Every Race is an Adventure!

Kent and I did 6x1/2 mile intervals this morning. Some days just seem harder, and today seemed to be one of those days for both of us. It seemed warm this morning, and my legs also felt a little sluggish.

My times for the 1/2 mile intervals were 3:39, 3:41, 3:28, 3:39, 3:42, and 3:23. These times were a little slower than previous weeks, but mentally I felt like I did a little better.

I've been using my new foam roller for a few days now. It seems to work out the knots in my calves even better than "The Stick", but it seems to be helping the most with my hip. I finally feel like I'm able to get to the hot spot in my hip that has been hurting for years. As I've been able to roll it out, I feel like it's helping. Time will tell.

Another warm morning, though slightly cooler. Larry, Wayne, Kent and I ran the 2000 N hill route. Part way up the big hill I decided to take off and push to the top. I felt pretty good and pulled a little ahead, but I could still hear Wayne and Kent not too far behind, talking comfortably as they hung not too far behind. We ran together down the hill and north into Lindon. When we got to the next hill Wayne and Kent paid me back and out pushed me to the corner. Again we all ran down the hill together. Shortly after we turned south at the corner we noticed that Wayne had quickly pulled away. I was impressed at his pace, but decided to at least make the effort to catch him. I couldn't close the gap, and was relieved when he reached the stop sign and turned back. It turns out it was just a little fartlek.

It was a good run. It was nice to have 4 of us out. Kevin stopped by as we were talking after the run. He had worked out with his daughter this morning. What a blessing to have to have such a good group of men to run and associate with.

We expected Wayne and Larry to join us, but Kent and I went up the water tank hills alone. We ran pretty well, but neither of us had that extra gumption to push really hard. I'll credit the headwind up the hill, with a nod to the higher than normal humidity, with maybe some lingering effect from recent runs. Like after most recent runs, I'm covered with sweat with water dripping off the brim of my hat. It reminds a little of running in Ohio, but I just checked. The humidity here is 52%, the humidity there is 83%. I withdraw my complaint. What a beautiful morning!

Just Kent and I again. Reverse 2000 N hill route. Some training runs are just training runs. We worked pretty hard but nothing noteworthy.

We met Larry near the end at the bottom of the 2000 N hill. He tried running a little on his pulled hamstring, but without much success. He said the other two times (in 20 years) he's pulled his hamstring he was okay a couple of days later. I hope that's true again.

Kent, Kevin and I left at 5:00am to beat the heat on our 18 mile Fort Utah run. Apparently Larry's leg was still bothering him because he didn't show. We missed Wayne as well.

Kent and Kevin both had GI tract issues during the run, but other than that it was an enjoyable run. We started early enough that we didn't get sun until about mile15. We stopped at Macy's for sports drink, but I had just taken an eGel a little before that so I opted for water from the fountain.

Kevin had to stop again just before we got to University Ave. Kent and I didn't think we could stop and get going again so we went on ahead. We expected Kevin to catch us, but it turns out he stopped another time or two, once to watch his daughter play soccer for a couple of minutes. Still, he finished only 6-7 minutes behind us.

This run wasn't speedy, but it's always good to get a long run behind you. It's a bonus to actually enjoy the journey.