Winning Back What I Lost

Stretched it out a bit on my day off; first week of at least four days of running since my injury in early november; fierce headwind of about 20 mph on the way out really sapped my legs and wind; felt good to start building my base back up even though my pace is still about a minute slower than it was before the injury.

T/M: It's getting better- my endurance that is.  My ankle is still sore but not overly painful.  I was able to hold a decent pace for 4 miles which is twice as long as I could only a couple of weeks ago.  Shooting for a return to my normal 5 or 6 days of running this week w/ a longer weekend run.  Somewhere around 25+ miles is my goal.  We'll see how it goes.

T/M: 9m pace; ankle significantly better; started massaging ankle w/ liquid heat to work out the swelling and it has really started to work. Weather is horribly soggy right now but looks like I might get some outdoor runs toward the end of the week.

T/M: Had planned on running outside on some hills during lunch hour but the boss dragged me into a conf call; ended up going to the gym after the BCS NC game; Slow (8:57) even pace for 5+ miles w/ cooldown; probably due for some new shoes; knee soreness is starting to return but at least my ankle is getting better.

Eagle Ride Trail (Boise Foothills); tackled some hills today and it ruined me; I had planned on going further but the ascent killed my wind and the descent ruined my legs; plan on doing this once a week up until Robie Creek; good times. 

T/M:  Wanted to get out for a long run but the wife didn't get home til late afternoon and I didn't feel like running in the dark;  my legs were strong but I'm due for some new shoes as I've had these Saucony's for about 8 months; first week of 5 days of running since late October.

Started a 14 week training program today for Robie Creek 1/2 on 4/18.  GB run from FF Memorial to Broadway Bridge and back.  Today was supposed to be an easy run at 10 min pace.  Found it extremely difficult to go any slower than 9:30/mile pace.  Heart rate remained steady around 155 which is a little under 75% of max for me.  Added some cushioned heel inserts to both extend the life of my shoes and give some added cushioning for my left ankle. 

Got outside again today on my lunch.  First tempo run in a looooooong time.  My training plan called for 3 miles @ 8:33/mi but I was feeling saucy and went 8:29/mi.  Booyah!!!   Back on my diet for reals this time.  Need to drop back down to 165-170 before Robie.  I have this theory that running is quantifiably easier when you do it often and you don't carry spare luggage.   

Didn't get outside but I did get to the gym for some TM hill training.  Five minute warm-up jog followed by 2 miles @ 4% incline and .5 mile cooldown.  I was completely exhausted, which is disappointing considering the grade up Aldape Summit that I'll have to traverse in April for Robie Creek 1/2 averages 4.34%. :(   I decided that I needed to punish myself for my poor shape and stuck around for some plyometrics w/ the medicine ball followed by a ten minute ride on the stationary bike to cool down.  Probably take tomorrow off to prep for a ten miler on Saturday if the stars are aligned. 

Easy, slow, long weekend run.  My training plan called for 8 miles but I had decided beforehand to extend it to 10.  Seemed like a good idea until around mile 7.5.  I really labored the last couple of miles.  Temp was cold (mid to high 20's) so I thought I wouldn't need to hydrate along the way- mistake #2.  No soreness in the ankle.  Felt pretty good about my form until I broke down around mile 8 or 9.  Looks like building my base back up to where it was will take more time than I thought.  I'm sure it will get easier as I continue to shed the extra 20 I gained back from September-December- down six lbs so far.

T/M: Hill repeats; alternated 1 min intervals of 3, 4, 5, & 6.4% incline w/ 1 min cooldown in between for 5 miles. Legs felt very strong and my VO2 max is improving with every hill workout. 

Midday fartlek run (2x1600 w/ 800 jogs) w/ warmup and cooldown.  My legs were still tight and felt heavy after last nights weight training.  Temperature was in the high 20's.  My shoes are falling apart but the cushion still seems adequate.  I've surpassed the 400 mile mark so its probably time to replace them.

T/M: 4+ miles of hill intervals; alternating 1 min 3.5/4.9/6.1/7.1% incline w/ 1 min .5 to recover; starting to see some dividends to my 2 weeks of hill work and weight training on my legs; felt much stronger this time around and still had enough left to cool down at 8:30 pace.

Didn't get out for my long run on Saturday.  Instead, I spent the night at a cabin near Soldier Mountain w/ some adults and kids from our church.  We didn't go to the resort but rather hiked up a small hill a dozen times in 3-4 feet of snow w/ my snowboard and hit a makeshift jump we built at the bottom.  It was a blast and the hike in the snow got my heart and legs pumping. 

Slow, easy 5+ miles on my lunch hour.  My neck is real stiff from landing on my head a couple times at this weekend's activity.  Temp was in the mid 20's but I didn't feel that cold in the sun.  Looking forward to warmer temps later this week.

Early AM workout on the T/M: 30 mins of hill work (pyramid of 5 mins at 3%; 3 min at 5%; 1 min at 7%; followed by 20 mins of 2-5%).  Finished up w/ some leg presses, calf raises and standing leg extensions.

So yesterday I decided that I've got to do something about the swelling in my ankle.  It's not overly painful but it's preventing me from properly stretching my left calf b/c when I do so I get this intense pain in my achilles down to my heel.  So I schedule a 1 hr massage over my lunch hour.  I didn't ask for the same gal that I got last time (August '08)- big mistake.  She was gentle and the gal I got yesterday must be some sort of closet sadist.  OMG was it painful!  It literally felt like she was stabbing me w/ a knife and twisting it into my femur very slowly.  She would find a pressure point and then go to work and each time she did I would just bury my face into the pillow and scream inside my head.  Apparently, my calves and quads were very tight.  After she was done I thought about pressing charges but decided that she would probably use my consent against me in court.  Damn!!!   The pain has not alleviated but rather has just moved down to my heel and has in fact become more bothersome.  Hopefully, this means that she opened up a pathway for these toxins to vacate through my heel????? 

Early AM workout on the T/M:  3 mile tempo run at 8:34 pace.  I was completely wasted by the end I attribute most of this to the fact that I've been "backed up" for days and its making me feel rather lethargic and queasy.  Nonetheless, I can't believe how far I've regressed since my injury.  I was doing longer tempo runs at a 7:45 clip last year.  I also weighed about 15 lbs less last year.  Down to 187 lbs now and my goal is to be below 170 lbs by the time Robie Creek rolls around in mid April and at 165 lbs in time for the Ogden Marathon in mid May.  Ultimately, I think maintaining my weight at somewhere between 160-165 will be ideal for me to run at my potential and lessen the risk of injury. 

I purchased some new shoes yesterday (Asics Nimbus 10) and had my first opportunity to try them out at lunchtime on the greenbelt.  I really like the cushion and the springiness to the midsole but they felt rather heavy- and not just after a couple of miles but right away.  I was concerned about that b/c the only negative reviews on this shoe involved their weight and the relatively small toe box.  The latter didn't bother me at all- the fit was nice- but they are noticeably heavier than my Triumph 5's.  I might take them back or I might just wait until after my long run on Saturday. 

The good news is that my ankle soreness has virtually gone away.  The bad news is that it has moved down to my heel where its more pronounced.  I don't feel it so much when I'm running but after I'm done I really feel it just walking.  Presumably this is because I'm more of a midsole to toe striker. 

Weather was really nice today for this time of year.  Temp in 30's w/ sunshine.  I was definitely overdressed w/ my long sleeve thermal underneath a runner's jacket.  Still working on building my base and I think if I can get a good long run in on Saturday and a few miles on Friday I might be able to jack my weekly miles up to around 35- something I haven't done since last summer. 

Early AM on T/M:  Well this workout sealed it for me.  The Nimbus 10 are just too darn heavy and narrow for my liking.  My legs felt heavier than ever wearing these shoes even though I've been losing 2-3 lbs a week.  I really struggled through 4+ miles at .5 incline and 9:05 pace.  I ran the last 5 mins at 4.5 incline so that I wouldn't forget what real hills feel like.  That's the disadvantage of running in Meridian and on the greenbelt in Boise so much- there just isn't a lot of net elevation gain to be had.  The foothills are less than a mile from my office and I keep thinking that I should be running more hills but I'm still trying to build my base and cardio capacity back to where it was before my injury. I'm hoping that if I continue to drop weight at my current pace and get my mileage up to 40-50 mpw by the end of February I can spend all of March-mid April training in the foothills for Robie Creek.  Long run tomorrow will give me my first 6 day run week in forever and should get me to 35+ miles for this week. 

Early AM Long Easy Run:  Took back the Nimbus 10's and picked up the Wave Rider 12's.  These shoes feel like slippers, they're so light.  Huge difference, as my legs felt infinitely stronger even though I went twice the distance.  I back on Diclofenac Sodium, 25 mg, and the heel pain is gone.  First 6 day run week since last summer!!!  The base is coming back, slowly but surely. 

I wanted to get out and get a feel for what I'll be facing come April.  I've never really done any hill training since I started running.  This neglect, more than anything, led to my disappointing times in the Sun Valley 1/2 and the Mesa Falls Marathon.  Both races had significant climbs that sucked the life out of me and I never really recovered. 

Anyway, what I found out was that I'm nowhere near ready to take on the huge climb to Aldape Summit.  I parked my car on Shaw Mt. Road about a mile below where the pavement turns to gravel and ran an out and back.  There's still quite a bit of packed snow and ice on the dirt road, as well as mud where the ice and snow have melted.  This made the climb even more difficult b/c I had to pick certain lines to avoid sloshing through the mud and/or sliding on the ice.  The packed snow was easiest to run on, both uphill and downhill.  At least 4 other runners were getting their licks in and, curiously, quite a bit of automobile traffic going to the Summit.  Temp was just above freezing w/ bright sunshine.  Total net elevation gain in the 2.75 miles was right at 700 feet, or a little more than 1/3 of the net gain in the first 8.4 miles of the Robie Creek course!  Yikes! 

If there was one bright spot it is that the downhill portion was quite enjoyable even w/ the braking for the ice, snow and mud.  My legs felt great and I felt like I could go longer if I didn't have to return to the office.  If I continue to build my base cardio back up by dropping more weight and increasing my weekly mileage to 45+mpw I think I'll be ok.   I'm planning on doing some 1 mile hill repeats later on in the week.

T/M workout: Slow, easy recovery run after yesterday's hill training.  Treadmills were packed this morning and I had to wait a few minutes for one to come free.  I told myself that I would go super slow this morning but my type A competitive personality won't allow it when I have people running on both sides of me.  It shouldn't matter to me either way but it does for some reason.  I'm feeling a little run down w/ the beginnings of a sore throat.  I only got about 4-5 hours of decent sleep as I tossed and turned all night. I've got two sick kids at home but hopefully I can ward of their sickness at least until I get out of town tomorrow through Friday.  

Early AM T/M Tempo Run:  Warmed up for a mile then 4 miles at 8:27 pace and 1+ mile cooldown; my legs are starting to come back; I didn't have a heart monitor on but I could tell that I was just below threshold; last week I did this for 3 miles and it wiped me out; this week I could have gone longer than 4 if I didn't have to be a responsible adult and go to work.  Weight= 185 lbs

Went to the chiropractor yesterday and he used some weird hammer-like electric device to loosen up the swelling and popped my ankle back in line for me.  My neck was pretty out of whack too.  He's a pretty cool guy and told me about his new workout routine called Crossfit.  Apparently, there are Crossfit gyms popping up all over the place.  I checked out their website and it looks interesting.  Looks like they do a lot of different plyometrics as fast as they can which gives it a cardio component.  He claims that his buddy trained for and completed a marathon doing nothing but Crossfit.  He didn't say what the guy's time was though.

Traveled to Vegas yesterday afternoon for a conference.  I was hoping to get outside w/ the nice weather here but my hotel is just off the strip in a neighborhood w/ alot of traffic so I decided to hit the treadmill instead.  I got 2 workouts in, mostly because I had already lost my quota on the blackjack tables by 8 o'clock.

AM:  4 miles on alternating incline between 1.5% and 2.5%; 1 mile at 4.5%.

PM: 5 easy miles @ 1%.

Back home in Boise; Long, slow easy run, well except for the stomach problems that had me running for the toilet at the nearest Jackson's;  I don't know what it is about longer runs but I inevitably get the runs; I even brought what I thought was sufficient water so I don't think it was dehydration; it's got to be something else, most likely my diet.  Anyway, the good news is that I felt that I could longer but for the stomach discomfort- legs and lungs felt better than they have in a long time.  First 40 mile week since last summer and I only ran 5 days.  Weight- 183 lbs.

Hit the hills again this afternoon.  Started at the base of Shaw Mtn. Road and ran uphill for a little over a mile then down into Rocky Canyon and then uphill again to where the pavement ends and back.  Weather was nasty w/ an ice/snow mix at my back on the way out and in my face on the way back.  This is roughly the first 1/5 of the Robie Course.  I like this run because it has an uphill and downhill on both the out and back portions.  My base training seems to be paying dividends.  I was breathing heavy on the uphill but nowhere near VO2 max.  Held my pace at no worse than 9:45 for the steeper sections and no slower than 7:45 on the downhill.  The best part is that I felt like I could give more if I had to.  This might become my regular Monday lunchtime run for the next couple of months. I was a little overheated because I had to bundle up for the ice/snow w/ the temp right at freezing or slightly above. 

I've been limiting myself to somewhere between 1,200-1,500 calories for nearly a month now and its helped me shed some of the winter pounds I put on during my injury hiatus rather quickly.  However, I can tell that I need to consume more if I'm going have the energy to ramp up my mileage even more.  My goal is to be hitting 50 mpw w/in a couple of weeks and get back down below 170 before Robie.  Need to find a balance between losing weight and maintaining the energy I need for increased training mileage.

Early morning T/M run:  Took me a while to wake up this morning.  I only got maybe 4-5 hours of solid sleep.  I'm just not made for morning runs, particularly when its still dark and cold in the early morning.  Once I woke up I settled into a comfortable 8:50 pace for 4 miles or so- 6.3 miles total.  My abdominal pain on the right side has returned.  For the longest time I thought it was a strained muscle but I've recently looked into the side effects of the prescription anti-inflammatory that I began taking off and on last year, diclofenac sodium, and it lists gastrointestinal problems such as ulcers and internal bleeding.  Something the PA that prescribed it never mentioned when she gave me a prescription w/ at least 3 refills so far.  I think I'll stick to Motrin from now on and see if the pain subsides.   

PM T/M run:  Got a little restless this evening so I decided to hit the gym again.  45 mins of strength training on legs followed by 4.75 miles on T/M hill program.  Hills varied from 2% to 5% incline.  I decided to stop off at the local convenience store on the way home for some Diet Mt. Dew and my truck died.  I ended up running home (at least 1 mile, probably more) carrying 2 one liter bottles of DMD in each hand and no sweatpants (20 degrees). 

Didn't run yesterday due to some car problems that I had to take care of and a nasty head cold that had me on Sudafed and a little loopy.

Early AM: Hit the T/M again for some Yasso 800's. This is a workout that I read about recently in Runner's World ( http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244-255-624-0,00.html ). The workout claims that you can predict your marathon time based on how quickly you can run a half mile/800 meters. More precisely, how fast you can run 10 x 800 meters w/ half mile jogs in between. My goal for the Ogden Marathon in May is 3:45 so I set the TM at 8.0 (7:30 mile). The good thing about doing these on the TM is that you are forced to run the required pace. The bad thing is that you are forced to run the required pace. There is no working up to it or making up for lost time or running faster. Unfortunately, I only had time to do 4 sets this morning, not that I could have finished 10 sets (equivalent to 10 miles w/ half mile jogs in between) because frankly I was wasted. I probably could only have completed 6 sets at best. However, I plan on doing this workout semi-regularly until I can complete 10 sets and then see how this translates in May.

PM: Ran outside during my lunch.  Ran from my office on Washington St. to Fort Boise Park and up Military Reserve Road past the old cemetery and then up past the shooting range.  This is most of the Les Bois 10k course that I'll run next month.  It's a good tune-up for Robie.  I didn't run the full 3.1 miles uphill, more along the lines of 2 and a quarter miles w/ a about 450 ft of elevation gain.  The trail narrows and steepens quite a bit once you turn left at the shooting range and I didn't feel like killing myself having already done a speed workout in the morning.  The trail was muddy on the upper section but nowhere near as bad as the Robie trail right now.   

Early AM:  Easy run this morning on the TM following yesterday's two workouts.  I averaged an 8:41 pace but I did the last two miles before cooldown @ 8:19/mile.  Legs are kinda dead right now and my left heel is aching.  I'm trying to ween myself off of the anti-inflammatory meds I've been on and sticking w/ ibuprofen.  I'm getting better range of motion in the ankle but its still at about only 75% or less. 

Salt Lake City, UT

AM:  Holed up in a Holiday Inn near the airport w/ the fam.  We're here visiting my wife's grandmother.  I had planned on doing a nice long run outside but about 2 hours of sleep and 3-4 inches of snow put the kabosh on that.  I settled for a shorter TM run.  My legs were dead.  The fitness room was about 80 degrees w/ no discernible ventilation- only a glass window separated this room from the pool and hot tub.  The fitness room may as well have been the sauna.  I was proud of myself for draggin my arse out of bed.  I'm all about building up the base and getting the mileage in.  Not for some arbitrary number but to get some time on my feet every day to strengthen my legs for the tough hill climbs that are just around the corner.  I settled for 6.25 slow miles.

PM: Returned to the hotel around 7ish after visiting family and an afternoon at the Dinosaur Museum in Lehi, UT.  Kids wanted to go for a swim so I spent a couple of hours splashing around in the tiny Holiday Inn pool.  I didn't want to go but I knew that I had to increase my mileage from last week.  My legs were actually stronger this evening but it was still hotter than a whore in July in that blasted fitness room.  I stopped at 3.6 miles feeling like I could easily do another 3 but w/ sweat pouring off of me like I had just jumped into the pool.

Registered for Robie Creek 1/2 marathon today.  The field filled up in less than an hour and to tell you the truth I wasn't real optimistic about 15 mins into the open registration period.  After about 20 mins of hitting the refresh button I finally got in.  The powers that be switched to active.com this year due to the enormous problems they had w/ online registration process the past couple of years. 

Temp run on the T/M.  Warmup, 6 miles at 8:30, and cooldown.  Legs felt great after a day off.  Did some strides at 7:24 toward the end.  I think my conditioning is almost back to where I was last summer.  Weight= 181 lbs.

Lunchtime hill training on the Les Bois 10k Course.  I could tell that this was going to be a tough day even before I started.  I had a bit of nausea and stomach pain even before I started and my legs were a little sore after yesterday's long tempo run.  I should have done a recovery run today and hit the hills tomorrow but I'm getting anxious to build up my hill strength with less than 2 months before Robie and a month to the Les Bois 10k.  This time I was armed with my Garmin to get an idea of what type of climb this course offered.  I didn't run the full 3.1 miles out but the roughly 2.5 I did run revealed approximately 700 feet of elevation gain w/ an avg grade of 6.4% and a maximum grade of 20% just before you hit the top of Trail #5.  I'm not quite sure where the turnaround is on this course having never run it and there's no race map that I can find anywhere.  If one doesn't turn off the main trail from the shooting range onto trail #5 then it actually kinda levels off as it heads north and begins to descend.  I plan on contacting the race director and get a race map. 

Lunchtime run from Municipal Park past Warm Springs and back.  Beautiful weather w/ sunny skies and temp in the mid 40's.  I ran in shorts and even shed my long sleeve micro for the first time in a long time.  Didn't get into a groove until the second mile or so.  Average pace of 8:38 for the middle four miles w/ a warmup and cooldown mile.  Right knee pain is returning.  I used the foam roller for the first time in a long while last night and it seems that it will be a regular routine for me once again. 

Lunchtime run:  Another hill training session (5.3 miles).  Tons of people out running in the Ft Boise area of the foothills w/ bright sunshine and temps nearing 50 degrees.  Parked at Ft Boise Park and this time I ran all the way up to the end of the Les Bois course and back.  I contacted the race director and he graciously sent me a google earth map of the course .  I started about 1/3 mile from the starting line so the math comes out OK I think.  Contrary to what I had previously thought, the course doesn't descend after the 2 mile mark but rather continues to climb, albeit not as steep, at "only" about a 5% grade until you hit the Trail 26 marker which is the 3.1 mile turnaround.  Between roughly mile 1.5 and the 2 mile mark it varies between a 12 and 15% grade!!  This, as far as I can tell, is roughly equivalent to the last half mile before Aldape Summit on the Robie Creek course which should be a good prep given that the upper end of the Robie Course is still kinda sketchy w/ ice, mud and snow these days. 

PM:  Weight training on lower body at the gym (leg press, leg curls, squats, lunges); followed that up w/ 30 minutes of hill training on the TM, alternating 1 min hill intervals of 3, 4, 5, and 6.4% incline.  Starting to get a sideache again.

Nice easy lunchtime run on the GB at 8:55 pace including warmup and cooldown.  Legs are a little bit sore after yesterday's two workouts.  I'm not sure if I'll get my run in tomorrow b/c I'll be at Tamarack w/ the family- if I do it will be late- so I wanted to get a few extra miles in this afternoon.  I'm always wary of being away from the office too long though so ended up settling for 7.  I could have eked out another half mile to a mile if I ran harder but my heart wasn't in it.  Maybe someday I'll be able to squeeze in another couple of miles in the same amount of time?  Probably not. 

Returned late this evening, around 9pm, from an overnight family outing @ Tamarack Resort.  Succumbed to the pressure of gradually increasing my mileage and hitting my 50 mpw goal by the end of the month.  Ran @ a nice and easy conversation pace (9:15).  Temp wasn't that cold (29 degrees) but there was a very cool breeze hitting my face on the way home.  Felt like I could go 12-14 but it was getting late and I have to get up early tomorrow.

T/M:  Late run tonight.  Easy pace (8:50) w/ miles 3-6 at 2% incline.  I was really worried that I would wuss out of this workout b/c the crud is going around every one of my kids and my wife.  I felt a little achy and lethargic at the start but after a  mile or so my legs and lungs started to feel really strong.  I'm actually starting to enjoy uphill running a bit more every workout. 

Today was another hill day. I briefly thought about going up Shaw Mt. to Table Rock because I wasn't sure if the upper end of the Les Bois 10k course was bogged down w/ the recent rain we've received.  Temp was excellent, mid 50's, but it was windy as heck which alternated between a blessing and a curse on the way up and on the way back.  I decided that I was gonna attack the uphill 5k portion and see how fast I could run it.  About 1/4 mile into that plan I finally got my legs to respond.  The good news is that the narrow dirt trails on the upper portion were in great shape and I thought I might be able to push through the steepest portion of the uphill (12-20% grade) around mile 2 at this accelerated pace- but it wasn't to be.  I bonked and had to walk about .2 miles of the steepest portion.  That said, I was still able to complete the first 5k in 29:02.  The downhill was more encouraging.  Instead of braking on the steepest of the downhill I was able to more or less fall down the slope and really make good time.  For a brief moment I imagined that I was Ice-T being chased by Rutger Hauer through the wilderness.  My overall pace was 8:20.  If I can whittle that down to around 8 mpm by a week from Saturday then I'll be extremely pleased.  I should also add that I learned that eating a Jello Sugar Free Pudding Snack immediately before a strenuous run is ill advised.    

Midday run on the GB.  Temp in the 50's and overcast.  No real aim or purpose to today's run, just looking to log some miles.  My hamstrings were extremely tight and never got loose during the entirety of the run.  Warmup, 4 miles @ 8:37, and cooldown. 

San Francisco, CA

Checked into my hotel on Embarcadero right on the Bay and couldn't wait to go for a run along the Pier.  Ran from Embarcadero Plaza to Fisherman's Wharf back underneath the Bay Bridge then to South Beach Yacht Club, McCovey Cove @ AT&T Park, where Bonds used to launch his steroid induced bombs, and back to the Plaza. 

AT&T is a lovely venue and not long ago it was center of the baseball universe.  My how things have changed.  If Yankee Stadium was the "house that Ruth built" then PacBell/AT&T is the house that Bonds built that was later foreclosed upon and now the Giants have to write down as a toxic asset.  Beautiful view of the Bay Bridge all lit up at sunset.  I could even see into right field @ AT&T Park through the iron gates as I ran past.  Lots of people running which forced my type A competitive personality into hyerdrive.  I ran @ my 10k pace most of the run which is alright I guess but I wasn't planning on a tempo run- it just sorta happened.  8:03 pace overall. 

San Francisco, CA

Planned on running the Embarcadero again but I ended up going to dinner and getting back after dark.  Ran on the TM, a nice one for a change.  It seems like no matter how nice the hotel I stay in their treadmills are almost always horrible.  Did some light weight work followed by a slow run w/ a couple miles of incline (2-6%) mixed in.  I plan on a long run tomorrow along the Pier and possible as far as GG Bridge and back.

San Francisco, CA

Set a new high in monthly mileage in just 28 days.  Had to transfer to another hotel that is smack dab in downtown.  It was kinda fun running through downtown and weave in and out of the crowds.  Surprisingly few stops for lights.  Ran down the Embarcadero but continued and to Fisherman's Wharf, Fort Mason Lookout (Nice steep climb), Marina and finally to the Presidio at the base of GG Bridge and back.  Plenty of people out and about on a Saturday so I had to dodge a lot of human and dog traffic.  Should not have done that weight training or hills late last night.  I'm plenty sore right now and I seem to be fighting a sore throat as well. 

AM:  Lunchtime run up Shaw Mt. Rd and then 3/4 of the way up Table Rock.  Total elevation gain in the 3.1 mile climb was 858 ft., 120+ ft greater than the Les Bois 10k course coming up this Saturday.  I was feeling rather confident on the uphill, that is until a 130 lb twig of a man w/ gigantic quads and calves whizzed by me like I was standing still.  He of course went all the way to the top.  I'm gonna go out on a limb and say this guy will be running Robie next month and I'm guessing he might do quite well.

PM: 4.31 easy/slow miles on the TM this evening.  Trying to increase my mileage up near the 50 mpw mark and its definitely easier for me to get away for shorter periods of time during weekdays at least. 

Planned on running this afternoon but thanks to an afternoon hail storm I had to wait until late tonight.  Long easy slow run outside @ a conversational pace.  I fell asleep on the couch and woke up in a pissy mood b/c I knew that I hadn't run yet.  My wife's been sick and coughing all night so I'm not getting a lot of sleep.  May have to sleep on the couch tonight to get some rest.  I can't recall ever doing that, voluntarily at least. 

My hip has been bothering me since my return flight from SF.  It feels like its come out of its socket somewhat and when I place my hand there while I walk I can feel an abnormal protrusion of the bone.  It's not terribly painful, sort of a dull ache, but it affects my gait while walking and running.  I plan on visiting my chiro sometime this week.

T/M: Raining/snowing this afternoon so I had to settle for the TM after work.  My IT is really flaring up.  I gave it a good once over w/ the hand massager and the foam roller.  Seems to be a little better.  Did a hill pyramid @ an easy, slow pace (warmup mile, 1 mile @ 1.0, 1 mile @ 2.0, 1 mile @ 3.0, 1 mile @ 4.0, .5 mile @ 3.0, .2 mile @ 2.5, .2 mile @ 2.0, etc., cooldown).  

More bad weather this afternoon forced me inside for another evening TM run.  I thought the ITBS was starting to feel better until I ran again.  It's tolerable right now until I stop running when it really starts to stiffen up and ache.  I'm gonna give it a good icing tonight and see if that's more effective.  I started a new audiobook today, "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Haruki Murakami.  Thus far its mildly interesting.  Its basically just the random musings of a 50 yr old novelist pondering the various stages of his passion/ambivalence toward running.  Kinda like what I do here from time to time.

2 mile warmup, 4 miles @ approx. 8:08 mi, 2+ mile cooldown.  Felt pretty good- like I could have gone a bit longer and a bit faster.   

Course map: http://www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=189510

Woke up this morning w/ the first good night's sleep I've had in a week.  Ran about 1.5 miles at a slow jog to warmup.  Temp at the start was near 20 degrees after an overnight low in the teens.  This was actually a benefit because it froze the mud that developed on the course after a few inches of snow in the Boise Foothills began to melt yesterday.  It also froze the small stream that ran through the out and back course at roughly miles 1.8 and 4.2. 

I neglected to charge my Garmin so I had no way of tracking my pace.  As a result, I decided to just let it loose and run as strong as I could from the start.  I didn't hold back much at all- knowing that I couldn't possible run that hard through the steepest part of the course around mile 2.  Sure enough, by the time I hit the steepest portion I was spent and was forced to walk for about two minutes to catch my breath.  Nevertheless, I was not passed by anyone nor did I pass anyone the remainder of the race.  In fact, there was so much distance between the racer immediately in front of me and immediately behind me that I believe I was prevented from running the 6 seconds faster that I needed to beat my previous PR (established last year in my first and only other 10k on a pancake flat course).  When I rounded the last corner to the straightaway leading to the finish line the digital time readout revealed a time of 48 mins even.  I tried to pick up the pace but there was just too much space to cover and/or I am just too slow.  All that aside, I'm extremely pleased w/ my effort.  After running this course in training I was aiming for a 8:30 pace and ended up w/ 7:46 and just 5 seconds off my PR on a dirt and gravel trail course that averages around a 4.5 grade.  Throw in little bit of ice, snow, frozen mud and frozen creek to jump over and I should not have even flirted w/ a PR. 

This race was only the appeitizer.  Now its on to the main course- the Robie Creek 1/2 Marathon in 5 weeks- which offers a much greater endurance challenge. 

Afternoon:  Boise GB from Municipal Park to Harris Ranch and back.  1 mile warmup, 5 miles @ 8:22 pace; 1 mile cooldown.  My cardio conditioning continues to improve but my overall leg strength is still lacking.  I've known for quite some time that I will not see any significant speed gains until I drop down below 170 lbs.  I mistakenly believed that increased hill training would get me off this plateau but I've been hovering around 180 for a couple of weeks- about 5 lbs heavier than my marathon weight last year.  My main obstacle seems to be that as my weekly mileage increases, so does my appetite, which has effectively cancelled out any potential weight loss. 

AM:  I wasn't sure whether I would get some time this afternoon or evening so I got up for an early run.  I should say, after hitting the alarm clock twice I eventually stumbled out of bed for a run.  5+ easy, slow miles on the TM @ 1% incline. Crossing my fingers for a hill workout this afternoon or evening as well.

PM: 4+ miles of hill intervals w/ 1 mile cooldown.  Weight = 178.5 lbs

At work today I decided that I need to ratchet up my hill training w/ just over a month until Robie.  After last night's hill training on the TM, I ran from where the pavement ends on Shaw Mt Rd to where the road is snow packed and back.  This is about 2 miles from the summit.  I felt very lethargic and kind of nauseous.  I was barely crawling along by the time I hit the cattle guard which is as far up as I ventured last month when the road was still ice/snow packed lower on the road.  I was delighted to learn that about a 1/3 mile above that the grade flattens somewhat before it begins its final assault on the summit the last 1.5 miles before Aldape Summit.  At least I was able to catch my breath a little at that point and I even planned on climbing higher but the snowpacked road after 2.5 miles was a good enough excuse for me to turn around.  Probably won't do any more hills til Saturday when I plan on running from Ft. Boise Park to the summit and back.

Seven easy, slow miles along the GB from Veteran's Park to half mile past Glenwood Bridge and back.  I'm listening to "Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini (author of Kite Runner) right now and it is truly depressing and captivating at the same time.  Hosseini is an extraordinarily gifted writer but I don't think I could listen to his work if I were doing a tempo or hill run- it leaves me too melancholy.   

Late PM:  4.91 slow, easy miles w/ a half dozen pickups in the last mile cuz that's how I roll.  Need to get close to fifty miles this week.  So far, so good.

Lunch hour run on the GB.  Felt very strong today running on flat terrain, in shorts and a long sleeve t-shirt.  Sunny w/ a temp in the 50's and a slight breeze.  Short warmup, 5+ miles @ 8:17 pace, and cooldown. On Sunday, I helped the kids build a snowman.  Today I passed by Bronco Stadium and got a glimpse of some of the big uglies doing blocking drills.  BSU spring football is here already. 

Long hill run today; ran from the first cattle guard at the bottom of Shaw Mtn Rd to within a 1/2 mile of Aldape Summit; the road got extremely icy and snowpacked from about 2 miles from the Summit on; I had to pick and choose the best route from that point which made the already steep grade that much more difficult to navigate; coming down was even worse and I had a few slips where I was certain that I would fall on my arse but I was somehow able to keep my feet; quite a few people running and one group of three actually went higher than I did but they ended up walking as the slush that had developed the day before was frozen solid w/ overnight temps down in the low 20's last night; 

I felt much stronger than any of my previous runs on the Robie course and this is as far up as I've been able or willing to venture this year; I ran at a tolerable pace from the start, not wanting to push it at all and just focused on proper breathing and extending the run; this was my longest hill run thus far in my training, not the hardest but the longest; hopefully we'll get some nights w/ temps above freezing to clear the last couple of miles to the top.   

Late evening TM run at the IAC; warmup 10 mins, 4.75 mi @ 8:30, 10 mins cooldown.  Not feeling real great; I think I might finally be getting what my kids and wife have already had; sore throat and slight fever had me sweating like I was Jim Cramer on the Daily Show. 

TM hill workout: 2 miles warmup, then 4 miles w/ half mile intervals varying from 2% to 6%, and cooldown. Weight down to 176 lbs.

I felt like crap warmed over and up until the moment I actually exited the front door of my house, it was extremely doubtful that I would do any training today. I'm not trying to take any credit as being superhuman or anything but running has just sort of become something that I HAVE to do. It's like brushing my teeth or combing my hair- sure I can skip doing those things on a given day but it just wouldn't feel right.

Late evening run outside. I ran in a long sleeve technical shirt and shorts at 10pm. I was duped into overestimating how cold it got once the sun went down (mid 30's) b/c the temp rose into the 60's during the day. That said, I would have been OK if I would have just worn gloves- my hands were freezing.

Warmup, 6 mi @ 8:27 pace, cooldown.

More hill training this afternoon. Ran an out and back from the base of Shaw Mt Rd toward Table Rock (750 ft elev gain, 4.7% avg grade). Felt surprisingly good despite a sore throat. First mile or so was tough b/c I'm spraying my throat regularly w/ Zicam which dries it out. Felt like I had cotton balls in my mouth. Looked around for some gutter water to sip but there was none to be had.

I've gotten a lot better at downhill running. One would think that this would be easy but it really is a challenge. I'm learning to avoid slapping my heels on the pavement and instead landing more softly on the midsole area to avoid braking. Ran the uphill 3 miles in 9:40 avg pace (last mile was much slower) and the downhill 3 in 7:08 avg (1st downhill mile at 6:45 which is excellent for me). Most encouraging thing about the run today was that I didn't really have to exert too much.

I heard today that Aldape Summit is clear of snow and ice all the way to the top. I may have to hit it again on Saturday morning depending on how I feel.

Afternoon out and back run on the GB from Parkcenter Bridge past Warm Springs Golf Course. Today is the first day of Spring and it was probably the warmest day of the year thus far. Still bothered by sore throat and cough but I'm warming to the idea that its just my allergies. Lots of plants and trees coming to life this past week.

Started reading/listening to Malcolm Gladwell's book 'Outliers: The Story of Success.' My buddy (stat geek) and my brother have been raving about this book and I finally got around to it. Gladwell makes a rather compelling argument that successful people aren't defined simply by their inherent genius or talent, rather they're often the beneficiary of seemingly benign environmental factors which grant them certain advantages over their rivals. Thus far, the book has made me ashamed of being born on August 1, perhaps the most fortuitous b-day for any aspiring MLB player. Why? The youth baseball cut-off date in most of the US is July 31. I am Exhibit A for the case that enjoying a physical advantage over other players cannot supersede an utter lack of proficiency.

Avg pace= 8:15 mi.

I was planning on running to the Aldape Summit now that it is clear of snow.  The skies looked pretty ominous and the forecast was not encouraging so I settled for 12 easy/slow miles on the TM- which is about 5 miles more than I can usually stand.  Disappointed that I couldn't keep up the trend of increasing my weekly mileage.  It was a combination of things that prevented me from getting out enough.  Next week is spring break and I'll be at my parents place in Oregon starting Wednesday.  I'm gonna have to get creative if I hope to get the miles in that I need.

Afternoon out and back run on the greenbelt (6.01 mi); easy pace for 4 miles then some half mile pickups of 7:25 mi pace; 8:28 overall pace.  Need to run again tonight because I'll be travelling all day on Wednesday to visit parents in Oregon for Spring Break; I need to bank some miles in case the inevitable happens.

Late night hill training on the TM (6.45 mi): 1 min intervals of 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, and 6.4%. 

Late evening run on the TM: warmup, 6 miles at 8:18 avg pace w/ the last mile @ 7:30 pace, cooldown.  Started listening to A Mighty Heart: The Life and Death of Daniel Pearle by Marianne Pearle.  Daniel Pearle is the WSJ reporter who was kidnapped in Pakistan by Al Qeada forces while tracking down Richard Reid's (shoe bomber) ties to the organization in late '01.  Thus far, not a bad listen although the author/narrator's French accent takes a little getting used to. 

Heading to Oregon w/ the fam for the rest of the week so I'm gonna have to get creative if I'm to get my mileage back up to 50 miles.

Lebanon, OR

Visiting my parents for Spring Break week w/ the kids; snuck away early before everyone got up and ran and out and back along the highway leading to Corvalis; Felt really good to be running on flat terrain at near sea level; 6 miles @ 8:06 and cooldown.

Lebanon, OR

Had an idea to run along the South Santiam River which runs right through the north part of town; crossed over the bridge ready to follow the river toward Sweet Home, OR and had second thoughts once I saw the narrow shoulders.  I ended up continuing north for a few miles before turning back and running a slightly different path back to my folks' house.  This route wasn't nearly as scenic but it some nice rollers that tested my legs a bit.  Still feeling very strong but for the lower back pain I got from being on my dad's roof all day scrubbing moss of the shingles and cleaning gutters.....so nice to visit the old man, he always has a few chores for me when I come around. :)  8 miles @ 8:16 and cooldown.  My wife wants to head my sisters house in Portland early tomorrow for a brief visit and then hit the road back to Portland.  It's 11 o'clock right now and I'm not optimistic that I'll get up early enough tomorrow morning to get my long Saturday run in before my wife tells me where I need to be. :(

Back to the grind w/ more hill training.  Ran an out and back from Les Bois Park to Table Rock.  Legs felt good but my heart rate was racing from the get-go.  Not sure what that was about.  Nice easy pace, 9:27 on the way up and 8:32 overall.  I plan to run again this evening.  I was travelling on Saturday so I wasn't able to get a long run in again this past week.   

Late PM:  TM run; 1 mile warmup, 6 mi @ 8:28 pace w/ 1% incline, .3 cooldown.  Eclipsed my previous PR for monthly mileage that I achieved in February.  I'm hoping go over 200 miles tomorrow.

Afternoon:  Lunchtime GB run cut short by rain; 4 miles @ 8:13 pace; Started listening to An Ordinary Man: An Autobiography by Paul Rusesabagina.  Rusesabagina was a hotel manager in Rwanda during the mid-90's Hutu genocide of the minority Tutsis and the inspiration for the academy award winning movie Hotel Rwanda.  He used his connections to shelter Tutsis and moderate Hutus sympathyzing w/ Tutsis.  The first part of the book attempts to clarify the idiocy behind the dutch colonial distinction between the two tribes/races.  From what I gather it was based mostly upon such critical factors as one's heighth and the length of one's nose.

Lunch: Ran an out and back from Fort Boise Park up Shaw Mt Rd to about 1.5 miles past where the pavement ends. This is actually a better workout than Table Rock because it has at least some uphill on both the out and back portions. I thought I was really starting to turn a corner on my hill training but my legs and lungs just weren't there today. I continue to run pretty strong and improve my downhill pace but I've experienced very little, if any, discernible improvement running uphill. I went so far today as to abandon my beloved Ipod in an effort to focus more intently on slower, deeper and more controlled breathing. This sounded good in theory but didn't work very well in practice. After 1/4 mile I was breathing shallow as ever. No more hill training this week until Saturday when I plan to run an out and back to Aldape Summit.

Early AM: Got up @ 5:30 and slogged through 5 miles on the TM; took a while for me to warm up but eventually got it in gear and topped out at a 7:40 mi pace; 8:30 pace overall. Did I mention that I hate running in the morning?

Lunch:  A rather uninspired and tight lil' run on the GB; it was threatening to rain but then the sun broke out and I was terribly overdressed; I was still feeling the lingering effects of this morning's early run along w/ yesterday's hill training.  I'm 100% certain that I won't run twice tomorrow.  5 and change miles @ 8:25 mi pace.  Weight still hovering @ 175 lbs. Aargh!!

T/M: Yasso 800's @ 7:30 pace w/ 4 min jog in between; just a light tune up for the real workout tomorrow afternoon.

Long, up and back hill run today from the first cattle guard on Shaw Mt Rd to Aldape Summit; my son wanted to tag along and see how far he could make it; he's running the half mile and mile in 7th grade track but he's never done any hill training; I jogged alongside him for the first couple of miles and then decided to pick up the pace a bit and go all the way to the summit and meet him on the way down; the last mile to the summit is incredibly steep and I wish I could say that I ran all the way to the top but I just didn't want to push it too hard today; I walked the last half mile to the top and then turned around. Only 2 weeks left until the race and I probably won't run to the top next week.

Easy slow pace on the way up and down: 9:15 overall pace w/ a couple of decent uphill miles some pretty fast downhill miles mixed in when I wasn't running alongside my son.

Afternoon run on the GB: Beautiful day today w/ clear skies, light winds and temp in the 60's; my quads were still a little sore from Saturday's long hill run; its been I don't how long since I've had legs this sore a couple days after a run, probably since my marathon last August. I was planning on doing a recovery run at an easy pace, somewhere around 7 miles. My first mile was leisurely @ 8:19/mi and a thought just popped into my head, "I know I'm faster than my current 10k PR, why don't I run 6.2 as fast as I can today?" Well that's what I did. I ended up running it in 46:49, a minute and 18 secs better than my PR set in April of last year after I'd been running less than 6 mos. and 1:23 better than the hilly 10k I ran last month. Course= Green Belt from Municipal Park past WS Golf Course to Harris Ranch and back. 80 ft total elev gain and the way out, so its more or less flat.

Mile Splits-

1-8:19

2-7:35

3-7:21

4-7:20

5-7:26

6-7:21

6.2-1:25

7:33/mi pace for 6.2 and half mile cooldown.

Afternoon: I only had time for a quick 1.6 mi (321 ft/3.8% avg) hill run up Shaw Mt and Table Rock Rd and back; made a concerted effort to stay upright while running uphill instead of leaning over at the waist when I get fatigued; 8:41 pace uphill and 7:24 downhill; 8:00 flat; 8:02 pace overall; should be able to get in some easy miles tonight.

Evening:  6+ miles on the TM tonight; nothing special; 8:15 mi pace.

Easy lunchtime recovery run on the GB; almost didn't make it out today as a light rain started while I was getting ready and the doppler radar didn't look too promising; then I remembered that I wasn't wearing a skirt or playing some sissy sport like tennis; so I strapped on my big boy pants and toughed it out for six easy miles @ 8:45 mi pace; kept my heart rate between 150-154 the whole way which is quite an accomplishment for me; usually I get a little frustrated during my recovery and/or long slow runs and insist on trying prove something to myself.

Afternoon: Beautiful day for a run; I felt very strong today and a bit lighter; either my legs are getting stronger or I'm finally starting to get off this 175 lb plateau I've been on for almost a month; 8:05 pace.

Long, slow out and back run from Municipal Park to the Diversion Dam above the Hwy 21 Bridge; A rather steady rain for about the 1st half of the run left me soaked; Opting out was not an option as I really needed to get in some longer runs to prepare for the Ogden Marathon next month; leisurely pace of 8:55 overall w/ some quicker pickups in the middle miles.

This is the second year in a row that my son and I have run in this race to benefit the student scholarship program at Boise State Univ.  Last year, Coach Pete barely beat Martin and he was really gunning for the Coach this year.  He finished in about 25:30 (no official time).  On my Garmin, the course measured 3.04 miles. 

I went out rather fast for me and ran the first mile in 6:45; I held onto that pace until roughly the halfway mark when I began to suck wind something awful- ran the second mile in 6:56; I kept telling myself that its only 3 miles and to kick it in gear but I had nothing left;  I was passed by a half dozen runners in the last mile which kind of irked me but I couldn't do anything about it- 3rd mile in 7:16. 

I felt like I was capable of running it in 20 minute+ range, but I guess yesterday's 14 mile training run in the rain took more out of me then I thought.  All in all, just a fun event that my son and I will do every year.  He has been looking forward to getting his revenge and beating Coach Pete.  He improved his time and, most importantly, he was able to get the "I Beat Coach Pete" T-shirt to wear to school on Monday.   

Afternoon tempo run on the GB; my legs felt very strong; Did a .5 mile warmup then 6 miles @ 7:45 pace and cooldown.  Perfect conditions, mid 50's, overcast and light wind, today but its supposed to get ugly tomorrow and gradually improve from Thursday through the weekend.  I've done a lot of high intensity training this pastweek.  With only 5 days until Robie, I think I'll dial it down Tuesday through Thursday and take Friday off before the race.

Originally, I had planned to take it easy the rest of th week but I realized that if I didn't hit the hills before Robie on Saturday it would be more than two weeks in between any significant hill training and the race. I think that is too long and that my legs and lung might object even more than usual if I gave them that long of a layoff.

3.3 miles out and back from the base of Shaw Mt Rd. through Rocky Canyon and about a mile past where the pavement turns to dirt. I went about 75% on the uphill portions and about 80-85% effort on the downhill. Everything feels great. 9:15 uphill and 8:08 pace overall. I should taper off signicantly for the weekend but I'm more or less using Robie as a training race for the Ogden Marathon on 5/16. I need to continue on my 50 mpw track so that I can top out at 55-60 mpw by the end of the month and begin a two week taper before Ogden.

Lunchtime run on the GB:  Breezy, cool and w/ a light rain when I left the office fooled me into to severly overdressing for today's run.  Looks like the front has moved through and some real nice weather is in store for this weekend and next week.  Temps may actually be a little on the high side (mid 70's) for the noon start to this hilly race.  I should be tapering but I've got to continue to log some miles.  Low stress and easy pace miles through Friday.  Pace = 8:27 mi.  Broke in a new pair of Wave Rider 12's.  I love this shoe.  I may or may not race in them on Saturday.  I'm aware of the conventional wisdom of breaking in new shoes in a race but they already felt real comfortable by the end of today's training run. 

Late night TM run: logged some more easy miles before bed; 5.5 mi @ 8:43 pace; got my packet this afternoon after work for Robie; its starting to get real and I'm starting to get nervous. 

Evening run around the neighborhood.  It was an absolutely beautiful day today.  I had today and tomorrow off so I hung out and played w/ the kiddos during the day and went for a slow, easy jaunt in the evening.  My Garmin's battery crapped out so I don't know what my pace was but it felt relaxed.  I plan on doing an easy 3 or 4 miles tomorrow and then getting so good sleep for showtime on Saturday.

My first crack at the self proclaimed "Toughest Half Marathon in the Northwest." I arrived about an hour early with a friend. We warmed up by jogging/walking from the WGI/URS parking garage to Ft. Boise and later doing 3/4 lap of Ft Boise Park. The porta pottie lines were extremely long and I managed to get through the line once but just before the start I felt like I had to go again. I got in line but it was soon apparent that I wouldn't make the start if I didn't get out of line and join the huge throng packed like cattle for the start. Getting to the start late was a big mistake because it meant that we were behind a LOT of walkers/slow runners. The first 3/4 mile is flat and I lost at least a minute trying to circumnavigate the mass of people. However, more damning than being in the back at the start was that I felt compelled to try to make up for it as we began the climb. After the first mini-hill I began to feel like I was in position toward meeting my goal of finishing the 2100 feet/8.4 mi climb to the summit in at least 1:25 min. I still felt that way until I hit the second cattle guard between miles 5 and 6. There's an aid station there and I stopped to try to get all of the water down instead of the half glass that I was getting at the other aid stations trying to drink on the run. From that point on I really struggled. My legs felt good but I was really sucking wind and i wasa more than a little dizzy. Temp was in the mid 60's with bright sunshine so it felt much warmer, at least to me. The last 3 miles to the summit was more akin to a forced march than an actual run. I stopped several times and not just at the steepest portions. The last mile is really steep and I think I probably walked 4/5 of it. I did run the last portion to the aid station at the summit if only because there was a photographer taking photos. I can't describe what a relief it was to be running downhill- at least initially. This was tampered by the fact that I really had to pee but I knew that I had already wasted so much time and finishing in under 2 hours was in serious jeopardy. So I tied a knot in it and kept going. The first 2 miles of downhill were a surprise. I had no idea how steep it was on the other side. In my training runs I had climbed the front side and run back down the same. The back side was MUCH steeper it seemed. This helped propel me toward making up some time in a hurry but it also took its toll on my quads. By mile 10 I was really wanting this to be over. I stopped at the aid station around 11 and I just could not muster my previous pace again. Until then, I was on a comfortable 7 min pace and after that I struggled to get it down to 8 min pace. My quads were screaming and felt like concrete pillars. The course was flattening out and it became increasingly more difficult to get quick turnover. I was getting even more dizzy and I finally succumbed to the urge to pee. I stopped at mile 12 or so and just peed on the side of the course for what seemed like a great while. This decision probably cost me any chance at coming in under 2 hours. I can't tell you how hard it was to start running again, even though I was tantalizing close to the end of my suffering. Somewhere around 12.5 miles I began to notice spectators. This is not a race that allows for spectators. Basically, they are only present in the first couple of miles of the race and the finish due to its remote location. This gave me a false hope that the mileage on my Garmin was off and that the end was just around the corner about a half dozen times. Apparently, these spectators had walked up from the finish line to cheer on their loved ones. In my mind, I cursed them a thousand times over. The last half mile was excruciating. My head felt lighter than air and my legs were no longer concrete pillars, they were more like giant steel bridge supports. When the finish line finally came I could hear my wife urging me on. She sounded close but I was too preoccupied and fatigued by the task of putting one foot in front of the other to search for her. I had just been passed by two older women and they were in my sights. I summoned one last charge but to no avail. An apropos ending to a tough day. After the race, I sat in the shade and discussed the race with my wife. She let me know how proud she was of my effort and my initial disappointment quickly wore off. Sure, I could have done better but a couple of years ago I don't think I would have finished it at all. Period. Next year I'll have a full idea of what to expect and how to better manage my training.

Splits:

1- 9:00 (caught behind the cattle drive)

2-8:54 (first mini-hill)

3-7:52 (half mile of downhill followed by rollers)

4-9:47 (the real climb begins)

5-9:54

6-11:09 (second cattle guard; this is the beginning of the end)

7-10:47 (trying to dig deep)

8-12:58 (walked most of this)

9-9:37 (last half mile to the summit followed by steep downhill)

10-6:30 (holy shiite is this steep!)

11-7:01 (quads are screaming0

12-8:04 (I have to pee so bad my prostate nearly explodes)

13-8:33 (I never get back on pace)

Short late evening run around the neighborhood.  I slept in today to recover from yesterday's race.  I feel pretty good but for a little bit of soreness in the quads.  Typically, I take Sundays off but I've only got 4 weeks of training until Ogden and I need to take advantage of every day from here on out.  Also, I've really been interested in the discussion board topic about NOT taking a day off after a long run and the fitness benefits that can be derived therefrom.  

Easy pace w/ miles of 8:51, 8:01, 8:04, and 8:18 (.43).

Evening tempo run: 7 miles @ 7:50 pace; beautiful day for a run.  My quads were even more sore today but I didn't even notice it when I was running.  I felt like I could have gone another couple of miles but my wife was waiting for me to return and hand off the kids so she could go run w/ her girlfriends. 

Long, slow evening run: 8:35 overall pace.  Temp in the 80's when I left the house.  Warmest running weather thus far this year.  My legs felt real heavy at first.  Don't know what is up w/ that because the quad soreness was much better today than yesterday.  Eventually, I settled into a comfortable pace.  I'm listening to Thomas Friedman's "Hot, Flat and Crowded" these days which seemed rather apropos to this evening's run.  I took a slightly different route today which brought me back to the house on Eagle Rd south of Amity.  I had forgotten just how much of that road lacks any quality shoulder to run on.  I ended up running w/ my left foot below my right foot for almost a mile.  I probably won't hit that route again unless its really early w/ no traffic. 

Evening easy run:  I had planned on doing some speed work today but after my warmup mile I developed a wicked sideache that nearly brought me to my knees.  At first, I thought I pulled an abdominal muscle but after I stopped it became clear that it was just serious case of gastrointestinal distress (i.e. gas).  Once I was able to.....errr....relieve the pressure, I settled into a really good pace w/ a couple of miles around 7:45 and nothing slower than 8:10 the rest of the way.  Overall pace= 8:25

Late evening easy run:  My wife got home from some errands after 10pm and I'm almost didn't make it for a run tonight.  Fought through the temptation to take the day off once I remembered that I wouldn't be running tomorrow in order to rest up for Saturday's 20 miler.  Very breezy conditions this evening didn't allow me to get warmed up until after the 2M mark.  Eventually, I settled into a nice 8:10-8:15 pace for the last 3M, 8:30 overall pace. 

I was going to take today off but I felt pretty good and a slight miracle occurred in that my wife didn't have any "honey do's."  Pretty windy today so it was rough going for half of the run and obviously much easier w/ the wind at my back.  6 miles @ 7:54.

Late afternoon long run:  I embarked on my longest run since late August.  I usually run an out and back to Kuna on these 20 milers but today I decided to go to Eagle and back from my home near the intersection of Victory & Eagle Rds.  I often have gastrointestinal problems on these long runs so I wanted to have more options in terms of gas stations or misc stores & restaurants to utilize if needed.  To my surprise, I had no problems.  The weather was excellent but for a stiff breeze in my face for most of the first half of my run.  Temp was in the high 50's which is near perfect.  I made concerted effort to run a nice slow and relaxed pace for the first half so that I could evaluate whether I had enough to finish strong.  It worked well and I was pleased with the fact that I ran the first half w/ an avg 8:37 mi pace and the second 10M in 8:31, including the last .94M which was a cooldown @ 9 mi pace.  Overall pace =8:34 mi.  This long run also puts me at 59+ miles this week which is a PR and very near a monthly mileage PR as well, which I should surpass easily early next week. 

Late evening recovery run:  Ran about 3.5M real slow w/ my son and then 3+ faster miles alone @ avg pace of 8:10 pace.  Established PR for monthly mileage!  Didn't feel so hot when I got home.  I think I'm coming down w/ something.  Hopefully, its just a 24 hr bug. 

Evening steady state/speedwork run:   I had planned on doing some speed work this evening but a combo of strong winds and an upset stomach forced me to abandon that idea after three .5M pickups of 7-7:15 per mi pace.  Overall pace = 8:00 per mi.

Evening TM run due to the rain; I haven't run inside in a few weeks and I had forgotten just how warm that place gets.  I was sweating like Arlen Specter at a Club for Growth meeting.  Did 1 hour @ goal marathon pace (8:15 per mi) and 1.5M easy cooldown.  Still have some stomach issues and the heat/stale air of the IAC didn't help.  One more long run this week and then I'll start tapering for Ogden which is 2 weeks from Saturday.  Yikes!

Lunchtime tempo run on the GB:  A little breezy today but otherwise a pretty nice day for a run w/ sunny skies and temp in the mid 50's.  Warmup up mile @ 8:22 then 5 mi @ avg 7:46 pace and .5M cooldown @ 8:23.  My right knee barked a little today but otherwise I felt real strong.  Avg HR was 162 bpm (87% MHR of 185 bpm) which seems kinda high to me b/c I didn't really feel all that winded.  But then again my HR measurements have always been on the high side.  Even the slowest of my runs I'm at least @ 152-155 bpm which is 80+ percent of my MHR.  I'd almost have to walk my long, slow runs just to stay within the recommended 70% MHR level (129.5 bpm). 

Out and back evening long run from Municipal Park to where the green belt ends past Glenwood Bridge.  This was my second 20 miler along w/ Robie in the last 12 days!  My legs began to acknowledge that fact, especially after mile 15.  Ran the first 17 w/ an avg 8:30 pace and pretty much just held on after that w/ an avg 9:30 pace.  I haven't had a rest day in about 2 weeks either.  The good news is that I had no stomach problems for the second long run in a row.  Unlike last Saturday, I ran on any empty stomach w/ no gels or sport beans and no water except for a fountain @ miles 2, 14 and 16.  Hopefully, my body learned some lessons today.  Bring on the taper!

Afternoon slow recovery jog on the GB; This is the effect that the fastrunningblog has had on me.  I really wanted to take a much needed day off but that nagging topic on the discussion board about the physiological benefits of NOT taking the day after a long run off nagged at me in the back of my mind.  Ran at just under 9 min pace the whole way.  Usually, I tend to run faster than I should on a recovery day but today my hand was forced as I doubt that I could have mustered a charge even if I wanted to.  The absolute greatest news is that I'm injury free [knock on wood] going into the taper.  I'm taking tomorrow off- my wife will be gone all day and night anyway- and possibly the entire weekend. 

Afternoon loop run on the GB.  7 miles w/ average of goal MP of 8:12, including warmup mile.  My legs felt real light after a couple of days off.  Started up w/ a slow 8:45 mi and then settled into a nice, fairly relaxed pace but for a brisk headwind when I was running east and out in the open near Warm Springs Golf Course.  Miles 2-7: 8:07; 8:08; 8:11; 8:05; 8:00; 8:10.

Evening run @ Half Mara pace of 7:57 (splits = 7:52, 7:55, 8:06, 8:05, 7:54, 7:56, 7:39(.58M)).  Perfect weather w/ temp in low 60's and overcast.  I tried to concentrate on proper posture and breathing.  It seems like my arms are always creeping up toward my shoulders.  Kinda awkward like that scene in Talladega Nights after Ricky Bobby wins his first race and gets interviewed for the first time and he doesn't know quite what to do w/ his hands.  Kinda like that. 

Afternoon easy run on the GB from FF Memorial to Lake Harbor and back.  Took yesterday off as I begin to taper my mileage down to 35 mi this week.  I'll do a short run tomorrow and then something around 12 miles on Saturday.  Next week will be short runs on Mon, Wed and Fri next week for a total of about 15 mi.  I forgot my Ipod today and I almost felt naked at first but then I got over it.  I think there's a trade off w/ the Ipod.  It can be distracting when you're fatigued and provide a temporary bump in energy.  But then again it also keeps me from focusing on breathing and proper form.  I'm sort of conflicted as to whether I'll run w/ it next Saturday. 

Very windy today but temp was near perfect (60 degrees).  Ran the first 5 @ even 8:23 pace; mile 6 @ 7:32; .5M cooldown; overall 8:15 pace.

Easy lunchtime run on the GB @ overal 8:15 pace.  Very nice weather today w/ less wind but still a little breezy.  I've got a boatload of honey do's, kids stuff and a Mother's Day date tomorrow so its gonna be a real challenge to get my run in tomorrow. 

Afternoon loop run w/ some rollers and a short but steep hill.  Weather was a bit warmer than I've been running in this year- temp around 73-75 degrees w/ bright sunshine.  8:05 overall pace (splits- 8:33; 8:23; 8:03; 7:50; 7:50; 7:54; 8:05; 8:08; 8:02; 8:08; 7:56 (.75 mi)); I'll run some short workouts on Mon, Wed and Fri just to stay sharp.  I hope I feel this sharp next Saturday.

Well, this is marathon week and I'm starting to get a little antsy.  My plan is to run three short workouts this week.  Originally, I was going to limit myself to 5 miles today but the weather was beautiful and ever since college I've always felt the need to cram before a big test.  That is essentially what a marathon is- a fairly lengthy fitness test.  Too bad I can't improve my score/time by concocting some clever anagram at the last minute:  Ogden = End Go; Marathon = Hart Moan. 

Ran just over six miles @ 7:57 avg pace (mile 5 pickup @ 7:40).  Felt a dull pain in my right knee toward the end of the run.  Nothing too painful.  I've been a lot more aware of every little ache and pain lately, so I'm hoping that this is just a psychosomatic reaction brought on by stress.

Afternoon tempo run on the greenbelt.  I took yesterday off as part of the taper.  My legs responded very well and I noticed that my turnover felt effortless.  I stated that this was a tempo run but I really only call it that because I ran it probably 20 seconds slower (7:47 overall) than my current 10k race pace.  It wasn't planned and I really wasn't straining to hold on.  It didn't feel easy but it didn't feel uncomfortable either.  Splits = 7:57; 7:41; 7:46; 7:38.  One more short workout tomorrow or early Friday.   

I had two main goals going in: 1) 3:35 or better; and 2) Run my first race of at least 13.1 miles w/o any stomach issues.  My goal time was within reach right up until mile 24 or so but I'm happy to report that finally I had no stomach issues to deal with during or after the race. 

Brought the family down early Friday.  My youngest developed a horrible cough and ear infection sometime that evening which led to an interesting night's sleep.  As best I can remember, I fell asleep sometime around 130 am and woke up at 345 am in order to get a quick breakfast before heading downtown to catch the shuttle bus to the starting.  I always have trouble sleeping the night before but 2 hours sleep is likely a PR.  I have to give a shout out to the Hagan's(?), a nice couple from Heber City, UT for letting me hitch a ride from the Holiday Inn Express so I wouldn't have to wake a sleep deprived wife.  I arrived at shuttle bus-pickup and in my haste I got on the half marathon bus.  After sitting there for a few seconds it finally occurred to me that I didn't actually look at a sign or ask the driver where the bus was going.  I swallowed my pride, asked the person seated in front of me which bus I was on, and took the walk of shame down the aisle to dismount the bus.  Luckily, I arrived plenty early and still ended up on the first bus up to the starting line which meant a significant amount of down time consisting of huddling next to the fire barrels, 3 potty breaks, a half mile jog, and some stretching.  I had hoped to find my law school buddy in the crowd.  Somehow, it didn't occur to us that the mass of humanity at the start would make that darn near impossible.  I eventually found him though, in the last 3/4 mile of the race.  We ended up mustering one last charge together and he edged me by 3/10's of a second (I laughed when I found out later that my official time was 30 seconds faster due to his earlier start time).  He was injured (mountain biking accident a couple weeks ago) so I can't really claim any braggin rights.  He's much faster than I am when healthy and backpacking with him was a prime motivator for why I got into running in the first place.

At the starting line, I was conscious of Jeff's admonition not to go out too fast.  In retrospect, my first 8 miles were probably too fast for my 8:12 goal pace, but they felt comfortable.  I didn't wear a heart monitor but I could tell that my breathing was relaxed and I had really easy turnover.  Around mile 4 or 5 there I got some comic relief from a hilarious dude cracking wise and singing about every 3rd word to "Owner of a Lonely Heart" by Yes at the top of his lungs.  I laughed out loud.  This was all the music I had during the race as my headphones crapped out shortly before the gun.  I've never run so much as a 5k w/o my Ipod and I was more than a little nervous about the relative impact of not having a good beat to run to, especially late in the race.  Turns out that I didn't really miss it all that much.  Go figure.

At mile 14 I silently repeated Jeff's advice to "run strong" through the only real climb during the race.  I hit the top and I was breathing heavy but not winded.  At this point I was still in the 8:04 to 8:05 range and remember thinking that the worst was behind me.  How wrong I was.  Whereas I ran the first half in what felt like a comfortable 1:47+, I ran the second half in 1:51+.  It's actually not too wide a disparity- especially since in my last marathon I had a 20+ minute margin- but intuitively I just thought that I was capable of a much faster second half given the amount of really fast downhill in miles 19-24.  The rollers of 15-18 really took care of that notion.  Just before I got to the dam crossing my left calf and left hamstring took turns going into brief spasms.  Each time I felt that little twinge I was just waiting for a full on cramp to seize my leg.  That didn't happen- at least not until later.  Right before the course leaves the pavement and heads into the tunnel my left hamstring finally seized up in a horrible cramp.  It felt like I had just been shot and I briefly glanced at the cheering crowd to see if there was a sniper among them.  No sniper, just a couple of smiling faces that quickly turned to winces as my pained expression met theirs.  It hurt, it hurt like a SOB but I managed to keep walking/hobbling through it all until it subsided.  I remember thinking that if I stopped I probably wouldn't start again. 

The cramping was extremely unfortunate because my legs were already really tired and now I couldn't get an extension.  I ended up running the last couple of miles on the park path w/ a modified gait.  My hamstring wasn't so much painful as it was stiff and restricting.   That said, even though my pace slowed I was still able to pass quite a few people in the last couple of miles because the overall pace was even slower for most of my group w/ more than a few people walking.  In the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king!

In summary, I'm really pleased with how I performed.  I ran through the wall and some cramping and didn't totally shut down.  I improved my time from the first/only other marathon in August '08 by 23 mins.  Part of that was the course, part of it was learning from past mistakes w/ regards to pre-race carb loading, fueling/hydrating during the race, and race strategy.  I'm definitely fitter than I was last year.  Looking forward to running Top of Utah in September and seeing if I can meet or exceed this level of improvement.

Lap (#) Time(m:s) Distance (mi ) Max Spd (mph) Energy (Cal)

1- 8:14 1.00 8.0 140 (The hordes kept me from running too fast which was a good thing)

2- 7:57 1.00 7.9 144

3- 7:48 1.00 8.6 144 (Got a little carried away here)

4- 7:52 1.00 8.2 144 (Pass the stand up comedian and I can still hear him singing more than a 1/4 mile away)

5- 8:08 1.00 8.3 143 (1st piss break)

6- 7:57 1.00 8.0 145 (Make conscious effort to slow down and I'm still sub 8, not good)

7- 7:59 1.00 7.8 144

8- 8:07 1.00 7.9 143

9- 8:03 1.00 7.7 144 (1st gu; chocolate outrage not too bad)

10- 8:23 1.00 8.3 142 (Make the right turn toward Pineview and the rollers start; I got confused as to which side of the road to run on as we were being shifted to various sides of the road by LE and race officials)

11- 8:17 1.00 7.8 143 (For the next 3 miles I took turns drafting behind a powerlifter whose shoulders were considerably wider than his waist and a sixty something, 6'6" behemoth w/ an incredible amount of back hair)

12- 8:14 1.00 7.8 142

13- 8:18 1.00 7.8 143

14- 8:16 1.00 8.0 142

15- 8:24 1.00 8.1 143 (I summited the hill w/ a 9 min pace for the mile but quickly made it up on the flat and downhill immediately after that)

16- 8:14 1.00 8.1 143 (2nd gu?; starting to get my rhythmn back)

17- 8:13 1.00 7.8 143

18- 8:13 1.00 8.8 141 

19- 8:55 1.00 8.9 141 (2nd piss break; starting to really notice the heat)

20- 8:09 1.00 8.0 143 (Got back on track w/ some really steep downhill)

21- 8:19 1.00 7.8 143

22- 8:24 1.00 7.9 142

23- 8:16 1.00 9.7 140

24- 8:23 1.00 8.1 143

25- 9:08 1.00 10.2 138 (This is where the phantom sniper popped my left hammy) (The tiny uphills on the park path may as well be the Tetons)

26- 8:59 1.00 8.1 143 (Meet up w/ my buddy; he's hurting bad and tells me to not wait on him; I respond by advising him that I can't see the finish line banner yet, and besides, his pace feels much better)

27- 3:24 0.37 8.9 54 (My 13 yo son leaps over the barrier and begins filming me up through the finish line;  He peppers me w/ such pertinent inquiries as "How you feeling?" and "Are you tired?"; Apparently, I ran an extra + or - .15 miles; Didn't shut off the garmin until a few seconds after the finish line)

Afternoon run on the GB from Municipal Park to Friendship Bridge and back on the south side of the Boise River.  First workout since the race.  My Garmin died after a 1/2 mile so no idea as to pace and only a general idea as to mileage.  Started out way too fast and then slowed down toward the end.  Legs felt good until after when my calves began to tighten.  Beautiful day w/ temp near 70 w/ slight breeze.  Probably my last day of running during lunch because the weather will only get hotter from here on out. 

Back in the saddle again.  Took almost ten days off after the marathon- if you don't count last Thursday's little jaunt.  Spent all weekend camping w/ my boys and then all day today trolling around Sand Dunes Lake w/ the entire family.  The sun really had me beat down but I went running anyway around 9pm.  My legs feel strong but around mile 5 I felt a little sluggish.  Picked it up on the last two miles and finished w/ a 7:50 pace for the seventh mile.  Overall pace an easy 8:25 per mi.  I'm turning the page on my diet and speed training.  I need to get much faster between now and September if I'm going to make a serious push for BQ time (3:15).  The only way that will happen is if I a) start eating smarter and get down to 160 lbs.; b) build my base mileage up to 70 mpw; c) at least four or five longs runs of 20 miles or more; and d) do some longer tempo runs of 10-12 miles and more speedwork of sub 7:00 mi pace.  It starts now. 

Late evening easy, slow run.  I'm following a Runner's World Training Program for my next half mara based upon my most recent marathon result.  The plan dictated a 9:06 pace but I simply could not go any slower w/o feeling like I was shuffling and ended up w/ an 8:54 overall pace.  Avg 152 bpm.  I tried a new route this evening which took me past the cemetery off Franklin Rd. in Meridian.  I whistled as I jogged past and nearly choked on the irony. 

Late evening 5 mile tempo run @ 7:43 avg pace.  Splits = 8:54 (warmup); 7:48; 7:46; 7:42; 7:42; 7:38; 9:08 (cooldown). 

Got a deep tissue massage this afternoon and it was brutal.  I knew it would rough because my calves and IT band are still pretty tight 10 days out from my race.  But I didn't know that it would be this bad.  The therapist nearly brought me to tears several times.  I finally asked her whether she'd worked as a CIA contractor at any point in her career.  She said that I wasn't the first person to ask her that this week.  WTF???  10 hours later my calves are still sensitive to the touch.  I can't wait to see how they'll feel tomorrow.  From past experience I know that they'll be sore for another couple days before they begin to get better.  A little ice and an epsom salt bath will be in order for this evening.

Late evening run.  Temp was still in the 80's when I left the house and cooled a little bit once the sun went down.  Legs still incredibly sore from the massage but began to loosen up.  Nice recovery run @ slow and leisurely 9:07 pace.  I sprinted the last 1/4 mi and topped out @ 5:53.  Avg HR = 145 bpm. 

I have some family stuff planned for this evening so I did 7 easy, slow miles in the afternoon heat (91 degrees).  I had forgotten how hard it is to run in this kind of heat.  I didn't bring any water w/ me and I really started to struggle around mile 4.  Calf soreness is almost gone.

Late evening slow easy run.  Nothing to special.  Trying to recover from a serious allergy flare up that has me producing copious amounts of phlegm and mucus.  Not fun.  Good week.  Looking to increase my mileage next week to get back in the 50's.

9 slow, easy miles at 8pm (75 degrees).   A couple of pickups @ 7:15 pace toward the end.  Nothing special, just building base. Avg HR= 153 bpm

AM: 5.02 slow miles at 6AM; very humid this morning w/ overcast skies; it felt like a continuation of last night's run.  Avg HR = 146

AM:  5.5 easy miles; still pretty humid; developing soreness behind my left knee; I'll have to ice it and keep an eye on it.

Afternoon: 6M during lunch; planned on doing a speed workout but I scrapped it in the middle of my second speed mile; I felt really nauseous and came really close to throwing up; my mouth starting to water and I could tell that it was a matter of moments before I would hurl; jogged the rest of the way; probably a combo of higher than normal humidity, lack of proper hydration, and poor diet; I'll try again tomorrow.

Afternoon:  Short speed workout in the heat (mid 80's)- 1M warmup, 1M @ 7:10, .5M jog; 1M @ 7:05, .5M jog; .5M @ 6:50, .55M cool. 

Early AM run before heading to the Owyhee River for some fishing w/ Dad and my brother.  5 easy miles w/ quarter mile pickups every mile @ 7:00 pace. 

Early AM long run.  It was supposed to be at a relaxed pace but, due to time constraints and low DTI, I had to hurry things up a bit which wasn't easy in the rain (intermittent drizzle and light rain).  Finished w/ an 8:15 pace (MP - 5 seconds).  Took a route clear out to Deer Flat Rd and back w/ a lot of rollers and small but steep climbs. 

AM:  5.45 easy, slow miles before work.  I was attacked by a goose defending his/her chicks while running down a dirt path next to the canal by my house.  There was really no way to go around them so I just turned around and tried another route.  I looked around to see if there were any witnesses/people laughing at what a big p@#*y I am to get bullied by a bird. 

Lunch:  4.61 easy miles at lunch.  Ran by Bronco Stadium and saw the players getting their summer "workouts" in.  The NCAA doesn't allow the coaches to participate in these "voluntary" workouts and it didn't look very organized to me.  Maybe I just caught them at a bad time though?

AM:  5 easy miles this morning; no crazed, homicidal geese to report. 

Lunch: 6.18 easy miles @ lunch.

AM: 1M warmup; 4.6M Tempo Run @ 7:47/mi pace; .75M cooldown. I was supposed to go 5M but I had to stop to puke.  Luckily, I had nothing in my stomach to expel as I didn't eat anything prior to the workout.  Four or five dry heaves and it was over.  That's the first time I've puked while running since high school football. :) 

Lunch: 3.72 easy miles to get my 10M for the day. 

Easy mid-evening run; arms and legs are a bit sore from dodgeball last night; I think that right there is the very definition of "oldness." (is that even a word?) 

Lunch: Slow, easy run in nice conditions (high 60's, mostly cloudy, light wind).  Passed BSU Coach Peterson going the other way on the GB near Warm Springs GC.  He had his shirt off and the dude is cut up.  Man crush????    

Slow, easy early morning run.  I really struggled to finish this one off.  Legs were heavy and my motivation was severely lacking. 

AM: 4M slow and easy; 1.2M fast miles after it started raining.

PM: 5M progressive run w/ the following splits: 8:07, 7:44, 7:34, 7:39 (oops), and 7:29.  It felt good to stretch the legs a little and get the HR up. 

AM: 4.3M easy recovery run this morning.  Beautiful sunshine for the first time in quite a while. 

PM: 5.65M easy w/ some 1/4 mi pickups. 

Not sleeping very well so I didn't get up this morning for my quick 5M run before work.  My wife didn't get home until 10pm tonight so I was running really late.  8M easy w/ some faster pickups and MP miles mixed in.  Temp was still in the mid 70's and a little muggy.  I felt pretty strong though and even got in a 1/4M pickup @ 5:45 pace midway through mile 5.

Lunch: easy 6.71M at MP + :20 sec's; bright sunshine and temp in low 70's w/ a good tailwind on the way out and in my face on the way back.

PM: 3.45 easy, slow miles late in the evening. 

AM: 3.75M slow and easy before work.  Legs were really tired which is not too surprising since it was only 7 hours in between last night and this morning's run.

Lunch: 6.42M, pushed it at the beginning w/ some fast (for me) miles (7:50/mi x 2) and then I got dehydrated and limped home the rest of the way.  I've got a Boy Scout campout tonight through tomorrow afternoon at Tripod Res. so I don't know if/when tomorrow's long run will take place.  I'm on pace to increase my mileage up to 60 after a slow 3 week build-up.  I'm hoping to go in the late evening when I return but we'll see. 

PM: I was able to get my long run in after all and push my weekly mileage over 61 mi.  MP + :12 sec/mi overall.  I returned home from a Boy Scout campout around 5pm.  Spent a couple of hours helping my daughter to learn to ride a bike w/o training wheels.  She faces a lot of challenges stemming from her MR and mild autism and it is hard for her to keep her balance.  She kept at it though and this became one of the most special days for her and us.  I was so tickled to see her eyes light up when it finally clicked and see how proud she was of herself.    

Lunch:  6M at MP on a great day; temp in the high 60's w/ sunshine and light winds.

PM: Played w/ the kids at the park adjacent to Mountain View HS then wife took then home; .5M warmup then a little bit of speedwork (2 x 1600 @ 7:10/mi pace) on the MVHS track w/ 800 cooldown in between and 2.33M at comfortable pace to get home.

PM: Late evening slow run.  Legs felt a little sore from last night's workout.  I'm developing a little soreness in my left heel.  Not sure if that's due to the increased mileage or that I'm heel striking more.  Swallowed a bug tonight and it made me hurl during the run and when I got home and started to reflect on it again.  Just noticed that I'm up over 1k miles so far this year. 

AM:  Easy, early morning run.  I'm listening to "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougal.  The author is a frustrated, oft-injured rec runner who seeks out and ultimately finds a reclusive tribe of super-human long-distance runners from Mexico's Copper Canyons, the Tarahumara.  It is so good that I find myself recommending it to all my friends, runners and non-runners.  The book is more of a study in social science/dynamics than sport. 

PM: Late evening run at slightly above easy pace; picked it up the last two miles around current MP.  Legs bounced back from this morning and I feel pretty good.  Need to get more sleep though especially when I do these back to back early morning and late evening runs.

AM:  Early morning easy 4.26M run.  Been averaging about 5 hours of sleep the past couple of weeks its really wearing on me.  Ran into the same group of mad, hissing geese again.  I can't wait until these a-holes fly south or something. 

AM: 8M progressive run.  Started off real easy.  Didn't run last night because I've been so tired and figured that a really good night's sleep is worth more than 5 easy miles. 

PM: 6.15 easy miles; finished strong w/ the last 1.5M @ MP - :10/mi.  Took my girls fishing today.  They weren't all that interested in the fishing but they loved playing in the water & turning over rocks to find rock caddis.

No long run today. In SLC, UT for my wife's family reunion and squeezed in 3 worthless miles on a horrible treadmilll inside a fitness room that was slightly cooler than the surface of the sun.  Been a LONG time since I logged some TM miles and its not too hard to remember why.  Still made 53 miles for the week which ain't too bad but well below my goal of 63-65 for the week.

Late evening run w/ my son accompanying on his bike; temp was still in the lower 80's after 1030pm; I stretched it a little further than usual because I didn't sleep much last night and didn't get up for my early run.  Easy slow pace w/ a couple of pickups and 2 miles at MP mixed in. 

AM: This morning came early after last night's 9 miler.  I felt surprisingly strong this morning.  After a slow warmup mile I eased into a nice sub 8 min pace the rest of the way.  Signed up for the Fit for Life 1/2 Marathon.  I promised my kids I'd take them camping near Lowman that weekend, 7/11, so it looks like it will be an early morning race, 730am, and then off to the mountains to soak in a cool stream. 

PM: 6.58 slow, easy miles at 930pm.  Temp still in the upper 80's.  No escaping the heat even well after the sun goes down.  I've been concentrating on my form and more particularly my posture.  I tend to bend over too much and hunch my shoulders but when I stand straight and run from the gut I breathe much easier.  Running is easier when you can breathe. :)

Late evening tempo run: 1M warmup; 7M @ 7:38/mi pace; cool down.  This was a struggle.  I didn't feel like I was locked in until about 4 or 5M into my tempo run.  I picked a route w/ some rollers that sapped my speed a bit which may have had something to do with that.

Lunch:  Moderately paced recovery run during lunch.  Temp was mid-80's but I was surprisingly energetic despite last night's hard tempo run.

845pm:  Temp in mid 80's but overcast until sun went down around 10ish; slow first 6 miles then MP after that w/ some hydration breaks.  I really hammered the straightaways and my last mile was probably my quickest.  I thought I'd be sick b/c it was my wife's b-day today and I ate some ice cream and cake immediately before the run.  I'm thinking this is a good sign given my historical stomach issues.

8pm: I jammed in a recovery run in between the BBQ and fireworks; Just short of 6M at sub MP and it felt really easy, even in 90 degree heat- another good sign that my increased mileage is paying dividends.  I got a nice little cut and rash where my hydration belt was cutting into my "love handles."  I guess they're not so much love handles anymore, more like love safety straps.   

9pm: Temp 75-80 degrees.  Slow, easy pace.  Took a nice a little spill while running through the park behind MVHS.  Some kid had left his skateboard in the middle of the running path.  I was looking everywhere but the road in front of me and stepped right on the end of it.  I got my hands down in time to save my face but I'm picking a few rocks out of my right palm.  I'm such an idiot. 

9pm:  10 milers on consecutive days which is probably a first for me.  I'll have to check my log to verify.  Temp was in lower 70's but a bit breezy which made it difficult during the back portion of the run.  Slow and easy pace just concentrating on having good form. 

AM:  4.66M. A bit sore and stiff this morning; Trudged my way through it knowing that this evening will be tough to get a longer run in. 

PM: 4.86M. Slow miles.  Same route as in the morning w/ a slight addition at the end. 

6AM:  4.55 slow miles.  Kind of chilly this morning.  Horrible stomach cramps the last 1.5M.  Just barely made it home in time. 

9PM: 7.3 slow miles w/ some MP miles between 3-5.  Not really feeling well. I may be coming down w/ something.  My usual MO is to ward off anything but I still feel lethargic until my body ejects it.  Could be worse, the wife's been sick for the past 2 weeks.

630AM: Took me 1.5M to actually wake up but I felt great after that.  Some good pickups at HM race pace (7:30/mi) or better to stretch the legs.  Averaged 7:55/mi after the warmup.  No workout tonight.  I'm running the Fit for Life Half tomorrow morning.  Hoping to hit 1:38 but I'd settle for anything sub 1:40. 

So this is the first non-5k that I've run more than once.  I was interested to see what sort of improvement I would see over last years race, which until today was my HM PR (1:45).  Going into today my A goal, as Jeff Shadley likes to say, was 1:38 and my B goal was anything sub-1:40. 

I dragged myself out of bed about 6:30AM and took way too much time getting ready.  Not sure what I was thinking b/c the race started at 730AM and is clear on the other side of the Valley at Boise Hawks (Cubs Single A farm club) Stadium.  I left the house at 7:05 and had to drive like a demon to make it there by 720, warmup and hit the starting line. 

Lots of runners this year, 200-250, so the start was a little frantic and crowded once the runners funneled onto the relatively narrow greenbelt along the Boise River.  One guy actually lost his shoe and stopped right in the middle of the mass of humanity.  I heard some lady yell, "Dear Lord!" and watched her run smack into the guy, luckily I just barely grazed her but I can't be sure that someone behind me didn't smoke them. 

I settled into a nice comfortable pace early, passing maybe 10 people between the first and second mile.  After that, I got in behind a girl that seemed to be running my pace and followed her until mile 11.  We leapfrogged each other a couple of time before that and then I turned it on.  I don't have any splits b/c my Garmin crapped out, AGAIN!  Don't know what's up w/ that thing b/c it read "Battery Charging is Complete" when I left home.  I do know that I picked it up after mile 11 and held a much faster, for me, pace the last 3/4 mile to hold off that girl that I had followed and sneak in under 1:38, just barely, as I crossed home plate.  This makes me think that MAYBE I could have run faster had I pushed it a littlle earlier.  No complaints though.  I've now run a 5k, 10k, 2 Halfs, and Marathon this year and established PR's in all but the 10k and the other Half (both were trail runs w/ a LOT of elevation gain). 

630AM: 4.82 easy miles.  Legs were stiff this morning.  I had some stomach issues again after a weekend camping and eating a ton of trail mix and about a thousand smores w/ my little girls.  Good times.  I pondered my race on Saturday, and while I was pleased w/ the result I was a little humbled by the fact that I've set a goal to run that pace for the entire TOU marathon in 2 months.  This will be a daunting task.  I currently project at somewhere near a 3:24 marathon.  IMO, I'll need to increase my weekly mileage base to somewhere around 65-70 mpw and probably drop at least 12-15 lbs to get that extra 9 mins I need.  I will be difficult but I believe its within reach. 

1015PM: 6.3 miles at roughly 8 min pace.  Legs felt light and springy.  A noticeable improvement in my base cardio pace.  Looked at the official results on Blue Circle Sports for Saturday's run and I picked up 4 seconds from what was reported at the event!  Four seconds is four seconds. 

I don't like to run this late because it makes it that much harder to get up for my early morning run, but I had to wait for my wife and son to return from their run.  Ran into a half dozen sprinklers which isn't too big a deal but a little surprising when it comes in the dark.  I can't believe how many businesses, schools, parks etc. set their sprinklers to water the pavement.  Besides being a safety hazard its a huge waste of scarce water resources. 

Started a fundraising website for my next marathon, Top of Utah.  I'm hoping to raise at least 1k dollars for the Family Advocate Program here in Boise. 

645AM:  Hit my snooze a couple of times and I almost didn't get up.  I started making bargains w/ myself that I'd run 10M this evening.  After about 5-10 mins of internal debate I finally rose and quickly got on the road.  3.8 slow, easy miles.  About a 60% effort was all that I could muster this morning.  Same stomach issues as yesterday which dissuaded me from venturing too far from home.   

Still having problems w/ my GPS (Garmin) watch shutting down for no discernible reason.  I keep forgetting to do the 'hard reset.'  I'll do it after I post this entry and see if it solves the problem. 

8PM: Temp in the upper 80's; 2.5M fast miles at the start and then some slow, easy miles to finish it up as I got dehydrated and fatigued; I wanted to stretch the run out a little longer but as is often the case, time wasn't on my side.  Mick Jagger is full of it!

640AM: Nice temp this morning, low 60's, w/ a little breeze and bright sunshine.  The kind of morning that makes it easy to run.  My Garmin failed on me again but after a hard reset it worked the last 3.5M or so.  I'm so familiar w/ my running routes now that I don't even have to do a google map search to determine my distance.  4.6M easy, slow miles overall.  My slow pace has improved to around 8:40/mi.  It was 20 seconds slower back in April/May.  As I noted on the discussion board, I've seen speed gains by consciously avoiding speedwork and increasing my mileage.  One would think that you have to run fast to get faster but apparently there is more benefit to be gained from running more miles.  I imagine that changes once a runner reaches a certain fitness level of running 80+ mpw. 

1030PM:  Extremely late start tonight.  I was more than a little sluggish from eating a ton of pizza & breadsticks for dinner tonight.  Slow, easy pace that picked up a little after 3M or so.  I keep telling myself that I'll start getting my diet squared away again but its so difficult when there's so much grub around. 

Got a physical tonight for the upcoming Boy Scouts' High Adventure Trip to the Frank Church in a couple of weeks.  Been awhile since I've had to turn my head and cough and  I could go at least another couple of decades before doing that again. 

930PM: Waited until the temp at least got down to around 90 degrees before venturing out.  I'll be camping w/ the family again this weekend so I had to get my long run in before leaving for Ketchum/Copper Basin tomorrow night.  There's a fair chance that I'll actually get a run in early on Saturday so I'll try to squeeze a short one in tomorrow morning.  Its 1130PM as I'm typing this message so I'll probably get somewhere near 5 to 5 1/2 hours of sleep which is not nearly enough but sadly its the norm for me.  Easy pace throughout which quickened in the middle miles and then tapered off as I stopped at the convenience store 3/4M from my house to stock up on G2.  I went through a full 12 oz bottle of water and then downed a large G2 as if it were a dixie cup.

645AM: 3.9M easy recovery run this morning.  My knees are a bit sore, the right one especially. I need to roll out the IT band real good, been awhile since I've done that.  The temp outside read 68 degrees when I left the house but I swear it felt more like 80 degrees. No breeze whatsoever and apparently a farmer to south, probably Kuna, is burning his ditches because there was a nice haze of smoke to make breathing even more of a chore. 

Didn't get out for a run this Saturday.  Took my shoes along but no dice.  We did some hiking up and down Trail Creek and Corral Creek.  Picked up one really nice rainbow and a bunch of small brookies lots of fun w/ the family. 

640AM:  I actually felt rested this morning.  4.57M at slow, easy pace.  Got smoked by quite a few sprinklers again.  I wasn't so concerned about getting wet because it was relatively warm but I was a little worried that all the water would short out my ipod.  I've got a cover/armband protecting it but the sheer amount of water was similar to jumping in a pool.  My garmin watch is still acting funny.  It shuts off after 3/4M or so and then it seems to work OK the rest of the run.  It's a refurbished model so maybe its just reached the end of the line?

9PM:  Ran to the nearest Redbox (5 Mile and Overland) to pick up a couple of flix and back.  6.21 easy miles.  I was nearly home and just about to celebrate the fact that my Garmin didn't spontaneously shut-off when it powered down immediately after I tried to turn on the backlight.  The power button and backlight are the same button so I may have held the button too long and shut it off myself. 

845PM:  Did not make it out of bed this morning so I had to stretch out a mid-range run this evening; temp around 90 degrees when I started and a little, not much, cooler after the sun went down; Nice, easy pace with a couple of water breaks mixed in; the last mile as I was nearing my house there was an overwhelming smell of BBQ pork in the air that made me nauseous, other than that it was a good run. 

640AM: 4.7 easy miles this morning; I felt surprisingly good for it being only 8 hours after my 10 miler last night; still having problems w/ the Garmin; don't know what I'll do in the short term; It would be a bigger deal if I weren't so focused on building base and consciously avoiding the speed workouts;  I'll probably just continue to use it until it completely fails and fill in the gaps w/ google maps; this means I'll have to stick to actual roads and not canal trails or greenbelt paths where google cannot measure the distance.

930PM: 5.43 not so easy miles in 90 degree heat; brutally hot today; more or less slogged my way through the entire run.

9PM:  Another slow, easy run in hot weather; temp around 90 degrees again until the sun went down then down to a chilly 85 thereafter; no run tomorrow because I'll be fishing Silver Creek w/ my cousin whose coming in from Portland; leave Boise at 4am to get to the Creek when the sun comes up and hit the Creek's famous midsummer early morning trico spinner falls.  Can't wait.  Hoping to get in a long run of around 15-16 miles on Saturday.

1015AM:  Took yesterday off to fish Silver Creek in Sun Valley; didn't get back home until midnight so I had to push my long run off until the evening; my wife had other plans and didn't return home until late and by that time I was not willing to run until 1AM; the day off gave my legs some extra juice; I could have gone longer but I didn't bring water and it was still pretty hot even though it was late evening. 

8AM:  6 slow, easy miles; last workout this week; my son and I are leaving this afternoon for a week backpacking in the Frank Church Wilderness (Soldier Lakes/MF Salmon River); IT band is flaring up; its been awhile since I rolled it so I'll have to roll it and ice it before strapping on my gargantuan 70 lb pack.

Hiked from Josephus Lake to Soldier Cr.

Hiked Soldier Cr. to Cutthroat Lake

Cutthroat Lake back to the Josephus Lake Trailhead.

1145AM:  Back to the grind after a week off.  Well, it wasn't really a week off per se because I was hauling around an 80lb backpack up and down the Frank Church Wilderness most of last week.  Ran 5.38M during lunchtime w/ temp around 90 degrees.  Overall pace was right @ current MP.  It's been a long time since I've gone for a lunchtime run b/c the temps and direct sunlight are just too much for me this time of year.  I had to bite the bullett though b/c I didn't get up this morning for my usual early morning run due to some GI problems in the middle of the night.  No problems during the run so I'm hoping that it was just all the b-day cake I ate yesterday. 

9PM:  5.41 easy miles in a gale force wind; temp was around 90 degrees when I left the house w/ a howling wind in my face; I thought the skies would open up but they never did; got into a real nice pace in the last mile where I felt that my breathing was under control and my legs and arms were synchronized; the ultimate goal is to fall into that rhythm much earlier in my runs and repeat it day in and day out.

645AM: 4.7 slow miles; legs were sore this morning and I didn't loosen up until mile 3; I'm sure it will take a week or so before my body gets used to the late evening and early morning schedule again; looking forward to a massage during my lunch hour today to work out the kinks left over from a week of backpacking.

930PM: 5.75 easy miles w/ an incredible electrical storm on the western horizon; got a full body massage this afternoon and my legs felt real heavy and stiff; fell of the wagon w/ more leftover b-day cake and some candy; I really need to get strict w/ my diet and start fueling correctly; I'm 75% sure that I'll run the Kuna Days 5k this Saturday; it's a small race on a flat course so I'm confident I can run faster than I did this past spring and possibly come in under 21 min.

1020PM: 6.88 easy miles in the wind and light drizzle; Legs starting to feel better but my left and ankle and foot are swollen; I think I twisted somehow but I'm not sure when or how; I slept in this morning so I was hoping to get a 10 miler in this evening; my plans were dashed once my wife decided to make an evening grocery run; I'm still on pace for my 60 mile week though if I get in a longer run of somewhere around 15M on Saturday.

830PM: Easy run on a cool evening; temp in the 60's which is unheard of for this time of year; it rained off and on all day today which is another rarity for August in Boise; took me a while but I settled into a nice easy pace around mile 5 or 6 and had enough for a good kick of sub 8 the last 1.5M; my legs are getting lighter again two days after the massage; it usually takes at least a week before they return to full strength.

645AM:  Morning came early; I really didn't wanna run this morning but this is exactly when I NEED to run the most; the light rain didn't make it easier but the cool temps did; I'm a little confused by what month it is because I've never seen weather like this in August in Boise.....ever.  4.4M easy.

9PM: 5.55M easy. Ran to Albertson's on Overland and Five Mile to get a couple of Redbox DVD's; Looks like I'll be running the 5k w/ a couple of HS kids from my ward; they're both on the MVHS Cross Country team (Sophs) and should do quite well based on the times posted for the 2008 Kuna Days 5k. 

Drove down the road just south of Meridian to Kuna, Idaho.  I haven't done any speed work in months so I was interested to see how I'd do.  The course was more difficult than I thought and .12 miles long.  The first couple of miles were rolling along the Boise River then slightly uphill.  I started off right on my goal pace of 6:54 but quickly faded w/ 7:22, 7:14 & 7:10(.22).  I passed a couple of people, including one younger fella in the last mile and wasn't passed by any other runner.  Speaking of "getting chicked"- I was passed by the female winner in the first 3/4M.  Somehow I maintained my dignity and was able to fend off any feeling of embarrassment. [/read the discussion board for more context]

5PM: Biked 4M w/ the kids this afternoon; I pulled my 3yo and 5yo in the carrier so it was a decent strength workout.

640AM: 4.7M easy; ran by a gentleman spraying some industrial strength insecticide on some trees; I didn't see him until it was too late; by that time I was inhaling a foul smelling dust cloud; so far my short term memory has remained intact and no discernible twitching.

930PM: 6.2M easy; nice evening for a run w/ the temp in the low 70's; there's a lingering pain on the top of my left foot; its tolerable at this point but painful enough for me to go back to the anti-inflammatory medication I have left over from last year.

645AM: 4.7M easy; I registered for the Top of Utah Marathon in Logan, UT yesterday; It's not like I was wavering on whether to actually run this race; I've already committed in my mind but its always good to go ahead and make a financial commitment so as to "seal the deal" sorta speak; there's just a little over a month left to make a push towards running a Boston qualifying time which means I really need to buckle down and get more focused on what I need to do; my wife wants to go to SLC this weekend but I really need to get a long run in of at least 18M; we'll see what happens but I'm secretly hoping to stay home.

930PM: 8.02M easy; I wasn't planning on running 8M today but it just turned out that way; took a new route through an unfamiliar subdivision and got turned around a couple of times; temp in the high 70's, no breeze and humid.

1145PM: 6M @ luncht on the greenbelt, FF Memorial past Willow Lane Complex and back; temp in the 80's and no breeze; I was all set to declare that my troubles w/ my Garmin watch shutting off were over (downloaded the Garmin Web Updater) after last night's run w/o incident; however, today I developed a new problem- failure to locate a satellite; I'm so frustrated w/ this thing; you would hope that such an expensive item would not have such problems (these are not the only problems I've experienced); my wife gave me the go ahead to replace it but I'm hesitating, partly b/c I don't want to just chuck the thing (past warranty) or buy another Garmin; on a lighter note, I passed a bicyclist toward the end of my run which made me feel good.

930PM: 4.56M easy; incredible side ache during most of the run; I was finally able to get my Garmin to locate satellites after numerous on/off and reboots; now I get home and the pace data is all wrong; it reads that my 3rd mile was .87 and that it took me nearly an hour to run it; my entire run didn't take me an hour; I don't know what's up but I'm probably gonna call Garmin tomorrow if it doesn't correct itself.

8PM: 15.2M easy; I knew that I'd be camping this weekend w/ my boys so I had to get out today for my long run; longest run since Ogden in mid-May; I've done a couple of 14 milers and run a half in July but I need to start stretching out my weekly long run a bit; the plan is to increase it to 18M next week and 20M the week after w/ an off week of 12-14M and then another 20 miler; started to get really nauseous toward the end and started to heave but I stopped myself; I was still able to finish w/ my last mile being current MP; I'm calling Garmin tomorrow to see if I can replace my GPS, it stopped a half dozen times during tonight's run; Aargh!!!

645AM: 4M really easy; I was still half asleep and sore this morning when I left the house; I was extremely tempted to forego this run but I'm hoping to get out of town and camp w/ my boys this evening, if work cooperates; I have a huge brief due next Wednesday and I'm not very far into it; I'm so far behind the 8 ball that I shouldn't even be taking the time to blog this entry. 

9PM: 8.03M easy; returned home from camping around noon; went into work from 3-8pm to continue writing a huge brief due next Wednesday; didn't get much sleep at all last night partly due to the cold temps in the mts (mid 20's) and mostly due to my oldest talking in his sleep all night; despite all of this I felt very strong today; my last run was early AM on Friday so I guess that played into it; very cool temps this weekend w/ highs in the 70's; temp around 60 degrees w/ a slight breeze throughout my run this evening; just over a tenth of a mile short of matching my PR for weekly mileage; I'll break it several times in the next month leading up to TOU for sure.

7AM: Late start this morning so I was more or less forced into a tempo run; 5M @ 7:42/mi avg; mile 1 was @ 8:15 so the last 4M were at or near 7:30/mi; very cool for a mid-August morning w/ a temp near 50 degrees, very pleasant.

920PM: 6.3M easy on the TM; the top of my left foot is still sore and I wanted to lessen the impact; I think I'm going to mix in more TM miles now that I'm running consistent weekly high mileage, for me, just to keep the legs fresher.

645AM: 5.52M easy; met Court, FRB blogger, on the corner of Overland/Cloverdale and we ran about 3M together; nice to finally meet in person someone I've enjoyed conversing w/ through the blog and Facebook; I think I went a bit slower than he's used to (conversational pace- 8:35ish); apparently, he's running TOU also; I asked him what time he's shooting for and he threw down the gauntlet and said something like, "I don't know.....just a little bit faster than you I guess;" that was the perfect response; hopefully, we can both benefit from pushing each other a little bit down in Logan; looking forward to the challenge. 

915PM: 4.68M very slow; just had no ambition to run this evening so I jogged it; legs felt fine but my gut was feeling a little weird; don't know how to explain it other than it felt like I had "butterflies"; the only thing of is that its built up stress/anxiety; really odd feeling. 

7AM: Fast miles = 3.2M (7:35/mi), 1M slow and easy; a little more energetic this morning; I saw the Meridian Police setting up a speed trap as I ran through the Muir Woods Subdivision; one of the motorcycle cops was parked in somebody's driveaway; I'm guessing he either asked permission or that was the cop's house; that would explain the odd location for a speed trap; maybe the copper was tired of people racing through his neighborhood on their way to work? 

930PM: 5.5M easy; still fighting that uneasy feeling in my gut; I don't feel sick but feel like I could get sick at any moment; concentratingn on extending my legs and flexing my calves during turnover, not out in front of me but up and down to get quicker.

1130AM: 4.32M @ just above current MP; 1M cooldown; very hot on the greenbelt (90ish); I try not to run in the afternoon these days but sometimes you just have to squeeze in a run whenever you can. 

9PM: 5.96M easy on the TM; it was still pretty hot at 9PM so I hit the gym and it wasn't much cooler than outside; got a good sweat going, the kind that made me wish I wasn't wearing light-colored running shorts...dohhhh! 

645AM: 4.06M easy; horrible run today; my legs were absolutely lifeless; probably had something to do w/ the fact that I've had 3 workouts in the past 18 hours; no workout tonight and then a long run of 18-20M early tomorrow.

915AM: Easy, long run w/ temp near 80 by the time I finished; Right hammy was a little tight for the first hour or so but loosened up after that; My house off Victory to Overland to Linder to Hubbard (Kuna) to Meridian/Kuna Rd back to Overland and home; I could have stretched it out to 20M but it was getting plenty warm by the time I finished I was starting to feel it; still had enough juice in my legs to finish reasonably strong; I'll go for 20 next week w/ an earlier start.

Ordered new shoes from runningwarehouse.com; another pair of Mizuno Wave Rider 12's only a different color (blue/silver this time); not a momemt too soon b/c my current trainers have lost all their cushion and I've resorted to using gel heel inserts; the new trainers should be here on Tuesday; btw, set a PR for weekly mileage and should set a monthly PR for mileage by the end of next week.

645AM:  4.78M this morning; sun is coming up later every day which means that temps are really comfortable for running; 1M warm-up then 3M @ current MP and last .78 @ sub 8:00/mi pace.

I got a hotel room for Logan last night and from what I could tell it was one of the last ones left for the weekend of 9/18.  I checked w/ every site out there and the only room was one w/ only 1 King Bed at the Best Western.   It's gonna be crowded w/ the six of us.

935PM: 6.25M; 2M at current MP, 3M at goal MP and 1.25 at current MP.  Ran through an enormous mud puddle that had gathered on the sidewalk.  I can't wait until the irrigation season is over and these @#$% sprinklers go away.   

645AM: 4.53M. 2M at current MP and the rest nice and easy.  I've been noticing that my relaxed "jog" speed has improved- even when my legs are tired.  When I started running a couple of years ago it was above10:00/mi and now its somewhere in the 8:30-40/mi range. 

Temp in the mid 60's.  It doesn't look like we'll get any cool mornings this week.  Just as well, as ideal as 50 degrees is for running I don't look putting on layers; and it will make the temp at the start of TOU feel that much cooler.  My new trainers should arrive today via UPS!  I've been looking into buying a pair of Pearl Izumi Streak's just for racing.  Their extremely lightweight and they seem to offer decent support.  We'll see if there's $ in the budget next week.

8PM: 6.26M easy w/ .5 mile @ 6:06/mi pace; very warm w/ temp near 90 and no breeze; Took the family over to the MVHS Track; let the little ones run around and play in the long jump pit; warmed up w/ a slow mile then raced my 14 yo son in the half mile; he was talking some trash after football practice today and I had to let him know that I'm still the alpha dog; I let him hang for the first 600M or so and then picked up the pace; to his credit he continued running hard and actually pushed me to the end; I think I probably have another 1 or 2 years tops before he starts beating me like a rug. :-)  My new Wave Rider 12's came today and they fit and feel nice.

650AM: A little bit tired legs syndrome this morning; slogged through 4.48M w/ very little effort; I've run some harder/faster miles the past two days so I think I'll make a conscious effort to go slow and easy leading up to my 20 miler this week; passed the 1,500 mile mark for the year! 

655AM: 4.7 easy, slow miles; fought stomach cramps during most of the run; the plan was to get up at 5AM and get my long run in for the week due to some plans I have for this weekend; didn't sleep very well last night so I had to postpone it til tomorrow morning.

530AM: Long, easy run w/o incident; no serious GI issues to speak of, just some mild nausea/hunger pains toward the last half of the run; I wanted to stretch it out another mile or two but I was already running late for work; that makes back to back weeks w/ 19 milers; I'm probably gonna do one more long run toward the end of next week and then start tapering for TOU.

Last night I did the old "wet test" on my feet; I've been meaning to do this to confirm that I'm wearing the right type of shoes b/c I'd always suspected that I was an overpronator; sure enough, I put my wet foot on an old paper sack and the imprint was almost completely flat w/ only a slight arch; I've been wearing neutral/cushioned shoes since I took up running based on an electronic printout of my foot imprint at one of the local running stores; I think I'll try a support shoe for mild overpronation and see if makes a difference.

915PM: 5.94 really slow miles; wanted to go 10M but stomach problems forced me to head home early; almost didn't go at all due to a severe thunderstorm warning; the western horizon was lit up the entire time but nary a drop.

945PM: 4.39M easy; concentrated on running smooth and breathing deeply; don't usually run on Sundays but I've got a lot of things going on later in the week and I wanted to make sure that I banked some miles early so that I can get to my goal of 65-70M for the week; next week I will begin a slight taper for TOU on the 19th. 

630AM:  6M easy; I was up at 545 but I had to wait for my wife to get home; I'm going to start getting up earlier so as to get in my daily 10M all at once; we'll see if it works out; set new PR for monthly mileage; first day of school for my 5yo; she still seems too little to be in school; my how time flies.

845PM: 4.4M really slow; horrible run this evening; just didn't have anything resembling "spring" in my legs; got through it and erased from my memory.

6AM: very good run this morning; started out really slow and then picked it up; ended w/ an overall pace near current MP w/ a couple of goal MP miles in miles 6 and 7; felt much better than I did last night; got a really good night's sleep last night which probably isn't a coincidence; I've avowed to get up earlier in an effort to run 9 or 10M every morning instead of splitting it up as I've been doing; nice to have the evenings free but not so nice to wake up earlier. 

610AM: Slow, easy run this morning; 7.5 w/ no problems and then all of a sudden I had to hit the restroom ASAP and barely made it; finished off the run after that w/ a bit of a cold sweat.

First run in my new Saucony Tangent 3's; very light trainer w/ a little snugger fit than I'm used to but I love the support; my feet aren't completely flat but I have a very low arch so I don't need a lot of support but I need some; the neutral/cushioned shoes were ok but they had nothing to keep my feet from twisting and moving to the inside.

615AM: 7 easy miles and 2 fast miles; Really loving these new shoes; right knee started to bother me a little; probably time to roll out the IT band; I've been neglecting that lately; psyched for tonight's game; pick my dad up at the airport at 615PM and then straight to the stadium; GO BRONCOS!!!!

630am: Didn't get out yesterday due to a late night post-BSU victory celebration & early morning fishing trip w/ my Dad; felt fresh & well rested; best long run I've ever had; miles 1-16 @ slightly above current MP & still enough to pick it uo for miles 18 & 19 @ sub 8 min pace w/ last mile cooldown; I've run two 19 milers and a 20 miler in 3 weeks; slight taper next week w/ a bigger taper for marathon week.

1030am: Excellent run on Labor Day; overall pace just under current MP; couple of fast miles for miles 7-8.

615AM:  Slow, easy run on a very chilling morning; I wasn't prepared at all for temps below 40 degrees; its been quite a while since we've seen anything close to that in the Valley; didn't push it at all and just tried to get some miles in; my goal is to get somewhere between 50-55M this week as I begin to taper for the 19th.

615AM:  Easy run on another cool morning; broke in a pair of DS Trainer 14's; a very light trainer w/ a firm feel; the forefoot was tight until about a couple miles into the run when it loosened up; this shoe encourages mid foot striking which is good b/c I'm a huge heel striker when I lose concentration; not as light as the Tangent 3 but feels more durable and more supportive; mixed in a 7 or 8 .1M strides @ 7:00/mi pace; miles 5-7 @ current MP which is becoming more like easy pace; this seems to bode well for TOU in 10 days; I'm pretty sure I can avg sub 8 min pace for the entire marathon but my goal of 7:28/mi is probably a bit more than I can chew; if I don't hit it then I think the worst case scenario is I hit something in the 7:45-7:50/mi range which will give me something in the 3:23-3:25 and a huge PR; aim for the stars and land on the moon!

615AM: Easy run w/ a couple of sub 8:00 miles mixed in; not as cold this morning w/ temp in the mid 50's; I've been a little under the weather since yesterday (sore throat, headache, fatigue); not quite sick but not 100% either; legs feel good and my new trainers feel more comfortable w/ every run. 

630AM: Perfect temp in the high 50's and no wind; Pushed it a bit harder this morning; left work early yesterday feeling like crap; took some OTC meds and hit the sack early; I awoke feeling a little better and once I got into the run I started to realize that my legs felt pretty good; ended up running well under current marathon pace w/ a couple of goal marathon pace miles mixed in. 

625AM: warmer this morning; felt pretty good after taking the weekend off; 2M at 8:00/mi pace and 3M at current MP (8:20); breathing was a bit labored this morning; don't know if it was the humidity or if I'm still getting over a brief bout w/ the flu; I'll run an easy 5M Tue-Thurs just to keep sharp. 

630AM:  Slogged through a horrible run; not sure what is going on here but I felt really lethargic; I don't have any pain but just a general achiness that has me worried; Gonna try to get to bed really early tonight and take a hyperdose of Vitamin C to see if that helps. 

7AM:  Thought I'd better get in a quick run to stretch the legs since I haven't logged any mileage since Tuesday due to illness; nothing too hard but I kept it at current MP throughout w/ some faster strides mixed in; all I can say is that I don't feel any worse than earlier in the week but still a bit run-down and nasally.

3PM: Arrived in Logan; gonna get a quick nap in before picking up the race packet and then come back to the hotel to watch the Broncos annihilate Fresno State on ESPN.

I had a lofty goal going into this race.  I thought based upon my increased mileage, results from a July half marathon on a flat course, cooler fall temps and a favorable downhill course that there was an outside chance of running a BQ time of 3:15:59.  It turned out that I wasn't anywhere near ready to sustain that pace (7:29) for a full marathon. 

Arrived in Logan Friday afternoon and immediately headed over to the packet pick-up.  Got in line behind Court (FRBer) and his wife.  Asked him if he was going to stay in Utah for the BYU v. Florida State game on Sat evening.  He said they were headed back to Boise right after the race.  Good call on that one.  See worst BYU home loss since BSU destroyed them in Provo in '03. :-) 

Selected a personal pan pizza and breadsticks as my pre-race carbo load meal- well that along with about a half dozen oatmeal cookies.  [This ill-advised decision would come back to haunt me before, during and after the race.]  I actually got a pretty good night's sleep on Friday night- 5 hours which is a PR for the night before a marathon by at least a couple of hours.  Limited my morning breakfast to a bagel and half an orange.  Why couldn't I have been so sparing the night before???? 

Got on one of the last buses up to the starting line.  This was another ill-fated decision because it meant that I didn't actually arrive at the starting line until 6:15ish.  Actually, it wouldn't have been so bad but for the extremely long POP lines and the fact that it seemed like every person was taking an inordinately long time in there. I did finally get some business done but the upshot was that I barely had time to strip off the layers, stuff them into the bag and get to the starting line.  No warmup whatsoever. 

It was cool at the start (mid 40's?) but not nearly as cold as I had anticipated and I knew from the forecast that it would warm up substantially during the second half.  It did.  I tried to take in lots of gatorade but I could never really get enough it seemed. 

I'll cut to the chase and say that I came to the realization that I wasn't going to even come close to running a BQ time roughly halfway through the marathon.  Finished the first half in 1:40 which meant I'd have to run a negative split the second half.  No way that was happening.  I adjusted my goal to a sub 3:30 finish. 

During the last six miles I had serious doubts as to whether I would finish at all.  My stomach wasn't getting any better and my left hammy was feeling as though it would pop.  But more than that was the mental challenge of circumnavigating traffic and the maze-like, circuitous route during the last part of the race.  Its one thing to run along traffic but its quite another to be dodging it.  My pride kicked in though and I persevered, even though I walked through every aid station and beyond during the last six miles. 

Splits:

Miles 1-19: 7:46; 7:21; 7:24; 7:23; 7:19; 7:44; 8:54 (1st pit stop); 7:23; 7:26; 7:34; 7:38; 7:54; 7:23; 7:35; 7:37; 8:09; 7:46; 8:05; 8:17;

Miles 20-26.2: 9:35; 8:23; 10:45 (2nd pit stop); 9:03; 9:37; 9:02; 9:28; 8:39 (.2).

As I type this I am sitting in my recliner and I can't make up my mind whether I'm just extremely sore or if I am injured.  My left ankle (never fully healed from last years severe sprain) and my left hammy are the most sore.  I've been icing and popping ibuprofen every 3 hours.  My other marathons have led to some soreness but this is beyond the pale.  Something feels different this time.

645AM: Back in the saddle again; super-slow jog; left hammy and both calves are still pretty sore and tight; started to loosen up a bit toward the end but tightening again as I type this; looked into whether running the Tuscon Marathon in December is an option- its a week before Christmas and my wife's sister lives down there so we'll see. 

645AM: Slow run; hamstring and calves still tight but feeling better than yesterday; cool morning, near perfect temp for running.

630AM: 7.64 miles easy; I was going to run last night but the wife pulled a fast one and scuttled my plans; oh well, I could use more rest anyway; I'm feeling better but the lower portion of my calves are still really tight; this is officially the longest post-marathon recovery period I've experienced to date; I'm almost there but still really sore in the left heel/ankle area w/ increasing soreness in the lower calf area as I run; weather was nice this morning (high 60's) but the forecast is for decreasing temps and rain throughout the week; I guess its October already and its about time for summer to disappear. 

630AM:  easy run on a chilly morning; very breezy; legs feeling better; sped up the last couple of miles @ MP.

830PM:  Easy run; comfortable w/ temps in the low 50's; I think I'm nearly fully recovered now; no leg soreness to speak of but still some soreness in my left ankle and heel; I may need to get an MRI on this ankle eventually b/c it has been nearly a year since my high ankle sprain but unfortunately BC of Idaho contributes almost nothing for an MRI. 

845PM:  Easy run tonight; I'm home alone for the past couple of days so I'm under no time constraints w/ my runs; its been nice to run in the evening now that the mornings have gotten really cool; today I learned that my bro-in-law's brother died of a massive heart attack during his nightly run; just collapsed on the side of the road and never got up; he was only 40 yoa and seemed very fit; he left behind 4 kids between the ages of 7 and 16, very sad. 

145PM: Short run @ just under marathon pace; needed to get home to do some errands before the wife and kids return from OR; very windy and looking like it wants to rain; not what I was hoping for BSU's homecoming game v UC Davis this evening.

645AM: 4M easy; Woke up this morning to a pretty steady rain so I opted for the TM at the Idaho Athletic Club.  It's nice to have that as an option but I was hoping to put off the indoor running until November. 

630AM:  A very slow 5.4M run on a chilly morning. My legs felt really heavy- which I guess is not at all surprising given the cold weather.  Still, I'd much prefer battling the cold temps v. running on a treadmill.  I think the balance tips in favor of TM running once the temp hits the teens.  Thankfully, we're not there yet.  Need to get in a couple of two-a-days because I'm headed to Eastern Idaho on Wed evening for my annual October sojourn to my buddy's cabin on Henry's Lake.  We usually try to fish the Park but this year we're changing things up and floating the So Fork Snake and the Madison. 

945PM: 3M quick and easy on the TM.  My running has been hit and miss lately, mostly miss.  Returned home from my fishing trip on Sunday to a house full of H1N1 infected zombies.  I've remained unscathed thus far.  I got a flu shot during my lunch hour knowing that it would not be effective v. H1N1 but it couldn't hurt, right?  I'll try to get away for some TM running after BSU v. Tulsa on ESPN tomorrow and putting my sick kids and wife to bed.  I absolutely must get some solid training and eat better from now on, if for no other reason then to ward off any disease.  I've been extremely lax since TOU but its time to get it going again.  Running Barber to Boise 10k on Saturday which under normal circumstances should lead to a PR given the fast course.  I'm not nearly as optimistic of that outcome given my poor training over the last month.

945AM: 7.2M easy on the TM after watching BSU escape Tulsa on ESPN.  It felt good to stretch the legs a little.  This was my longest run in about a month.  I'm still H1N1 free, which is nice. 

945PM: 6.3M super slow. Almost didn't make it out the door.  Started feeling nauseous this afternoon and my mind keeps thinking that because all of my family has the flu then I must be about to get it.  Gotta change my mindset and ward off the sickness w/ the power of my mind. :)

9PM: I probably should have taken the evening off given that I'm running a 10k in the morning.  I mulled it over a little but in the end I decided to go ahead and log some miles.  I'm dangerously close to being seriously out of shape and if I don't get back into my old routine I can really see myself sliding the other way and just taking the winter off.  So if it means that I run 30 seconds or a couple of minutes slower than I would otherwise than so be it.  Didn't push it real hard but I got a few faster strides in there.  My form is pretty solid but I can definitely notice the extra 7-8 lbs I've gained during the last month.

I had zero expectations going into this race.  I've been rather inconsistent in my training since TOU on 9/19.  The highlight for me was just getting out of my house after being cooped up inside all week taking care of a sick wife and kids.

The day started at 8am when I picked up fellow FRBer Court and headed to the shuttle parking lot outside Bronco Stadium taking us to the starting line near Barber Park along the Boise River east of town.  Weather was perfect w/ a temp in the 50's and no wind for a 930am start.  The gun went off rather unceremoniously and we were forced to weave our way through a massive throng, approx 900 runners for the 10k.  That was probably my only complaint about this race.  It funnels all of the runners onto the greenbelt along the Boise River from Barber Park all the way to the finish line inside Bronco Stadium.  That would be ok for a smaller and/or longer race.  If you're not up front then its pretty difficult to make your way through.  Overall, it's a fast course though- mostly flat w/ some slight downhill. It was enough for me to set a 10k PR but I'm curious what sort of time I could have put up had I not slacked off the last month.

In summary, I had a great time running w/ Court, setting that PR, goofing around on the "blue turf" and eating a pretty good post-race pancake breakfast.  Good times.

9PM: Slow, easy run on a nice cool evening.  My legs are still a little sore and heavy from Saturday's race but nothing too extraordinary.  I can't believe I've only logged 60 miles this month.  I was doing that in one week not too long ago.  Started listening to "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell.  Its all about the "adaptive unconscience" and how snap decisions can often be more effective than long, deliberative ones.  The irony is that Gladwell's conclusions make very little intuitive sense- but then again neither does electing to run long distances for fun. 

930PM: A little faster, but still easy.  My legs are fully recovered now.  Not planning on running any races until Christmas.  This will test my dedication.  Its always easier for me to log the miles when I now I have a race on the horizon. 

12PM: Easy run on the Boise R. Greenbelt during lunch hour.  Perfect weather this time of year w/ temps in the 50's, overcast, and a slight breeze.  Beautiful fall colors along the river.  I give it another 7-10 days before the leaves start disappearing in earnest.  Spied a pod of rising trout at the 3M turnaround and watched as they took midge larvae just under the surface.  Nothing really big, just a bunch of 10-12 inch spring stockers.  I may have to return on Saturday afternoon w/ my flyrod if time allows. 

845PM:  Very slow and easy.  I just wasn't feeling it at all.  Got in and got out as quickly as possible. 

1230PM:  5M easy and 1M sub 8 min/mi pace on the GB between Municipal Park and Barber Park during lunch.  Ran past a baby rattler sunning itself on the GB.  He didn't rattle at me or anything but I nearly wet myself anyway.  I thought those things would be holed up by now? 

10PM:  Weather was nasty this evening w/ gusty wind and rain so I headed over to IAC for a slow an easy run on the TM. Finished up w/ the last 1/4M @ 6:30/mi pace. 

930PM: Short run @ MP.  I ran outside but I underestimated how cold the wind would be.  I had gloves and a beanie but no sweats.  My legs were really cold by the time I returned home.  I got a little lost in Thousand Springs when I tried to cut away from the canal and head through the neighborhood. 

1230PM: Easy run at lunch on the GB from Municipal Park to Barber and back.  Didn't have a watch so I was flying blind sorta speak.  It was nice.  By the time I returned to my car the elm leaves were falling and a light snow had developed- absolutely beautiful.

1030AM: 5 quick TM miles to get over 100M for the month.  Nothing special.

1230PM: 6 miles at lunchtime.  4M @ marathon pace, 1M easy, 1M cooldown. Weather is really nice right now for early November.  I ran in shorts and a long sleeve tee and I was more than comfortable.  Locked my keys in the car but luckily there was a car dealership nearby w/ a slim jim to bail me out. 

630AM: 5.41 easy miles on the TM before work. 

Noon: 1.5M on the mountain bike on the Greenbelt during lunch.  Biked to a spot where I had seen a few trout rising  on Monday.  Unfortunately, they were a little shy today w/ only a few sporadic risers.  No matter, I had a great time and even made friends w/ a mink who nearly ran over my shoes as I was standing on the bank.  Very cool but kinda freaky at the same time.  Those things have some sharp teeth and I'm pretty sure they haven't had all of their shots.

1230PM: 5.45 easy miles on the GB during lunchtime.  I ran the loop from Municipal to Ann Morrison Bridge through BSU campus and back over to the north side of the river via the bridge by Warm Springs GC.  Very pleasant day for a run.  Temp in the 50's w/ no wind and overcast.  I saw the F&G people dumping a bunch of hatchery steelhead adjacent to the stadium.  They had fools lined up elbow to elbow waiting for those pellet heads.  Quite amusing. 

2PM: Easy greenbelt run on a breezy fall day.  I ran the loop from Municipal Park to AM Park past the stadium and back.  The wind was in my face on the way back and I had to dig in a little to keep up a decent pace. 

640AM:  Actually pretty nice morning for a run.  I was very lethargic w/ heavy legs.  I didn't push it at all or try to pick up the pace.  I've got to get to 30M this week and get back into the groove and hopefully fend off my annual holiday weight gain. 

645AM: Easy run. 

10PM: Easy TM run.  I've been feeling below avg lately w/ a sore throat and some congestion.  I decided late in the evening to see if I could sweat some of it out.  It was snowing big wet flakes so I headed over to the IAC.  I went really slow and still got winded fairly quickly.  Big rivalry game tomorrow- BSU v. Idaho.  Can't wait!

8PM: Easy TM run.  A couple days off recharged my battery.  Hopefully, the planets willl align and allow for 5 days of running this week.  I'm getting over the sore throat and cough so I should be good to go.

1230PM: Easy run on the GB.  Very mild temps (low 60's) today w/ a stiff breeze.  Going out was tough but running the back portion was relaxing.  Looks like this may be one of the last mild temperature days for a couple of month.  Cold front due to arrive this evening bringing some precip.   

9PM: Easy TM run.  Started off really slow and sort of worked into it.  I could have gone longer but 6M seems to be the limit of my tolerance. 

1230PM: Got outside on a pretty nice day for running (temp in the mid 40's).  Slight tailwind on the way out and a stronger headwind on the way back.  Four days in a row now.  Starting to the train back on the tracks. 

630AM: Finally made it out of bed for an early morning TM run at the club.  Its so nice getting my workout in before work and having that off my plate.  My job isn't stressful at all but it has its moments and the family life w/ four kids creates time constraints.  I'm gonna try to make this a routine at least through the winter.  The big news is that I'm back to five days a week and going for six tomorrow. 

1PM: Easy run this afternoon.  Really enjoyed the beautiful weather.  Bright sunshine w/ a cool breeze, temp in the low 40's.  Went w/ the running shorts and I was just fine although I could have used some gloves.  My hands were freezing, especially when I was running into the wind.  Six days of running this week.  Haven't done that in awhile.

1230PM: Easy run from Municipal Park to East Parkcenter Bridge and back.  Chilly (temp in high 30's) w/ some light to mod winds. I wanted to go super slow but I ended up just joggin my usual 8:30/mi pace.  Listening to "The Road" again in anticipation of its release in theaters tomorrow.  One of my all-time favorite fiction novels.

4PM: TM run on a dismal rainy afternoon.  Ate way too much pie and turkey yesterday so I felt pretty sluggish.