Every Race is an Adventure!

I decided to run a new loop at lunch time today. It starts similar to the Eagles View run but continues north to 300 South, west to State St., south to 400 South, west to Universtity, south over the train bridge, and then back to Novell on the road east of University (behind the stores). It is approximately 6.4 miles.

I mentioned it to Cory and he decided to come with me. I invited Nathan and Scott also, but Nathan had a meeting after lunch and Scott didn't have the right clothes for the cold.

There was a slight breeze with lightly falling snow and it was a little colder than we expected. I should have been smart and worn long pants like Cory, but I had a headband, gloves, and fleece vest and it wasn't too bad.

We averaged 8:08/mi overall. Not too suprisingly, we were a little slower than that on the uphill sections and a little faster on the level sections. The last mile we picked up the pace and averaged 7:36/mi.

Because of his sore foot, I believe this is the longest Cory has run since the St. George marathon. He ran great and kept the pace moving right along. It was a pleasure having his company. It was also great having clean air to breath again.

Morning basketball.

I ran with Larry, Kevin, and Wayne this morning. We didn't really have a predetermined course or distance in mind when we started out. We ended up running down to the mouth of Provo Canyon, then worked our way down to Center Street, up the hill, then headed north on 1000 East and worked our way back home. It ended up being about 9 miles. Three of us had to be back for other activities or we may have gone longer. We only averaged about a 9:00 pace but it was an enjoyable social run. It's truly a blessing to have great guys to run with.

Larry and I got out at 5:45am this morning for the first time in a couple of weeks. It was an enjoyable run. We solved a number of the world's problems again. It was still a little cold (23 degrees), but it was ten degrees warmer than last week (13 degrees) with much better air to breathe.

The weather was in the mid-30's and sunny at lunchtime so I couldn't resist running again. I started the Eagle's View run with Cory, Darin, and Steve King. At the turn up to Eagle's View Darin and Steve decided to go on north and run a little farther. I think they ended up doing 8 or 9 miles. Cory and I went a ahead and finished the 5 mile Eagle's View run. Except for the first bit, Cory and I pushed fairly hard most of the way. The last 1.6 miles in from State Street we averaged 7:18/mi.

My last 4 Eagles View runs have been:

1/22: 41:57 (8:24/mi)

1/25: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

1/29: 37:58 (7:36/mi)

2/5: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

So my run last Monday was a little faster, but today I had already run 6 miles this morning. I recovered a lot faster today than last Monday, meaning I must not have worked as hard. Overall, I feel good about today's run.

Even though Cory's training has been down because of his sore foot, he ran strong today.

I felt I needed to focus on other more important things (yes, there are more important things than running) so I didn't get out today. I did have time for a basketball game at 9 p.m. so at least I got a little exercise.

Ran the Orem run with Larry this morning. I was originally planning on also running at lunchtime, but work didn't allow it.

Cory and I ran a new course down Kuhni road, looping up over the overpass by the truck stop, heading back north past the pipe plant to State, and back west over the two overpasses. I was thinking it was about 8 miles but it turned out to be just over 7 miles (7.13).

The weather was great, sunny in the low 50's. A couple of miles into the run I could tell something wasn't right in my stomach. About 4 miles into it I start feeling some stomach cramps. About mile five I saw the small headquarters building of the Pacific States Cast Iron Pipe Company. I figured they probably had a restroom I could use and decided to stop. I sent Cory on to finish the run. The receptionist pointed me to the men's room and it was a great relief...literally...and I continued the run. Unfortunately, about 1/2 mile later the cramping returned. I walked most of the two overpasses and my stomach calmed down. I tried running the last stretch back but didn't make it far before the cramping returned. I finally made it back and found the nearest restroom. My stomach didn't feel quite right the rest of the day.

I had a similar experience on a run with Tom last year. That day it was very hot and we were pushing the pace pretty hard, but today it was cool and we weren't really pushing that hard. I hadn't eaten anything unusual recently. I wish I could put my finger on the cause so I can avoid such unpleasantness in the future. It may have just been a mild case of stomach flu both times.

Ignoring the unpleasantness, I enjoyed this new 7 mile course. Crossing the "busier than I expected" overpass was a little tense, but not too bad. Most of the run was on quiet rural streets.

Ran with Larry, Wayne, and Kevin at 6:30am. The weather was in the high 30's when we started and it was a little dark. As we got warmed up and it got lighter it was great running.

We ran a 9 mile loop down into south Orem and back. We only averaged 8:39/mi overall, but Kevin and I picked it up a little the last 2.5 miles and averaged 7:54/mi for about 1.5 miles, then 7:11/mi for a mile or so, finally getting down to 6:11/mi for the last couple of blocks.

I would have liked to go a little farther, but we had a 9:00 am meeting to get to. I also think we could have gone faster, but just running with my friends was enough today.

With both my son and daughter having basketball games on Saturday, and with the leadership meeting this week, its been hard to get in a good long run recently. Of course, until a few days ago I was only training for a 10K in March.

I had decided to wait until next year to run Boston, but this week I reconsidered and decided to run it this year. My wife is supportive, but is going to wait and maybe go with me next year, so I'm doing a short trip to minimize expenses. I'm going to fly out early Sunday morning and return late Monday night.

Now that I'm officially registered and have booked my airfare, I'm getting pretty excited. This will be my first Boston marathon. I'm really looking forward to running with Kerry and Tom. Running St. George with them two years ago, and with just Kerry this past year (Tom was too fast), was awesome. It seems we all have the same goal for our first Boston, just run a comfortable pace, have a good time, and enjoy the experience. We can always pursue a good time another year.

Nevertheless, there is no such thing as an easy marathon. I'll have to get a little more serious the next couple of months and make sure I find time to get in the miles and the long runs, but with spring coming I'm looking forward to it.

I ran Eagles View with Tom today. Cory and Nathan also ran it but they had a meeting to get back for so they went out earlier. We passed them on their way back in.

Tom had me pushing so hard on the way out and up that I could barely carry on a conversation. On the way back I was able to catch my breath and push hard enough to set a new PR (barely) for this run this year, 37:53. We averaged about 7:56/mi out/up and 7:06/mi back/down. All these numbers are somewhat suspect as Tom's Garmin and mine didn't quite match up. Nevertheless, it was a good hard run and it was great running with Tom again. Maybe next time we can hook up with Cory and Nathan, and maybe Scott, too.

My last 5 Eagles View runs have been:

1/22: 41:57 (8:24/mi)

1/25: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

1/29: 37:58 (7:36/mi)

2/5: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

2/12: 37:53 (7:35/mi)

The weather was nice today and I did a little bit longer run to do some thinking and clear my head. I ran down Kuhni road, crossed the tracks and headed east, followed the road that zigzagged to the SE until the first road that headed back north, followed that road that zigzagged to the NW, then took the road north that goes past the Pacific States pipe plant, and finally headed back west from State street.

The total distance I ran was about 8.5 miles, at an average pace of 8:17/mi. The average paces for the mile splits were 8:03, 8:16, 8:10, 8:33, 7:49, 8:13, 8:12, 8:11, and about 7:45/mi for the last half mile. I was deep in thought during mile four (8:33) and picked up the pace when I "came to" during mile five (7:49).

Today's run had all the positive benefits I hoped it would, one of which was just to get some miles in. Now that I've finally decided to do Boston this year (paid non-refundable registration and airfare), I only have a couple of months to be ready for a marathon.

I ran 6.3 easy miles with Larry this morning. I enjoyed the run and the conversation, as I always do with Larry. Kevin was a no-show.

At lunchtime Tom, Cory, Nathan, and I ran the Lake View run. Darin and Kevin White had run it earlier and said the trail over wasn't too muddy. Shortly after we got to the asphalt we started a 3 mile tempo run with a goal pace of 7:00/mi. Our mile splits were 7:01, 6:56, and 6:54. We all felt very good about the run, except maybe Cory. He was slightly behind the rest of us and made some negative comment about his performance, but given the limited training he's been able to do because of the foot injury he's been fighting all winter, he should feel very good about his performance. I was impressed.

I also had a church basketball game at 10:00pm. My legs were beat and I would have skipped it but I felt obligated to go. We only had 6 players. I managed to run up and down the floor okay, but I got to experience firsthand the effect of tired legs on shooting.

Larry called and said he wouldn't be able to run in the morning. I probably ended up leaving Kevin to run alone again, but after two runs and a basketball game the day before, my legs were beat. I knew if it was just Kevin and me he would want to push the pace, and I just wasn't up for it. I was feeling a little discomfort in my left knee, right hamstring, and right hip so rather than risk injury I skipped the morning run.

I was thinking of getting in a few easy miles at lunchtime, but I ended up working through lunch. I then had to leave work a little early to get my daugther Emily to her ballroom competition at UVSC, and then I had a training meeting for church leaders on how to help people dealing with depression and anxiety. I'm a little depressed about missing my run today, but one of the things I learned was that one of the best treatments for depression is exercise. I'll get out to run tomorrow and everything will be good again.

At lunchtime I ran a little over 6 miles @ 8:10/mi, just a little slower than marathon pace. I ran the Kuhni road course Cory and I ran last week, only in the reverse direction and I cut a mile off by cutting through the truck stop parking lot from the base of the overpass to Kuhni road.

The temperature was in the mid-40s and cloudy. My legs still felt a little heavy from doing too much on Wednesday, but it was an enjoyable run.

I did a 12+ mile run with Kevin and Wayne this morning. Larry had a chest cold but still came out and ran a few miles with us and then turned back. We headed south through Orem, over to University Ave, south to the country club, then back north up University Ave to Orem 800 North then back up through Orem to home.

We ran the 12.25 miles in 1:43:20 (8:27/mi). We started out at about a 9:15/mi pace, ran most of the run right around 8:30/mi, then finished with 1.5 miles at about 8:00/mi and then the final mile at 7:18/mi.

I think we were all pleased with the run, although Kevin and I were breathing pretty hard the last few miles. Wayne just seemed to cruise along.

Basketball in the morning. Shane was playing a lot better than me (as is normal), but I had a better morning. I left uninjured. His face collided with somebody's elbow. I think he broke his nose. He bled quite a lot and seemed to be in quite a lot of pain. The quick application of a bag of ice seemed to help. I hope he's okay.

I was going to run yesterday morning, but woke up to a blanket of snow, with more still falling. I was going to try to run later in the day, but it being a holiday with the kids out of school, there was never time for it.

I was afraid today was going to be the same. I was planning to run at lunchtime, but just before lunch there was a problem I needed to handle and ended up working through lunch. Fortunately, I managed to find time to run after I got home from work. It was light when I started but quickly got dark.

I ran just over 6 miles in a loop around 1600 N, 400 W, 2000 N, Heather Rd., and 400 E, running the steepest part of 2000 N (Main to the top of Heather Rd.) twice. My average pace was 8:10/mi. The distances and paces were:

0.52mi - 7:16/mi - slight down - Home to 400 W on 1600 N

0.50mi - 7:24/mi - slight up - 1600 N to 2000 N on 400 W

0.50mi - 8:31/mi - gradual up - 400 W to Main on 2000 N

1.00mi - 9:56/mi - steep up - Main to Heather on 2000 N

1.00mi - 7:15/mi - steep down - Heather to Main on 2000 N

1.00mi - 10:04/mi - steep up - Main to Heather on 2000 N

0.85mi - 7:01/mi - steep down - Heather & 400 E to 1600 N

0.50mi - 6:53/mi - gradual down - 400 E to Main on 1600 N

0.21mi - 6:08/mi - level - Main to Home

I felt pretty strong throughout the run and really enjoyed it. If things go as planned, I decided this will be the first of 3 runs in 24 hours. Tomorrow I plan to run in the morning with Larry and Kevin, and then at lunchtime with Tom, Cory, and/or Nathan. I figure this is an opportunity to get in some good training for the Wasatch Back Relay.

I ran a few easy miles with Larry and Jolene in the morning. It's good to see Jolene out running again.

At lunchtime I ran with Tom and Cory. Tom wanted to do a tempo run of 3.25 miles at 7:00/mi. We ran 0.93 miles over to the other side of the freeway to warm up. Shortly we got off the trail and onto pavement we start the tempo run. My mile splits were 6:59, 6:58, and 6:58, with a 6:46 pace for the last 1/4 mile. We then cooled down running back across the freeway.

The first mile wasn't too bad, but then I had to start working. It got progressively harder to the end. Tom ran strong. He was the pace setter the whole way and finished a little ahead of me. Cory ran the first mile with us then backed off the pace. I know Cory is a little discouraged that he can't hang with us, but Tom and I think he is doing great. While we've been running 25-35 miles a week all winter, he's been laying off trying to get his foot healed (which is still hurting him). I don't think he's run a dozen times since the St. George marathon. I ran at least 4 of those runs with him and I was impressed with how strong he ran all of them. He just needs to give himself some time and build up his training base.

Kevin and I finally hooked up for a morning run, but Larry was a "no show" this time. The temperature was in the upper 30's but a breeze made it feel colder.

Our pace started slow. It picked up a little the last couple of miles, but neither of us felt very fast this morning. We averaged 8:17/mi overall, warming up a mile or so at around an 8:50 pace, averaging around 8:20 for most of the run, and ending at 7:36/mi.

I wore a heart rate monitor for the first time on this run. My heart rate was around 160 for most of the run, rising to around 180 when we pushed harder the last couple of miles.

Basketball in the morning (no broken noses this time).

At lunchtime I ran 4.5 miles on the treadmill. I averaged about an 8 minute pace for 4 miles and then cooled down for 1/2 a mile. My heart wasn't really in it (metaphorically speaking).

Nathan was there at the same time. Afterwards he asked something like, "So, is it worth it?" I wasn't sure. I sure don't like running on treadmills much. They were showing episodes of "Northern Exposure". At least it was distracting. I did find myself running in time to the theme song at the beginning. I think it could be a pretty decent running song.

I had a basketball game at 8:00am. I would have preferred to have skipped it, but I have family reasons (playing with my son) and duty reasons (I'm sort of in charge of our team) for feeling I need to be there.

Because of the game, I missed running with Larry, Wayne, and Kevin. I talked with Kevin later and I think he said they went about 10 miles or so at an easy pace. I saw them getting ready to start out as I headed to my game. I missed the sociality, but it sure looked cold.

I ended up running alone at about 3:15pm. My wife Karen gave me a ride down to Utah Lake State Park and I ran along the Provo River Parkway trail up to the mouth of Provo Canyon and then on up through Orem to home. It was just under 12.5 miles overall. My average pace was 8:49/mi.

It was chilly, but I was dressed well for it.

There's an interesting fact about running upstream on a river trail, it's a gradual uphill the whole way. I feel okay about the 8:49/mi pace. I maintained a pretty steady effort; my heart rate was right around 145 most of the way. It would rise temporarily to around 155 when I would speed up going down an underpass under the road and push up the hill on the other side. Climbing the hill to University Ave, and then later climbing from the mouth of Provo Canyon up 800 N to Orem, also took a little extra effort.

At mile 6 (heading N on Univ.) I took an eGel and I think it helped. I was feeling pretty low on energy at that point. I ate a bowl of cereal after the game this morning, but was reluctant to eat too much after that because I usually run on an empty stomach (early in the morning or just before lunch). At mile 10 I was feeling some stomach cramping, but I eased off the pace for a half mile or so and felt better.

The average paces for each mile were:

1 - 8:32/mi

2 - 8:19/mi

3 - 8:23/mi

4 - 8:07/mi

5 - 8:26/mi

6 - 9:05/mi (climb hill to Univ. Ave.)

7 - 9:01/mi (feeling pretty tired)

8 - 9:26/mi

9 - 9:28/mi

10 - 9:36/mi (stomach cramps)

11 - 9:20/mi

12 - 8:39/mi (slight downhill-feeling better)

12.5 - 7:29/mi (downhill home-pushed pretty hard)

I ran 6.2 easy miles with Larry this morning on our normal route down and back on 400 E in Orem. Jolene ran with us for a couple of miles then turned back. We only ran about a 10:00/mi pace, but that was about as fast as the road conditions allowed. Many of our steps were crunching through an inch or so of frozen snow, but in some spots the ice was smooth and very slippery. During one especially bad stretch near the end of the run I intentionally slid and easily slid 2 or 3 feet. As we turned off that street a bit later I unintentionally slipped and nearly went down. Despite the risks, as usual it was an enjoyable run as Larry and I discussed our lives and solved the world's problems. If only we could remember the solutions after the run and get people to listen to us...

At lunchtime I ran the Eagles View course Tom and Cory. We averaged 8:08/mi, but that included stopping at the State St. intersection for a while waiting for the light. I normally stop my watch when I have to stop at an intersection, but today I didn't. I wish I would have. I think it makes comparisons to previous runs more consistent since how long I have to stop at a red light is a variable outside of my control that can have a significant impact on the overall pace.

Our pace out/up was 8:54/mi. Our pace back/down was 7:24/mi.

My last 6 Eagles View runs have been:

1/22: 41:57 (8:24/mi)

1/25: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

1/29: 37:58 (7:36/mi)

2/5: 39:48 (7:58/mi)

2/12: 37:53 (7:35/mi)

2/26: 40:11 (8:08/mi)*

Today was a basketball day. At 6am I played with my son Andrew and the morning guys. At 10pm I played in the 1st round of our church tournament game. We were the bottom seed because we hadn't won a single game all season. I guess we finally had the right combination of guys show up because we came from 4 points down in the last minute and knocked out the #2 seed. I pulled myself out of the game early in the second half because I was scared of getting hurt. The other team had some really big guys (like 6'6", 300+ lbs) that were playing pretty rough. One of these guys fouled one of our players really hard on a layup in an earlier game and cracked his elbow. These guys were a foot taller than me and weighed almost twice as much, and were merciless. I didn't want to have my Boston Marathon plans terminated on a layup attempt in a meaningless game. Call me a wimp if you wish, I call it...being a coward, or at least careful.

In the morning I ran the normal Orem 400 E course with Kevin. The weather phone said it was 21 degrees and I dressed well for that temperature. I was fine while we headed south. As soon as we turned back north, however, we realized that we had been running with a tailwind which was now a very cold headwind. My face got pretty cold (numb) but the rest of me was okay.

We took a few detours this morning. First we took a minor detour at 400 S when we headed west to go over to Main St. to go back north. We both were thinking we were on 400 N. 400 S does not intersect with Main St. When we saw State St. approaching we turned back and went north on 400 E as usual. At 800 N, we did go west to Main St. and stopped at Gold's Gym so Kevin could use their bathroom. There sure seemed to be a lot of people there on the treadmills, etc. We then crossed over 800 N and made our way around the construction to get onto Main St. and head home. We ended up doing about 6.7 miles @ 8:23/mi. The first mile was @ 8:37/mi and the last mile was @ 7:45/mi.

At lunchtime I ran Lake View with Cory and Nathan. It was sunny and cold, around 31 degrees I think. The pace for the first mile was around 9:00/mi. We then conciously picked up the pace. The average paces for the next 4 miles were 7:23, 7:33, 6:50 (we pushed it hard), and 7:30. We averaged 7:38/mi overall. Tom would have probably made me run a 7:00 pace for most of those miles, but it just wasn't in me today...and Tom wasn't there.