Every Race is an Adventure!

6.1 miles @ 9:15/mi.  Murdock trail north with Kevin.

6 miles @ 9:14/mi.  Murdock trail north with Kevin.

Our pace was about the same as yesterday, but yesterday felt hard and we didn't talk much near the end. Today we were comfortable and coversational to the end. Interesting.

6.2 miles @ 8:31/mi.  Murdock trail north solo, via Main-2000N

Kevin said he couldn't run this morning, so I skipped going by his house and went directly up Main to 2000N to the trail. I used the 0.5 mile up to the trail as warm up then pushed uptempo the remaining 5.5 miles.

0.5: 9:55/mi
Mile splits: 8:16, 8:22, 8:23, 8:44, 8:35 (slight downhill out, uphill back)
0.3: 7:51/mi (down from trail)
0.2: 7:06/mi (4-way stop to home)

Good run for me. Great way to start the day. I enjoyed the milder weather. I started with zipped up collar, headband, and gloves but unzipped and removed the headband and gloves by the end. I also didn't wear my calf sleeves this morning. My legs feel pretty strong (knock on wood).

6 miles @ 9:14/mi.  Murdock trail north solo.

I skipped running yesterday morning because of the Count of Monte Cristo, and nearly skipped again this morning for the same reason. I've been reading the book and last night Karen and I attended the American premier of the musical at BYU. I missed yesterday to finish reading the book before the play (and because my daughter late the night before had asked me for a father's blessing the next morning), and after being up late last night when the alarm went off this morning I turned it off and got back in bed.

At 5:25 I was still awake so I made a quick decision and by 5:32 I was on the street running. It was mild this morning, with the streets wet after a rain, and with cool, clear air. I didn't push but just held a steady pace throughout as I pondered the "wait and hope" message of the Count of Monte Cristo, and other things, and greeted an occasional runner or biker. It was nice.

8.8 miles @ 9:50/mi.  South Fork canyon (Vivan to Trefoil) with Wayne.

With the mild weather Wayne and I decided to run up South Fork this morning. There was some black ice in spots, and a little white ice/snow near the top, but the road was mostly pretty clear. The trees on the mountainside were frost coverd, but those down nearer the road were not. Some had drop of water on the tip of each branch that looked pretty cool as they reflected the light. It was overcast, and a little chilly, with temps in the upper 30's.

We didn't push going up, or the first part coming down. I did push the last 3 miles down, with splits of 7:37, 8:03, and 7:32. I held pretty consistent effort; the split differences reflect the ups and downs.

It was a good run. Running up the canyon was a nice change. I enjoyed Wayne's company. We missed Kevin, who was with the Boy Scouts at Klondike.

With the relatively mild weather, January was a good month for running. I ran 148.8 miles and ran 24 of 31 days, all of them outside.