El Burro Blanco

9 miles in the morning.

11 miles in the afternoon.

I got up and went out for a run towards the DDO and the Weber County Fairgrounds.  The weather was perfect.  It wasn't that hot at all.  My legs were feeling really good this morning so I started out with a 6:47 first mile and then worked my way up to a couple 6:13 miles.  My eighth mile was at 6:00/mile pace and then my last mile was at 5:45/mile pace.  I felt great this morning.  After work I did another 11 miles to hit 20 for the day.  I did 2 miles at 7:18/mile pace to warm up and then pushed up to a 6:58/mile pace for another 2.  I then pushed up to 6:39/mile pace for 2 more miles.  I did one mile at 6:18/mile pace and then the last 4 at marathon pace (6:00).  I felt really good today and was happy to start the week off on the right foot.  I think I am going to try and hit 90 miles this week.

14 miles in the morning.

My wife and I are starting some speed work together for the next month.  We got a good deal at Acceleration in Logan so will be doing that on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.  I did 2 miles on a treadmill at quick intervals (:40).  The incline went from 2-4% and then back down.  I started out at 10.0 miles per hour and then went all the way up to 13.0 miles per hour.  I then did some core work and finished with a few weights.  I don't remember much after that since it was 5:00 in the morning!  I am hoping that this will help me in the long run.  My wife was their but got sick really quick.  They pushed her a little to hard on the 1st day.  I felt good so when we got back to Ogden I did another 12 at 7:24 pace.  I am excited for the 15K tomorrow.  It should be fun. 

I was up in Logan spending the 4th with the in-laws so I decided to do this race.  I am really glad that I did this run.  It was nice to gauge where my training is at.  I got up to the starting line and warmed up for 1/2 a mile.  I met up with Jon, Cody, and James and talked with them for a little bit.  It was nice to finally meet these guys.  I am going to have to go up to Logan and run with them on occasion.  I got to the starting line and looked around to see who was there.  I didn't recognize to many people but their were quite a few Mountain Crest High cross country runners.  I was shooting for under 52 minutes and was excited to get started.  Here are the splits and the way the race went:

1- 5:31 - Ran with James and was getting the legs loosened up.  Saw Carson Campbell (former USU runner) and Josh Steffen taking off.  Wanted to hold back thinking I might catch up with them.

2- 5:41- Still running with James and getting cut off by Mountain Crest runners.  Little punks!

3- 5:39- Wasn't with James anymore but moved out with one of the Mountain Crest runners (Neal Ferrin).

4- 5:38- Still with Neal and just chatting a little bit to kill the time.  Sitting in 3rd/4th place right now.

5- 5:26- Same as Mile 4.

6- 5:21- Pushed the pace a little bit more and still chatting away.  Leaders are still way out in front.

7- 5:26- Saw Carson slow up at the bottom of the hill.  Carson was at the top and Neal and I were half way up.   I knew that we were going to catch him.

8- 5:27- Caught up with Carson and left Neal behind.  I told him to come with for the last little bit but he ran out of gas.  Neal is a great runner and will have a great cross country season.  I am glad to see the road start going a little down hill.

9- 5:12- Was really pushing it now and not wanting anyone to catch me.

9.3- 1:46- I was happy to see the finish line.  I felt great!

I was really happy about the race.  Overall pace was 5:30/mile.  The weather was perfect and it was a perfect day for a run.  I got a plate with leaves on it and a ribbon for coming in 2nd.  Josh Steffen came in 1st place.  My wife will be happy with the plate.  If anyone is curious, it is a Rasmussen!  Jon, Cody, and James ran a great race and had awesome times.  We did 2.5 miles to cool down afterwards.  Congrats to them and all who ran today.

I woke up and was really happy to have yesterday over with.  The race was great but after that the rest of the day was not to fun because I was sick in the stomach.  I spent most of my time hanging out with my good friend "John!"  I took some Immodium when I woke up and that seemed to help.  I went to Acceleration again this morning and they worked me pretty hard.  I did long strides backwards on the treadmill at an incline, ran on the treadmill with an incline, squats on a small exercise ball with a platform, and did core exercises for the stomach.  I did 4 sets of that and then did some light weights and a lot more core exercises for the stomach.  I did 3 sets of that and was pretty much spent.  It was a nice workout.  It was early enough so I went out for a run.  I ran from Logan Regional Hospital to the northern part of Smithfield.  On the way back I had a couple of rolling hills and then 3 really big, long uphills.  I was really thirsty so I stopped at a cemetery because it was the only place I could find a water spout.  If I croked right there it would be a good spot so they wouldn't have to move me far to bury me!  The water helped and then I made my way back to the in-laws house and drank a lot more water.  I did 2 miles at Acceleration and 15.65 out to Smithfield and back.  I didn't push it to much but my pace was at 7:17/mile.  I am glad to have my running done for the day.  The last two days in Logan have been really good running days for me.  A little side note.  Jon, Cody, James, and me made the front page of the sports section in the Herald Journal.  We were on a cool down jog and I do not know why they took a picture of us.  We were already done with the race.  Oh well!

I got up this morning and did just a touch over 6 miles. I did the first 2 miles at 7:24/mile pace. The next 2 miles were at 7:03/mile pace and then the last 2 miles were at 6:39/mile pace. Nothing to exciting to report. I wanted to do some more running at night but I was with family in Timpanogos all day at a wedding, luncheon, and reception. I was my suit for the whole day and sweat profusely and non stop. We didn't get home until after 10 PM. I laid down to take a short nap and then possibly go run afterwards but I was so beat. It was nice to be with family all day. I was hammered from the sun though. It wore me out!

I woke up and was feeling pretty good. I wanted to run out to Fremont High School to see how far it was. The high school is only 7 miles from my place. I felt great and was cruising along when all of a sudden a "killer" poodle came after me. Luckily the owner was nearby and I didn't have to deal with it to much. The run felt great. I was keeping it under 6:30/mile pace but bumped up to 5:45/mile and 5:30/mile pace for a little over a mile. It was nice throwing in a little bit of threshold and tempo speed in their. It started getting hot and I did not have any water. I thought I was going slow but I looked down at the Garmin on the way back and I consistently stayed at 6:00/mile pace or under on the way back for the last 8 miles. I was happy to see this considering I was thirsty and a little tired. Overall pace for the run was 6:22/mile. I got home and immediately jumped into a cold bath. That helped out a ton. I will try and do a couple more miles tonight to hit 90 for the week. I got home from work and did not run.  I went on a 4 mile walk with Katey.  It wasn't running but I am glad that we went.  It has been a while since we have gone on a walk.  She is such a great support!  I won't count these 4 miles into the running equation but they were nice.