Speed only kills if you don't have it!

I went out this morning on a long-medium run.  I ran along the canal trail over to Brigham City, then around the Golf course, down to main, followed HWY 89 back to Willard, and looped around back on the canal trail to home.  Good run today.  I will be heading up to Island Park for the next 3 days so I should get some good runs in this week.  1:44:51

(Hurricane-476miles)

I ran this morning with Allison at a very easy pace.  We ran 7 miles around Island Park and the Saw Tell area.  We didn't see any bears on the run which I was glad about.  The weather was cool, probably around 50 degrees, it felt good.

(Hardrock- 79 miles)

We spent all day yesterday in Yellow Stone hiking, and messing around.  I ended up with some pretty good workouts as a result.  This morning I ran by myself at first and then helped Allison run her first 10 miler ever.  It was even cooler this moring than yesterday, and my leg was aching.  It was the samething that I get everyonce in a great while, the same problem that I had in the Striders 1/2 this year.  I had to stop and massage my leg and stretch several time in the first couple of miles.  As a result they were super slow.  I finally got things worked out and was able to run some tempo miles.  I pushed it hard in theis part of my run and was pleased with my results.  My miles were: 6:21, 5:59, and 6:07, not bad for gravel road,  slight uphill, into a head wind, and over 7,000 feet elevation. 

I cooled down by running with Allison.  We ran on some sweet dirt roads around the middle of Island park.  Allison had never gone that far before and she did great.  I ran along side keeping her company and giving her some water.  I figure if she is actually going to run a half marathon that I want her to have a good experience.  She averaged just over 10 minute miles for the run, and it wasn't flat and easy either. 

(Hardrock- 95 miles)

We spent the rest of the day hanging out in Yellow Stone again.  Saw a few Grizzly Bear and a couple of wolves today, a little more exciting than Elk and Buffalo! 

No run today.  I got up and played golf at Island Park golf couse with my Father in-law and his Brother in-law instead.  I was going to go this evening, but we stopped at "Big Jud's" in Rexburg on the way home and I ate half of a Special (the biggest burger you've ever seen).  That was at lunch and I didn't eat anything else the whole rest of the day.  I was going to go out for a few miles after we got home, but by the time I felt good enough to run it was dark.

I did some easy miles on the canal trail today, with about six 100 meter strides.  Just before I turned around I was coming up a hill in a grove of trees and ran into a badger standing on the side of the canal.  This badger was huge, and probably weighed about 60 pounds!  I had never seen a badger that close before, and certainly never one that big.  I didn't see him at first until he attacked from the side, growling and hissing.  I thought it was a raccoon or dog at first, until I saw that he was a bit slower and had claws as big as my fingers.  The next thing he knew was that he had been nailed in the side of head with a rock about the size of a golf ball.  He stopped for a second, looked a bit stunned, but still growing and hissing, until I talked him into going the other way with an even larger rock to the sideof the head.  I went about my run with no other problems.  I still can't believe the size of that thing, it must have been the Andre the Giant of badgers!  22:15

(Hurricane-479miles)

Well everyone has good and bad days running and this just happened to be one of my worst days ever!  I warmed up before the race and was feeling really crappy, and I knew that I was in for a long hard time. 

All of my buddies were at the start Paul, Logan, Jon, Walter, and Cody.  I didn't care about the place today, but my goal was a sub 1:13.  I figured it was easily possible since I had about done it at Provo and this is just as fast or faster of a course.  The problem was my body felt like death during the warm up and I knew it wouldn't get much better, eventhough I tried to stay positive.  My first mile I went out at 5:30, right where I wanted to be, but the rest of the race was progressively slower and miserable.  Jon and Walter came up from behind me after after a couple of miles, and each one pretty much told me that I looked like crap!  I was hurting the whole time, the tightness, cramps, and feeling sick to my stomach just wouldn't pass and kept getting worse.  The parts of the course that I should have been flying I was dying, even with a sweet tail wind coming out of the canyon I continued to slow down.  Here are my splits: 

Mile 1:   5:30

Mile 2:   5:40

Mile 3:   5:39

Mile 4:   5:47

Mile 5:   5:38

Mile 6:   5:35

Mile 7:   5:31

Mile 8:   5:47

Mile 9:   6:01

Mile 10:  6:01

Mile 11:  6:12

Mile 12:  6:18

13.1:      6:09

Finish time was 1:15:54

I not only hurt physically but I was dying mentally too.  If Cynthia Fowler wouldn't have caught me and passed me like I was standing still at just before mile 12, I would have stopped and walked.  I had it all planned out to stop walk, stretch out, and try to make myself throw up or something.  When I got passed by the first woman I started to get mad and pushed through the pain enough to to pass her and hold her off for the last mile.  There was no way that I was going to get chicked!  I honestly can never remember feeling so crappy in a race, other than a 1500 meter race that I ran at Southern Utah years ago where I had to be packed off the finish line.  The problem was I am not sure why?  I know I was mentally never into that race even before I got registered, but physically I am in pretty darn good shape right now!  I know my stress has been high with moving, starting student teaching, and other life issues, but I had hoped that my trip to Island  Park and Yellow Stone would help that.  I really don't know what happened, but hopefully I don't feel like that in St. George or I won't even break 3 hours and possibably wouldn't finish.

Logan had some mishaps and lost the course, I don't know about those St. George friends of mine running through Milleville, they seem to have a hard time not getting lost!!!  Although Logan lost the course he proved that he is in the 2:25 marathon league with a killer run!  The rest of the guys ran awesome, and seemed very pleased with their time and performances, and they should have.  I felt bad about belly aching around when Jon, Cody, and some of the others all ran so well, and I was being so negative.  Paul is amazing, doing a workout and beating Demetrio Cabanillas’ record by over 30 seconds!  I am disappointed with my race but was glad to be done and hope I never feel that bad again.  I won't break 1:13 this year now so maybe next.  I think the worst thing was, I had a bad experience last year at this race and really wanted to have a good one this year, and it was an hundred times worse.  I like TOU half and want to do it again, but honestly I am kind of scared of it!

I cooled down with the guys for a while and then kept going until I found my wife and sister running.  I ran the rest of the way back with them and was having a hard time keeping their 10 minute mile pace up.  They did really well for their first 1/2, and were happy with their races. Both Allison and Tarynia ran 2:14:03.  All of my friends swept the race, and wards, but not the prizes as usual.  I will chalk this one up as a learning experience and try to remember the good, which was everything post race!

(Tangent-188 miles)