to walk. Doesn't matter if shoes are on or off, still hurts. Bummer.

Richland, WA. Foot still hurts :(

2 miles. Foot finally starting to feel better. 

AM: 2 miles at home.

PM: 1 mile on the treadmill and then swimming in the hotel pool. My lungs are...weak!

4 miles in Richland, WA. Foot a little tight. Frustrating.

3 miles

3 miles. Foot still feeling good. I've realized my right hip has been all sorts of tight as well. Really focused on loosening it with the foam roller and orb ball. Seems to be helping. I'm guessing the drive to AZ in November in the rental van caused the tightness in the hip...which caused an imbalance of sorts and tightening of my left arch. Who knows...

3.2 miles around the neighborhood.

4.7 miles to 164th and Mill Plain. Foot feels good!

Foot and hip was tight for the first mile, but then felt better. 

Same as yesterday. Super tight in my hip and painful in my foot for the first mile, then better. 

6.2 miles this morning. Mill Plain to 164th and home.