Rob Murphy

SLTC Winter 15k

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Location:

Salt Lake City,

Member Since:

Feb 11, 2010

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

I had some success in high school and college. Winner 1985 Rod Dixon Run

Had a fair amount of success as a Masters runner for most of my 40s.

Short-Term Running Goals:

Have fun with running, explore more trails, stay healthy.

Long-Term Running Goals:

Keep running and racing consistently for as long as I can. Find what is sustainable for me over the long run.

Personal:

I teach AP European History and other courses at Alta High School. I coached the track and cross country teams at Alta for 16 years.

Married, two kids - Abby and Andy

My Twitter @murphy_rob

Click to donate

to Ukraine's Armed Forces

Miles:	This week:	26.00	Month:	81.25	Year:	1690.95

Sat, Feb 28, 2015

Race: SLTC Winter 15k (9.32 Miles) 00:57:28, Place overall: 15, Place in age division: 2

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
5.00	0.00	9.33	0.00	14.33

AM: One easy mile just loosening up for the 15k today. The 10 am start time is the best thing about the SLTC Winter Series races. Weather looks perfect for the race but then with several days of winter weather moving in. Maybe 2 ft. of snow in the mountains!

Race report...

Not sure what to think of this one but I'm trying to find the positive. Went in with some pretty high expectations of being able to hold a sub 6 pace the whole way. This I managed for 3 miles before reeling off six straight miles in the 6:15 range. My legs just didn't have the pop I expected. Maybe the 20 miler I did six days ago was too close? Maybe I'm just rushing things in my mind a little too fast?

On the positive side, at about mile three I thought I might completely blow up and end up jogging it in at 7 to 8 minute pace but I managed to keep it together. It was helped by the fact that I was running just a little behind Bill Cobler (who's really running well) and a little bit ahead of Dennis Simonaitis (whom I've NEVER beat). So I was in the thick of the GRAND MASTERS competition! I found myself hoping Bill would roll an ankle or something. Never did catch Bill but I managed to stay ahead of Dennis which was good for my self esteem.

On the down side, it was my slowest ever SLTC 15K by quite a bit and over a minute slower than last years time. But I'm feeling pretty healthy and strong and I'm confident that I can close the gap between me and my younger self.

I started my cool down jog with Fritz and crew but their pace was a little (lot!) too fast for me so I turned around after a mile. Fortunately I bumped into Dennis and Michelle doing their cool down at about 10 minute pace. More my speed! So I joined them for a couple more miles and had a great conversation. They're just a couple of smart, thoughtful people and I really enjoyed getting Dennis's perspective on some things running related, AGING related, and life related. The bottom line is that Dennis has had much more success as a masters runner that I have, or anyone else in America for that matter, and he still isn't afraid or too proud to come out and race even when his training isn't going well. I learned something from that.

Update... A little over 3 hours after finishing, I'm still pretty wiped out.

PM: 3 mile walk with Andy. Stopped at a Maverick for an ice cream sandwich even though it was 30 degrees and snowing.

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00	Weight: 0.00	Calories: 0.00

Comments

From Bret on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 08:12:50 from 99.1.220.106

Have a great race Rob.

From steve ash on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 09:28:58 from 174.27.245.106

Good luck Rob.

From steve ash on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 13:10:48 from 174.27.245.106

Good post and great run. Yes that 20 miler might have been lingering still. The 16 mile Wasatch run I had on Sunday was still pulling me down on yesterday's tempo.

From Bret on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 13:27:54 from 99.1.220.106

Sounds to me like you did well on the day and given the relative position within the competition, you should think you did quite well. Solid performance for you - on a day you were a little flatter than you had thought or hoped you would be. (Outstanding performance for most mortals) Congrats.

From Fritz on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 14:19:03 from 71.35.215.168

The 20 miler on Sunday probably wasn't the best way to taper for this :)

Still a good run and effort AND you beat that Simonaitis guy.

From Drew on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 16:49:36 from 24.92.19.68

It's never preferable to be a little off the mark, but it is inevitable if you're putting yourself out there and racing regularly. I sometimes find a less than optimal performance is a precursor to better running.

Overall it still sounds like a very good run!

From james (runmehappy) on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 17:45:00 from 67.41.162.148

Great race Rob. The 20 miler likely contributed. You went out and pushed it and that is what matters. Let's run soon.

From Jon on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 20:07:01 from 107.203.52.135

Eh, races happen. Good job, regardless. But your not a grand masters, are you?

From Rob Murphy on Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 20:11:39 from 24.10.247.181

50 years old Jon!

From Jake K on Mon, Mar 02, 2015 at 12:50:55 from 159.212.71.77

Look at this from a slightly zoomed out view. In the past 15 days:

-Excellent 10K, doubling up your 5K from a few weeks before

-Longest workout/run in who knows how long

-Solid if unspectacular 15K

That's probably your best stretch of quality running since you retired :-) I'd say things are looking good.

From jtshad on Mon, Mar 02, 2015 at 12:59:12 from 141.221.191.225

Strong run, Rob. I agree with Jake that you have had a very solid stretch lately.

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