Every Race is an Adventure!

Larry and Kevin were hiking with the YW, and Wayne was at a cabin with his wife, so Kent and I ran down to Wil's, up the canyon to the fountain, and back home. It's good to see Kent back running. He and I don't run alone very often. I wasn't sure what we would talk about, but it didn't seem to be a problem. I really enjoyed the run.

I'm exacly sure where my fitness is. Next week's Provo 1/2 marathon will interesting...every race is an adventure.

THS track with Larry and Kent this morning. It was yet another beautiful morning. There seem to have been a lot this summer. I'm a little bummed about the days getting shorter, but there's still a lot of great running to be had between now and the St. George marathon in October.

I did 4 x 1 mile repeats again like last Monday, at about the same pace. One difference is that I ran the first two repeats consecutively, without a rest in between. My mile splits were 7:01, 6:49, 6:52, and 6:50. Overall I ran a total of 7 miles @ about 8:37/mi average, with a little walking mixed in.

I've been very cautious about stepping up my training this year, especially speed work. It seems this old body of mine is always on the edge of injury so I have to listen pretty carefully. To me going a little faster isn't worth the risk of not being able to run at all. So far so good...knock on wood. I tend to push my limits on race days, however. I'm looking forward to Saturday's adventure in the Provo 1/2 marathon.

I ran the 2000 N hill route with Larry and Wayne. The uphill is never easy, but overall this was an easy pace run as Wayne and I are tapering a little for the half marathon this Saturday. We plan to run the normal runs on Wednesday and Thursday, but not push hard, then rest on Friday.

Water tank hills with Wayne, Kent and Larry. Easy pace, tapering for Saturday's race.

Larry, Wayne and I ran the normal Cascade route this morning, but took it easy and cut off a mile as part of our taper for Saturday. I saw a little lightning and heard a little thunder as I got up this morning, but there was no rain.

Last night I finally started thinking seriously about goals for the 1/2 marathon on Saturday. I must be getting old because I was thinking I'd run it last year in 1:33 or so, but when I looked back I saw that I had run it in 1:29. I was almost shocked looking at my splits. All I remembered was the big hill on the highway and fading at the end and worrying about Josse passing me.

I'm not sure I have a 1:29 in me this year. I think I'll target 1:30 as my stretch goal, but I'll be satisfied with anything under 1:35. I must say, however, that there's a part of me that is urging me to "let 'er rip" and do a little limit exploration on Saturday morning. I haven't been doing a lot of speed training, but I've done a little, and my mileage has been pretty good, and I feel healthy.

I believe it was Tom that first called me a zen runner. I don't follow a strict training plan or race plan, but tend to consider the circumstances at hand (weather, buddies, schedule, etc.), listen to my body, and my spirit, and then try to run whatever feels right. I think this works for me because I have a tendency to overdo and push too hard. Neither my body nor my mind tell me to take it easy unless there is a good reason.

A great part of being a zen runner is never knowing quite what to expect. Every race is an adventure. There are so many factors that determine the outcome, and it's an adventure watching things unfold and watching how I respond and discovering what I'm capable of. Another great part of being a zen runner is not being too disappointed if my performance is less than what I hoped. The finishing time is only one measure of accomplishment. The experience itself is the adventure.

It will be interesting to see what unfolds Saturday morning.

I got up at 3:45am, picked up Lyle at 4:50am, caught a bus at Riverwoods at about 5:15am, then waited around for the start until a little after 7:00am. The weather was cool for August, and it was a little chilly waiting for the start, but it made for great temperatures during the run. The slight chance of rain didn't materialize, although the sprinklers along the trail near the end managed to get me pretty good as I was focused and working to pass a strong runner in front of me who looked to be close to my age. I managed to pass him and hold off his kick at the end.

I felt pretty good going into the race, but I didn't feel like my training was quite up to where it was last year. I was pleased to end up running the same time as last year, though the couse was different last year due to the fire. I think I ran the race better this year. I didn't push quite as hard during the early downhill miles and managed to hold a pretty even pace clear through the finish.

Miles 1-4: 6:46, 6:26, 6:43, 6:30

Down South Fork Canyon - Took it easy on the brief uphill sections and released the brakes a little on the steeper downhill sections.

Miles 5-6: 7:00, 6:48

Vivian to Bridal Veil - A little flatter.

Miles 7-8: 7:29, 7:19

Included the uphill loop from Bridal Veil and back.

Miles 9-13.1: 6:52, 6:54, 6:49, 6:55, 6:42, (5:13/mi for final kick)

Last year I ran the first mile in 6:07 and the last two miles in 7:28 and 7:21, and felt beaten at the end. This year I never bonked and held a strong, steady pace through the finish, including a strong kick. Not long after the race I felt ready for more. Maybe I'm in better shape than I think I am. That would be nice.

Last year my 1:29 time got 4th in my division. This year my 1:29 earned me 3rd place. The winner of my age division was exactly 1 minute ahead of me, certainly within striking distance. The only problem is that next year I'll be 50 and in a new age division.

I'm very pleased with today's race. I feel like I ran smart and pushed hard through the finish. I reached my stretch goal of matching last year's time even though I don't feel my training is quite where it was last year at this time.

The temperature was perfect. The day was beautiful. I wish more of my buddies could have shared it, but Terry, Tom, and Lyle all had great runs. All in all, I think it was a pretty good use of my time this morning.

Kent said Larry said Wayne might show up this morning. Neither Larry nor Wayne showed up so Kent and I went to the track alone. My legs were a little stiff from Saturday's race so I didn't push hard this morning. I ran along as Kent did his 1/2 mile repeats.

Ran the 2000 N route with Larry at an easy pace. We saw Lyle near the elementary school and he ran in with us. His legs were still a little sore from the race Saturday (as were mine), but he seemed pretty excited about meeting his goal of sub-2:00.

Water tank hills with Larry, Wayne, and Kent. My legs were feeling pretty much recovered from the race Saturday. I pushed the hills up (16:47), and the last half mile (6:22/mi), but at about 90-95% effort instead of all out.

I was encouraged by my performance Saturday. Part of me wants to bump up the mileage and speed, but another part of me wants to be careful to avoid injury. I'll just take it a day at a time and try to find the right balance.

Cascade run with Wayne and Kent.

Lindon loop with Larry, Wayne and Kevin.

We changed up our Provo Canyon run a bit this morning. We all wanted to go at least 16 miles. The mouth to Vivian is about 6 miles, so we started by running from the mouth the two miles down to Wil's Pit Stop and then back. Larry, Kent and Collin did 16. Wayne and I went 18 by adding one mile up South Fork and then back to Vivian.

We thought we might get rained on but it held off and the weather was great for running. It rained pretty hard for a while not long after we got back. I was grateful we didn't have to run in it.

Splits to Wil's and back: 9:27, 9:08, 9:42, 9:38 (all hanging together)

Up splits: 9:42, 9:27, 9:16, 9:29, 9:25, 9:07 (pulling away), 10:11 (South Fork), 9:51/mi (for 0.3)

Down splits: 7:47 (South Fork) , 8:21, 8:02, 8:05, 7:57, 7:36, 7:51/mi (for 0.9)

We average 8:55/mi overall for 18.2 miles.

I told Wayne I was starting to feel pretty tired with a couple of miles to go. That's when I noticed that the pace had dropped to sub-8:00. I was pleased to realize that I was feeling tired because we were picking up the pace at the end of an 18-miler, not because I was bonking.

I'm very satisfied with the run. I enjoyed it, held a respectable pace, and finished feeling tired but pretty good.

THS track with Larry and Kent. Larry was feeling ill and went home after a couple of warmup laps. I hope he feels better soon.

My legs didn't feel up to running hard this morning. While Kent was doing his 6 x 1/2 mile repeats, I decided to just do a 4 mile tempo run instead of the 6:50-ish 4 x 1 mile repeats I've done recently. I ran the first three miles at around 7:05-7:10/mi and the last mile in 6:48.

I was up late last night, and I've been really tired recently, so I chose sleep over running today. My legs felt tired yesterday, too, so I figured resting them a little before this weekend's Hobble Creek half marathon might not be bad. Unlike some people, it was hard for me to choose to sleep instead of getting up early and running. Personally, I would have preferred to run, but my body was telling me otherwise.

Water tank hills with Larry, Wayne and Kent. I didn't push the hills today, trying to save my legs a little for the Hobble Creek 1/2 this Saturday. I wasn't planning to push the last 1/2 mile either, but I couldn't resist picking up the pace a little. I had been talking about trying to equal this year my 1:26 finish at Hobble Creek last year, a 6:34/mi average pace. I was afraid of pushing the 1/2 mile downhill today and having it only be at around 6:30/mi pace. That would be discouraging to think of having to hold that pace for 26 times that distance. I decided to take the brakes off anyway. I didn't really feel like I was pushing all out, but still managed 5:58/mi pace. That is actually somewhat encouraging. The Hobble Creek race should be yet another grand adventure into realm of Paul's possibilities.

I ran 5 flat miles solo at an easy pace this morning. I had a hard time getting my tired legs moving, my hip was stiff and sore, and it felt hard to run a 9:30+ pace, so averaging 6:35/mi for 13.1 miles at Hobble Creek in two days should be a piece of cake.

Maybe I've waited long enough to file my race report that nobody will see it. Today wasn't my best run, but I feel good about it anyway.

First the splits. I think comparing this year to the last two years is pretty telling:

I woke up to discover two undesirable conditions: 1) digestive tract issues, and 2) an already warm morning with a forecast for near record highs.

I'm not sure if I was a little ill this morning, or if my digestive tract issues were simply the result of breaking my tradition of eating pasta or pancakes the evening before a race...I had a peppery steak and cheese sandwich from the Italian Place instead. Since it is now Saturday night and I don't feel sick, I suspect it was the sandwich. I didn't have an issue during the race, but after 4 potty stops prior to the race I felt a little weak and not quite 100%.

I decided to go ahead and run hard anyway to see if it was physical or mental. Looking back on the race, I think it was physical. As early as mile 2 things began to feel harder than they should, even though I was running slower than the past two years. By mile 4 or 5 I had decided I was just going to try to keep moving as fast as I could at a sustainable pace and try not to bonk.

You can tell by the splits that by mile 9 I was beginning to slow, which continued through mile 12. I think the heat was a factor. I think Josse passed me during mile 9, and Jessi passed me around mile 11. With about a mile to go I met up with Tom (not racing) who began to pace me and encouraged me to begin closing the gap on Josse and Jessi. A moment later Nathan caught up to me (despite his nursing a hamstring injury the whole way), It wasn't long before Nathan and Tom were pulling away, but they gave me enough of a boost to get me rolling the last mile. I caught and passed Josse (running on 5 weeks of training), but Jessi's kick matched mine and I couldn't catch her.

I feel good about hanging in fairly tough mentally even though my body wasn't at 100% today. I believe every race is an adventure, and today's had some unexpected challenges, but I feel good about my response and am happy with the results.

Update (official results):

Congratulations on finishing the Hobble Creek Half Marathon
on August 22, 2009.  For your records, the weather that day was
warm and beautiful.

There were 34 finishers in the Male 45 to 49 age group and
1100 finishers in the race.

Your overall finish place was 90 and your age group finish place
was 7.  Your overall finish percentile was 8 while your age group
percentile was 21.  Your time of 1:30:54.4 gave you a  6:56 pace per mile.

Complete results can be found online at www.SRCevents.com

If anyone checked my blog this week they might be wondering if I've been running. I have, I just haven't been blogging. It's Thursday night and I'm just logging Monday's run.

Monday Kent and I ended up going to the track alone. I normally do 1 mile repeats while Kent and Larry do 1/2 mile repeats. I guess I was still recovering a bit from the 1/2 marathon on Saturday because I didn't feel physically or mentally up to mile repeats. I decided to run the 1/2 mile repeats with Kent, mostly so I could rest more in between.

If I recall correctly, my times were something like 3:20, 3:23, 3:21, 3:17, 3:20 and 3:02. You can tell by the last split that I probably wasn't going all out the first five. Still, I feel like I pushed pretty hard for as tired as I was.

Larry and I ended up running alone this morning. I got in 1.5 miles before meeting up with him and we ran the 2000 N route, slightly modified. His dog Ozzie seemed to fall behind more than normal and we kept stopping for him. Now that school is back in I'm trying to get home by 6:45am for our morning scriptures and prayer. At 6:40am I realized I was still 1.5 miles from home, and Ozzie was nowhere to be seen again. Larry sent me home and went back for his dog. No...I didn't run the last 1.5 miles in 5 minutes. I was late and only made it in time for prayer.

Water tank hills with Larry and Wayne, and eventually Kevin. I didn't feel much like running this morning. When I told Larry this he asked who I was and what I had done with Paul.

When we reached the bottom of the hills and began our ascent I told them I was going to push hard to purge the "not wanting to run" business. I started up strong and never let up...and actually felt pretty strong all the way up...finishing the ascent in 15:29, a 25 second PR for this year.

Wayne and I add some distance at the top then began the easy descent with Larry. Around the bottom of hill 5 we say Kevin and his dog headed up. I encouraged him to finish to the top and said he could catch us. I felt bad that we weren't going to see much of him so Wayne and I doubled back before descending hill 1 until we met up with Kevin, at the bottom of hill 2. He was flying and pulled away from us pretty quickly. He slowed when he caught Larry and we all ran together until the last 1/2 mile.

We traditionally push the last downhill 1/2 mile pretty fast. Again, I wasn't really feeling like it but went for it anyway. Once I got moving I got in a groove and ended up running 5:53 pace for that 1/2 mile, another season PR.

It wasn't fast enough to not make me late getting home again. Doubling back (needlessly as it turned out) for Kevin was a mistake.

My good running buddies Larry, Wayne and Kevin decided among themselves to start leaving at 5:40am instead of 5:45am to give me a better chance of getting home on time. What great guys. The only problem was that only Wayne showed up today. We did meet up with Kevin later, but he had left far more than only 5 minutes later. This was a little more up tempo easy run. I got in a little over 1/2 a mile before meeting Wayne and ended up with 6.6 miles. Leaving earlier and running faster got us back by 6:35am, with 10 minutes to spare, which I spent walking and talking with Wayne and Kevin and still barely made it in on time.

We decided on an early 20 mile run up Provo Canyon, but later Larry called me at work to say that Wayne had something come up and wouldn't be joining us Saturday, and also that Mark Nelson had called and was planning to run to the top of Timp on Saturday. We have been saying how much we enjoyed it a couple of years ago when we did it and that we ought to do it again this year. This weekend is probably our last good opportunity. Larry was going to talk with Kevin and Kent. I guess I'll find out tomorrow morning if we're doing Timp or not.

Larry and I went out for 4-ish mile at an easy pace.

Today I ran to the shack on the summit of Mt. Timpanogos at 11,749 ft. The weather, companionship, and scenery were awesome. The wildflowers and other mountain flora were beautiful. I saw mountain goats, raccoons, and squirrels. I even got to witness a fairly vicious but brief dog fight dangerously near the edge on the saddle, between Larry's dog Ozzie and another dog.

My legs were still pretty tired from running up Timp on Saturday. I was just going to run easy around the track while the others did speed work, like Larry did, but I decided I liked the idea of walking/jogging every half mile so I ran 1/2 mile repeats with Kent. Splits: 3:40, 3:40, 3:39, 3:32, 3:21, 3:04. You can see that my legs felt better as I went along. I didn't feel like pushing hard until the last interval.