All about that pace.

11:30am Nehemiah 13 - Esther 9

4 miles around the lake... still sore. No new year's 5k for me but at least I got out there.

Then .36 around the 'hood whith my grandson. It doesn't get much better than that!

Esther 10 - Job 29

One mile warmup on the AMT at the Y, then one hour on the treadmill at 10:42 pace. I did a rolling hill program that made it feel more like 8 an min pace used to feel. It varied from +1 to +8 on the incline so there was no down hill or flats at all. More like varying uphill than "rolling hills" if you ask me.

Job 30 - Psalms 17

One hour on the treadmill at the Y. "rolling hills" program at 10 min pace. Hamstring is better, but achilles are not liking it.

Psalms 18-50

Ten treadmill miles on the rolling hills.

Treadmill at the Y.

Treadmill at the Y

Three easy miles with John after work at Chambers Bay.

Psalms 116 - Proverbs 2

At the Y on the TM.

Proverbs 3 - 22

Hills on the TM at the Y.

Been running off and on over the last month. Trying to perfect my couch-to-42k program :)

The "A" goal is to finish under 3:53:56 to avoid a personal worst. The training focus now is just to add 1 mile to my long run each week until raceday, May 5th.

I made it through my long run again this week thanks to Preston. There's no way I could have mustered up the motivation to do this on my own after another slacker week of just 14 easy miles split between Sunday and Tuesday. Next week I WILL have at least 3 runs and 20 miles in before Friday.

Another great long run! I failed to get in more than 2 short runs again this week, but I have still been able to double my long run goal and add 2 miles per week thanks to Preston dragging me along and keeping me distracted from the pain. We averaged 7:59 today. Last month I couldn't run 3 miles at that pace. 

Easy recovery run today. Maybe not so easy for my calves; they were a little uptight about running 2 days in a row. First 40 mile week since June!!!

The first step was the hardest.

5:00am

Wincing in pain with each step on the ginormous blister I acquired during my long run last Friday. Hopefully it will calm down before my LR this week. Shooting for 20 miles if the blister doesn't turn into a bleeder along the way.

got er done!

He is risen!

4 fastish miles on the track at Puyallup Y. 

That makes 3 runs in the bank again this week before the long one on Friday. I'm thinking about a few more miles tomorrow instead of taking 2 rest days...

Ugh! 21 miles on the TM at the Y.

12:00pm

8 @ 7:30 pace on the TM at the YMCA. Sloppy, sweaty mess. I should have taken the machine into the shower with me when it was over.

5:45pm

My brother-in-law came over and wanted to go work out so back to the Y for 5 more miles while he lifted. I finished just in time to be too late for the hot tub. They close at 7, but clear the pool at 6:30 :(

More TM at the Y. That makes 41.5 miles since I've ran outside. It's time to get back out there...

7:00pm

8 miles outside!!

6:00am

Another long run finished! I still need to squeeze in another 1.3 at the Y later today to crack 50 this week. All my aches and pains seem to have passed and I feel good about peaking at 60 miles next week before I taper.

5:00pm

3 more miles on the TM.

4:30am

I got 10 hours sleep last night! I can't remember the last time that happened. Needless to say, I was full of energy this morning. 12 miles at 8:08 pace was a breeze. The plan is to do the same tomorrow, probably on a little less sleep.

I went the extra mile today just thinking about and praying for all the victims and their families in Boston yesterday. I also made a new friend while I was out. I introduced myself to a runner I've seen off and on over the last year or so. We ran the last couple miles together. It turns out Aaron is a Christian brother who also lives and works right here in Lakewood.

13 groggy miles after a terrible night's sleep. I felt good cardio-wise, but my legs felt heavy and stiff like cement. Tomorrow I rest, Friday I nail that 60 mile goal!

The local beer drinking club with a running problem (Tacoma Runners) had a solidarity run tonight to show support for Boston. I decided to join them for a few easy miles and a cold one. It was a big group running in a sketchy neighborhood with lots of police activity and stray dogs. What could be more fun than that?

20 soggy miles with Preston.

1 mile @ 8:30, 4 miles @ 7:45, 4 miles @ 7:10, 1/2 mile cool down.

10:00am 9.4 miles: One mile warmup, 3 miles @ 7:30, 5 miles @ 7:10, 1/2 mile cool down.

Trying to remind my legs how to go fast this week. Until now I've just been trying to get the mileage in and my usual 8+ min pace has been a solid effort. I'm hoping these low 7s now will make 7:50 seem more comfortable on raceday.

I think 3:25:00 is going to be the goal.

5:00pm 3.6 miles with John @ 9:20. It was good to shake out the legs a little and even better to see John out there.

5:30am Avg pace 7:33

Just a little longer than I planned with some tempo miles during the last half. It felt good to run fast around the lake.

4 and a half super easy miles with the "tri" group from the Y.

One fast loop around Oakbrook and one easy loop.

My first 200 mile month since last May.

4:30am speedy little jog.

5:00am

Nice hilly run. Starting to get into the MP groove.

4:30am

Final tune up before the race. Not bad for a taper week, only 32 miles and no double digit runs. My total mileage for the last 6 months is a whopping 506. I'm not expecting a stellar performance this weekend, but I am feeling ready to give it my best.

Move along, not much to see here. Careful, don't slip in that vomit on your way through...

4 miles with John after work at Steilacoom Park. Too hot even at a 9min pace.

5:00am

6 easy miles. Perfect morning except for the black toenail I discovered on my left foot. It appears there was a casualty during the race. Ouch!

3 miles with the Tacoma Runners and cold ones at Masa on 6th Ave.

Easy run around Gravelly Lake before heading out to Spokane for the weekend.

2 laps around Oakbrook before bed. Nice sunny evening run.

One lap around Oakbrook in the rain between shifts. Patch night for my servers.

I planned a long run today, but didn't want to go alone. Instead, I'm laying in bed reading my blog entries from May and June 2011. So far I see two important things: I should post my splits or at least my avg pace for every run and I need to post more cool videos. The videos never got a lot of comments, but I sure do enjoy them :)

This was my my first 5k since Jan 2012. I wasn't sure what to expect from myself or the course so I just pushed the pace until it hurt and then backed off a little for the first mile. By then I was in 5th place and feeling ok about maintaining my 6:30ish pace for the duration. The course was pretty hilly and I managed to reel in 2 more guys just keeping it steady. 2nd place looked like a possibility on the uphills, but he kept pulling ahead on the flats. I'm going to have to work pretty hard to beat this time next week. This was a really fun morning and a great free race. I plan to be back for many more.

Pace: 6:33, 6:41, 6:26, 5:53

5:00am

Farwest hill, light rain, no wind. 3@7:20 out, 3@6:50 back. 7:06 avg.

5:00pm

Oakbrook loop, no rain, wicked wind. 2@7:05, 3@6:30. 6:46 avg.

5:00am Cold, rainy, windy, soggy 6 @ easy 8 min pace.

5:00am

Farwest hill, 3 out @7:30, 3 back @6:40

7:04 avg.

6:00pm

5 miles around Oakbrook loop. 1st one @7:15 and worked my way down to 6:30 about 10 sec per mile.

I think I'm ready to crack 20 on Saturday...

8:00am

Close, but no cigar. 20:11.

Sub-20 on this course is going to be tougher than I thought. The second mile is a killer. Nothing left for a sprint at the finish.

6:14, 6:42, 6:32, 6:22.

5 easy miles around Oakbrook @7:33

Farwest hill and a lap around Oakbrook.

7:42 avg

Shooting for a progressive run around Oakbrook, cutting 20 seconds off each mile.  Ran out of gas and barely held it together on the last mile.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:27
2.00 7:08
3.00 6:45
4.00 6:24
5.00 6:26

Oakbrook loop, 7:06

Farwest hill, 7:03

Easy run (10:31pace) with the Tri group after a 25 mile bike ride (15mph).

First time riding more than 2 miles since last summer. The plan is to make this a weekly event.

6:00pm

Oakbrook loop @7:05

8:00pm

Oakbrook loop @ 7:01

That's two night runs in a row on a full stomach after dinner. Tough getting started, but each mile gets a little faster as I go.

Happy Running Day!

Worked my way down to 6:26 from 7:26 on the Oakbrook loop.

Avg. 6:52

Tacoma Runners beer run.

John and I went for the run and skipped the beer. I averaged 6:41 just playing follow the leader. That usually makes for a pretty fast run and I don't have to bother memorizing the route since it's different each week. The 2nd mile was 6:25 which is my goal 5k pace. I'm going to give that another shot on Saturday. This week the TR 5k race is on the alternate course because the Sound to Narrows race will be going through Point Defiance. This alternate course is on Ruston Way and is supposed to be flat and fast. That might help shave off the 11 extra seconds I spent on the tougher course last time.

Seattle mom runs down bike thief!

http://www.king5.com/news/cities/seattle/Marathon-Runner-Catches-Thief-210660951.html

8:00am

The race was on the alternate course along Ruston Way this week because the Sound to Narrows race was going through the park at the same time. This is a perfectly flat out and back course and is about as fast as it gets except for the abrupt turnaround. I expected to run even closer to 19 considering the course, but it looks like I have a lot more work to do before I see any 19s on the main course in the park. I'll probably volunteer next week and try again the week after that.

Distance Split pace
1.00 6:21
2.00 6:26
3.00 6:18
3.10 5:52

Easy run with the tri group after 20 miles on the bike.

9:39 avg.

5:00am 6 miles Farwest hill 7:31 avg pace

4:00pm 4 miles with John @ Steilacoom Park 8:59

4:40pm 6 miles around Oakbrook (long way home from park) 7:16

I had my first official swim lesson today. A member of our tri group is a very experienced swimmer/instructor and offered to coach us one a week. It was very encouraging and with some practice I'm sure I'll be able to swim well enough to save myself if I ever fall off a dock or out of a boat. Actually finishing the first leg of a triathlon is still up in the air though.

I was also quick enough on the keyboard Sunday to get registered for the Tunnel Lite marathon on 9/15 so I have some serious training ahead of me. I'm curious to see how all this tri-cross training I have planned will affect my marathon time...

From the Tunnel registration page:

Registration opened on Sunday, June 9 at 7PM Pacific Time for the first 125 spots available, and those spots filled in a matter of 10 minutes.

Registration will open again for another 125 spots on Wednesday, June 12 at 7PM Pacific time, so be ready!

The reason for the two dates is in case the race fills very quickly, runners who weren't able to get online on Sunday evening will have a second chance to register.

5:00am

Farwest and Butte hills @ 7:37

Thinking about swimming the whole time made running seem a lot easier.

5:00pm

Spent some time in the pool. Not fun at all. If running was this hard when I started, I probably would have given up on the first day.

6:00am

Just a quick 4 up Farwest hill and back. 7:20 Yesterday's Thai food kept me from getting out the door soon enough to do more. TMI?

6:30pm

3 with the Tacoma Runners at Cork! 6:46

I hit the pool twice today. Still waiting for it to get easier. I get out of breath within about 25 meters. If I slow down enough to relax so I don't breathe as hard, I sink :(

Tri group. 10 miles on the bike, 5 easy and 5 fast(20+ mph). 3.5 miles easy run @10:20. My legs are toast after 30 hilly miles on the bike and "swimming" yesterday. Looking forward to some more time in the pool today.

I graduated from the kiddie pool today. With some encouragement from the group, I got in the lap pool at the Y and made it all the way across. I had to rest at the other side each time, but I managed to swim about 300 yards all together. I need to go about twice that far without stopping to complete the first leg of a sprint tri in August...

5:00am Shopping cart shuffle.

5 miles out and back on Farwest and Butte hills @7:47. The last mile pushing an abandoned shopping cart back to the store from the park.

5:00am

10 easy miles @8:00, no shopping carts, but I did hurdle a dead cat at mile 6.

My left achilles was really tight for the first mile.

My pool is broken so I can't swim unless I drive to the Y now :( I watched some youtube videos on how to tread water and practiced eggbeaters sitting on the edge of my table yesterday. Does that count as training?

First "long" run in a while. 7:28 avg.

Practiced eggbeaters sitting on the edge of the pool for a while after my run. The heater is still broken and it's way too cold to get in all the way.

6:30am 13 mile bike ride to Point Defiance Park  for the race.

8:00am 3.1 miles @6:34. I just ran a solid effort and never looked at my watch. I didn't expect to break 22 after the hard run yesterday and the bike ride today.

9:00am 13 miles home on the bike. Legs are like Jello now.

10.00am 5 miles around Oakbrook with John @7:27. The last mile was tough @6:54.

7:00am

15 miles on the bike with John and Aimee. This ride ended with an epic crash by me in the driveway. I landed like a ton of bricks on my right hip, definitely going to leave a mark. I was happy to run an easy 10:30 pace after that.

5:00am Easy 10 in sideways rain. My hip stopped aching after about 4 miles. 7:47

Swim lesson was a drag this week. I didn't practice at all between lessons and it showed. I think I actually got worse. I guess it's not much different than running once a week. I never would have got to Boston with a training plan like that. I'm blessed to have an awesome teacher that encourages me to keep at it. More practice this week...

4:30am Light rain, steep hills and heavy legs this morning. 8:08 avg. Last 3 at 7:30

6:00pm 30 min of flailing and gasping for air in the pool...

4:30am

Same rain, same hills, fresh legs. 7:34 avg. Last 3 at 7:00

6:30pm

Tacoma Runners Beer Run - 3.1 in 21:03. There was a big turnout this week for the raffle and a special presentation of some custom made tacoma runners tap handles to the founders of the group. Lots of fun, stayed too late...

Easy run, the long way down to Steilacoom, where I jogged a very hilly and scenic loop trying to figure out a good course for the Tacoma Runners if they decide to visit Topside for a Thursday 3 miler this Summer. Stairs, hills, views, outdoor patio seating, everything needed for a tough run and a great evening. I still need to talk to John and see how he feels about 100 sweaty, thirsty runners showing up all at once. Averaged about 8:10 pace with a couple breaks. 

3.5@10:30 after a bike ride with the tri group.

Starting the month with a day off; not the best way to get cracking on my 200 mile goal this month. Planning to run to the Y in the morning for our swim meet-up at 5:30am. That and a run after work should put me back on track :)

4:30am Nice easy (7:51) run to the Y and a whopping 400 yards of swimming before work. Still can't do 50 without a rest in the middle. Maybe by next week.  

Hills @ 7:40

1:00pm Nice long run in the heat. Avg. 7:31

Long run avg. 7:52

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/337967825

7:40 avg

7:51 avg.

Up Farwest hill and then 4 laps around Gravelly Lake before heading back home. Felt good cardio-wise, calves are not happy. 7:53 avg

8:00am

TR5k Not to bad for a recovery day.

Distance Split pace
1.00 6:19
2.00 6:40
3.00 6:22
3.14 6:51

9:25am

This started out as a cooldown run and ended up a little better than expected. Nice way to end my 3rd 50 mile week :)

Distance Split pace
1.00 8:17
2.00 8:06
3.00 7:43
4.00 7:40
5.00 7:19
6.00 7:07
6.54 6:46

Ran 5 to American Lake park to see Aimee and Keith swim in the Summerfest tri. 7:53

Ran 3.8 from American Lake to Steilacoom Park to see Aimee finish the bike leg and pace her in the run. 7:31

5k @ 11:27 A good strong finish for Aimee, and a nice cooldown run for me that I have had coming since Friday :)

4 in the park with John at 9:35 then 6 at 7:20.

5:00am

10 miles up Farwest and Butte hills. 7:52

3:30pm

10.2 miles around Oakbrook. 7:38

12:30 pm 72 degrees Legs 3/4 Very hard/Easy
12.1 miles 7:14 avg pace, 13 kills
Very hard hilly run. I started right at noon and it was flippin' hot. I pushed myself really hard on this leg thinking I would take it easy on the next one. When I finally finished I had to wait a couple minutes for my runner at the exchange. seriously? Apparently she didn't expect me to run so fast in the heat. It's all good, we're just doing this for fun at this point :) For what it's worth, I managed to keep from getting passed by anyone.

10:00pm 60 degrees Legs 15/16 Hard/Moderate
10.8 miles 6:56 avg pace, 23 kills
This was a fun leg. Although it was brought to my attention that we were now in competition with the Ultra Kuhl Runners, a Tacoma area family ultra team in the Mens Open division. I decided to step up my game a little for this :) It was much cooler and sub 7s actually felt pretty good. It was pitch black outside within a few minutes of my start except for the little red blinkies on each runner. There were a lot of long straightaways where I could see little red bouncing targets in the distance. I did my best to reel them all in. At exchange 15 I set my sights on a fresh runner that got out in front of me and I didn't catch him until about 50 yards short of the next exchange. I was working really hard to catch this guy and we passed a lot of other runners in the process. In the end, I finished ahead of the UKR and still haven't been passed :)

9:00am Legs 27/28 Easy/Very hard
10.5 miles 7:25 avg pace, 18 kills
UKR was slightly ahead of us again so no time for messin' around. There were 2 monster hills on this leg and I passed lots of hill walkers as well as Kimberly from UKR on the second hill. I was so happy to finish my last leg without getting passed and help keep our lead on UKR. Seriously, I was sooo glad it was over... only, it wasn't over...

4:25pm Leg 36 Moderate
4.7 miles 7:07 avg pace, 8 kills
We lost runner #6 during his 2nd leg so I have these 4.7 bonus miles at the end. Eric and I had to split Rob's last double leg. We had also lost our lead on UKR by about 16 minutes. We picked up a few of those minutes by the end of leg 35, but I wasn't quite sure how far ahead of us they were at this point.
With two more hills on this final leg, I was sure I could catch up a little, but how much is enough? It's hot again, and my bowels are acting up, this is not good. I ducked into the POP just a few minutes before I had to run. After taking care of my business I spent my last couple minutes at the exchange encouraging another runner that "it was all downhill from here" or at least the hard part is over at exactly 2 miles in. There was a nice looong 2 mile downhill stretch after the first steep hill and then a little half mile incline to the finish. I ran a couple more sub 7s coming down that hill before I really slowed down. That last half mile was a killer! I felt like I was crawling. The team was waiting for me at the gate when I got near the finish and we all ran through together and were greeted by the Ultra Kuhl Runners who had finished about 2 minutes ahead of us. Lots of hugs and handshakes later it was time for pizza and cold ones before the long drive home.

Thanks to my running teammates: Tracey, Justina, Lesley, Eric and Rob! Volunteers: Kurt, Kristy and especially Rusty who gave me his spot on the team due to his injury. These are some truly awesome people and I can't think of anyone I'd rather spend 30 hours running 200 miles with. I hope I can do it again next year!   

Results are up and we were the only Mixed Masters Ultra team so we won our division and should be getting an award for that soon. I'm not even sure if they do an awards ceremony at the event. None of us had any idea we would collect anything other than our finisher medals and a pizza. It also looks like we were the first Mixed Masters Ultra team to ever complete the Ragnar NWP. I don't know if that will get any recognition or not, but I think it's pretty cool. 

4:30am My back was killing me during this run. I did something bad to it at the trampoline place with the grandsons. 7:58 avg

4:30am My is feeling much better today. Running downhill was almost fun again. 7:37 avg.

4:30am 10.1 miles
My back is feeling much better today. Not 100%, yet, but getting there. 7:47 avg.

6:30pm 3.3 miles
Tacoma Runners Beer Run / Route 69 Team Debriefing. We had a great run and terrible service at Rock the Dock. Good times talking about all the Van antics each of us missed out on  while we were running last weekend! Smokin fast for tired legs. 6:32 avg.

Dang, it's hot out there! 4 laps around Gravelly Lake.  7:48 avg.

8:00am

Nailed it on tired legs! This is a tough course I've been trying to crack 20 on for a while. Mile 2 is a killer. Thanks to all the fast folks that stayed home today :)

Distance Split pace
1.00 6:16
2.00 6:37
3.00 6:23
3.10 5:23

8:00pm

First 7 at 7:23, last 3 at 9:00 with Karina.

6:30pm 10 @ 7:29, then 2.5 with Kym at the highschool track. I'm not allowed to mention the pace for those :)

6:00pm 12 @ 7:10 Farwest & Butte hills, then a loop around Oakbrook.

The first 5 and last 5 were pretty easy. The 10 in the middle, not so much. Average pace: 7:36. 

Two loops around Waughop Lake, one loop around Gravelly Lake, and one loop around Oakbrook. Nice and easy @ 7:44 

Farwest and Butte hills @ 7:51

12@7:52 slow and steady with the usual hills on Farwest and Butte. I also got a bug in my eye during mile 10. It's still there after 3 hours of finger prodding, rubbing, and visine dropping. ugh!

Farwest and Butte hills @ 7:41. no bugs

I planned to run long with Preston today and he had to cancel at the last minute so I took my time and got a late start again. I was in no hurry to finish this run, I just wanted to get in an easy 20+ to meet my mileage goal for the week. I ran a loop around Oakbrook and then headed down through Steilacoom and up Chambers hill to the golf course. I ran the hilly 3 mile golf course loop and then back up through Steilacoom where I ran into Preston dropping his daughter off at church around mile 18. Great timing for him to join me for the last few miles since he was still in his running gear. Those last few miles turned into 7 by the time we went up Steilacoom hill and around the Oakbrook loop. As usual, Preston pushed the pace and my last 4 were the fastest of the day. My best runs are always with this guy!

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:53
2.00 7:45
3.00 7:34
4.00 7:29
5.00 7:30
6.00 7:36
7.00 7:32
8.00 7:25
9.00 7:36
10.00 8:07
11.00 7:57
12.00 7:56
13.00 8:28
14.00 8:05
15.00 7:38
16.00 7:44
17.00 7:53
18.00 8:16
19.00 7:51
20.00 7:28
21.00 7:30
22.00 7:15
23.00 7:08
24.00 7:02
25.00 6:55

Long "recovery" run with Eric and Lesley to the Tides for a veggie burger and a cold one. I took the scenic route via Chambers Bay and Titlow Beach to meet them at the War Memorial Park before heading across the bridge.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/357391205

11 miles exploring the shady roads on Anderson Island and a few more from the ferry dock home. Somehow we came back from camping with more stuff than we left with. 8:02 avg.

Farwest, Butte, Gravelly Lake, Starbucks. 7:44 avg

I ran the first 12 with Preston. About 4 miles in I tripped over something and after 3 or 4 big sloppy steps trying to catch my balance I had to tuck and roll on the concrete to minimize the road rash. Fortunately I have quite a bit of experience with this and came up on my feet and still running. That got the adrenaline flowing and the next few miles were a little quicker than usual for a long run. Overall I was pretty tired today even after taking yesterday off. I felt like I was crawling up Steilacoom hill after leaving Preston and the final loop around Oakbrook was not very focused. I think the increased mileage is catching up to me already. I may need to cut back and work on picking up the pace sooner than I planned.

Distance Split pace
1.00 8:15
2.00 8:11
3.00 7:48
4.00 7:37
5.00 7:36
6.00 7:30
7.00 7:22
8.00 7:15
9.00 7:14
10.00 7:04
11.00 6:57
12.00 6:44
Distance Split pace
1.00 7:58
2.00 8:24
3.00 8:03
4.00 8:09
5.00 7:58
6.00 7:50
7.00 7:48
8.00 7:50
8.51 7:56

6:00am 10 miles along the coast on SR105. 7:33 avg.

5:30pm 10 hot hilly miles at marathon pace! 6:52. My first MP run of this training cycle. I still have a long way to go, but I think I might actually have a shot at sub 3 on a cool downhill morning.

4:30am 10.13 miles

I felt pretty good considering I just ran 10 at MP 11 hours ago. 7:34 avg.

5:30 10.2 miles

On the TM at the Y. A quad busting sweaty 70 minutes @ 6:52(MP) with a slight decline to simulate the marathon course.

5:00am

10 easy miles @7:45 on some tired legs. I definitely fired up the quads last night on the TM. The long run tomorrow should be fun.

4:30am
Oakbrook loop, then up farwest hill around gravelly lake and back with a little detour around waughop lake in the park. 7:55 avg.

8:30am
Not sure what I was thinking after running a 20 miler, but I did this hike with Ryan:
http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mailbox-peak
Needless to say, my legs are toast :)

8:00am Easy 3 miles with Kym at the TR 5k. Not counting this as a race :)

9:00am

10 miles around Oakbrook and up Farwest hill in some new kicks. My tried and true Asics 21xx are not availble anymore :( I thought the pair I had would last through the marathon, but they are in really bad shape after 700+ miles. I ended up buying some brooks yesterday after trying on a bunch of other models and brands. So far, so good. They feel more like my Asics 2170s than the other Asics models did. Sadly they were not any cheaper... $110

7:15 avg pace

2:30pm

5 miles on the TM with a slight decline @ 6:40

4:30am

Too dark to run very fast. I picked a bad route to the Y this morning. No sidewalks or street lights for over half the run. It was worth it to sit in the hot tub for a while, but next time I'll plan it better.

7:29 avg.

6:30pm

5.5 With the Fleet Feet running group. I had to go back to exchange my new shoes and they had a group run going on so I joined them. Extra bonus: A New Balance rep was there to demo shoes and bought the whole group tacos and beers after the run :)

6:59 avg pace.

Had to cut it short. Too slow getting out the door today.

7:31

9:30am

Late start for my last long run. Not a bad pace (7:23) considering the hills and it's already 71° outside. Bring on the taper!

8:00am

I wasn't sure what to expect the day after my long run and at the end of a 300+ mile month. I just did my best to keep up with a young kid who was playing "air drums" through most of the race. I thought I had him as I pulled away on the last incline after the 3 mile mark, then he busted out a sprint that made me feel my age and pulled away from me in the last 100 yards or so. My pace for the last .1 was smokin' fast and earned me a new PR on this course.

6:17, 6:41, 6:14, 4:47

10:00am

Easy 3.3 mile jog to the store for some bananas. 7:35 avg.

Ran the long way around Oakbrook to the Redbox. Hot and windy!

6:41 avg.

Treadmill at the Y after work. 9 at 6:53 with the deck at zero. Then 1 mile at 6:38 with the deck at -2 decline. My HR actually went down during the last mile. Great workout with a tragic ending... during the last few miles all I could think about was getting in the hot tub. I finally made it to the end, hit the shower and headed to the pool area only to find a locked door and "under construction" sign :(

7:00pm 71℉ Progressive 6 miler. Started at 7:15 and worked my way down to 6:23. It didn't seem like I was going that fast on the last few miles. I can't wait to hit that Iron Horse trail on a nice cool morning.

15 soggy miles with the last few at MP.

Avg. 7:27

A quick jog around Oakbrook before my motorcycle ride this morning. First mile easy, then a few at MP.

5:00am

9@7:43 I felt like I could go for days at that pace.

5:00am

The park was so nice this morning. I was tempted to just run back and forth on the main path, but opted for the hills on 112th and Butte instead.

7:27 avg

5:00am  6 miles at MP (6:52)

6:30pm 3.3 miles with Tacoma Runners. I played follow the leader until the guys up front decided to pick it up. I just sped up to MP and let them go during the last mile. Avg. 7:02

I'm feeling good about Sunday!

Jogged a mile to the park and joined my daughter Karina and her boyfriend Ryan on a 3.5 mile charity walk. It was a fun morning in the park and I got to stretch my legs a little.

http://www.lupus.org/action/walk-to-end-lupus-now

We stayed at a cheap motel in North Bend this time and I took the marathon bus to the start, trying to get the full experience. The motel was a dive and the lady working the desk was totally drunk. Even so, it wasn't nearly as scary as the one for Big Sur with the bullet proof glass and the CSI van in the parking lot. This one even had a microwave so I could heat up my morning gas station java bought the night before without bugging the attendant.
Everything about the race was very well organized just like last time. My only complaint about the race is the ugly red shirt :)
The tunnel was extra humid and foggy this time so I was completely drenched within the first 2 miles. My fancy flaming dress shirt was a little heavy being soaked like that, but it served very well to keep me cool through the rest of the race. It was cloudy and 65°-70° through most of the course. I started out in the back of the fast pack. There were about a dozen of us that were a 100 yards or so out front by the time we exited the tunnel. Over the next few miles I ran with a couple guys and their personal bicycle support dude as the rest of the pack pulled away from us. They eventually left me behind too at the mile 8 water station since they didn't need anything. I slowed down just long enough to get two cups of water and continued on at my previous pace, not wasting any energy trying to catch up. I only kept them in sight for another mile or so and then I was on my own without another runner in sight for much of the race. Just before the half I got a wicked side stitch that hung on for about 10 minutes. It had me worried, but passed soon enough with a little direct pressure and some intense focus on my breathing. After a bunch more solitary miles I caught up to the two guys with bicycle support and passed them before the turn-off to Snoqualmie Valley Trail at mile 21. Mile 22 is flat as a pancake and just that little change of decline from about 1% to 0 threw my calves into a fit. I had a sharp pain in my right calf Thursday morning that I convinced myself was just a taper-madness phantom pain, but in the back of my mind I was still worried, especially now. This is also the same place on the course where I started to cramp up last time. I backed off the effort just a little and tried to keep steady. I could feel a constant little twinge, but not enough to affect my stride. At this point I was going completely by feel and didn't even want to look at my garmin. I was just happy to be moving along at what still felt like a respectable pace. In mile 24 I caught up to and passed the leading lady on the course. She looked pretty strong, although she did not seem to be moving very fast at all. I thought she might have been an early starter, but she finished not far behind me with a 3:12. The last two miles felt very long.... My garmin was off by nearly a quarter mile because of the tunnel and all the tree cover on the trail. Each mile it would beep at me and then what seemed like an eternity later I would finally pass the mile marker on the trail. It felt like doing each mile twice.
Any time I had felt good during the first 20 I thought about how I should just keep it steady and then really pick up the pace for the last 6 miles if I had anything left. That turned out to be a good plan even though I had nothing left to speak of by then. It was all I could do to keep on pace and not completely blow up during those last few miles. I'm a little bummed about missing my sub-3 goal, but I know I ran my best and have no regrets about the day. I am also pretty sure that a BQ-17:3327 will get me in so I better start saving for another trip to Boston!

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:10
2.00 6:58
3.00 6:56
4.00 6:51
5.00 6:50
6.00 6:52
7.00 6:55
8.00 7:04
9.00 6:53
10.00 6:58
11.00 7:03
12.00 7:00
13.00 6:48
14.00 7:25
15.00 7:31
16.00 6:07
17.00 7:16
18.00 6:35
19.00 7:02
20.00 6:45
21.00 7:05
22.00 6:33
23.00 7:04
24.00 6:55
25.00 7:16
26.00 6:29
27.00 7:00
27.06 14:07
 

2:00p
I took off from work early so I could get Kym's car in for a tune-up and found myself on foot with an hour to kill. Good thing I was wearing my running gear :)
I did 3 easy miles around the business district in South Tacoma and then had a huge lunch at the Vietnamese place on 38th St.
My quads are a little tight and I'm pretty sure the giant blister on my big toe is going to need some "surgical" attention before the 5k on Saturday. Otherwise, I think all is well.
No garmin, so no pace info today. I had to map out my route after the fact to figure out how far I ran. It felt good to just run easy, but I prefer to know how far and fast I am going at the time.

5:00am

6 easy miles on a perfectly calm, quiet morning. It doesn't get much better than this :)

7:49

4:45am Summer is over. 9 foggy miles produced 10 frozen fingers :( 7:40

6:30pm 3 miles around the Harmon. Ended with a Headless Horseman Pumpkin Ale and a game of giant Jenga.

I jogged a mile to the start / registration table and paid my $5.

9:20am I lined up with what seemed like a couple hundred racers. I didn't expect such a big crowd. The first mile seemed really slow, it was so crowded I couldn't get around anybody so I just cruised along with the masses until it thinned out. After the first mile I started passing a lot of runners especially going up the first hill. After the hill I was pretty winded, but found a good groove and tried to just hang in there until the end. I think I would have had more to work with through the middle of this race if I hadn't gone out so fast. No complaints though, I'm really happy to do so well only 6 days after a marathon.

Jogged home the long way for a 2 mile cool down.

Distance Split pace
1.00 6:06
2.00 6:42
3.00 6:44
3.12 5:14

Course description: http://www.fortsteilacoominvite.com/coursedescription.html

 

3 soggy laps around Oakbrook at an easy pace. 7:52

6:30 pm

3 miles around Titlow Beach area with the Tacoma Runners.

7:03

Hyak to Rattlesnake Lake 20+ miler in the wind and rain with 8 of the craziest runners I know. We saw a few bikers, but no other runners on the trail. Eric and I ran some out and backs shuttling in our last runner just trying to keep warm. Nobody gets left behind.

Feast at North Bend Bar and Grill when it was all over.

11:00am 13 sunny miles around Spokane ending with a soak in the hottub.

7:44

4:30am

10 hilly miles before work.

7:38

6:30pm

Hills and trails at dusk.

7:22 avg.

9:30am

Easy run after sleeping in. It's amazing what a couple extra hours of sleep will do.

7:36 avg.

6:00pm

Easy run down to Topside in Steilacoom for Tacoma Runners Thursday Beer Run. They brought the event out to my neck of the woods this week, so I got to pick the route and lead the run.

6:40pm

3.3 miles through Steilacoom with about 75 runners. It was a great night hanging out with friends! Excellent food and service. John, the owner took good care of us!

I feel like racing tomorrow and can't decide... 5k or 50k?

8:00am

This was my first Ultra and my first actual "trail" race; it could also be my last on both counts. I had no particular goals going into this other than to stay on my feet and finish uninjured. So, mission accomplished on that front. I knew it would be much different than a road race, but I had no idea how different.

The course was 3 laps around a 10 mile "loop" all within Point Defiance park on the trails starting at Owens Beach and climbing to some of the highest points in the park. All of the ascents were runable for the most part, as were most of the descents the first time around. After the first loop, the descents were a lot trickier on tired legs and even got a little scary on the last loop. I would say about 30% of the course was very technical (for a road racer) and one section was so steep that there was actually a rope strung down the hillside for us to rapell the descent! Overall, the race was like a 30 mile muddy rollercoaster ride with over 3900 feet of elevation gain.

It was frustrating to go so slow at first, I felt like I wasn't getting anywhere running 8-9 minute miles. After the first loop I knew I needed to keep it slow and easy to finish strong, but it was so hard to pace myself with all the hills and roots, rocks, etc. not to mention my Garmin readout was all over the place due to the tree cover on the trails. Not far into the 2nd loop I caught up with another runner that I knew was a very strong ultra marathoner and figured it was time to back off before I blew up. I decided to hang back and pace behind him even though it felt slow at times. I knew I would need all the energy I could conserve for that last loop. We chatted off and on for a while and the time passed pretty quickly for a few miles. I finished the second loop right behind him, stopped a little too long for a drink of water and that was the last I saw of him.

I was on my own for the entire 3rd loop except for when 2 runners passed me at the 25 mile aid station and booted me back to 12th place. I was cramping and had tons of dirt and little rocks piled up in both shoes so I stopped there for several minutes to relax and empty my shoes. From there I managed to shake off the cramps, but the steep descents hurt my feet and I just wanted it to be over! This is about the point where a regular marathon would be over and I could not figure out what the heck would posess me to pay money for this experience. I was losing the battle. Normally I would recognize this feeling as the mental place where a race actually starts and push harder(in training, the only miles that even count are the ones you run AFTER you want to quit), today I just wanted to quit. Unfortunately, finishing the race was the fastest way back to my car and I was dangerously close to being late for a class I was leading at my church in the afternoon. Quitting, walking, crawling, none of these were options. I had places to be and people to see. It took all I had, but I managed to keep moving and finished my first Ultra and my 10th marathon.

After the race and my class, I went straight to PLU and met Kym at a work event that went until nearly midnight. I have never been so tired!

6:30pm

It's about time I got off my butt and went for a run. 3 miles around Magoos Annex with Tacoma Runners. The first mile went pretty slow, then the leaders picked it up a bit and did the last 2 around 6:20. The 4 star Thai food I had for lunch made the last mile pretty rough.

Avg 6:51

5:00am Up for coffee and banana after a good night's sleep. Trying to prepare a little better than I did for last week's spur of the moment race. I've been thinking about this one for at least 3 days now :) The race sold out Friday, but I emailed the RD and she agreed to squeeze me in if I showed up early. Other than a little fog, the weather looks perfect this morning, 48°, 2 mph wind, and 1% chance of rain.

The goal today: finish strong and beat last week's time. Steilacoom offers a lot of hills and singletrack, but the hills are not as steep and I am more familiar with this park. I'm sure there will be some surprises, but I spend a lot of time at Steilacoom Park so this should be fun!

This race was fun, as long as you didn't care about everybody actually running the same course. The organizers and volunteers were super nice, but the course marking was really sketchy compared to the Defiance 50k last week. Most of it was marked well enough, but there were several key corners that were not marked well at all. There were so many decision points at intersections it didn't seem like anybody was sure about where they were going on the course. The only volunteers on the course were at the aid stations, nobody was helping at all with directions. There was a group of about 10 runners that missed part of the course on the back side of the park and we all came up a mile short at the end of the first loop. I knew this race was a mistake when the general consenus seemed to be "oh well, everybody missed it so it's all good". I didn't think that sounded so good so I teamed up with another runner that wanted to run the full 50k. We left the rest of that group behind and continued on, keeping a careful lookout for all the tricky corners this time around and our second tour of the park was a little over 10 miles, putting us at 19 and change. The turn we missed before was a 90° left onto a deer trail in tall grass only about 10" wide. There was only one little pinflag marking it. By the last time around, somebody had added another orange tape flag next to it, but it was still easy to miss if you didn't know it was coming.  
About 30 minutes into the 3rd lap we caught up to and passed the group we left behind during the second lap... interesting, I know, right? I think they got ahead of us by skipping that mile on the second loop again. During this last trip around the park my new running buddy faded and I was on my own other than a few marathoners still on the course. Two of these kind souls picked me up when I crashed on one of the singletrack sections and helped me back to my feet. As soon as I went airborn after tripping I tensed up and my right calf cramped up bad before I even hit the ground. Getting up wasn't easy! These runners were so generous and offered me everything short of a piggy back ride to the end :) , water, salt tabs, electrolytes, you name it, they were eager to help another runner. These folks made up for the poor sportsmanship I saw earlier in the race and made me feel a lot better about being out there. Luckily I shook off the cramp in a couple minutes and got back to running. Only a few miles left to go..., sort of. When I finally got near the finish area I was still a mile short from that first loop so I hung a sharp right before I got to the finish chute and headed back toward the lake until the return trip to the finish would give me at least 31.07 on my Garmin. Overall it was a good run. I did the distance and met my goals. I'm a little disappointed since my place and time don't really count for anything. I'm pretty sure a lot of runners went under or maybe even over the distance today and either didn't know or didn't care. That's not really my idea of a race.

FWIW, I'm also pretty sure I got this ultra thing out of my system for a while :)

The 50k was 3 long and 3 short loops: