A Runner at Heart.....Riding a Bike

10.58 miles.

7.61 miles.

My sister-in-law is running her first marathon ever in Pocatello in 4 weeks so I ran the course with her this morning.  We started about 6:15 at the actual start line and ran all the way to the 22 mile mark just past Century High school.  She has run several half's before and longer runs up to 18-19.  Today was her longest to date.  She looks like she is good to go at the end of the month.

Total 22.02 miles.

It was a nice 50 degrees this morning.  I ran 8.55 easy miles.

10.53 miles.

It was 60 degrees this morning with a light breeze.  I ran almost 2 miles before I met with our group, then I ran 4 1/2 with Tracey.  He is just getting back in after an injury and is training for the half-marathon in 3 weeks.  I ran 7.30 miles.

It was in the upper 60's this morning.  Not as cool as I would like.  I ran 10.65 miles.

8.33 miles.

15.38 miles

Early morning travel, no run.

It was 50 degrees and calm this morning.  I ran 10.05 miles down a quiet road in the forest.

Left early for Glacier Park with the family.  Great day with beautiful weather.

It was 43 degrees when I left this morning.  60 when I finished.  Nice temps for running.  I ran 10.02 miles on the same road as Tuesday.

It was 43 degrees when I left this morning. I ran the entire forest road around the lake but that only got me to 8.35 miles. I didn't want to run on the main highway so I doubled back and took off on a dirt road to parts unknown until I had run far enough to get my full miles in. It was a beautiful morning among the dense forest and perfect quiet. I ran 22.05 miles.

An easy 10.03 miles.  Last run up in Montana on our vacation.

It was 65 degrees this morning.  I ran 8.66 easy miles.  I am running the Mesa Falls marathon this Saturday to get #99 in before Pocatello the next Saturday.

It was over 70 degrees this morning...yuck.  I ran 6.55 miles.

It was 68 degrees and muggy this morning. I ran up to our running group and ran a couple with them before taking off with Barry and a new runner Troy. Troy just moved here and has completed several marathons and seems to be comfortable right at our running level. Total 6.80 miles.

It was a very comfortable 57 degrees this morning. Barry and Troy came by my house a couple minutes after 6 and we ran a nice steady 6.72 miles.

It was overcast and about 50 degrees at the start.  Temperatures stayed pretty comfortable the whole way.  I ran this race easy as I am running #100 in Pocatello next week.  I still finished top 3 in my age group so I was pleasantly surprised.  Hopefully I will recover enough for a good effort in Pocatello, otherwise next Saturday will just be a big celebration and I will enjoy it just the same.

5.23 easy miles.

6.48 easy miles.  I have a very early morning meeting tomorrow so I will not be able to run.

Today was just a celebration for me.  Work this week has been hectic with 16-17 hour days and poor sleep added to the fact that I am running a marathon for the 2nd weekend in a row.  I had a pre-race dinner at my house for some runner friends last night and we had a great time.

Troy and Barry came by about 5:05am to pick Kathy (sis-in-law) and myself up to get to the bus.  I rode up with Kathy to give her some last words of encouragement since this would be her 1st full marathon.  She ended up doing just fine and ran about what I thought she would.

I wished Jeff Shadley good luck at the start but unfortunately his hips didn't hold up for him.  I was able to see lots of other runners I know before we started.  Barry, Troy, and I decided that we would stay together for the most part and just have a fun day.  We hit the half just as the gun went off for them to start.  Barry pulled a bit ahead of us as I talked to some of the half marathon runners.  Troy and I just stuck together during these miles.  I started to feel the effects of the back-to-back marathons around mile 16.  I was beginning to have to walk through the aid stations and then some.

Around mile 20 we caught up to Barry again.  He was getting tired too as this was his 1st marathon in 2 years.  He only ran because it was my 100th and he wanted to be a part of it.  We decided it would be cool to finish together because we had never done that before.   Around mile 23 we caught up to Fabian.  He was really struggling to even walk due to an issue with his knee.  He told me he was on a 3:15 pace through mile 18 when he couldn't stand the pain anymore.  I let him lean on my shoulder and decided that I was going to bring him in.  He was able to run for about a tenth of a mile before having to walk again.  We repeated this process all the way to the finish.  Because I was staying with Fabian, Barry and Troy pulled ahead and I figured I would see them at the finish.  After talking to Fabian I found out that he has lost 93 pounds in the last several years and just started running marathons in the last couple years.  I have seen how hard he works out at the gym so I knew this experience was just killing him.  There was no way I was going to leave him behind.

When you think about someone's character there are always those moments that tell you all you need to know.  Case in point...When Fabian and I hit the 26 mile marker, Barry and Troy were waiting right there for us so we could all run in together.  I will never forget that and the picture that Sue took of us crossing the line together will always be one of my favorites.

I actually very much enjoyed how the whole day turned out.  I was able to accept lots of congratulations on completing my 100th and celebrate with many of the good friends I have made along the way.  This will by no means be my last marathon because I would miss them way too much.

Later I was interviewed by KPVI Channel 6 news and they did a nice story on me and my 100 marathons.  My story was actually the lead on their website on Sunday.

Here is the link:

http://www.kpvi.com/content/news/local/story/Pocatello-Man-Runs-100-Marathons/BvEn-759OUumX9MoC6oHsg.cspx