Every Race is an Adventure!

December 25, 2024

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Location:

Orem,UT,USA

Member Since:

Apr 03, 2006

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Age Division Winner

Running Accomplishments:

HS/COLLEGE:
mile: 4:56, 2 mile: 10:21 (1978)
marathon: 2:52 (St. George 1982)
OLD MAN (20+ years later):
5K: 19:53 (Nestle/Art City Days 5K 2007)
10K: 39:55 (Spectrum 10K 2008)
half marathon: 1:26 (Hobble Creek 2008)
marathon: 3:07 (St. George 2007)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Get back to a BQ marathon time (currently 3:40).

Long-Term Running Goals:

Have fun running, keep fit, and fight middle age spread. Run consistently and injury free. Maintain a healthy balance between running and other life priorities. Encourage my ever-aging running buddies to keep running so we can continue to share runs on the trail instead of rocking chairs.

Personal:

Blessed to be married to Karen for 30 years. We have six children (4 daughters/2 sons) ages 16 to 30, and one wonderful granddaughter.

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00
Altra Instinct 1.5 Lifetime Miles:						83.50
Altra Lone Peak 1.5 Lifetime Miles:						21.80
Saucony Guide 7 Blue 2 Lifetime Miles:						376.95
Saucony Fastwitch 6 Lifetime Miles:						200.05
Saucony Guide 7 Black 1 Lifetime Miles:						271.15

Thu, May 31, 2007

Easy Miles	Threshold Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Track speed mileage	Hill mileage	Total
2.20	0.00	0.00	0.00	3.00	5.20

I ran the water tank hills with Larry and Wayne this morning. It was nice not running alone again. The pace was a little slower than when I pushed hard solo on Monday, but with a 5K race on Saturday I didn't want to push too hard. We still maintained a steady push up the hills.

My bad knee acted up a little at the beginning of the run, but I don't think it's anything unusual. I don't plan to run on Friday as I taper for the 5K.

I still plan to try once again to break the 20 minute barrier at the 5K, but after riding the course on Tuesday on my motorcycle I can see it's not going to be easy. That first mile looks pretty challenging with the big hill into Mapleton.

I think I'll just try to hang onto Tom for the first mile or two and then try to step on the gas until the tank runs dry as we head back down to the high school and around the track. It's going to require some star alignment for me to reach my goal, but I'm counting on drawing energy from the other runners to hopefully get me over the hump.

Dang! I just remembered a quote Larry shared with me recently from Steve Prefontaine. I googled and found it, and another quote, at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Prefontaine.

"The only good race pace is suicide pace, and today looks like a good day to die."

"A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more. Nobody is going to win a 5,000 meter race after running an easy 2 miles. Not with me. If I lose forcing the pace all the way, well, at least I can live with myself."

So now I'm faced with my original plan to hold back a little that first uphill mile, or live on the edge, force the pace all the way, and push (and risk reaching too soon) my mental and physical limits. Strangely, I feel myself being drawn to the latter right now. How can you be sure where the limits are if you never push them? I hope I come to my senses before the gun fires on Saturday morning.

Comments

From Tom on Thu, May 31, 2007 at 15:49:05

Paul you're right about this course not being particularly easy or a typical PR course. But for some reason I've had some of my best races here, perhaps because alot of people run this race and they tend you pull you along somewhat.

I think you should run the race however you feel like based on your mind set the morning of. I will say though that based on my splits from last year when I ran my 5K PR, it has worked better for me to hold off a bit the 1st uphill mile and then increase the pace over the last 2.1 miles.

As an FYI, my splits for last year are as follows:

1 - 6:48

2 - 6:31

3 - 6:21

.1 = 0:24

Actually on 2nd thought I think you should go crazy and run the 1st mile in around 6:00 or faster and go from there....yeah I think that's a good stategy for you.... ;)

From Paul T on Fri, Jun 01, 2007 at 14:46:47

Thanks for your advice and splits from last year. Don't worry (or get your hopes up), I'm not considering an all out sprint at the start. I'm just afraid that if I don't make a conscious effort to start with a fairly high level of intensity, that I'll have given up any chance of breaking 20:00 before I even get to the second mile (kind of how the Jazz had already lost that last game against the Spurs by the end of the 1st quarter).

I'd be happy running the first mile around 6:45, but I don't think I can do that if I hold back much at all. I think I'd have to be pushing pretty hard.

I don't generally wear my GPS watch for 5K's. I prefer to just go for it and run the pace my body, my mind, the terrain, the conditions, and the competition are dictating to me. In my last two 5Ks, that has resulted in times of 20:13 and 20:15, on slightly easier courses, but also with much less competition. I think it's going to require me to push my limits to the very edge, and gut it out at the end, to have any hope of breaking 20:00. I'm just trying to decide if tomorrow "looks like a good day to die."

By the way, if my math is correct you ran that last .1 miles at a 4:00min/mi pace. Quite impressive!

From Tom L on Fri, Jun 01, 2007 at 14:53:34

FYI - I found this article out on the Runner's World site that tends to go against conventional wisdom and supports the theory of pushing hard the 1st mile:

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244-259-11738-0,00.html

Oh..and thought I'd like to think I finished last year running near 4min/mi pace I should mention I only measured .07 miles after the 3 mile point on the GPS.

From Paul T on Fri, Jun 01, 2007 at 15:14:24

Fascinating article!...and "study findings are probably most applicable to competitive open and master's division runners, not elites"...that's me!

Using their calculator and my pace from my last two 5Ks (6:32/mi), I should run my first mile between 6:20 (3% faster) and 6:09 (6% faster). Of course, there's the little matter of the uphill. Maybe I should consider that equivalent to 3-6% faster and just try to run 6:32/mi for the first mile? Very interesting. I'm curious to see what I decide to do in the morning. This is exciting.

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